The Junior Series instruments are slightly smaller than their full-size counterparts. We make a style and a Dreadnought style. The Junior Series was designed to be comfortable and easy to play so Juniors are the perfect first guitar. They even include some full-sized Martin features like scalloped X-bracing. The Junior Series also has contoured back so it sits very comfortably against your body and they include our high-performance tapered neck, which is more slim and shallow, making it super easy to play, even if you have smaller hands.
Shop Juniors Here. They are super durable, and we make X Series models in a variety of sizes and styles from 0 the smallest body size to Dreadnought the largest. Some have HPL tops, and some have solid wood tops. And quite a few include a cutaway to reach those high notes for aspiring shredders. And we offer a variety of high-resolution wood patterned HPL so you can pick the look you like best. Another cool thing about the X Series is that they all include electronics so you will be ready to plug in to record or play live on stage once you master a few chords!
Shop X Series Here. We make a variety of sizes and styles, include the revolutionary SCE shown here which really has it all for beginners that want to grow into their first Martin. All Road Series models include solid wood construction, advanced electronics, and elegant appointments. It does have a bit of a darker sound, which is great for fingerpicking, but may not be the best choice for someone into percussive strumming. The body is composed of Koa-grained HPL.
A dense tropical hardwood, Koa results in a brighter sound with emphasis on the midrange and high-end. This makes these little guitars sound much bigger than they are! The Little Martin also plays great, thanks to a stratabond neck with a rosewood fretboard. In fact, as an owner of an earlier version of this guitar, I can say that I actually find myself playing it more than my much more expensive Martin !
Its smaller size and easy playability is perfect for someone just starting out, especially younger people. I liked it so much I put a pickup in it so I could gig with it too!
The back and sides are made of mahogany pattern HPL textured finish, while the top is solid sitka spruce. The neck of the LX1E is different, as well. The biggest difference, though, between the first Little Martin we looked at and the LX1E is the addition of electronics. Martin employs a Fishman Sonitone pickup to amplify this little beast. Fishman is pretty much the standard in acoustic pickups, and they sound great in Martins of all shapes and sizes.
The LX1E Little Martin would make a great guitar for those who enjoy the portability of the Little Martin series and want to be able to play it live as well as around the house. Check out our guide on the Best Guitars for Small Hands. The D is probably the most famous model of Martin guitars.
The current D model uses solid East Indian rosewood for its back and sides, with a solid Sitka spruce top. This is a classic combination of tonewoods that offers huge projection and precise clarity.
A forward-shifted bracing pattern is optimized for soundboard vibration. The solid hardwood neck is topped by an Ebony fingerboard with mother-of-pearl dot inlays. A modern neck profile offers improved comfort and playability. The D also comes equipped with top vintage appointments like open-geared tuners, antique white binding, aged toner top and a faux tortoise pickguard.
Simply put, this is a very nice guitar. Either way, a D is a sound investment that will always be in style. Martin packed a lot of quality features in this guitar. The top is also braced with Sitka spruce in a scalloped X-bracing pattern. The natural birch laminate neck features a high performance taper for ultra comfort. The fingerboard is made of FSC certified Richlite for easy playability. This system features a preamp mounted underneath the soundhole for easy access to tone and volume controls.
As an added bonus, the guitar comes set up with Martin Lifespan strings. Its cutaway design makes it easy to play standing up or sitting down, and the Fishman electronics ensure quality sound when plugged in. Built in the classic dreadnought style, the DRS1 offers several of the great tones and features of a D, at a lighter price point.
Its top, back and sides are constructed with sapele, a warm tonewood similar to mahogany but with a little bit more high end. The neck features a modified low-oval profile for a really smooth feel.
A natural oil finish is applied to the Black Richlite fingerboard, making playability a breeze. For this guitar, Martin employs the Fishman Sonitone undersaddle pickup. These pickups are great for live use because they are known for cutting through the mix and limiting feedback.
It also comes with a hardshell case. The Martin Road Series DRS1 would make a great choice for gigging guitarists looking for a solid, traditional dreadnought acoustic-electric to take out on the road. From the start, this guitar cuts no corners. This guitar encompasses everything you would expect in a great sounding acoustic guitar. A close second was the Martin D18, if you prefer the warmer sound of Mahogany.
Essentially they are both the same guitar with different woods used on the back and sides. For more information on choosing a Martin guitar continue reading our guide that follows.
Martin invented the Dreadnought shape and it shows in how balanced the Martin guitars sound. For our picks we chose the Dreadnought shape because it is what Martin is know for and we preferred the sound and shape. There are those that prefer the rounded shape of the performance series and the models. You can easily covert the dreadnought shape to the other shapes if those are more to your taste. There are a variety of woods used in Martin guitars, but for the most part they stick with Mahogany or Rosewood for the back and sides on their traditional models.
They have also introduced the Siris wood as a new alternative, and of source they have all the usual layered or laminate woods that can be used as well. So the question becomes do you want your bracing scalloped or not scalloped. A specific example of this would be the D28 vs HD28, even though some of the appointments are different, the primary and distinguishing difference is whether the bracing is scalloped HD28 or not scalloped D This provides a more responsive guitar top.
For the Models we've recommended the Nut will with be bone or Corian and the Saddle will be either bone or Tusq. Martin like most premium guitars come at a cost. The use of the new environment friendly materials are helping lower the cost, but to get that rich solid would tone that is so popular and has made Martin famous, you will be spending a minimum of dollars for your guitar if you're getting a new Martin.
In the last round of tests we found the X series guitars to have been greatly impr oved. Martin's top of the line models typically don't have electronics but you can have them added in the aftermarket or order the variation of the model that comes with electronics.
While its not stated anywhere our belief is Martin try's to honor the tradition of the instruments tone by not putting electronics in their standard models to avoid compromising the tone. As for cutaway design, we aren't big fans of how the Martin cutaway looks on the traditional Dreadnought shape, If you wanted a cutaway design with a Martin we would likely steer you to the performance series.
With competitors like Taylor making electronics almost and expectation, our prediction is that the Electronic models of Martin will continue to grow in popularity. Recap for Martin Acoustic Guitars. Martin HD Martin D All Wood Entry Level. Martin DX2E. Environment Freindly.
Best Sound Hole Pickups. Best Acoustic Guitar Strings. By James Wall. Let's take a look at some our favorites of the Martin guitar line:. The material that your bridge is made from will also affect the tone of your guitar, with mahogany or rosewood bridges sounding a little warmer.
That being said, this is definitely one for the nerds out there - with the difference being pretty minimal. Like most guitar-related items, the quality of hardware on your guitar will improve as you creep up the price brackets. Once you have chosen the right body size and woods for you, you'll need to think about pickups. An acoustic guitar pickup can work in a few different ways, with the most popular pickups being under-saddle piezo pickups. Unfortunately, a cheap one can sound quite brittle and spiky, as the pickup is detecting vibrations where the string tension is at its tightest.
Another pickup type is the magnetic soundhole pickup. They work exactly the same as an electric guitar pickup, in the way that they create a magnetic field which captures the vibrations of the strings, and then pass those through to the output jack and into your amp. Some are active, too - meaning the output is higher and your tone will pop even more. If you use percussive techniques in your playing, then these pickups can be a great choice - as they can be fixed anywhere on or inside the body of your acoustic guitar, picking up more vibrations than other types of pickups.
You may not know if you'll ever want to plug into an acoustic amp or even PA speakers, and, of course, you could always have a pickup installed at a later date. As they say, it's better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it! If you want to, you can spend tens of thousands on one of the best acoustic guitars - but that is in no way necessary.
These guitars feature endangered woods, incredible build quality and gargantuan tones, among other things. Concerned about buying an acoustic guitar online without trying it first?
MusicRadar The No. Included in this guide: 1. Image 1 of 4. Image 2 of 4. Image 3 of 4. Image 4 of 4. Type: Dreadnought. Top: Solid Mahogany. Neck: Mahogany. Scale: Fingerboard: Rosewood. Tuners: Chrome Die-Cast. Left-handed: Yes. Finish: Gloss. Reasons to avoid - Looks may put some off.
Image 1 of 3. Image 2 of 3. Image 3 of 3. Fender Newporter Player. Type: Grand Auditorium. Top: Solid spruce. Fingerboard: Walnut. Tuners: Sealed nickel. Reasons to avoid - Fender acoustics not very traditional. Type: Parlour. Top: Solid Spruce. Neck: Silver Leaf Maple. Tuners: Open-gear antique brass. Left-handed: No. Finish: Semi-Gloss Patina.
Reasons to avoid - If you have massive hands your thumbs might get in the way. Image 1 of 2. Image 2 of 2. Epiphone J EC Studio. The best acoustic guitar on a budget for plugged-in performance. Type: Jumbo. Neck: Hard maple. Fingerboard: Pau ferro. Tuners: Grover Rotomatic Reasons to avoid - The large size isn't for everyone.
Type: Mini Grand Symphony.
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