Made in 2000, bought used for $1,750 from private party The sound is brighter than on most 28 models, probably related to the bracing, but retains the deep, warm, rosewood sound. It is nicley balanced, though, the intonation is spot-on up and down and side to side, and it is easy to fret even with medium guage strings. A 1 3/4" width at nut modified-v neck makes it an unusually nice fingerstyle choice as D models go. Flat-pickers may or may not like the wider neck. Remember that this is a 12-fret slot head guitar, great for solo work. There is nothing I dislike about this guitar, admittedly it's a subjective kind of thing. Very, very good--as on all the VS models I own or have played. Close grained, matched and quartersawn rosewood, fine grained spruce--it's all described elsewhere and many other locations. With all the Herringbone, Zig-Zag back, and Gotoh butterbean tuners it's a classy looking piece of decor as well as a great musical instrument. This is probably not the greatest bluegrass guitar, so be forewarned. But it truly has got a wonderful voice that should improve even more with age and not disappoint with familiarity. Mine is flawless and plays like a dream--by all means a top contender if it's the kind of guitar you're looking for. I'd give this closer to a 4.5 than 4. I've played a lot of guitars in 45 years, this is easily in the top 10 of the best Martin D's I've ever touched. This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com
Wanted to add guitar playing skills to augment bass playing. Picked this one year old guitar (2001 model) up second hand at a local specialty shop - perfect condition(seems like it never came out of the case) for $2,100. This is a vintage reproduction of the original Martin om 28. Indian rosewood back and sides, sitka spruce top, ebony fretboard - impeccable workmanship resulting in excellent tone and playability This particular guitar was perfectly set up with fresh strings allowing you to get a really good feel for tone and playability. Tone is really well balanced. The low end is there, but doesn't boom like a dreadnought. The mids and treble are excellent but the balance between all strings up and down the fretboard is really good The nut is 1 3/4 allowing a little more room for fingerstyle playing - or in my case, ham fisted playing. Neck is in the vintage style with a sharper V radius allowing my thumb to rest against it comfortably but is small enough to disappear in your hand. This box is fun to play because it sounds and feels so good I'm beginning to develop overuse injuries in my elbow and wrist. I like playing this guitar so much I haven't picked up a bass in weeks. Indian Rosewood back and sides and sitka spruce top - waverly tuners, ebony fretboard and scalloped bracing. Workmanship is excellent - it is a Martin. Great little guitar. Reccommend patronizing the smaller independent specialty shops for acoustic instruments. The price may be a little higher at the outset, but the ability to try out guitars that are properly set up will save big in the long run. Equally important is the after sale service which, in my experience, the chains cannot deliver. This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com
