Where can I find a Maton guitar?

[Oahu]

Not that I am going to betray my Taylor loyalties, but I would love to try one out. They're Australian, but I am hoping there are some dealerships in the US. St. Louis, Louisville, Memphis, Nashville, Indianapolis, that area.

Thanks.

[koaguitarman]

Oahu, Here are two dealers that carry Maton Guitars.

Acoustic Planet
2230 Dundee Road
Louisville, KY 40205
Ph: 452-458-1508

Broadway Sound
2830 Broadway N.E.
Knoxville, TN 37917
Ph 865 637 1644
Fax: 865 637 1699

Later,
Russ

[koaguitarman]

PS - Here is a link to the Distributor in USA:

http://www.americanmusicimporters.com/DealerList.html

Russ

[Jeff M]

Australia.

Never tried one myself. Heard reviews from those who loved them and others who felt they were, well, not worth the time. Tommy Emmanuel has certainly boosted their exposure.


I have no shortage of builders getting great reviews that I want to try out. Maton hasn't made it onto my "got to try" list at this time.

[dcn100]

Even though they are not available for sale around here (to my knowledge), I have played two Matons. One, a pal brought back with him from a trip to Australia. The other belongs to a member of Spearhead, who are very popular in Australia, and who are sponsored by Maton.

Anyway, both guitars played nicely and sounded good. But I think from a product position standpoint, they are more on the level of Takamine, not Taylor.

[ttchen]

I purchased a Maton EBG 808 from Haworth Guitars in Australia. Phil, the owner is a great guy to work with. With the exchange rate, I got a much better deal from him than what I would have paid here in the US.
Tim

[Taylor007]

Where can you find a Maton?
...in Jack Johnson or Ben Harper's hands.

[arteye]

Also Tommy Emmanuel plays a Maton . I've never heard of this shop in Louisville that sells Matons and I've been to ever guitar store in Louisville.

[rhudson]

I have played Tommy's guitar. He has a very close setup on his guitar. So close that it buzzes a little, but that's the way he wants it. I was impressed with his guitar plugged in, but unplugged, I thought it lacked a lot. There is certainly no shortage of respect on my part for Tommy's playing. He is awesome. Great entertainer.

Another thing about Tommy is his loyalty to his home country, Australia. As you know, Maton is an Australian made guitar, and Tommy simply will not entertain any thoughts of playing anyone else's guitar. He told me that Maton does not pay him to play their guitars, but they do furnish him personally with guitars.

2 or 3 years ago, Tommy brought 3 young men from Australia with him to the CAAS. They were all playing Maton guitars. Tommy made it very public that Maton paid all of the expenses for these young men to come to Nashville. So, in a sense, I guess Tommy does indirectly get paid because, he is kinda like E.F. Hutton to Maton, when Tommy talks, they listen.

Just in case you might be interested, here is some great footage of Tommy. http://www.woodsongs.com/showlist.asp. Scroll down to Tommy Emmanuel and click video. It is rather lengthy, and you can't fast forward until everything is FULLY loaded, and there is a rather long and lengthy intro at first; but it is worth the wait. Showcases Tommy's amazing playing as well as his humor and his joy of doing what he does.

Regards,

[arteye]

Tommy is, what I precieve as the greatest fingerstyle guitar player/entertainer I have seen hands down. He just connects. He feels every note and he passes that on to the crowd as well. You can almost feel the top of his guitar vibrate from were you are sitting. He just knows how to comand the notes and the intensity and subtleness of his playing. He is VERY funny too - great stories for hours!

By the way Richard - Here in Kentucky next month (in Feb.) a concert promoter here in KY is putting on what is called Tommy Fest which will be 2 concert nights of Tommy with special guest and I think (but I am not certain) that Tommy will be doing some workshops as well. I know I will be there!

[kkrauss]

Originally posted by ttchen
I purchased a Maton EBG 808 from Haworth Guitars in Australia. Phil, the owner is a great guy to work with. With the exchange rate, I got a much better deal from him than what I would have paid here in the US.
Tim

Me too. Phil is great to deal with, and that's who I would recommend as well. I'm very fond of mine, although it is a "polite" guitar acoustically compared to some -- but volume isn't everything in the tone department. I've gotten several others in the used market. If you want to hear Matons, get a copy of Tommy's CD, "Only."

Originally posted by rhudson
As you know, Maton is an Australian made guitar, and Tommy simply will not entertain any thoughts of playing anyone else's guitar.

Actually, he did. I follow the Tommy Emmanuel Yahoo group from time to time, and some time ago his manager announced that he was working closely with Larrivee to come up with a signature model that he would take on the road. They were trying to work on details of body style and electronics. She acknowledged that regardless, Tommy can play whatever he wants, and plays the ones he likes. Probably three years have passed now, and he's still exclusively touring with Matons, which can only mean Larrivee couldn't come up with anything he liked better.

He does like a wide variety of quality guitars, and he discusses them in a short video on his web site. It looks like there's a sunburst Gibby on a stand behind him in the video. He generally plays electric on a Telecaster (his brother Phil plays Maton electrics.)

Matons are certainly a lot more "rustic" than Taylors, for sure. But they make a fine guitar that is different from the rest of the pack. Pricing on Matons from U.S. dealers is pretty much rediculous. There's a U.S. dealer trying to sell Matons on eBay at prices that approach the cost of a Goodall or Collings. While I really love my Matons, there's no comparison when you're up with those guys. A local San Diego shop just got their first Maton, the M325 model, which is a laminate one notch up from the bottom rung. They're asking a price that I would probably pay for a new 714. I had to break the news to them that it wasn't solid wood. I think import tarriffs make pricing difficult for dealers in the U.S.

-Kent

[arteye]

Also - wanted to correct Koaguitarman's posting about Acoustic Planet - there is no 452 area code in Louisville it would be Ph: 502-458-1508

[SteveS]

A dealer in Temecula has them. I was excited to play them because I am a big Tommy Emmanuel fan. I have played about 20 Matons. The ones I've played make low end Taks, Wasburns and Ovations sound very, very good.

[rhudson]

I guess I should clarify somewhat about what I said about Tommy not playing anything but a Maton. I am aware that he owns several guitars, and all of them are not Matons, but I personally have never seen him play anthing but a Maton in public. There again, I haven't witnessed every public appearance he has ever made. Well, I take that back, because I saw him play the commemorative guitar for Chet that Gibson built, but it was just in a tribute set to Chet, and I certainly didn't take it as an endorsement for Gibson guitars.

Quite frankly, I am surprised that no one has come up with a deal good enough to sway Tommy away from Maton. He is arguably the most recognized fingerstylist going nowadays, and that would be quite an endorsement for somebody; but, I still think the loyalty thing to his home country runs pretty deep with him, plus he appears to be very happy with the Maton he plays. Whatever floats your boat.

Thanks,

[rgregg48]

You deserve a Maton,
buy one today
Rick
dont forget to sniff the sound hole!