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  #16  
Old 12-17-2009, 10:29 AM
K III K III is offline
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Originally Posted by Yamaha Junkie View Post
I'm sure Larry enjoyed the paycheck
He deserved it, but it took two years and that shows that it's a Larry museum piece rather than a Martin. Just my 2 cents. Love Martins.

All the other milestone guitars (the even hundred thousand numbered guitars) throughout the factory are great guitars. Anyone know what the 1,100,000 is? I am sure Rich does
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  #17  
Old 12-17-2009, 10:30 AM
Howard Emerson Howard Emerson is offline
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Originally Posted by HD18JBGuy View Post
If it does play and is built to the same standards as the D-100 with extra inlay work (not that a D-100 needs it), then I am OK with it and you can strike the above paragraph.
Striken, stricken, struck, et al.

:-)

HE
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  #18  
Old 12-17-2009, 10:33 AM
HD18JBGuy HD18JBGuy is offline
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Striken, stricken, struck, et al.

:-)

HE
Thanks for the clarification HE!
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  #19  
Old 12-17-2009, 12:27 PM
Howard Emerson Howard Emerson is offline
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Thanks for the clarification HE!
Having once been a CF Martin clinician I got to play some of their fancy pieces at the factory.

They're all playable, of course, although there was this one that I was handed that was s/n 600,000 (I think) with an Asian motif. Beautiful work, especially on the tuning keys.

In any case..........They were not paying attention to the humidity level in the display room and the fret ends were sticking out, the top was sunk down, the strings were slapping............I was a little surprised...........

Hey, it wasn't my guitar.

HE
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  #20  
Old 12-17-2009, 12:29 PM
banpreso banpreso is offline
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It's great for marketing, that's why they did it, and that's why we're talking about it now. I'm actually kindda glad they went over the top with it. Just to show what's possible when money's no issue.

I don't know if you guys have seen the ryan guitar inlaid by larry robinson. There were a lot of heavily and beautifully inlaid guitars at healdsburg, and I enjoyed looking at them. I probably wouldn't want to own one.
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  #21  
Old 12-17-2009, 01:50 PM
banpreso banpreso is offline
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It's great for marketing, that's why they did it, and that's why we're talking about it now. I'm actually kindda glad they went over the top with it. Just to show what's possible when money's no issue.

I don't know if you guys have seen the ryan guitar inlaid by larry robinson. There were a lot of heavily and beautifully inlaid guitars at healdsburg, and I enjoyed looking at them. I probably wouldn't want to own one.
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  #22  
Old 12-17-2009, 03:53 PM
NoPicks NoPicks is offline
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Never cared for the inlay design on # One Million myself, although I certainly understand why they took it in such an 'antique' direction. Just too busy and over-the-top in a typically Victorian way, for my taste

For my 2¢ worth, the design of #750,000 is far superior from an aesthetic perspective, especially the back. Rich, but not too rich, if you know what I mean

Since we're on the subject, IMHO the first proposal for the fretboard of #750,000 was better than the design eventually used. My only big question is: what does the calligraphy actually say?
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  #23  
Old 12-17-2009, 04:01 PM
K III K III is offline
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But on 750k the same question: Why the heck would you need a peacock on a guitar, rather than a truly exceptional piece of wood? No one would ever inlay a peacock that size into a back of 'the tree', right?
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  #24  
Old 12-17-2009, 04:13 PM
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But on 750k the same question: Why the heck would you need a peacock on a guitar, rather than a truly exceptional piece of wood? No one would ever inlay a peacock that size into a back of 'the tree', right?
Point taken

IMO what all of these "milestone" guitars are about is more a matter of Art Object than anything else. Playability is strictly incidental, and the decoration is the major focus. It brings to mind a parallel example from the world of tool collecting - fancy plough planes that were made as commemorative pieces and never meant to be actually used

Something that is (in theory) fully functional, but meant to be displayed only and never actually used
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  #25  
Old 12-17-2009, 04:53 PM
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What would it say if a commemorative guitar sounded better than the million that came before it? As I see it, the point is not to build a musically special guitar (which would essentially diminish all the others) but a commemorative piece intended as a symbol more than a reflection of the usual product.

The purpose of a commemorative anything is to draw special attention. One more nice Martin wouldn't really do that in the same way. While we knowledgeable guitar lovers may prefer a functionally superb but cosmetically less lavish instrument, the press, book buyers, walk-in customers in the shops it visited, and others are drawn by the spectacle of the millionth Martin.
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