New Martin SC Models out

[JackB1]

https://www.martinguitar.com/body-sc.html

I'm kind of underwhelmed. I have a SC13e and love it, but $1999 for a Sunburst with a Element pickup and veneer back and sides???
$1799 for a SC13 Special with Zircotte veneer instead of Koa veneer?
Also...is the Baggs Element really a huge upgrade over the Sonicore?
People were complaining about the original SC13e being $1500 for a guitar that's not all solid woods. Well now you can get a $2000 guitar without all solid woods. Huh?

[madhat]

and made in Mexico... smart business for Martin. $$$

madhat.

[Skarsaune]

Same here. $2G is a little steep for a veneer guitar.

[Shadowfox]

The biggest miss is not offering a S28, or something like that in Rosewood. Especially when you can go across to the rival brand and Get an American Dream guitar of all solid build.

Maybe Furch will make some headway here since they got rid of any laminate build in the lineup.

[llew]

***YAWN***

[lowrider]

Yeah Jack, I'm pretty disappointed in Martin with this one. The Element isn't much of an upgrade to the Mx-T. If I wanted one, I'd just get the SC-10 and plan on ugrading the pickup before I played my first note!

[OddManOut]

Originally Posted by Skarsaune

Same here. $2G is a little steep for a veneer guitar.

Agreed 100%. It seems insane...

[sinistral]

A couple of observations. First, both Taylor and Martin released new products on roughly the same day. If you look at the Taylor offerings, they are on the Martin-esque side, with non-cutaway bodies and an attempt at warmer and/or vintage tones. In one of the video reviews posted in another thread, the reviewer refers to the all-mahogany Taylor as a 00- (or 000-)15. On the other hand, Martin’s offerings are the opposite—they are more Taylor-esque, going after the modern style, acoustic-electric market. The “stub” cutaway seems almost a deliberate attempt to create a look that isn’t “Florentine” or “Venetian.” As it is, Martin’s GPC guitars look like Taylor copies. Not sure which company, if either, is taking more market share from the other, but that’s how I see the different offerings.

As it relates to Martin specifically, they seem to be in a tricky spot. At the high end, which is generally the traditional end of Martin’s product line, Martin faces competition from boutique builders (e.g., Collings, SCGC, Pre-War, etc.). Martin answers this competition with Authentic, Vintage or Custom offerings. But the mass market seems to be enamored with the feel of electric guitars, so Martin tries to appease these preferences with modified low-oval necks, or performance tapers, etc. And at the opposite extreme of the traditionalists, they are competing with Taylor with cutaway acoustic electrics.

Taken as a whole, it’s like to old adage—you can please some of the people some of the time, but you can’t please all of the people all of the time. It seems that Gibson has shrunk itself so much that no one seems to care what it does to stay competitive.

[Bob from Brooklyn]

You'd be much better served getting a 15 series.

[BradleyS]

Originally Posted by Brooklyn Bob

You'd be much better served getting a 15 series.

I agree. Not impressed by the video.

[SpruceTop]

I was hoping for an all-solid-wood, American-made addition to the lineup! Perhaps, the LR Baggs Element could be thought of by some as an improvement over the originally installed Fishman pickup?

[JackB1]

Originally Posted by SpruceTop

I was hoping for an all-solid-wood, American-made addition to the lineup! Perhaps, the LR Baggs Element could be thought of by some as an improvement over the originally installed Fishman pickup?

Yes it's an upgrade, but barely worth noting.

[lowrider]

One other thing; I don't see any of these new models to be an upgrade from the original SC-13e. The SC-10 is less expensive but none of these expands the line any. They all just take sales from the original. It's like offering MartinX models with different HPL patterns. Nobody is looking at this morning's email and saying ''Wow, I was on the fence about the SC-13, but now I've just got to get one!''.

[JackB1]

Originally Posted by lowrider

One other thing; I don't see any of these new models to be an upgrade from the original SC-13e. The SC-10 is less expensive but none of these expands the line any. They all just take sales from the original. It's like offering MartinX models with different HPL patterns. Nobody is looking at this morning's email and saying ''Wow, I was on the fence about the SC-13, but now I've just got to get one!''.

Exactly how I felt. However, it shows that the initial launch of the SC13e did well enough to warrant expanding the line, which is good news. I do like the sunburst model a lot, but not for $500 more.

[L20A]

This new offering makes my GPC look like the deal of the year.
https://www.guitarcenter.com/Martin/...tric-Guitar.gc