The Acoustic Guitar Forum

Go Back   The Acoustic Guitar Forum > General Acoustic Guitar and Amplification Discussion > General Acoustic Guitar Discussion

Reply
 
Thread Tools
  #16  
Old 09-27-2020, 11:14 PM
J-50Jeff J-50Jeff is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Jul 2011
Location: Coquitlam, BC
Posts: 12
Default

A year ago, my wife gave me a new guitar for my 60th birthday, but I had to pick it out. I set out to get either the Martin 00-18 or the 000-18. Then I tried the Gibson L-00 Standard with a vintage burst and my search was over! I have been very happy with the L-00. It sounds and looks great.
__________________
_______________
1954 Gibson J-50
1999 Taylor 355
2004 Martin LXM
2018 Gibson L-00 Standard
Reply With Quote
  #17  
Old 09-28-2020, 02:36 PM
dspoel dspoel is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Nov 2017
Posts: 221
Default

Checkout the CEO-7. Great volume and sound.
Reply With Quote
  #18  
Old 09-28-2020, 02:41 PM
PeterM PeterM is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Aug 2017
Posts: 313
Default

Make sure you get a 12 fretter. Short or long scale.

You will thank me later
Reply With Quote
  #19  
Old 09-28-2020, 03:58 PM
TDavis's Avatar
TDavis TDavis is offline
Charter Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2017
Location: Missouri, USA
Posts: 1,737
Default

The 00-18 Standard is one of my favorite, if not my favorite Martin guitar in their current catalog. Super comfortable to play, bell-like clarity in the trebles with a lot of the classic "Martin Sound" in the low end. Face it, a 00-body will never generate enough air flow to emulate the roar of a good dreadnought...but the 00-18 is consistently satisfying and a joy to play. No matter what else I have, I'll probably always have a 00-18 laying around.

Last edited by TDavis; 09-28-2020 at 08:17 PM.
Reply With Quote
  #20  
Old 09-28-2020, 04:08 PM
WordMan WordMan is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Aug 2009
Posts: 2,696
Default

An 00-18 is a truly special guitar - it is a great size for all but the biggest volume needs, and sits right in the middle of the spectrum from Parlors up to Dreads/Jumbos. They can go really big, but can handle all the nuanced stuff.

My story is that I recently have been getting to work with a 1944 00-18 and it is comfortably one of the top five guitars I have ever played - and I have played a lot and owned my share of prewars. My oldest acoustic jam friend is a guy that, over the past year, has gone from feeling like a late-50’s has-been, to getting a new job, landing a huge deal and ending up with a nice bonus in this weird time.

He has always looked at my vintage guitar haggles and said One Day. I took the matter in hand, checked a few trusted shops, saw this guitar and knew “That one.” I had my guy put in on hold and called my friend and basically said “Do you trust me?” (There was a healthy return policy; he’s not an idiot ;-)

He got the guitar and, well, yeah. All that. So much more than All That.

But while this is a truly special example, I am left with a clear impression that a great 00-18 could easily be all the guitar you would ever need.

My story and $.02. Best of luck with your research and decision.
__________________
An old Gibson and a couple of old Martins; a couple of homebrew Tele's
Reply With Quote
  #21  
Old 09-28-2020, 04:14 PM
salsarev's Avatar
salsarev salsarev is offline
Charter Member
 
Join Date: Jul 2015
Location: Central Arkansas
Posts: 380
Default

I really appreciate the experiences and the suggestions. Thanks to all of you who have responded.
__________________
Martin 000-28 Ambertone (2020)
and four ukuleles. I don't have a tuba.
Reply With Quote
  #22  
Old 09-28-2020, 04:44 PM
Watt Watt is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Sep 2010
Location: Reston, VA
Posts: 753
Default

My 00-18 is the Tim O'Brien model, long scale and Adirondack top, plus a few cosmetic upgrades. Anyway, it's my do-anything guitar. It's one of those guitars that sound great whether played lightly with bare fingers or aggressively with a pick.
Reply With Quote
  #23  
Old 09-29-2020, 12:59 AM
jgmaute's Avatar
jgmaute jgmaute is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Jun 2008
Location: Colorado
Posts: 1,585
Default

About 10 years back I got a 1953 00-18 off Craigslist in Nashville. Fortunately for me, Scarface is a player so I could afford him. (As I recall I paid about $1500 when ones in good condition from the 50s were going for 3k+.) He's been rode hard and put away wet but is so sweet to play. He's great for strumming, flat picking and finger picking. I use him a lot when I'm teaching, doing open mikes and going to guitar camps (Swannanoa, Rocky Mountain Song School, Moab Folk Camp). He's very light, has amazing action, and just a joy to play. I will say when I want a deeper, almost dreadnought sound I play my '98 00-16DBR which is from Martin's Women and Music series. The deep body and rosewood give it a fuller sound strumming but it still sings when finger picking. I highly recommend the 00-18, especially if you can find one of the older ones. Here are some pictures of Scarface.
Attached Images
File Type: jpg IMG-2781.jpg (16.2 KB, 114 views)
File Type: jpg IMG-2779.jpg (36.5 KB, 113 views)
Reply With Quote
  #24  
Old 09-29-2020, 07:36 AM
opencee opencee is offline
Registered User
 
Join Date: Dec 2004
Location: Left
Posts: 582
Default

Quote:
Originally Posted by nkatsonis View Post
My 00-18 is the Tim O'Brien model, long scale and Adirondack top, plus a few cosmetic upgrades. Anyway, it's my do-anything guitar. It's one of those guitars that sound great whether played lightly with bare fingers or aggressively with a pick.
So, you are one of the lucky 100 owners of that model. Cool!

I've played many 00-18 Martins of every era, but unfortunately never the Tim O'Brien signature model.

I bought a brand new Custom Shop 00-18 at a dealer about six years ago. This was just before Martin released the new reimagined 00-18. It has many of the important sonic features of the O'Brien: 1/4" scalloped GE bracing, Adirondack top, longer 25.4" scale, 1 3/4" width at the nut, plus a 1/2" deeper body.

For this bare-fingered picker who tunes in lower open tunings, this guitar provides all the power, volume, and tone I could hope for in a small and responsive package.

After I bought it, I got rid of three guitars. I'm down to keeping three, but this little CS 00-18 gets about 95% of my playing time. I'm done buying guitars.

.
Reply With Quote
Reply

  The Acoustic Guitar Forum > General Acoustic Guitar and Amplification Discussion > General Acoustic Guitar Discussion

Thread Tools





All times are GMT -6. The time now is 04:56 AM.


Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.11
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions Inc.
Copyright ©2000 - 2022, The Acoustic Guitar Forum
vB Ad Management by =RedTyger=