Martin Counterpunches

[IndyHD28]

Martin emphatically reclaims the role of industry leading innovator with a new line called Martin Modern Deluxe. Combining the best of new tech and old, Martin reclaims it’s role as an innovator in today’s guitar industry. In an in depth interview with Guitar Center, Fred Greene, VP of Product Development says of the new guitars,

“They’re really special and it’s real technology. It’s not just moving a couple of sticks around and calling it innovation.”

https://www.guitarcenter.com/riffs/i...th-fred-greene

Musician’s Friend was first to UTube with brief videos of the D-18, D-28, 000-28 and OM-28.
https://youtu.be/tj6OT1wKZxI

[Aaron Smith]

Other than the liquid metal bridge pins, which can be used on any guitar, every one of those "innovations" has been in use for at least 20 years.

That said, I'm sure they are very nice guitars. I would like to play one to see if the differences are meaningful.

[llew]

So is there a OM-28 Modern Deluxe in your future?

[Steadfastly]

It is just more hype marketing. They want us to believe guitars are akin to rocket science.

[IndyHD28]

Originally Posted by llew

So is there a OM-28 Modern Deluxe in your future?

Don’t know but, the deals I’m working on now really center on CS builds with non-standard woods. Not a great fan of EIRW but maybe playing one of these will change my mind.

[kcnbys]

Originally Posted by Aaron Smith

Other than the liquid metal bridge pins, which can be used on any guitar, every one of those "innovations" has been in use for at least 20 years.

That said, I'm sure they are very nice guitars. I would like to play one to see if the differences are meaningful.

Exactly what I thought when reading the article. Seems to be a stretch to call this new Martin series "innovation". Maybe "souped up" is a better way to describe it? I do like the pearl headstock logo.

[Tony Burns]

Its like new car marketing - better speakers , fancier dash , some glitter etc.
Mind set -keeps us buying stuff we dont need but want

I say old is better ( with guitars )- give me something with age and personality -plus being more hand made -makes my boat float.
I don't know how anyone can convince me a new Martin is better than my '06 OM28v -its actually the opposite .

[merlin666]

Originally Posted by Aaron Smith

Other than the liquid metal bridge pins, which can be used on any guitar, every one of those "innovations" has been in use for at least 20 years.

That said, I'm sure they are very nice guitars. I would like to play one to see if the differences are meaningful.

Indeed, Ovation had many of these as standard features decades ago. Still it's a neat idea, but I expect they will ask an unreasonable surcharge on top their already way inflated base prices.

The spruce that we use on the top of the guitar is a Sitka top, but it’s treated through our VTS (Vintage Tone System). It’s our way of using torrefaction (thermochemical treatment of wood at very high temperatures in a vacuum) to give a guitar that really old vintage sound. So we’re combining an Adirondack brace with a VTS top. There’s a traditional, old-vibe feel to the way each Modern Deluxe guitar sounds.

A 1937 Martin is the pinnacle high point that people point to from a tonal standpoint. Everything gets measured against that guitar. If you have a great Dreadnought or an OM or a Triple O, it’s usually a guitar from Martin within that '30s time frame. Those are the champions. So that’s our benchmark. Our goal was to try to make a guitar that sounded as good, and hopefully better, than those old guitars, but gave you all the modern reliability and function that new materials provide.

Now this statement really gets me, and they have spooing this for years for their authentics. Now I agree with the vintage concept - that there are various periods of guitar building that produced different sounding and playing guitars, and even that some of these may have been better than others. But unfortunately, there are not many if any people alive who can tell us what a new guitar sounded like in the 30s or even 40s, and the recordings from that time are of poor quality. But even if we take it at face-value that guitars from that period were superior, I strongly suggest that any aging/use/"opening-up" modifies and obliterates these unique vintage characteristics. What I want in a vintage guitar copy is the real thing that sounds like a NEW one sounded then, and that was not overwritten and modified by a random aging/use process. So that Martin puts these torrified VTS tops on that are supposed to just do that is beyond my comprehension as it totally devalues the concept of vintage for me.

[nitram]

The folks in marketing are doing their marketing "thing". What else can they do?

[6L6]

1 3/4" nut is a deal killer for me.

[ataylor]

I liked how Martin had streamlined its catalog by essentiallly paring everything in its iconic styles and shapes down to the standard series and the authentic series. This seems like a step backward in that regard.

I get it — they want to lean on the heritage of their classics to sell these new guitars. I’d have rather seen these introduced as either a refresh to a different series — maybe 16, though those got changes recent enough — or a new series altogether with different model names.

And I realize this is a bit of a double-standard — we have no issue with Taylor refreshing different series steps with subtle to sweeping changes, but to me there’s something different about retaining the heritage of iconic models that have been around about a century.

It feels a bit Gibson to me — like how they’ll have at least half a dozen different J-45 models out at any given time, sometimes with trim or woods or such that move the guitar a fair distance from what a J-45 is or should be.

I dunno. My mind could be changed. I’m sure they’re great guitars. Just seems like adding noise and complexity back into their product lineup.

[fazool]

Originally Posted by IndyHD28

Martin emphatically reclaims the role of industry leading innovator with a new line called Martin Modern Deluxe. Combining the best of new tech and old, Martin reclaims it’s role as an innovator in today’s guitar industry. ...

OK, first you can't emphatically reclaim the role of industry leading innovator. The only way to reclaim the lead is to take the lead. That's like saying you enthusiastically become the favorite flavor when you release a new flavor.

To be a leader, you need to be in the lead. To be in the lead you need a metric to measure against. How do you *KNOW* you are the leader? The quality of being innovative is purely subjective - there is no measure. How many patents? Many little patents versus one huge patent? How many new products? New product variations?

You cannot measure innovative-ness. It is subjective. You cannot "reclaim" leadership. Everyone can subjectively agree you are the most innovative but you cannot reclaim it.

I really admire the Martin company but this is obviously their marketing efforts to counter Taylors V-class bracing that got a lot of discussion (and claims of game-changing innovation).

I hate how marketing hype is presented as factual news.

Now, if the article would have said "data shows Martin has released more new innovations and industry recognized inventions" then it would be news.

Right now it's a commercial.

And not a very good one, at that.

[DownUpDave]

I just hope they drastically reduce the price on all the crappy "Reimagined" models. I really like the sound of the old, obsolete, inferior 2018 D-18 I played.

Apparently some other guitar company that "moved around a few sticks" got Martins attention. I have been in sales for decades ( please dont hold that against me) and understand that if you don't have something to talk about you feel forgotten and left behind

[llew]

Carbon fiber bridge plate is interesting to me at least?

[brencat]

Martin marketing speak aside, this article really peaked my interest for a couple reasons:

1. The OM-45 Deluxe neck profile. I've heard a few people lucky enough to try the old timer rave about this neck profile and now we'll all get to enjoy this mostly C shaped asymmetrical neck. It's got to be better than anything Martin is currently making (at least I hope it is, because I hate most Martin necks).

2. VTS Sitka + Adi bracing. I don't care for most Martin Adi tops. They always play stiff and make the guitar sound constipated. However, I've loved almost every VTS Sitka guitar variant I've played... HD-28 VTS, OM-28 VTS, etc. Martin Sitka is very good.

3. Titanium Truss rod. I like the idea of 65% less weight while still offering adjustable relief. Martin Authentics are nice, but I find too many of them have too much relief. I like my necks almost dead straight (< 0.005"), they just play easier that way.

4. The pearl Martin logo is a "leave it" for me on a style 18 or 28, but should be standard on Style 40+. I hate the vertical CF Martin logo and would like to see the script pearl logo of this Modern Deluxe series become the Style 40+ standard.