NGD: Recording King RD318 (and Martin X series rant)

[Anonymous human]

Hey all! After much research and thinking I made the choice to pull the trigger on a Recording King RD318! I was in the market to upgrade to an all solid wood dread, and I was going to get an Eastman one day. But after some digging around the web, I stumbled upon Recording King. For the price, it almost seemed too good to be true. This guitar is made with solid aged Adi and Mhog, forward shifted x bracing, solid one piece Mhog neck, classic bean open gear tuners, Rosewood fingerboard, and one heck of a classy look. I decided to sell my Martin X series dread, and with the money I had saved up I had enough to get this RK. Where to begin? This thing is immaculate! And the sound is there! Nice note separation, great bass response, tight sounding mids. And over time, it will open up and sound even better! So where does this leave me? I feel sorta ripped off by Martin. The X series costs a little bit more than this RK (about $1033 taxes in CAD) and the RK was just under $1k at $919 taxes in. For what this thing is made out of, you would pay nearly $4k if it was a Martin. The X series is half plastic and sounds plastic! Why on earth does Martin sell a super cheap plastic dread (solid spruce top, but still) for a fortune when RK sells 10x the guitar for less? Sure, it's made in China (yes there may be some human labor issues, but none can confirm that) and the name on the headstock isn't "legacy" but if you can overlook that, to me it is a no brainer. I now have a dread that outperforms almost everything in this price range, and can rival guitars that cost 4x as much, and I don't really see the need to ever want to get a Martin D18, because all you are doing is paying for the name!

https://imgur.com/zRbjyCG
https://imgur.com/iOxOSxS
https://imgur.com/RbLGXkl
https://imgur.com/1uvzds5

[RomanS]

You do realize that with Martin & Gibson about 25% - 30% of the price is only for the name on the headstock?

[rollypolly]

I don’t know, you could easily find one of the solid spruce topped X series dreads used for less than the RK. While not all the X series sound great, the real spruce topped ones sounds pretty darn good to me. I’ve seen them around aplenty at gigs, open mics, etc.

Anyways, congrats on the RK! They are cool guitars!

[Gromitspapa]

I got a RK Series 11 Dread new for $450 + tax from Chicago Music Exchange and I can't believe how dry and Martin-like it sounds, and it has strong bass. I wished I had spent a little more and got a nicer RK.

[nostatic]

Originally Posted by Anonymous human

Sure, it's made in China (yes there may be some human labor issues, but none can confirm that)

If you're happy with your guitar, awesome. For some, country of origin is a big deal. Others don't care. There is more to it than "some human labor issues" but this is a guitar forum so I won't go OT.

Originally Posted by Anonymous human

I don't really see the need to ever want to get a Martin D18, because all you are doing is paying for the name!

Well, many would disagree but people get to spend their money the way they want.

I will say that price is an absolute number, value is an entirely different calculus. What is a "great value" for one may not be for someone else. As always, YMMV.

[Ralph124C41]

Originally Posted by rollypolly

I don’t know, you could easily find one of the solid spruce topped X series dreads used for less than the RK. While not all the X series sound great, the real spruce topped ones sounds pretty darn good to me. I’ve seen them around aplenty at gigs, open mics, etc.

Anyways, congrats on the RK! They are cool guitars!

I bought a new X1-DE a couple years back for $340 before tax. I imagine I could sell it now and at least get my money back. This one has the solid spruce top.

The only changes I've made to it has been to change strings, put on an aftermarket armrest swirl and had my luthier put on a new bone nut with the strings slots recut to accommodate a 1 11/6-inch nut width as I prefer the thinner slots (of course that doesn't help the overall neck width or profile but I like the change.) I think he also installed a set of rosewood bridge pins for basically cosmetic looks.

All of those "upgrades" cost me maybe around $40, not counting the cost of a new set of strings.

[Glennwillow]

Congrats on your new RK. Glad you are happy.

- Glenn

[p^h]

Congrats on the new RK! Last year I picked up an RO-318 - basically the OOO version of your guitar. Couldn't be happier.

[Dave in Olympia]

If you're happy with your guitar, that's all that matters.

That said, I had a RK and sold it. They are a "good guitar for the money", but they certainly can't compare to, nor do they sound like, a Martin Standard Series.

[Railroad Bum]

I don't care for any of those lower-end Martins myself, and I like cheaper guitars. I have really liked most of the RK guitars I have tried, but there is something special about a D-18, D-28, D-45, etc. I just can't afford them, lol.

I am glad you like your new RK, and I hope it serves you well for a long time.

[abn556]

I would like to check out a 318 to compare it to my 000-18. Just curious to see how it would do. I cannot ever seem to find one in stock here (Houston area) and we have lots of shops.