Martin CEO-9

[Atomnimity]

Happy Holidays guys and gals!

I have been fighting myself while looking for a guitar to replace my Taylor GS Mini Hog. I gave that to my granddaughter last week. I was thinking another (larger) Mahogany and came across the CEO-7. While on that hunt I saw the CEO-9. I like the hardwood top idea. I have hard bodied soft top guitars not the same but similar to the CEO-7. I have read a number of threads about the comparison of the two.

One issue I was curious about was the Limited run of the CEO-9. Supposedly 50 were being built in a couple of articles I have read. I have see CEO-9's with numbers over 100 and I am confused. Does anyone know if the limited run changed or what the deal is with how many CEO-9's will be built? Is the number system just not 1-50? I was going to call Martin today but think they are closed until next week.

Jim

[gwlee7]

I have a CEO 9. I love it. I don’t know how many are being made or any of those particulars. I just know that I have been in love with it from the first strum. It sounds glorious.

[jimcaleca]

The run was never limited to a certain number. They will sell them until there is no longer a demand, and then they will be discontinued like any other model.

[Atomnimity]

Originally Posted by gwlee7

I have a CEO 9. I love it. I don’t know how many are being made or any of those particulars. I just know that I have been in love with it from the first strum. It sounds glorious.

OK. Now your getting me excited because I just pulled the trigger on one - lol.

Originally Posted by jimcaleca

The run was never limited to a certain number. They will sell them until there is no longer a demand, and then they will be discontinued like any other model.

That makes sense but I have read articles like this one where they mention a 50 run limit. Not sure where this idea came from.

http://onemanz.com/guitar/reviews/ac.../martin/ceo-9/

Jim

[Anodos]

I’ve been somewhat surprised by how relatively little exists online about the CEO-9, but it is a rarer bird so I guess that’s not too strange. What I do find especially intriguing though is how I’ve read several posts from people who describe it as a guitar that “sings,” and who ended up taking one home somewhat unexpectedly!

That’s exactly what happened to me. I played one at a guitar store just for fun and was blown away by how responsive it was, how much sound every note made, and how it seemed like the guitar “sang.” I left the shop and couldn’t stop thinking about what I could sell to get the money together. I ended up heading back the next day and took it home.

I love my CEO-9 and remain mesmerized by the unique tone and look of the mango wood that provides a really interesting natural compression. Playing lightly doesn’t come out inaudibly and playing loudly doesn’t break up and buzz like other small body guitars can do. It has a full sound in every part of the sound spectrum, with full lows, punchy mids, and ringing highs with clear overtones. It’s truly amazing how much sound comes out is that little mango box. It’s definitely a unique sound that surely isn’t for every kind of player, but it is perfect for a singer songwriter like me who plays a lot of melodic Americana music.

I still feel a bit crazy sometimes making such a quick move on that guitar when for the price I could have walked out of there with any number of high end Martins, but hey...the best guitar is the one that grabs you, right?

[Anodos]

Out of curiosity, what strings have you other CEO-9 owners been using? I’ve gone through a set of Martin Authentic Phosphor-bronze and a set of 80/20 bronze...the jury is still out on which I like better.

[UncleJesse]

Originally Posted by Anodos

Out of curiosity, what strings have you other CEO-9 owners been using? I’ve gone through a set of Martin Authentic Phosphor-bronze and a set of 80/20 bronze...the jury is still out on which I like better.

Not too much of a help but I have a CEO7 which is similar and I found that 80/20s sound great on it.

[Anodos]

Originally Posted by UncleJesse

Not too much of a help but I have a CEO7 which is similar and I found that 80/20s sound great on it.

The jury is in...after a week of 80/20s I had to go back to phosphor bronze. The 80/20s sounded nice strummed but it made the guitar lose some of the warmth and overtone-rich “ringing” that drew me to the guitar in the first place. I think the CEO9 is a bit colder sounding guitar as is and the 80/20s accentuated that and took away some of the soul that I love about the guitar. I could see the 80/20s sounding good on a warmer sounding guitar (as I assume the ceo7 to be) but here it wasn’t doing the CEO9 any favors!

[docedkin]

I read some reviews and new owner reactions to the CEO-9. Spoon Phillips' video was very positive but in his video and within his written review, he says the run was limited to 50. However, on another site, #126 was recently sold and Maury's had one listed as arriving this month. On the Martin spec sheet for the CEO-9, it says: Label: Pre-Printed CFM IV Signature, Numbered in Sequence without Total. That said, I contacted Maury, got a good price, and ordered the one they have coming in. I have an '08 00-18H (Geoff Muldaur) and will be interested to A/B the 0018H against the CEO-9. I asked Maury and Spoon if they remembered the 18 and if these two models were too close to justify having both. Neither remembers the 0018H well enough. . . but the specs suggest these will be different guitars. . .Maury has a good return policy if they are too similar but I'm betting that won't be an issue. Couple of weeks. . .tick toc.

[Anodos]

Originally Posted by docedkin

I read some reviews and new owner reactions to the CEO-9. Spoon Phillips' video was very positive but in his video and within his written review, he says the run was limited to 50. However, on another site, #126 was recently sold and Maury's had one listed as arriving this month. On the Martin spec sheet for the CEO-9, it says: Label: Pre-Printed CFM IV Signature, Numbered in Sequence without Total. That said, I contacted Maury, got a good price, and ordered the one they have coming in. I have an '08 00-18H (Geoff Muldaur) and will be interested to A/B the 0018H against the CEO-9. I asked Maury and Spoon if they remembered the 18 and if these two models were too close to justify having both. Neither remembers the 0018H well enough. . . but the specs suggest these will be different guitars. . .Maury has a good return policy if they are too similar but I'm betting that won't be an issue. Couple of weeks. . .tick toc.

Exciting! Yeah I’ve also read in a couple of articles that they “only made 50” but my CEO-9 is #138 so...there you go. I wonder how long they will keep making them! The CEO-9 really sounds fundamentally different than anything I’ve ever heard (mango wood!), but it’s not going to be totally dissimilar to other small bodied guitars as far as sound picture goes. Clear projecting mids, great for finger picking/flat picking. From what I hear in the 00-18H it seems to also have that character, but being that it’s a 12 fret neck with an even smaller body I’d expect that the CEO-9 will have more bass and will respond better to being strummed, maybe? That was one of the first things that blew me away the first time I played the CEO-9. I’ve heard other smaller bodied guitars sound fantastic until you start strumming them, but a good heavy handed strum on the CEO-9 sounded just as fantastic as anything else I played on it, with a sort of natural compression that comes from the mango wood construction somehow.

Good look enduring the wait and welcome to the CEO-9 club! 😊

[Campro]

Congrats to those fortunate enough to pick up this guitar. It's great!
I whole-heartedly agree with the praises of how rich and resonant it is. I love the sound of mine, it really does sing.
I was wondering about the numbering too after checking out Spoon Phillips' reviews and later seeing one in the low 100s hanging on the wall at a local store. I got mine back in August and it's number 26. I have no clue how long the shop had had it before I bought it. (But, I was just there a few days ago and noticed they have #27 on the wall).
Anyway, as far as strings go, I'm still experimenting and have found the following: Don't like the Martin coated long life strings it came with--too stiff and dull IMO. Do like DR Sunbeam 12s on it quite a bit -- they're nice and flexible (round core instead of hex) and have a nice brilliance to them. I currently have it strung with Martin Monel 12s and they feel good and I like the sound, it's different than the phosphor bronze Sunbeams, kind of "chewy," (I know, I know) and provide a nice "growl" in the mids. They aren't as brilliant as the Sunbeams, however. Maybe not as loud either, I have to check again when I change out strings.
I would like to check out a set of J Pearse 12s on it too.
What other brands and types of strings have you all checked out with your CEO-9s? Any recommendations?

[Anodos]

Interesting that you mention Martin Monels! A friend of mine recently sang some serious praises for the Martin "Retro" Monel strings that he has on his 000-28. His guitar sounds great but it's hard to tell how it would affect the sound of the CEO-9, just based off of what I've heard in his guitar at an open mic night. IMHO I want strings that allow as much of the ringing/singing brilliance and clarity and "thickness" of single notes from the CEO-9 to be expressed, as that's what made me fall in love with the guitar in the first place. I'm pretty pleased with the Martin Longlife 2.0 Phosphor-Bronze (at least in comparison to the Longlife 2.0 80/20 bronze) but am definitely up for trying something else if there's a chance that it'll bring out more of the sound that I love! I may give the Retros a try next time and go from there. Thanks for sharing your experience, Campro!

[Campro]

Just an update on my string usage. After the Monel/Retros, I decided I would try a set of Elixir Nano (80/20s I think). They were O.K. but, I just can't stand the dandruff flaking all over my lovely mango! I tried elixirs years ago, when they first came out, heard they had gotten better about the coating flaking off, but they still haven't eliminated it. Also, and more importantly for me, the Elixirs felt stiff for some reason, harder to play, and seemed to choke the sound and sustain. I only left them on about two - three weeks and switched back to the DR Sunbeams (Phosphor Bronze). I immediately noticed a difference. It was like the guitar could "breath"/ relax again and open up and sing. I don't know enough about the physics of it all to really know why such a noticeable difference, but the guitar is easier to play, is more responsive to subtleties in attack and vibrato, and sounds more open and resonant--noticeable
whether strumming, finger picking or flat picking. As far as the Monels go, they're O.K. but they just can't compare to the DRs (IMO, of course).

Anyway, I'll probably stick with the DRs for the foreseeable future. Have any of you experimented any further with your strings?

[Anodos]

I ended up settling on the Martin Authentic Lifespan 2.0 Phosphor bronze. I’ve always played Martin strings on my other guitars and I liked them better than the 80/20’s on the CEO-9. There could very well be other strings that sound better on this guitar but the Martin phosphor bronze do the trick for me!

[Campro]

Well, there it is...Cool!