2019 Dreadnaught Jr

[goufousdoufous]

I just ordered online from a reputable Martin Dealer, a 2019 Dreadnaught Jr. I’m intrigued by the specs and reviews I’ve read. You who might own one, or have played one, what might I be looking forward to in sound and quality. I would love your thoughts and opinions, positive and negatives.

thanks,

Goufous

[mrjop1975]

I had a chance to try one out locally about a month or so ago at the shop I go to for my set-ups. Honestly, I prefer the tone and sound of the spruce top dreadnought junior I have that is 2 years old to the tone and sound of the new model I tried. It just didn't have quite a full sound as the original version did IMO. Hopefully your mileage will very - I am just sharing my own observations for whatever it is worth

[SpruceTop]

Here's my December 2016 review of my new 2016 Martin Dreadnought Junior:

About a week ago, I received my Martin Dreadnought Junior (solid Spruce/solid Sapele), and I'm loving it! I ordered from Sweetwater but should have ordered from one of our AGF sponsors, Maury's Music, because Maury is offering a free Martin Hardshell Case with his selection of Martin Dreadnought Juniors. Frankly, a harshell case would be a plus for the Junior as the included Martin Gig Bag is somewhat lacking in padding and stiffness! Contrast the Martin D Junior's gig bag with a Taylor GS Mini's well-padded and semi-hard gig bag, and all I can say is, "C'mon, Chris, Get In The Game!"

I chose my Martin D Junior from three others in Sweetwater's Acoustic Guitar Gallery, which enables perusal of several excellent views and close-ups of presented guitars, and enabled me to choose what I considered the one with the best-looking tonewoods.

As for the Martin D Junior itself, it's a well-constructed, Made In Mexico Martin (my first MIM Martin), and it sounds and plays superb right out the shipping carton. The solid Sitka Spruce top is, well, TOPS, with a straight, medium-wide, evenly-spaced, and almost vertical through the top grain. The solid Sapele back and sides have a straight grain and are well bookmatched. The tone of the Martin D Junior is quite full for a smaller guitar. I recommend that folks looking for a parlor guitar audition a Martin D Junior as it can be a lower-cost and better-sounding alternative in that it doesn't sound as shallow and boxy as some more costly parlor guitars.

I'm about to install a B-Band A1.2N-1470 Pickup/Preamp system in this guitar and look forward to hearing it's amplified tone. By the way, the Martin D Junior and Taylor GS Mini (also MIM) are professional-grade instruments and can be used as such. My new Taylor GS Mini-e Koa with its Expression System 2 sounds wonderful when amplified and I'm expecting my Martin D Junior with its B-Band system to sound great too. The Martin D Junior is also offered with a Fishman Sonitone pickup/preamp system for about $90 more than the straight acoustic versions.

The Martin D Junior comes in acoustic and acoustic-electric versions of solid Sitka Spruce over solid Sapele, and solid Sapele over solid Sapele. All models have a Richlite fingerboard and bridge.

[guitargabor]

Purchased a 2019 model one in April of this year.For about ,7 years I owned a Taylor GS Mini Mahogany.

I believe one has to play a guitar for about a month before you really get to know it sonically and physically.

The Taylor has a good tone but the short 23 inch scale made it a bit difficult to play(and I have relatively small hands...).

The Martin DR JR is superior IMO.Louder, better bass ,the 24 inch scale is more comfortable.I think it looks nicer too.

Both the Taylor mini GS and Martin DR Jr, which are made in Mexico, have top quality workmanship.That is lacking in the Asian made competitors I have tried.

The only drawback is the flimsy soft case.I added there TKL hard case for it.

Also installed a k and k pick up for versatility.

You will enjoy it! It's well worth it's price.Seems to me like Martin made a true effort on this series,as opposed to their X series guitars...

Gabe

[slooky]

I have the older version of the Jr D but, I have tried the new ones. I couldn't really tell the difference. The one I have plays and sounds superb. The one I tried in the store was the same. The build quality is excellent ! I was hoping to try the cutaway one but it was not in stock.

[Kitkatjoe]

Originally Posted by goufousdoufous

I just ordered online from a reputable Martin Dealer, a 2019 Dreadnaught Jr. I’m intrigued by the specs and reviews I’ve read. You who might own one, or have played one, what might I be looking forward to in sound and quality. I would love your thoughts and opinions, positive and negatives.

thanks,

Goufous

The original had great full depth of tone with that Martin bass that distinguishes it from the pack. When I found out that the guitar was being changed,I bought four more junior's before the current model. I love my Martin juniors.

[stephenT]

I have an older D Jr and it’s a great guitar. No matter the vintage, and I know they’ve changed the specs, it’s a cool guitar at a decent price.

[steelvibe]

Everybody is different and you will never know until you try one. I'm so glad Martin put these out. I always loved the GS Mini but could never bond with the neck or the super short scale- but great guitars otherwise. When I saw Martin introduce these I jumped (and this coming from a guy who never liked dreadnoughts).

I have a 2015 D Jr. 2 with no OEM electronics. Even though it is a "travel" guitar I use it for my main play-at-home guitar and use my CF guitar as my traveler.

I do wish Martin made a better gig bag for an all solid guitar so I opted for a HSC instead.Also, with this kind of price point it has been fun to mod out mine a bit and still keep the whole package under $800. I have refinished mine in a Tru-Oil finish, added a JJB 330 for a pickup, JP Armrest, pulled out the cheap small dot inlays and replaced with some 5mm abalone inlays, changed the tuner buttons, and added ebony pins and a bone saddle. I love my D Jr!!

Here are some pics:

[AndrewG]

Originally Posted by Kitkatjoe

The original had great full depth of tone with that Martin bass that distinguishes it from the pack. When I found out that the guitar was being changed,I bought four more junior's before the current model. I love my Martin juniors.

You bought FIVE? Can I ask why?

[Cool555]

I own a 2017 Dread Junior 2 all Sapele. Love every thing about this guitar. One of the best guitars for its price range!

[Rpt50]

In the $500ish range small guitar range, IMO there are only 3 guitar models/versions that really stand out from the crowd. They are the 2 Yamaha CSF guitars, the various GS mini versions, and the Martin Junior. All of them sound great, but different, so you really need to play before you buy.

The only thing that really stands out for me among these guitars is the size. The Martin still seems substantially larger than the others, and this may limit versatility and travel uses. With the mini and CSF guitars, one can sit and play comfortably in all kinds of ridiculous positions and locations, and they will fit nearly anywhere (including the trunk of a miata with room to spare for other stuff). The Martin requires a more formal posture, and more room for travel.

[slooky]

Originally Posted by AndrewG

You bought FIVE? Can I ask why?

Why not? lol
These are really fantastic guitars
Each one could be tuned different
I don,t have 5 myself but I can see why.

[Kitkatjoe]

Originally Posted by AndrewG

You bought FIVE? Can I ask why?

I had an opportunity to purchase the guitars that was a fair deal. I knew the specs. were changing and it was the right time to acquire these fabulous instruments before the change.

[mrjop1975]

and why not? If you prefer the specs of one edition of something before it gets changed, get what you can. I could not imagine a fleet of 5 of them, but it's not me with them but I get it. I currently have the Kala tenor guitar with the old specs of rosewood back and sides and the one with the new specs with pau ferro back and sides. Different strokes for different folks.

[AndrewG]

I just played a first iteration sunburst Dread Jr. for the first time and was mightily impressed. It was barely used, surprisingly robust in its delivery and a good price. Hmm...