New Martin. Happy bunny.

boogieman · May 2020

I have a perfectly good Takamine (which is now in the classifieds) but I'm really struggling to play a dread these days, it's causing me a lot of pain in my fretting arm due to the body style. I tried out a friend's 000 and it's just so much more comfortable. So when I spotted Peach were doing these OM18 Anthems at a reduced price with 0% interest it definitely got my attention.

First guitar I've ever bought blind, but it's a beauty. Very comfortable neck, nicely set up and I love the sound of it; the mahogany back and sides add a real richness to the low strings and the top ones absolutely zing, it's definitely a keeper. I had no plans to get an electro but it's a nice option to have.

Peach were a pleasure to deal with, their 0% finance thing was easy and I got approval within literally a few minutes. Ordered it Friday evening, delivery was Wednesday with a timed delivery slot via DPD.

On with the saucy pics!

fishfingers · May 2020

Very nice guitar and a good deal too!

J.P · May 2020

Lovely mate!

Winny_Pooh · May 2020

00018s are great, excellent choice

Phil_C · May 2020

Motherrrrrfu...

Very very coincidentally I Have a Takamine and I WANT a small bodied Martin. But my wife to be would kill me.

Excellent guitar mate.

This has fuelled the GAS

Epsilon · May 2020

Very classy. Congrats!

earwighoney · May 2020

Sitka/Mahogany/Long Scale/OM Body Shape

Martin make superb guitars.

IMO, as good as it gets.

terada · May 2020

Stunning! Having recently started playing a 000 size (coming from dreads), it really is incredible how much more comfortable they are!

Enjoy!

boogieman · May 2020

Phil_C said:

Motherrrrrfu... Very very coincidentally I Have a Takamine and I WANT a small bodied Martin. But my wife to be would kill me.

Excellent guitar mate.

This has fuelled the GAS

Now's the time to bag one, there's a couple of dealers knocking these out at £700 off because they'r'e now discontinued according to the Martin site. Peach have the best finance deal...12 or 24 months interest free with a minimum 20% deposit. Don't want you to fall out with your bride to be, but just saying................

artiebear · May 2020

Mmm that is nice, I can hear that lovely crisp mahogany tone from here. As time has gone by I have definitely come round from rosewood to mahogany Martins. The recent range 000,OM and D18’s are stunning value and as good as they have produced for a long time.

stickyfiddle · May 2020

Stunning!

boogieman · May 2020

artiebear said:

Mmm that is nice, I can hear that lovely crisp mahogany tone from here. As time has gone by I have definitely come round from rosewood to mahogany Martins. The recent range 000,OM and D18’s are stunning value and as good as they have produced for a long time.

Yes it’s a flawless build as far as I can see. It was the demo video on the Peach site that swung it for me, such a beautiful bell like tone from the mahogany and it just sustains so well.

TheOtherDennis · May 2020

That is luurvely. I checked out the video you mentioned and I really can't blame you for jumping all over that one.

greggreg66 · May 2020

What a beauty!

elkay · May 2020

Brilliant guitar. Am I right in thinking that this comes with a tusq saddle? If so, I would definitely recommend swopping it for a bone one. I did that with my 000-18, and it thickened up the tone ever so slightly, but noticeably, with a nice bit of sparkle.

boogieman · June 2020

elkay said:

Brilliant guitar. Am I right in thinking that this comes with a tusq saddle? If so, I would definitely recommend swopping it for a bone one. I did that with my 000-18, and it thickened up the tone ever so slightly, but noticeably, with a nice bit of sparkle.

I don’t know to be honest. Seeing as a) I’m happy with it as it is and b) I’ve got tinnitus in one ear so my hearing isn’t that great anyway, I’m not going to start tinkering with it.

Jalapeno · June 2020

An absolute belter ! Does it smell good too ? Rosewood ones smell bloody great !!!!

terada · June 2020

Jalapeno said:

An absolute belter ! Does it smell good too ? Rosewood ones smell bloody great !!!!

I bet it does! My all hog 000 smells superb.

That said I think a lot of the smell comes from the ribbon lining which is made from cedar.

danishbacon · June 2020

Some collective hole sniffing going on huh (guilty as charged)

boogieman · June 2020

It definitely had a lovely whiff to it when I opened up the case. I’ve got it out on a stand now so don’t notice it as much. I’m making a determined effort to play every day, if it’s stuck in a case I’m less likely to pick it up.

TheOtherDennis · June 2020

boogieman said:

It definitely had a lovely whiff to it when I opened up the case. I’ve got it out on a stand now so don’t notice it as much. I’m making a determined effort to play every day, if it’s stuck in a case I’m less likely to pick it up.

It'll open out sooner and start sounding better on the stand, too (obviously dependent on the humidity, but you know what I mean.

richardhomer · June 2020

Lovely!

danishbacon · June 2020

How's it been, one week in @boogieman?

boogieman · June 2020

danishbacon said:

How's it been, one week in @boogieman?

Loving it mate.

Had a bit of a wobble when the A string started sitaring at the bridge, bearing in mind what you’d said about the trouble you’d had with the one you’d received. I was wondering what to do when my stepson came over and had a go on it and said it sounded a bit odd to him? The tuning had actually dropped a couple of steps, the bottom E was now a D, although bizarrely it was still in correct tuning, string to string. Tuned it up to pitch and everything was immediately fine again. If anything it sounds even better after a week of playing it.

cbellanga · June 2020

Have the same guitar, they're great! I've dropped the strings to elixir 11s so a bit easier to play.

boogieman · June 2020

cbellanga said:

Have the same guitar, they're great! I've dropped the strings to elixir 10s so a bit easier to play.

10s? Wow they must feel like cotton. They come fitted with 12s as standard and those seem just right to me

cbellanga · June 2020

Erm..actually 11s, just corrected it!

boogieman · June 2020

Ah, not so bad then

I’m going to give a set of Martin Retro’s a go come restringing time. I see there’s quite a bit of love for them on a mahogany Martin.

danishbacon · June 2020

boogieman said:

danishbacon said:

How's it been, one week in @boogieman?

Loving it mate. Had a bit of a wobble when the A string started sitaring at the bridge, bearing in mind what you’d said about the trouble you’d had with the one you’d received. I was wondering what to do when my stepson came over and had a go on it and said it sounded a bit odd to him? The tuning had actually dropped a couple of steps, the bottom E was now a D, although bizarrely it was still in correct tuning, string to string. Tuned it up to pitch and everything was immediately fine again. If anything it sounds even better after a week of playing it.

New one just arrived today, no issues at all and Peach have been stellar, very pleased.

I just put up a video comparing it to a Santa Cruz OM just for the sake of it. I put fresh strings on both, Newtone heritage 51-12. The Martin seems to have a more pronounced midrange whilst the Santa Cruz is noticeably louder. Surprisingly, although many refer to the SC as being a 'lightly built instrument', the Martin is actually quite a bit lighter (some of it due to the mahogany, certainly, but light nonetheless. You can see in the photos below that Martin's standard of internal finish and scalloping compares well with Santa Cruz's.

Hard to say much about it in the first day but given that there are no OM-18 standards left in martin's lineup except for custom shop/authentic, I'd say this one is a sensible buy. It's a very easy to play instrument, fit and finish up there, choice of woods, nice top with very tight grain and silking (yours looks it too @boogieman).

I'll put some photos of mine up at some point when I can take them.

boogieman · June 2020

Nice job on the demo @danishbacon. Some sweet playing too.

Overall I think the Martin stands up really well against your Santa Cruz there... if anything I prefer the zing of the Martin’s top end. That’s what sold it to me in the Peach demo too.

Glad to hear you got a better example this time around by the way.

danishbacon · June 2020

boogieman said:

Nice job on the demo @danishbacon. Some sweet playing too. Overall I think the Martin stands up really well against your Santa Cruz there... if anything I prefer the zing of the Martin’s top end. That’s what sold it to me in the Peach demo too.

Glad to hear you got a better example this time around by the way.

Cheers Larry. Agreed, the Martin does stand up very well to a more 'fully hand built' and voiced top instrument. What I can say is that they have two very distinct voices, and I think that's a good thing. Whilst the Martin feels like a much more well behaved instrument, the Santa Cruz has some pretty complex overtones which makes it a more difficult guitar to play well. You can hear how the overtones build up on the single note section.

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New Martin. Happy bunny.

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