Martin Martin SC-18E and SC-28E Review with Video

Martin SC-28E and SC-18E Arrive at NAMM 2024

Standard Series rosewood and mahogany axes of the future with classic styling

SC-28E and SC-18E specs include: 13-fret asymmetrical S body size with deep scoop cutaway; high gloss nitrocellulose finish; solid spruce top with patented internal soundboard recurve; spruce Tone Tension X-bracing with proprietary shaping; heel-less solid hardwood neck with satin finish, Sure Align neck joint system and ergonomic Low Profile Velocity shaping, solid ebony fingerboard with High Performance Taper; solid ebony belly bridge with 1930 profile but smooth contour surface; 2-5/32” string spacing; faux tortoise asymmetrical teardrop pickguard; nickel open-back tuning machines; revised Fishman Aura VT Blend electronics with Aura HD imaging or L.R. Baggs Anthem electronics. Comes with a molded hard-shell case with plush lining.

“I was surprised by these acoustic-electric hybrids, in how a chord strummed on the SC-28E sounds more like a 000-28 or OM-28 than it didn’t, only with that slightly more-pronounced bottom E string. But I was most pleasantly surprised by the classic Martin undertone presence in the low-mids of the SC-18E and the acoustic tone during fingerstyle picking patterns and playing lead accompaniment to another person’s strumming and singing, both when acoustic and amplified.”

Read the full review HERE

Martin Guitar Mother Lode of Models for NAMM 2024

 

Martin Guitar New X Series Models for 2024

New for NAMM 2024! Many Martin Models in the X Series

Revamped Martin X Series models include a thinner, beveled fingerboard

(click photos to enlarge)

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With just over a week to go to the NAMM Show, Martin Guitar announces their least pricey models, even if they all come with world class aesthetic charm. While some of these acoustic-electric models exit already, they have been revamped with a redesigned bridge, a thinner fingerboard with a “gently beveled comfort edge,” “refined string spacing” and fantastic-looking XPL back and sides featuring glorious visual reproductions of choicest tonewoods including figured Brazilian rosewood,  ziricote, mahogany, koa, and the cocobolo pictured above in size 0, 00, and GPC.

The full lineup of the new X Series models includes the 0-X2E Cocobolo, 00-X2E Cocobolo, GPC-X2E Cocobolo; GPC-X2E Ziricote, D-X2E Ziricote Burst; 000-X2E Brazilian, D-X2E Brazilian, D-X2E Brazilian 12-String; D-X2E Mahogany; D -X1E Koa; GPC-X1E Black.

These affordable (by Martin standards) acoustic-electric guitars are made at their plant in Navojoa, Mexico from rugged high-pressure laminate back and sides. The 1 models have an HPL top with a either a koa, mahogany, or black pattern and a birch laminate neck. The 2 models have actual solid spruce or sapele soundboards and select hardwood necks and bridges.

The X Series bridges have been reshaped with a soft slope rather than the defined edge on either side of the bridge pins seen on traditional Martins. The electronics have been upgraded to the Martin E1 system that has a built-in turner and phase control in addition to the volume and tone controls.

 

While the cosmetic HPL patterns will not change the sound of the X Series instruments, they do offer excellent choices in terms of stunning visual appeal.

D-X2E Ziricote Burst (Do you see the lama sticking its tongue out at you? Or the viper’s fangs??)

 

GPC-X2E Ziricote (with solid ribbon sapele soundboard)

 

D-X2E Brazilian 12-String

 

000-X2E Brazilian

 

00-X2E Cocobolo (available in 0 and GPC sizes)

 

The popular D-X1E Koa with the upgraded fingerboard and electronics

 

Colorful and affordable, the new additions to the C. F. Martin & Co. X Series are a bevy of beauties to be sure.

Martin GPCE Inception Maple Debuts

The innovative Martin GPCE Inception Maple breaks new ground

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Environmentally friendly woods and enhanced bracing marry with hopes for a future of sustainable, beautiful music

SEE THE FULL REVIEW WITH VIDEO HERE!

Incept Date: 01092024

Place of origin: Nazareth, PA, USA, Earth

Launched toward the future with appropriate celebration at C.F. Martin & Co., established in 1833 and boldly venturing into new territory in 2024, the Martin GPCE Inception Maple is an acoustic-electric guitar made in Martin’s Grand Performance body size with a Cutaway treble bout, representing the inception of a new Inception Series of Martin guitars that will feature domestic American tonewoods including Maple, in combination with environmentally sustainable tonewood from abroad, and the latest tone-enhancing technology inside the sold wood sound chamber.

In this case, the top is made from FSC certified European spruce. FSC standing for the Forest Stewardship Council, the world-wide entity assuring consumers that these certified natural resources were obtained from forests that are manged in an environmentally-friendly way with an eye on sustainability and with the greatest respect for the residents living within the forest.

The back and sides are made from maple grown in the USA, with a center plate of black walnut on the back that likely adds some tonal coloring to the voice of the instrument. Walnut is often described as a cross between mahogany and rosewood, but deserves its own place in the pantheon of true tonewoods that generate a pleasing sound capable of creating beautiful music. The fingerboard and bridge are also made from black walnut, as is the body binding and the decorative face plate at the front of the headstock.

This back does not have the usual alternating three-wedge shape of a Style 35 Martin. Instead, the center plate has a gentle curve to it. This is but one new aesthetic change from typical Martins.

While the back, sides, and top feature a new “amber fade” sunburst under a satin finish, the final production model retains important features of the Standard Series, like solid tonewoods throughout and the traditional, full-size dovetail neck joint. It also has the full complement of scalloped braces on the inside of the soundboard, except for a most unusual top plate that is only on the bass side of the upper bout.

However, this version of the traditional Martin-invented X-bracing is enhanced with a honeycomb of empty space, where mass was removed from the struts of the otherwise solid spruce X brace and the large traverse brace on the opposite side of the sound hole.

(click to enlarge photos)

The purpose of this laser-cut spacing is twofold. It increases the flexibility of the bracing around the sound hole while maintaining a structural integrity that keeps the top from collapsing from the pounds of tension brought to bear on the soundboard by the taught steel strings. It is an achievement of engineering both elegant and practical, invented centuries ago for weighty yet airy stone structures like the cloisters of medieval abbeys and cathedrals. But here it is brilliantly applied in miniature for a light, solid-wood soundboard of a world-class musical instrument.

Another significant enhancement is implementation of “sonic channels” cut into the solid spruce soundboard, around each brace and tone bar, and along most of the circumference of the soundboard. This allows the sold top to respond more-easily to the vibrations passing through it.

Soundboard channeling is an idea that has been explored by other guitar makers, but not nearly to this extent or in the same patterns. This feature also appears around the back braces that have been redesigned to allow the back to contribute to sonic resonance, not just passively reflect the sound waves generated by the spruce top.

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While I could go on about the development of this project based on insider tidbits, I felt it best to prevail upon the man inside Martin Guitars who knows more about it than anyone, Vice President of Product Management Fred Greene. Fred was happy to share some exclusive insight with One Man’s Guitar about the evolution of the GPCE Inception Maple in his own words, and how this exciting new Martin guitar is but the vanguard of the bold future ahead for America’s most venerable musical instrument maker.

OMG: How long has this project been in the works?

FG: The project has been in the works for about 18 months.

OMG: What were the origins of this new model?

FG:   It started with a desire to highlight the possibilities of sustainable domestic hardwoods in guitar construction. 

OMG: Martin has made some very successful models with sustainable domestic tonewoods, like maple and walnut, yet not many, and nothing with this combination of body size and tonewoods. What was behind the inception of the Inception?

FG: I knew we couldn’t simply make another maple Dreadnaught and leave it at that.  It’s been done by us and others in the past. Too often big manufacturers get lazy and stop innovating. When that happens, new models can be met with a collective yawn from guitar players. I felt we needed to make changes in how we designed this musical instrument on a deeper level.

OMG: Well, nothing is boring about this new maple model! Who was the primary designer of the GPCE Inception Maple?

Like most projects at Martin, it was a team effort. But as the leader of the product team, I instigated a change in our approach stemming from my desire to show off the potential of these woods by combining the technology we have developed over the past 190 years with innovations we developed in the twenty-first century. That was the mission I tasked the team to embark upon.  

Nate Hoffman, our R&D leader, took up the challenge and his team really dug deep and presented us with some cool concepts.  Those concepts were discussed, massaged, prototyped, and eventually agreed upon by myself, designers Tim Teel and Rameen Shayegan, and the production team.  We felt it was very important that we showed the world that Martin continues to innovate and explore the possibilities presented by a changing world of materials and technology.

OMG: How are the gorgeous, skeletonized braces created?

FG: The new braces are created using lasers.  We realize we are not the first company to put holes in braces.  Small one-off builders have done this in the past.  However, I believe Martin is the first “major” builder to do it in a true product guitar.  It was fun developing a weight-relieving pattern that was both visually appealing and strong.

OMG: How do they affect things like energy transference and tone production?

The general concept is simple.  By lightening the weight of the braces, and consequently the top, less energy is required of the strings to move the top.  Thus making the instrument more responsive and increasing sustain. 

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photo: C.F. Martin & Co.

 

Maple tends to compress sound in acoustic guitars with traditional builds so that all you hear is the fundamental notes without any pleasant overtones.  We wanted to allow the guitar to move a little more and offset some of that compression.  We wanted to open it up. This bracing in combination with the new sonic channels set into the underside of the soundboard more than accomplished that goal.

OMG:  Why the Grand Performance body size?

We saw this guitar as a stage guitar for a singer/songwriter and the GPC seemed like a natural canvas for something new.  We thought if we started with a Dreadnaught or 000 it would simply draw too many comparisons to existing models that already have a very established sound signature.  We didn’t think these traditional shapes would be the right formula or recipe for the player we were targeting. 

OMG:  Might we assume the new Marting GPCE Inception Maple is so named because this is the beginning of a new trend at Martin Guitar?  Should we expect to see other models featuring domestic American tonewoods and the new bracing and sonic channels under the top?

You are correct that the Inception is the first of several new guitars that will be coming in the future using more sustainable woods.  It’s exciting because these new guitars will allow us to offer new designs and hopefully give guitar players more options and sounds to explore.

Well, it’s been worth the wait to see the end results of this long-anticipated project. Now I have to wait a little longer to play and hear the finished product officially being released at the NAMM show on January 24, 2024.

Many More Photos Here

Check out the Martins and More podcast where Spoon Phillips and Maury Rutch share even more information about the minds and muscles that created this super cool new Martin GPCE Inception Maple, below.

NAMM 2023 – Fishman Acoustic FX Mini Pedals

Fishman Electronics offers killer pedals made just for acoustic guitars

Pocket Blender, Acoustic Reverb, Acoustic Looper, Acoustic Preamp/EQ

Professional quality at hobbyist prices make these new small-footprint pedals immensely attractive. Each was developed specifically for acoustic guitars and offers solo artists and band members expansive options.

(press each pedal to learn more)

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The blender lets create two separate mixes of two different audio sources, the reverb three adjustable options, Hall, Plate, and Spring. The looper has WAV file transfer via USB and 24-bit / 44.1kHz recording quality, and the EQ/preamp has five bands, including Low Cut and Brilliance, and phase control. Plus, they are all conveniently small in size.

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NAMM 2023 – Fishman AFX Pocket Blender Mini

Create separate A and B mixes from two audio sources

AFX Pocket Blender Mini A/B/Y + DI Changes Everything

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Fishman AFX Pocket Blender Mini Features include:

*   Balanced D.I. Output with Ground Lift

*   Innovative Dual Path Routing

*   Super Compact Design Fits Almost Anywhere

*   9V External Power Required (sold separately)

All the essential tools in one compact pedal. A level-adjustable A/B pedal. A built-in DI output with ground-lift. A boost pedal. An output Y-splitter. A two-channel mixer. The AFX Pocket Blender is the ultimateA/B/Y pedal combining four essential tools:

1 – an Input Mixer that lets you continuously adjust the level of audio source(s) connected to the TRS input

2 – a D.I. output featuring Fishman’s balanced line driver circuit that can be used to send to a house PA or amplifier

3 – an ABY output to split a signal or connect to one or two stage amps

4 – an A/B Mode switch determines the overall behavior when the footswitch is pressed

This is the classic Pocket Blender in a small footprint.

Without even touching the A/B features, it’s a mini two-channel mixer allowing you to connect two audio sources and blend them together. This is perfect for dual-source systems such as Fishman sound hole pickups that feature a mic or body pickup.

Build on the simple blender by setting up an “A mix” and a “B mix” where pressing the footswitch toggles between one mix and the other. You could balance your onboard pickup (50%) with your onboard mic (50%) on mix A. Then on mix B, which you use to take solos, you could boost the pickup to 75% while leaving the mic on 50%. All with a single stomp of the footswitch.




(press each pedal to learn more)

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Learn more at Fishman Electronics

NAMM 2023 – Fishman AFX Acoustiverb Mini Reverb Pedal

Multiple reverb options with intuitive decay time

Hall, Plate & Spring provide ambiance while preserving acoustic tone

The Reverb Time knob controls how long you hear the effect, and ranges from short to very large spaces. Tone knob affects only the reverb and not your direct sound. Similarly, the Level knob adds the effect into your signal chain without overwhelming the sound of your instrument.

Three reverbs designed for acoustic guitar

Spring

Recreates the classic sound of a spring type reverb found in many electric guitar amplifiers

Hall

An all-around reverb with natural, resonate spaces capable of replicating rooms both small and large, with long reverb decay times

Plate

Recreates the dense reflections and metallic characteristics of mechanical plate reverbs used throughout the 50’s, 60’s, and 70’s




(press each pedal to learn more)

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Learn more at Fishman Electronics

NAMM 2023 – Fishman AFX Broken Record Looper Pedal

Designed by Fishman Specifically for Acoustic Guitar

Fishman high-quality 24-bit, 44.1kHz audio recording of up to 6 minutes

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Loaded with Features

NAMM 2023 – Fishman AFX Pro EQ Mini Pedal

Acoustic Guitar Preamp & EQ Acoustic Pedal

Five Bands Include Low Cut and Brilliance, Plus Phase Control

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Features Include:





(press each pedal to learn more)

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Learn more at Fishman Electronics

NAMM 2023 – Gibson Keb Mo – J-45 50s Faded

Gibson Acoustics for 2023

Keb Mo 3.0 12-fret J-45

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New for 2023 is the third Keb Mo signature model from Gibson guitars. It has a torrefied Sitka spruce soundboard with forward-shifted hand-scalloped braces, mahogany back and sides, traditional nitrocellulose gloss finish, and L R Baggs onboard VTC electronics. The traditional dovetail neck joint is set with hide glue. The guitar has a 25″ scale and the rosewood fingerboard has a width at nut of 1.805″(roughly 1-4/5″) to go along with the proprietary Keb Mo neck profile shape.

$4,299.00

More Gibson Keb Mo “3.0” info HERE.

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J-45 50s Faded

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The latest edition in Gibson’s satin finish models is the J-45 50s Faded, which offers similar construction to the traditional gloss lacquer version, including the rounded 1.725″ neck with a 24.75″ string scale and a hot hide glue set dovetail neck joint. It also comes with LR Baggs VTC electronics. The satin finish and faded sunburst evokes a “vintage vibe.”

$2,499.00

More J-45 50s Satin info HERE.