Martin D-45S Authentic 1936

The S may be for Special, but Martin’s new D-45S Authentic 1936 is Awesome

A bigger than life guitar worth its hefty price tag

D-45S Authentic 1936 specs include: Extra-wide 14-fret dreadnought body; highest-grade solid woods throughout including Brazilian rosewood back and sides, 1-3/4″ mahogany neck with period correct T-bar support, ebony fingerboard and bridge with long, fossilized ivory saddle, Adirondack spruce top with Authentic Series scalloped braces, forward-shifted X brace, tucked bridge plate; high-color abalone pearl inlay on all edges of the top, side, back; Old Style 45 snowflake fingerboard markers, ornate, gold tuning buttons

Note: this review is from the very first year of Martin’s Authentic Series instruments. This model is currently made with Martin’s Vintage Tone System of torrefied soundboards and bracing.

A Tale of Two Authentics

Two years ago, Martin made a small number of the  D-45 Authentic 1942, replicating the D-45 housed in the Martin Museum, with genuine Brazilian rosewood for the back and sides, and featuring over 900 separate pieces of abalone shell inlay, including hexagon fingerboard markers. Having played the old “holy grail” on multiple occasions, I can say without a doubt, Martin did a spectacular job in creating the 45 Authentic. In some ways I liked it even better than that insanely expensive antique. And yet, as impressive as those guitars were, some folks said they wished the fingerboard had the elaborate snowflakes, diamonds and cats eye inlays of earlier D-45 examples, while others said they wished it had the bigger, fatter 1-3/4″ neck that Martin used until 1938. Enter the D-45S Authentic 1936.

Voila! This year, Martin offered an equally exacting replica of an even rarer D-45S from 1936, which not only has the snowflakes and a bigger neck, but is actually a bigger D-45!

Special is an Understatement

Prior to the 1960s, an S appearing on the model’s neck block stamp didn’t indicate the 12-fret “Standard” body shape, as it does today. Rather, the S stood for “Special Order”, and it was used on certain Martins that deviated notably from the norm. In this case, the customer ordered a 14-fret D-45 with a top and back that were 16-1/4″ wide. This new D-45SA 1936 is an exact copy of that guitar.

Martin D-45S Authentic 1936 Martin's Authentic SeriesAnd when I say exact copy, I mean they took that priceless guitar and had it X-Rayed and then they put it under the CAT scan machine at the Smithsonian Institute. One will have to be a mighty fine nitpicker to find fault with the exactitude of this recreation.

I must confess, I didn’t even notice the body was larger while I was playing the guitar. I was too busy being enthralled by the gigantic sound that came out of it. The bass can only be described as sonorous. It is like the toreador from the opera Carmen, accompanied by a chorus of bass viols, while standing in an empty amphitheater. And that tremendous presence in the low end melts into the entire voice, so even the bright, ringing trebles sound extra rich with delicious, high-calorie fat. The sustain is marvelous, the harmonics thrilling. This guitar provides a sumptuous feast just playing the basic cowboy chords. Add in some harmonic drone strings, or Jazz chords, and you also get to have Christmas pudding while sitting before the tree in all its trimmings.

Jewel Box of Tone

To my ear, the hallmark tonal signature of a D-45 can be summed up in the word “shimmer.” There always seems to be an extra resonant shimmer, or sparkle, or jangle, or bright timbre or whatever you want to call it, riding across the highs of a D-45, that I simply do not hear, or hear as fully, in other rosewood Martins. And with the succulent complexity of Brazilian rosewood, focused and amplified by the highly reflective Adirondack spruce, with every edge of the thin, flexible top, sides and back routed even thinner to make way for strips of dense, solid abalone shell inlay, and the support of spruce braces carved in the Authentic manner, well, the D-45 mojo, complexity and shimmer found in the brand new prototype I played at the Martin factory was, in a word, awesome.

The Best and the Biggest

The top had super tight grain with tons of tight cross grain as well, especially by Adirondack standards. So it felt like there was 80% of the guitar’s tone still trapped inside that new body. And even then, I had to hold back on my attack because the guitar was just SO LOUD! I would love to see how this guitar breaks in and opens up over time. Sigh. The few folks with pockets deep enough to own one of these beauties will not be disappointed.

Aside from the price tag, the one drawback to this guitar, for me, is the neck. It is a dead ringer for the necks Martin was putting on guitars in 1935 and 1936, known to many as “the baseball bat.” I suppose I would be fine with it, if I never played above the 5th fret. But I cannot remember the last time I played a guitar with as much girth in the upper frets as this one. They refererence the size of the neck based upon the “barrel.” If the D-45SA 1936 was a rifle it would need wheels and a recoil. Fortunately, Martin also makes the D-45 Authentic 1942, for those of deeper pockets who prefer 1-11/16″ necks with sleeker profiles.

D-45S Authentic 1936Then again, many people believe you need a big neck to get the biggest sound, and this guitar has a voice bigger than Texas and just about as audacious. I have played examples of them all, from the D-100 to the Celtic Knot, to the Stephen Stills. There just hasn’t been a modern-day pearly Martin with a sound this big. So I am sure someone will be more than happy to play in their own Home Run Derby with that baseball bat neck.

Both of the Authentic D-45 examples available today are supreme examples of Martin guitars. They are different enough in terms of looks and feel that I could see one having a hard time choosing between them, just as I could see someone owning both of them and not feeling they were redundant. The extra-large D-45S Authentic 1936 does indeed come with stellar tone in an extra-large voice. That alone may be enough for some players to accept the extra effort required of that extra-large neck.

Not many readers will ever get to see one of these, let alone afford one. But I present this review for educational purposes, and to offer the opportunity that some might be inspired to knuckle down and put their nose to the grindstone, and become the kind of self-made man who actually can afford to buy one. I feel I owe it, to society. You can thank me when you invite me over to play your D-45SA 1936.

List price: $59,999

Call your Martin dealer for the actual price.

And that is one man’s word on…

The Martin D-45S Authentic 1936

Read more about C.F. Martin & Co. HERE

Read our primer about Martin Model Designations and Naming Conventions HERE

The official spec sheet can be found HERE

13 thoughts on “Martin D-45S Authentic 1936

  1. I’m 6’3” so it’s like Martin wants me to have this! I suspect the right dealer would sell for closer to $40,000. I’m surprised there is no vts, at least on the braces, for this. I am happy to hear they left the neck big! Martin, trying to compete with Taylor, has reduced the necks on all their guitars so much I can’t play them so these Authentics are my only choices. I really want that D-28A, but not with that neck. Put the 2006 D-18 neck on it and I’d buy one, but as I had to start building my own electric guitars to get something other than a .8” modern C, I am learning to build acoustic guitars as well and am half way through my first OM guitar using all hot hide glue.

    1. Scott, thanks for your comments.

      This model appeared the very first year of the new Authentic Series. The VTS torrefaction treatment hadn’t yet been put into place. The model now comes with the VTS top and bracing.

      I have amended this review so people understand that difference. Thank you for pointing it out.

      Martin has recently released an “aged” version of this model:

      https://www.martinguitar.com/guitars/authentic-vintage/d-45s-authentic-1936-aged/

  2. It’s worth the price tag?
    You must be joking
    Yes beautifull tone and craftsmanship but 70 percent of the price is for the name itself
    No matter how good is this or any other brand new guitar It should not command a price of 60 thousand dollars – it’s just ridiculous beyond words and pointing just to one conclusion pure greed aiming at rich customers Fair enough they are rich so why not make them pay?
    But to the point – don’t say It’s worth the price
    It’s just an insult to mine and other common people’s intelligence

    1. A timely post, perhaps, Mr. Kuasik, since just this week enough people in the United States voted out of concern for their own selfish greed to elect as President a dishonest and dishonorable man not fit to serve on a school board.

      But the fact is, the Martins in the Authentic Series made from Brazilian rosewood have a list price one half the cost of the actual vintage Martin model it is representing. It is really that simple.

      And the fact also is, people will actually buy them for the price. They can only make a small handful of each, so why should Martin sell them at a price below what the market can bare, when they are in fact an exclusive and finite product unmatched elsewhere in the world? That is why vintage Martins sell for so much. And that is why the current Mr. Martin feels the formula of half the price of the true vintage Martin is a reasonable price to ask for the Brazilian rosewood Authentics.

      Yes, it would be nice if everyone could have such a guitar, but that is not the way the world works.

      Now, you can get someone like TJ Thompson to make you a meticulous replica of a pre-war D-45, maybe even one with the extra-wide top this has, and for considerably less, but still for a LOT of money. It will never be an actual Martin, and Martin knows that matters to the people willing to pay the premium.

  3. Magnificent….I purchased one from The Great Mandolin Bros in Staten Island NY “God Bless Stan M. Jay” & Picked it up at the C F Martin Factory in Nazareth PA……It Chimes like a Bell & Plays like Hell…..I will travel near & travel far just to get my Great Martin Guitar!…..But Must Admit I am Careful With It, its a little pricey…….lol…….To all who have String Fever Keep on Picken…….Enjoy!…….

  4. You mention forward-shifted bracing but the Martin spec says standard bracing. How do you reconcile this difference?

    1. Thank you for the question, Martin.

      For whatever reason Martin has changed their spec sheets so that the bracing on the Martin guitars with the traditional dove tail neck joint say “Standard X” and that means it differs from the “Hybrid X” used for the non-dovetail joints guitars, like a D-16GT.

      And then there is more information after that “Standard X” providing greater detail. For example the D-28 Authentic 1937 says:

      Standard ”X” Scalloped (Authentic Style) Circa 1937 – Forward Shifted

      The Circa refers to the fact they trying to duplicate the bridge plate of the exact guitar being replicated, and so other guitars from 1937 may in fact have slightly different measurements between the bridge plate and X brace position.

      The D-45S Authentic 1936 spec sheet reads “Standard ”X” Scalloped (Authentic Style) – Circa 1936″

      Martin didn’t move move to the rear-shifted bracing until 1939, so the Authentic 1936 would have forward shifted braces. I assume someone left that last bit off as an oversight. It is not the only such oversight on the new spec sheets.

  5. You did excellent on your reviews of the Authentics! I’m new to the World of Martin Guitars. After laying off the guitar for 30 plus years, I’m back as a student of the instrument again. Your reviews plus others on Youtube have given me a great understanding and thrills of the Martin guitars and have certainly won me over as a fan.

    1. Hello Yoon and thank you.

      Sorry it took me so long to reply to your query. It can be found under our new Q @ A feature on the main menus

  6. I own 1942 D-45A and it’s the best guitar I’ve ever played..but I would love to trade for this wider/bigger neck.

    1. I congratulate you on the fine choice. I absolutely LOVED the prototype and hope to won one myself, someday. I hope you can play the 1936 version. It is not just bigger, it is B I G G E R. But you may find it just what you are looking for.

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