November 20, 2024

Category: Acoustic Guitars

Reviews, essays, and articles relating to acoustic guitars, and related accessories.

Acoustic Guitars

Lyric Classical Acoustic Microphone by L.R. Baggs

one manby one man0

Designed for live performance, the new L.R. Baggs Lyric Classical microphone raises the bar for classical guitar amplification

An internal microphone with a high-quality preamp featuring proprietary anti-noise circuitry, and variable presence adjustment “crafted” expressly for nylon string guitars

The L.R. Baggs Lyric internal microphones use technology found in their famous Anthem pickup system, only without the undersaddle pickup. It is placed on the bridge plate about 3mm from the saddle, and it offers a sound much like an external microphone without the feedback and proximity issues. It also has an internal battery pack, that can be mounted most anywhere, and a volume and presence control that mounts out of site, just inside the sound hole.

While it may condense the tone of the guitar a bit more than a large, external mic, especially when under a harder attack, it really is about the best amplified nylon string guitar sound we have ever heard.

Here is Omar Torrez, one of the “most talented emerging artists on the global music scene today” demonstrating the Lyric Classical microphone has he performs “The Dance (of Leon and Frida)” from his latest album, A Night of Heavy Drinking.

Learn more about the Lyric Classical and other fine products at L.R. Baggs official website HERE

Learn more about Omar Torres at his official website HERE

And that is one man’s word on…

Lyric Classical Acoustic Microphone by L.R. Baggs

Acoustic Guitars / Review

Review: Deep Body Martin OM

one manby one man0

The Shimmer of 42

Combining the looks of a pre-war Style 42 12-fret slothead with the convenience of a 14-fret guitar, made all the more powerful with extra-deep sides, this deep body Martin OM, Madagascar/Adirondack jewel box from their fabled Custom Shop is a feast for the eyes as well as the ears.

“From the first strum there is a stark ring to the fundamental voice, each note pure but with pronounced substance, clear yet dense, like diamonds. And with each steely note ringing off a string an expanding sonic reaction blooms, from an echo beneath the top voice and a woody hum deeper down, to a shining choir of lofty overtones. This guitar shows off the most sophisticated type of Madi-Adi tone.” This Deep Body Martin OM-42 rings and sings…

Read the Full Review

Deep Body Martin OM-42 review at One Man's Guitar onemanz.com high color abalone

Acoustic Guitars

Neil Young Live at the Cellar Door – Solo 1970

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After 43 years in a vault, Neil Young is releasing an album of performances recorded during a run of a dozen shows in Washington D.C., from November-December 1970. Entitled Neil Young Live at the Cellar Door, this time capsule offers intimate listening of a young Young and the young Martin D-45 he had been playing for less than a year.

The 13-song collection is available for pre-sale at the artist’s official website in high-quality digital FLAC, as a CD, or on 180 gram vinyl.

Performing two sets a night, Young used the week-long booking in the small club to hone material for his upcoming concert at Carnegie Hall, which became a mainstay bootleg record ever after. Live at the Cellar Door will provide state of the art audio mastering unavailable back in the day.

Including well-known Buffalo Springfield tunes along with fresh releases from the then new smash LP After the Gold Rush, the ever-changing artist also debuts new material at the dawn of his post-CSNY solo career. Young and vital, Young was a vital force in the post-Woodstock era and this record provides a glimpse of an emerging superstar on the verge of going supernova.

Official Neil Young Live at the Cellar Door Warner/Reprise Pre-sale HERE

Premium bundle includes a lithograph advertising the venue.

Neil Young Live at the Cellar Door

Also available at Amazon.com, including downloadable MP3 files HERE

And don’t forget to see what Neil Young has on his mind at his personal website, neilyoung.com

Acoustic Guitars

Martin 000-42 Marquis Photos

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Our very good friend Rich sent us some of his 000-42 Marquis photos,

the beloved guitar he tracked down and purchased in part because of our review, written for Maury’s Music.com the year week that model came out. Now discontinued, it remains highly sought after on the used guitar market.

And why not? It has primo woods, beautiful pearl inlay, and Marquis Series specifications, including top grade Adirondack spruce for the top, supported with Golden Era 1/4″ scalloped braces. And the cross silking on the top of Rich’s guitar is absolutely luscious.

Martin 000-42 Marquis photos One Man's Guitar onemanz.com Adirondack spruce cross silking

And you can see more of his photography focusing on this great example of one of the best Indian rosewood guitars Martin ever made – more 000-42 Marquis photos HERE

Thanks Rich!

Gear / Review

G7th Performance Capo – a review

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Some years ago I wrote a product review for Maury’s Music, on the G7th Performance Capo.

I have greatly revised my original review, as I have come to appreciate this capo more and more overtime. Basically, I learned how to attach it to the guitar neck better over time.

Unlike many capos, the G7th Performance Capo was the brainchild of a guitarist, Englishman Nick Campling, who is also a professional product designer. After 30 years of capo dissatisfaction, he fixed his eye upon the challenge of making a better mousetrap, err, capo. To do so, he looked at those produced in recent decades and how they may have fallen short in his demanding estimation.

His primary concerns were the effect of the capo on a guitar’s intonation, the ease of use in terms of applying and removing it, making sure the capo did not damage the guitar’s neck or get in the way of the guitarist’s fretting hand, and finally, a capo that was attractive to the eye. The G7th Performance capo does a good job in all these respects.

This is no easy order, given the long and not always pretty history of this little piece of guitar gadgetry…

Read the Full G7th Capo Review

G7th Performance Capo review at One Man's Guitar - onemanz.com

Acoustic Guitars / Review

Randall Kramer Guitars Debuts at Woodstock Invitational – exclusive preview

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Randall Kramer guitars debuts this weekend, at the Woodstock Invitational Luthiers Showcase – our exclusive up close and personal preview

Sparky Kramer was visiting one of his customers in New York City last night, on his way to the big guitar show. So, I stopped by for a chat with the California wood charmer, and a look at these new and delightful musical instruments, made with gorgeous woods and super smart design features.

“The guitar sounded huge for such a small size. It invited one to play with the absolutely lightest touch they could, and be rewarded with such lovely tone and marvelous projection. But it had no issue with being attacked, and effortlessly turned into a blues machine.”

Read the Full Article on Randall Kramer Guitars

Guitar interior by Randall Kramer from sound port

Acoustic Guitars / General Music News

Martinfest 12 – Annual gathering of Martin guitar lovers

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The Unofficial Martin Guitar Forum has thousands of members world wide. The small percentage who make the trek to Nazareth, PA to meet in person at their annual get-together have formed an extended family beyond what normally comes from meeting people from the internet.

“It is the rare sort of bond normally reserved for old army buddies, or the lifelong friendships formed during one’s college years. They sometimes find it hard to explain to their spouses or family and friends back home, so they will bring them along and let them see for themselves…

While other guitar brands have their loyal fans, none seem to evoke as much reverence and affection from their admirers as Martin, and this has led people from greatly diverse backgrounds to find they share a similar love of music that transcends their many differences…

Republicans room with Democrats, liberals stay up till dawn with the conservatives they looked so forward to seeing after a year apart; even Yankees fans find themselves warmly embraced by fans of the Tigers, Oriels and Red Sox. From the Oscar winner to the homemaker, the CPA to the MBA, all and all, they have found common ground in this most unpretentious celebration rooted in the love of music and Martin guitars…

As one member put it, “Music is a unifying force that reaches across many boundaries and brings people together in very deep and lasting ways.” Martinfest is living proof of that.”

Read the full Article on Martinfest 12

Martinfest lounge singalong

Acoustic Guitars / Review

Martin D-45S Authentic 1936 Review

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Visit the Mountaintop of Acoustic Guitars in Our D-45S Authentic 1936 Review

An instrument as impressive as its hefty price tag

… a sound 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 enormous. The D-45S Authentic 1936 provides a sumptuous feast when playing even 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.

Not many readers will ever get to see one of these, let alone actually afford to buy one. But we 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. We feel we owe it, to society. You can thank me when you invite me over to play your D-45SA 1936.

Read the full D-45S Authentic Review

D-45S Authentic 1936 Review

Acoustic Guitars / Review

Our Martin D-18 Authentic 1939 Review

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The Classic Mahogany Dreadnought Explored:
Our D-18 Authentic 1939 Review

The time machine Martin closest of all to the priceless pre-war instrument sought after by so many.

The light build on this mahogany/Adirondack is reinforced by rear-shifted braces, with the main X brace placed a bit farther back than on modern Martins. This helps add to the openness of the voice, and reduces the rumble in the bass, so the bottom notes retain great definition while the highs have all the cutting power a Bluegrass flatpicker could hope for.

Whether you are listening to Brownie McGhee singing the Blues, or Kris Kristofferson singing about Bobby McGee singing the Blues, you are hearing a D-18 laying down the rhythm. The folk music of Simon and Garfunkel, Donovan, and Gordon Lightfoot featured the D-18, as did the Rock n Roll of Elvis Presley, Jerry Garcia, and Kurt Cobain. And when it came to Mountain Music, Old Time, and Bluegrass, the D-18 has reigned supreme, especially among the hot-handed pickers.

And no D-18 yet is as like to taking a time machine to the 1930s and buying one, days after the glue has dried.

Read the full D-18 Authentic 1939

Martin D-18 Authentic 1939 review
photo: R. Dennie

 

Acoustic Guitars / Review

Martin D-28 Authentic 1941 Review

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We get to the heart of the heart of Martin’s Authentic Series with our D-28 Authentic 1941 Review

As our D-28 Authentic 1941 review shows, “this isn’t just a good vintage D-28 reissue; it’s a great guitar.”

Tone, dynamics and playability matter most to me when judging a guitar. This guitar gets top marks in all three areas. When it comes to tone, it had me at the first strum, because of its ringing purity, impressive depth, effortless volume, and its expansive, open, room filling presence.

If I didn’t already have a 1966 D-28 that was converted to pre-war specs, I would have bought one of these guitars the day I played the prototype at the Martin factory.

The Martin D-28 is the most copied guitar in history. Martin alone has no fewer than 10 different versions of the D-28 available in their current catalog, with varying prices and levels of vintage appointments.

Many luthiers, from small workshops to major manufacturers have come out with their own take on the D-28, and many have tried to put in the specs they think matter most when trying to capture some of that legendary vibe, sound and feel that made pre-war Martins so famous. Well, this is Martin’s own attempt to make a D-28 as close to how they made them back in the day, as realistically possible. And they have done a pretty amazing job, especially considering the relatively low price tag.

Yes, Brazilian rosewood would have been very nice to have for the back and sides. But it simply would have put these guitars out of sight. The D-28 1941 Authentic is not a collectable museum piece to be set in a closet to protect the investment required to own one. It is an exquisite, yet practical musical instrument that can and shall be played, recorded and enjoyed.

Read the Full D-28 Authentic 1941 Review Here

D-28 Authentic 1941 review