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.”

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Juber’s Juber – the Martin OMC-44K LJ

Our latest guitar review, the Martin OMC-44K LJ

No ordinary guitar…this OMC-44K LJ has an Orchestra Model body size, with a Cutaway and it is made in a modern version of Martin’s Style 44, with back and sides of Hawaiian Koa wood, known for its unique combination of clear trebles, warm harmonics, but with a more open mid-range compared to other rich tonewoods like rosewood. Just the way Laurence Juber likes it.

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OMC-44K LJ
(photos: Wildwood Guitars)

CD Revew – Laurence Juber’s Under an Indigo Sky

A “late-night” record of fingerstyle artistry, Juber’s Under and Indigo Sky is …

Languid, lovely, evocative… a melt into a sumptuous sofa, and the sonic equivalent of isolated pools of low light playing off facets of cut crystal and opulent aperitif, close sensuous voices, soft laughter bittersweet with memory at the end of an evening. A warm, layered and very human scene painted entirely with one acoustic guitar drenched with resonant chords, clear and unhurried melody lines, and shadowy blue bass notes that rise or fall in pitch or pace like a melancholy pulse. An exquisite piece of music played on an exquisite guitar, exquisitely.

And that is just the first track on Juber’s Under an Indigo Sky, the latest CD from the two-time Grammy winner.

It was mixed by Al Schmitt, who has won 19 Grammy Awards, including the Lifetime Achievement Award in 2006.

On the CD, the slightest string vibration, creak of the guitar’s hide glue joints, or wave of Juber’s “virtual whammy bar” technique used to coax out every drop of resonance is heard clearly and in three dimensions. The vinyl version must be breathtaking.

As impressive as the vibrant playing is, it is the more languid performances, such as Cry Me A River with its sustained chords and un-struck string glides that truly show off the mastery of the engineer and the exceptional qualities of the guitar. While both the mellow and the vigorous selections reveal the mastery and exceptional qualities of the guitarist.

Read the Full Review of Juber’s Under an Indigo Sky

Laurence Juber's Under an Indigo Sky

New Martin CS-OM-13

April Feature Review – Martin CS-OM-13

The CS Series of Martin guitars has entered its third year with the introduction of a new model for 2013. And for the first time, the master craftspeople at Martin’s Custom Shop have added an Orchestra Model to the line, the CS-OM-13.

Custom Shop OM-13
Custom Shop OM-13

Features include: Madagascar rosewood back & sides, High Altitude Swiss Spruce top, scalloped Golden Era style 5/16” top braces, exclusive mix of Adirondack and Sitka spruce bracing, quilted bubinga body and fingerboard binding, exclusive pearl-bound, scalloped red diamond fret markers, Madagascar rosewood bridge plate.

With its combination of contemporary design and historical features, the CS-OM-13 offers new dimensions in tone and aesthetics, while emulating some of the best, traditional Orchestra Models ever created.

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