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Quick comparison vid of my Martin D-18 and Martin D-28 and Gibson J-45 (and why I don't particularly like new strings)


jackcooper

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Haven't posted for a long time, so thought I'd do a quick comparison vid of my three current guitars which I love equally for their individual tonal qualities.....

 

So I restrung them all with free 80/20s and turned on my H2.....

 

Then I remembered why I'm not too fond of new strings.

 

I only usually ever restring my guitars when they either become dead or when the third string breaks (from too much bending)

 

It seems to my ear that the fresh out of the packet strings make my guitars lose a bit of their individualism.

 

The Gibson loses some of it's thumpy honky tonk tone while the Martins become much harder to tell apart than say when the strings are a month or so old.

 

And so therein lies my question......

 

 

Do fresh strings rob a guitar of a little of it's character in your opinion???

 

I'd be interested if you watch the vid

with comment if possible and share your experiences with the variation you get in tone from your guitars when you first restring to after a month and onward.

 

 

 

 

I'm going to make another vid in a months time and see if you guys think they sound better or worse or the same. 😁

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I have never liked fresh brass/bronze strings. While I have not found the characteristic voice of any guitar took a walk, new strings always sound a bit harsh and brittle to my ears. Takes a day or so of playing to get them to start settling in. Nickel wrap strings seem to do better straight out of the package.

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Love the J45! Sounds great and really suits your playing as Sal said. Of the three, the Martins seem to suffer the most from new stringitis, both sound a bit plinky. All seem like they need a couple of hours on the strings to get them to mellow down. Is that a pre-2012 D18?

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It seems to my ear that the fresh out of the packet strings make my guitars lose a bit of their individualism.

Heard - for obvious reasons a set of new strings take the lead and kind of dominates the actual instrument.

My Birds fx get significantly less birdy with fresh bronze and the Marts simply sounds overpowering.

It's the old Q about steel & wood balance. A delicate relationship which should be taken seriously - especially when we're talkin' high-end guitars.

I'm going to make another vid in a months time and see if you guys think they sound better or worse or the same. 😁

Splendid idea. The comparison will tell us a lot.

You got 3 aces there for sure.

Enjoy switching.

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The J-45 is a stunner, and suits your playing perfectly. Both Martins--particularly the D-28-- were wallflowers by comparison.

 

I don't think the new strings hurt tone that much, but like you, I keep mine on for a long, long time these days.

 

It may be that 80/20's in general are a bit harsh when new. I generally use DR Sunbeams on my Gibsons. These are round-core PB's, and are warm right out of the box and stay that way for a long time. I use Martin PB's on my 000-28 EC. They don't last anywhere near as long as the Sunbeams.

 

Generally, 80/20's sound a bit brittle to me, especially when new.

 

More to the point, what are you using for a pick in these videos?

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Fullly agree on the comments about the J-45. And its a great comparisement of Martin and Gibson. I DO love a good D-18, especially a 50's specimen, tney are just wonderful, cranky and honest guitars.

 

But .. this video demonstrates where Gibson just has such an edge over Martin. While the Martins sound real good in their own right they are rather single dimensional, great one trick ponys. When you listen to the J-45 if offers everthing the D-18 can offer, but then so much more. There is the midrange, the percussive low end, and of course that honky tonk vibe. Really, when you play a Gibson it sounds almost like two or three guitars are being played simultanously. You wont get that with a Martin.

 

Still, i wold love a 50's D-18.

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  • 1 month later...

Thanks guys for all your replies. I'm sorry I wrote that post then vanished, had some really crappy stuff to deal with over the past few months, but I won't bore you with it.

 

Enjoyed reading all of your replies.

 

Thanks also for the compliments, it means a lot to hear fellow guitar players say nice things. I do think the J-45 has the slight edge over the Martins. It does have a more three dimensional tone, I don't know how Gibson do it.

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