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sbpark

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Everything posted by sbpark

  1. I had a 44 year old D-28 and sold it for a profit because (I thought) it sounded like crap. My "new" D-35 and D-18 walked all over the "vintage" Martin. For the record, I'm not poo-poo'ing vintage guitars, but I'm trying to make a point that just because it's old, and I don't care who made it, doesn't automatically mean it's going to sound great. I also don't subscribe to the belief that guitars made during "this" or "that" period are all great, or are all junk. There are duds and gems from every year. And obviously the inverse can also be true where there are vintage instruments that will walk all over new, out of the box guitars. The myriad of factors that have to align to get a really exceptionally sounding guitar are so many that it's really just a roll of the dice. There isn't one thing that will automatically get you "that" sound. And while we're at it, a guitar that might sound like junk to one person might be the next person's holy grail, and that was in fact the case with my old Martin. I couldn't wait to sell it, and the buyer couldn't wait to call it his own. You just have to judge each guitar individually on it's own merits regardless of year. Also, theyr're comparing a D-35 with an HD-35. The D-35 has straight 1/4" braces, the HD-35 has scalloped 1/4" braces. The HD-35 is going to have a bigger low end and thinner/brighter high end, with more of a stopped sound compared to the '72 D-35, which is arguably from an era where Martin dreads were the most heavily braced than ever, larger bridge plates, etc. The HD-35 also has forward shifted bracing, the '72 D-35 is a standard bracing pattern, not forward shifted. Nut widths are also different with the D-35 being 1 11/16 and the Reimagined HD-35 is 1 3/4".
  2. Over $3.9M for the black Strat, making it the most expensive guitar ever to sell at auction. The D-35 also set a record for the most expensive Martin ever to sell at auction. The previous record holder was Eric Clapton's Martin.
  3. But if you factor in inflation it's usually been shown that what they cost new back then was pretty comparable to what they cost now.
  4. I've watched the new Scorsese/Dylan documentary twice. I'm going to just guess here, but I'm pretty sure they worried less about creating a haze on their guitars from their arms, and probably spent less time wiping down their guitars and fixating over every nick, dent and bump and worrying less about resale value, and just had a darn good time playing.
  5. I buy guitars to play, not for their resale value. I'd hate to be that neurotic and waste that much energy and time always worrying about preventing every possible dent, ding and scratch. I just put just play my guitars. I still can't understand those that are so concerned with "resale value" when their guitar shopping, or mores than just playing the darn things.. So many haven't even bought the guitar yet, and you're already thinking about resale value.
  6. All I could think in my head when he was wondering if the top was supposed to be arched was "King of the Flat Tops"!
  7. At least I don't use it to polish my guitars.
  8. I'd be fine with that because I actually know better. People live such sheltered lives these days. Anyone with half a brain could do the research and figure it out for themselves. And with the internet at our disposal, if you were the person who actually did add sugar to your gas tank (or used OFF! insect repellent as a guitar polish) you deserve the results. I never take anyone's word on an Internet forum as gospel. If someone offers advice I'll usually look into it deeper and take time to actually fact check/validate it. If you're the type who just takes random advice as legitimate fact then I feel sorry for you (and I'm pretty sure you're not that gullible).
  9. If you're that gullible and actually use bug spray to polish your guitar, you deserve the results. Harsh, but c'mon people. Nobody has a sense of humor these days. Stop taking yourselves so seriously, people.
  10. Super lame and I\Im disappointed. Are we also going to start cutting the crusts off everyone's PB&J's and start creating safe spaces for Gibson owners who don't have common sense?!
  11. I think we're onto something here... I'm going to start marketing these as a fretboard conditioner and polish in a twin pack:
  12. This works really well for getting rid of that finish (haze):
  13. I don't think it has anything to do with the finish not curing. The arm haze thing happens on ALL of my acoustics, new, old, Gibson and yes, it also happens on Martins, it's just harder to see due to the natural finish. Also happens on Fender electrics, Gibson electrics, etc. It's just something that happens.
  14. My thoughts would be this...stop thinking and just play the guitar.
  15. Whatever you decide to use (I'll leave my own personal preference or recommendation out of the discussion to avoid derailment of the thread), use is SPARINGLY. Whatever amount you think you need, use less, wipe it on, let it dry then do a really good job of wiping off the excess. Too much product will end up collecting gunk and do more harm than good in the long run.
  16. That Country Western looks and sounds great. I tried going down to just one Gibson and one Martin. I still pined for, and regretted selling some the guitars I sold (and I had quite a few), and during their absence I bought and sold others, then was lucky enough to buy back two of the guitars I parted with, both from two totally different buyers. Save yourself some agony and do what I ended up doing...two Martins and two Gibsons, one rosewood and one mahogany from each. Since I did that I have pretty much had no want, need, or desire for any more guitars, and it's been that way for a while now.
  17. That's too bad. You really should just play the living $h!t out of that guitar and worry less about scratching/denting/dinging it. It's meant to be played! I know if it was mine I'd keep it out on a stand and just play it. I keep my Ren-Era AJ, J45, D-18 and D-35 out on stands. Dings and dents happen. I didn't buy the guitars to admire or keep in the case, I bought them to play, but with that said I'm not criticizing you. More like trying to encouraging you to keep it and play the snot out of it! But if I had a guitar that I didn't feel comfortable playing or was super valuable and I was worried about damaging it, taking it out of the house, etc., I'd sell it in a heartbeat.
  18. As already mentioned, the 15 Series are USA made in Nazareth. They’re also exceptional guitars and sound amazing. I’ve owned several 15 Series Martins including a couple 000-15m, a custom 00-15m and played my fair share of 000-15sm and D-15m models. Seriously great sounding guitars, and I hesitate saying, “great guitars for the money”, because they’re just great guitars regardless of the price. Only reason I don’t own them anymore is because I just prefer dreads, and own 2 Martin dreads (D-35, D-18) and 2 Gibson’s (J45, AJ), and not in the Market for any more guitars. If I was in the market for another guitar though, it would be a 000-15m. They’re that good.
  19. I know you’re considering a D-15, but I’d also recommend the 000-15M. Personally I think it’s the gem of the all-mahogany Martin 15 series. I know the 000-15SM also gets a lot of love, but a really nice 000-15M is a magical guitar, regardless of its relatively low cost. Personally I think the Martin 15 Series crush the Guild GAD all-mahogany models. I’ve also owned and played s few of the all- mahogany J45’s and prefer the 000-15M and a spruce-topped J45.
  20. Ive also owned a few 15 series Martins, specifically a couple 000-15m’s and a custom 00-15m. Again, all were great, but I’m a dread guy and prefer a bigger guitar both in feel and sound, but with that said the 000-15m would be my choice. Not even close to a D-35, but that has nothing to do with quality, they just sound vastly different. I love a big, rich, complex sound, and although I’ve tried to like smaller guitars with several Martin small bodies, a few Waterloo’s, etc., I always go back to dreads. I still think it’s pretty darn hard to beat a good D-35 as a great all-arounder. I think it’s touch-sensitive enough to be a great finger picker, and a wonderful strummer that just blends really well with a singer. I always feel like my D-35 compliments my voice while my AJ, which is a monster, always seems to compete with my voice if I’m not careful. Really though, any guitar can be a singer/songwriter guitar.
  21. I have a D-18 and a D-35. Both are great singer/songwriter guitars. The D-18 is a little more punchy and projects while the D-35 blooms and is more enveloping with less projection than the D-18. The D-35 sounds big, but isn't overpowering, but again, it's a BIG sounding guitar but still pairs well with (my) voice. The guitar sounds like it has built-in reverb. If I want projection, like when playing fiddle tunes I'll reach for the D-18, when I'm doing the singer/songwriter stuff there's something about the D-35 that just always makes me sound better when singing. It's a very rich sound that just sounds like a band is playing with you. Hard to explain, but there's something a nice D-35 has that the others don't. I've also owned a few D-28's and an HD28 and never been a fan of either. I greatly prefer the D-18 and D-35 over those other two. D-28's always sound stiff and choked to me, and HD28's always sounded unbalanced with boomy lows and thin highs. The D-35 sounds much more balanced to my ear and the highs sound richer on the D-35 compared to the 28 series dreads.
  22. I have 2 Martins and 2 Gibsons; D-35, D-18, J45 and an AJ. I really love them all equally and really don't think I could go down to only one of each, but if I had to I'd pick...actually I can't pick. The D-18 and AJ are both KILLER flat picking and Bluegrass guitars, and the J45 and D-35 are so good for the singer/songwriter stuff. Impossible decision!
  23. Build quality issues? Chips?! Sorry to say, even with your close-ups pics I cannot see anything wrong with your guitar. My advice would be play that guitar more, and put away the magnifying glass and stop looking for something wrong with it.
  24. I’ve owned two J200’s, several J45’s and never played a Hummingbird (prefer Martin dreads for the square-shoulder thing). One J200 was glorious while the other was a dog, but man, the good one was amazing and wish I never parted with it and that could easily be my singer/songwriter strummer. My current singer/songwriter guitars are a J45, Martin D18 and D35. All are great for a singer/songwriter, but there’s something special about the J45. Although it has a somewhat smaller sound than he two Martins, it’s low end is growth and thunderous and the guitar overall just has “that” sound where the guitar just sits in that pocket and messes wonderfully with my voice when I sing, never competitions or overpowering. J45’s are short scale, and I kind of think of my J45 as a smaller body guitar trapped in a large body guitar. My vote would be for a good J45.
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