Tagged As: Martin Guitar D 21
Question:
I read here and there that Martin acoustic guitars are difficult to play. Is there any truth in that?
Answer:
When I got home after our visit up the country I broke out my Martin D-21, which is basically a rosewood D-18. I bought it slightly used in '64 or 5. I'm doing mostly bass work lately, hadn't played it in a while, and I wanted to see how it stacked up. Yup, the action was a little stiffer than the Guild, partly because I have heavier strings on it, but it was the sound, THE SOUND, that really matters. Despite the fact that this guitar has been gigged plenty, had a clip-in-the-hole deArmond pickup in it for a while during my folk-rock period and is in general pretty beat, it still SOUNDS fantastic! I admit, I got a Dreadnought Martin mainly because Doc Watson and most of my Bluegrass heros of the day used them back then, D-28s mostly. But how many Strats, Teles and Pauls have been bought by the electric people because their heros played them? I've recently laid hands on a late-model Gibson J-200 and a Taylor I don't know what, and both of those instruments were damn fine guitars, but they just didn't have THE SOUND! I have no experience with recently produced Martins but, brothers and sisters, that poor old beat up D-21 is the real deal and then some.
Are Martin guitars hard to play?
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Comment #1 (Posted by Gary
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I just bought a D-21 and it is no harder to play than any other Martin. I have found, though that the D-21 sounds better with medium strings; light gauge may be easier on your fingers, but the sound is a lot thinner. Martins traditionally have a higher playing action than, say a Taylor. But your luthier can set it up any way you want. Hope this helps.