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It's a safe bet to say if you have had any interest in playing guitar you know of the Martin brand name and their reputation for excellence. And if you've ever had the pleasure of playing or hearing one in person you understand why this reputation exist and has for many, many years. I've always dreamed of owning one. I made a personal goal to make that dream come true once I reached what is considered intermediate level play. Unfortunately Martin is not giving their guitars away and the price you pay for excellence is not cheap. Life had a way of keeping my dream on hold for awhile. Until a friend told me about zZounds. So you're saying I can own a Martin, have it in my hands, and make payments? Yeah ok, what's the catch? Folks, there's none. I purchased the DRS2 from zZounds and now am a very proud Martin owner. And did so at a very reasonable, almost hard to believe price. My guitar arrived just a few days from purchase. The moment I opened the case I could literally smell the Martin quality. Don't let the "made in Mexico" turn you off from this guitar. It screams Martin quality. The construction is solid. The look is pure Martin. The tone is exceptional. I have read others complain about it's rich tone but I hear none of that. The solid Sapele back and sides, matched with the medium gauge Martin strings, produces a bellowing tone on the low end while not at all hindering the mids and highs. The solid Spruce top gives excellent response and is a finger picker's dream. I have owned/played several lower priced acoustics and this guitar is in a different league as it should be. The sound quality produced is comparable to the higher end Martin's I've had the privilege to play. The electronics are sound amazing and I enjoy having easy access to the volume and tone control just inside the sound hole. Oh FYI, the 9v battery is now located on the outside next to the output jack and not inside. The DRS2 has exceeded my expectations all the way around. And with a solid body construction, and proper maintenance, it should only get better with age. Based on my experience you will not find a better guitar for the money. And you cannot beat the customer service and payment plans provided by zZounds. Thank you Martin and zZounds for making my dream a reality. You have a customer for life.

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2 days after ordering this one, I was playing it. Ordering was extremely fast and easy. The sound is distinctly Martin, with great playability. It rings like a bell. The construction was spot on. No complaints at all. Overall, I'm extremely happy with the purchase. I wasn't looking for flash. I wasn't looking for something fancy. I just wanted something that makes rich and beautiful sound. That it does... in spades!

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Right out of the box this DSR2 is magical. You can't beat the Martin sound. Such rich tones, good base. I'm experiencing with different strings to get the sound I want. This guitar is fun. The sound is so inspiring . Who ever was working on the floor in Martin Mexico's plant obviously adhear to Martin standards. Good job management.

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Can't beat the price. not everyone can afford high end ones. Ok, So its not the $2K-$3K Martin. neither does it have all the flare one of those would have. but you should know this when even researching this guitar. This is a Lower priced Martin made in Mexico, not true wood on the neck. BUT, still rings true like a Martin guitar should. the Bass is distinct. I got one from this site and was seriously surprised it was quick and arrived early(so there's a shout for the site). Great sound and easy to play but I'm going to lower the action to suit me. STILL a great price if you wanna get into Martin Guitars..

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I can only relate this to cheaper ($200 +/-) guitars that I've owned, and no doubt many people will speak of the shortcomings, but I haven't personally played a guitar that sounds any richer, action is great, stays in tune better than this DRS2. On top of that, every person that I've let play it (granted, all used to cheaper guitars as well), all say it's incredible.

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I have owned a couple of higher end Martins over the years and was skeptical about this stripped down Mexico-made bargain Martin. I was pleasantly surprised to find that this is a well-constructed model with fabulous tone -- don't let the price fool you, this is a wonderful instrument. It doesn't have all the bells and whistles of fancier appointments, but I actually prefer the understated look and feel. The only downside is the installation of the Fishman pickup system. The wires and battery box are simply stuck to the inside of the guitar with sticky tape, and after some time it all started coming undone. When the battery box started flopping around inside I had had enough -- I removed it all (which requires you to replace the saddle which is sanded shorter to accommodate the pickup wire). Aside from that minor annoyance, this is an under-priced fabulous guitar with terrific tone.

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I've had my DRS2 for 6 months. I take very good care of my guitars; regardless, a 2 1/2 inch crack developed in the middle of the back. The guitar is very light and the sapele back seems a little thin. Could have been constructed better. An authorized dealer "fixed" the problem, but you can see the outline of the crack easily. Seems to me that it should have been replaced but that's not going to happen! The guitar continues to sound great though. Let's hope it continues without imploding.

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Very bright... I purchased this guitar thinking it was a deep dark sounding guitar like most martins, that's not what this guitar is. It's very bright, much more bright than any martin I've had the pleasure of playing. If you like brightness, this could be for you, but I opted for a different guitar.

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It was a good solid guitar. Wood Smell is extraodinary .. Once you held it up u dont want to drop it down. But the strings is hard to press down. Seem to be the action is high. I need to refix it by change the strings to lighter size anf also make action of it lower to use for blocking chord at higher frets.