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The guitar is advertised that the neck "plays like butter" but out of the box (or beautiful case that it comes with) it didn't. But that was okay. It played WELL, but not like butter. So I took it to a luthier who did minor adjustments to both the saddle and the nut and had the strings changed to a lighter gauge. Well, 58 dollars and 62 cents later it DOES play like butter. I love the 1.75" width at the nut..... I wasn't sure about this guitar as I did buy it sight unseen. And honestly I didn't expect it to "play like butter" off the assembly line. But it had everything I wanted within my budget of $1000.... Solid wood everywhere except for the fret board. A case. Able to plug it in and jam with a band. You purists can say what you want about the rich lite fretboard....it is denser than wood, lighter than wood, and impervious to hot and cold weather changes. I've always wanted a Martin. This is a made in Mexico but the craftsmanship is A-one. If I ever gig with a Martin, uhhhh taking out a D-28 would be pretty foolish in my book. So this brilliant acoustic guitar is a higher end "beater" for me. And....it's a MARTIN! Calling it a "beater" is no disrespect. I mean this guitar is a "Road Series" model. And I see why they call it "Road Series." It rips, it's a MARTIN, and if It ever gets lost or stolen it would be easily replaceable. Great lows and great even-sound across the strings acoustically OR amplified. A little more polite sounding than my 20 year old Ovation (talk about a "beater") yet this guitar (after having it set-up) is an extension of me now. It even smells gorgeous. Beautiful well constructed case as well. I am still going to buy a D-28 or D-18. It will most likely not ever leave my house. And I will probably buy it from zzounds....whom I have bought a lot of gear from and they have always done exactly what they said they were going to do. Thanks zZounds!! Before writing this review I was playing my just-back-from-the-luthier Martin GPCRSGT guitar and was thinking as I played "Dude....you got a MARTIN" Yeah it's true. I did. And you should too!!! "Dude....I GOT A MARTIN!!!"

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Let me tell you this is not your grandaddy's Martin. Being a live performer I always felt that Martin was behind Takamine and Taylor when it came to making a plug in acoustic. Well after trying several different plug in acoustics I was really happy with this model Martin. First off I love the size of it. I'm only 5'7" and this mini jumbo body fits me very comfortably. The sound plugged in is very natural it sounds almost the same as if you where playing it on your couch. It's an all solid guitar, comes with the case and is at a great price point. I can't tell you how many things I have purchased from zZounds and what a great company they are to offer payments so that working stiffs like me are able to afford such great instruments.

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I bought this Martin 6 months ago and it was my first Martin and I must say, it lives up to Martin standards and quality. The only thing I had to get used to was the width of the next because the 1rst E string is so close to the edge of the neck, but after a few days, no problem. All the seams are in perfect order,the finish is superb.It is light weight and installing the strap peck was no problem.I will say I was not 100% pleased with the Fishman electronics,although I know Fishman does make great electronics, but for some reason, in this particular guitar, they are not very responsive. Volume button works fine,but Tone just doesn't change much,I have to adjust my tone at my amp. It comes with a very nice durable hard shell case and sure to keep it safe for many years to come. Only thing that makes this guitar nicer, is I was given by a good friend in the business, a personally autographed guitar strap from none other than the man himself Chet Atkins ! I have worked in the business in Nashville for 12 years for some of the biggest names as a roadie and stage crew & lighting tech and have always loved chilling with the guitar techs and even playing some awesome guitars and I must say, this Martin in my opinion, rates right up there with some of the other ones I've had the honor to play. If you are considering buying a new guitar, by all means, you should check this one out, you will not be disappointed !!!!! Hadn't had to use Mfg. Support.....

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This is my second Martin and I'm very pleased with it. The first one was a MF special run and had fret buzz that wouldn't go away. I bought it from zZounds and as usual they're service was great. I ordered it on a Thursday and it was in my hands on Saturday. The guitar came well packed. I had to tweak the action a bit to get it to where I like it, (I like very low action) but the action was pretty good out of the box. It didn't come with an allen wrench which is could be a problem because Martins require a special allen wrench that is extra long. I had one so no biggie. This guitar has a wider fretboard than I'm used to (1.75") but I soon realized I can arpeggiate better with my big hands on a wider fretboard than I can on something narrower like a Taylor, etc... The sound was very full, excellent bass. The neck felt good, no fret edges. The finish was smooth, all of the seems were true. The endpin came unattached. I've never seen this before but have read that it's common on Martins for safety issues in shipping. Putting in on was very easy, I just had to sand down the inside of the pin to get it in all the way. The case was included and is good quality and will protect the guitar. This is a very good guitar that's going to be a keeper! I can see many more Martins in my future! If you're on the fence, buy one, you won't regret it!

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It arrived from Missouri in a cold FedEx truck to Maine and it was one degree out lol, I let it warm up to room temperature and did a strum and it was in freakin’ tune!!! Unless the Fedex guy tuned it before he knocked on the door…I took it as a good sign lol. A new Martin is kind of unique as you have to put the End pin (the pin the strap hooks to) in yourself, which is kind of neat and symbolic that you finish your own guitar. Martin's low end guitars are comparable to a lot of other companies very best models. Yes this a budget Martin, Yes it's made in Mexico (who btw have a long tradition of being amazing luthiers; I've never understood the bias) and yes it has a synthetic fret board. All of which should NOT deter you from checking this model out. For the price it is an amazing value that you HAVE to play to appreciate. This thing sounds amazing right out of the case (which itself is worth a good $200). It’s sound is so warm. I don’t know how else to explain it but the sound inside the guitar, resonates with the wood and seems to hold the music in the wood itself. The result is it feels alive when you play it because you can feel the music in the wood and in the neck. Try a guitar that is made out of great wood and you’ll see what I mean. This guitar feels like that, and it’s a budget model… It is literally the best sounding and playing acoustic i've personally ever owned. The fret board: I had a Gibson SG that had an ebony neck back in the 80’s and it was by far my favorite neck. This is similar and maybe even a little better, livelier somehow. It feels like real wood to me, I cannot tell the difference. The Fishman system sounds great. But if I was going to record with it I think I’d mic it instead, the acoustic sound is just so damn good lol. But on an amp it sounds very warm and loud without any feedback standing in front of a 4x4 cab. Mine didn’t feature the USB port I’ve seen on other models I’m not sure why, keeps the cost down I suppose. I returned another MUCH cheaper guitar to get this one and zZounds, as usual were flawless in their service and correspondence.

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An all solid wood Martin with electronics for $999 almost seems unreal. The compromise is that it is MIM, but not a deal breaker since the quality and sound is Martin through and through.