Why do Martins sound so much better?

Started by jimmyd, November 29, 2007, 05:31:29 PM

Previous topic - Next topic

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

Why would anyone care whether their guitar had wings or not?  that's about the most pointless objection to a guitar that i can think of.

FWIW, I've owned some Martins that have been killer - the last two (an OM-18V and a 00-18V) were reluctantly sold to purchase my Collings OM2H.  Which brings me to point two: there is absolutely nothing about a bolt-on neck that should discourage a person from buying a guitar he or she likes.  High end or otherwise.   You might be glad when neck reset time comes around.

I've liked every Larrivee I've owned, but if it were a choice between my Larrivee and my Collings (hopefully never have to face it), the Collings stays and the Larrivee gets sold.  But I love them both.

Ken

Save the debate for the politicians. When it comes to guitars, beauty is in the ear of the beholder.

I own three Martins, two Larrivees, a Oahu Square Neck that my wife paid $20 for at a yard sale and a Giulietti (defunct Italian Accordian/Guitar Maker) that my parents bought for me in 1967 for the princely sum of $80. Every one sounds great, plays easy but different and wouild be hard to replicate.

After you decide on a guitar and determine how long you plan to keep it, here's the formula to measure the true cost of ownership. Divide the purchase price by the number of years you own it and then divide that total by 12 months. Here are three examples:

My D-35 cost 1.66 per month to own (Me, not my parents)

My Giulietti cost 17 cents per month to own (My parents, not me)

My Parlour (purchased in 2004) has cost me $14.44 per month, but my monthly cost keeps dropping every year.

Quote from: teh on December 12, 2007, 08:23:51 PM
After you decide on a guitar and determine how long you plan to keep it, here's the formula to measure the true cost of ownership. Divide the purchase price by the number of years you own it and then divide that total by 12 months. Here are three examples:

My D-35 cost 1.66 per month to own (Me, not my parents)

My Giulietti cost 17 cents per month to own (My parents, not me)

My Parlour (purchased in 2004) has cost me $14.44 per month, but my monthly cost keeps dropping every year.

Using your math I think I need to buy some more guitars.  :arrow
Roger


"Live simply so that others may simply live"

I once thought of myself as relatively "guitar savvy", but I have to admit, I have no idea what "wings" are.  At first, I honestly thought it was an oddly distastful maxi pad joke  :?  :bgrin:.  Then I read an advertisment for a martin that said that the neck didn't have "wings"...What gives...Can someone enlighten me?  As always, thanks!
Larrivee D-09
Washburn D-10S
Framus Classical Archback
Fender Jazz and P-Basses

"Snap snap, grin grin, wink wink, nudge nudge, say no more?" (Eric Idle)
Dum spiro, spero. (Cicero)

With the growing shortage of mahogany, Martin has having a challenge finding enough pieces of hog that are big enough/plentiful enough or wide enough to make necks.  Therefore, in order to conserve wood, they're sometimes making headstocks a bit narrower, then glueing pieces of mahogany onto the sides of the headstock on either side of the tip, keeping the original traditional headstock shape, but making the headstock 3-piece instead of the traditional one piece.  This has no effect on tone, but the traditionalist faction of Martin fans sometimes find this practice objectionable.  This picture shows a Martin headstock with wings.  Gibsons, BTW, have always had wings.



Thanks to Elderly's for the pic.
Mike

Larrivee P-10MQ
Martin 00-18 Retro
Martin 000-16SGT
Martin LX1
Washburn D10SDL
plus lots of Chinese instruments, 2 violins, 2 pianos, etc., etc.

I don't think most "Martin" fans object to the use of the wings, as much as they object to the apparent poor craftmanship that accompanies the design. I own a Martin that retails for several thousands of dollars, and it has these infamous wings. They are quite visible. This is due to the fact that Martin cannot apply them properly, which is unacceptable in a guitar of that price. I bought mine used at a really low price, so I didn't really care, but how Martin finds these acceptable in highly expensive guitars is beyond me. Learn how to do something correctly before degrading otherwise really nice guitars!
BTW, Martins don't sound better, just different (truth be told, I play my Larrivees, Collings and Bourgeois more!)
Pleased to own OM-10MR, OM-50TSB, JCL, L-09LE

Thanks for the clarity.  Oh, and by the way...Ewww, yuck! :yak:  That's a completely different grain pattern.  I knew that Martin builders couldn't hear, but I didn't think that they couldn't see either!  Now, I can appreciate someones "eco-consciousness" as much as the next guy, I just hope that Martin's next move isn't to mix sawdust and glue together to call it "composite"....e.g., Boltaron (plastic), HPL (asbestos tile), etc...
Larrivee D-09
Washburn D-10S
Framus Classical Archback
Fender Jazz and P-Basses

"Snap snap, grin grin, wink wink, nudge nudge, say no more?" (Eric Idle)
Dum spiro, spero. (Cicero)

You only see the wings if you look directly at the back of the headstock. How many people spend a lot of time doing that?

Jim

Quote from: thistle on December 01, 2007, 12:20:39 PM
And what about Joni Mitchell? She's a Big Sneak if I ever saw one.

I recently saw an article about Joni Mitchell in a newspaper. The headline described her as one of the best American songwriters of all time.

Jim

QuoteThe headline described her as one of the best American songwriters of all time.

:roll   :roll   :roll

Well, if she's good, she MUST be American!

:roll   :roll   :roll
~Lynn :guitar

<<You only see the wings if you look directly at the back of the headstock. How many people spend a lot of time doing that?>>

I see the back of the headstock whenever I look at it! That's hardly the point. I don't see the inside of the guitar and all the bracing either, but it would not give me a warm and fuzzy feeling if the craftsmanship was on par with the wings. It has nothing to do with Martin being ecologically responsible or any other dribble like that.
They have some models that retail for $4000.00 that have no wings, and models at $7000+ that do. You come to accept a certain level of quality from certain builders, and I find that Martin has been lacking in that regard with shabby bridge pin holes and wings. The last two I picked up also had finish flaws. If that is acceptable to Martin quality control, that's too bad. They are not getting my new guitar business. Bourgeois, Larrivee, Collings and Santa Cruz have not demonstrated this, they have actrually upped their game. Good on 'em! They are getting my new guitar business, and word of mouth praise.
Pleased to own OM-10MR, OM-50TSB, JCL, L-09LE

"Re:  Why do Martins sound so much better"........

Do you mean as in  Taylors sound OK, Gibsons sound good, Martins sound so much better, but
LARRIVEES SOUND BEST ?

:humour:

" "Re:  Why do Martins sound so much better"........

Do you mean as in  Taylors sound OK, Gibsons sound good, Martins sound so much better, but
LARRIVEES SOUND BEST ? "

Finally , someome has cleared this all up   :humour:

what's a Martin?

shout 'Freebird' one more time. see what happens.


Fun thread.  I've had a Martin 000-15S for about 2 years and absolutely love the playability and sound of the "ugly" all-hog box.  The mid-range is to die for and the bass is exceptional.  Of the three guitars I rotate through it is the best to play at the end of a long hard day (yesterday was one such day) when I need some comfort sounds.  Many say this is Martin's best bang for the buck.  I sold a L03MT on this forum (for sale again, I see) after getting the Martin.  No "wings" either.

Martin makes great guitars at many price points.  Some seem overpriced, but there are a lot of "boomers" happy to plunk down $5000 for an "authentic" Martin.

Play it daily for best results.

Quote from: prof_stack on December 15, 2007, 08:21:40 AM
Fun thread.  I've had a Martin 000-15S for about 2 years and absolutely love the playability and sound of the "ugly" all-hog box.  The mid-range is to die for and the bass is exceptional.  Many say this is Martin's best bang for the buck.  I sold a L03MT on this forum (for sale again, I see) after getting the Martin.  No "wings" either.

I have 4 Martins. Including a 000-15s. While this is the least expensive Martin I own, it is, as prof_stack suggests, the best "value".

while we are on the 000-15S topic . I have a Martin 00-15 now , but I've been considering the 000-15S for a while . how would you compair them and what are the pros and cons of each ?

a little payment for your opinions  :donut :donut2 :donut :donut2 :donut :donut2 :coffee :coffee

Why do Martins sound so much better?

Because they are made by elves!


Here is my favorite Martin:



Here's My Favorite Martian! 



[attachment no longer available]
Larrivee D-09
Washburn D-10S
Framus Classical Archback
Fender Jazz and P-Basses

"Snap snap, grin grin, wink wink, nudge nudge, say no more?" (Eric Idle)
Dum spiro, spero. (Cicero)

Powered by EzPortal