A Very Popular Choice: Martin D-28 Guitar
Written: Jun 24 '06 (Updated Nov 15 '06)
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Pros: Reputation, hard shell case, good for players with small hands
Cons: High price for the trim level, soft easily damaged finish, sound tends towards bass
The Bottom Line: The D-28 is a well respected guitar, first choice of many players, but as plain as a homely sister. Try several expensive guitars before you invest your money.
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| George_Chabot's Full Review: Martin D-28 Acoustic Guitar |
Martin D-28 Guitar
When you can play acoustic guitar any way you want, you tend to gravitate to one of two options; you can choose a large Gibson, which many people swear by, or you can choose a Martin, which also has many advocates; the most representative model of which is the D-28.
There are two general styles of large size, professional quality guitars, the “D” body or “Dreadnought,” which Martin specializes in and the D-28 is an example, or the “J” or “Jumbo” body, which screams “Gibson,” like “The Wind Cries Mary.”
The Dreadnought is a squarish style with broad shoulders and a thick waist, while the Jumbo has a curvy set of bouts (the big parts of the body) joined by a wasp waist, more of a traditional guitar shape, if you will.
I was looking to get a companion guitar to join my veteran Alvarez-Yairi, one of which would be a straight-tuned six-string, while the other would serve as an open-tuned Delta Blues slide guitar. The great slide players had learned to tune their guitars to an open chord like “E,” “D,” or “G” and use alternate fingerings to allow maximal slide usage. I got tired of retuning my Yairi when I decided to switch idioms.
When I went to my local music store, Firehouse Guitars, I brought my Yairi to use as control to make sure the sound and feel of my new instrument would be similar because it is easy to get enthusiastic when confronted with all that brand new, good sounding wooden pulchritude. After firing off a couple of licks with my guitar, the salesman handed me the best guitar he had in the store, a Gibson SJ-200 Elite Custom, which was in the neighborhood of $3,600; a pretty fancy neighborhood, I might add.
After a short session with the Gibson, I was dissatisfied with the bass response somewhat so I tried a Martin. The first Martin was a D-15 all Mahogany guitar, which had a smaller neck than I was used to. The D-15 also ran heavy to bass and midrange without a lot of treble response. The scale length is about a ¼” shorter (than the Gibson) and the strings are closer together (1.6875” vs. the Gibson 1.725”) - these little differences make a HUGE difference to the feel - so I could not put my fingers down with the assurance that I would be hitting the right notes. The Salesman handed me the D-28, which has the long scale length of the Gibson but retains the slim 1.6875” neck width of the smaller Martin. My comments on playability of the D-28 echo those of the D-15. It’s just a little too slim for my fingers to grab the notes positively. For one with smaller hands it would probably be perfect.
Besides the playability, my second criterion is sound, and the D-28 has it all over the D-15 in terms of loudness and sound projection. Unfortunately, it runs very heavy to the bass register with only about half as much treble. This unbalanced sound attracts many people, and was essential in the development of country music before amplification, but I like a well-balanced sound with equal parts bass and treble. After the feel and sound checks, I had pretty much disqualified the D-28 from my potential roster, but want to go on and cover the appearance factors.
The D-28 looks somewhat better than the “cheap” ($800) D-15 Martin, but is still very plain looking for the price.
The D-28 has an Indian Rosewood body with a Sitka Spruce top, so it is a bit more striking in appearance than the all mahogany D-15. Older D-28s had a reddish Brazilian Rosewood body, while the Indian Rosewood has a brownish color. It seems to me the older reddish ones sounded better, but I can’t prove it. The body is bound with multiple layer contrasting celluloid around the front and back to protect against hard knocks and splitting (the older D-28s also had herringbone marquetry around the top) and a rosette graces the sound hole. The internal bracing emphasizes the bass tones of the guitar.
The neck is Mahogany and the fretboard and bridge saddle are Ebony, a hard wood which gives excellent sustain. The 28 in the model designation indicates the trim level. It is the second lowest trim level of the standard Martins. The only ornamentation included on the D-28 is pearl dot position markers on the fret board. The Gold paint Martin name logo appears on the head stock, which also has nickel plated tuners. A plain black teardrop pick guard finishes the appointments. The factory finish is soft and prone to scratching.
The Martin is a world-renowned guitar and is played by many famous players, but in my mind the price ($2,100) would warrant a little more opulent appearance and durable finish. You are in the league of a Gibson J-150, which has a much more striking appearance, many pearl inlays, and a better sound balance between the bass and treble sides of the instrument.
When you are ready for a solid wood, handmade guitar, you will likely gravitate to Gibson or Martin. I urge you to play both and decide whether the feel, sound, and appearance appeals to you before you make your final choice.
The Martin D-28 is also available in 12 String Model and
The D-28 Herringbone
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