Martin Guitars Custom Shop 000-28

Sonic Evaluation

Wildwoodians, this Custom Shop 000-28 is the sort of guitar that injects your day with positive energy and puts a smile on your face. To give you an idea of the level of joy it brings, one minute I was quietly strumming some chords, and the next my coworker and I were singing Bowie "Space Oddity" at top volume while doing our best Neil Young impersonations. Why? It's complicated. Speaking of complexity, part of the reason we were acting a fool was the delightful bouquet of overtones this guitar produces, likely due to its Carpathian spruce top. Though it has a rich, complex voice, it also is highly articulate, and has excellent balance.

However, my favorite part of this guitar is how unbelievably expressive it it is. It has a wide dynamic range, and you can significantly alter the color of your tone by varying your right-hand velocity. It's also so touch-sensitive that a baby breathing on the strings would probably make it ring out at mezzo forte. Because it has so much richness on tap, it makes you feel like you have a palette with a thousand colors with which to paint your masterpiece. At low volumes, it sounds warm and chocolatey, and as you play harder, more and more sparkling golden-hued overtones pop out of the soundhole.

Beyond that, this guitar also has a good deal of headroom, and it honestly surprised me with its cannon-like properties when you dig in. However, it also responds beautifully to a light touch. As a result, it handles strumming, picking, and fingerstyle with equal aplomb--a true all-terrain vehicle!

This serial is a truly special example of Carpathian spruce's delightful tone, and (even though it's weird) after you take it for a spin you'll understand why it compelled my coworker and I to sing a David Bowie song in the style of Neil Young.