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Puluke
Aloha
USA
36 Posts |
 Posted - 10/09/2012 : 08:31:07 AM
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Wondering if anyone has experience or an opinion on these Martin guitars for playing ki ho`alu. Can't find any of them to try...
000-15m or OM-15m -- I've tried a couple D-15m's and mostly liked the sound (tho a little bassy). Not crazy about the 1 11/6 nut. What about the small-body versions?
000-18ge - Again, tried the dread version. Sounded nice but bassy.
2012 OM-21 -- Just can't find one to try.
Any thoughts welcome!
Mahalo
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- Bruce |
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RWD
`Olu`olu
USA
850 Posts |
Posted - 10/10/2012 : 04:30:14 AM
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I like Martin guitars and I currently have an omc-00018vlj that is a very resonant and lively guitar. So I can recommend that one.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3KqGwjFkDIY&list=PL919DBD20584268F2&index=4&feature=plcp
The OM 000-18ge is a very excellent guitar--I have played one and I would own one if I had the money. Not sure about the dread.
Not sure about 000-15 but I had a 000-16rgt dreadnaugth that I should have kept--great tone and resonance. I decided the 1 11/16 was too narrow but all I did was talk myself ou of a really good guitar. |
Bob |
Edited by - RWD on 10/10/2012 04:31:49 AM |
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chunky monkey
Ha`aha`a
USA
1022 Posts |
Posted - 10/10/2012 : 12:18:35 PM
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| Bob's stacking the deck with his playing (check the link). This would have sounded great on a beach guitar. Excellent. |
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haolebrownie
Aloha
USA
18 Posts |
Posted - 10/11/2012 : 5:00:46 PM
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Personally, I really like the OM/000 size body for ki ho'alu. I have a 1995 Martin 000c-16 (22 fret, oval sound hole, cutaway) that I think sounds pretty nice in taro patch. I think it is well balanced (enough so that I'm currently building a Martin-style 000/OM size guitar). Unfortunately, I'm too lazy to move the strings and put a battery in it to hear it amplified. Part of why I like OM/000 guitars is that it is comfortable for me to play. Duke has played it, so maybe he'll chime in if we're lucky.
Also, guitar bodies are built to capitalize on different things. Dreadnoughts were built to emphasize bass notes and be loud enough to carry a band. Most fingerstyle players gravitate toward smaller body guitars because they don't want a ton of bass and need to play over a band. So, if you think a dread is too bassy, look at the small bodies to help cut that back. [This is a super simplistic explanation, so sorry if you already know this or its too simplistic!]
I have no specific experience with the 000-15, 18 or OM-21. I do find that new Martins are pretty hit or miss. You probably want to play a few of the same model to see if you hear a difference if you can. |
Kī Hōʻalu and ʻUkulele Soul |
Edited by - haolebrownie on 11/01/2012 3:21:07 PM |
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Bobo
Aloha
1 Posts |
Posted - 10/21/2012 : 05:35:59 AM
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I got a good deal on a martin GPCPA3. I sounds honey coated in taro patch. Fingers sound just right, usually I found martins a bit muddy sometimes, this one can be real bright and make any kind of sound. Try touching one of those.
http://www.martinguitar.com/series/item/156-gpcpa3.html |
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Allen M Cary
Lokahi
USA
158 Posts |
Posted - 10/23/2012 : 08:46:41 AM
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Another thing I have seen with Dreads, besides the bassy sound and volume, is that they are usually set up for flat pickers and thus have a fairly narrow string spacing. Not ideal for fingerstylists unless you have small hands.
Aloha,
Allen |
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thumbstruck
Ahonui
USA
2168 Posts |
Posted - 10/23/2012 : 11:35:40 AM
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| I have big hands and a D-18. It's usually in Taropatch. Whatever you get used to. I used to play a lot of Bluegrass, now mostly ki ho'alu. Although half the job is tools, the other half is practice. Slipry1 used to work at McCabe's in Santa Monica. He told me that Martins go through a period of sounding not so good after a couple years, before the real tone of the box comes out. Keep that in mind, so you don't sell it before its time. |
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Russell Letson
`Olu`olu
USA
504 Posts |
Posted - 10/24/2012 : 05:39:50 AM
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The best way to choose a guitar is with your ears and fingers (though I suppose the wallet has some say, too). And while there are certainly family resemblances across one brand or body style or or wood, there is still enough variation within each category to make it hard to reliably characterize a kind or brand of guitar. Body size affects sound, but not always in the ways that conventional wisdom claims--it's more significant as a matter of physical comfort. And note that neck width is not the only measurement that affects "playability"--neck profile is almost as important.
Play a bunch and buy the one you find hardest to put back on the wall.
For what it's worth, I play slack key on a '65 Guild D40 (dreadnaught), a Goodall Standard (slightly larger than a dread), a Martin 0-18 and a 2-17, a handbuilt from my friend Steve Cloutier (15" lower bout) and a Michael Dunn Daphne (Selmer grande-bouche style). Neck widths at the nut vary from 1-11/16" (Guild) through 1-3/4 (Martins and Goodall) to 1-7/8 (Dunn and Cloutier). |
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Puluke
Aloha
USA
36 Posts |
Posted - 10/25/2012 : 05:26:57 AM
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I definitelty want to play before I buy. Have heard many good things about the 000-15m, OM-21, and 000-18ge, but haven't found any to try. Was just wondering if anyone had experience with any of them, specifically playing ki ho`alu.
Kind of funny, beginning of the year I was looking to get a new guitar and wanted to keep it below $1,000. Now look at me! I'm really loving playing... |
- Bruce |
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Fran Guidry
Ha`aha`a
USA
1579 Posts |
Posted - 10/25/2012 : 08:25:32 AM
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Here's a whacky idea. How about making a vacation trip to someplace with lots of guitars, say, the San Francisco Bay Area. You can visit Gryphon in Palo Alto http://gryphonstrings.com/ , Schoenberg in Tiburon http://om28.com/ and maybe Mighty Fine Guitars in Lafayette http://steviecoyle.com/ where you can try all the guitars you've listed plus many many more. Plus enjoy spectacular views, wonderful museums, amazing restaurants, even some Hawaiian music which is going on all over the place.
** Edit **
I just peeked at your user info and see that you're in Dallas. I feel silly suggesting it, but I Googled up "Martin guitar Dallas" and got quite a few hits. Charley's and Dave's both had a nice range of instruments, although not the specific ones you've mentioned.
Fran |
E ho`okani pila kakou ma Kaleponi
Slack Key Guitar in California - www.kaleponi.com
Slack Key on YouTube
Homebrewed Music Blog |
Edited by - Fran Guidry on 10/25/2012 09:34:37 AM |
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slipry1
Ha`aha`a
USA
1511 Posts |
Posted - 10/25/2012 : 2:48:25 PM
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| I have a Martin 00028, which I love. Thumbs likes to play it when he comes over. Since it is a 000, it is better for short guys like me, and, since it is 28, it's rosewood, for a mellower sound. I also have a Martin D18, which sounds good, but it's large. btw, 18 stands for mahogany, which is why these guitars sound brighter. |
keaka |
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Claudia
Lokahi
USA
152 Posts |
Posted - 10/26/2012 : 02:57:04 AM
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I have the Martin 00028EC. I only play slack key on it - in Taropatch, and in G,F,C and D Wahine. It sounds amazing and I am very happy with it. I bought it from Stan Jay at Mandolin Brothers on Staten Island in NYC - he let me play every single guitar in the store for 3 days, for hours. He told me to try all six 00028EC 's that he had in stock and take my time picking the right one for me. Its got the short scale neck, which is helpful too for me since I have small hands and those Keola chords require really looooong stretches.
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Karl Monetti
`Olu`olu
USA
756 Posts |
Posted - 02/02/2013 : 1:29:58 PM
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Stan Jay took me to the upper sanctum years ago where he had dozens of high-end axes on display. I tried every one of the Taylors (including one played the day prior by Paul Stookey) and they all sounded great, all easy to play. He then led me to two high-end Martins (can't remember model numbers), fresh from the custom shop, consecutive serial numbers. They were as different sounding as any two guitars could possibly be; One was bright and loud, the other dull and plunky. BOth were about $3500.
I'd be interested to hear if Claudia had the same experience. And, for Puluke, I think you should do something similar; disregard the model or make, just play a bunch of instruments until you find the one that sings to you. If you can afford that one, buy it. If you cannot afford it, buy it anyway! |
Karl
Frozen North |
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Any thoughts on these guitars?
