Martin Guitar Standard Series Acoustic Guitars, Hand-Built Martin Guitars with Authentic Wood D-18 Natural

This is a fine guitar. I can’t put it down. You can’t beat a D-18. It’s a great guitar for the money.

Friends and fellow pickers. I would no more buy a Martin guitar without picking it in my hands than running through a ENT Doctors convention yelling " Booger Booger !!"First of all I have had two new Martin guitars in the last 3 years. Both of them were not worthy of the name. They played poorly and when I tried to get help from the Martin factory concerning the shortcomings of the high priced instrument, I got lame and limp advice. I am afraid Martin has become a guitar factory and all the hype in the world won't change that. Make damn sure if you buy this guitar that you have an iron clad return policy for a realistic time. ps. Betty is my wife, I'm Doc Meeks

Can’t speak for the new model, have a ‘76 D-18. Paid between $5-600 for it then. Spruce top has turned to a golden brown patina, mahogany back/sides and black purfling have held up well. D-18’s are known for good separation, definition and accentuate folk/bluegrass picking styles. There is a difference in strumming response to accompany singing compared to mahogany Gibson acoustics, but it’s up to your personal preference. Mine has not lost any volume, and has opened up from aging over the years. No truss rod in mine so I keep it strung with a .11 set of strings. The Grover closed tuners are original, no problems. The only shortfall was replacement of the original pickguard which curled up at the edges during the 90’s, but it’s typical for Martin’s. In hindsight I would have bought a D-28 then but the cost was beyond me. It’s all relative- prices for these iconic guitars are even more crazy now. The D-28 would offer boomier basses, more projection for single line soloing, but there’s something special about mahogany’s response to good finger picking...

Well made, well set up, plays extremely well. I highly recommend Martin guitars. I have been waiting a long time to buy this guitar and this is the one I should have started with.

Awesome guitar.

First of all, their description is no longer correct. Martin has changed the venerable D-18 as of 2012, taking the specs back to it's late 1930's roots.If you are new to Martin, you may be astonished when you pick this guitar up for the first time. It's so light in your hands, but do not fear. This is a well made instrument that with reasonable care will last for generations. It is truly, an heirloom piece, but a working heirloom. It wants to be played.The biggest differences are the ebony fretboard and bridge, (in lieu of rosewood) a beautiful beveled tortoiseshell pick guard in lieu of a plain black one, a wider 1/3/4" nut width, the new players performance neck profile, the open gear tuners, decal headstock logo in lieu of gold foil, forward shifted bracing, abalone position markers, and what must be a special run, or better grade of spruce for the sound boards (tops) on these new D-18's. I really cannot say enough about the quality/beauty of these tops. They are evenly fine grained with an equal profusion of medulary rays throughout. (those perpendicular grains) These medulary rays make for a stiffer top which coupled with the forward shifted bracing adds much horsepower to this model.This is something you normally see only in the upper end or custom models. The graining and quality of mahogany used in the neck is beautiful. It is a true one piece mahogany neck vs. spanish cedar.The familiar thump of the Martin is still there, it's just louder, and maybe clearer. The headroom is impressive. You will find it difficult to render any distortion or muddy tones from playing this guitar too hard. It will stand up to the heaviest attack. The highs have a bell tone resonance to them. It's hard to overstate the clarity of sound that you will experience right out of the box with this new model, and you can expect it to get better with age. As any acoustic player knows, the more you play these things, the louder and better they get, so don't make a closet queen out of this thing, take it out and play it!Yes, Martin has really hit a home run with this guitar, taking it back to what made it great in the first place, along with using the best of todays innovations. It resembles the pre-2012 D-18 in model name only. Not to say that one isn't a fine guitar, but they have upped the ante' on the D-18 in pretty much every area. Among the top tier of production guitar makers, and guitars, this new 2012 model D-18 offers by far, let me repeat BY FAR, the most bang your buck will ever see.

(Doc Meeks is either trolling or referring to an offshore-made cheap model, not one of the Standard Series and CERTAINLY not a D-18). The latest D-18 is simply the most enjoyable acoustic guitar I've ever played, hands-down. Its neck feels perfect in my hand, it's light, springy, & incredibly responsive (you'll feel it move through your body). And (for my music at least), it blows away the sound of every other guitar between $2000-$10000 that I've ever tried, and I've tried hundreds. Luthiers, boutiques, vintage, you name it. Nothing touches this as a total package. Warm, bassy, clear, articulate, growly, to me this is the ultimate acoustic engine. Spectacular cuts of wood being used for its tops. Quartersawn, light, stiff, & silky. Today's D-18. Perfection.

I played many (probably over 30 but who's counting) guitars over a period of several months before I purchased a d18 in early 2015. I was willing to pay significantly more than the price of the d18 in order to get the best sounding and playing guitar available to me. I thought that I would be drawn to a rosewood guitar. However, the d18 sounded better to me than any of the others including d28's, d35's (new and vintage), hd28's, and numerous Taylors and Gibsons. As for tone, that's very subjective. But for my taste, the d18 had the best balance of highs, mids, and lows. As other reviewers have mentioned, the quality of the spruce top is exceptional. I've owned this guitar for several months now and the tone is only getting better. I feel the recent redesign (new bracing and wider nut) of this model was an excellent move on Martin's part. You may have a little trouble finding a d18 as many music stores don't stock them. My advice is to try a d18 before you make a purchase if you're in the market for a professional grade dreadnaught guitar.