Goose,
Guitar content:
First of all, obviously, pre-war D-18s and 28s don't sound the same
as their post-war counterparts, though I agree with Mark that Martin is building the best guitars they ever have. The Golden Era guitars are great.
Having said that, somtimes Martin doesn't 'remember' what #the exact specs really were and accordingly may not duplicate them correctly! #
[I have played a lot of cool Golden Era Martins, but none of them sound like the pre-war models.If anybody wants to know why,
mail me and I'll give you the excruciating particulars, that involve
mapping out the bracing patterns of a '37 D-28 and a '38 D-18]
Think about the warm sound that a D-18 gets compared to a
D-28. You know, you're sitting in the kitchen, the D-18 is just
filling up the room with that big 'mid' #mahogany sound, whereas
a D-28 #sounds all bass and treble by comparison?
A D-18 sounds better in the kitchen, doesn't it?
When does a D-28 sound better? When you are in a multi-instrumental situation and the guitar needs to cut through,
right? That's when a D-28 is King!
Mando content:
So, with respect, my version of #the
'D-18/D-28 comparison to mandolins'
is not Loar vs. Modern,
but F-4 vs. F-5,
oval-hole vs. f-hole.
Oval holes sound warm and great, they just don't cut through as
good as an F-5 do they? In my mind, an F-4 sound has more in
common with a D-18 and an F-5 has more in common with a D-28.
To me, the difference in Loar vs. Modern is in the character of the
sound; Loars and the contemporary makers that pay attention to
Loar have a more complicated voice than say, a Collings mando
(the most ubiquitous of the Modern mandos). It isn't that Collings
don't sound great, it's that there's more 'stuff' going on in a
Loar or Loar-inspired instrument.
"Oh, no, Sweatheart, I've had this mando a long time!
Don't you.....recognize the case?"
Bookmarks