The top is good old Sitka spruce, but with a
twist. The supplier that Martin gets their tops
from found a pulp mill that was grinding up
Sitka spruce logs to a fine powder and making diapers from them. The supplier taught
the company to identify the kind of grain that
Martin wants for tops and made arrangements
to rescue those logs, which Martin jokingly
calls “diaperwood.” According to dick boak,
Director of Artist and Limited Editions at
Martin, it’s not Forestry Stewardship Council
(FSC) certified Sitka, but since they’re rescuing
it from a fate worse than death, they’ve chosen
to include it in their Sustainable Wood Series.
monsters at bay. I struggled a bit with it at
first, finding it too easy to overplay to try to
get more red meat out of the sound. I’ve had
cherry guitars before that didn’t lack for bottom end, so I have to think it’s intentional. The
one time I don’t have a spare pickup laying
around… let me just say “argh” and move on.
can’t hear how comfortable this guitar is
to play, or how nice it is to have that wide
fretboard and string spacing, or how sweetly the guitar snuggles into your arms like it
was meant to be there—but that’s the OM
thing, and this baby’s got it.
The look of this model is very clean and simple,
with gold Gotoh tuners, and cellulose nitrate
red tortoise binding and heel cap; the headstock is faced with tortoise with the Martin logo
in raised gold. The black molded Martin case is
nice and light, and I’m a fan of light. The plush
interior is, appropriately enough, forest green.
It records great—as you can clearly hear on
the new opening tag for our acoustic videos on premierguitar.com. The SWOMGT
doesn’t lack for punch. Strummed, it’s a
little cannon, ideal for DADGAD rhythm
playing, and capo’d at the fifth fret it holds
up extremely well with very little loss in volume or punchiness. But fingerstyle is what
this beastie is meant for. I know that you
The Final Mojo
Honestly, I think the Martin SWOMGT eats the
lunch of even other Martins in this price range.
Local retailers may need a little encouragement
to start stocking them, but once they get into
the hands of the players, they won’t need any
more encouragement. If you’re looking at buying a guitar of this quality, why not buy one that
makes the world a greener place? Your guitar
dreams will be sweeter for it.
That Martin Sound
The SWOMGT has the Martin sound, no
doubt. There’s an edge to it, so you know
this guitar is gonna cut through a mix without
any trouble, but the bottom end is a lot less
boomy than the typical Martin. It could simply
be that this guitar is very new and needs some
playing in, or it could be a nod to what seems
to be a new convention in acoustic guitar construction—amp-friendly mid-to-high end with
the lows quarantined to keep the feedback
Buy If...
you’re looking for a stage-friendly axe that’ll cut through a
mix like a katana.
Skip If...
you have to have big
dreadnoughty boominess.
Rating...
4. 5
ONTHEWeb
Head online to hear sound clips
of the guitar in action at
premierguitar.com
C.F. Martin & Company
Street $1399
mguitar.com
