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| 1970 Martin 0-16 New Yorker |
In 1973, when I was 21, I purchased my one and only Martin guitar. It was a Martin 0-16NY and it came with a soft-shell case, all for $250. The salesman mentioned I was lucky as Martin was raising their prices soon.
I don’t know if I was lucky or not. Had I understood more about that guitar, I might have opted for something different.
It was a lovely instrument, with a solid spruce top that had a satin finish. The back and sides were solid mahogany. The only binding was around the instrument’s top.
The wide neck with a 12" radius, had a rosewood fretboard with a slotted headstock on top of the 12-fret mahogany neck. The only marker was on the top side of the neck at the fifth fret.
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| O-16 New Yorker Bridge |
I am a stickler for tonality. I would get that guitar in tune, but playing chords never sounded right. The “G” string always seemed to be flat. It drove me nuts. I sent that guitar back to Martin twice. The second time it arrived with a note telling me I did not know how to tune a guitar.
After two years of struggling, I traded that guitar. However, I did fall in love with the small body shape, and craftsmanship of that guitar. I wished I could have kept it.
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| 2026 Martin Guitars |
Many of the X series are made using high pressure laminate wood products. This is similar to flooring material. A friend of mine refers to this “Glit”, as it is made of sawdust, and paste, or as he puts it “Glue and Sh*t.” Some of the X series do have solid soundboards, but I cannot see paying $600 for an instrument made with high pressure laminate back, sides, and neck.
In my opinion it is like someone at Martin thought, "Hey, we have an abundance of sawdust, instead of throwing it away let's make a guitar out of it, and slap a Martin sticker on it. Someone will buy it."
The Mexican made Martin Road series guitars are made of solid wood and are retailing for $1000 to $1900. The Martin Retro Series, and Jr Series are also “Hecho in Mexico” due to cheaper labor.
It is a fact that the cost of labor has driven every guitar manufacturer to open facilities, or contract with facilities outside of the United States. Admittedly there are some brilliant guitar factories around the world, some of which are manufacturing wonderful guitars.
Most well known acoustic guitar brands have factories outside of the United States that build guitars for those wanting to purchase an instrument at a lower price point. For example some Taylor guitars are built in Mexico. Gibson builds Epiphone guitars using different Asia-Pacific factories. Though Guild is proclaiming they are once again building USA made guitars, the Guild trademark is owned by The Yamaha Musical Instrument company after they bought out The Cordoba Guitar Company.
For those of us that grew up in the 20th Century, we need to realize we are now existing in a world economy. The C.F. Martin Company has an obligation to be profitable. It's Mexican factory has added to the company's goal of offering guitars for every player's budget.
It now seems that the current “budget” brand of Nazareth Pennsylvania made Martins are the all- mahogany 00-15, 000-15, and D-15 guitars, and they are indeed nice instruments. They are well constructed, nearly handmade by Martin craftsmen, however at $1800 each they are quite expensive. A plush gig bag is included in the price.
Martin Standard Series guitars now retail from $2400 to $10,000.
From there the prices go from $3500 to over $10,000 for their “museum inspired” guitars, such as the custom shop 2-17 all mahogany acoustic, to the D-111 which sells for $10,129, or the Custom Shop D-41 for $8700, and the D-45 1934 Project 91-2 which retails at $150,000.
As much as I love good tone, and even if I was a working musician, I would be concerned traveling with such expensive instruments. Though it drove me crazy, I should of hung on to my Martin 0-16NY. On the used market they are listed from $2500 to $6000.
When I look on the Facebook "Martin Guitar Owners" page, I was surprised to find so many complaints about their guitars. Most of them had to do with the binding coming loose, or a crack in the finish. That seems shameful for such fine instruments. There may be other contributing factors, such as humidity, poor handling, or damage in shipping.
To be fair, most of the group's comments are glowing reviews about Martin guitars.
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| Martin Neck Rods |
It was not until 1985 that Martin began using an adjustable truss rod.
When I was a young man many of my guitar playing friends owned a Martin guitar. As of now, most of those men, and ladies have sold or traded their Martin instruments. Some of those folks needed cash, while others just wanted a different guitar.
Some friends went on to purchase Taylor guitars, while others now own Ovation, Yamaha instruments, and other brands. My friend Jennie once owned a Martin D-35. She now owns a beautiful Taylor guitar.
I acquired a Seagull Grand parlor guitar 12 years ago in a trade. Seagull, and other Godin guitars are built in La Patrie, Canada. It has a solid cedar top, and 3 ply cherry laminated back and side that are sourced from local lumber.
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| Nashville A Team Guitarist Jimmy Capps with his Blueridge Guitar |
But C.F. Martin was the originator, beginning at his New York City shop in 1833 after ending his apprenticeship under Vienna luthier Johann Stauffer and relocating to the United States.
Martin popularized the "X" bracing on the guitars he created. At his wife's insistence he moved his business to Nazareth, Pennsylvania, where it remains.
Christopher Martin IV reluctantly joined the company in the early 1970's, learning the ropes by working with the builders, becoming a salesman, and then stepping in as Martin's CEO. He brought about some excellent changes to Martin Guitars. He lead the charge regarding sustainable wood.
During his tenure he lifted the company from selling as few as 3,000 guitars a year, in the early 1970's up to 130,000 to 140,000 guitars annually according to the company's most recent report. I recall reading an interview in which he said that some of the Martin guitars created in the early 1970's were not up to snuff. Based on my experience with my 0-16 New Yorker, that stuck with me.
Chris Martin retired as CEO in 2020 at age 70, but remains as Executive CEO on Martin's board of directors, keeping the Martin legacy alive.
©UniqueGuitar Publications (text only) 2026
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Some of these videos are long, but worth watching to understand Martin's current strategy
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