NGD... Martin HD-28V
- Thread starter PFDarkside
- Start date
Inkstained
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Boogie Bill
New member
Re: NGD... Martin HD-28V
I got mine about two years ago, and I absolutely LOVE IT! I have eight Martin dreads, and the HD-28V is my fav. I have a 1975 D-28 and a Standard Series D-28 from 2002. They all sound different. The '75 is warm, and mature but has a quieter voice. It has seen countless bars and gigs...even the inside of a few churches. The finish is pretty thick on this one, and it shattered like glass. Definitely has the mojo.
The 2002 was damaged by a vandal at my local Guitar Center, and I was able to buy it for pennies on the dollars, and then had it repaired. I had a Fishman Ellipse Blend pickup installed. It is louder, brighter and more resonant than the '75. Turned into an excellent guitar...they are like the Toyota Camry of acoustic guitars...a great blend of price, performance, quality and value. You can spend more, you can spend less...but this is the standard by which all others are judged.
The HD-28V ups the ante. The forward shifted scalloped bracing makes the guitar so loud, resonant and lively...it's like playing a 335 while standing in front of a cranked amp...it feels alive in your hands. I think it is a better value than the D-28 Marquis, which has a wider neck and an Adirondack top instead of the Sitka spruce. The next step up would one of the models with Madagascar and Addy...these are truly drool-inducing, but they are big bucks.
I always tell players to buy themselves a nice Martin. If they play it and keep it, it will become a family heirloom...your heirs will be fighting over who gets Grandpa's old Martin before they throw the first shovelful of dirt on your casket!
Enjoy your new treasure!
Bill
I got mine about two years ago, and I absolutely LOVE IT! I have eight Martin dreads, and the HD-28V is my fav. I have a 1975 D-28 and a Standard Series D-28 from 2002. They all sound different. The '75 is warm, and mature but has a quieter voice. It has seen countless bars and gigs...even the inside of a few churches. The finish is pretty thick on this one, and it shattered like glass. Definitely has the mojo.
The 2002 was damaged by a vandal at my local Guitar Center, and I was able to buy it for pennies on the dollars, and then had it repaired. I had a Fishman Ellipse Blend pickup installed. It is louder, brighter and more resonant than the '75. Turned into an excellent guitar...they are like the Toyota Camry of acoustic guitars...a great blend of price, performance, quality and value. You can spend more, you can spend less...but this is the standard by which all others are judged.
The HD-28V ups the ante. The forward shifted scalloped bracing makes the guitar so loud, resonant and lively...it's like playing a 335 while standing in front of a cranked amp...it feels alive in your hands. I think it is a better value than the D-28 Marquis, which has a wider neck and an Adirondack top instead of the Sitka spruce. The next step up would one of the models with Madagascar and Addy...these are truly drool-inducing, but they are big bucks.
I always tell players to buy themselves a nice Martin. If they play it and keep it, it will become a family heirloom...your heirs will be fighting over who gets Grandpa's old Martin before they throw the first shovelful of dirt on your casket!
Enjoy your new treasure!
Bill
PFDarkside
of the Forum
Re: NGD... Martin HD-28V
Part of me wanted to play a Marquis, but I figured that would be a bad idea...
I'm sure it sounds amazing with the Addy, but there's no way I could have justified that price. I think this was a perfect median.
I'd love to see your Martins Bill!
I got a very nice deal on the HD-28V, originally I was looking at the plain HD-28, but some of the small details were south nicer on the "V". The ebony is black, the inlays are the Diamond pattern in Abalone instead of big dots, the quality of the top, back and sides is an upgrade and it just feels like a bit nicer guitar. The discount let me get into a V for what I was thinking the plain HD would be. I also played a D-41 which was more outwardly blingy and less of the subtle distinction and tone that made the V so nice.
Part of me wanted to play a Marquis, but I figured that would be a bad idea...
I'm sure it sounds amazing with the Addy, but there's no way I could have justified that price. I think this was a perfect median.I'd love to see your Martins Bill!
Gearjoneser
Gear Ho
Re: NGD... Martin HD-28V
I've been playing a 2001 D-28 for the past decade, and the sound and feel have spoiled me for other acoustics.
I still like playing other acoustic guitars, but the D-28 has THE sound.
One thing that's interesting is listening to music. Once your brain really knows the sound of a D-28, you always perk up when you hear it in recorded music. Since it's the most recorded acoustic guitar, you hear it quite often.
I've been playing a 2001 D-28 for the past decade, and the sound and feel have spoiled me for other acoustics.
I still like playing other acoustic guitars, but the D-28 has THE sound.
One thing that's interesting is listening to music. Once your brain really knows the sound of a D-28, you always perk up when you hear it in recorded music. Since it's the most recorded acoustic guitar, you hear it quite often.
PFDarkside
of the Forum
Re: NGD... Martin HD-28V
Original pre-war D-28s had top bracing that was scalloped. As music styles and strings technology progressed, musicians were loading progressively heavier strings on the acoustics, and Martin was concerned about the heavier strings and higher tension damaging the guitar. They transitioned the bracing to standard straight bracing. In 1976, they reintroduced scalloped top bracing (associated with the prewar style along with the Herringbone purfling) as the HD-28 model. More recently they have introduced the “Vintage” series. HD-28V shifts the scalloped bracing forward, toward the sound hole and adds a modified V profile neck, vintage tuners and inlay style, etc.
Both modifications to the bracing (scalloping and shifting forward) creates a more resonant and easier moving top. One through reducing the thickness of the bracing and one through actually moving it to provide more “unbraced” surface area. Tonally it proves move bass, as well as allowing the top to begin to resonate with less input energy. What that means for me is that a standard D-28 requires more right hand energy before it begins to “sing” whereas the modified versions begin to produce that tone with a little less right hand energy. Lighter strumming and fingerpicking sound a bit better to me on the scalloped versions. However, the standard braced versions allow you to play harder and harder and get more volume, a scalloped braced one may max out a little sooner. Additionally, top stiffness comes into play as well, with Adirondak being a touch stiffer than Sitka. (Sitka is the standard, Adirondak is be special order on these standard production guitars)
To add complexity there is also the D-35/HD-35 line, these have ¼” bracing rather than the 3/8” bracing of the 28 series. This again provides more bass due to reduced bracing thickness. Some perceive this as “power” some as “muddiness”. In the end, the Rosewood Martin Dreadnought is a very familiar tone and by playing the Standard and HD versions of the 28 and 35, everyone finds their specific version of that tone that they prefer. (Similar to Strats with Ash/Alder, Maple/RW, A2/A3/A5, etc.)
AND... as a caveat, I'm very new to all this acoustic stuff, anything I mis stated above, I welcome a correction on.
Original pre-war D-28s had top bracing that was scalloped. As music styles and strings technology progressed, musicians were loading progressively heavier strings on the acoustics, and Martin was concerned about the heavier strings and higher tension damaging the guitar. They transitioned the bracing to standard straight bracing. In 1976, they reintroduced scalloped top bracing (associated with the prewar style along with the Herringbone purfling) as the HD-28 model. More recently they have introduced the “Vintage” series. HD-28V shifts the scalloped bracing forward, toward the sound hole and adds a modified V profile neck, vintage tuners and inlay style, etc.
Both modifications to the bracing (scalloping and shifting forward) creates a more resonant and easier moving top. One through reducing the thickness of the bracing and one through actually moving it to provide more “unbraced” surface area. Tonally it proves move bass, as well as allowing the top to begin to resonate with less input energy. What that means for me is that a standard D-28 requires more right hand energy before it begins to “sing” whereas the modified versions begin to produce that tone with a little less right hand energy. Lighter strumming and fingerpicking sound a bit better to me on the scalloped versions. However, the standard braced versions allow you to play harder and harder and get more volume, a scalloped braced one may max out a little sooner. Additionally, top stiffness comes into play as well, with Adirondak being a touch stiffer than Sitka. (Sitka is the standard, Adirondak is be special order on these standard production guitars)
To add complexity there is also the D-35/HD-35 line, these have ¼” bracing rather than the 3/8” bracing of the 28 series. This again provides more bass due to reduced bracing thickness. Some perceive this as “power” some as “muddiness”. In the end, the Rosewood Martin Dreadnought is a very familiar tone and by playing the Standard and HD versions of the 28 and 35, everyone finds their specific version of that tone that they prefer. (Similar to Strats with Ash/Alder, Maple/RW, A2/A3/A5, etc.)
AND... as a caveat, I'm very new to all this acoustic stuff, anything I mis stated above, I welcome a correction on.
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