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Thread: Martin's D18 Special VTS

  1. #1
    Forum Member OldStrummer's Avatar
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    Martin's D18 Special VTS

    Musician's Friend's Stupid Deal of the Day (SDOD) today (12/4/2019) is featuring the D18 Special VTS from Martin, lopping $800 off (almost 30%) its $2,799.99 list price, putting it on the table at $1,999.99. OK, still not cheap by most yardsticks, but it's a Martin. And a D18. Or so they say.

    Martin has developed an "aging" system they refer to as Vintage Tone System (VTS). They say they can "age" wood to within a decade. By this, I take it to mean they can take new wood and "age" it to within ten years of a target date, say, 1930. The blurb accompanying the SDOD reads, "Martin has honed this process by benchmarking some of the finest examples of their 185-year history, found in their Nazareth, PA museum. Once they reference a vintage top, the new top is aged to the correct moisture content and look of that period. This proprietary VTS process is unique to Martin and can only be found on custom, special and Authentic Martin models."

    The guitar itself is made to look vintage as well, along with its "premium grade" sitka spruce top and bracing system, aging toner, tortoise binding and a tortoise pickguard.

    I've never owned a Martin, although I have friends who do. Honestly, I have a hard time differentiating the sonic difference between their Martin and my Taylor.

    Would you be interested?

  2. #2
    Forum Member Don's Avatar
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    Re: Martin's D18 Special VTS

    Too rich for my blood, but I'd love to play it! I never thought I'd want more than one acoustic, but as much as I love my 000-15M, there are times when I could use a dreadnought.

  3. #3
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    Re: Martin's D18 Special VTS

    After installing a Tusq nut and saddle on an old Fender DG7 I have a hard time distinguishing the difference in tone, volume, and sustain between it and a Martin or Taylor guitars I've played over the past 20 years. The more I study and work on guitars the things I discover and secrets I uncover are not so much secrets. Both Taylor and Martin guitars sound good and I'm not in anyway saying they're poor instruments. They're great instruments. What I'm saying is if you read and work on guitars long enough you can put stuff in your mojo bag to help yourself.

    I personally don't know if you can take a Taylor or Martin out of the box; tweak it and take it to another level sound wise. I think you get the max they have when you buy it and that's why they cost what they do. But when you start talking about aging wood that can only boil down to drying it out using some method to match that of an older piece of wood and you would confirm that under a microscope and not by sound alone. A way to dry it from the inside out and at the same time control moisture values. Perhaps they have developed glue that in a short time will harden the same as a glue would after sitting for decades. Or, it may just all be talk to sell guitars and to raise prices because of all the hoopla the advertising world has made over old guitars. It's probably both.

    To me if you like to play Taylor guitars play them. Martins? Play Martins. For me, it's taking something off the wall in the store that doesn't come close, spending $20 and then massaging it with what I learned over the years and bringing it to life.

  4. #4
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    Re: Martin's D18 Special VTS

    I love Martins.
    I got a ugly Golden Era D18 1934 a while back that just has a tone to die for.
    Huge sale on it I think because of the horrible looking sunburst they painted it with.
    But the tone with new strings on it raised the hairs on me neck.


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