Martin D-18 - Dreadnought  

The Martin D-18 is one of the most legendary western guitars in the world. It was designed in the United States in the 1930s and is currently still made with the same specs. The vintage look and its bright acoustic sound make the D-18 a popular and recognisable guitar that has been used by many legendary musicians in many legendary productions.

The tone of the Martin D-18

The Martin D-18 has a solid spruce top. Martin uses spruce as their primary tonewood for tops due to its straight and uniform grain, its long lifespan and its sturdiness. Spruce also sounds lively and beautiful. The back, sides, and the neck are made of carefully selected mahogany. Mahogany is relatively lightweight and produces a powerful sound with a bright treble. For the freboard and the bridge they have used a beautiful dark ebony. This combination of high-quality materials make the D-18 a dreadnought with beautiful bright highs and warm lows. To summarise: this Martin guitar is dynamic and has a beautiful tonal quality.

Bracing also has a lot of influence on the tone and quality of the guitar. Martin used the ‘Standard X Scalloped’ bracing technique for the D-18. This technique removes the bracing on certain parts to make it easier for the top to vibrate. Consequently, the top will remain stable but can vibrate easier which will improve the tonal quality of the guitar.

The Dreadnought

The Dreadnought is one of the most popular western guitar models in the world. It was originally designed by Martin in 1916. They named the shape after a large British battle ship as the Dreadnought guitar also had a huge body. Over the past century the Dreadnought has become the standard. The Dreadnought sounds full and promotes the bass tones due to the rectangle-esque body shape.

The Martin D-18 includes a luxurious case and will be equipped with Martin’s phosphor bronze strings.