Bored with my electric guitar collection, I suffered a brief misguided shopping spree back in late 1999 which focused on acoustic guitars. Within two weeks, I purchased four acoustic guitars. Strangely enough, I did not really play a lot of acoustic guitar at that time and I was more than happy with my all time favorite acoustic, my Gibson J100. In short order however, I purchased a brand new Gibson Hummingbird, a vintage Gibson LGO acoustic, a Martin back packer travel acoustic guitar and this Martin D1R.

With all the hype surrounding Martin acoustics, I lusted to add one to my collection. However, after playing many vintage and new Martin acoustics over the years, I could never justify spending that much on an acoustic guitar and furthermore, I was never able to find a single guitar that had all the features, sound and price that I was looking for. Each Martin acoustic had its own personality and offered something unique and as a consequence I was struggling to make a selection. For example, the D38 always sounded the best to my ear but I always preferred the look of the smaller body acoustics, like the 000-28. Like many other Martin fans, I was in luck when the more affordable D series was offered. After trying several of the D models (differentiated by the woods used in their construction), I selected the D1R with its rosewood back and sides because to my ear, it sounded better than those with mahogany back and sides. Do not be fooled, although priced as an economy instrument, she sounds great, looks great and plays effortlessly like her more expensive siblings. In fact at the time I was torn between this guitar, a Martin D35 and a Martin HD 28 and was playing all three for an hour or two before making my selection. For me though, I realized that for the amount of time I spent playing an acoustic guitar that this was the best bang for the buck.

When you buy any Martin acoustic, you know every penny is going into the quality craftsmanship and superior tone. To keep the cost affordable on these “economy” models, there are no exotic finishes, no fancy inlays, just the grand Martin sound you're looking for. The D1R model is constructed using a soundboard of solid Sitka spruce attached to laminated rosewood back and sides. The bridge and fingerboard are made from East Indian rosewood, and the durable semi-gloss lacquer finish makes the D1R ideal for on-the-road use. Excellent craftsmanship, Martin quality, and more importantly, Martin sound, at an affordable price.