The Ultimate Martin Custom Shop Experience

Who is going to build my Custom Shop Guitar?

If you have ever been to the Guitar Villa in Dedemsvaart then you know: there is an abundance of guitars to choose from.. Martin, Taylor, Lowden, Gibson, McNally, Collings and many, many more brands hang on the wall to watch and play. This offers a great opportunity to find out what suits you, but can also be overwhelming. After a first visit, you might have so many guitars go through your hands that you end up confused.

But if you play guitar for a while, you delve into it a little bit and try guitars more often, then likes and dislikes will automatically appear. For example, you might fall for everything Lowden ​guitars has to offer. That dreamy sound, the ease with which these guitars handle a different tuning and then that glorious fit and finish; it's all almost impossible to resist.

The boutique guitars made by Kevin Ryan, Collings ​and many others come eerily close to perfection every single time we see them. And then, of course, there's the iconic Martin Guitars. The brand that has been at the basis of steelstring guitars as we know them today. The brand that gave us the dreadnought, the OM, the X-brace and the brand you hear on thousands of albums. Martin is the benchmark that many builders pursue, but rarely match. And the brand that radiates a certain simplicity and sounds that to me sounds the way a guitar should sound. It is 'just right'.

Choosing a particular brand to build your Custom Guitar is important, because even though a luthier will create a guitar based on your preferences, they all work within a certain bandwidth that suits the style they've developed over the years. So choose a luthier that is already close to something you like. At The Fellowship of Acoustics they have a lot of experience with many different Custom Shops and luthiers, so you can see and hear the differences and discover the styles of a wide array of guitar builders.

Which tonewood for my Custom Shop Guitar?

​The possibilities with tonewood combinations are endless and it might help to have a look at the most important properties of the most common types of tone tonewood.

In recent years I regularly played guitars with a torrified top and was always impressed. Using a special treatment, the wood is 'baked' in an oven, which accelerates the aging process. It adds more stability and a more direct, 'drier' sound that resembles a vintage guitar. Because I wanted to build a small all-rounder that I can strum and fingerpick,  I was torn for a long time between sitka (easier on the ear, warmer, but also a bit more muddy if you are going to dig in) and adirondack (more power, precision, suitable for strumming, but less friendly and sometimes a bit shrill). 

In the end I went for torrified sitka. That doesn't have the overwhelming boom of adirondack, but to me torrefied sitka also sounds just right. Especially combined with mahogany, but here I wanted to add something extra. Something that is more than just right, if only because of the story behind it: sinker mahogany.  These are old trees that have been lying at the bottom of the river for decades and have now been reclaimed. Due to this slow aging in extreme conditions, it sounds different and often somewhat richer than 'normal' mahogany. ​ also felt good right away. And I was floored by a second-hand​ also felt good right away. And I was floored by a second-hand

De afgelopen jaren speelde ik regelmatig op gitaren met een torrefied bovenblad en was daar standaard van onder de indruk. Door een speciale behandeling ​ also felt good right away. And I was floored by a second-hand (vriendelijker, warmer, maar ook iets sneller rommelig als je gaat strummen) en Adirondack (power, precisie, veel laag, geschikt voor strummen, maar minder vriendelijk en soms een beetje schel). Het werd torrified sitka. Dat heeft niet het overweldigende van adirondack, maar voor mij klinkt torrefied sitka ook gewoon precies goed. Gecombineerd met mahonie, maar dan met iets extra’s. Iets dat dat méér is dan precies goed, alleen al vanwege het verhaal erachter: Sinker Mahogany.​ also felt good right away. And I was floored by a second-hand

Which model Custom Shop Guitar?

I love the full sound of a dreadnought guitar, but the size of this model doesn't really fit me. When I play on it more than an hour, I feel my shoulders. That's why years ago I chose an Orchestra Model that I have enjoyed playing for hours and hours. A great guitar, modern sound, very precise and super reliable. But the desire for a guitar with a different character remained. So I bought that beautiful 'Yesterday' movie guitar, the Martin CEO7 and it was a wonderful addition.

Ik speelde op verschillende Atkin gitaren en was standaard onder de indruk van het geluid, dankzij de ‘gebakken’ of torrified Sitka sparren bovenbladen. Ik werd overvallen door een tweedehands Custom Shop Martin 00018 and fell in love instantly. Great neck, blissful sound, but found the size of the CEO7 just a little more pleasant. I tried a standard 0018 and knew: this model, but with some extra Custom Shop Magic, then it's just right.