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Cherry, Katalox and...Diaperwood...?
The guitar we got to review is an OM, which is a size and shape I love. The neck and back are made of sustainably grown cherry wood, while the fretboard and bridge are made from a recently discovered wood from Central America called katalox. Ranging from brown to dark purple, it’s very dense, and takes a high polish extremely well. Katalox is not hugely abundant, but I like it better than rosewood for a fretboard, so I’m hoping that it gets targeted for more cultivation. The fretboard width is 1.75", which makes this guitar a fingerstyle machine. The top is good old Sitka spruce, but with a twist. The supplier that Martin gets their tops from found a pulp mill that was grinding up Sitka spruce logs to a fine powder and making diapers from them. The supplier taught the company to identify the kind of grain that Martin wants for tops and made arrangements to rescue those logs, which Martin jokingly calls “diaperwood.” According to Dick Boak, Director of Artist and Limited Editions at Martin, it’s not Forestry Stewardship Council (FSC) certified Sitka, but since they’re rescuing it from a fate worse than death, they’ve chosen to include it in their Sustainable Wood Series.
The look of this model is very clean and simple, with gold Gotoh tuners, and cellulose nitrate red tortoise binding and heel cap; the headstock is faced with tortoise with the Martin logo in raised gold. The black molded Martin case is nice and light, and I’m a fan of light. The plush interior is, appropriately enough, forest green.
That Martin Sound
The SWOMGT has the Martin sound, no doubt. There’s an edge to it, so you know this guitar is gonna cut through a mix without any trouble, but the bottom end is a lot less boomy than the typical Martin. It could simply be that this guitar is very new and needs some playing in, or it could be a nod to what seems to be a new convention in acoustic guitar construction— amp-friendly mid-to-high end with the lows quarantined to keep the feedback monsters at bay. I struggled a bit with it at first, finding it too easy to overplay to try to get more red meat out of the sound. I’ve had cherry guitars before that didn’t lack for bottom end, so I have to think it’s intentional. The one time I don’t have a spare pickup laying around… let me just say “argh” and move on.
It records great—as you can clearly hear on the new opening tag for our acoustic videos on premierguitar.com. The SWOMGT doesn’t lack for punch. Strummed, it’s a little cannon, ideal for DADGAD rhythm playing, and capo’d at the fifth fret it holds up extremely well with very little loss in volume or punchiness. But fingerstyle is what this beastie is meant for. I know that you can’t hear how comfortable this guitar is to play, or how nice it is to have that wide fretboard and string spacing, or how sweetly the guitar snuggles into your arms like it was meant to be there—but that’s the OM thing, and this baby’s got it.
The Final Mojo
Honestly, I think the Martin SWOMGT eats the lunch of even other Martins in this price range. Local retailers may need a little encouragement to start stocking them, but once they get into the hands of the players, they won’t need any more encouragement. If you’re looking at buying a guitar of this quality, why not buy one that makes the world a greener place? Your guitar dreams will be sweeter for it.
Buy if...
you're looking for a stage-friendly axe that'll cut through a mix like a katana.
Skip if...
you have to have big dreadnoughty boominess.
Rating...
Street $1399 - Martin & Company - mguitar.com |
Epiphone’s Joe Bonamassa 1955 Les Paul Standard features the same Copper Iridescent color, a pair of Epiphone P-90 PRO pickups wired to CTS potentiometers and Mallory capacitors, a Custom ’59 Rounded C neck profile, a long neck tenon, and a “Nerdville” graphic hardshell case. This Epiphone 1955 Les Paul Standard is a passionate testament to Bonamassa’s unwavering commitment to the blues and its profound influence on his music.
The Epiphone Joe Bonamassa 1955 Les Paul Standard release is a nod to a pivotal period in the evolution of the Gibson Les Paul, in a finish guaranteed to turn heads. Whether you’re a Joe Bonamassa fan, a Les Paul enthusiast, or a musician seeking an instrument that stands out in both tone and appearance, the Joe Bonamassa 1955 Les Paul Standard is the perfect addition to your collection.
This partnership with Epiphone celebrates the timeless synergy between the brand and Joe’s musical trajectory. Joe’s latest release Live At The Hollywood Bowl immortalizes Joe's first-ever performance at the iconic Hollywood Bowl in August 2023. Accompanied by an impressive ensemble of 40 orchestra members, Bonamassa delivered an unforgettable performance. Live At The Hollywood Bowl With Orchestra showcases Bonamassa’s virtuosic blend of blues and rock, but also elevates fan-favorite tracks with grandiose orchestral arrangements by some of Hollywood's finest – David Campbell, Trevor Rabin, and Jeff Bova. “Very few gigs represent my journey in music more than the Hollywood Bowl. I moved to Los Angeles in 2003 in search of opportunity and cheaper rent than New York City. My first gig at The Mint was attended by 5 of my friends. We have played The Greek Theatre many times since, but the Bowl has always been a dream. The orchestra and the sheer scale of the event and venue are something I will never forget. I am so grateful that we filmed this special event in my life,” reminisces Bonamassa.
For more information, please visit epiphone.com.
Joe Bonamassa Introduces the Epiphone 1955 Les Paul Standard - YouTube
Enjoy the videos and music you love, upload original content, and share it all with friends, family, and the world on YouTube.Epiphone Joe Bonamassa 1955 Les Paul Standard Electric Guitar - Copper Iridescent
But by gosh, if delay—and its sister effect, reverb—haven’t always been perfect for the music I like to write and play. Which brings us to the Fishman EchoBack Mini Delay. The EchoBack, along with the standard delay controls of level, time, and repeats—as well as a tap tempo—has a toggle to alternate between analog, tape, and digital-delay voices.
I hooked up my Washburn Bella Tono Elegante to my Blues Junior to give the EchoBack a test run. We love a medium delay—my usual preference for delay settings is to have both level and repeats at 1 o’clock, and time at 11 o’clock. With the analog voice switched on, I heard some pillowy warmth in the processed signal, as well as a familiar degradation with each repeat—until their wake gave way to a gentle, distant, crinkly ticking. Staying on analog and adjusting delay time down to 8 o’clock and repeats to about 11:30, some cozy slapback enveloped my rendition of Johnny Marr’s part to “Back to the Old House,” conjuring up thoughts of Elvis trapped in a small chamber, but in a good way. It sounded indubitably authentic. The one drawback of analog delay for me, generally, is that its roundness can feel a bit under water at times.
Switching over to tape, that pillowy warmth evaporated, and in its place came a very clear replication of my tone—but with just a bit of the highs shaved off the top. With the settings at the medium-length mode listed above, I could see the empty, glass hall the pedal sent my sound bouncing down. I heard several pronounced pings of repeats before the signal fully faded out. On slapback settings (time at 8 o’clock, repeats at 11:30), rather than Elvis, I heard something more along the lines of a honky-tonk mic in a glass bottle. Still relatively crystalline, which actually was not my favorite. I like a bit more crinkle—so maybe analog is my bag....“That pillowy warmth evaporated, and in its place came a very clear, pristine replication of my tone—but with just a bit of the highs shaved off the top.”
Next up, digital. Here we have the brightest voice, and as expected, the most faithful repeats. They ping just a few times before shifting to a smooth, single undulating wave. When putting its slapback hat on, I found that the effect was a bit less alluring than I’d observed for the analog and tape voices. This is where the digital delay felt a little too sterile, with the cleanly preserved signal feeling a bit unnatural.
All in all, I dig the EchoBack for its replications of analog and tape voices, and ultimately, lean towards tape. While it’s nice having the digital delay there as an option, it feels a bit too clean when meddling with time of any given length. Nonetheless, this is surely a handy stomp for any acoustic player looking to venture into the land of live effects, or for those who are already there.
