Almost perfect, at least for me and to the set purpose.... Just pick it up for a few minutes, and get hooked. Firstly, the play-ability is beyond amazing. It is so easy to play that I can learn and perfect new techniques (pick or finger) almost effortlessly. Stuff that I stumbled around trying to learn on my older Guild became an instant finger dance on this thing. My hands just seize control from me and do things I never thought possible ... So now I work out any songs or interpretive arrangements on the 000-17. I figure stuff out quicker, and once I do, I go to one of my dreads and it's like I've been playing the new arrangement for months or even years. I realize that this sounds far-fetched but it is true. Unless it is just me, please try to find a way to play one and judge for yourself.

I just need to ding it for one thing: the tuners. They look great, that bad-*** 20s retro thing. But they are a little stiff out the gate, and lubrication and turning them does not really do much for the stiffness. On the other hand, once you compensate your finger cranks and adapt, the thing just HOLDS its tuning. Maybe one day I will replace the tuners (some have) but I am not really bothered.

Seriousness, folks. Find a way to evaluate a 000-17 for, say, half an hour.

This is my second Martin. No disappointments here. I also got a Martin hard case with it, as I'm not a fan of gig bags. I had Sweetwater restring it with D'Addario XT 11-52's and replace the plastic pins with Ebony. The tone is amazing, much more woody and bluesy than my 000-18, which is exactly what I wanted. The photos don't do it justice. This thing is so lightweight and absolutely beautiful. A big heart felt thank you to Jeremy Kaiser for his advice and patience while working with me through getting this.

I purchased my 000-17 about 7 years ago and to this day it is the absolute best guitar purchase I've ever made. It has aged well and sounds absolutely amazing.

This is one of the best 000 size acoustic guitars I've played, after a few mods. First, for me, get rid of the modal strings. I replaced them with Stringjoy strings. Then, the action from the factory was too high, paid for a custom setup, and finally, purchased the Martin alloy bridge pins. All these mods made a world of difference. Great experience, as usual, from Sweetwater. Highly recommend.

Anyways, I had another acoustic, but I felt that it was too bright. I wanted something that had a punchy low end, and a balanced mid and high end with less overtones and more fundamental tones. This guitar has fit the bill in everyway. It is warm, mellow, and has a wood and sweet tone that goes well with my voice. I highly recommend!

This guitar was made for old hands. Sweetwater installed light strings and did setup. I appreciate that the guitar is very light and lively. The bass clarity is a surprise and appreciated. I own and have played many guitars over the years and some you just seem to understand each other and this is the case for my experience with this Martin. This guitar makes me smile.

First a thank you to Jacob Terhune, I hope I spelled that right, for his excellent technical and customer service. His follow up, assisted by Sean, is what makes a purchasing experience keep customers. Sweetwater management knows what they are doing.

I just received my Whiskey Sunset Burst 000-17. I am a burst guy and did think the yellow was too bright in the photo but okay. The guitar I received was less yellow and more of a tobacco yellow and it is beautiful. This IS the color I love and it goes great with the sides, back, and neck. The satin, I think that is the term, rather than gloss, works. The tuning machines look very cool. Visually it hit all my wants.

After the look, you pick up the guitar and it is light... So light it was a bit off putting. The build quality is, as expected from Martin, top notch. I found nothing to complain about....case is solidly made so the guitar will be protected.

The guitar showed up in tune, action was great, and I wish I could play the guitar at a level it deserves. I am completely happy with the guitar and purchase over around.

I would never have gotten this wonderful instrument without Jacob Terhune's patient help and Sweetwater's customer satisfaction standards. That's why I and my family are return customers. Cheers, Jake!

Reluctance quickly turned to jubilance, upon taking out my (fastidiously packed) throwback beauty. I'm all about hearing EVERYTHING a note has to offer, and my new Marty stacks the complete overtone series as it naturally lurks within an ideally-voiced instrument, on every note, seemingly boosting even more on primary harmonics and open strings. It's a gorgeous beastie in looks, sound, ease of playing, and creativity. Very picky and very happy I am!

I have owned Gibsons, Larivees, and Guilds, and Art & Luthrie, but this is hands down the best sounding finger picker I have ever owned. It has a natural reverb which I love. I noticed immediately that there was some bear clawing that did not show up in the pictures, but I believe that Martin selected this wood for its very tight grain which is super resonate. My sale person is Derek Senestraro and I have been with him for years. He is the BEST and very helpful! I'm going to have a K&K pick up added and the action lowered so this can be my forever guitar. The pewter looking tuners and overall finish give it such a mojo! Thanks Derek! I gave the guitar 4 stars because the bear clawing is very distracting from the overall look if not for that this would be a perfect guitar. Derek is 5 Stars!

I bought this guitar a few months ago- very lightweight, easy to play (strumming or fingerpicking) and great tone! Love the vintage look of the spruce top.
We are scientists that have a band that records songs about evolution for science education ( you can listen and download for FREE) with some world-class musicians collaborating, including Seymour Duncan and Dave Grissom on guitar, Kenny Aronoff on drums, and Carrie Newcomer and Krista Detor on vocals.

I looked for years for a guitar that was loud enough and good enough to play unplugged. I wanted no electronics on board.. I also wanted a satin top and mahogany back and sides, for that extra punch. The 000-17 has a nice wide rosewood finger board so you have room to finger pick, and because of it's volume --flat picking is as about as good as it gets. It's so good I am trying to learn some Bluegrass runs.

The spruce top has 5/16 bracing so the mid range is super strong. The biggest plus was discovered by luck though; I was always having trouble reaching/streacing for notes when finger picking, until it dawned on me that the shorter scale guitars have shorter distances between frets. That was the key to buying this guitar-the 24.9" scale length.

So now I have a Martin DJR (my practice guitar and best buddy) a Martin OMC-28E (a Hillbilly Stradivarius) and now my 000-17. I think it's just a plain Jane 000-18 (no gloss finish or ebony fret board or Grover tuners) less $800. But my guess is the box of each guitar (other than the 5/16 bracing) would be very close, It is nice and light weight, so it is the guitar I play the most. It's a real loud mouth, but I can't believe how sensitive the string tones are when you are finger picking quietly. It's by far not the greatest finger picking guitar, because it's not a chimer with endless sustain, but it is still very good.

I got this guitar for flat picking without amplification and it is more than what I expected..

I actually bought this from a different music company because this was out of stock on Sweetwater for so long, but thought i would write a review here because I've bought quite a bit from this site over the years.

If I am honest, it took me a week or two to really love this guitar. The sound was not quite what I'd expected. I've always played a dreadnought acoustic, and I guess I didn't think about a smaller bodied guitar sounding so different. Also, this guitar is made to sound different, even from the standard small bodied guitar. But I will say, I cant imagine ever going back to a dreadnought or wanting any other guitar for the foreseeable future. It has become my favorite guitar I have ever owned or player, and that has been a fair amount.

The sound: airy, woody, dry, fast-decaying; but also: resonant, alive, warm, sweet.
The play-ability: it plays effortlessly and is extremely comfortable. No issues that I've found.
The finish: flawless finish and really cool that you can feel the grain of the wood on the neck, sides and back.

I would say that it is not a guitar that translates universally to all genres of music, but for the right kinds of music, it can be perfect. I play 99% of the time with my fingers (pads of my fingers, no nails). Where as a dreadnought has always sounded muddy with my playing style, this guitar has more mid range and made my playing much clearer. I like playing folksy, Americana finger-picking stuff, blues, jazz standards, and some country. But, I occasionally use a pick (on the thicker side) and it sounds fantastic as well.

I think it's always a good idea to find one to play or at least watch every youtube review of it you can find to decide if its for you, but as for me, I couldn't be happier!


Side note: this guitar comes with the Martin Monel strings. I didn't like them at first, but now I think they may be the best fit for this guitar. I do want to try my usual phosphor bronze strings on them at some point, which will probably change the sound somewhat.

I have been used to the dreadnought sound, which I do like. When I played the 000 17 3 things immediately caught my attention. 1st the size, lite, narrow and very comfortable to hold. 2nd the sound, the mahogany sides and back,with the Sitka bracing simply produced an amazing joy to my ears 3rd the neck. 14 usable frets, but the taper and the thickness and shape make this guitar super fast and smooth. I honestly don't know the mechanics or science behind this guitar but as a player I am well pleased. It's a keeper.

I had played a floor model before purchasing and liked the fee enough that I had to order my own. Straight out of the box, I was floored by how great this instrument is. It has the classic appointments that take you back to the dust bowl and out of the realm of modern, overdone instruments.

The finish is just silky smooth and beautifully done but shows off the grain of the spruce top ever so slightly. You can feel the grain of the back and sides almost like raw wood.

Out of the box, the setup was impeccable, though it did have the classic Martin high action. A quick trip to my luthier will resolve that issue though. The vintage style tuners are just tight enough to not slip and gold tune rock solid.

The tone is that perfect blend of warm with just enough mid range bite and snap to cut through. A perfect guitar to accompany vocals.

There are only two small cons to this instrument. The first is that I wish they would have put ebony bridge pins on this guitar. It's minor and doesn't effect tone, but would have been a small change to really sell the vintage aura they try to convey with this series.

The second is easily resolved, but the stock strings do not do this instrument justice. Martin's retro monel strings are just dull enough to not be crisp, and just mid-focused enough to lack any depth. I put on a set of Elixir 80/20s I had lying around and this guitar just lit right up.

If you want a classic feeling Martin without breaking the bank, this guitar is absolutely top of the line.

I have had my 000-17 Whiskey Sunset for about 3 or 4 weeks now. I intentionally waited so that I could get a good impression of the guitar before I passed on my opinion of it.
I started my hunt for a USA Martin and was dead set on a 000-28. After getting one in my hands, I realized that as much as I love the looks of rosewood, the overtones (which I am not knocking) simply made it hard for MY ears to hear much note definition. (I'm mostly a finger picker by the way.)
Then I played a 000-18 and was blown away! Well that's what I thought I was going to get, but honestly just kind of got tired of waiting (I can only work so much overtime you know!) to get the cash saved up. I was browsing the website and found this 000-17. It had all of the important specs that I wanted; spruce top, hog back and sides, 1.75" nut width, shorter scale length. I cannot say that it sounds the same as the 18. It has an airy/dry sound to it. It still has excellent sustain (even better with the aftermarket bone pins), and play like an 18. I did almost IMMEDIATELY take off the Retro strings and put on SP 80/20's. The Retro's just weren't for me. It sings with the 80/20's and I may try some 92/8 PB just for fun.
The rosewood board and bridge were a bit dry looking when I got it, so I oiled it and it really does intensify the grain and make it "pop." It required a slight adjustment (shaving down of the saddle) to get the string height to my preference, but it was within Martin spec when I received it. Sweetwater really makes sure their guitars are enjoyable to play before they ship them out.
Personally, I love the satin/matte finish on the 17...and of course I always appreciate a non-glossy neck.
I play mostly fingerstyle, but have flatpicked and strummed on it, and while the tone is there, the volume is not "booming." Again, this is perfect for what I want, and what you should expect out of most 000's.
Craftsmanship is perfect, I couldn't find a single flaw on this guitar.
It may looks like a throwback blues acoustic, but you would be mistaken to think this is a "one-trick-pony."
If I had to put a number on it, I'd say I play...uhm, ZERO blues, and am still extremely happy with this guitar.
I record with a Shure SM57Beta and get great tone and balance from highs to lows. I did notice my low string bass lines when finger picking really sounded much better after switching to the 80/20's as opposed to the Retro Monel strings that are stock.
This review is all over the place!
Big thanks to Will Crisp at Sweetwater, he has helped me through many many purchases and is a key factor as to why I only buy new guitars from Sweetwater!!

First off let me say Thank You to Sweetwater and my account rep Aaron Hoff. I am so happy with my recent purchase of a Martin OOO-17 Whiskey Sunset guitar that I need to let everyone know what a great experience it has been working with Aaron and Sweetwater. I've purchased many things over the years through Sweetwater including guitars, a ukulele, and assorted other recording gadgetry, strings, etc., and have never had a problem, It is always a smooth transaction and quick delivery.

Even though I am confident with every purchase I make from Sweetwater, I put this one off for a long time as I have never been a great fan of buying guitars in this price range unseen and unplayed. Now my only regret is that I didn't pull the trigger sooner. I love the guitar.

It came in a day or two, packed securely, and plays and sounds like what you would expect from a Martin guitar. I absolutely love it. The OOO size is perfect and more comfortable to play than the dreadnaught guitars I have. The guitar exceeded my expectations as it plays and sounds great flat picked or finger picked. Plenty of boom when flat picked and the tone is gorgeous when finger picking. Not a flaw anywhere on the box. The satin whiskey sunset finish is beautiful and it came set up perfectly as i expected. This guitar will be staying in the family.

So thank you Aaron for being there when I need you, whether its just discussing different guitars or making a purchase you always handle whatever it is like a professional. I'll be back for more and more.

Just received my new 000-17 two days ago and I'm very pleased with the Sweetwater service!
This is a fantastic playing and sounding Martin. And best of all its a great price point for any USA made Martin! It has that distinctive Martin tone -warm, round and full with better mid range tones than I was expecting! Very pleased I landed on this model. I love the sunburst finish! I was a bit surprised that the top is not "glossier" than it is as I had expected more of a gloss finish. HOWEVER, I am usually not a fan of the thin "satin" finishes, but it just works very well on this guitar. I'm a fan NOW! You'll either need to mic it up to gig with it -or better yet invest in the K&K Pure Mini system with the vintage jack option. Entire package is available on ebay for $179 free S&H too. Best option since no permanent mods need to be performed on this beauty. Plus the sound is true to the tone of the guitar and no need for batteries or battery packs since the pure mini is purely passive system. I love this 000-17 and plan to keep it for life!