Martin D-18 Authentic 1937 VTS Acoustic Guitar - Aged Reviews
The Martin D-18 Authentic 1937 VTS is a flatpicker's delight, and an instant collectible. Martin left no stone unturned, exhaustively researching original pre-WWII D-18s to nail the specs, materials, and construction methods used in this historic re-creation. This guitar boasts a spot-on Golden-era body profile, an Adirondack spruce top with circa-1937 forward-shifted X bracing, "Old Style 18" fingerboard inlays, an authentic neck barrel and heel, brown tortoise-pattern binding, an ebony fingerboard, a glue-in long-saddle bridge, and a bone nut. To top it off, the D-18 Authentic 1937 VTS is finished using Martin's Vintage Tone System (VTS), a unique tonewood-finishing recipe that allows Martin to age a guitar's top. All that vintage goodness results in a highly playable — and incredible-sounding — acoustic guitar. If you're in the market for a truly special instrument, the Martin D-18 Authentic 1937 VTS is it.
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Highest Rated Reviews
Closest to the vintage sound without speanding $50-$100K +
I've played a few pre-war Martins, and the "aged" guitars from a notable 'aged' guitar maker in N.C.
Martin certainly hit the nail right on the head with this one. The sound is so enormously rich and full, well-balanced, and strong. IMO, this is the closest I've heard any guitar sound like a real pre-war Martin. It is truly stunning.
This is my third dread with a baked top, and while the baked top does go a long way to enhancing the sound, I believe the main enabler here is the super-thin coating that has finish-checking (cracking). This enables the top to vibrate more freely, as others have noted.
There are marks all over the guitar like it's been played a lot for many years, but not to the point of damage.
One thing I found truly amazing was the behavior of the tuning machines. They are aged to look like they're 70 or 80 years old, but they creak the first time you make a tuning adjustment – just like a real pre-war Martin does! THAT blew me away!
I know Martin didn't come up with this idea of aged guitars, but I think they've been able to use their years of expertise of evaluating and repairing pre-war Martins to know exactly what needs to be done to produce something that is as close to the real McCoy as it can get.
The only indication on the guitar that it is truly NOT 86 years old is the neck-block – it says "D-18 Authentic".
Unbelievably Accurate - And Good
I played a 1937 Authentic VT from Gruhn's while I was in Nashville. It was the best guitar in the downstairs part of the store that day. I was really enamored. The next day I was at Banjo Ben Clark's home with IBMA award winner Kenny Smith and his 1935 D18. Kenny very kindly let me play his D18 for a couple of minutes. I was blown away at how similar the 1937 Authentic sounded and felt compared to the real thing. Everything was spot on - the neck shape, frets, color, feel and the tone. I called Gruhn's right away and asked them to hold that D28. I picked it up the next day.
Long story short, I've owned a bunch of D guitars - Collings, Huss and Dalton, Santa Cruz, Martin, Bedell - these Martin Authentic Series guitars are the best of the bunch when it comes to nailing the vintage feel. They're truly inspiring. The vintage mojo definitely has an effect on my playing.
We are living in the golden age of guitar making. It's crazy to me that Martin can so accurately recreate the exact look and feel of a 85 year old acoustic instrument.
