1999 Martin SPD-16M Dreadnought Guitar

This fancy-looking Martin reminds me a lot of the '60s Levin Goliaths with maple back and sides. It's basically a D-18-ish guitar but with flamed maple back and sides instead of mahogany. It sounds like a D-18 but with a lot more emphasis on mids and a clean, sustained bass. I like it!

It's got spiffy tortoise binding, too, and a bunch of extraneous pearl inlay in the neck, at the soundhole, and in the bridge. It's a bit blinged-up, for sure. The fretboard and bridge are ebony, too, compared to the rosewood I would expect on a sub-21-style instrument.

This guy was in for a pickup but I also leveled/dressed the frets and set it all up. It definitely needed it -- the owner destroyed the frets in first position, for sure.

I think this model would make a great alternate "D-18" for a player who wants that sound but also wants a little more immediate response and a little less scoop to the mids and more clarity and ring up top.












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