Martin Custom Shop 000-41 Inspired Acoustic Guitar, Highly-Flamed Koa Back & Sides, Italian Alpine Spruce

PLAYER'S PERSPECTIVE

We're proud to present this Martin Custom Shop 000-41 that we collaborated on with our friends at Martin Guitars! Starting with the venerable 000 as the foundation, we opted for some truly magnificent appointments that truly make this guitar special - highly-flamed koa back, sides, binding, and headstock and a Italian Alpine Spruce top, along with a handful of other classy appointments.

Koa comes from the acacia koa tree native to Hawaii. It's almost always a beautifully figured wood, and the pieces that our team and Martin worked together to select are no exception. The grain on the back and sides of this guitar is downright breathtaking, as is the headstock inlaid with the iconic vintage Martin vertical logo. With it being used so extensively on this instrument, this guitar takes you away to an island paradise. Tone-wise, koa is a very balanced wood, having the warmth of mahogany combined with the bell-tone brightness of maple. And with it being a very dense wood, the resonance and sustain is fantastic. The Italian Alpine spruce is subtle yet stunning, having the same classic vibe of Sitka spruce with an added "3D" depth to the grain.

The classic combination of spruce top, mahogany neck and ebony fretboard is Martin's traditional combo of tonewoods for a reason - it has been the formula for the most balanced, pure acoustic tonal resonance since the Pre-War era. Along with the 000 body shape, it will provide more-than-respectable volume, clear and full tone, and have a wide dynamic range conducive to both finger-picking, strummed chords, and single notes.

For the players here at the shop, the greatest "Custom Shop" instruments combine the tone and playability that a certain model is known for with appointments such as the ones on this one that make it a true one-of-a-kind instrument and heirloom piece. As expected from the Custom Shop of arguably the most renowned and storied acoustic guitar builder in American guitar history, the playability, tonality and build quality are all top-notch.

This Custom Shop guitar had all of the woods and specifications selected by the dealer.