TONE TALK A with
lex Eardley-Scott
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or this issue of Rock Lynx, I thought I would bring you a comparison of two of the latest innovations. I have had the pleasure of trying from Martin & Co. and Taylor guitars before the pandemic. If you’ve heard a guitar in popular music recorded in the last 70 years, then it’s almost certain you’ll have heard one of these brands and their instruments. You either know them from your favourite songs or the one you hate most which always seems to be on the radio. Both companies offer a huge variety of designs, tones and price points; catering for everybody who wants a guitar that sounds and plays well. They both compete from lower-priced travel guitars to custom shop works of art which cost tens of thousands of pounds. I just had a look while writing this article and I forget sometimes that prices can go that high for things without bedrooms or a mortgage. But before we all got told to stay at home, I managed to play two very exciting guitars side by side: Martin’s brand new SC13e and Taylor’s 317e Grand Pacific. Both are similarly priced but offer two different avenues of playing comfort, styling and voice.
Martin & Co.
are considered a forefather in modern acoustic guitars in a lot of ways. Family-run since 1833, and the oldest still-producing guitar maker in the world they have made some of the most well-known designs in history. The originators of the most copied guitar shape in history, the dreadnought, they were also early pioneers of X-bracing which is now the most common strengthening technique for guitar tops too. In January of this year, Martin released possibly their most radical redesign of what an acoustic guitar could be into their Road Series, the SC13e. On first impressions, you’d be forgiven for thinking it is just slightly brighter sounding Martin with an interesting cutaway and blue appointments. When you hang it up next to a standard guitar though, you soon notice the asymmetrical body shape. It’s a bit of a love it or hate it look until you’re sat behind it and you’ll change your entire perspective on it.
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