Comments about Martin HD-28 Standard Dreadnought Acoustic:

I took a risk when I bought my 2000 HD-28. I bought it without ever having played it, reckless, I know, but it was from a very prominent flatpicker that I know and trust and it turned out to be the best investment I've made in my gear. The neck is smooth and fast, the scalloped bracing lets the top ring out when picked hard, but also lets you hang back when you need to. In other words, the tone is very dynamic, much more so than a standard D-28. I have put it in a case, driven over mountain passes over hundreds of miles, through different climates, taken it out of the case, and it held tune all through that. The only area that this guitar falls short personally for me is that, even though it is a classic Martin model, it doesn't quite have the warmth that the vintage 28's and 35's have. However, I'm sure given time it will open up and warm up just like the ones of the past. The more I play it, the more I fall in love with it.

Comments about Martin HD-28 Standard Dreadnought Acoustic:

Looking at the pictures, this does not look like a guitar that really draws you in, or evokes feelings of lust like a Super 400. However, when you see it in person, the craftsmanship is a simple thing of beauty. The quality of wood (color, grain, etc.) tells you someone picked this wood to build a guitar. It has a real simple beauty. Sound? Very alive and well balanced. Those high notes that are typically "plinky" are just as loud and clear as the room shaking lows. I chose this over other Martin for the good balance. Other guitars I considered when making this purchase - Guild f50, Guild f50R, Gibson SJ200. This guitar has all the voulume and projection of the jumbos, with better balance. Full disclosure - I did receive a guitar that had what I would consider a manufactures defect - a slight "wave" in the top near the binding by the endpin. I have never seen a build issue in any other Martin and Musicians Friend's customer service handled an exchange without issue.

Comments about Martin HD-28 Standard Dreadnought Acoustic:

I acquired my HD-28 about six months ago, actually managed to find a mint used one locally. The guy had it sitting in the case for a couple of years and never played it. Restrung, put in the humidifier, and played some tunes. Very solid guitar, love the tone, very rich bass, loves to be strummed. The tone kind of blends to produce this very rich, warm sound. I absolutely love this guitar. Every day I have played it I am a little more impressed.

All the construction is sound, per martin's standard (at least the standard of their more expensive instruments, I have heard nasty things about the HD-28's cheaper counterparts). I replaced tusq with a bone saddle (not sure if that comes standard now? It wasn't on my 2009 model), which improved the already great tone by heaps.

The best thing about this guitar in my opinion, is that it is not a gimmick. It is not a "vintage" guitar, with aged toner and pre fabricated pick marks. It is the genuine article. Martin's genuine attempt at a quality guitar without any of the fancy sales pitches. It is exactly like a guitar I could have bought forty years ago and saved for my great grand kids, so that they could pass it on to theirs. It's not the most expensive, inlaid, and fancy martin guitar. But it is a genuine guitar, reminiscent of the great martins guitars of the past, without short-cutting the things that made the older martins great. Honest in appointment and construction, and great in tone and playability. A guitar with the potential to become the modern equivalent of a pre-war martin D-28.

Perhaps thats a little to romantic for a musicians friend review, but its how I feel about the thing. The sound is great, and getting better every day. Playability is top notch; More streamlined neck than the older martins it replicates, and stays in tune fine. Also looks like what a guitar should Clean build, not overly appointed with inlays and fancy scrollwork. Just plain quality.

Comments about Martin HD-28 Standard Dreadnought Acoustic:

Have nothing but problems since day one. It's in the shop now as the bottem of the neck won't straighten out. No matter how many dampits I use the top is always dry. I had the neck heat pressed and 2 days later the action was unplayable.Should have never traded my J200 for this. Seems Martin is trying to speed up the drying process and is putting the wood in ovens to quick dry the wood. Martins warrenty doesn't seem to cover anything as I've spent more money trying to get it fixed that I could have bought a new one. Am at a loss for words as this is a lemon and nothing seems to fix the problems. I think the problem started when GC's acoustic rooms humidity broke and the high end guitars sat there for 3 months without any humidity to keep the wood from drying out.

Comments about Martin HD-28 Standard Dreadnought Acoustic:

The HD-28 is a great guitar. I have a 1995 model that I bought new, so I have now owned this guitar for 17 years! It plays good, sounds big and also loves alt-tunings. If you are serious about your acoustic you should play this one. Everyone should have a D-28 and/or D-18 in their music room. It is great for rock, pop or bluegrass.

Comments about Martin HD-28 Standard Dreadnought Acoustic:

The feel of the neck for me is perfect! The the sound, keeps on improving over time as does the solid Spruce top.
I have a D-28 dreadnought bought new in 1974 and it's trulyy the nicest acoustic guitar I've ever owned, and worth every penny, and although I also have a D-40 and it may look nicer, it doesn't play any better than the D-28, in fact, I prefer the D-28 over the D-40. Either way, Martin just can't be beat for price in value. I've heard many people say,," I wished I would have spent a few more dollars and bought a Martin guitar" many, many times during my 55 years, but I've never heard anyone say, "oh, I should have saved money and bought X Brand guitar.Nobody regrets buying quality.
Excellent! On my D-40 which needed to have the bracing reglued, Marting was A-1 in the handling the warranty process from beginning to end and the guys at the Twelfth Fret here in Toronto did an excellent job repairing the D-40
Can't be beat! I've owned other expensive guitars but Martin is just that much better overall in value.

Comments about Martin HD-28 Standard Dreadnought Acoustic:

Close to perfect as you will get for the price.
This guitar's features are true to a Pre-war Martin D-28. The tonewoods are fantastic! The fit and finish is PERFECT!
You can't do better than a Martin for quality.
Considering the price of Vintage herringbone Martin's, this guitar is priced too low. What a deal! Forget buying a vintage martin from the 70's or 80's. Most of them are weak compared to the sound of this guitar. A Vintage D-28 that sounds as good as this would cost you a Fortune! If you want true Martin Dreadnaught sound, look no further!

Comments about Martin HD-28 Standard Dreadnought Acoustic:

Martin hit a home run with this guitar. It sounds absolutely fine. I've played higher-priced Martins, and although the tonewood quality for the higher-priced models (eg, D-45) may be a shade better (very hard to hear a difference), for the most part, you pay more on the higher-priced models for bling. Although it does not have any inlay, the HD-28 sounds exquisite. It's one of the best sounding guitars you'll find.

Comments about Martin HD-28 Standard Dreadnought Acoustic:

I've had this guitar for five years now and it just keeps getting better with age. It sounded good when I got it, but the sound is really booming. If you can fork the cash, definetely get this guitar.

Comments about Martin HD-28 Standard Dreadnought Acoustic:

Have played everything over the years... No I mean it! I had played a number of old D-28s and found the all great instruments, but Taylor had an allure. I was about to buy a Taylor 6 in about the same price range as the HD-28, but I was able to do an A/B with an HD28 in a store that carried both product lines. The HD-28 was louder, warmer and more articulate than the Taylor; and oh yeah, the Martin stayed in tune during the whole demo unlike the Taylor (a problem I have encountered during performances with many borrowed Taylors even the 800 series.) I bought the Martin and had a Fishman Matrix Infinity pu installed and it sounds astounding.