Martin HD-28EL Retro w/ Fishman Aura VT, Left Handed

Full Description

Built for dazzling sound

A true natural beauty. Every grain of wood featured on the HD-28E is showcased with sheer elegance, resulting in a simply stunning instrument that is matched with bright, articulate sound. Flowing through its veins is the wondrous clarity that stems from a beautiful Sitka spruce top. A real showstopper. Spruce allows you to become completely engulfed in a magical playing experience whilst every single note is released with clear definition and incredible dynamics. It delivers a superb, balanced tone that offers the versatility needed for endless creativity. Whether you're strumming with vigour or practicing intricate fingerpicking techniques, the spruce top will ensure crisp articulation is woven tightly into your playing.

Complementing the glorious body top are East Indian rosewood back and sides. Rosewood's sonic characteristics team perfectly with the tone of spruce, balancing out any harsh frequencies and giving you a rich, clear sound. Embellishing your notes with sparkling clarity, rosewood enables you to deliver shimmering, pitch-perfect solos and beautifully textured chords. Creating consistency of sound, a dark and complex resonance forms a gorgeous undercurrent to that sharp yet full-bodied tone. Rosewood is a popular tonewood and Martin have relied upon it for years, and with the HD-28E it's not hard to see why.

Smooth, easy fretting

Perform with the comfort you need to deliver flawless sound. The select hardwood neck presents a modified low oval shape and a high-performance taper, providing you with the means to be able to fret in pristine fashion. Such an exquisitely shaped neck will sit snugly in your grip, allowing your fingers the ultimate freedom to move with skill and speed. It is also conveniently robust, lending itself to a lifetime of playing without showing signs of wear.

Attached to the neck is a stylish ebony fretboard, a Martin staple on high-end guitars and a demonstration of their premium quality. As well as being visually dark and striking, it boasts a wealth of stunning tonal qualities. It is exceptionally responsive and offers a beautifully bright sound which, combined with its snappy attack, enables you to project fantastic volume without losing a touch of definition. Better still, ebony's naturally high oil content gives it a smooth, fast finish, enough to accommodate any playing style. Let your fingers glide over the frets as if they're floating on air. Every note will feel as silky as it sounds.

Immense stability

You might not think it, but its actually the inside of this guitar, as well as its sublime exterior, that epitomises Martin's expertise and passion for solidly made guitars. Mounted beneath the spruce top is scalloped, forward-shifted X bracing, a sturdy structure that enhances your playing experience. It ensures the guitar body can withstand high string tension and excessive playing. Meaning you can relax and strum as forcefully as you like without the top collapsing. By shifting the brace half an inch closer to the soundhole, Martin have unleashed another dimension to your sound. The bass frequencies will come alive as the lower bout vibrates freely, giving you a beautifully resonant sound that accompanies the shimmering clarity and brightness of rosewood and spruce perfectly.

The scalloped shape of the bracing means parts have been scooped out, allowing the body top even more room to vibrate. The result? A gorgeous dynamic sound that retains structural reliability. Keeping in line with the retro theme and modern re-creation, scooped bracing is a flashback to Martin's "Golden Era", a time when all their steel-string guitars featured this strong and resonant brace shape. They are seen to be the most exquisite of guitars, and now with this model you have the sturdiness and magnificence that is the result of experience and history.

Martin's expert craftsmanship

Taking the standard acoustic guitar one step further, Martin have employed incredible innovation in the form of Fishman Aura VT Enhance electronics. Through the use of Aura Acoustic Imaging, the guitar's wondrous natural tone is preserved and projected with all its authentic sonic characteristics. Afterall, if you're going to invest in an acoustic guitar rich in tonal resonance and clarity, you don't want to lose that when using the electronics. The electronic system even preserves the natural aesthetic of the guitar too by showcasing a discreet design, alleviating any disruption to the elegant simplicity of the instrument. Instead of cutting control holes into the side, the Volume, Tone, and Enhance Blend are located inside the soundhole. This also means you have incredibly easy access to them. Adjust your sound without impeding your set and sculpt it with wonderful precision. The bridge plate mounted transducer then brings even more resonance to your tone, making for a magical, acoustic experience.

Supreme quality

Continuing Martin's tradition of unparalleled excellence, the HD-28E has been expertly handmade with scrupulous attention to detail. The stunning tortoise patterned pickguard lies beautifully against light shade of the spruce top, a simple yet attractive detail. Grained ivoroid binding then flows like a ribbon around the dreadnought shape, highlighting its stylish silhouette. Martin are pioneers of this classic guitar body type, meaning you can be sure you'll have an instrument that holds prestige.

Specifications

• Product Code: CFM-GTR-HD28ERETRO

Body & Bridge

• Body Top: Sitka Spruce
• Body Back & Sides: East Indian Rosewood
• Body Finish: Gloss
• Rosette: Style 28 Multi-Stripe
• Bracing Pattern: Forward-Shifted X-Bracing
• Brace Shape: Scalloped
• Bridge Material: Ebony
• Bridge Style: Modern Belly - Drop In Saddle
• Bridge String Spacing: 2 5/32"
• Bridge Pin Material: White Plastic
• Bridge Pin Dots: Faux Tortoise
• Saddle: Compensated White Tusq
• Saddle Radius: 16"

Neck & Fingerboard

• Neck Material: Select Hardwood
• Neck Finish: Satin
• Neck Shape: Modified Low Oval
• Neck Taper: High-Performance Taper
• Fingerboard Material: Ebony
• Scale Length: 25.4"
• Number Of Frets: 20
• Inlay Style: Diamonds & Squares Long Pattern
• Inlay Material: Abalone
• Fingerboard Width At 12th Fret: 2 1/8"
• Fingerboard Width At Nut: 1 3/4"
• Headstock Shape: Solid With Square Taper & Diamond
• Headplate Material: East Indian Rosewood
• Headplate Logo Style: Script Old Style Overlay
• Nut Material: Bone

Hardware & Electronics

• Tuning Machines: Nickel Open Gear
• Electronics: Fishman Aura VT Enhance
• Case: Ply Hardshell (Included)