Another solid performer for this end of the Martin line alongside the Dreadnought Jr, but the appeal beyond Shawn Mendes fans may well rest on how you feel about that signature inlay and the premium to be paid for the sustainability.
Pros
+
Impressive sounds from a compact acoustic.
+
Shorter 24" scale is very approachable for younger players.
+
100% FSC-certified tonewoods.
Cons
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Not everyone will appreciate the signature fretboard inlay.
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You do pay a premium for sustainability.
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Signature guitars are a funny business – for every fan you can attract with an artist model, there are more that could also be turned off. Shawn Mendes is a suitably massive pop star to justify the bold step of... wait for it... an inlay signature here. Yep, we told you it was bold.
The swallows (inspired by the musician’s hand tattoo) on the 000JR-10E’s bridge have positively universal appeal by comparison, and the laser-etched lyrics inside the body are subtly and randomly selected for each guitar. So subtle in fact that we couldn’t even find it inside our review model! But there’s more to this Custom Artist Edition than cosmetics.
We’re impressed to find that this guitar is sustainably built from 100 percent FSC-certified tonewoods, at the request of Mendes, and its navy blue gigbag is 100 percent recycled post-consumer polyester. His other stipulation was that it would be affordable to fans.
For comparison, the street prices we’re seeing are around $50 more than those of the cutaway non-signature 000CJR-10E – that has a select hardwood neck rather than the sipo here (it’s similar to sapele). But if you prefer the traditional non-cutaway look, this is the only option for a Martin 000 Junior.
(Image credit: Future / Phil Barker)
Like that guitar, the build here is solid sapele back and sides with a Sitka spruce top. A hand-rubbed satin finish gets no complaints from us either, while the 24-inch scale and 000 Junior size (a scaled-down auditorium) adds appeal for younger players, and those who want a middle ground between Little Martin 23-inch and full size.
It certainly worked for Martin’s Dreadnought Jr, but the smaller body goes further with that concept. Tonally, its sense of balance and projection is impressive next to our solid wood mahogany Sigma dreadnought and Taylor GS Mini. Rather than a boxy compressed mid-heavy projection, it’s softer – especially in the high-end. The low-end is surprising for the size, too.
Martin, like a few other brands, is clearly intent on sticking with Fishman’s Sonitone preamp and Sonicore pickup. It’s a minimum-frills piezo offering only Volume and Tone controls inside the soundhole.
Like most piezo systems it needs some kind of preamp EQ’ing to make the best of it, but even without blending in the imaging (a kind of mic’d acoustic IR) on our Fishman Aura pedal into a FRFR cab, it offered a bold and usable tone.
Specs
PRICE: $799 / £869
TYPE: Electro acoustic short-scale 000-size
BODY: Solid Sitka spruce top, solid sapele back and sides, X bracing (scalloped)
NECK: FSC Certified Sipo
SCALE LENGTH: 24”/609mm
NUT WIDTH: 44.4mm
FINGERBOARD: Ovangkol
FRETS: 20 (14th fret neck join)
TUNERS: Chrome enclosed gear
BRIDGE: FSC® Certified Ebony
ELECTRICS: Fishman Sonitone undersaddle piezo with active preamp with Tone and Volume controls, powered by 9V battery
Rob is the Guitars Editor for MusicRadar, handling news, reviews, features, tuition, advice for the strings side of the site and everything in between. Before MusicRadar, he worked on guitar magazines for 15 years, including as Editor of Total Guitar. He's currently set aside any pipe dreams of getting anywhere with his own songs and is enjoying playing covers in function bands.
