Morgan Monroe M-30V

basically a copy of the martin 000-28. and a good one. solid spruce top, solid rosewood back and sides, vintage v profile neck. played this and an 000-28 next to each other and definitely did not hear 2500 worth of better sound from the martin. they were almost equal. but it gets an 8 because it isn't filled with features. its just an awesome guitar.

i play indie/folk rock, delta spirit, kevin devine, wilco, that kind of sound. if thats the kind of stuff you play, buy this. very loud for a 000, bright sound, but also has plenty of low end. very very good and versatile sound. i have no complaints at all about the sound of this baby.

action was great, everything was perfect except for one small chip in the front from where someone who demoed this guitar at the store i bought it had dinged it on something. which in my opinion just adds a little character and knocks off $30 from the price. if that was not there, i would have no complaints about this.

i plan to play live with this, and i think it would handle it well. i would not use it without a backup, but then again i won't go into any gig without a backup.

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if you are willing to take a chance and go play one of these you are not going to be disappointed. if you want to buy a guitar for the sound and not for the name, then go look at one of these. they are just another testament to the quality of the stuff coming out of china these days.

Its basically the Chinese version of a Martin OM-28V. AA Sitka spruce top, Indian rosewood back and sides, ebony bridge and fingerboard, bone nut and saddle, open Grover tuners, lots of pretty binding. Nice gloss finish with lovely top toner-- I think from a distance its prettier than the Martin. Up close its got the tiny flaws that tell you it wasn't made in Pennsylvania. The "v" represents the neck shape. Its also available with a d-neck but if you've never played a "v" I reccomend trying it, I like it. I'll buy another V. I replaced the plastic bridge pins with ebony. I'm giving it a ten for the V neck, otherwise its just a well built OM for exceptional value.

The top bracing on this guitar was actually borrowed from vintage Martin, to allow for more vibration. A wonderful feature. MM calls it their "Vintage Voiced" series. I've had mine for nine months. Its breaking in quite nicely. Good volume. I'm a singer/song-writer. I project with my voice when I want to, and this guitar has never let me down. I also live in an apartment with thin ceilings and a family upstairs. It sounds good whispering too. I installed a passive
pick-up. Good for lots of styles. The V makes the neck feel fast.

I traded a Heritage 575 with a head stock repair and a shorted input jack straight across. The guitar in the shop had a crack in the ebony bridge. I sent it into Indiana guitar Co. and they sent a new one. Both guitars had minor cosmetic blemishes. The action was fine, but While MM employs the materials and blue-prints to build great guitars, nobody's taking their time.

I will not be surprised years from now when the top develops hairline fractures because the assembly parts were not stored in a humidity controlled environment. The finish on the back of the neck seems a bit like it will flake if I continue to enjoy it as much as I have. I use it for writing, gigging, and recording. I'm a little hard on guitars and she's already got a few scratches, still I think even if I were wealthy, which I'm not, I will never get rid of this guitar. A better camp fire or beach guitar I haven't owned, and the light weight hard shell case gives me a sense of security about bringing it on such outings.

MM offers life-time warranty, mine has already been fulfilled. I have a feeling the warranty saves them money against employing quality control at the factory. Maybe harsh words, I wanted the bridge repaired; Nervous about a new guitar I couldn't play first--but I'm happy enough now.

I really like this guitar. Every time I've ever pulled it out of its case for strangers, both musicians and audience members alike, I get a "thats nice!" and it is nice. Ultimately I want a Larrivee SD-50, but thats a very different guitar. This will still be my little OM. When I brought in the Heritage I said I wanted a good acoustic guitar. I was moving to the rainy side of Big Island Hawaii, and in the rainy season to boot, and only bringing one guitar. This one's been great. Try to find a solid wood OM with a V neck for under a thousand dollars. Or, even if you think you want the Martin, try this one on. Its prettier from a distance