Dean Markley DM-41

I own a Dean Markley DM 41 made in 2003. It is a gorgeous dreadnaught modeled after the Martin 41. It has a gorgeous solid sitka srpuce top, indian rosewood back and sides, maple neck with an ebony finger board and an ebony bridge. I was one of the forst people to purchase one of these guitars directly from Dean himself after he had partnered with Keith Holland and a master luthier in Japan. The craftsmanship is just gorgeous. The binding is maple along the neck and around the top and headstock. The spruce top is darker than most, giving it a beautiful 'aged' wood appearance. It had abalone inlay all around the top and sound hole, as well as abalone block inlays on the neck and an abalone 'Dean Markley' signature logo as well as a cowboy on a horse on the headstock. The cowboy oon a horse represents Dean's move to California from the midwest in 1969.
The guitar has 20 frets and attaches at the body at the 14th fret.
While I am not a fan of having this much 'bling' on my guitar (the inlay work) it is done very tastefully and the guitar wears it well.
These guitars were commissioned by a master luthier from Japan to make a short run of 25 of each model. (I own #25 of 25 of the DM41's). The last I heard, these were sold out (quickly) and have increased a great deal in value. As rare as they are, and nobody that owns one is willing to part with theirs, these will surely hold their value well. Infact, the selling price of the first 25 more than doubled (almost tripled) between the first and the last ones sold. Rumor has it that these may become a production guitar after this limited first run....but now 5 years after the first ones were made it has not happened yet.
The tuners are an 18:1 ratio and the guitar stays in tune beautifully.

The sound of this guitar is amazing. I am a finger picker and a strummer, playing anything from classical to rock (from Laurence Juber to Days of the New). This is quite the diverse guitar. I often to play my Taylor 914ce, and have gone through a few other Taylors as well, but I always come back to my DM41. It has more 'meat' to it and the deep tomes are unmatched by any smaller guitar. The neck is substantial, while not being a baseball bat neck of similar guitars. I like this a lot as a finger stylist. It plays easily, but does not sacrifice the solid feel of the neck. It has nore of a v shape to the neck, and my wife (with much smaller hands) plays it with ease as well.
It has a very full sound with lots of bottom end, while not giving up the brilliant highs. It projects very well. I have not installed any pick ups in it to date. I do not care for the magnetic sound hole pickup that was offered with the guitar, but I am considering installing a fishman or a Dean Markley bridge saddle pickup. Until I decide, I will contuinue to mic the guitar.

The setup was done by Keith Holland from the Guitar Hospital in Los Gatos, CA. He personally set up each one of these guitars before they were sold. He had a role in the design process, and he knows them well. The finish is stunning, and the back and sides are bookmatched. I have only had this guitar setup once since I have owned it, and it has remained very nice.
Dean actually ran these (the first few) guitars through an MRI machine so he could see the bracing inside on the finished product to be certain that everything was done roperly to his specifications.
I use Elixir nanoweb strings, and go between custom lights/11's and lights 12's without having to set up the neck.

I have performed with this guitar many times and have used it for countless hoursd in the studio. While it is still in mint condition, it has also seen quite a workload. All on the original setup!
This guitar is built to last a lifetime, and although it is technically a collectors item, it deserves to be played. I cant imagine letting it sit in the case.

I know Dean personally, as do most people that own one of these guitars. I cant imagine there being a problem with it, but I know that he would personally stand behind it if there were one.
Since I have no experience with this category, I cannot offer a rating.

I am a player with about 27 years of experience, and this is the finest guitar I have ever played. I still own a Taylor 914ce, and I enjoy both...but I will never part with the DM41. It is the most universal guitar I could have hoped for.
If you ever have the opportunity to pick one of these up, I suggest you take advantage ot it!

This dreadnaught accoustic guitar was made in 2003, and was constructed by a master luthier from Japan that currently crafts guitars in South Korea. The DM-41 is a 14th fret Ebony fret board and is constructed of solid, bookmatched spruce on the top of the guitar, the back and sides are made of solid, bookmatched Brazilian Rosewood. There were absolutely no laminated woods used in the construction of this guitar, or any Dean Markley guitar. The neck, as well, is constructed from solid Brazilian Rosewood.y The finish of the DM-41 is a transparent gloss on top, and a cherry-oak finish on the sides, back, and neck. In addition to this, there is a genuine turquiose abalone inlay that borders the sound-hole and the outer edge of the top of the guitar, and the inlays extend up the thin Rosewood fret board to lead into the giant "Boy on Horse" Dean Markley logo that is made of an abalone inlay as well, situated on the headstock. The tuners are gold plated, and have simulated tortoise knobs, and the DM-41 has a gold plated input jack.

The pick-up system is made up of Dean Markley's West Coast La Jolla Active system which includes the Barstow gold-plated magnetci sound-hole pick-up, the Barstow tranduscer pick-up, the a discrete Class A preamp housed inside a Gold River accelerator jack. The Tahoe, while a passive unit, is wired to the Gold River as well, and increases the headroom, expands the tone and output, and is all contained within the guitar. Each pick-up may be EQ'd separately for a fat, rich tone with clean defined mids, and crystal clear highs. The Tahoe sound-hole magnetic pick-up produces an excellent bass, mid-range, and hig-end response, while the Barstow components produce a more transparent mid-range and glassy highs.

The DM-41 was designed to produce a rich, buttery blend of tones while strumming that reverberate into a distinct hum only heard by the most solitude of monks. I personally use a Fender Princeton Chorus amp while playing this guitar live, however while recording I use the Griffin USB Soundcard that is connected to a PowerBook G4 that has two tweeters and a subwoffer output. With these, one can hear the true power of the Spruce and Rosewood reveration combination that is further enhanced by the Dean Markley West Coast La Jolla Active pick-up system. There is no noise that comes from this guitar while playing, however there is a chance for some feedback that adds to the tonal quality of songs which have a warm feel such as Jimi Hendrix playing the blues accoustically. The only limitation that this guitar may have is with the user, as even the most novice of players may be dumbfounded with how great even the most simplest of songs may be converted into symphonic masterpieces.

The action of the Dm-41 is set low enough for one to achieve a rather smooth transition from chord to chord, and note to note while shuffling through scales. The pick-ups were set-up only by a professional luthier who works in Central California. Both the top and the back were properly bookmatched, and the bridge has been routed properly as well. This guitar has absolutely no flaws as it was made to Dean Markley's personal specifications.

This guitar will withstand any type of playing live, or accoustic, in alsmost any subtropical envrionment. The hardware is built to last a lifetime, and the finish of the guitar is of such a fine quality that there is no chance that it will wear with lots of playing. The strap button is made as part of the input jack, and is gold plated for optimal conductivity. There is no chance that I would need a backup guitar if I were to bring only this guitar to a gig, as it like no other guitar in the world.

I've known Dean Markley for several years, and he invited me to his house to play guitar with him while he was entraining some houseguests for an evening. He invited me back to play again several times, but one day he had a surprise for me. Upon my next visit I was introduced to several series of guitars that he was developing for his new business. I played a few, and over the course of the past couple of years I invested in a few as part of my collection of distinct and qualitative music equipment. This was a very worthwhile investment, as he has not put this guitar into production, and has given a lifetime warranty on this product, as he stands behind everything he makes 100%!!!

I have been playing for fifteen years and I have yet to hear a guitar sound as clean and distinct as the DM-41. Dean Markley had provided me with a complete history of how the guitar was made and how he had them shipped, by sea, to the States. Furthermore, there were no questions that came to my mind, as Dean provided me with a complete series of lessons on how to use the DM-41 with several different amplifier systems. I have traveled far and wide and been to a infinite number of concerts, guitar shops, and trade shows, and none of the guitarsthat I have seen in this price range stand as a precious gem as this one. Even Martin and Gibson have a lot to contend with Dean Markley, as he himself is an expert on what makes a guitar stand out over all of the others, and provides an unmatched personable customer service.