Fannin D57

Made in 1978 in Japan, has 20 frets Top:solid one piece spruce Sides: Beautiful Rosewood Back: 3 piece Rosewood with abalony trim in between each section Finish: has turned a nice amber color with age high gloss no scratches Saddle:compensated bone Nut: brass Neck: Mahogany with Rosewood fretboard

Used for a varity of music styles probably more so on Gospel/ bluegrass. It has a great sound more volume than most in the groups that it is played with, most of which are Martins and Gibsons. The sustain is unbelievable (7-10 seconds) I dearly love the instrument.

I changed out both the saddle and nut for two reasons. The saddle to a bone compensated for more precise notation, the nut because I feel that any string that is pressed down has the sound of brass to the bone saddle. Why then shouldn't the open strings have the same combination to equal the sound? I also lowered the strings at the same time the top is a single piece and is not bookmatched. The back oon the other hand has three pieces the outside two pieces of Brazilian Rosewood are perfectly matched with a gorgeous tapered piece in the center which is stained slightly darker than the others. All of the "X" bracing on the inside is scolloped and in fine condition. When I bought it it looked un-used ans is still near to that condition.

This guitar is played almot daily and is a pleasure to play resulting very little damage to the fingers. It stays in tune and only very rarely needs a tweeking. Many other people have commented on its great sound & looks.

Company that sold them stopped after several years and no longer having them made, therefor no warranty.

In had always dreamed of owning a Martin until I found this guitar at a yard sale. I thumped on the box and could not believe what I was hearing. Looking at the construction and materials used I couldn't pass it up. I have been sort of keeping an eye out for another to buy for my grandson who loves the sound and loves to play this one.

Mine is dated 1978 and I dont realy know much about guitars since I did'nt play untill I found mine. As for where I found it, it was in the recycle shed at the local dump.

It sounds great (even when not properly tuned).

I can't properly answer this as mine is rather damaged.

For the age, and the condition I found mine in I'd say this is a 10.

Non-existant

Altho I haven't been playing for very long i can say this is a durible reliable guitar. As for the damage i keep eluding to, the neck has been cracked at some point and badly repaired with wood glue, the body has some very bad cracks & dents and all the string mounts I actuly put on myself from another guitar that had been totaly destroyed. But even with all the damages this is a very durible, great sounding guitar!

Japenese Martin copy D-57 made in 1979.
Good solid guitar grat for finger picking

Great Bass!!.......I'm basically a picker, James Taylor, Loe Kottke, Alexi Murdoch.......I amp it through a Crate 120 watts accoustic setting and it sings...it also records very well...I like every bthing about this box...the action was a little high when I got it but when lowered it sounded even better.

Action...see above.

This guitar is 30 years old and clearly it has improved with age.
The finish is top quality and it's very dependable.

It came with a one year warranty, but alas the company is no longer with us.

Been playing for 35 years and also own a Dark Mahogany Guild (DM) which is my main Box.A Fender Tele, an Epiphone Mandolin and an old Harmony Ukelele, which belonged to my Dad, awork horse 12-string Espanola and a Yamaha Classical on which I mostly play Bach!

When I saw this guitar on craigslist I could not believe the price (75 bucks!)....some of the d-57s have been fetching Two thousand Dollars plus if they are in good condition...so if you see one, grab it...and if you have one keep hold of it....happy playing.

I just realized I don't know enough about guitars to answer these questions. I bought mine last summer from an old man,at a yard sale. He played it and sang for me. I was as sold on him as I was the guitar. Several people who play have told me what a good sound it has!

Sounds good according to people who know more then me!

Seems good!

I have had good feedback from everyone who has played it!

Fannin guitars were made by a small Japanese Firm in the 70's to mid 80's (mind is dated 1979 according to the stamp on the heel block, they didn't use a paper label to my knowledge). Unlike the other post listed here, they had no association with "Fender," as far as I know, but were imported & distributed by a company called "Nu Look Fashions," out of Columbus Ohio in the early 1980's. A quote from Bob Ward at Sound Associates Music Ltd Lawrenceville GA. who seems to have intimate knowledge about Fannin Guitar's history!

"In the seventies and eighties. During one of the buying trips overseas Larry Fannin, president of Nu Look, discovered a small guitar factory turning out very high quality instruments that competed quite well with the Yamaha, Aria, Epiphone, Sigma and Fender guitars imported into America at the time. Mr. Fannin , a talented guitar player himself, recommended several notable improvements to the initial acoustic designs the small factory had, added a number of new models, and then scheduled guitars for delivery and warehoused them in Columbus Ohio. Unfortunately Nu Look did not have enough sales staff on the road to call on and promote quality musical instruments directly to music stores, so the distribution was limited to a very few retailers that were called by the telephone sales staff in Columbus. With not enough telephone sales generated by the clothing sales staff and no national advertising campaign, the Fannin guitar line was discontinued within five years of the introduction. Numbers of specific model production are unknown. The Fannin Guitars are still considered to be one of the better import guitars of the late seventies and early eighties."

Mine has a really nice amber colored spruce top, rosewood sides, & two piece split back (also rosewood)... not solid, but veneers, as further research & the weight of it tells me! Simple off-white, 2 ply, body, neck, & headstock, binding, with abalone trim on the top & around the sound-hole. 20 frets, adjustable truss-rod, and generic chrome & black tuners (which seem to work well, for as long as I've had it). Mahogany 2 piece neck, with rosewood veneered head-stock overlay, and gold silk-screened logo. Rosewood fingerboard with simple MOP dot markers. Black pick-guard, rosewood bridge, standard white plastic nut, bridge pins, and saddle... very clean, and elegant looking, rather than most modern abalone trimmed ones... the thing just screams vintage, quality, & hand-made!

Very nice, good bass, treble is not overly bright, but all in all a very loud, and responsive voice! Better than the 12 other acoustics I own which would include some vintage Alvarez's, Washburn's, and other middle range Japanese made guitars! Only had it a couple of weeks, but am pleasantly impressed... still has older strings on it too, so I suspect even better sound once I bother to change them and get some bone on the nut & saddle! No buzzing, no dead frets, intonation is right on! Neck plays like butter, and is not overly small, nor large either... just about perrrrfect! I'd personal probably give it a 10, but I'm not experienced enough to do that honestly!

Quality appears to be very high. Unfortunately I bought mine off Ebay and the seller convientely "forgot" to mention it's got a slight belling & a neck crack at the heel! The crack is only partial, has allot of dirt in it, and looks like it's been there for a very long time. The belling is just marginal, and doesn't seem to effect intonation, or make me paranoid about using it, both pretty easy fixes so I'm not overly concerned! Action even with those issues is excellent... one of the better I've ever played!

The finish is what I really like... top has a beautiful, mellow, amber patina. The finish is very thin, high gloss, and might be something other than polyurethane! Some scratches on the back, not too bad, and a quick buffing got rid of most of them! The binding has a more mellow gray tinge to it rather than that bright, white, plastic look, and the abalone is more subdued than most... all and all a really nice looking guitar... has that martin vintage look that I really like, for allot less, and I mean allot, because it looks like a million bucks! All and all for a 30 year old guitar it's in pretty good shape, feels tough as nails, and looks exceptionally nice!

Have to agree with the other reviewer "I've owned this guitar for a short while but considering the age (1978) and the fact that I acquired it sans case, it is in remarkable condition." It's got slight bumps & rolls over the top, that aren't real obvious, but you can feel them, but all in all solid as a rock! Just feels hand-made, which I suspect it is, and is fairly heavy (which confirms "to me," it's a veneer made guitar). All the problems and body issues aside, feels, acts, and tastes like a work-horse!

Long gone... and who cares for the money!

Couldn't of been happier when I pulled out of the box and tuned her up! Ya the neck crack and belling was a little annoying, and pissed me off at first, but the way this thing sounds & looks, I'd of paid three times as much for it even with those issues! Even gave the guy good feed-back I was so happy with it, LOL! I'm 55, and just started in about a year ago, but I've been around musician's my whole life and know a bit about guitars, even though I'm somewhat of a amateur when it comes to actually playing! My neighbor & sometime teacher has been playing for 25 years, and he was impressed! I've play about 20 guitars (nothing really high-end mind you), but some Gibson's, Yahaha's, Alvarez's, Washburn's, and a few vintage Japanese ones, this is my favorite so far, including the Gibson & Alvarez's, just can't seem to put it down... so for a beginner, I guess you would say, "that's what you want," LOL! I'd buy another one in a heart-beat, but don't see them very often! And if you happen to steal it, and I catch you... well... be prepared for a good 5 hours tied in my bathroom, listening to Kenny-G & the Back-street Kids, through my cranked up Bose System, and you'll never want to touch a musical instrument again!

Fannin guitars were manufactured in the late 70's/early 80's and rumored to be made by a subsidiary of Fender. Little is known of this marque. The D57 is a six-string dreadnaught, with bound fretboard and headstock, abalone purling on the body, bookmatched solid rosewood back with center binding and solid rosewood sides. The top is solid spruce. The bridge is rosewood. The name on the headstock is silkscreened in cursive, gold lettering.

The guitar came with an ivoriod dot inlaid fretboard demarking the third, fifth, seventh, twelve, fifteenth and seventeenth fret. The nut appears to be plastic; the saddle appears to be bone and is uncompensated. Tuning machines are period Gotoh with chrome buttons and flat black bodies; neck and peghead are walnut and the fretboard is rosewood. An abalone rosette surrounds the soundhole. Binding is multiple ply plastic. There is a plastic pickguard. There are no markings on the back of the peghead. All marking is withing the body and consists of model number (D57) and serial number. The adjustable trussrod is accessed through the sound hole. There is no trussrod access on the peghead.

Bracing appears to be X-style with ample support for the bridge. All bracing visible from the sound hole is scalloped.

The bass is very strong, the treble a little less so. The top is fairly responsive to fingerpicking, and quite loud when strummed.

Build quality appears to be quite high. The neck is well fit to the upper bout and the heel is capped with binding. No residual glue is apparent on the interior. Abalone purfling is smooth. The end pins are white ivorois with abalone accents.

I've owned this guitar for a short while but considering the age (1978) and the fact that I acquired it sans case, it is in remarkable condition. From my experience, I suspect that this is a very durable instrument.

N.A.

I'm a veteran jazz player who wanted an acoustic dreadnaught. I've been pleansantly impressed by the quality of the guitar I stumbled on. This is an unrecognized instrument of high quality. Though unusual and rarely seen, I encourage players of any level to check out a Fannin. They are guitars flying beneath the economic radar and, on occasion, quite a bargain.