Morgan Monroe MRB-1BLB Journeyman

bought it 5 years ago it is cherry sunburst looks killer!!!!!!!

playing counrty music it got the best sound ever . i play it through a fender acoustasonic which by the way is also awesome

perfect off the shelf never had toadjust a thing still right on but i am very careful with my equipment

killer when gigging looks amazing plays the same very dependable

never had a thing to go wrong

been playing 20 plus years i own fender , tacoma, gibson and i'll put this baby with any of em.

I think this guitar will stand out in time, giving the korean lutiers some credit finally. (well, they are a sight beyond the chinese luthiers) The finish is beautiful. Mine is a transblack burst with the Journeyman tortoise back, whish has a more comfortable and shallow bowl, actually made from composite fibers instead of plastic, and considering the condition of the neck when i got this, must be strong.
I got this one from a music store back door with 19 other train wreck victims. It was the only one of any value. and the neck was split solid from the tip of the head stock to about 3 inches of the body. The head stock looked like it had been layed between two edges and hit with a wedge.
Pretty disappointed with my luck, all junk and money spent, I decided this, the worst damaged was going to be my first real luthier project. I spent a few hours thinking on how to clamp and what kind of glue and what steps to take, then i hit the hardware store. got 3 2 inch hose clamps, a big bottle of E capenters glue and sand paper from 40 grit to 600.
i test aligned then dumped in the glue, one section at a time i used an old pair of socks as padding and aligned and clamped the neck to another loose neck. Torqued i tell ya.
Let it set for 3 hours then did the head stock in the same fashion.
After 7 hours of drying, I had the machines and strings back on for a test run....
And it was worth every penny. Not only did i have the pride of bringing it back from the crypt, but it played and sounded as good as any martin I ever played. Not even a hint of fret buzz after the mess it was in.
I pulled the strings and hardware back off, and have since sanded the neck and headstock and refinished it with about 10 coats of highly sanded and polished laquer.
The only real down in this is that "cheap" splice in the head stock. These guys that splice these necks and head stocks really p me off. a perfect instrument in many cases and there in the shadow of the laquer... slice. How much can it really cost for a 6 to 12 inch longer piece of wood?
And, that beautiful mahogany face on the headstock... who do they get to cut these things? you could find thicker typing paper.
Sigh...
Those are the only two downs i can give this guitar. Even with that, it shines and the look is very distinct and tasteful. I still Love it and will keep it in my regular stock.
(interest anyone in about a dozen chinese guitars?)

I cant give a true account on the electronics since the guy kindly robbed all those, along with the machines, nut, saddle, basicly whatever wasnt glued on or broken.
However, cant beat the weight and sound. very comfy to play and using its new martin thinline piezo pickup it sounds grand.

I had to do most of the set up on this myself, since most of it was gone, but what was there, beauty. Who can top the bridge. no string pins, just slide them through and the little balls on the ends of the strings even add to the look.
The fret work is PRO. straight,even,smooth on the edges. No buzz and no tearing the skin off your fingers sliding a bar chord down the neck
As I mentioned, I absolutely HATE the splicing of necks, anywhere, but the quality is there. and the splice is clean and for the backside, looks ok. Once you lose that front veneer however, It is crap. big ugly line of grains hitting dead middle across the stock. Personally, i doubt i will come up with a match for what they had, which was really nice and will probably cover it in black.
I personally like the headstock design. Original and tasteful. not some deranged wannabee gibson warped out of shape design. They took their time here with what I have always looked at as a key element to the guitars overall look. When I put it back together, I was very careful to maintain that shape.
the body finish. Just Heaven. No complaints and it was perfect and the only inspiration I had for this project
The neck is decently fast, though I have yet to give it a real test. It felt lite on the strings and smooth with the slightest bit of radius.

Since I put most of this on there, UMMMM, Heck yeah. you can use this not only to play the gig, but as your dance floor. As for without a backup... not sure I would ever do that with any guitar. cant string that fast. But it is solid (now)

havent dealt with em. dont wanna be laffed at.

How Long? 27 years.
3 Gibson Les Pauls, Gold Top, SunBurst, CoalBurst
1 Ibanez ArtCord, Black (hollow body)
1 Gretsch Country Classic
1 old Kay LP style hollowbody with a Fender Mustang neck (it was that or throw em away)
1 Yamaha 12 string
1 Johnson acoustic
1 Hondo acoustic (some sweet color here, some mix of trans black and green)
2 LA project or trash??? acoustic
about one pickup load of Junk that somewhat resembles guitars
Have owned and played more than my right in my time. From SG's to Ibanez to strats.
Buy it again... If one came along, I probably would.
I Love the look of the guitar and the tortoise back. The only one I have owned and this was a good oppurtunity to get to know one, inside and out.
These things are going for under 300 now with a case. I dont think you will find a better acoustic for that price, and I think a person can skip quite a few cheaper ones to get this one first.
Almost all guitars need some set up, so get to know your guitar, then get it into line with your needs. This one will last and look great in 30 years if you take care where you park your kenworth.

This is an update on my submission.

With a good set of strings it sounds as good if not better than most Ovations....either acoustic or plugged in.

This guitar is well made and I can't find a flaw on it.
Excellent tuners and good EQ system.
But there was a problem with the factory setup.
The action was much too high and it was almost un-playable.
The neck was bowed so I did a truss rod adjustment and straightened it out.
Had no problems with that but it only lowered the action slightly.
Here is the IMPORTANT PART.

I was skeptical about filing down the saddle.
I never did that before and I was worried about screwing up the piezo pickup under the saddle.
But if I wanted to play this guitar I had to do something.
I bought new strings and removed the old strings.
Then I removed the saddle from the bridge.
This was simple.
No glue.
It just sat snugly in the slot.
I pulled it out with a pair of long nose.
With a course file I filed down the bottom of the saddle.
To my surprise it was a very hard material that was not plastic.
It was bone.
It took hours of filing to get it to where I wanted it.
When I reinstalled the saddle and put the new strings on the guitar it played beautifully.
The closer action cut down on the acoustic volume slightly but that was expected.
Anybody can do this.
But when you remove the saddle take it to a music store and buy a couple blank saddles that are the same design as the original.
If you file too much off the bottom of the saddle it will not work.
Spare saddles are cheap and can be sanded or filed to fit properly.
By filing the saddle you can make any acoustic guitar play like butter.
It just takes time and effort.

I gig with this guitar.
If you don't abuse it, it should last for decades.

Been playing over 30 years.
If lost or stolen I would replace it with another Morgan Monroe acoustic/electric guitar.
Possibly an all wood model.
If you like shallow bowl guitars this is one of the best out there and you can't beat the price.

Acoustic/electric.
Shallow bowl.
Medium frets.
4 Band EQ.
Blueburst.

Sounds good acoustically but it really shines when plugged in.
EQ is very good and allows you to dial in almost any tone.

Flawless construction.
Nice tuners that stay in tune.
Good fret work.
All level and no sharp edges.
I don't like the factory setup.
I will sand down the saddle and it will be fine.
Most acoustic guitars come from the factory with high action.
It is much easier to lower the action than it is to raise it.

Well made instrument that should hold up well if you take care of it.

N/A

I have been playing for over 30 years.
This is a fine guitar but you will need to have it set up to your liking.
This holds true with almost any acoustic guitar.
The color is dark blue burst.
Almost looks black in dim light.
Beautiful under stage lights.
This is a well made guitar that is great for gigging.
Looks good, sounds good and doesn't cost an arm and a leg.
I like it better than shallow bowl Ovation's.
Buy one of these, set it up and gig with it.
You can't go wrong.