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2006 Martin D-18VS, as made famous by Michael Kiwanuka

 

Vintage Series Martin D-18, iconic classic, with a 12-fret design inspired by the original D-18s from the early 1930s.  Michael Kiwanuka's shared the love for D-18s throughout his career, often to be seen with a sunburst D-18VS in his early years.  The perfect compadre, whatever your style.

 

First produced under the Martin brand in 1931, D-model guitars were not an instant hit.  Far from it.  Guitarists of the day were used to smaller builds and didn't take to these big-bodied beauties.  Sales were slow.  Until, that is, Martin had their eureka moment.  "Let's make a virtue of the big bass response, and advertise it as a bass guitar".  Not the bass guitar we know today, but something that could fill in the bass range of a country music group, instead of the more traditional (and heavy and bulky) double bass.  And the rest is, inescapably, history.

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Plenty of famous guitarists to choose from when it comes to the D-18.  The headline-grabber is probably Kurt Cobain, whose 1959 D-18E sold in auction for a staggering $6m in 2020.  But bucking a tendency on this site towards associations with "older" guitarists, I'm pitching Michael Kiwanuka for this one.  A craftsman of beautiful songs ever since his debut in 2012, and a perfectly chosen winner of 2020's Mercury Prize.  Oh, and yes, a dedicated fan of Martin D-18s.  Check out the glory of him playing Bones unplugged on a sunburst D-18VS below.

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This D-18VS is an absolute treasure.  In excellent condition, lovely balanced tone across all 6 strings, and that sense that you're tapping into the very beginnings of the dreadnought with that slotted headstock, ebony fretboard and 12-fret-neck.  Sounds fabulous, lovely low set-up.  Just a joy!

See & Hear It In Action

  • Bones, Michael Kiwanuka, 2012:  From his acclaimed debut album, an unplugged moment, with Michael playing a sunburst D-18VS.  Lovely tone - and a lovely song to boot!

  • A D-18VS Demo from TFOA:  Some nice picking and a real sense of the balanced tone of a Natural D-18VS here, courtesy of the very appropriately named The Fellowship Of Acoustics.

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Specification

Make

Martin

Model

D-18VS

Colour

Natural

Year

2006

Serial  Number

1167197

Number of Frets

19

Fretboard

Ebony, unbound

Neck

Mahogany

Body

Sitka Spruce & Mahogany

Tuners

Waverly Vintage Open-Gear

Bridge

Belly Bridge, Bone Saddle

Scale Length

25.40"

Full Length

39.94"

Further Information:

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  • Dinner-table trivia: The "D" stands for "Dreadnought", named in recognition of the enormous Dreadnought battleships that cruised the planet's oceans in the early 20th century and through World War I.  And, less of a wow factor, the "18" indicates the style of the guitar.  In this case: Spruce top, mahogany back and sides, five-ply top binding, dot inlays.  Plus the features that hark back to those very early days of the D-18: slotted headstock, ebony fretboard, one-nine-one soundhole ring, tortoiseshell side and back binding. 

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  • The D-18 had a predecessor: the D-1, launched in 1931 - although "predecessor" is loose and "launched" is generous.  The D-1 had its own predecessor: one of the "big" guitars Martin used to build to be branded and sold by the Oliver Ditson Company of Boston.  The D-1 started with a Ditson design and became the own-branded predecessor to the D-18.  It wasn't accompanied by any full fanfare big production.  Only 2 D-1s were made!  Even the D-18, launched in 1932, didn't fly out of factory.  Just 29 12-fret-neck D-18s were released before the now more familiar 14-fret version was introduced in 1934.  Put differently, if you've got an original 12-fret-neck D-18 or, holy of holies, one of the two original D-1s, you really don't need to be wasting your time reading further.  You know everything here, and a lot more besides!

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  • The 14-fret-neck may have quickly achieved dominance across all major acoustic brands, but Martin clearly held a candle for the 12-fret-neck over the years, and started to offer 12-fret-neck options in limited styles from the mid-60s.  Come the 1990s, and the nostalgia bug had well and truly bitten: the Authentics, the Golden Eras, the Vintages, all giving a platform for both 12 and 14 fret specs that venerated the past, and made the most of modern build techniques.  Premium materials, artisan skills, uncompromising tones, all inspired by those very early Dreadnoughts.

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  • And there's an added bonus with a 12-fret neck over the 14-fret neck we're all so used to - the tone and resonance of the guitar just opens up.  Gloriously so.  Why?  Because the bridge has to be positioned closer to the widest part of the body to maintain the scale length.  And that means more of the soundboard is activated by the vibration of the strings, increasing the tone, warmth and sustain.  I'm not making this up!  The bridge on this guitar sits a good 3cm further back from the neck than on the 14- fret neck D-28 or D-35, so, construction-wise, closer to the widest part of the lower bout,   And, more importantly, everyone that's played this guitar has been bowled over by the beauty of its tone.  Science plus experience together prove it true! 

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  • And just to test it, I decided to try a play-off with the 1974 Martin D-28.  I love them both, but it's totally true: the 12-fret-neck D-18 does have a more balanced tone, less boom at the bass end, more clarity across all 6 strings, and greater resonance. Whether you believe that's the 12-fret-neck, or the mahogany back and sides, or the scalloping choice, ultimately, it really doesn't matter.  Let experience take the lead over explanation.  This D-18VS will lift your senses!

Sources & Links

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