Martin 000-42 Modern Deluxe Acoustic Guitar Natural

The Martin 000-42 Modern Deluxe acoustic guitar is a perfect blend of old and new, fusing classic craftmanship with cutting-edge technology. Essentially a fancier version of the 000-28, this Style 42 acoustic has elaborate inlays with flame maple binding around the body. The Sitka spruce top is aged for true vintage sound, but the guitar veers from history with a carbon fiber bridge plate and Liquidmetal bridge pins. Add in a contemporary neck, and you've got the recipe for an acoustic guitar that can do it all.

A new guitar that sounds old

Martin ages the Sitka spruce top on the 000-42 acoustic using its Vintage Tone System (VTS). By heating the tonewood at a high temperature—a process known as torrefaction—the soundboard becomes molecularly similar to one from the 1930s. You'll hear it ring with more resonance. The Adirondack spruce braces are also aged; they're arranged in a forward-shifted pattern to increase the low-end response. Rosewood back and sides produce complex overtones with a bright top end.

Modern updates

The neck profile on the Martin Modern Deluxe is based on an extremely rare acoustic in the company's archives—a 1930 OM-45 Deluxe. That historic guitar has a slight asymmetrical neck shape that's surprisingly contemporary, making it a perfect fit for the Modern Deluxe. Martin pairs it with an ebony fingerboard shaped in a High Performance Taper, enhancing first-position fingerpicking and fast, upper-fret single-note runs. Liquidmetal bridge pins boost the output by 3dB to 5dB; a carbon fiber bridge plate adds more projection and sustain.

Upscale appointment

Martin dresses up the 000-42 Modern Deluxe acoustic with European flame maple body binding, a feature previously limited to Custom Shop guitars. The same flame appears on the heelcap and endpiece. A bold herringbone inlay surrounds the soundboard; fretboard inlays are Golden Era Style 45 snowflakes in abalone with mother of pearl. The headstock has maple multi-striped binding and is topped with a turn-of-the-century torch inlay, plus a '30s-style script logo inlaid with mother of pearl. Gold EVO frets complement the gold, open-gear butterbean tuners.

Other features include a bone nut and saddle, multi-stripe back inlay and abalone side dots. The Martin 000-42 Modern Deluxe comes with a hardshell case.