Martin J-40 (Bridgewater in Boston, MA

1998 Martin J-40 "the Ultimate Jumbo Guitar" With Fishman Matrix pickup!The standard J-40 series Martin acoustic offers a combination of vintage and modern premium features. The jumbo new is priced at $4,150FeaturesThe J-40 is Martin's popular take on the jumbo. The guitar's back and sides are solid rosewood, and the top is AAA grade solid sitka spruce. The back stripe is a herringbone inlay.The guitar features, hand carved, scalloped X-bracing, a tried-and-true design that goes back to the1800s. (However, the guitar has a forward-shifted bracing that is one-inch from the soundhole. This feature is reserved for the HD28V, D-18V, D-41, D-42, D-45 and other high-end models).The 40 series soundhole is adorned with numerous pieces of abalone around the body and soundhole. The one-piece mahogany neck, 25.4-inch scale, is fitted with an ebony fretboard with abalone hexagonal inlays - very nice. The headstock is embossed with the early 20th century style, vertical C.F. Martin logo, with abalone, instead of the smaller horizontal letters of later guitars. The tuners are gold-coated Gotohs while the bridge is ebony. The J-40 comes with Martin lights SP+ bronze strings.The J-40 is not as big or as thick, as a Gibson J-200 jumbo, or the Guild J-55 but the lower bout measures 16-inches. The body has a pinched waist when compared to larger Jumbos. This make it more comfortable..Construction is perfect on the J. Nary a drop of excess glue on the inside, and the action is low enough that medium strings do not kill your fingersThe J is finished in natural gloss and they come with premium Martin hard cases.The AuditionThe J-40 is a balanced guitar; its pinched waist reduces the bass bloom to be more on par with the treble. The guitar has an intimate tone that fingerstyle pickers will like, but yet is strums nicely as well. Because of the pinched waist, hard strumming over the soundhole creates a more bass heavy, less succinct character that is greatly reduced when playing midway between the bridge and soundhole.ConclusionThe J-40 represents Martin lineage quite well. Having the same construction and features, the size and intended use should dictate which 1 suits your taste. If you are a strummer who needs commanding volume with strong bass the J-40 is your choice. Folks picking the blues and other singer/songwriter stylists love the J-40 with its comfortable feel. Absolutely recommended.I am firm on the priceserious inquirys only[removed phone]Listing originally posted at http