The new D-19 is part of a limited edition of 190 guitars that Martin built to celebrate their 190th Anniversary. (This is number 23 in the series.) This guitar is based on a model Martin introduced in 1976, which was essentially a D-18 with a top stained brown to match the mahogany back and sides. Like that earlier version, this new guitar has a dark top, but unlike the original, which had a Sitka spruce top, the top on this beauty is Adirondack spruce. The back and sides are solid genuine mahogany, the fingerboard and bridge are Guatemalan rosewood and it has a traditional dovetail neck joint. This new D-19 has forward shifted scalloped braces and an adjustable truss rod, two features absent in the 1976 version. Perhaps the most fascinating variation between the old and new D-19s is the way the brown color is applied. On this guitar, the color is applied using a Mimaki printer, a process that lets Martin add some visual texture to the top. We haven’t had much time to play this guitar, but we can say with confidence that it sounds and plays like a million bucks.
