Martin Steel String Backpacker Travel Guitar with Bag
From Martin
List Price: $309.00
Price: $189.00
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Ships from and sold by Alto Music
10 new or used available from $152.99
Average customer review:
(29 customer reviews)
Product Description
Martin Steel String Backpacker Travel Guitar with Bag
Product Details
Amazon Sales Rank: #1102 in Musical Instruments
Brand: Martin
Model: 11GBPC
Released on: 2010-08-20
Number of items: 1
Dimensions: 10.10" h x 36.20" w x 4.40" l,
5.30 pounds
Features
Solid Spruce Top
Solid Tonewood Back and Sides
Unique Contour Neck Shape
Features 24-Inch Scale Length
Features 15 Frets
Customer Reviews
Most helpful customer reviews
23 of 23 people found the following review helpful.
The one I keep going back to...
By Shawnelle
I've had this guitar for about 4 years so I think I can
offer some insight into it's pros/cons.
I bought this guitar as my first acoustic, primarily playing
bass/electric guitar up until then. I was initially disappointed with the
action and effort it took to play on my particular model but soon became inured
to it. The sound is far more sonorous than it may initially seem. The body
gives off a really strong resonance for some reason that creates an almost
mystical sonic quality. That being said, it's a quiet guitar but perfect if
you're just playing for yourself or with someone else.
Quality wise: my specific model came with somewhat
unpolished fret edges that slightly hung off the edge of the fingerboard though
they weren't much of a problem. The action was a bit high though one can get
used to it pretty easily - the shop said it couldn't be lowered without
creating buzzing. The neck has staid level all these years - no truss rod, no
warping - pleasant surprise. So if nothing else the necks do stay in place if
mine is any example of the average. It also stays in tune very well. (I use
bronze extra lights)
The ONLY problem I have had with it was really my fault and
is an obvious mistake: I had it inside on a very cold winter day and opened the
doors and windows. Needless to say it did not like the temperature and humidity
plummeting in the span of 2 minutes and a big pop and crack happened which made
a noticeable tear in the body below the bridge. This surprisingly didn't affect
the sound or playability at all though I eventually did get it fixed. In
conclusion; yes, it's made of wood and this was expected. Pointless anecdote
complete.
Throughout the years I've owned much better quality guitars
yet for some reason I kept playing this one the most and ended up composing the
majority of my songs using it. Eventually, I sold all my guitars except this
one. I love fingerstyle picking and it works great on this guitar. It's been
dropped, beaten on, and for the most part just treated poorly but still plays
fine and sounds great. It's just so convenient to have a small guitar lying
around that you don't need to plug in to an amp, I'm guessing this is why it
spurs so much creativity. A good buy if you want a guitar that can travel and
be around all the time just about anywhere.
20 of 21 people found the following review helpful.
If you REALLY need a small guitar...
By Sunn Kram
The Backpacker is a fun instrument that really maximizes the
sound and playability of something this size.
It is certainly well built. The clean lines and sturdy
construction of a Martin acoustic is there. I've knocked mine around quite a
bit camping and travelling, including a 23-day tour through Africa. Its holding
up fine and still plays like new.
The tone is banjo-esque and sounds especially nice when
finger-picked. You do get more volume than you might expect out of this small
of a body but it is mostly on the higher end, don't expect much bass response.
Playability takes a bit of getting used to. First off, you
really have to wear the strap and stand up as there is not enough body to
support it on your leg or lap. Personally, I rest my elbow along the top and
let my picking hand drop down. It's kind of a strange angle and not the most
comfortable. Someone with shorter arms (I'm a tall guy) might be able to play
it more traditionally. Also, the action sits just a tad high as a result of the
short neck. Make sure to keep extra light guage strings on it to compensate.
Overall its kind of awkward but if you play frequently you will adjust and find
the good tones.
Mostly, I would just recommend asking yourself how much you
really need a tiny guitar. If you are literally backpacking and carrying all of
your stuff for a significant amount of time, I totally get it. However if
you're just looking for something for basic travel and you don't want to take
your nice guitar, why not consider getting a cheap, full-size and a gig bag?
The portability is not that big of a deal unless you're hauling your stuff for
miles. You also won't be devastated if it gets beat up or stolen. These days,
you can get a very playable and decent sounding acoustic for $100 (thanks Asia!).
The Backpacker costs twice that and is far less enjoyable as an instrument. I
will most likely sell mine eventually and do exactly that.
28 of 31 people found the following review helpful.
Very good guitar and not only for it'modest size.
By Dnul Radiv
I received this little guitar today (October 2010), and
started playing it right out of the box, or rather out of the gig bag. It
arrived in perfect order after having travelled all the way from the US to
Europe. All I had to do was tuning it of course. Included were the gig bag and
two straps, one for the guitar and one for the gig bag, and various pamphlets
were also included. It was supplied with Martin M170 strings. It is very well
set up with perfect action according to my taste, and intonation is faultless.
I own a Martin D28, and really didn't expect too much of a
sound from this baby (virtually), but was very pleasantly surprised. It sounds
very martinesque, and being a fingerpicker it really doesn't matter if the
sound isn't that powerful because it's very silvery and balanced. It really
"outsounds" it's modest size, and projects the sound very well. I've
owned other standard size acoustic guitars that don't have been that much
louder and far less defined. Nevertheless, I intend to have it in the cabin of
my boat with no need for a shouter, and the size makes it perfect for that.
It's well made with a satin finish, and though I usually
prefer a harder shiny finish it really doesn't matter. I usually put Thomastik
strings on all my guitars, but those Martin 170 strings are perfectly suited
for this Backpacker so I won't need it this time. It's a little top heavy with
that small body, but with the strap tied around the headstock that is easily
corrected. I had some doubt about holding such a small instrument correctly as
I'm used to embracing guitars like my D28 dreadnought, Gretsch G6122 Nashville
Classic and G100 Synchromatic, much bigger instruments, but I had no problems
with this one. It's just a matter of practice.
So have no fears in getting the Backpacker because of it's
small (and very handy) size.
See all 29 customer reviews...
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