Martin Custom Shop D-42 Brazilian Rosewood #55742 (Empire Music Exclusive)

Martin Custom Shop D-42 Brazilian Rosewood, Black Ebony Fingerboard, Natural

~Guitar pictured is the actual guitar that you will receive~

Only one Martin Custom Shop D-42 Brazilian Rosewood will be built by Martin for Empire Music.

We are proud to offer the most sought-after tonewood in the acoustic guitar world with the Martin Custom Shop D-42 Brazilian Rosewood.

Brazilian Rosewood is the soul of the most desired vintage and pre-war Martin guitar designs.  When visiting the Martin Guitar Wood Library, we were presented with an opportunity by Martin Guitars Director of Custom Shop, Theresa Hoffman, to hand-select Brazilian Rosewood wood sets for an Empire Music design. Martin had owned this Brazilian Rosewood since the early 70s.

It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that we couldn’t pass up.  The Martin Custom Shop D-42 Brazilian Rosewood (Empire Music Exclusive) was born.

As one of only 24 Martin Custom Shop Expert Dealers worldwide, we have unfettered access to the Martin Custom Shop and their incredible world-renowned wood reserves. Empire Music Owner Joe Ravita has hand-selected these specific wood sets and designed the instrument in conjunction with Martin Custom Shop Master Designer Jimmie Kleintop. The goal was to offer the finest sonic experience Martin has to offer with the highest quality wood sets on Earth.

Brazilian Rosewood is the voice of the most famous pre-war Martin Guitars and some of the most collectible guitars on Earth.  With laws changing in the late 60s/early 70s, Brazilian Rosewood became incredibly difficult to source, so Martin ceased using the tonewood regularly.  

While the tonewood wasn’t regularly being used, we did know that Martin had a small stash of Brazilian Rosewood it had legally acquired in the 70s–we just weren’t offered access to this wood until last year.

With the wood in hand, we wanted to offer a classic design that was beautiful and would stand the test of time.  We went right for the D-42.

Brazilian Rosewood offers a hyper–resonant playing experience with world-class sustain.  The incredible power of the tonewood is immediately noticeable with a monster bass response and glass-like highs that are full of character.  Players are immediately transported to the sound of the most famous live performances and records ever recorded.

Our deep knowledge of tonewoods and incredible access to Martin’s wood vault allow for this incredible model to come together.

Tonewoods are always incredibly important when designing a Custom Shop guitar–however, it is a must that the bracing, scale length and other design specifications maximize the tonewood choice.

So, we selected the Golden Era Bracing package on this design.  This sought after design offers deeply scalloped braces that deliver huge tone, output and mature/vintage vibes.  Players will find that this guitar opens up with ease and complex tones are found at all levels of pick attack.

The 25.4” standard scale design allows for excellent clarity, note separation and articulation.

We wanted to take this model to the next level, so we included all of the Golden Era touches–rolled fingerboard edges, Golden Era Bridge Plate, Authentic Fingerboard thickness and Authentic neck heel size.  This Custom Shop D-42 is a true testament to the history of Martin.

We are proud to offer the world’s finest Martin Custom Shop pieces. Please feel free to reach out to our team to discuss this instrument or any in our collection.

Empire Music is one of only 24 Martin Custom Shop Expert Dealers!