Martin Guitars - OMC-X2E Ziricote Special + Housse

Want electro-acoustic folk that sounds big without breaking your back? The Martin OMC-X2E Ziricote Special flexes its muscles with finesse, featuring a 000-cutaway body and sculpted X-bracing that makes the whole thing vibrate like a single body. Every chord breathes, every note fizzes, even without forcing your hand. And when you need to pull out all the stops, the Martin E1 preamp opens the floodgates with volume, tone, phase and built-in tuner. Plug-and-play, but in a premium version.

The ziricote HPL body is not only visually stunning, it's also rock-solid without weighing you down. So you can take your Martin anywhere without stress. The solid sapele top provides warmth, a snappy midrange and harmonics that hold up, even when played fingerstyle. And the hand-applied satin finish smoothes it all out with a natural elegance that really pops, without overdoing it.

Playing for a long time? The Performing Artist neck will take the strain off. Its slim profile and High-Performance Taper mean you can string bars together like one chorus after another: painlessly. The 406mm radius and 20 frets are easy to string together, especially with the cutaway that unlocks access to the treble. Everything has been thought out so that your fingers get the wheel, not the breakdown.

What's really impressive is this unlikely blend of modernity and tradition. A simple rosette with an abalone motif, imitation mother-of-pearl Diamonds & Squares markers, a ziricote headplate... Nothing is left to chance, but nothing is overdone either. And because Martin never does things by halves, you'll enjoy stable satin chrome hardware, oil bath tuners and a well-set Modern Belly bridge. In short, serious stuff, without the grimace.