C.F. Martin Launches Two Billy Strings Dreadnoughts with a Modern Twist

Billy Strings’ impact on bluegrass and guitar flatpicking has triggered tens of thousands of fans to attend his concerts and buy his records and merch. For bluegrass guitarists, he’s probably had more impact on the flatpicking scene than any of his modern peers, raising the bar with his facile, deeply rooted picking and singing. But he’s also brought new sounds to the bluegrass palette such as layered electronic soundscapes and guitar effects pedals, creating a wholly modern style.

So it’s no surprise that a) C.F. Martin wanted to develop a signature Billy Strings Dreadnought model and, b) that Strings would bring that sense of innovation all the way down to the basic architecture of his new signature guitars.

As Martin explains, “These guitars reflect Billy’s passion for timeless tone and design, while featuring custom touches like a 25-inch scale length and a comfortable 1 23/32-inch nut width. His signature Martins are built to inspire, embodying Billy’s vision of making exceptional instruments accessible to every picker chasing their own musical dreams.” So, can these new models please picky bluegrassers who search constantly for vintage tone and volume?

Our friends at Arthur’s Music in Indianapolis recently received both the high-end D-28 Billy Strings model, as well as the more affordable DX-2E Billy Strings version. They kindly provided both guitars for an examination and play-test for this review.

Starting with the D-28 Billy Strings, we find a standard-size rosewood and spruce herringbone Dreadnought based on Billy’s beloved 1940 D-28. Most of the specs here are straight-up Martin Dreadnought features. The guitar is built with an unspecified “solid spruce top,” as listed in the Martin specs, with antique toner over a quality set of East Indian rosewood. The spruce top, whatever species it is, boasts plenty of the cross-grain “silking” luthiers love in guitar tops.

The D-28 model features Martin’s time-proven “Golden Era” scalloped spruce X bracing under the hood and a classic ‘40s-style Martin dark tortoise pickguard. The solid mahogany neck sports a very nice ebony fingerboard with the classic abalone diamond & square fretboard inlay recalling the original Martin herringbone guitars. The guitar is bound with antique white binding & herringbone trim, and inside we find a paper label with Billy’s pre-printed signature & graphic. At the business end of the guitar there’s a well-made set of reproduction Grover G-111 enclosed tuners like those on Billy’s personal D-28. Taken together, this is a completely professional-quality Dreadnought guitar at a very reasonable list price of $3799, including a nice hardshell case and the usual case candy inside. This model, however, has no electronics.

Its lesser-priced brother sports the same dimensions, nut, and scale as the D-28 but uses Martin’s satin Brazilian rosewood-patterned HPL (high-pressure laminate) back & sides. The DX-2E Billy Strings features a solid spruce top utilizing Martin’s proven scalloped spruce x-bracing. Unlike its big brother, however, this guitar is intended for guitarists planning to play live shows plugged in. It incorporates Martin’s E1 electronics with a built-in tuner. The electronics package includes controls for volume, tone, and phase (to reverse the pickup’s phase 180 degrees, which can decrease feedback and increase bass response). It also includes a built-in chromatic tuner that does not need an instrument cable to be used. When the chromatic tuner is engaged, all output will be muted for silent tuning, Martin reports.

The DX-2E neck is described as a “satin select hardwood neck” that includes a real ebony fingerboard, a most welcome surprise at this price point, with faux abalone diamond & square inlay and nickel open-gear tuning machines. The guitar ships with a softshell hemp gig bag included, a nod to Mr. Strings’ very public fondness for cannabis and hemp products in general.

We didn’t get a chance to plug the DX-2E into an amp to test its electronics, but the system was designed to meet Strings’ expectations. It should be excellent for anyone needing to plug the guitar into an acoustic amp or PA system.

So far, typical Martian dreadnoughts, right? Nope.  Billy is passionate about getting guitars with great playability into young players’ hands. Here’s where the well-beaten path to “D-28 Land” diverges. Both guitars sport unique-to-Martin nut widths and scale lengths designed to make the guitars more playable. So instead of the common 1 &16th-inch or 1&1/34ths-inch nuts on most Martin dreadnoughts, Strings opted for a middle-ground approach with a 1& 23/32-inch nut on both models. An even bigger change is the scale length, dropping from the traditional 25.4-inch scale Martin introduced in the 1930s to a shorter 25.0-inch scale. That’s still 1/10th-inch longer than typical “short scale” guitars, giving these Martins a nice blend of string tension for power and volume with a more comfortable left-hand experience. The combination provides good playability, even straight from the factory with no pro setup. In-hand, both guitars made my busted-up left hand feel right at home, especially since my primary flattop has that nut width, too.

The D-28 Billy Strings proved to be a captivating beast, delivering that sought-after Martin deep bass growl while amplifying the guitar’s midrange and treble in a nice balance. Factory-strung with phosphor bronze round wounds, the guitar had a healthy bright edge that should cut through in a band or jam session. If this were my guitar, I would try a set of nickel-bronze or straight monel strings, which this guitar would probably love.

For a sub-$4k Martin, the D-28 Billy Strings displays plenty of the fine craftsmanship the luthiers in Nazareth take such well-earned pride in. But to nitpick a bit, there were a couple of small cosmetic issues here, with some white residue found on both sides of the neck/top extension. The neck joint wasn’t clinically perfect, but for that level of perfection, you need to buy a Custom Shop model, a boutique guitar. Most buyers wouldn’t even notice that, or the small bits of glue remaining inside the kerning in a couple of spots.

Taken together, Billy Strings and C.F. Martin have done an outstanding job with both his signature models. The DX-2E provides beginners with a guitar that sounds (mostly) like what a Martin dreadnought ought to, with the playability they need and a solid electronics package. Its bigger brother was very impressive, offering strong playability and excellent tone and volume with the proven Golden Era bracing. 

For bluegrass players in either the newbie category or an experienced flatpicker, both models certainly deserve their attention. Highly recommended.