D28/Gibson AJ trade

Hey yall. Got a guy wanting to trade a 2010 gibson advanced jumbo for a Martin. I have a standard 2011 d28 i bought back in june ive considered trading for it. Ive never played a AJ before. I was wondering if anybody knows how these two measure up against one another? Im not disapointed in my d28 at all, just been in the mood to explore new things lately. I played a HD28v the other day that knocked my socks off! But i LOVE a Gibson sunburst finish! If im correct, the AJ has scalloped and forward shift bracing like a hd28v. What should i expect from the AJ?? Ps....im a flatpicker, classic country player, bluegrass

AJs sound great, and to my ears, they are more "cutting" than D28s.
AJ fret boards are more rounded, so the "chord" more comfortably.
The D28 is a better bluegrass solo guitar.
I've had a couple of AJs recently, both recorded beautifully.
My dern 2 cents worth.

try the Gibson ... either you will love it and want it, or you will not be impressed and keep the Martin ...

All I can say is that a friend's AJ is pretty much the finest and most amazing sounding acoustic I've ever laid hands on.
Now, it has a very different sound from a Martin, a bit more happening in the upper mids. But damn, it is a nice sounding guitar. A regular lap piano. Very full and rich tone.
A D-28 is great for that classic Martin tone -- you know it when you hear it. The AJ, to my ears, had a bit more stuff happening.

Thanks for the good description. My d28 has that martin bell like tone. Being a standard straight brace 28 it has very single note projection for flatpicking. But lately ive been frustrated with the stiffness of the rythem and strumming. Its def a good picker, but its very tight and stiff when strumming and singing. Know what i mean? Im mostly a couch and front porch player. But ive had a urge for a guitar with a little wider range of use. Ive heard a AJ is a good flatpicker too, but also has strong blending rythem. I need both worlds. I am having trouble getting a straight answer on the bracing of a AJ. Is it just scalloped, or is it scalloped AND foelrward shift like a hd28v ????

Sounds like you may want a j45 instead, the AJ is the same scale leangth as the martin right? Either way, best to try them out, they are very different.

No ive tried j45s before. Sweet sound but failed the volume test. I like a big loud guitar. My d28 stomped a mud hole in the j45s i tried. If the AJ doesnt give me what i want, i know the HD28V will.

I've been jonesing for a AJ for a number of years now. Great guitar but I just don't play acoustic enough to warrant the price. I played at least 20 of them over the years and only played one dud. Some day.........Until then my 2 Breedlove's will have to suffice.

No ive tried j45s before. Sweet sound but failed the volume test. I like a big loud guitar. My d28 stomped a mud hole in the j45s i tried. If the AJ doesnt give me what i want, i know the HD28V will.

So you don't meant 'tightness' in feel but tightness in sound rather. If you like the martin sound the hd28v sounds like the ticket for you but you might as well try the gibson. I don't know what your price range is but santa cruz makes some killer slope and square shoulder dreads. Of course they are just one many amazing smaller builders these days.

All good advise above. The AJ will appeal to the eye with the block inlays, multicolored finish, etc. It will NOT have the big low end, but it will have tasty mids and balanced highs. It should have a jangle that the Martin does not have in an upbeat rythym.

I agree, you will love it and do the deal in 5 minutes, or you will walk as quick as you can get out. The difference is pretty distinctive in my opinion.

Well guys, i took the AJ! It was a monster! It was twice as loud as my Martin. Im still in shock about it. Its on the same level IMO as the Hd28v i played, if not better. Now i know why there called a bone crusher!

112716

That was fast! It looks great, glad you found what you wanted.

Nice looking Gibby good choice.

Yea it was fast. But it was a trade between me and a individual person, not at a store. We did a even swap. He wanted a quieter more mellow guitar. I was confused about that because i never considered my d28 to be quiet and mellow. That was untill i picked up his AJ. It was very ballanced, punchy, and if it dont have the bass of the hd28v i played its damn close. It completely drowned mine out, and stayed clear and beutifull at the same time. I have to say i wont be poked fun at any for having a Gibson at a bluegrass jam :) but he left happy, and im happy so all is good. I just dont buy the concept anymore that a gibson wont stand up to a martin, at least bluegrass speaking. This AJ is def gonna raise some eyebrows this weekend hehe

The AJ is a cannon in the best sense.

Glad you like your new guitar. In case anyone is looking for general advice, here's my $.02.
The wild card is Gibson's quality control. Martins tend to be very consistent, although we're all looking for that rare "monster" guitar.
In my experience newer Gibsons are far less consistent. Some are truly great, and others are real dogs, substantially worse than the worst Martin you're likely to find.
In short, I might take a flier on a Martin I hadn't played if I knew the model, but I'd never do that with a newer Gibson. That doesn't hold for vintage instruments though.

Good deal. That's one purty guitar. Love the AJ.

Johnny, that is a rosewood AJ...not just a regular AJ in mahogany.

In other words, you did well.

John, glad you were able to find a guitar you really liked. Very, very pretty!

I will back up Brother St. John's comment about Gibson consistancy; several months ago I was looking for a drop shoulder dread, thinking of Collings...tried a bunch, as well as Kopp, Fairbanks and Santa Cruz and they just didn't float my boat...wound up with a Huss and Dalton mahogany which I never would have suspected. Yeah, tried a True Vintage-or-something-like-that Gibson J-45 and put it down in about 30 seconds!

Great that you got a good one! Just be careful with the finish on the upper bout where your arm hangs, you may have to take up wearing long sleeve t-shirts if your sweat is anything like mine :lol:

Well i have to say ive had the same experience with gibsons in the past too. I never picked up a j45 or bird that floated my boat much. Although there beutifull guitars. I will say also the craftmanship isnt as good as Martin either. This gentleman i played with also agrees that hes played quiet a few dogs himself. Listen i aint tooting the horn for gibson here at all. But i am sold on a GOOD AJ. These things are beyond what i ever expected from a gibson.

Ok and also, i still havent figured out if its forward shift bracing. I know its scalloped. I called a few places and asked and they seemed to not know crap about a AJ. I do know i can see the X brace just a hair south of the soundhole. If its not forward shifted, its dang close. But ive yet to get a confident answer from somebody.

A good trade is any that you are happy with. Don't mean a thing what anybody else thinks.

Both Martin and Gibson used forward shifted bracing on their guitars in the
1930s. Just means that the X bracing is moved up to about 1" from the soundhole. While there are major differences between an original and modern AJ they do also share a wide angle bracing - about 100 or 102 degrees.

Cool guitar, I've loved my AJRI 2003 since I bought it new and I've had a few truckloads of Gibsons and still have a couple of old ones. The darned AJRI is just a great combination of features and tone to die for.

The standard model is EIR and that's what I'd want anyway. A good ARJI is about as good as it gets in my book, have fun with it.