Martin 0015m & 00015m

I was in my local shop yesterday & played a new Martin 00015M. A beautiful instrument, It looked fantastic, sounded brilliant & was fairly well priced. Before taking the plunge, I came home to do some research & found that a shop about 1 1/2 hrs drive away has the 0015m as well, for the same price as the 00015M.

I'm looking for a guitar smaller than a dreadnaught but bigger than my GS Mini as a fingerpicking/traditional blues instrument. I wouldn't want to use a pickup in it.
The 000 really seems just what I'm looking for, so I need someone to convince me to make a 3hr drive to try the 00!

Reading the specs & viewing pictures, apart from body size it's difficult to see any great difference between them. I'm hoping for any insights from anyone who's played either one of them, or both, one the practical differences between the two.

actually a recent thread here or two http://www.tdpri.com/forum/archive/index.php/t-321387.html on that guitar that the forum search feature will find ...

I owned a 0015 and I loved that guitar. It is the only one of two guitars I regret selling. The M as I understnd it means the body is at the 12th fret right? The 12-fret will give you more bass. I am not sure if the M means mahogany (as opposed to sapele).

My 0015 sounded a thousands times better after installing a bone saddle. After selling it I later was planning to buy it again but found I could get custom guitar for not much more than buying the 0015 new. I ended up replacing it with a custom American series Breedlove 000 12-fret all mahogany.

I have tried the 00015 but haven't compared it side by side with the 0015 so can't tell you the difference. Generally, the smaller the bodies have a more focused sound (not as full sounding) than larger bodies and are not as loud.

I don't know if there will be a BIG differene between the two, but buy one of them!

The 15's are a great series. I've played and owned several models of them. The 00 is the latest addition to the 15 series. Here are the specs from Martin's book:

D-15M, 00-15M and 000-15M:

Mortise/Tenon neck joint

14 fret body size

Solid mahogany top

A-frame "X" top bracing

Sitka spruce 5/16" top braces

Solid mahogany back and sides

Modified low oval neck shape

Solid East Indian rosewood fingerboard and bridge

25.4" scale

1-11/16" nut width

2-1/8" bridge spacing

Satin finish

optional electronics

3-ply fitted case

Limited lifetime warranty.

So you see there are no differences other than overall size and shape. Like you I prefer the orchestra type bodies in the 15 series. There's just something about them, the tone has depth and soul. Perfect for finger style. I know you said you don't want electronics but if you change your mind, I recommend upgrading from the factory electronics to the Fishman "Aura" system as a friend of mine did in a 000-15 I sold him. Amazing difference.

The M means mahogany.

D-15's and 00015's made a big comeback around 1995. They were 100% Mahogany. As good quarter saw mahogany became hard to get around 1999 or 2000 CF Martin started to use sapele rather than mahogany. D-15's were appearing with very wavy tops and those were sapele. The words "solid mahogany" were removed from the inner paper label.

Traditionalists were very bummed out. Other people didn't care.

I bought my D-15 (it's all mahogany) in 1995. My luthier made a custom bone nut & saddle for it and he added a K&K Pure Western System (my favorite) for gigging.

I bought a 0001M about 4 months ago. I'm pushing 50 years old and I have bursitis in both shoulders. Reaching around a dread for three hours in painful. A 000 doesn't bother me.

Martin changed a number of things on the new 00015M and 0015M.

00015M - OM16GT - D-15

http://i86.photobucket.com/albums/k106/johnlg-2006/MartinFamilyAsmall.jpg

The new M's are guaranteed to be 100% mahogany.
The new M's have the squarer vintage headstock.
The new M's have the 40's (old fashioned) logo on the headstock.
The new M's come with bone nut and saddle from the factory (that's worth $140 - nice)
The new M's have butterbean tuners (beautiful)
The new M's have no paper label inside....you look in the sound hole and see back bracing and the model number is engraved in the neck block (traditional)
The new M's have the older bridge style
The new M's have diamond shaped inlays for fret markers (very pretty)
The 00 and the 000 share these features. It's just a matter of how large of guitar or what sound you prefer.

http://i86.photobucket.com/albums/k106/johnlg-2006/TopFull.jpg
http://i86.photobucket.com/albums/k106/johnlg-2006/Diamonds2.jpg
http://i86.photobucket.com/albums/k106/johnlg-2006/Beans.jpg

I wouldn't get a 00 if you own a GS Mini. I would get the 000 and enjoy the depth and boom and projection. FWIW I have a GS Mini and a couple Parlors. I like playing and writing on smaller guitars but if you have the small guitar covered already and you're adding to the woodpile I would get the 000. The 000 is plenty comfy.

I had my luthier install a K&K Pure Mini in it and add a strap peg to the lower side of the heel. This guitar is a forever keeper. I joke that it belongs to one of the grandkids that I don't have yet.

i've had a 000-15m for a couple years now and it just gets better and better. unlike previous iterations and other less-expensive martins, this M is a "real" martin. it's got a great neck shape, beautiful vintage logo, and wonderful smelling/sounding mahogany. the fact it's all solid, quality tone-woods is really cool - it's clearly a guitar that will last forever and only sound better as it gets older.

Was kinda in the same spot as the OP a month or so ago. Also have a GS mini.

After lots of research, I ended up buying a new Martin 00015SM, which has the slotted headstock, elongated 000 body and 12 frets clear of the body. Very comfortable to play and the 12 fret design provides a surprising amount of bass and "fullness" for a smaller body guitar. Love this guitar!