The guitar is an important musical instrument that has revolutionized the world of music ever since its launch. Whether you are a musician or just a hobbyist, you cannot resist the charm left by playing the guitar. Nowadays there are a lot of brands in the market that manufacture quality guitars.
Every brand offers distinct features to its guitar products, including versatility, accessibility, durability, affordability, etc. You have to pick the brand that best suits your needs and requirements because a seamless experience with the guitar is only possible when you have picked the right brand of the guitar.
Zager and Martin Guitars are renowned names in the music industry. The popularity of these brands is obvious, thanks to the cool guitars they manufacture. In case you have confusion in picking one of these brands, this article can be a big help for you. Let’s move on and study more on Zager Vs. Martin guitars.
Zager Guitars vs. Martin Guitars
| Features | Martin Guitar | Zager Guitar |
|---|---|---|
| String Height | Moderate | Low for easy playability |
| Ease of use | Moderate | High |
| Place of Manufacture | Nazareth, Pennsylvania | Indonesia |
| Price | Premium | Premium |
| Electronics | Fishman | LR Baggs or Fishman |
| Craftsmanship | Mostly handmade | Mostly handmade |
Zager Guitars
Denny Zager Sr and his son run the business of Zager guitars. Denny himself rose to the pinnacles of fame after becoming a part of the ‘Zager and Eans’ band. He then switched to teaching guitar. He kept teaching for decades. He made remarkable adjustments to guitars to enhance their playability.
Years after his playing and teaching guitar, he combined all his guitar knowledge and started his own guitar design ‘Zager Guitars’. The reputation of Zager guitars has been pretty incredible all through these years. Neither marking nor retail sort distribution is responsible for setting the name of these guitars.
However, its easy-to-play design and affordability speak for themselves.
Sound
Zager guitars come with great quality and impressive sound. The credit for the amazing sound goes to the design of Zager guitars. The strings in them are widely spaced, the frets are lower, and there are different shapes for the guitar bodies.
These features help you get the sound that not even $1000 guitars can produce at a fraction of the price.
Affordability And Playability
There has been an overwhelming response from the buyers of Zager. The list of professionals who chose Zager as their guitar brand has been increasing continuously. The low price and good quality are not the only great things about Zager. It also prides itself on its ease of being played.
It’s pretty effortless to play Zager guitars for long hours without tiring yourself.
Strings
There are various other factors that set Zager guitars apart from the rest of the guitar brands. The slim and a little wider than the usual neck of these guitars makes it easy for you to hold your hand around. You also get plenty of space between the strings on the guitar.
In this way, you are free to put your fingers on the desired areas without disturbing the other strings. Another astonishing thing about Zager guitars is their lowered string height. It plays a key role in making the guitar easy to play.
Usually, the low action produces annoying fret buzzes, but that’s not the case with the low string height of Zager.
Nice Touch
Every guitar of Zager comes with a nice touch, including a photo of a designer, a sturdy case, and a Zager t-shirt. Some models also feature a humidifier. A lot of bands and players have declared Zager quite instrumental and functional in producing modern acoustic series.
Prone To Sound Adjustment
With an adjustable string height setting, you can make adjustments as per the sound you want to produce. You need to raise the height of the string if you want something heavy. The reverse is true if your goal is a fine sound.
No Middle Man
The excellence of Zager guitars is unmatched. They are made of quality materials with quite an impeccable setup. You might have wondered about the low pricing of Zager. That’s because there is no involvement of the middle man with these guitars. Customers directly get the product, and it cuts the chances of any addition of margin on top of the cost.
Money-Back Guarantee
There is no match to the uniqueness and comprehensiveness of the warranty offered by Zager. Direct sales add more to the trust of people in the guitar. You can also get a 100% money-back guarantee if you are not satisfied with the guitar.
The shipping costs have covered the company itself. No matter what package you have to receive from anywhere in the world, it would be free of any shopping costs. There was a two-year warranty for electronics during the war. However, you also get a lifetime guarantee for the rest of the guitar.
Wide Range Of Sizes
The sizes of guitars made from Zager are four, including 41″, 40″,38″, and 36″. However, the most widely used guitar of them is the one that ranges from 41″.
Martin Guitars
Introduction
The guitars produced by C.F. Martin and Co. are very exquisite and reliable. Their tone and playability have contributed a lot to their fame all across the world. In Martin guitars, the attention to detail has also been incredible.
Series
Martin makes a lot of guitars and puts them in different series to distinguish them from one another. The characteristics of each series are suitable enough to match the style of musicians.
Solid Construction
The best thing about the Martin guitars is their silky feel and rich tone. The credit for the full tone goes to the top-notch craftsmanship and excellent quality of the components that make the guitar. The construction methods for Martin Guitars are very innovative and subtle.
They include scalloped X-bracing under the top, dovetail neck joint, and many more. Martin designers have left no stone unturned in keeping the vintage look of the guitar in addition to bringing a modern feel and high performance to the guitar.
Tonewood
The role of tonewood is quite crucial as it determines the volume, response, and tone of the guitar. Sitka Spruce is the most common tonewood used in Martin Guitars, thanks to its projecting power and vibrant tone. The development of Martin guitars’ sizes, shapes, and styles has been remarkable over the years.
Reverberation
When you analyze the Martin series of guitars, it is almost impossible to point to a guitar that sounds bad. The reason is that Martin has got everything that you need in a guitar. The reverberation of Martin guitars is longer than other brands. It results from a better transference of tone across the guitar.
Thin Gloss Finish
The thin gloss finish on the Martin guitars saves it from cuts and scratches, thus ensuring its long-time service and improved tone.
Hand-Made Parts
Another interesting thing about Martin guitars is that most of their parts go through by-hand finish and manufacturing. There is a certain human character to every guitar that comes from the C.F Martin facility.
Conclusion
Whether the guitar is from a Zager brand or a Martin brand, it can accompany you quite well on your musical journey. Both these brands manufacture guitars that have exceptional features and playability.
There are some departments where Zager takes the lead, while Martin has also got some aspects that make it superior to Zager. It is not an easy job to choose the winner between these major players in the guitar industry. The best thing to do is to pick the one that is coherent with your personal preference and liking.
Love my Zager ZAD 80. Looks great and sounds fantastic. Own aMartin Aura and the Zager sounds as good if not better than the Martin. Quality is superb. Pick one, Martin or Zager. You can’t lose
I could not notice hardly any difference in tone quality between the ZAD 80 and the Martin D-28.
That is even more eye opening since the ZAD 80 cutaway is not as deep in the body of the instrument.
The fact that the action is much easier is also such a big plus.
My D-35 Martin does not sound any better. Thanks for the video comparison.
I currently own a Taylor mahogany back and sides, Sitka spruce top guitar, that I bought in 1993, It is a upgraded model and sounds better than the stock model. It was fantastic sounding and looking. Because of a twenty one year relationship ending I in a bunch of crap and moving to a very high desert dry area, my beautiful guitar dried out and will require expensive repair. I have always really wanted a quality Rose Wood and Sitka spruce guitar, But the price keeps going up and up as, in retirement my income declined. So I’m giving the ZAD 900 dreadnought, a try. The HD28 and Furch Red series, were my first choice! But they are 2x the cost! I have short fingers and small hands, so the Taylor was fantastic for me. The Zager guitar claim the same attributes. We will see! But at least I will be able to play again!
Many good discussions, facts, experiences, reviews and performances from “real” Zager owners and fans over at Facebook for anyone interested. This group has over 600 contributors who have no affiliation with Zager but that frequently post information and details that would be helpful for anyone interested in buying a Zager guitar! I own a Martin D35, D45 and an D28-12 and my Zager ZAD900CE is played right up among and beside them in my regular rotation. I have always said that if you take a D35 and give it more mid, then the resulting balanced tone is what you get from the Zager ZAD900CE.
Proud owner of a Martin. love the tone. The company’s history is remarkable, and yes an American original. It is the instrument of choice for making my first acoustic album/CD
I am having a Martin Prewar D28 built from a Martin kit by local Luther..I have been waiting for 9 mo already!
Just received a Zager 80. It is well built and the sound is on par with my less expensive Martin. What is strange, is that the Zager shipping originates in Arizona not Nebraska. I know my Martin was made in Mexico. Most companies use the Made in USA loosely anymore with parts sourced from all over the world! It’s still down to sound, playability and price! Jump in and hold on!
Zager’s are fully made in the USA….check the video: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/_5a1gIbA62w
Unless you’re spending over $2000.00 your Martin and Taylor will be made in Mexico.
I own both Martin and Zager and really can’t compare the two, both are great for very different reasons. We all know Martin through and through and their history and quality speak for itself. Zager on the other hand is the Yeti of the quality guitar world. People know they exist, they’ve heard the stories, some adore them and others dont and we all argue about where they’re from. From what I gather, the bottom end Zagers in the 20 and 50 series are partially made/assembled in Indonesia with the inside neck block sticker to prove it, but still a lot of work to prepare and finalize them in the USA. The higher models, 80 and 900 series are American made in Nebraska in their entirety. I can’t verify that as 100% truth, but from all I’ve gathered, it seems to be this way. I have a 900CE and there is a neck block sticker, but mine does not say made in Indonesia. Either way, they’re good guitars, they are easy to play with their great setup and slight string spacing and low fret build, you can’t go wrong. They are over priced about as much as any major brand right now but they’re still cheaper than big brand equivelants in my opinion. I Love my Zager as much as my Martins. They definitely need to improve their marketing though, it’s simply out of date and because of that, it seems primitive and sketchy at times.
are zegar guitars all american made or not??
Actually, Zager guitars are built in Indonesia. Look inside your Zager towards the neck. There you will find the disclosure.
I chose Zager not only because they play easier, but because they’re made in the USA by a small family owned company who cares about their customers. Martin has become a giant faceless organization like Taylor who churns out thousands of guitars weekly, and unless you want to spend thousands of dollars, most Martins and Taylors are now made in Mexico.