Review: Martin Guitars X Series 00-X2E Cocobolo

I don’t need to write about the reputation that precedes C.F. Martin & Co. I have a colleague who is a hopeless romantic for acoustic guitars (he owns at least a dozen), and he literally never shuts up about Martin guitars. According to the embroidery on the front of the X-Series softshell gig bag sitting next to me, the brand has been ‘doing the thing’ since 1833. Which, if I’m honest, makes reviewing their products a little intimidating.

I’ve only ever owned two acoustic guitars: a beginner classical my dad bought me in 2003, and a dreadnought my partner bought me a few years ago. The extent of my enjoyment of an acoustic guitar can be summarised very simply: I enjoy a rich, warm sound with clear trebles, and a soft, ergonomic, intuitive feel. The Martin 00-X2E Cocobolo checks both of these boxes effortlessly.

Martin 00-X2E Cocobolo

Before I get into the sound and feel of the guitar, I need to gush about that softshell case. One thing I’ve learned from reviewing guitars is that you can learn a surprising amount about a guitar and its manufacturer from the case. The standout on this particular case is, oddly enough, the zipper. I don’t know whether I’ve just had really bad luck with janky zippers recently, but unzipping this case felt like watching one of those strangely satisfying ASMR videos where someone cuts a slab of magnetic sand with a knife. There’s a nice amount of padding around the case, and a foam block and velcro strap to support the neck in transit. Martin went minimal with the case candy, which I’m not mad about. Sometimes less is more. I did find information that talks about Martin’s partnership with Better Battery Co., producers of the world’s first carbon neutral batteries. That’s right, the00-X2E  is active and can be plugged in.

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The 00-X2E is a Grand Concert size guitar is slightly smaller than its more famous 000 & OM Martin siblings. The High Pressure Laminate back and sides is a composite material providing a sustainable, durable material that doesn’t sacrifice that classic Martin tone and as part of the 2024 ‘remastering’ of the X-Series, the guitars now feature multiple pattern variations, all of which are stunning representations of specially selected sets of premium Cocobolo from the Martin Custom Shop. For the wood geeks out there, Cocobolo is a tropical hardwood harvested in Central America from the heartwood of trees of the Dalbergia genus. The hardwood neck and fingerboard of the 00-X2E feel incredibly soft and buttery thanks to a slimmer profile, gently bevelled edges and refined string spacing. The 24.9” scale length neck is 1.75” at the nut, and joins to the body at the 14th fret. With the feel of a full scale neck under the left hand, while sitting much more snug against your body, the 00 is the perfect in-between size for travelling players who want something a little more ergonomic and compact without feeling like you’re playing a viola. The top is hand-rubbed satin spruce with a tortoiseshell pickguard and sloped modern belly hardwood bridge.

Unplugged, the smaller body of the guitar does away with some of the bottom, muddy frequencies that you would get from a dreadnought. This lends the guitar a scooped, throaty timbre, evoking a folky nostalgia. It also makes for very interesting percussive tones when slapping the strings playing fingerstyle, or tapping the plectrum against the pickguard. The treble frequencies in the string attack are particularly crisp and clear—a quality aided by the Martin Authentic Acoustic Lifespan 2.0 Phosphor Bronze strings.

C.F. Martin & Co.

Outwardly, you’d have almost no idea that this guitar is fitted with electronics. The battery compartment and input jack are skilfully hidden in an inconspicuous plastic flap at the base of the body next to the strap button. Inside the top edge of the sound hole you’ll find the controls for the Martin guitars E1 pickup, including dials for volume and tone, a phase inverter button, and a stealthy little chromatic tuner which sits inside the bottom edge of the sound hole. Pushing the tone wheel all the way to the right gave me a bright, sparkly sound while pushing it all the way to the left gave a darker, warmer sound with more low end. The phase button reverses the phase 180 degrees as expected. I did notice quite a dramatic improvement in bass response with the phase reversed, particularly when palm-muting lower strings. A lot of effort went into giving some of that important low end.

Overall, the 00-X2E makes for a fantastic travelling companion—a compact, ergonomic acoustic-electric that upholds the stalwart brand and trademark warm sound of C.F. Martin & Co. If anyone needs me, I’ll just be sitting in the corner zipping and unzipping this softshell case for a few hours.

For local Martin enquiries, visit ELFA.