Martin 000 Jr E Jeff Tweedy review – “I’ve played instruments that cost twice as much that don’t have this level of even tonality”
$1,149/£1,175, martinguitar.com
Martin and Wilco frontman Jeff Tweedy have some history. Back in 2012, the pair collaborated on the 00DB Jeff Tweedy – a guitar based very loosely on the 0-18 guitar he’d owned and played extensively on albums since the 90s.
READ MORE: Martin 000 Jr Sapele review: “a guitar that could easily become a lifelong companion”
People loved that guitar, but such is the nature of endorsement deals and licensing arrangements; it was discontinued in 2019. However, the tail end of 2025 brought happy news. Not only would Martin and Tweedy be renewing their relationship, bringing the 00DB Jeff Tweedy back into the lineup, but it would be joined in the lineup by a new and more affordable signature guitar, enter the 000 Jr E Jeff Tweedy.
Image: Press
000 Jr E Jeff Tweedy – what is it?
Once you’ve managed to work your way through its rather elongated name, the 000 Jr E Jeff Tweedy is a small-bodied electro-acoustic that’s rather different from the 00 model. For a start, this guitar is made in Martin’s Navojoa, Mexico factory – which is why it costs the best part of 3,000 bucks less than the 00DB – but that’s not all.
Rather than a 00 body shape, the Tweedy uses the similar but slightly shallower 000 Jr body shape – as used to great effect in the Shawn Mendes signature as well as the most recent 000 Jr that Josh was so effusively impressed with earlier this year.
Like that 000 Jr, it has a solid Sapele construction, but here instead of the open-pore finish of the Junior series we get a rather handsomely applied Tweedy Burst. Unlike that Junior series, all the woods used in this guitar are FSC-certified, including the ebony fingerboard. That neck is a little shorter in scale than the DB, too – but it’s still ‘full size’ at 24.9 inches.
You also get a set of upgraded nickel Grover open-gear tuners for a vintage look with improved stability. Electronics are provided courtesy of Martin’s trusty E1 system, and you also get a soft shell gigbag for your money, too.
Image: Press
000 Jr E Jeff Tweedy – playability and build
Before we start, a confession – I didn’t really want to review this guitar. When I saw both of the revealed Tweedy models, the guitar I was excited about was the reborn 00DB… so I was kinda bummed out when Editor Josh asked me to check out this one instead.
You hear the word Junior, and you assume that the guitar is going to be… well, junior! A smaller and less robust version of the original? I obviously forgot about all the amazing Les Paul Juniors!
Regardless, this preconceived notion didn’t last long – pretty much from the second I pulled it out of the gig bag and tuned it up. Instantly, it didn’t feel like a small guitar, with that 24.9-inch scale length it has the playing experience of a full-sized instrument, but with the comfort and portability of a travel guitar. I was caught off guard.
The nicely applied burst also makes it feel some distance away from the student guitar I had in my head. The comfortable PA neck shape and graduate Performance Taper carve makes this a very fluid and comfortable instrument to play. While the stripped-down Junior series often feels like ‘My first Martin’ visually, this really does feel elevated to go with that price tag.
Image: Press
000 Jr E Jeff Tweedy – sounds
If I was wrong-footed by how impressive this guitar looks and feels, the first strum of an open E chord was enough to knock me on my behind. Despite its compact body dimensions, the Tweedy has a full, warm and balanced tonality from E to E string – something that’s probably a combination of sapele’s mahogany-like qualities, plus that rather fetchingly striped ebony fingerboard.
There’s no overabundance of anything here – bass, middle or trebles – it’s just impressively and compellingly even and balanced reproduction of each string. It’s a rare and impressive thing for a guitar in this price bracket – I’ve played instruments that cost twice as much that don’t have this level of even tonality. It’s a guitar that’s begging to be taken into the studio and recorded with.
In the studio, you’re likely gonna want to mic this thing up, but if you’re playing out (or lack a good mic at home) you have the option to go direct thanks to the onboard E1 electronics.
Running into my BOSS AC-22LX acoustic amp for testing purposes, I found that the pickup did a nice enough job of replicating that balanced tonality of the unplugged instrument – though it did need a little bit of chorus and reverb added on the amp side to really open it up.
The onboard tuner is fast and accurate, and having that phase switch certainly is handy if you have any issues with amps or PA systems in a live environment.
Image: Press
000 Jr E Jeff Tweedy – should I buy it?
I know when to admit I’m wrong, and in this case Josh was entirely correct in picking this guitar for me to review. I assumed that a budget model would offer a markedly inferior experience to the US version – instead we have something that stands on its own two legs as a compelling guitar in its own right.
This is the most balanced acoustic guitar I’ve played or reviewed that costs less than $3,000 – so while that pricetag might seem a lot compared to other Martin 000 Jr models, you have to realise we’re dealing with a pretty special instrument here.
It’s also a fantastically portable instrument, and it’s the sort of thing I wouldn’t hesitate to take to a songwriter round, a jam session, or even to the studio. It offers the sort of balanced and compelling sound of a full-sized Martin in a travel guitar body – I didn’t think it would be possible, but I’ll say it again, I was wrong!
Image: Press
Martin 000 Jr E Jeff Tweedy alternatives
The basic Martin 000 Jr Sapele is a very impressive guitar for a lot less money ($749/£749), though it lacks some of the visual and sonic refinement of the Tweedy. Another seriously impressive small-bodied guitar is the Taylor GS Mini e-Koa Plus ($1,199 / £1,099), while the Breedlove Oregon Companion CE ($1,999) is a lot more expensive than the Tweedy, but it sounds fantastic.
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Source: www.guitar-bass.net
