Firstly, mine does not look at all like the one pictured! Instead, mine is much brighter and way less striped plain looking. However, mine has a small darker patch beneath the sound hole which gives it a used look. The uke has its own charm, and I grew to like it. But that is what you get with real wood, different grains and colourings.
I decided to not send it back quickly after having played it, and I must say the sound is phenomenal. The whole instrument, neck included, is resonating and I have not yet replaced the ex-factory strings!
However, where it falls short is that the treble side frets are nicely polished, the bass side only half-way through; very strange. Maybe Martin reckons that you don't play this high up on the G string? Who knows.
I will definitely bring the uke to my local luthier, so that he can bring out the best of the instrument.
Out-of-the-box it is well playable but even though this instrument is made on the Mexican side of the border, I expected more from Martin, especially for this price. It would not have taken much time to finish the remaining frets, which are now rather sharp. None of my guitars or other ukuleles ever came with such fretwork, not even the "cheap" ones... and this is not a cheap one!
Besides, this tenor uke is overall very well constructed and the Grover tuners are quality. Not a let down in this regard. Well done, Martin. This is reflected by the great volume and projection of the instrument, supported by its shimmering resonance.
The gig-bag is made by TKL, a Canadian company, and it's lush light-blue interior is superb and beautiful. It's sort of a semi-hardcase in the way the uke is held in place and the neck is supported. It does say "version 2" on the ticket, so Martin ships this tenor uke with the new version.
As it is already now 10 years the case, the Martin logo is merely a raised sticker, which is prone to friction-wear caused by clip-on tuners. So one should take care not to wear it off!
Would I buy it again? Well, it's the best sounding ukulele I have ever played, and the tenor size fits my big paws way more comfortable. As I decided to keep it, and to bring it to the luthier - which is going to cost about another 50€ - I would say it is a mixed bag... The gig-bag alone is worth at least 45€... but the fretwork is not good enough on the bass side.... however, I like it very much and have no regrets having bought it, although I got a rather odd looking Koa ukelele with coincidentally a very cool serial number! Another reason I kept it.
