Martin D-X2E 12 String vs Yamaha LL16-12 ARE
Reasons to Get
Martin D-X2E 12 String over Yamaha LL16-12 ARE
Reasons to Get
Yamaha LL16-12 ARE over Martin D-X2E 12 String
Other Key Differences
Martin D-X2E 12 String vs Yamaha LL16-12 ARE
Shared Features
Martin D-X2E 12 String vs Yamaha LL16-12 ARE
Common Strengths
- Solid Top Wood
Common Weaknesses
- Locking Tuners
- High-Quality Frets
- Compound Radius Fretboard
- Luminescent Sidedots
- Strap Lock
- 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- Active/Passive Preamp
Table of Contents
Price History Comparison
These are affiliate links. We may earn a fee if you purchase after clicking. These prices are prone to error. Make sure you're buying the right product after clicking on a link from our site. We are not liable if you buy the wrong product after following these links. As an Amazon Associate site we earn from qualifying purchases.
Which One is Better Overall?
After going through our comparison algorithm, the results show that the Yamaha LL16-12 ARE is probably the better product overall with its final score of 80 compared to the Martin D-X2E 12 String's 76 score, although not by a lot.
The Yamaha LL16-12 ARE wins when it comes to sound, playability, build quality. On the other hand, the Martin D-X2E 12 String has the upper hand when it comes to value for the money.
If you got small hands, you'll probably feel more comfortable playing the Yamaha LL16-12 ARE.
Which One is Better for Beginners?
If you're looking for your first guitar to learn how to play, the Yamaha LL16-12 ARE is the better choice.
The Yamaha LL16-12 ARE meets 4 out of our 8 criteria items for beginner friendliness, while the Martin D-X2E 12 String meets only 3. This takes into account the type of frets, scale length, nut width, bridge type, fretboard radius, and neck profile to determine the easiest combination for new players.
New Player Friendliness
Martin D-X2E 12 String- Easy-to-use bridge
- Tall frets
- Comfortable neck
- Comfortable shape
- Comfortable fretboard
- Narrow nut
- Short scale
- Soft Strings
- Locking tuners
New Player Friendliness
Yamaha LL16-12 ARE- Easy-to-use bridge
- Tall frets
- Narrow nut
- Comfortable neck
- Comfortable shape
- Comfortable fretboard
- Short scale
- Soft Strings
- Locking tuners
Nevertheless, when it comes to choosing an instrument, you should pick the one more compatible with your personal style. Still, below we'll try you to give you our results as objectively as it's possible to help you decide.
Martin D-X2E 12 String Overview
- From Martin's 2015 X series
- Made in Mexico
- 12 strings
- 25.4"'' scale
- 16" Fretboard Radius
- Solid Spruce top
- HPL back
- HPL sides
- Select Hardwood neck
- Select Hardwood fretboard
- Bridge pickup: Fishman MX (Preamp/Active)
- Select Hardwood bridge
- Acoustic Low Profile Set neck
- 20 Medium frets
- Chrome Enclosed Gear tuners
- Weight between 5.15lbs (2.3kgs) and 5.25lbs (2.4kgs)
- Compare Specs >
Yamaha LL16-12 ARE Overview
- From Yamaha's 2014 L series
- Made in China
- 12 strings
- 25"'' scale
- 15.75" Fretboard Radius
- Solid Engelmann Spruce with A.R.E. top
- Solid Rosewood back
- Solid Rosewood sides
- Mahogany + Rosewood (5-Ply) neck
- Ebony fretboard
- Bridge pickup: Passive System + SRT Piezo Pickup (Preamp/Passive)
- Ebony bridge
- Acoustic C Set neck
- 20 Medium frets
- Die-Cast Gold (TM29G) tuners
- Weight between 5.3lbs (2.4kgs) and 5.4lbs (2.4kgs)
- Compare Specs >
Sound Quality Comparison
The most important thing that will determine the tone of an acoustic guitar is the wood. Let's take a look at the differences between both .
Woods Used in Both
Spruce has a light color with tight grain patterns. It's very stiff but relatively light. It's known for producing a well-rounded tone with a broad dynamic range. Find out more about Spruce.
Woods Used in the Martin D-X2E 12 String
Hardwood is just a generic wood that can come from many species. This type of wood is used to build guitars because it provides a rich, warm sound. The wood also has good structural properties, making it durable and long-lasting.
HPL is a high-pressure laminate made from multiple layers of paper or fabric that are impregnated with resin and then fused together under high pressure and heat.
Woods Used in the Yamaha LL16-12 ARE
Mahogany is a fairly rare wood nowadays. It's used mostly for bodies due to its relatively lightweight. Gibson popularized it with their Les Paul guitars during their golden years, so this wood has a lot of good reputation behind it. The most expensive type comes from South America and it's still used by Gibson even today. Find out more about Mahogany.
Ebony is a high-end wood, so it is not cheap. It's only used for fretboards because it's also very heavy. It does an excellent job as a durable material while looking elegant. Find out more about Ebony.
Rosewood is an almost purple-looking wood that is used mainly for fretboards since it's heavy, rare, and expensive. It's sometimes used on acoustic guitar bodies to create stronger warm tones. Find out more about Rosewood.
Winner: Yamaha LL16-12 ARE.
Electronics
Both come with electronics that allow you connect them to an amplifier or interface for recording.
Winner:Tie.
Final Sound Quality Scores
Build Quality Comparison
When it comes to build quality, we like to take into account everything used to build the instrument. This includes materials, hardware and the quality control expected depending on the country where it was built. Let's see how the Martin D-X2E 12 String compares to the Yamaha LL16-12 ARE.
Country of Origin
The manufacturing country can tell a lot about the build quality of an instrument. The Martin D-X2E 12 String is built in Mexico while the Yamaha LL16-12 ARE is made in China.
Mexico has been for a long time where Fender has built their semi-premium series. If you don't want to overpay for a wellp-built instrument, a guitar built in this country by a good brand always offers good value for the money.
China has a bad reputation when it comes to building quality. However, times have changed and now respectable brands use China's cheap labor to build good instruments for a lower price. Don't discount a guitar only because it was built in China, but also expect more quality from countries like Korea.
Winner: Martin D-X2E 12 String
Nut Material
If you want your guitar to stay in tune and sound good, you need a well cut nut. Nut quality can be inconsistent even when comparing two copies of the same model. The best way to make sure you're nut will be well done is by getting a nut made by an expert company like TUSQ or Micarta.
The Martin D-X2E 12 String has a Corian nut. It used to be the go-to nut for Gibson, but it's slowly being replaced by Graph Tech (Tusq). It's a synthetic material made to be similar to Bone, but it doesn't have the same self-lubricating properties, and it's less resistant.
On the other hand, the Yamaha LL16-12 ARE comes with a Plastic nut. This is a low-quality nut that you might want to consider upgrading soon. Bone and TUSQ nuts are the best for guitars with a fixed or simple tremolo bridge.
Winner: Martin D-X2E 12 String.
Fret Material
Most fret wire is made of nickel silver. This material eventually wears down after a lot of use and most instruments end up needing a complete fret replacement. However, some expensive models come with stainless steel frets. This is what you should aim for if you can afford it.
Unfortunately, none of them come with stainless steel frets.
Winner: Tie.
Tuners
Both come with regular tuners. The Martin D-X2E 12 String's are Chrome Enclosed Gear while the Yamaha LL16-12 ARE's are Die-Cast Gold (TM29G)
Winner: Tie.
Here is the list of features that were considered when choosing the winner in the Features subcategory:
Martin D-X2E 12 String
- Top Brand Pickups
- Electronics
- Solid Top Wood
- Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
- No Locking Tuners
- Made in Mexico
- No Expensive Woods
- No High-Quality Nut
- Low-Quality Material Saddle
- Laminated Side Wood
- Laminated Back Wood
- No Compound Radius Fretboard
- No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- No Strap Lock
Yamaha LL16-12 ARE
- Expensive Wood
- Electronics
- Solid Top Wood
- Solid Side Wood
- Solid Back Wood
- Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
- No Locking Tuners
- Made in China
- No High-Quality Nut
- No Top Brand Pickups
- Low-Quality Material Saddle
- No Compound Radius Fretboard
- No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- No Strap Lock
Final Build Quality Scores
Playability Comparison
Let's now compare their playability. Bear in mind that the instrument will feel different depending on your hand size and play style. That's why you should always test before buying. But if you can't or want a second opinion on it, we can still take a look at each of the important measurements of the instrument for you. This way, we can predict how easy a guitar might be to play, or how different it will feel compared to the other.
Remember that, even though the difference might seem small, every inch counts when it comes to feeling of the instrument in your hands. Any variation can completely change how comfortable a guitar feels in your hands.
Nut Width
The nut width will affect the separation between strings at the nut. In this comparison, the Martin D-X2E 12 String has the wider nut with 47.6mm (1.875'') vs 46mm (1.811''). This is a 1.6mm (0.064'') difference
This means that it will be more difficult to do bar chords on the Martin D-X2E 12 String, especially closer to the nut. However, it's also easier to play without muting strings accidently. This favors people with big hands.
Scale Length
The scale length is one of the things that influences playability the most. This is the distance between the nut and the bridge and will affect everything from low action allowance, difficulty to perform bends, fret separation, and even tone.
The Martin D-X2E 12 String has the longest scale: 25.4". The Yamaha LL16-12 ARE is only 25" long. This is a 0.4'' (10.2mm) scale length difference.
This longer scale means that the strings need more tension to get in tune. This is good if you want to avoid fret buzz, which can happen when the strings are too loose and touch the frets while vibrating. This is especially important when playing in lower tunings. This will also let you reduce the gap between fretboard and strings (low action) to make them easier to press down. However, this higher tension will also make it harder to perform bends and vibratos as the strings will feel stiffer.
This also means that the frets have a longer separation between each other, so this will make it harder for people with smaller hands when playing some chord positions.
Another characteristic of a longer scale is that it makes the guitar sound 'snappier' or brighter. This is due to the extra separation between harmonics and overtones produced by the tension. This influences tone more than any other factor (except the pickups).
Lastly, remember that you can also affect the tension of the strings by changing your string gauge. You can use a thicker gauge for more tension and a lighter one for less tension.
Neck Profile
No single neck shape is better than others. However, most people tend to prefer a thinner necks because it doesn't get in their way when playing fast and most hand sizes can adapt to it pretty well. However, some people still prefer thicker necks for a better grip, especially if they have big hands.
Both the Martin D-X2E 12 String and the Yamaha LL16-12 ARE have a C-shaped neck. This is what you'll find in most modern guitars. Most people feel like the thickness of a C neck is simply the less intrusive one for playing fast, while at the same time allowing you to grab the neck easily for resting if you want to.
Fretboard Radius
Most guitar fretboards are not flat; they usually have a curve or arc across their width. A curved fretboard will make it easier to perform chords without muting strings, while a flatter one will make it easier to play single notes, which is good for bending and soloing in general. The best fretboards have a compound radius that varies across the fingerboard, but they're not common since they take a lot more work to build.
In this case, the Yamaha LL16-12 ARE's fingerboard radius is smaller, which means it's more curved than the Martin D-X2E 12 String's. This extra arc will make playing chords easier in this model. You won't be as likely to mute the strings, especially if you have big hands. However, playing single notes and bending will be easier on the Martin D-X2E 12 String.
Still, both tend to favor soloing over chords, so if you're looking for a guitar for playing rhythm, you might want something else with a radius closer to a Stratocaster's 9.5''.
Hand Size Comfortability
Everyone has a different hand size, and that's why it's recommended to try a guitar before buying, even if others tell you that it's comfortable to play. However, we can know whether a guitar favors small or large hands just by knowing its exact measurements.
And after taking into account the scale length, nut width, neck profile and fretboard radius, we can conclude that the Martin D-X2E 12 String favors large hands more than the Yamaha LL16-12 ARE. But it's still more comfortable for people with small hands, as you can see in the score meter below.
Martin D-X2E 12 String:
Yamaha LL16-12 ARE:
Fret Size
Both have a Medium fret size. If you like feeling the fretboard when you play, but also appreciate some easiness to press down the frets, this size offers a good balance for that.
