Opeongo - our OO small body acoustic | MACKENZIE AND MARR GUITARS (2024)

Thank you M&M for this wonderful Opeongo 00 guitar. It arrived in perfect shape, and it was a huge treat right out of the (very nice) case. I played it a lot right away, but at night I hang it in this rig I built for new, or sleepy, guitars (basically a hanger stand between two old huge Sanyo stereo speakers connected to a good radio station on a timer -9PM to 6AM- medium volume).The sound is SO nicely balanced from string to string, the neck is a great common denominator (in other words, a WAY more than acceptable action and feel for a guitar the new owner hasn’t played yet). I love the big honkin’ volute; some folks might take a few minutes figuring out how to avoid it, but I recognize it as a guarantee against headstock breaks (think Gibson electrics). And the fretwork really is impeccable.The only reason I have to give it a four star rating is because there are actually more magical guitars in the world (think: there ain’t no 10s . . . well, very few). BUT- if you take the price into account, I don’t think you could do better. The bang for the buck is genuinely extraordinary.I have tried and owned a few guitars built in China/Pacific Rim to American specs, and this is way ahead of any of them so far. I got the smallest, simplest M&M guitar because I have always been drawn to small bodied guitars (and as I careen into to class of Old Guy, they sit right and feel comfortable. Embraceable.) I did not get onboard electronics, because all my other gigging guitars are set up with K&K Pure pickups, and I figure it’s a lot easier switching guitars midstream with as few variables as possible. But I’d bet the available rig is superb, just like everything else.So Thank You for providing us with these very, very nice guitars at a price that is low enough to give one pause, only because us players have gotten used to ridiculous costs for guitars that aren’t nearly this nice.AND you guys are a delight to do business with.Peace be with us all - Tommy PPS- I would advise potential USA customers to jump right in and order one or more of these before (as of today, 11/6/24) some asshole levies a ginormous tariff, which we will pay, onto these great guitars.

I've played my new MacKenzie & Marr Opeongo for afew days andI'm liking it a lot. It is fun toplay! It has a good setup out of the box, level frets, plays well. All tuners (Grover Sta-Tite18:1) worked w/o issue, the tuning is stable. The frets could use a better polishing, but there's zero buzzing.I have to say this is a nice sounding guitar. It has a strong and warm mahogany/spruce tone. It has ample bass evenly balanced with the mids and trebles. It is resonant. It is not at all boxy sounding. It is very responsive to a light fingerpicking touch and has a wide dynamic range. It kept up with strumming fine. It takes a capo well w/o any tonal fade.The build is clean and very light, with a thin open-pore finish. This one weighs just a skosh over 3 pounds. The bridge and neck joints are tight, the workmanship inside the box is clean. The neck set is good and it shows good saddle height. The slot head is cleanly done.The neck profile is a C with a slight flat at the back of the neck. I would call it a medium feel overall. It’s a bit of a different feel than typical Martin or Taylor necks..a bit more toward a crossover classical neck (with a 1.75" nut).The woods seem of good quality. She has a nice silky quartered sitka top with no runout, and typically unflashy banded mahogany B/S and mahog neck. The binding is subtle (looks like Pau Ferro perhaps). The Pau Ferro bridge and fretboard have nice wood grain...a touch of oil should darken them up nicely. The x-bracing is not advanced…the x junction sits a bit south of the soundhole.The finish is cleanly done but thin. I can feel the texture of the woods and herringbone through the finish. There is a bit of buffing compound in one corner of the headplate. It’s not a boutique finish, but it certainly works.It came with a goodbranded archtop HSC which fits like a glove.Overall…I’m kind of blown away. This is a lightly built long scale guitar…it’s got a lot of power and surprising sustain. There is real depth and character to the tone. The warmth of the tone is traditional, but the sustain and power give it a slightly modern “kick”. It’s kind of like a mini 000-12 with a bit more snuggle. Also kudos to MacMarr for using the Grover tuners…solid!Thanks for a nice guitar and huge bang for the buck!

2024-05-18 I'm a retired senior and have been practicing on my electric guitar for a couple of years.I also like the sound of the acoustic guitar, finger and flat picking. My new Opeongo looks beautiful and the craftsmanship is excellent! However,I had to get used to the sound, since I found the 12-53 strings it came with too loud and had difficulty playing softly. Also, I expected a mellower sound. So, I switched to 9-48 strings and now I can play softly.The guitar sounds more musical to my ears with the light weight strings.Overall I'm impressed with this guitar.

I have been playing my new Opeongo for a week now and here is my little review. First, some background. I am 77 years old and have been playing stringed instruments professionally since I was 18. Solo, bands, teaching, session work. I am not famous, but I have been in the game my entire adult life. I have also done a lot of set ups, repairs, and restorations. Over the years I have owned a lot of high-end instruments. I chose the Opeongo because of the parlor size (especially the split headstock!), woods used, incredibly low price, and your reputation for building quality guitars. I have been playing the Opeongo nearly non-stop since it arrived! What a joy it is to play! The sound is amazing and the playability the best I’ve ever experienced right out of the box. My instinct is to immediately find something to adjust (dress frets, adjust the action, etc.). Not the Opeongo! The construction details are impeccably done! It just gets better each day! Well done Mackenzie & Marr!!!

This is a really fun guitar to play. I mainly finger pick and occasionally use a plectrum. My other 6 string is a D18 MD and I wanted a different sounding guitar. I must admit I was not happy with my first strum but the more I play it the more I love the crisp, clean "woody" sound. That's probably due to the excellent construction and the minimalist open pore matte finish. The intonation was right on and I only needed a little tweak to straighten the fretboard. Good setup. I made 3 modifications. I prefer a thinner triangular neck, like the Martin so I reshaped the neck. I think the new M&M guitar has this neck. The frets are well finished without too much slope on the fret ends so I able to fill and recut the nut for the 1st and 6th strings to move the strings further out. Take advantage of the 1 3/4 inch nut. Now I can use my thumb on the 6th string (D chord), and not damp the 1st string when playing a C chord. The asymmetric nut modification works for me. I also put silk and steel strings on this Opeongo parlor guitar.Very happy I took the leap to mail order a guitar. Wouldn't hesitate to buy another. Maybe I need something in rosewood. Great case too.

At first week of use didnt know if i liked sound,loved playability after a month of playing have fallen in love with sound. I have always played dreadnoughts and love them but this guitar is awesome for fingerstyle .

My new little Opeongo guitar is definitely a keeper! I’ve been playing it pretty much nonstop since I got it. The combination of mahogany back and sides and spruce top is amazing and just what I’ve been looking for. The combination of these tone-woods and the deeper sound box really adds up to a clear, full, and robust sound. The shape of the neck is super comfortable. And while the Opeongo doesn’t sound quite as good with a capo as my Martin 00 ms15, and doesn’t ring as clear beyond the 12th fret, this is a fine instrument and is a welcome addition to my collection. This is a great looking little guitar, too. The logo on the headstock is handsome, and it also looks great on the awesome hard shell case the guitar comes in.There were some minor issues upon delivery, but John Marr kindly and promptly replied to my email and we worked that out. He even checked back with me a few days later to make sure everything was okay. Thanks John:)I’m quite happy with this M&M guitar, and I seem to pick it up these days instead of any of my other guitars. With the “fall in love in a week” guarantee, there’s really nothing to lose. That guarantee speaks confidence! Take MacKenzie and Marr up on that—you won’t be sorry.

I purchased a guitar from Mackenzie Marr a year and a half ago, but sadly had to return it. The dimensions of the guitar did not suit my playing style. I returned it, with no hassel. This time around I did a little more homework and ordered a small palour guitar, the Opeongo OO. The guitar is exactly to spec and arrived well packaged and in a beautiful hard shell case. I love the look and feel of this guitar. A lot of sound from a small package. The neck is a little wider than what I am used to. It kinda' reminds me of an old Norman I learned to play on. The 12 fret neck is a unique experience and does make playing bar chords a little bit easier as your position over the guitar changes. I have noticed that the tuning keys become quite loose when the string tension lessons. However, they are Grover tuners and there should be a simple answer to that one. The open head stock does seem to transmit some sound as well, which was new learning for me. I like that the pick guard is optional, as I am not a hard strummer and the appearance of the guitar is a lot more authentic without it. I have owned Taylors, Martins and Guilds...some have worked well, others have moved on. But, I will be keeping this Mackenzie Marr parlour guitar. Thanks for your interest.

Bonjour à tous, je vais débuter en vous disant que depuis plusieurs mois pendant ma recherche de guitares qui se démarquent, je voyais sans arrêt des publicités sur Mackenzie and Marr. Je me demandais quelle était cette marque exactement. J'ai donc pris le temps d'aller voir les guitares, les reviews et des vidéos. Plusieurs fois, je suis allé sur le site, placé les guitares au panier en me disant...ah je devrais tu? C'est en regardant la vidéo de l'émission Dragon's den de CBC que la confiance a encore grandi. Je suis un grand amateur de guitare, j'ai une dread de Boucher, une 00 de Claude Boucher, le maître en personne (fait dans son sous-sol), Une OM eastman...donc vous comprendrez que mes standards sont élevés. Première chose sur la confiance. J'ai parlé à M. Marr quelques fois et il était très bon en français, on conversait des bouts en français, des bouts en anglais. Un homme très sympathique. Shipping très rapide avec un setup de guitare A1. Comme les autres le mentionnent à plusieurs reprises, la guitare est emballée avec très grand soin, ça ne peut pas être mieux. J'ai commandé lundi(férié en plus), la guitare est arrivée à Rimouski jeudi. Première chose importante que je remarque en ouvrant la boite, la qualité du hardcase. Wow, un case de bien plus grande qualité que bien des guitares à 5000$, c'est le premier constat important qui m'a épaté. Quand j'ai ouvert le case, j'ai remarqué que celui-ci était vraiment sur mesure pour une 00, autre wow, car ils sont difficiles à trouver. Beau rembourrage, beau revêtement top. J'ai alors pris la guitare, elle est extrêmement légère et belle. Un beau fini mât avec une super belle qualité de bois. La tête est très belle et la découpe parfaite pour les cordes, éviter qu'elles accrochent comme sur plusieurs slotted head. La touche est parfaite et douce, le rosewood est super beau, tout comme le rosewood du chevalet pyramide...un autre gros wow. Maintenant, le son. La guitare sonne vraiment très bien, un bel équilibre, une grosse projection pour sa taille. C'est un charme à jouer. je l'adore. Je viens d'ailleurs de lui coller son pickguard (placé dans le compartiment de l'étui) afin de lui donner le super look Martin des années 1920. Je suis enchanté de cet achat, de la qualité de la réponse, de la qualité du shipping et sans nul doute de la qualité du produit. J’ai déjà plusieurs guitares Rosewood alors je cherchais vraiment de l’acajou, j’hésitais entre la Opeongo et la Toffino X, mais je préfère l’épinette au cèdre. Si vous n’avez jamais joué sur une 00, vous n’en reviendrez pas du confort d’une guitare comme celle-ci. Merci à vous messieurs Marr & Mackenzie, votre rêve, permet aux autres de réaliser le leur.

I recently purchased an Opeongo OO model guitar. I have bought high dollar guitars online before and they were not as carefully packaged as this one. The folks at Mackenzie and Marr made sure that it would arrive in pristine shape. The guitar was built well, it has a nice appearance and it has a great sound. Give these guitars a chance and I don't think y'all will be disappointed.Kelly W., Texas, USA