Does anyone have experience with a Martin OM-42? How do you think it compares soundwise with Collings OMs?

I recently bought a 2004 Martin OM-42 (EIR/Sitka SB) in the U.S. mainly because the price was right and I can sell it here in Italy for a lot more than I paid. My plan was to play it for a while, sell it and get a Collings OM next time I'm in the U.S. I was thinking Collings mostly because I've been so satisfied with my CJ.

The problem is that the Martin sounds really great and I'm not sure now whether I should follow the original plan.

I have experience with one... and spent a few hours comparing it with an OM2H, a Santa Cruz non-prewar OM, and a Bourgeois. This particular OM2H, hardly played, sounded thin, almost skeletal. The Cruz was sweet, but a bit undistinguished. The Bourgeois was warm: very warm. It was like being drowned in honey. But the OM-42 was outstanding. Seriously. It was a knockout. Rich, golden, balanced, glorious. I was amazed at how good it was, all over the neck. It was NOT the best-built or best-looking guitar that day... some of the detailing I'd have been annoyed to find on a $500 import... but what a sound. More complex in the bass than the Collings, less forward in the mids, trebles not as fat, but overall a package that managed to be more easy-going and songwriter-friendly without losing out much on performance power.

Obviously, all Martins are not equal (and nor are all Collings, to a lesser extent). But if you've found a good OM-42, then that's a hard guitar to let go of.

peghead, your observations sound like you're talking about this OM-42. The sound could hardly be better and it keeps sounding better the more I play it, but the detailing, although acceptable, isn't up to the standard of a guitar costing this much.