Hi hi,
I had a chance to play an M-38 in Toronto. Now that I think about it, it would have been about 1980. I found the neck nicely contoured, the body dimensions were quite pleasant for my size (I'm a compact size person), and how easy it was to get as much sound as I could handle without really hauling on the strings. If I hadn't fallen in love with a '47 000-18 hanging on the wall next to it, I'd have bought it without hesitation. It is a good tool for fingerpicking, slide, and melodic flatpicking. The body shape also gives a better balance between the bass and treble, so it's not quite so boomy as a dreadnought. There.
I'm done.
Owl.