Eastman Guitar Pricing...

CoffeeFan · #1 07-13-2020, 05:07 PM

When did Eastman's get so expensive?

I was perusing their website today and was shocked to see some prices over three grand for a Chinese made instrument. They're nice and all, but three grand?

Dbone · #2 07-13-2020, 05:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CoffeeFan

When did Eastman's get so expensive?

I was perusing their website today and was shocked to see some prices over three grand for a Chinese made instrument. They're nice and all, but three grand?

Those prices on their website are no where near what they actually sell for. They go for way less.

Cottonwood King · #3 07-13-2020, 05:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CoffeeFan

When did Eastman's get so expensive?

I was perusing their website today and was shocked to see some prices over three grand for a Chinese made instrument. They're nice and all, but three grand?

Not sure which ones are over $3k, but:

They are very high quality made instruments and are generally worth their price tag. That being said, the MSRP on their site is a bit higher than street price. The other factor for Eastman's price increases in the last few years (as a local shop informed me) is the US/China trade wars and the tariffs.

Most of their guitars are between $1,000-$2,000 from my experience.

llew · #4 07-13-2020, 05:29 PM

Make a few phone calls. You'll find them for less.

jklotz · #5 07-13-2020, 05:40 PM

You must be looking at list price, not street price, which is much lower.

Sonoma2 · #6 07-13-2020, 05:48 PM

I also noticed that the MSRP of Eastman guitars has gone up. I recently purchased an E20OM. The MSRP, 6ish months ago, was $1405 (or so). And now it's $1760.

stevecuss · #7 07-13-2020, 05:59 PM

I just purchased a lovely Eastman with torrified Adi top for a little over $1200. The closest Martin, I think would be aa VTS Adi 00018 which, without doubt, would be a fantastic guitar and would cost north of $3000, I think.

The Eastman version of a new 00018, the E6OM is just over $800 new. The Martin is $2400. Some can get it for less with a phone call, but Eastman is still coming in at well less than half the equivalent Martin.

This is not a comment on Martin and which is better, if Martin is overpriced. I think Martin makes a phenom guitar and I think the 00018 is a great value in the world of higher end acoustics, but $800 for a Chinese equivalent which sounds genuinely good is a steal.

I wonder if you stumbled across their limited double top range? Not many, or any factories doing steel string double tops. Some of our favorite AGF luthiers do, but its a rare bird. Those are just over $2000 new from Eastman.

Shishigashira · #8 07-13-2020, 08:07 PM

Their prices do seem to be inching up month after month. I was looking at the E2OM and it was around $460 a few months ago. Now they seem to be around $520 and climbing. I guess the pandemic driving guitar demand higher is impacting prices somewhat, but it reminded me of when Japanese cars first came out in the US. They were bargain priced at first but once people were convinced of the quality, prices started climbing quickly.

phcorrigan · #9 07-13-2020, 08:20 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sonoma2

I also noticed that the MSRP of Eastman guitars has gone up. I recently purchased an E20OM. The MSRP, 6ish months ago, was $1405 (or so). And now it's $1760.

That's about 20%, which is the amount of the tariff the administration has placed on most Chinese imports.

pdx · #10 07-13-2020, 08:23 PM

They do have a custom shop in California. You might be seeing some of those models on their website.

Charmed Life Picks · #11 07-13-2020, 08:42 PM

Some of you know that we're buds with the folks at Eastman. This is because they are terrific folks, and also because their West Coast facility in Pomona, CA, is about an hour from our shop.

Coincidentally, I chatted with a friend of mine over there this morning. We touch base about every month or two.

Their business has exploded since April and COVID, and they can barely keep up. So has the business of most vendors I've talked to. So has ours.

So, yes, I do think the trade relations and tariffs must have had an impact on pricing, and certainly street prices are lower. There's also always a cherry selection of lightly-played used Eastmans out there as well.

scott memmer

Wade Hampton · #12 07-13-2020, 10:12 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cottonwood King

Not sure which ones are over $3k, but:

They are very high quality made instruments and are generally worth their price tag. That being said, the MSRP on their site is a bit higher than street price. The other factor for Eastman's price increases in the last few years (as a local shop informed me) is the US/China trade wars and the tariffs.

Most of their guitars are between $1,000-$2,000 from my experience.

Yep. Their higher pricing these days is a direct result of the increasing ugliness between China and the United States.

It would be interesting to hear from folks in the British Commonwealth countries whether they're seeing the same thing in their music stores, or if it's a special present for the US alone.

whm

zephystar · #13 07-13-2020, 10:14 PM

Blueridge prices have gone way up too. A BR-160A (D-28 clone) was around $800ish a few years ago, now they are $1365. For that price, I would (and did) save for a little longer and get a real Martin D-28. You can get them new for a little over $2200. It's made only 1.5 hours from me and will hold its value much better.

If Martin holds pricing and Chinese guitars continue to go up, Martin is looking more and more competitive. Am I am very happy about that for them, they are swell people.

I took my 8 year old daughter to Martin on a tour and she loved it. Workers were super nice, she got to play a few models, and even now 2 years later she wears her Martin shirt all the time. She's been taking lessons for 2 years and I will eventually get her a Martin. I literally can't think of another company that gives such a great factory tour. Having that close connection to the company is important to me and it is now something important to her too. Paying a few extra hundred bucks is worth that experience to me, I can't get that with the Chinese companies.

AMW · #14 07-13-2020, 10:56 PM

Interesting and timely thread.

The prices on the Eastman website are the list price. Dealers are allowed to advertise at 20% off of that price, and Eastman enforces MAP. As has been said, a phone call goes a long way to additional savings.

There was definitely an increase in direct relation to the tariffs, but of course the COVID pandemic has affected the way everything works, from manufacturing to intercontinental shipping, to shipping from the CA custom shop to retailers. There's a heck of a lot going on right now.

Another piece of the puzzle, and one that wasn't even immediately obvious to us, is that their band instrument business (bowed, woodwinds, brass) is way down, due to school closures and the resulting lack of, well, band business from all angles. When you're sitting there, mesmerized by one of their awesome guitars, you forget that most of the civilized and developing world still buys a lot of violins for their young budding musicians!

What we will say, as a long time (proud) Eastman dealer, is that they're making the best fretted instruments they've ever made, and that those instruments stand toe to toe with guitars and mandolins that cost 2-5x as much. Our experience with our sales reps and the company at large has been nothing short of outstanding. 5 years ago, we might have been bemoaning the *pretty good* but inconsistent nut, finish or fretwork on a typical Eastman instrument, but that is 100% not the case anymore. They are making awesome stuff, they are hungry to prove themselves, and they are finding a level of consistency (both tonally and with regard to fit and finish) that is unheard of, at pretty much every price point that they offer. The torrefied dreads and OMs, the varnish Gibby-inspired stuff, the new PCH3 limited series... kind of hard to believe how good they actually are.

On top of everything, we've gotten better and faster warranty service from Eastman than almost anybody. On the rare occasion that there's a problem, they step up and take care of it.

Even if the price is creeping up a bit, Eastman is still offering some of the best bang-for-the-buck in fretted instruments these days. Maybe the best. You'll find that Eastman dealers are a passionate bunch!

Wade Hampton · #15 07-14-2020, 12:58 AM

AMW, I have to agree with you about the quality of Eastman instruments. Last year I bought a lightly used Eastman E1SS-something or another that’s basically a Gibson J-45 True Vintage at a fraction of what Gibson would charge me for the same guitar. It’s an exquisite instrument, and I couldn’t be happier with it.

The same thing goes for their mandolins. I’m a longtime friend of Richard Keldsen and the folks at Saga, but mandolin for mandolin, the Eastmans are extremely impressive.

Wade Hampton Miller