#1
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Eastman E1-OM very bright sounding?
Hi all.
I was looking to get a nice OM/000 style guitar as I currently own a Martin 00-15m which I love but of course being an all mahogany small body it covers different needs than a larger spruce top guitar. So I saw a lot of praise for Eastman brand guitars on this forum and decided to try one out. It is worth mentioning that I chose the most affordable solid wood model I found which was the E1-OM. It was £500 new which is pretty affordable for a brand new 000/OM style guitar in England. Martins are very expensive over here even used. I purchased a second hand Sigma S000-18 which came up for sale from a music shop over here and a new Eastman guitar and decided that these were the best options in my price range and I would decide between them both and keep the one I liked best. I have to say the Eastman feels wonderful. It came well setup, it looks great and it feels very nice to hold and play. I love the neck on it. Add in the fact that it has a 000 scale length and it’s looking great so far. But here’s the thing. This guitar seems massively bright to me. I have restrung the Sigma guitar with 80/20 bronze strings and the Eastman with phosphor bronze strings still has way more treble in the sound to the point it felt overpowering to me. Are Eastman guitars known to be bright instruments in general? I feel that perhaps I was wrongly expecting more of a Martin inspired tone from the guitar. I feel like if you prefer a brighter tone then you will absolutely love these guitars as this is the only fault I could find for my own taste. I did also consider different strings to tame the treble but overall I feel the Sigma will be the best option for me to keep as it is also a very nice guitar for the money and since I bought it used I got it for a great price. |
#2
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I have owned two Eastman guitars and also felt they were very bright, just never could get on with their tone so I sold them off. I do think the rosewood back and side guitars that they make sound a bit more "Martin-esque" but all of their guitars definitely still have their own tone. You might consider trying some monel or nickel strings to help tame the brightness, but sounds like the Sigma might be better for you.
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#3
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No question Eastmans do tend to have more prominent trebles in the mix. I have heard their voice compared to Collings or Huss and Dalton rather than Martin. One man's brightness is another man's clarity, however, and you may grow to like it as you spend more time with it. I'd give it a solid chance.
I would expect both of these guitars to be of approximately equal quality so at the end of the day whichever one speaks most to you, that's probably the one to keep. |
#4
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I don't find the overall tone to be terribly bright, at least that's not how I would describe it, but I do find it to be a bit harsh and brash in the treble.
Monel strings helped with this in the mid-treble. Though there's not much you can do with the unwound strings except wait for them to wear out a bit.
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"What have I learned but the proper use for several tools" -Gary Snyder Bourgeois DR-A / Bowerman "Working Man's" OM / Martin Custom D-18 (adi & flame) / Martin OM-21 / Northwood M70 MJ / 1970s Sigma DR-7 / Eastman E6D / Flatiron Signature A5 / Silverangel Econo A (Call me Dan) |
#5
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I think with the sapele back and sides, that could contribute to the brightness. Overall I think Eastmans can have more treble response than a typical Martin but nothing like some Taylor models. My E10D had some brashness but also very full sounding. I put retros on it and it really tamed the treble side and it's just right to me now.
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We've got some guitars. |
#6
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They are definitely brighter than Martin. Much brighter than Collings even, IMO. You could try Nickel Bronze. I did like them on my E10D-TC.
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#7
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I had an E1OM, and fingerpicked it was quite nice. With a pick, I couldn't get used to it...harsh might be too hard a word. Just had an edge I didn't care for. I really enjoyed it when fingerpicked, but it lost it when strummed, IMO.
I've owned several Eastman OMs, and the trebles were "hot" on all of them, but the E1 took the cake. It was also the only "mahogany" OM I owned from them. The rosewood ones were a bit less brash if memory serves.
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Treenewt |
#8
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Definitely try nickel bronze on it. I played an E2om in the shop last week and was absolutely amazed at how good it was. I imagine the cedar to is a bit less bright as compared to the mahogany top
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Schenk Grand FingerStyle, Richard Gilewitz signature Emerald X7 Taylor 555 |
#9
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The Eastman are shipped with d’Addario EXP16 which are heavy coated dark sounding strings.
Put those, after a week your guitar Tone will be perfect.
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Martin 00-18V Goldplus + internal mic (2003) Martin OM-28V + HFN + internal mic (1999) Eastman E6OM (2019) Trance Audio Amulet Yamaha FGX-412 (1998) Gibson Les Paul Standard 1958 Reissue (2013) Fender Stratocaster American Vintage 1954 (2014) http://acousticir.free.fr/ |
#10
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My guitar (not Eastman) was bright when I bought it - now it's not. Give it some time.
As to why Eastman calls their guitars OMs instead of 000s: it's because they aren't Martin.
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OM-28 Marquis (2005) Kenny Hill Player (nylon) Gibson AJ (2012) Rogue Resonator (kindling) |
#11
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Don't give up on that E1OM , until you try a Dunlop Gator green 1.5 mm pick, and report back
I have the same guitar, my experience is that picks can really be game changers! |
#12
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Keep trying new strings. Mine is loud, responsive, and not all that bright to my ears. Good luck.
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#13
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Double post - sorry!
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2022 Yamaha Red Label FGX3 2022 Guild Westerly Collection OM-120 2016 Taylor 416ce-R 2010 Squier Vintage Modified Jazzmaster 1974 Rickenbacker 4001 Bass Last edited by personatech; 07-10-2020 at 12:14 PM. |
#14
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Another E1OM owner here. It's certainly bright when compared to my cedar top Seagull S6. Others have given you good advice - try the D'Addario nickel bronze strings. I had 13s on my Eastman for a while and just changed them for DR Rare 12s. So far, I'm happy with those as well, but I have a set of D'Addario Nickel Bronze 12s waiting to go on when the time comes.
Martin monels also tamed the guitar but I didn't like their feel so I quickly pulled them off - but you may have better luck! One thing you might try would be silk end strings - supposedly, they will tame harsh trebles as well. Enjoy that E1OM!!
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2022 Yamaha Red Label FGX3 2022 Guild Westerly Collection OM-120 2016 Taylor 416ce-R 2010 Squier Vintage Modified Jazzmaster 1974 Rickenbacker 4001 Bass |
#15
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Thanks all the responses so far. I have ordered a set of the D’Addario Nickel Bronze strings so I will report back once I’ve tried them out. I use a 1mm thick pick at the moment which is about as thick as I want to go so hopefully these strings can get rid of some brightness. Also I should probably clarify that since we all have our own ideas and descriptions of guitar tone that my definition of too bright is a harsh very treble heavy sound
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