Archtops under $2,000?

[J.R. Rogers]

Every year I see the Eastman guitars at NAMM and they blow me away. Especially the El Rey series - designed by Otto D'Ambrosio.









Jim Fisch series:


John Pisano series:


Pagelli Series:




JR

[JohnZ]

Originally Posted by massimo

Can anyone mention any good archtops, in that sub 2k range, that have a vibrato tailpiece?

best regards
Massimo

It's pretty easy to put a Bigsby on any laminate top archtop.

[Taylorplayer]

A traditional model - but one that appears to be a great value:
http://www.massstreetmusic.com/store...-Eastman-AR605

I would seriously consider that one if I was in the market. Throw in free shipping, and it would be hard to beat.

[Mountain Fever]

I had a chance to play the Eastman 805CE when it first came out. It was in the violin finish, which looks absolutely beautiful.

I thought the sound matched to looks...top notch.

If I were more of a jazz style player or if I could have wrangled a better deal for it, I would have bought it.

As stated before...you would have to spend many times the $$$ to get the usual named archtops.

You might also consider the Gretsch US archtops. A local dealer put a K&K pickup in it (not floating) and with round wound strings it really sounded nice.

[Tone Gopher]

... and after two pages of responses, we still don't know what the OP is looking for...

[NewMartinFan]

I'm looking for something that sounds like this: http://www.youtube.com/user/ipo66#p/u/2/xAVg5eXEWIQ. Thanks for the responses.

[Taylorplayer]

Originally Posted by NewMartinFan

I'm looking for something that sounds like this: http://www.youtube.com/user/ipo66#p/u/2/xAVg5eXEWIQ. Thanks for the responses.

Then I suggest this: http://www.guitarcenter.com/Ibanez-A...ELAID=29483545

[Taylorplayer]

I had one that I should have kept....

[NewMartinFan]

Are you telling me that guy is playing a $400 guitar? Wow.

[Pvee]

Gibson ES-339. Little smaller body than a ES-335.

You can find old 1956-1960 Gibson Es-125 and ES-225's in that price range.

Also an inexpensive one that is getting very popular right now is the Godin 5th Avenue Kingpen.
http://guitars.musiciansfriend.com/p...tar?sku=584109

[Taylorplayer]

Originally Posted by NewMartinFan

Are you telling me that guy is playing a $400 guitar? Wow.

I'm a little confused by your sarcasm. I thought you were trying to stay within budget? And you wanted a guitar that would "sound" (not necessarily have all the vibe) of the one in the video. How do you know it won't? I had an Artcore that held it's own against a 2K Gretsch I had (and it stayed in tune much better)

To my way of thinking, 2K or less already excludes a lot of the archtop market. Especially if you want a domestic brand - Gibson or the like.

Anyway, all the best on your search.

Taylorplayer

[NewMartinFan]

My reply was not meant to be sarcastic. I don't know anything about archtops. I thought you were indicating that he was playing the Ibanez you recommended. I was indicating astonishment that a $400 guitar sounded that good. If all $400 guitars sounded that good, I would only play $400 guitars. Apparently, however, he was not playing that Ibanez? Thanks.

[Polyhymnia]

Originally Posted by Folkstrum

His comments were along the lines of very fine craftsmanship and Q/C; nice "touches," superb action and excellent volume and tone. Simply a ton of bang for the buck, and hard to believe something so beautiful was priced so low. "How do they do that?"

Eastman:

The Chinese are making very good products in a variety of areas, including clothing, machinery, and electronics, and their labor rates are very low compared to the U.S. It's easy to bash the Chinese, but the Germans in the 1800s were making cheap knockoffs of English and American products, and now they are at the top of the heap for engineering and manufacturing in many areas. China will do the same eventually, given the rate of investment, the hunger of so many of their workers for a better life, and the support of their government. We are lacking in all three of those factors.

Eastman is making very good instruments for the money--their flattops aren't the equal of a boutique U.S. instrument (and hopefully they never will be)--but my Eastman archtop is just fine where it needs to be, and, well, I can afford it, whereas I can't afford an equivalent new U.S. instrument.

[Taylorplayer]

Originally Posted by NewMartinFan

My reply was not meant to be sarcastic. I don't know anything about archtops. I thought you were indicating that he was playing the Ibanez you recommended. I was indicating astonishment that a $400 guitar sounded that good. If all $400 guitars sounded that good, I would only play $400 guitars. Apparently, however, he was not playing that Ibanez? Thanks.

My mistake... sorry about that.

[TaoMaas]

Originally Posted by NewMartinFan

Are you telling me that guy is playing a $400 guitar? Wow.

I think Taylorplayer is exactly right. It looks like the guy in your video is playing an Ibanez Artcore. Look at the tailpiece, the metal adjustable bridge, and the shape of the inlays. So, yeah...he's playing a $400 guitar, I think.