Are Eastmans really THAT good?

[SaintClarence27]

Originally Posted by pagedr

But outside of buying a guitar for a specific recording project, why would anyone buy a guitar with the expectation of selling it? I don't understand that.

A lot of people on here buy instruments and sell them later when they want to trade up or buy something different. Not me, but different strokes I guess. If that's your habit, you should absolutely consider resale value.

[Jeff Scott]

I know a Matt Keefer, but he's probably not the one you know.

[blakey]

Tone is subjective. I liked the tone on my Martin Road Series a lot. But I had it setup from the shop when I first got it. Then later again by a respected local luthier. The action would just keep rising on it and it really pissed me off, despite being kept in it's case in a moderate UK climate.
It limited the sophistication to which I could play on it. It felt clumsy. My Eastman plays like a dream and has never needed adjustment. Ill take that over having to limit what I have to play on it just because of the name on the headstock and its resale value.
Why perpetuate the myth? they are for playing anyway.

[Br1ck]

They are certainly making it harder to buy $3K guitars all the time, but they remain in the if I had a mountain cabin I'd buy one, but I don't.


The idea of very low wages is, I believe, a thing of the past. There is an accelerating lack of labor due to demographics, one of the many factors affecting profitability in China today. It is going to be interesting going forward. I think as they improve, Eastmans are going to cost more. A strong dollar is keeping things in line now.

[scotchnspeed]

Originally Posted by blakey

Tone is subjective.

Tone is NOT subjective. The appreciation, i.e. the perception of those nuances, or the preferences of those components that constitute "tone," is subjective.

[SaintClarence27]

Originally Posted by Br1ck

They are certainly making it harder to buy $3K guitars all the time, but they remain in the if I had a mountain cabin I'd buy one, but I don't.


The idea of very low wages is, I believe, a thing of the past. There is an accelerating lack of labor due to demographics, one of the many factors affecting profitability in China today. It is going to be interesting going forward. I think as they improve, Eastmans are going to cost more. A strong dollar is keeping things in line now.

I don't believe this is accurate. China has a HUGE youth unemployment issue, to the extent that they stopped reporting the numbers.

[skinnerb]

I acquired an Eastman 522-AC some months ago and can hardly believe just how fine of a guitar it is. Very tight grain European spruce top, and beautifully silked Mahogany back and sides. It has a graceful, comfortable arm bevel and a tone port. It rings and sustains with clarity and warmth, and the fit and finish is top notch. The case is of excellent quality and the guitar fits without any wiggle. I highly recommend them.

[Cedar & Sound]

I bought an Eastman E20 Orchestra Model recently having been told it punches above it's weight and was something of a Martin D-28 killer. It certainly is because it looks and sound quite like a D-28 and costs about half as much. Even if you don't consider the competition it's comparing itself too, for $1600 it played like it should have for the cost. It has solid wood construction and everything looks carefully constructed. I hear they get their spruce from the same supplier as the high end brands.

I don't particularly like the finish and I'm sure it's going to take a while to open up because of it, but it's a brand new guitar and it would the same issue with a brand new Martin. In fact it looks so much like the Martin OM-28 that I'm certain Eastman just copied it deliberately.

The only guitar that has better playability is my Goodall, but of course there's no contest there. The frets are thin and don't have any buzzing issues, once I set it up properly. I put D'Addario XS lights on it and after stretching the strings a few times it's staying in tune really well.

The case is better than expected and it comes with a better truss rod adjuster for reaching all the way in.

Overall I'd say the one I bought is worth its cost and more, and it has challenged my previous biases of brand loyalty. Based on my updated experience with acoustic guitars, I'd say I go with a Guild at the 300-500 dollar level; an Eastman at the 1000-2000 dollar level, and wouldn't buy anything else better until the 5000 dollar level and with that I'd buy a Goodall or similar brand.

Believe me, don't buy an Eastman on the internet. Go to a shop and play one. If you don't like it that's fine, but don't follow the hype you read online. Test the sound yourself in person. I just happened to find the sound and playability to be exactly what I wanted at that price range. I'd definitely say it disrupted any plans for me to buy a high-end Martin, except for their all-mahogany ones.

[Cedar & Sound]

Originally Posted by scotchnspeed

Tone is NOT subjective. The appreciation, i.e. the perception of those nuances, or the preferences of those components that constitute "tone," is subjective.

Tone is just a simplified word people anecdotally assign to the frequency response of an instrument. It's brought up when expressing opinions about it, so it seems fair that people would perceive it as a subjective thing, because it's much too wordy to say "It's resonance of 200hz is overbearing" instead of "it has a deep bass tone".

[Cedar & Sound]

Originally Posted by dyna

NO.
they are ok I guess, but overrated, especially on this forum for some reason.

Probably ONLY on this forum. I had never heard of them before ever and I've been window shopping all kinds of acoustics since 2002. People generally don't know about it. I only bought one because I asked the owner of a music shop if he had a rosewood/spruce acoustic at about the 1500 price range that had good sound and playability and he starting talking about Eastman's as them being underrated for their construction materials and other qualities despite their price range. Unless it's all people talk about everywhere, I'd say they're still fairly underrated. I've been telling friends to try one out, because I didn't believe any of it until I could actually play one and I don't think anyone else should either.

[Cedar & Sound]

Originally Posted by pagedr

But outside of buying a guitar for a specific recording project, why would anyone buy a guitar with the expectation of selling it? I don't understand that.

Any new guitar should be purchased and treated with enough care that it holds value in case you decide to sell it later. When I first started playing guitar I have found that in time that I'd want to sell that guitar and buy a better one, or sell it because I don't like the sound, or sell it because I'm switching to bass for while, or sell it because I spent $4000 on it and now I kind of want that money back for something else.

I'm of the mindset that you shouldn't plan to buy a guitar with a plan to sell it, but you should be prepared to sell it if you happen to decide to. This just usually entails treating it well and keeping the case and box and accessories.

[NevadaPic]

FWIW. I bought an Eastman E20OM a few months ago. Very impressive fit, finish and tone. Glad I did.

[Dave in Olympia]

I have only tried Eastman guitars one time. I have no idea of the model numbers, but I sampled a dreadnaught and two 00 - 000 type guitars. They all severely underwhelmed me with their tone. No depth. No jangle. No personality.

[usb_chord]

I just read through five pages. For the love of god, who is Matt Keefer?

[soups]

Originally Posted by usb_chord

I just read through five pages. For the love of god, who is Matt Keefer?

https://www.culturedfoodlife.com/what-is-kefir/

??