Eastman Guitars AC520

Thin satin finish, dreadnought, Martin-style ebony bridge, sealed Gotoh tuners, substantial neck, formed hard case, all solid wood, Spruce top, Mahogany sides, back, and neck, ebony bridge and fingerboard, bone fret nut and saddle, subtle MOP around sound hole and on fingerboard.

Full rich sound. Good for bluegrass, folk and blues. Clean notes, no buzzing, good mid-range, quite loud but not boomy. Well-balanced and can be played loudly or soft.

The neck is perfectly straight. The action is slightly higher than I prefer at the 12th fret, but decent. There is plenty of room at the saddle to lower the action, but I haven't touched it yet. There is no buzzing and the intonation is perfect. The spruce top is perfectly bookmatched and tightly grained. The top finish is very thin. There is no pickguard, so I will have to be careful. The frets were nicely smoothed and bound at the edges; the sides, back and neck are finished in a glossy lacquer. The workmanship is perfect. The Gotoh tuners work very well and the guitar stays in tune. The MOP inlays are restrained but individually beautiful. The guitar is nicely balanced; the body seems light but stiff.

Eastman guitars are all handbuilt. This guitar is solidly built with good materials, workmanship and hardware. There are no strap buttons, but I prefer to play sitting down anyway. The guitar stays in tune very well. Since the guitar is new and was built in 2006, I don't really know how it will age. Time will tell. Based on other Eastman instruments, it should last a long time.

The guitar has a lifetime warranty to the original purchaser. I have not needed to get any repair authorizations, but there are a decent number of dealers.

I've been playing for about 35 years, on and off. I also own a 1965 Gibson B-25-12, a few Goyas, and a Yairi classical. In the past I have owned a Gibson SJ and a Martin 00-18. This guitar compares well with a Martin D-18 for much less money. The case is included and is first rate.