Eastman Guitars AR810CE

My guitar is a 2004 (made in China) solid wood, hand carved 17 inch archtop which I bought primarily for backing as a vocalist. I had several laminated archtops which were OK to very nice plugged in but not up to par acoustically.

I had been following the development of this company for several months and suggested that a dealer friend, J Hale Music in Hartland, Wisconsin consider taking on this line. Jeff had gotten a used 2003 Eastman in and there were people lined up to buy it. I was one of them but too far down the list. I played the 2003 and was amazed at the quality for the price.

When his first 2004 came in as a dealer he called me, as promised, to check it out. I found it almost perfectly set up out of the box (Jeff has all high end guitars set up by Denny Rauen..about as good as it gets). I couldn't find anything that Denny had to do from the original set up except polish out a minor chip in the headstock finish.

I like the look (it's basically a Benadetto rip off and not that much a K Mart version) and the acoutic sound. Amplified it seems to reproduce the acoutic qualities very well until you get way up on the volume. I personally like the hidden (pickguard) single volume control for the way I use the intrument.

After a month of ownership I think I hear the tone improving and things opening up.
I have since played several other 16 and 17 Eastmans which have come to the store after my purchase and found all of them pretty close, despite what other reviewers have said, at least to my singer's ear. I'm not much guitar player by professional standards but am very tone conscious for standards and jazz on an archtop. I think the Eastman has a pretty accurate vinate, woody sound. It's not the best archtop I've ever heard but right up there in the top 3 or 4 at a fraction of the going price.

The improved finish details from 2003 to the 6 or more models I have seen in 2004 is quite dramatic. One 16 inch sunburst that was snapped up by a well know Wisconsin teacher, jazz player and recording artist had a pattern in the maple back that was so outstanding it almost looked fake.

My guitar is the antique red violin finish which is becoming the Eastman look. I have seen a rare blonde AR810CE and several sunbursts. They all have great wood patterns, some a little better and the one mentioned above which was truly amazing.
In pictures taken from an angle you can see the grain in the top the finish is so thin (that's good thing). Eastman, at least on the red and other violin finished, uses a spirit varnish for an antique look then puts two coats of nitrocellulose on top and rubs the lacquer down almost to the color layer.

My guitar is without finish flaws. Others I have seen have very minor indentations in the finish or slight blemishes. At this price point the average is very good although not consistently up to a Gibson or Heritage or other models costing 2 to 10 times as much.

I like X bracing and the volume and tone it produces. Scale on Eastman websites is listed as 24 3/4 onthe 17 inch and 24 1/2 on the 16 inch. All the 16 and 17 inch models (six or so) which have come to the store here so far in 2004 measure 25 inches.
I'm not a good enough player for this to matter but for those who care about such things it should be noted that this is a new company with limited advertising and promotional resources. I would suggest that a buyer check out in person to make sure the one they get is what they want.

The new ebony/metal tailpiece and 2004 pickguard design really makes
the guitar look much more expensive. Finger board and headstock facing are also ebony. The F hole and other binding is flawless.

I use with both a Crate limo battery amp for small spaces and practice and a Fender Hot Rod DeLuxe. The Armstrong pickup seems a nice match for the tone of this model. It is on the bright side compared to some laminated Epiphones I was playing, at with the higher strings. Amp tone controls easily adjust this and provide a rich, full representation of the acoustic qualities. For smaller rooms the optimum effect is just enough amp to add some bass but not enough to overshadow the acoutisc tone.

I even use it for some country backup and, played a little closer to the ebony bridge it's like a second guitar.

It's pretty easy to play even with the high action I use for unamplified purposes. There were NO problems with frets, pickup, bridge, whatever. Perfect out of the box, including intonation.

Fit and finish on mine was flawless.

It seem sturdy enough for gigging in just about any atmosphere. I'd keep mine in the case and use a laminated model for outdoor, high humidity playing.
The finish is thin and will probably scratch or chip easily. In these days of poly finishes which are so thick and durable you wonder if there is a guitar hiding in there, I'll go with this feature any day.
The cost is so reasonable you shouldn't be afraid to use it.
No strap button (except the combination plug, button on the end, which I love, by the way). Eastman forum suggests any added button should go on the heel and NOT on the rim. Evidently the handcarved rims are vulnerable and should not be punctured lest the weather get inside down the road a few years.

The forum and other customer support things I've noticed are way beyond what you expect these days. The U.S. guy, Gordon, is kind of like dealing with the luthier. He really knows guitars and has been part of the development and contining growth and high demand for this line.

Been playing 50 plus years, but more seriously the last two.

I would replace this guitar if lost or stolen immediately.
Only a Heritage top of the line Golden Eagle has sounded as good or maybe a little better since I played a D'Angelico owned by a friend in 1953. It's a great guitar for my vocal backing.
I have a 44 year old Epiphone flattop (FT-110..all maple back and sides), a Martin slot head, 12 fret, a Peavey solid body and an Epiphone Howard Roberts, 1996, and Emperor Regent , 2001 (the last two are being sold because the Eastman does what they did enough better and I never touch them now). They are both too good to sit in a case.

It's all I can do to keep from buying a 16" Eastman just to have another variation and finish.

Made in early 2004.
Standard 20 fret Benedetto, DAngelico style 17" solid carved archtop.
All hand carved solid woods - spruce top, maple back and sides.
Kent Armstrong floating pickup with thumbwheel volume.
3 piece maple neck.
Ebony fretboard, 2 piece bridge, finger rest, and tailpiece
Thinly (in a good way!) applied lacquer on a "vintage" sunburst finish.
Tuners are Jinho - gold plated and not very responsive - The ONLY aspect of the guitar that is subpar are the tuners.

I give it an 8 based on the subpar tuners and the slightly annoying case.
Case is a fiberglass hard case. The case is also a little disappointing in that it does not have an inside pocket, but does this wierd velcor attached bag that you cas store picks, strings etc.

I play straight up jazz, solo chord melody, swing, and big band music. This guitar suits it perfectly. Played acoustically it has a tight woody sound - I string it with DR Zebras 12s and use Clayton Ultem picks. - a little weak on the bass side (I suspect it will open up over time). Overall the 810 has a the punchiness of an archtop, some of the tonality of a flat top and the usual archtop characteristic of weak bass.
On the treble side the guitar sounds great. Very sweet highs with moderate sustain. Varying the picking postion give some variety too.

I played 10 different 810CEs and they all sounded different. The one I chose had the tonal qualities overall that I personally wanted.

I would recommend palying as many of these guitars as possible as there seems to be quite a bit of variation.

Amplified the Armstrong Pickup sounds like...an Armstrong pickup. Amped the guitar has clear open and woody tone. My main gigging amp is a Princeton II with a fender special design speaker.

This guitar feeds back a little more than my 1988 L4 ces or my Mark Campellone Standard 17"

Rating 8. Maybe it'll be a 9 over time as the guitar seasons. I dout the bass is ever going to open up to the point where it is as strong as my MC Standard.

I am spoiled by the MC Standard

Set up - The intonation was way off when I got it. Simple enough to set. Now that I've done so it seems to be fine.

The finsish is really beautifull. Sunburst, but light enough at the edges to still see the wood grain. The top and back are nicely bookmatched. The top has a few dark spots in the wood grain, but I don't consider them to be flaws.

The bracket that supports the pickguard is a little low and rattled. I did put some adhesive backed padding on the bushing that contacts the unerside of the pickguard in order to dampen a slight buzz.

Will this guitar withstand live playing? I believe so. Since I'm sitting in a chair when I practice and play out I see no real difference. I almost always retune every 3 or 4 songs anyway - one of the advantages of playing solo in cafes and restaurants - people are rarley hanging on your every note!

Does the hardware seem like it will last? Ultimately I will probably replace the Jinho tuners with Schallers.

Is the finish good enough to last, or does it seem thin and easy to wear off with lots of playing? This company has been making violins and cellos for how long???? I am not worried about the finish.

Would you use it on a gig without a backup? I actually bought this guitar as a backup guitar for my Mark Campellone Standard. The Campellone is my gigging guitar. The 810 CE is for taking on vacation or in the unlikely event the MC is out of commssion.

I would certainly gig with the 810 without a back up.

I give it a 9 purely because of the tuners.

Lifetime warranty

I did call and ask them to mail me a pick guard support bracket, which they did immediately.

How long have you been playing? 35 years - 15 Jazz

If it were stolen or lost, would you buy it again or get something else? I would try to replace this guitar with another 810 - if I could find one with the same tonal qualities.

What do you love about it? Looks and overall tone.
What do you hate? Jinho tuners are not so great. Case could have a built in pocket

What is your favorite feature? Gorgeous finish

Did you compare it to other guitars?

Compared it to several other 810 CEs chose this one for tone.

I purchased this guitars from Guitars N Jazz in Summit NJ. A great experience. Since he is by appointment only there was no real or imagined "competition" from other players in the store. Plus, Lou - the owner - was a pleasure to do business with. A real gentleman.

this is brand new (2004) made in china by people who aren't intimidated by carving wood. It's all carved. when you carve a piece of wood you are able to understand it's characteristics. I spent 17 years in pro-woodworking.
there is one kent armstrong pickup with one volume control. all electronics are respectfully and dutifully tucked away in a professional manner.
spruce top. figured maple back and sides. a sensible finish; not 'encased' in plastic. triple bound ebony fingerboard. metal trapeze bridge.
17" jazz box - comfortable to hold. the tuners are the only thing that aren't first class.
25" scale length (very nice). and i might add - with the 12's it came with - this thing was intonated - very impressive; somebody cared.
the case is weird - it instantly reminds one of a cello case - which makes sense. the case is well made and durable if very out-of-the-ordinary. the surprise was getting a nice little pouch with a hook-on carrying strap in it; unique and positive.

the sound is something i think i will be comfortable with over time. a spruce top takes some 'breaking-in' - yet you can glean a clue beforehand. this will age quite nicely. it's hard to think that - when this is 5 years old - many guitars will compete with the quality of tone. (i just ordered a second one)
variety? that depends on your attitude and hands - not the guitar - doesn't it? this guitar WILL respond to your presentation.
this is as full and natural a sound you can expect from this type of guitar. very satisfying.

set up was perfect. i've bought way too many guitars - this is the only one that gets that assessment.
the 'figure' on the top is accurate if aesthetically dubious. no, this isn't the best quarter-sawn spruce i've ever seen. it remains to be wheather the quality of sound is diminished - i doubt it. again, when you carve wood - you 'respond' to it.

gold hardware sometimes lasts longer - sometimes shorter. time will tell. who cares? i'll probably replace the tuners within a year anyhow.
other than that the hardware is quite servicable.
the finish far exceeeds Fender or Gibson or??? you have to install your own neck strap button (pretty standard on an acoustic guitar)

i don't know.

Hello

There have been many exciting opinions rendered regarding
Eastman guitars.
I would like to share my Eastman experience.
Having heard so much positive feedback regarding Eastman Uptown guitars, I purchased an 810CE from Guitars n Jazz in Summit, NJ in July 03. Distance prevented me from sampling guitars first hand, so I bought sight unseen. The guitar arrived and I was as excited as anyone to open the box and see the extraordinarily beautiful guitar inside the ?funky? black case which I eventually replaced..
I started spending time with the instrument and was impressed by its great sound and tone. Great acoustic qualities right off the bat. Over the following week, I noticed very rough edges on all the frets. I realized that the frets had not been dressed properly. One could actually run their fingers down the fret board and catch skin on the fret edges. I contacted the dealer and he authorized the repair which was paid for by him.
Soon after plugging the guitar in to play electric, I noticed this very slight static noise that was like a very low pitched buzz. I posted this on the Eastman news group under the heading of Static On My Uptown. After many suggestions and troubleshooting on my part, it was determined that the guitar was missing a ground wire. Both Gordon Roberts of Eastman and Guitars N Jazz authorized me to get this fixed. It was at this time that I also started to get buzzes at certain fret locations. I took the guitar to Superior Guitar in Philadelphia and during the process of installing the ground wire and checking the frets we found that most of the frets were loose enough to come up by putting your fingernail under them and pushing up. The Luthier assessed that the fret slots had been cut slightly larger than necessary. He also pointed out a bent tailpiece plate that was not seating properly! At this point I contacted the dealer, who contacted Eastman, and the guitar was shipped back to Eastman for inspection. I paid Superior Guitar and used UPS shipping with insurance to send the guitar to Eastman. Eastman decided they would replace the guitar. After one misfire of sending me an 805CE I very happily received another 810CE which I was very excited to finally have in my possession, more than a month after having given the guitar up for repair. I opened the case to inspect the guitar, but was shocked to find rough edges on the frets of this guitar as well. This time not as severe as the original, but I could not settle for this. I contacted Eastman and they agreed to refund my original purchase price, ?excluding? the ground wire repair and UPS shipping, all of which had been authorized by Eastman and was paid for out of pocket by me. That was unfair as all I wanted was an excellent Eastman which was their promise. It is true that Eastman has very good customer service. They were very accommodating. However, Eastman needs to look at their quality control issues. Obviously, my original guitar #292 should not have left Estman as is. I only express what I have experienced first hand. I have owned many fine guitars over the years and have never had problems of this nature. I only asked the same of my Eastman 810CE, something they couldn?t deliver me.

Be Well,
John

2003 model (this is the first year they've started making archtop guitars) It has one neck pickup with a hidden volume control, the most beautiful finish you'll ever see, gold plated hardwear, and a pretty thin neck (i tried a few all of which had different neck widths and feels). It also came with a rather nice fiberglss case that looks like it could double as a flight case (but i wouldnt trust it).

I am a student at USC and my primary style is jazz although i venture into funk, rock, r&b and anything else i can manage. This guitar is one of the nicest i've played for jazz, though i doubt it would really be sufficient for the more strat oriented styles. (it also has a tendency to feed back depending on the volume distance and amp you are using) This baby sounds great acoustic, although depending on the amp used it can be a bit on the high end side plugged in. The reason is because Eastman decided they wanted the truest to an acoustic sound the guitar could produce (which is much more high end than i like plugged in) so there is no tone control. I reccomend one of the first things you do is have one put in (the show i purchased mine at does it with no trouble at all)

Overall i gave it a 9 only becuse of the feedback and the lack of tone controll (which once put in makes all the difference)

Coming out of the Eastman factory these guitars tend to have a few consistant flaws. But they're nothing a good luthier cant fix in a usual set up. Once set up the action and intonation are perfect. The finish... wow.. well lets just say i spend a lot of time practicing outside, and i get a lot...a lot of stares (this thing is beautiful). The one thing this company has nailed is making a solid (sounding and looking) archtop body with a great almost antique like finish

Everything seems fit so far. I've had no need for a backup.

i've never had to deal with the company, but so far i havn't heard of there being any trouble.

I happen to be very lucky in the fact that this was the first archtop i've ever owned, and i'm pretty sure it'll last me my lifetime. I've run it through several amps (fenders...polytones.. peavey) it sounds nice on all of them and the Fender hot rod deluxe seems to give an especialy good tone. If this guitar was stolen i think i'd go into depression...but probably just start saving for another one. This company JUST started making guitars and i have a feeling they're only getting better at it.