Are Eastman Guitars made by Yunzhi?

[keith7940236]

I can't help but notice the similarities between the two guitars. I haven't seen in the forum if anyone knows if Yunzhi builds the guitar bodies for Eastman. I see that there are people that are very happy with both guitars, but I haven't read anything yet that tells me if there is any difference between the two.

[Retroman1969]

I don't know if you saw this thread, but it seems to at least partially answer your question.
http://www.jazzguitar.be/forum/guita...i-guitars.html

[Drumbler]

I'm not sure if Yunzhi makes them or not. Yunzhi is the guy who always wears that yellow shirt.

There's another guy named Chou Fan who makes them too.

Both Yunzhi and Chou Fan do a decent job on the guitars.

There is a guy named Shin Lan who is new and makes a lot of mistakes. Try not to buy one made by Shin Lan.

[BigMikeinNJ]

The way I heard it was originally there was just Eastman. Two gentlemen were partners - at some point they decided to separate their partnership - one kept the Eastman name, the other took half the aged wood and half the workers and eventually formed Yunzhi.

What's the difference ?? With Eastman you pay a higher price but the instruments are already in America and supported by Eastman's warranty and the dealers can assist you in ordering something custom. Realize some of the custom work is done stateside once the guitar is built.

With Yunzhi you get direct communication with their employees who translate your requests to the group of artists who build the guitars. I have worked many times with Ms. Lora of Yunzhi offices and find her quite thorough and helpful. What is the benefit of dealing directly with Yunzhi, you save about half of the retail price.

[TruthHertz]

Yunzhi=offshoot of Eastman. Like the enthusiastic little brother that left school early. Good design. Dicey execution. Crap shoot. Bad QC and consistently cheesy electronics. Eastman worked these things out long ago. Think of it as 80% Eastman. When they get the 20% detail work and quality control issues together you stand a better chance at getting a pro-quality product. Details on that other thread directed to in the second response by Retroman.
David

[keith7940236]

Thanks for the information. As I have been playing folk guitar for over 30 years, I am new to Jazz guitar. I have a Martin J-40 that I love, but really want to expand my horizons. I think that I'm going to pull the trigger on an Eastman AR610CE instead of taking a chance on the Yunzhi. Any comments on mahogany vs maple? I know that I like the sound better in flat tops.

Thanks again
Keith

[TruthHertz]

I love the warmth of mahogany. And it's lighter. It's taste and aesthetics though. That's just me, though I'll say maple's really pretty with a nice figure in the grain.
David