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Unfortunately my phone camera doesn't do it justice. This guitar plays very well and looks nice too. Intonation is good, etc...
My only concern is that it is very bright (almost more so than my telecaster). The pickups seem like they should be pretty good: Seymour Duncan 59 in the bridge and a Seymour Duncan Jazz in the neck.
Does anyone have any experience with this guitar? Would changing volume and/or tone pots do anything?
Unfortunately I don't know what's already in it and can't find any info online.
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04-28-2015 05:23 PM
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Brighter than a Tele? That's bright! Looks nice, though. A darker pickup might help.
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Sweet guitar. Maybe play around with the pickup height?
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Great guitar! I've come close to grabbing up one too. I didn't find the neck PU bright at all -- in fact, the SD Jazz in this guitar makes me want one of those pick ups in one of my other guitars! I'll bet there are tons of great tones to be found there . . . .
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The SD Jazz pickup is typically quite bright and, despite the name, not really well voiced for jazz. Consider the Seth Lover instead.
gibson used to use 300k pots in their guitars when the humbucker was first introduced. You can try 500k vol and 250k tone with a .022, .033 or .047 cap. That'll darken the voice some when you roll the tone down.
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brighter than Tele?..
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My Tele does have a Lollar Imperial low wind in the neck and 250k pots (so it is a pretty dark sounding tele)- but I was A/B-ing my tele with the Eastman, and the Eastman was definitely brighter to my ears.
I thought if someone knew what kind of volume/tone pots were in the T-486, I would be able to determine if I should consider swapping out the pots or changing the pickups. I am hoping it's the pots, that would be much less expensive.
I think I am going to bring it to a guitar tech near my house tonight and see if he can improve it by adjusting the pickup height. I played around with the pickup height after I got the Eastman but didn't have much luck.
Anyway, I'm still impressed by how well it plays right out of the box. My thought is: electronics can be changed, but a guitar only plays as well as it plays. I am very satisfied with the guitar!
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what's the diff between the T486 and T386?
I had a T386 and it definitely wasn't a a bright guitar, certainly not like a tele
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As far as I can tell, the only difference between the 486 and 386 are the fingerboard inlays. The 386 features dots while the 486 comes with parallelograms.
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Then I can say unequivocally that it's not bright. At least , none of the 3 I played and the one I owned. Perhaps the OP has an issue with the impedance of the pots but in the ones I have played they are no brighter than a 335.
Originally Posted by Klatu
Basically the T386 is a slightly lighter 335 with a more open sound (better top vibration) and very cheap hardware. Fingerboard seemed like cheaper wood too in terms of hardness, grain tightness, etc.
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Sounds good, Jack. It's good to know there's a quality alternative to the 335 on the market at a much lower price point.
Being that the 335 style semi-hollow will likely never be my go to instrument, I wouldn't want to sink too much money into one.
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The T386 also has Kent Armstrong pups, the T486 has Seymour duncans Originally Posted by jzucker
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The local Eastman dealer has had 386 & 486. I played them side by side. While the guitars feel very similar, the pickups on the 486 sounded way better to me -- no problem finding jazz tones with that guitar out of the box IMO. Not what I expected as the SD Jazz pickup doesn't get lots of love, but I was impressed with it.
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not necessarily a good thing. The Duncans they use have potted pickups which don't pickup any acoustic sound. The Kent pickups are microphonic and pick up the acoustic qualities of the guitar. Potted pickups are horrible for jazz IMO. Originally Posted by McGlamrock
[EDIT] didn't know they used the jazz pickup in the 386, it may not be potted. The 59 is.Last edited by jzucker; 04-29-2015 at 07:16 PM.
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I was A/Bing my tele and new Eastman and realized the tone knob was turned down about half way on my tele, while both tone knobs were all the way up on the Eastman
Whoops!
Anyway I love the Eastman. Here's one more pic of it (my record collection is in the background so everyone knows how cool and retro I am
)
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T386 has a rosewood fingerboard
T486 has an ebony fingerboard.
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Is this guitar especially bright sounding unplugged? If so, it is what it is, if not, then the issue and fix are in the electronics. In short, if it's bright unplugged and you don't like it, get rid of it and move on.
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Very cool looking guitar, McGlamrock...as far as the brightness goes, I know you said your tele had the tone rolled off--in case you don't know, a lot of folks who are going for "jazz" tones on guitar tend to use the neck pickup and roll the tone down. I would say halfway down is not uncommon at all. We like those dark tones! Some people take it too far to my ears--turning their tone down to like 1 or 2 (too muddy for me). Anyway, I guess my point is that even with pickups that are intended for jazz players, it's common to roll down the tone, so don't be afraid to do that with your Duncans. My main guitar is a 335 with a Duncan '59 in the neck, and while I wouldn't say it's bright, I think it sounds better with the tone rolled off a bit when I want a more traditional sound. Enjoy your new guitar! Seems like there are lots of happy folks on this board with Eastmans.
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Last week I bought a used Eastman T386 at a local guitar store. I loved the guitar right away. The look, playability and tone were all really great. But, after a couple of days I noticed an issue. The top maple laminate on the top rim was separating from the other layers. The shop was very good about fully refunding me for the guitar (I was reluctant to return it). Afterward, I found myself really smitten with the T386 and determined to find a nice one to replace the one that was not to be.
So, after some research, I am now awaiting the delivery of this beautiful, brand new T486. For VERY little more than the cost of the 386, the 486 has some great extra appointments: ebony fretboard with triple binding, bound headstock, premium flamed back. It has Seymour Duncan pickups (an SD jazz p/u in the neck position), and I think they will be an upgrade over the Kent Armstrongs that are in the 386. The only thing I didn't like about the 386 (other than the laminate flaw) was that the neck p/u seemed a little weak. I'll post my impressions after it arrives. And I can't wait. I think it's gorgeous!
I have owned a couple of nice Gibson 335's over the years, but could never justify keeping them when what I really wanted was a nice archtop or two. The Eastman semi's provide an excellent and affordable alternative.
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A local shop has a new T386 in stock, at $899, and a very lightly used T186MX on consignment for $1299. Are the solid woods and other upgrades of the 186 a good move up, for almost half again as much? And how much does the upcharge from a 386 to a 486 go for? (From what I have read, the upgraded pickups may make that worth pursuing, within reason.)
I am an older newbie finally thinking of acting on a long held desire for a jazz box.
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I owned a T186mx that was white, real pretty, but it came from the era when Eastman was still using the rather weak Chinese made pickups. It was super cheap ($700.00) One of the things I like about the 18X series is the center block is only under the bridge and tailpiece, giving you a really nice acoustic sound and it's not too heavy.
SO let's get down to brass tacks with the one you have in mind: what is the finish color, does it have a nicely flamed top ?? Can you get the shop to confirm what pickups are in it ?? If it's flamed out, has flame maple binding (which it should) and has Duncan Seth Lovers or Duncan '59s (which the newer MX's have) then it is DEFINITELY worth chasing down and trying out.
Good luck on this one.
Big
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The Classic Finish is really very pretty, it COULD be a spruce top ?? I'm trying to remember - those were pretty decent. I had a T146 which had been upgraded with Seth Lovers in the classic finish, gorgeous guitar. 16 inch by 1 1/2 inch deep body, carved spruce top, flame maple back - a real beauty - loud enough you could practice quietly at night unplugged - and super nice plugged in.
Look around on Reverb (which I did after I posted my reply) there are quite a few in that quoted price range. They're real sleeper deals.
Big
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I swapped out on an even trade basis my Strat Special (Mexican) and my National Polychrome Tricone (in taupe appliance finish) for the the T-186MX, and am very happy with it. The top is carved maple, not spruce. I did not realize that the block was relatively small, under the bridge and stop tailpiece, so it is mostly air chamber, not divided down the middle. The paperwork indicates this was built in 2009, so I am not sure which pickups it has, whether they are Seth Lovers. Very comfy ergonomics, I am liking it a lot, and as Big Mike says, you don't need to plug it in to practice, it has enough acoustic volume.
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How are you liking the T486, Mark? I have my eye on one of these, but the T185 is also appealing to me... The T486 looks like a nice upgrade over the 386, so I’m interested in your impressions.
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Mark AND Ed,
Really happy for both of you. Ed, would love to see photos of your guitar man. Like the say on the cigar bb's - if there's no pics IT DIDN'T HAPPEN !!! LOL, just kidding. I think Eastman is long overlooked and ignored by many. Great guitars.
Big
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