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I wasn't aware there were so many AR480's on Reverb?
Maybe in the US , so they didn't show in my search since I live in France.
Thanks for the advice, gonna take a second look.
I think Eastman's are brighter because of the light construction and maple necks on a lot of them.
But maybe their tone has changed a bit over the years
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11-26-2025 05:19 AM
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With so many recommendations, it’s a mystery why you or someone hasn’t purchased the Epi Premium ES175 for $800 on the for sale page. It’s a can’t miss archtop for cheap.
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I can't find this post. Link?
Originally Posted by 2bornot2bop
With so many recommendations, it’s a mystery why you or someone hasn’t purchased the Epi Premium ES175 for $800 on the for sale page. It’s a can’t miss archtop for cheap.
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To be honest i don't find the 480 to be as bright as the carved top Eastman's.Frank Vignola played the 480 for almost a year on his Birdland gig and i can't describe the tone he got as bright. Originally Posted by Jx30510
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It's important to note that despite the aesthetic similarities to the 165/175, the Eastman has a significantly different neck, with a wider fretboard and greater string spacing compared to other brands. So, if you're used to the standard Gibson neck, and depending on your hand size, this may or may not be a positive thing.
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I have owned two Eastman AR371s (the single pup model). They were both excellent guitars with very big acoustic power, which means that I could play them unplugged to practice or jam. I sold the blonde to buy the AR480 Pisano two years ago. It gets more playing and performance time than my Gibson ES-175 because it's lighter and I don't have to worry about damaging a pristine guitar that's been out of production for coming up on 10 years.
I love how big and dark my 480 sounds. Were my 371s brighter? Yes, but I had D'Addario chromes on them so I could play these guitars without an amp. Plugged in the electronics take over, and they sounded great and very clean.
Frank Vignola was in the hunt for a Gibson 175 and was having trouble finding one. Eastman put the Pisano in his hands and he didn't play anything else on stage or in his lessons for a year. Although he's now often seen playing a vintage L7 and his Eastman signature model, he will still tell you the 480 is a great guitar and value.
Eastmans just keep getting more expensive. I shudder to think about paying 30% more in 2026 when the tariffs are expected to fully affect the market. In other words time isn't on your side whatever you buy that's new and imported.
There's a new one on Reverb today that's B stock at $1440 - ad says it was a store demo. Sweetwater has a "used" one on sale for $1360. You might call them - it sounds like it too may be a floor model or a return. Better still they have two more open boxes for $1500. You get 30 days to try these guitars. So there's no downside.
I hope you find your guitar soon and enjoy it and the music you make for many years!
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That is what I found with Eastmans. When I started playing in my late teens I had three guitars. A Fender Tele, a Gibson J-45, and a cheap Spanish classical. I have used a lot of “research and development” money to try a bunch of other guitars since. I always come back to the neck specs for the era of Fender and Gibson that I had as working for me. Originally Posted by caue amaral
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I am a big fan of Gretsches, in particularly the Double Anni models. You might be able to find one used for $1500.
I don’t know about the cheaper Asian-made models. They seem like a good bang for the buck. Don’t listen to what anyone says about Gretsches not being good for jazz. With the right volume/tone adjustments, they’re fine.
However…the most reliable and cost-effective choice is going to be a Godin Kingpin single or double model. They’re not super expensive, well-built, you can get them anywhere, easy to return through GC, and if you don’t bond with it it won’t be hard to sell without losing a lot of money.
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Godins are great guitars. They sound great. Just realize that they have very flat radius finger boards and the neck joint is old school with the body edge protruding away from the finger board. Part of my “R & D” money went into a Godin Jazz model a while back. Killer deal. They don’t offer that model anymore. Sounded great, but I couldn’t make myself get used to it.
Personally I would go for that Epi ES-175. Good price and a decent take on the original, IMHO.
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"the body edge protruding away from the finger board." I'm not sure what you mean? How so? Thanks.
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From the neck joint at about the 14th fret the body joins the neck with about 1/4”-3/8” of the body protruding out so that it is not flush with the treble side of the neck. Godin makes other models where that joint is flush. On the Kingpin cutaway models it is not. Originally Posted by Sleeko
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Oh I see, gotcha. Epiphone was doing this back in the '40's I believe. Thanks
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Once again, thanks for all the suggestions everyone. I ended up finding a 1996 Samick-made Epiphone Joe Pass in a nice sunburst finish for a good price from a good shop online so I just jumped on that. I remember my teacher having a blonde one and it played pretty well so I'm hoping this will be similar. I will save money for a Gibson 165 in a year or so, if I'm lucky. If this guitar ends up a dud I am buying the cheapest guitar on Sweetwater and calling it a day.
This was a weird situation because I actually had some money set aside for a good guitar (after selling a couple other not so great ones) in the hopes of that ES-165 being my only guitar. But as the return costs piled on (after getting some other stinker guitars) the budget went down and add to that some unexpected vet bills and I ended up in a situation where I had no guitar and an instrument budget well below my original one.
I have always been a "one guitar guy" but I definitely see the use in having a backup or two from now on.
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An MIK Emperor/Joe Pass is a great choice. I appreciate the slightly shallower body compared to my 90s Korean Epiphone Zephyr Regent (which is their 165 copy). You should dig the neck too. I like the curly brace accent at the end of the fretboard. Originally Posted by chris32895
I recommend replacing the pickup(s) with a 57 Classic at some point.
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I checked and it appears the seller removed it. Perhaps sold? Originally Posted by starjasmine
I also checked Reverb, and there are currently 5 Epiphone premiums for sale as low as $700. These guitars rule the world for an inexpensive jazz archtop. Check all of the forums epiphone premium es175 reviews. They’re countless!
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Funny enough I have a spare '57 Classic in my parts bin. However, I see some say the stock pickups give a good warm sound so I will try to keep it as-is as much as I can. Originally Posted by Boze
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I heard a lot of good things about these too and I really wanted to buy one, but the necks are way too thin from what I've read. When the necks start getting thin my hand cramps up. Originally Posted by 2bornot2bop
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The electronics are typically the weak point of the MIK hollowbodies. They use those pots that are only half the size of the CTS ones folks recommend and the pickups are cheap too. It's not uncommon to have to make the holes a bit bigger to replace the pots. Originally Posted by chris32895
I prefer jazz guitars with just a neck pickup since that's the only one I use but a side benefit is the simpler wiring compared to a two pickup model like the Joe Pass. It's like building a model boat in a bottle trying to install a new harness in a two pickup hollowbody.
But yeah, I have a Korean hollowbody that's clearly a rebrand of the Emperor and I'm just going to leave the pickups alone. Unless you want to dm me and sell me that 57 Classic lolLast edited by Boze; 12-02-2025 at 02:11 PM.
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I have a '92 EEJP. I don't play it much. The pickups don't look particularly well made. One day I'll change them. Originally Posted by Boze
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Hi Chris! Yes, they’re not for everyone. I have the advantage of being a piano player. Ignorance is bliss. Originally Posted by chris32895
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It's not so much hand size, but how you position your hand when you are fretting notes/chords IMO. I owned an ar503ce and moved it on because I am used to Fender and Gibson style necks and the Eastman was quite different from those brands. I like a chunky neck, but the nut width on the Eastman threw me off. Originally Posted by caue amaral
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Those look similar to the ones that came out of mine and they were not the clearest. The 57 Classic is so easy to recommend and my first choice nowadays. I also had good results with Fralin Pure PAFs in a MIK Emperor. Originally Posted by garybaldy
I have a '92 EEJP. I don't play it much. The pickups don't look particularly well made. One day I'll change them.
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I find it hard to believe that they would be the chosen pickups in the 1st Joe Pass model. All that seemed to change from the Pre - Joe Pass was the switch position for his endorsement. The '57s are great in my L5CES. I have an original T Top from the 70s that I might try in the Joe Pass. Originally Posted by Boze
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Ok,
You might consider an Epiphone Emperor Regent,
Its a poor mans Johhny Smith ( single mini humbucker, floating pickup)
It has a 17" spruce top, , all maple body and neck, 25.5"scale, gorgeous inlays, and
has great sound un-plugged, and plugged in. Mine woke up with the addition of Thomastik Infield flatwounds. (JS111).
I liked this guitar so much I bought a second one to put acoustic round wounds on. You can find them used with a hardshell case for under $800, I paid $700 for the 1st one and $575 for the second one, which was actually nicer. The blond ones are very pretty. Very affordable, and not hard to find.
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Thought I would give a little update to this since it's been a bit. So I got my Epiphone JP in a few weeks back and honestly the first impression was really good in terms of build quality. I was impressed with this little guitar - the 90s Korean stuff is really not too bad. The bad seemed to echo most statements here - poor quality electronics and hardware and (in my case) some fret/setup work. For some reason, the bridge was glued to the top and when I attempted to take it off a small chunk of the top came off - whoops. So off to the luthier it went for a top fix, bone nut, new bridge, fret level/crown/polish, and setup. When it came back it played a lot better as many of the frets were pretty high and the string spacing on the bridge was really narrow.
On the electronics end I did have a spare gold Gibson '57 classic lying around so I decided to use that and simultaneously get rid of the old wiring harness and switch. However, I did not want to redo the entire 4 pots and switch so I just opted wire it up with a single neck pickup and 2 pots. I used cheapo Amazon plastic hole covers that clipped over the existing pot/switch holes and a blank black humbucker cover over the bridge pickup slot.
It looks a little funny but honestly taking that pound or so off the bridge pickup slot really woke the guitar up. Also, the pots being on the other side of the f-hole means they rattle way less. It's not the best guitar I've ever played but it certainly plays well enough for me. I don't know what it is but with some guitars you can feel a lot of tension in the strings and some you don't - I'm happy to say this one feels very gentle in the hands.
After the work it didn't turn out to be super cheap but I find with archtop guitars it is very difficult to get a good guitar for cheap. Also, the top getting damaged was a bit of a blessing because now I know I will get next to nothing for the guitar if I ever decide to sell it and so am stuck with it.
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Recommandations for Hollowbodies for $600 and under?
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