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This guitar arrived yesterday, and I put TI George Benson strings on, 14 for the first string, and lowered the action a little. I wanted a box that would have some acoustic attraction for me, which this does, while having a humbucker inset pickup. The sound board is carved spruce, with laminated maple back and sides. Ebony fingerboard. My plan is to replace the stock pickup with a CC-style pickup.
It's a gorgeous guitar, plays beautifully, and can be found at a great price - I paid £1,000, including great Eastman hard case. I prefer it over the 371 I had a few years ago.
So, here is an acoustic, unplugged performance of a piece by Hy White - you can read a little about Hy below.
Hy White is another of those great players from the late 30s through 50s who should be much better known to today's jazz aficionados. He played with the Woody Herman Orchestra (with whom he recorded River Bed Blues - see below), recorded with Coleman Hawkins and Ben Webster, pop singers Doris Day, Bing Crosby, Frank Sinatra and others, and became the house guitarist on the Ed Sullivan Show for fifteen years. That's quite a CV!
I came across an edition of his solos, called "Guitar Digest by Hy White" which you can download HERE. The contents include a transcription of his great River Bed Blues with the Woody Herman Orchestra, which you can hear in this video:
While working on the Ed Sullivan Show, Hy was asked to fill out The Beatles' guitar parts, which weren't recorded too well. He laughs about becoming for a short time, the Fifth Beatle. He tells the story in this enjoyable video:
Last edited by Rob MacKillop; 08-18-2019 at 08:26 AM.
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08-18-2019 06:53 AM
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Beautiful playing. I just bought that very same guitar, except in the alternate stain. I haven’t made any changes yet but the shop did toss in a set of TI flatwound GB strings (.012 to .053) which I’ll put on when I’ve worn out the set it came with (shouldn’t take long ;-). I did notice yesterday that plugged in, the balance between strings is a bit uneven - especially the G to B transition. I think that’s something that can be addressed by tweaking the individual poles in the pickup. I too am mesmerized by the acoustic tone of this guitar, which is so different from the Martin dreads which have been my primary guitars for decades. I had an Ibanez semi-hollow many, many years ago - very early in my learning - but this is really my first true archtop guitar. I also added a DV Mark Little Jazz to my setup and am totally enthralled with the plugged-in tone. I’m curious what make/model pickup you plan to install, and what improvement you anticipate in the tone. Also curious what mic you used for your lovely recording.
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I think your version comes with a Seth Lover humbucker, which is an upgrade on what mine has.
I like CC pickups, but am not trying to emulate the CC sound or style of playing, but there is something about the warmth and punch of a CC-style pickup that attracts me. Mine will come from The Creamery in England. The one-man operation is called Jaime, and he made a pickup for me before, a Fat Tele replacement which was excellent. Here's a link to the pickup: https://www.creamery-pickups.co.uk/c...cker-size.html Clearly he has not tried to emulate EXACTLY the early CC pickups, but I do like it when he says his research into his own CC was "a real labour of love", and the price of £80 is good. We shall see...
Mic for recording: Rode NT4 stereo. I've had it for 12 years without any problems. In the video it is off-screen, just ten inches from the lower bout.
Thanks to all those who gave a thumbs up.
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Congratulations Rob! Great playing too! Can't wait to hear it with a CC installed!
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Cheers, 2b. It will be two or three months, as Jaime has a backlog of orders. Everything is hand made by him. But I'm in no hurry.
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Rob, Any thoughts as to how the AR503CE compares to the Peerless Leela?
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Both great guitars for the money, Danielle. I really liked the Leela, but the 503 has more of an acoustic feel, which I like more. But I recommend both guitars.
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Looks like I have a twin sister. A bit more red in the finish, this one was called an Ice Tea Burst finish.
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Lovely tune, lovely playing, and honestly one of the nicest acoustic tones I've heard from a guitar with a set humbucker.
Winner winner.
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I have the 503, but I am thinking perhaps the Leela might work better in a bar where the volumes are a little higher.
Originally Posted by Rob MacKillop
On the Leela do you find attack and sustain is reasonably consistent at all points on the neck? No obvious wonky notes? From pictures I have seen I get the impression the nut is a full 1 11/16 and not less than that.
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Danielle, much like the Peerless Cremona, Monarch, and Imperial, the Leela too has a 1 11/16 nut width. Originally Posted by DanielleOM
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Danielle, I sold my Leela, but do remember that it had a good neck, with no weak parts.
Fep - that's gorgeous too. I've not always been a fan of Eastman varnishes, but they got it right with our guitars.
Jeff - I've always respected your judgement, so: many thanks! It has enough of an acoustic tone to satisfy my yearning for that when it comes along. The electric sound, I can tweak.
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Happy NGD, Rob
Nice playing as usual.
Here is mine, it gets played unplugged 99% of the time
Strange that I can't get the sound YOU get from this guitar. Must be the strings !
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Nice guitar Rob. Eastman’s are fine instruments and they provide a nice acoustic / electric balance - and quite reasonably priced. Do enjoy !
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Looking good, 339. I can't get the sound you make, either.
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Cheers, QAman. I agree!
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As long as we’re sharing...
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Is that the new one, with the Seth Lover humbucker?
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It’s new - I’ve only owned it a couple weeks now. There was no documentation on the hang tags that detailed the components. The Eastman web site describes it as having a Seymour Duncan Seth Lover so I assume that’s what’s installed. Originally Posted by Rob MacKillop
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Your guitar is a beauty, my favorite of the ones I've seen. Is it a spruce top? Originally Posted by lukmanohnz
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Thanks! I am quite pleased with it. Yes, solid carved spruce top and laminated maple back and sides. Originally Posted by fep
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That's a great sound, Rob. How loud would you say it is in the room? How does it compare to some of the true acoustic archtops you've played?
John
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That's a great sound, Rob. How loud would you say it is in the room? How does it compare to some of the true acoustic archtops you've played?
John
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Hi John. It's no Elferink, that's for sure. But it's loud enough, with a fairly wide dynamic range. It's not an acoustic guitar with a pickup, but it comes close.
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HNGD Rob!
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