Finally scratched the thinline P90 hollowbody itch

[mad dog]

My P90 craze gets deeper. Messing with scales, jazz stuff, I've been thinking a thin P90 hollowbody would be so perfect, flexible. Good for jazz ala Grant Green (reason enough to go that way, right there). Plus, just as suitable for bluesy, roots stuff, rock.

The ES-330 would seem the perfect choice. But for me, no luck. I owned a '67 ES-330, was not impressed by the feel or the sound. Other vintage ones I've tried had that special something, but cost too much. The one custom shop RI I tried out impressed not at all. And the newer ones are pricey. So I went the casino route. 4 casinos later, I'd found very playable instruments, but none with the right sound. Even with upgrade p/us, no real depth, warmth.

This Eastman guitar, the T64v, certainly showed promise in the specs. Quality everything. Ebony board, Lollar p/us. Not cheap electronics. French polish finish. Tried two. No magic at all. Figured give it one more try. Found one used relatively close, tried it yesterday. 2 seconds in my hands and I said "Sold!". As good as I thought these might be, this one is. Better. Feels in the hands like an old, well played instrument. The ebony board, the Lollars and the steeper break angle off the bridge due to the B7 Bigsby ... makes for a really solid playing feel, and the most beautiful tones. I'm not in love with the SS frets, but can live with that.



Relearned a lesson I already know well. One can narrow the search to certain types, brands, models, but the ultimate decider is at the individual instrument level. Huge variation guitar to guitar. Good thing I persisted.

BTW: Here's a demo that gives a good idea of the sound:

My guitar does sound like that. Mr. Tubbs only hinted at how this guitar could handle jazz. I can already tell ... it's a great fit.

[Joeontheguitar]

Congrats and play it in good health. The T64 is an amazing instrument. Yours has (unlike mine) a relic job that is realistic. Most of the T64 relics on the sunburst are overdone in my opinion. I took my T64 to a summer school last week and played for 8 hours a day, six days in a row. It's so comfortable to play and the low weight definitely adds to that.

[feet]

Congrats on your cool new guitar. You might be in to something, because my (modded) elitist casino sounds nothing like that. He had some very interesting thoughts on the bigsby vs trapeze; I had never considered that.

I came close to buying a similarly finished/aged acoustic from them; they certainly have nice offerings. Hope we get to hear yours soon.

[mad dog]

You might be in to something, because my (modded) elitist casino sounds nothing like that.

Of the 4 casinos I had, 3 were Peerless made in Korea, one an elitist MIJ. I thought for sure the elitist casino would be a giant leap ahead. It was a better guitar in some ways than the MIK casinos, but not enough to warrant the higher price. And even with Gibson P90s, it just didn't have that sound.

I'm guessing one reason the casinos did not satisfy was the metal covered pickups. Perhaps that deadens the sound, don't know for sure.

[Mark M.]

Nice! I love mine as well. I went with the trapeze tailpiece and agree this guitar has a great sound for jazz and is so versatile. It’s the most comfortable guitar I have ever played. This one is definitely a keeper.

[feet]

The plastic covers are supposed to make it sound a bit brighter, yes. Which would mean that metal covers must be part of the casino sound, I guess.

One thing I ask everyone on Earth regarding their casinos/es330, etc: have you shimmed the pickups? I was going to throw mine in the trash until I got some shims to raise both the neck (a little) and bridge (a lot) pickups.

Two other quirks I've found are that it's the guitar most responsive to volume/tone adjustments that I've played, and it sounds best in the middle position.

Then again, I tune mine down to b flat, so what do I know? I can't claim my experiences are in any way representative. But I like mine a lot. I don't know if it sounds like a casino, but it certainly sounds like my casino, and that's all I care about.

[citizenk74]

Beauty! Congratulations, and play it in good health!