Eastman AR605CED

[hebaton]

Would like impressions form anyone who has played the Eastman AR605CED ( two set pickps )
No chance to try. Looking for a full, fat amplified tone...

[Groyniad]

i've played almost everything (and every serious type of mainstream jazz archtop) - my Eastman 580 is the best gigging guitar I've ever used (makes e.g. Sadowsky's offerings look very very boring at way less than half the price) - my new 905 is the best acoustic style archtop I've ever used (both in terms of design/finish and in terms of sound/feel).

I'd be amazed if this instrument you mention is not very very good - in just the way you want it to be.

[fabiansey]

I think Eastman has decent guitars but the sound is not fat. It s very acoustic and bright due to the thin tops.
For a fat warm amplified tone I would look elsewhere.

[Groyniad]

I think Eastman has decent guitars but the sound is not fat. It s very acoustic and bright due to the thin tops.
For a fat warm amplified tone I would look elsewhere.

well i'm a nut for fat and warm - and i've been trying out guitars on gigs for a long time - and the Eastman 580 is doing a better line in fat and warm than anything else I've tried to use.

perhaps its the mix of laminated and carved woods....?

or the fab armstrong hpag humbucker

all the curly 9m high capacitance cable i use

or my improving technique (no that's not it because my gibson and heritage guitars don't do such a good line in fat and warm as my 580)

[StefanoGhirardo]

well i'm a nut for fat and warm - and i've been trying out guitars on gigs for a long time - and the Eastman 580 is doing a better line in fat and warm than anything else I've tried to use.

perhaps its the mix of laminated and carved woods....?

or the fab armstrong hpag humbucker

all the curly 9m high capacitance cable i use

or my improving technique (no that's not it because my gibson and heritage guitars don't do such a good line in fat and warm as my 580)

What strings do you use on your Eastman 580 to get that fat, warm sound?

[Topper Roth]

I think maybe the pickup is one of the significant things that's in play re: thin vs fat sound ...

[Tal_175]

well i'm a nut for fat and warm - and i've been trying out guitars on gigs for a long time - and the Eastman 580 is doing a better line in fat and warm than anything else I've tried to use.

perhaps its the mix of laminated and carved woods....?

or the fab armstrong hpag humbucker

all the curly 9m high capacitance cable i use

or my improving technique (no that's not it because my gibson and heritage guitars don't do such a good line in fat and warm as my 580)

It's interesting you say that because I want to like Eastmans. I've had 2 Eastmans in the past. One carved spruce top model, one all laminate. Recently I tried out a Pisano model. They are beautifully designed, super comfortable and lightweight guitars. Yet I find the electric sound of Eastman's to be disappointing. Very bright, thin and stringy. But maybe the trick is to low-pass filter the heck out of them? Do you cut the treble on the amp?

Actually here is one example where Pisano sounds warm and fat (played with fingers):

Here on the other hand to me it sounds bright, thin and overly acoustic (Rich Severson plays beautifully though):

[DawgBone]

It's interesting you say that because I want to like Eastmans. I've had 2 Eastmans in the past. One carved spruce top model, one all laminate. Recently I tried out a Pisano model. They are beautifully designed, super comfortable and lightweight guitars. Yet I find the electric sound of Eastman's to be disappointing. Very bright, thin and stringy. But maybe the trick is to low-pass filter the heck out of them? Do you cut the treble on the amp?

Actually here is one example where Pisano sounds warm and fat (played with fingers):

Here on the other hand to me it sounds bright, thin and overly acoustic (Rich Severson plays beautifully though):

i was looking very closely at the John Pisano AR380ce before ultimately pulling the trigger on something else. Bright, thin and stringy was the same impression I got from the reviews available for that specific model. Sounded pretty poor in reviews using very modest amounts of drive (which I would also use). I couldn't get past it even though I have a better set of pickups laying around I could throw right in. I wasn't sure if it was the guitar itself or just a pickup issue. Otherwise a beautiful looking instrument at a fair price point. I just didn't want to risk mediocrity when there are a lot of other choices for the 1500-2000 budget I had to work with, many of which were clearly superior in sound with factory pickups albeit used instruments.

[ccroft]

I guess my ears really are shot. The first video of the 880 sounded muddy to me, and Rich sounded fat and warm!

It's impossible to judge how you will feel about a guitar in your hands based on YouTube demo's and talk in online forums and such. Strings, amps, playing style, EQ, and recording and playback equipment to name a few unknown variables.

I've had an 880 for 6 years. I did change the pickup. I'll keep it forever. I don't think it's overly anything. It's not a 175 sound, so don't go here if you're looking for that.

But... maybe my ears are not to be trusted :-)

[st.bede]

As long as the core sound you want is coming from the guitar you can finely adjust that with PUs.

Sound is also always context important.

Here is my most recent experience in this area. I was watching a performer of the local college jazz professors big band. The guitarist is a monster. In a more modern type of jazz piece, he kicked on some delay and his stage depth went expansive to tiny. The guy is a brilliant player but not 100% aware of how sound works. I could hear how in a rock context, it would of fir in perfectly, due to the focused mid range, but it sounded like a little lost misquote in his present context.

Sometime I check a guitar acoustically before I start down the PU road. Are the bass tight, is the mid rich and full, how well do the highs extend?

I also live with a certain guitar, and put it through a bunch of circumstances, before I start down changing things out path. Yes it is not fun to fight with tone issues when playing music with others, but it will happen anyway until you fully understand the equipment, and can predict for many situations and adjust things quickly.

Also not sounding right can focus me to work harder on music. I have to let go off the feeling of, “this sounds great”, and pull everything I have to make it great out of my mind and fingers.

Jazz is only easy in this context. For rock/pop/blues/country, I have to practice pedals: wha, volume, delay, fuzz, octave fuzz, and dirt settings. I also have to practice my relationship to the amp and my volume knob on my guitar. I have exercises for them all.