5 Eastman Acoustic Guitar E10OM. This guitar shines as a guitar that is finger picked. This guitar is ideal for those that play a variety of styles of folk/blues music. The Adirondack spruce top paired with the mahogany back and sides of this Eastman acoustic guitar really sets it apart from others.
![E100m E100m](/uploads/1/2/5/8/125846406/809427654.jpg)
I went up to Buckdancer's Choice in Portland, ME yesterday and bought the Eastman AR403CE-SB I had tried up there the day after Thanksgiving - I had put a deposit down on it by phone on January 6th - $715 including HSC plus tax (list is $950). According to the COA that came with the guitar, this instrument was made in the 1st week of November 2011, so it really is 'new'! Didn't get home until mid-evening, so this will be just a very preliminary report with more to follow (including pictures and eventual sound samples) over the next few days. Haven't fired it up through the Henriksen yet, but here are my intital impressions:
Excellent woodworking - everything is clean, neat, well-shaped and well-fitted - no buzzes or ratttles and no sign of filler. Inside looks clean too. The laminated maple top and body does not have much of a grain pattern but the sunburst finish is lovely! The pickup polepieces line up well with the strings. The tailpiece is not hinged, but is a single piece of metal under the rosewood cap bent at almost a right angle after coming off the end-pin area; this was good to see as I had heard of a few Eastman tailpieces of hinged design breaking at the hinge point.
The acoustic sound is surprisingly resonant and full for an all laminated 16' x 2 9/16' box (perfect size for me), albeit not real loud - ideal for practice when using the amp might disturb the rest of the family. The nut seems well cut. It has .012 to .052 D'Addario roundwounds on it - I will be sticking to something similar. The neck profile is a slightly shallow C-shape with Eastman's typical 1.75' nut and 25' scale length. I find it very comfortable. The tuners are copies of Grover Imperials; they look extremely cool and seem to work fine.
There are a few issues - I find that's generally to be expected at this price point - but all are easily addressable. The action at the bridge is too low (that's why it's adjustable), the pickup is too high (again, that's why it's adjustable), and the fret ends are too sharp/rough (that's why I have Dean, my ace guitar tech). It has acrylic 'pearl' block fingerboard inlays that are both too large and too white - almost cheezy, but I'm embarrased to admit that I actually like the 'bling' aspect! The case is an adequate flat-topped hardshell model, not the fiberglass case that comes with the more expensive Eastmans; it seems way deeper than it needs to be, but the guitar fits well and doesn't move around. It's fine.
So, tonight I'm going to raise the bridge and lower the pickup and try it through the JazzAmp and then take a few pics to upload. Stay tuned!