NGD: Eastman archtop

Hootsmon

TINMAN82 said:

danishbacon said:

Very cool! Happy new guitar day didn't realise they made solid carved tops at this pricepoint, seems like a lot of guitar for the money

Yes and that’s with regular price rises, I understand it was possible to find this model at £1000 quite recently (pre upgrade to Seth Lover pickup). Don’t think Western relations with China have helped the price. It’s probably better finished than an ES335 figured I owned recently. 

dazzajl said:

Absolutely gorgeous and ordering from Richard can be a whole interesting experience in itself. 

Didn’t deal with him at all, his staff were extremely helpful though. Apparently he still playchecks and packs every guitar himself...find that hard to fathom given how busy he must be. My only comment would be I think the website could be clearer on what’s actually in stock. Great photos though, I was lucky this was available.

Tinny

Do only the very recent ones have the SL PUPS?

and........is the depth less than a 175....and is it neck heavy with that headstock?

@tinnman82

roberty

That looks bloody great. I want a jazz box at some point, perhaps one of these are on the cards

TINMAN82

Hootsmon said:

TINMAN82 said:

danishbacon said:

Very cool! Happy new guitar day didn't realise they made solid carved tops at this pricepoint, seems like a lot of guitar for the money

Yes and that’s with regular price rises, I understand it was possible to find this model at £1000 quite recently (pre upgrade to Seth Lover pickup). Don’t think Western relations with China have helped the price. It’s probably better finished than an ES335 figured I owned recently. 

dazzajl said:

Absolutely gorgeous and ordering from Richard can be a whole interesting experience in itself. 

Didn’t deal with him at all, his staff were extremely helpful though. Apparently he still playchecks and packs every guitar himself...find that hard to fathom given how busy he must be. My only comment would be I think the website could be clearer on what’s actually in stock. Great photos though, I was lucky this was available.

Tinny

Do only the very recent ones have the SL PUPS?

and........is the depth less than a 175....and is it neck heavy with that headstock?

@tinnman82

As far as I can tell this model has had a Seth Lover for around a year or so now, all 2020 models certainly. Previously Kent Armstrong (which I’ve never tried). The specs haven’t been updated on all retailer sites yet.

Only played sitting down so far but it doesn’t feel neck heavy, feels well balanced. Aesthetically the wider, more flared headstock suits their archtops IMO. They’ve narrowed the flare on the ES335 types though.

Ive never played an actual ES175, I think you only get them special order from the custom shop currently. Internet stats suggest this Eastman is around 2.5 inches deep, the 175 around 3.3. The Eastman AR372ce is the 175 clone, with depth equivalent to a Gibson I think. Very tempted to get one of those too...the 2 humbuckers and all laminate construction make it a slightly different animal. My AR503ce is more of a Benedetto style archtop.

Edit for @Hootsmon : Not a guitar I’d play standing up much anyway but having tried it, there is a tendency towards being neck heavy using a shiny nylon backed strap. With a leather or suede backed strap it stays put. It’s a completely hollow body with only 1 pickup so I guess not too surprising. 

Hootsmon

How does the laminate top differ (in tone and response of course) from the solid top on the 503?

TINMAN82

Hootsmon said:

How does the laminate top differ (in tone and response of course) from the solid top on the 503?

I ordered online as nowhere near me had these to try. However I asked the helpful chap at Richards Guitars to describe the difference between 503 and 372 pre-sale. He suggested the acoustic tone was richer with more bass on the 503 due to the solid top.

Whether that’s true, specific only to the examples he tried and/ or translates to the amplified tone I don’t know. However the second humbucker will in theory change the response of the top too. It will also add versatility to the 372, perhaps making it better for blues as well as straight up jazz.