Earlier this week I received a $500 bonus that let me purchase an E1D. This is my 10th Eastman over the past decade and I am super pleased to announce that this is hands down the best budget guitar I have ever owned. 

I placed my order with Fuller Guitars out of Houston TX because the top on this E1D looked particularly dark. I am convinced based on the number of Eastmans I have owned and the number of E1D's I have played that this is a TC top. Based on the pictures what do you think?

INSPECTION:

The guitar arrived earlier today in perfect condition. The guitar was well packed and it survived shipping without any damage. 

Shipping a packaging gets a 10/10

SETUP:

Out of the box this was the best Eastman I have every played in the last 10 years. The action was nearly perfect, the relief was just where I like it. The nut wasn't slotted to high or too low. The guitar plays easily with lots of saddle left. I am pretty picky about my action but this one was either set up really well from Eastman or Fullers did some adjustments on it. 

One day later I noticed that there was some slight buzzing on the low E string that I think is coming from a high fret. A 1/8 of an adjustment on the truss rod got rid of most of it. For the price this guitar still played better than just about any other acoustic I have ever purchased new and this is expected when a guitar is shipped 500+ miles to its new home.


Setup gets a 9.5/10

AESTHETICS:

I heard someone on this forum (or maybe Facebook) say that they were unsure why anyone would spend $500 on a guitar if they already owned some high end acoustics. For me, this guitar is a perfect "take anywhere" guitar. It doesn't look cheap and the materials don't appear to be B stock. The Sitka top is dark and has even straight grain. The sapele is also very uniform without any noticable flaws. Overall it looks like a classic satin Dreadnaught-not cheaper, just different than other guitars I have owned. The pickguard is a more red pepperoni style, but the color matches the Sapele really well. Just a classic beautiful dread!

Overall I give the aesthetics a 9.5/10


TONE:

My Initial impression of the tone is that it has a lot of depth and clarity.The highs are bright (brighter than I like, but the strings are also very new). The mids are warm and very strong. The bass is there but not overwhelming. Overall, it is very balanced like a good Collings.

There is also a bit of dryness and immediacy to the tone right from the start. I haven't heard this on other E1D's I have played over the past 5 years. Because of this, and along with the darkness of the top I am convinced I got an unmarked TC model. 

To which is better (properly aged Sitka or a new top that has been torrefied) I am not sure. The tone is different than any other E1D I have played. 

Overall this guitar sounds like cross between my E2OM and my D-18 standard. It's got some of the warmth of cedar with the overtones of my D18.

Also, another perk is that the guitar responds well to being fingerpicked. It feels very responsive and lightly built. I think this will make a good stage guitar.

Tonally, the E1D has a lot of warmth, dryness, clarity and top end brightness. It is also very loud. I would say for the price the tone is probably 10/10, but for my person tastes it's just a little lower. 

I give the tone a 9/10. 

With different strings and time I think this is going to be a phenomenal instrument.


NECK:

The neck feels very similar to my E2OM, but it may be just slightly skinnier. To me it feels like a really good medium C profile. It's not too big or too small. It's probably the most uniform and comfortable neck of any Eastman I have owned. It feels very right down the middle in all its dimensions. I cannot imagine any player complaining about the neck, except that it feels slightly heavy compared to the rest of the guitar.

I give the neck a 9.5/10

FIT and FINISH:

The overall fit and finish of the guitar is good. I think this may be the best fit and finish I have seen on any Eastman I have owned new from the factory. It's not perfect but it's solid. By solid I mean it was a bit better than the $3000 Gibson 50's J45 I bought in April. The only two flaws I could see is at the heel of the heck there was a slightly sharp point. 60 seconds with some 1000 grit sandpaper fixed that. The other is that there is a tiny hole up by the headstock. My E2OM also had something like this.

9.5/10

BUILD QUALITY

The guitar feels lightly constructed with quite a bit more weight in the neck. The saddle is high and the action is low-which means the neck is set properly.

***Update, time will tell on the tuners. There is some initial slippage that may be due to new strings or a tight nut slot. I will try to update on high the tuners wear over time.

9/10 Build Quality 


CONCLUSION/FINAL THOUGHTS:

For the price this guitar cannot be beaten. This isn't just a good guitar for the money, this is a good guitar period. It reminds me of my $1500 Martin OMCPA4 that I gigged with for many many years until it developed some neck issues. 

Again, this is probably the best Eastman I have ever owned right out of the box-and this is saying a lot considering is spent $2000 on a E20SS/V back in March. 

Does it sound as vintage or warm as my E20SS/V? No it does not, but it has some unique tonal qualities of it's own. And for a guitar I take with me when I play out and not worry about, these models are an insane value. For a live setting I imagine this will work really well. 

I forgot to mention that the body does feel a little smaller and a little shallower than the Eastman Dreads I have owned in the past. I didn't notice that affecting the tone too much. I think the slightly smaller body will be a little easier to play in a live setting. 

I have a LR Baggs Anthem that I am going to have installed next week. I will do a follow up of the plugged in tone once I get some play time in with it. 

I am also convinced that the Bourgeois company has improved Eastman's QC over the past couple of years. Eastman has always been a good value for materials but it feels nice to finally get one of their guitars that doesn't have an annoying flaw. Well done guys! 

Who is this guitar for? Well obviously any beginner or intermediate player could greatly benefit from a guitar in the 1 series; however, even if you have an extensive collection like myself; this model could make a very good travel, or dare I say "beater" guitar. From the quality and tone, to the aesthesis and playability, this one will not leave you wanting more. Honestly if this was the only guitar I owned I could probably do everything I need an acoustic to do and more.

Well done guys! You hit it out of the park.

I give it a 96/100. There is not much to dislike about the guitar.

I’ve been so impressed with my two all solid Sigma’s I had to get just one more! This time a D-18 style guitar for more Neil Young tunes amongst others. Sigma currently make 3 D-18 style guitars, namely the:

DM-18 (solid sitka top, laminate mahogany back and sides, micarta board and bridge).

SDM-18 (solid sitka top, solid mahogany back and sides, ebony board and bridge).

SDM-18E Limited (Solid European spruce top, solid flamed Mahogany back and sides, ebony board and bridge) - Only 72 made.

As usual I wanted an all solid wood instrument as the tonal difference between the laminate and all solid Sigma models is really huge. One of the unique things I like about Sigma is that they make laminate and all solid versions of so many of their guitars now it allows for ‘like for like’ comparisons across a range of differing instruments that really demonstrate the added nuance and complexity of an all solid wood guitar (nice comparison here of the laminate and all solid model along with a Martin D-18) - https://youtu.be/02yfSI1pPLI.

I was ideally looking for the SDM-18 as featured above but they are out if stock in many places and then I spotted a SDM-18E. I’d played one of these a year ago and was very impressed but I hesitated and it sold quickly. Aesthetically the guitar is a more fancy/modern in appearance than the SDM-18 Martin clone and features an Abalone rosette and some snowflake bridge and fingerboard inlays. The European Spruce top is very white and of excellent quality. The back and sides are ‘flamed Mahogany’. The flaming is subtle perhaps compared to more expensive instruments with this wood but it is definitely different to the more uniform Mahogany one readily sees and quite beautiful. The guitar also comes with electronics (an LR Baggs EAC-VTC) although I do not really want this so I will try and remove and dispose of it. The guitar is also supposed to come with a hardcase (clearly stated on both Sigma and the vendor’s site) but mine has been incorrectly sent to me in a (far cheaper) soft-shell case. I have contacted the dealer and do not want to name and shame at present as its likely an innocent oversight.

Anyhow I haven’t had a chance to play it yet but will report back later enough waffling, here are a few very rough pics (better ones to follow):









My other all solid Sigma’s

SDR-28MLE (Adirondack/Madagascan)




SDR-45 (Sitka/Rosewood)

Thought you all might enjoy this...

Recently I have been on the fence about picking up an E1D because I don't really need anymore guitars. But since I am a student and worship pastor I play a lot of youth events, retreats, and camps. For about a year now I have wanted a less expensive dread that I can take around with me and not worry about my $2k+ guitars getting broken or stolen.

Then much to my surprise when I checked the mail this morning there was a bonus check from a camp I worked at earlier on the summer. They check was for $500, twice what I thought I was getting! Since I have been on the fence thia past week about the E1D I took this as a sign to order one. Let's call it God's providential provision.

Since my local shop is closing and out of E1D's I went ahead and ordered the one at Fullers Guitars in Texas. The one on their website looked good and it appears to possibly have a TC top. I know that you can't always tell in pictures, but compared to the non TC E10OM (from the same seller and same lighting) the E1D looks a lot darker.

TC or not, the E1D is a great value!

The guitar shipped this afternoon and I am only one state away so I should get it middle of the week.

I will keep you all posted when it comes in. I already have a LR Baggs Anthem waiting for it What do you think about the top on this one?

I got my E1OM Classic the other day. It has been out in the living room since. It came with a K&K pickup installed but I still haven't plugged it in yet. Just enjoying naturally.

This is my first Eastman. My thoughts so far. I love the finish. The sound is much brighter and louder than I expected. Coming from almost always have a D shape & size guitar it was a definite difference. I do have a Fender GDO300 but that little thing is nothing like this one is.

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Last night I bought a used PCH3-GACE-CLA in near mint condition for $400. The laminate flame maple back and sides are gorgeous to look at. It sounds like a solid wood guitar and feels and plays just like my DT30-GACE. The tone is not nearly as complex or rich as the double top but the PCH3 sounds better than any laminate guitar I have played before and has plenty of sustain. I have owned a bunch of laminates; several Breedloves, an S. Yairi and too many Yamahas to count. For anyone on a budget or professionals playing out, it is a great all-around guitar.

Which acoustic guitar you've come across has the slightest (width and depth/cross sectional area) neck? In my case it's the MLO found on many Martins.

I am in the search for another Eastman acoustic guitar. Do I need one, not really, but there are some good online sales right now.

I love Eastman guitars for their quality and value but I don't particularly love bright sounding guitars. Mostly because of this I have gotten rid of all my Eastmans except one. Currently the only Eastman I own is an E20SSV. It is in the top three best acoustics I have ever owned, up there with my D28 Authentic 1937. One of the reasons I love it is because of it's warm dry tone.

I also need to add that I really liked my E2OM as well, and the tone fit me well, but I gave it away to a young guitar player who was needing a decent acoustic, and I am more of a SS and Dread player.

Anyway, I also really like Eastmans satin finishes. To my ear they are a little more open and warm than their gloss counterparts. I am currently looking at some E1D and E3D because I have found some with what appears to be TC tops.

I could also stretch and get an E6SS-TC or E6D-TC if needed, but I am afraid they might start off too bright for me. I have found that finishes really color the guitars tone.

I was even looking at some E1SS-SB, but there aren't many available right now.

Anyway, out of these 5 models which do you think would have the least bright, mid range focused warm tone?

I have liked all the E1Ds I have played so if I could get one with a TC top that would be great. I also don't have a guitar under $2k so something I could travel with would be perfect.

Hi,can anyone tell me if the AC OM-1 was discontinued or is it still being produced? Thank you