Wanted to know if anyone else had heard this rumor?  Both the slope and the OO have been getting a lot of interest on the board lately due to JP's and Vapour's recent acquisitions and the topic came up while talking to a dealer yesterday. I don't have experience with walnut so I'm not saying good or bad (the Gibson Studio models tend to get a lot of love) but it also seems like they had a good thing going with the RW version.  

Bottom line - if you're on the fence and you like RW it may be time to jump!

Funds are unfortunately limited and an opportunity to buy a Collings 0002H at a good price has occurred, but that would mean sacrificing my much adored E 20 OO and then some. Seems once i’ve gotten a whiff of that alluring ambrosia its hard to settle.

So… better to keep two very good guitars or go all in on one stellar one? What do the more experienced players and shoppers think?

I read a post from an Eastman owner on an Eastman Facebook group.  He polished his E3OME to achieve a gloss finish.  I thought it looked good and was debating on doing the same for my E3DE but wanted all of the expert opinions I could get. The process he used was OOOO still wool on back, sides and neck...then used 1500 and 2000 grit wet sanding on everything....then hand polished everything with 3M 30003 machine polish.  What do y'all thing??? I am still going to play the guitar whether it is shiny or not! Ha

Ah never mind. I think everyone needs to figure it out for themselves.

I logged in just before to find 10 new posts, the most ever - business is looking up!

Hello, I did a search but nothing popped up...so I was wondering if Eastman has gotten any CNC machines...I saw a couple of factory tours but saw none anywhere in the tour.  So I'm guessing the craftsman at Eastman are fashioning everything by hand for the most part.  Really didn't see any real big machines, but they must have big saws, planers, drill presses, etc.  Anyway just my curiosity kicking in...It did seem that the neck profiles even on like models I played lately were a bit different from one to another slightly, but might have been my imagination. Thanks in advance!

Today I did something I didn't think I would ever do. I traded my E10D-TC for an E20P. Both of us shipped out guitars to each other today and they are scheduled to arrive later this week.

As some of you will remember from my initial review, the E10D-TC was a monstrous guitar (the one in my profile picture) but it just had too much snap and too much brightness to the tone for my liking. As the guitar aged over time it seemed to only get more responsive (not exactly in the way I really liked). I preferred the tone of the guitar the dah I bought it more than how it progressed over time. Don't get me wrong, it's an amazing guitar, but it doesn't suit my tonal pallet (and so it needed to go to a new home to get played)

Nonetheless I enjoyed the 6 years I had with that guitar. The guy who I traded with plays fiddle in a bluegrass band and is looking for a loud, bright, chugging guitar. I think he'll enjoy the E10D-TC for that application.

I also had so many large body guitars (3 slope shoulders, 4 dreads) that the E10D-TC never got that much play. Now I can diversify my collection.

Anyway, when I got offered an E20P with an LR Baggs Anthem installed in it for my E10D-TC I knew it was time to move on. And ever since I got rid of my 0015m I have missed a small bodied couch guitar. Hopefully this one will fill that void.

Has anyone on here had any experience with this model? I played one in a store once and liked it. The neck was very wide and the tone was surprisingly loud for a small body guitar. I like to fingerpick a few songs so I think the guitar will get some use late in the evenings.

Here are a few pictures of the one I have coming my way.

So we spent last week just outside of Nashville with our kids for Spring Break.  I took one of the colder wetter days when the kids wanted to stay inside (or in the hot tub) to run through the usual suspect guitar shops in Nashville (Gruhn, Carter, Corner) and played just about every small-body guitar they had in stock.

First, I'm sure Carter Vintage is full of good people and interesting stock, but I'm always amazed someone can buy a guitar out of there.  It's always so busy and so tight that it takes real effort to hear the guitar you're holding vs. everyone else (including the guy who just HAS to sing while playing.)  You can find some really cool and rare guitars though and they had a really nice 12-fret Collings that almost came home.

Gruhn's is great, almost always pretty quiet, spread out and super-welcoming.  I couldn't get the sales guy to tell me exactly what made a couple of their models "Gruhn Spec" but I finally found some Martins that sounded pretty good to me.  I added a t-shirt to the collection here.

Finally Corner Music.  They're the big Eastman dealer, but definitely not a tourist destination.  They were my last stop and where I found out I definitely have a type.  The E20ooss/v was, to me, the best sounding guitar in their shop and the best sounding guitar I played that day.  Here it is next to my E10oo-M that went on vacation with us.  This one is really resonant--better than the two I've played in Memphis--and whoever did the neck made it just slightly wider than usual for the ooss series (wider than the e10ooss/v they had in the same room.)  The sales guy did his job and quoted significantly below MAP.

I thought about it overnight and went back the next day (the kids needed to hit Opry Mills anyway) and grabbed it.  Upon getting back to our rental my wife had some soothing words, "Oh, those two really DO sound different!"  I definitely have a type though.

I've been away for several days, as in 3.14 I had full knee replacement surgery on my left knee. Since then I haven't been up in my office (literally on another floor of the house), and have been mind-blurred with narcotics painkillers. 

I'm starting to get back to some normalcy and getting more mobile every day despite the pain...

Hello everyone! The time has finally come. Since I have had my E20SS/V for a full week I feel confident in writing this review. I hope this will help those looking into this model. 

I am scoring this review out of 100 points. The categories and scores will be listed below.

My guitar has a build date of March 2023 so as of the time of this review it is less than a month old! 



Strings:

I believe the guitar came to me with strings from the factory which are the D'addario coated light strings 12-53. I asked Brian at Sun Valley guitars if he knew which strings were on the guitar and he didn't know for sure, but he thought they were the original. The strings feel good and have a nice tone. (Though I prefer Martin strings I have tried not letting this affect my review) I am sure with my preferred strings I would like the guitar even more!

Also, I am going to be trying different sets and updating in the comments section as time goes on. 

Overall Tone: 20/20

This goes without exaggerating that this E20SS/V is the best Eastman I have every played, owned, and heard!
The tone is out of this world; right up there with my two favorite guitars (2009 Gibson J45 Standard, and a 2021 Martin Authentic 28). Tonally the Eastman is really a cross between the two. 

The guitar has a very warm classic slope shoulder tone. The sound is dry, and it reminds me of an old vintage Gibson. The bass is loud, boomy, and almost thunderous at times. (Yet still balanced enough for many applications) The mids are present and warm. The highs are clear but somewhat subtle. I would say the guitar tends to be slightly bass and mid heavy; just like a good slope shoulder should be! 

This is nearly the opposite tonal pallet of a lot of other Eastmans I have owned in the past. I am often telling people that my Eastman is voiced like a Collings. This is usually true for Eastman acoustics, but not with this one. If you are looking for a modern sounding guitar this is not it. If you seek the vintage tone-look no further!

I am curious what is adding all the vintage goodness to the tone. Maybe it's the finish, or maybe with the partnership with Bourgeois. Perhaps Eastman is voicing their tops differently these days, or maybe I got an exceptional one. I am not sure, but this guitar sounds amazing!

I had to wait a bit for this review so I could play it next to my other Gibsons and Martins and make sure the honeymoon phase wasn't deceiving me! I am pleased to announce that the E20SS/V equally holds its own (and then some). The Adi top is very responsive and sounds a LOT more open than any Eastman I have played in the past. 

In fact, if the guitar never opened up any more with age I would still be 100% happy. 

This guitar gets perfect marks in the tone category. It met my expectations and even exceeded them!


Volume and Responsiveness: 10/10

I am making the volume and responsivness its own category under the larger heading of "tone" because while a guitar can break into a very fine sounding instrument Adi usually sounds very "stiff" out of the box. My experience with Adirondack is that it can take up to 5 or 10 years to truly break in. This is a big factor for a guitar designed without a pickup. We all want a loud responsive guitar right form the start. This guitar delivers in spades!

I think something about the varnish finish gives this guitar a unique tonal quality and voice. Again, this guitar is very responsive and feels broken in right out of the box. Honestly to my ear it sounds like a guitar that is at least 20+ years old. This guitar is head and shoulders louder and more resonate than my E1SS. It is also has more presence in almost every way than my 2019 E1SS.

The E20SS/V also makes a better fingerpicking guitar than any other Eastman dreads I have owned. The top responds well to finger picking, light and heavy attack.
The bass and mids are as strong as my D28 Authentic, something my 15 year old J45 can't even rival!

In the volume and responsiveness category this guitar gets perfect marks. 

Neck: 9/10

Now onto the neck. I was originally hoping my E20SS/V would be closer to the 1.75 mark, but it is more around the traditional 1.69-1.7in. It feels thinner than what I am used to, but still very comfortable. I would call the neck very average in every sense of the word. "Medium" is a good description for it. It's not too thick or too thin. The taper is subtle but still fills the hand. If you are used to a modern Martin or Gibson 60's neck this will probably feel at home. 

Even though the neck is a bit smaller than what I am used to, it is still very playable. I have no issues with the neck size and I almost exclusively prefer 1.75in at the nut!

This guitar gets a 9/10 for the neck. It's spot on for the specs (I have had variations in other models) so it's good to see Eastman sticking to what they advertise online, but I wish Eastman offered this in a 1.725 in nut like a traditional Gibson. 

If you want a wider neck you may have to hunt for one that was carved a bit larger than normal. They are out there.

Playability: 20/20

Unlike most of my Eastmans, this guitar came from the factory with proper nut slot height. The nut is low to the first fret without any string buzz. The saddle is tall but the action is low all throughout the neck. The fret work is impeccable. There is no buzzing anywhere on the frets. This is easily the easiest playing Eastman I have ever owned.

Eastman gets a 10/10 with the playablility and setup. The intonation on this model is a bit better than my D28 Authentic. Again, this is incredible for the price.

Aesthetics: 15/15

To my eye this is the best Eastman guitar I have ever laid eyes on. If it didn't say Eastman on the head stock I think many people would think it's an old Gibson. The sunburst is absolutely amazing, the aging is subtle but beautiful. The inlay work is off the chart, and very fitting for the model. The top has some light hazing and small indents like you would see on a well loved 30's Gibson. I absolutely love the fire stripped J35 inspired pick guard!

In fact, I would go as far as to say that I think this guitar looks more aesthetically pleasing than my Gibson J45!

I love my Gibson in every way, but I think Eastman more than nailed the design on this model. It truly looks like a vintage guitar.

Perfect marks again on aesthetics. Home run Eastman team!

Fit and Finish: 11/15

This is the first category where I am kinda torn with this guitar. I must first say that because this is a relic model it is hard to tell where the relicing ends and the bad fit and finish begins. 

While the aging looks very good from far away there are some places where the fit and finish looks a little sloppy up close. There is a little glue residue coming out of the joints. There is some sloppy finish work that I tried to photograph around the 12th fret. There seems to be some stain bleeding on the inside of the guitar on the unfinished side of the rosewood. 

The herringbone seems to have some discoloration and some irregularities. I can't tell if this is a part of the aging process or again just questionable fit and finish.

None of these things seem to affect the playability or tone of the guitar, but for the nearly $2k price tag I think Eastman could do a bit better. 

Again, since this is an aged/relicd guitar it doesn't really bother me, but it might bother you. 

If the guitar wasn't absolutely amazing in every other way the fit and finish might affect the score of this category more, but since I will be playing this guitar almost every day and gigging with it often I don't really care about these things. If anything I am way less worried handing it to a friend or letting my daughter strum some chords on it.

Here are some pictures of some of the somewhat questionable fit and finish issues.




Value: 10/10.

Considering that I this guitar compares tonally, aesthetically, and plays as good as a $6k Martin the value gets perfect marks. 

I would put this guitar up there with any boutique guitar I have ever played. Besides maybe the fit and finish this guitar is truly a boutique instrument.


Final Score: 95/100. 

No review system is perfect, but based on what this guitar was designed to do I think it earns a solid A. If you are looking for a loud, dry, vintage sounding and vintage styled Slope Shoulder look no further. If you want a great boutique guitar that you aren't afraid to gig with or let your friends and family play then look to Eastmans E20SS/V. 

This is a guitar I will be hopefully playing for a lifetime. It has easily earned the spot of my favorite Eastman! 

Hopefully this review was helpful for those looking.

Cheers!