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Location: New Jersey, USA | These clips are a little more refined, with very subtle reverb and compression for a more "real world" recorded sound. They are short too. Check out the 1755 12 string in there! It's is a fantastic guitar.
Adamas 1587
Ovation 1769 Custom Legend
Ovation 6778LX Standard Elite
Martin HD-28P
Eastman AR604
Ovation 1755 Custom Balladeer 12 String |
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Location: Phoenix AZ | What color is the 1587? |
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Location: Earth·SolarSystem·LocalInterstellarCloud·Local Bub | sounds like blue |
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Location: South of most, North of few | I like the 12, but my opinion still stands as Martin, then CL. I really like the CL much better than the 1587. You have really opened my eyes to the LX though, I used to like them, but it really isn't in the same league as the others IMHO. |
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Location: Phoenix AZ | Interesting, in this set of clips (disregard the 12 string for now), my opinion is not changed but the spread is widened. The ones I liked least before, I like more least now (that sounds odd, but you know what I mean). The ones I liked best before, I like even more best. Man, my grammer is bad. What I mean is, unprocessed last time maybe I'd rate the A, B, C, D. Now I'd rate them A+, B, C, D-
Room acoustics, mic choice and placement all have a LOT of influence. The LX really sounds poor to me, but I've heard some in person that I thought were pretty good. So maybe on another day in another setup the results would very. Still tough to argue with the sound of a wood guitar.
Dave |
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Location: New Jersey, USA | Dave, I understood you perfectly. :)
And yes, the Adamas is blue. I played with a friend today, and we tried all the Ovations. The Adamas shone head and shoulders above the others. The guitar projects and has much more complexity than the others. It also invites intimacy (ahem) in a way that perhaps the others don't.
We didn't play the Martin - that one has nothing to prove to me at this point.
BTW, the mics on these clips were in stereo, one pointed at the neck/body joint and the other at the tail, roughly 6-8" away from the guitar. |
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Location: big island | the 1587 is the shiner in part II, IMO. the hd-28p is a close second. the 12 string is in another league. |
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Location: Copenhagen Denmark | ...and all this is based, on a "quick listen"..?!..
..I`m knackered, review another day..
Vic
..cream and sugar on the side.. |
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Location: South of most, North of few | knackered? :eek: |
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Location: GATLINBURG TENNESSEE :) | I would have liked to hear a deep bowl texture-top 6 put into the comparison. |
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Location: New Jersey, USA | Meaning one of the newer Adamii? I thought the 1587 was considered to be a textured top... and it is a deep bowl.
If you have something you want me to record, feel free to donate. :p |
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Location: GATLINBURG TENNESSEE :) | OOOPS! My Bust. I wasn't paying attention. I think I'm going through MANOPAUSE.
Sorry |
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Location: New Jersey, USA | Yeah, and you actually have a 1587! I know I'm a newbie but I thought I knew my texture from my weave... :)
OK, back to recording... |
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Location: Copenhagen Denmark | I`m still groggy from being knackered,....Jim how`s the arm ..??..
Vic
..guess we`ll have to wait a little longer for that SIT-test, what with all the "home-work" Roger is bowling us over with,.. :) |
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Location: GATLINBURG TENNESSEE :) | I know, I know ... I felt like an idiot when I realized that I was looking at my same guitar. I have a little dislexia sometimes, and I thought I was seeing the numbers 597.
W H E R E A M I ???????? |
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Location: GATLINBURG TENNESSEE :) | I do like the way you laid out the comparison with the same lines of music. It made it easy to hear the differences. What would have been a REAL challenge would be to chain them all together and let everyone GUESS which guitars were which ... And which ones sounded best without knowing what models you were hearing. |
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Location: South of most, North of few | Originally posted by Solid Top aka Enfant Terrible:
I`m still groggy from being knackered,....Jim how`s the arm ..??..
Vic
..guess we`ll have to wait a little longer for that SIT-test, what with all the "home-work" Roger is bowling us over with,.. :) Vic, the arm is still there, it just won't work right yet. As for the SIT strings, I did get to try them out on one guitar, and they are really nice sounding strings. They seem a little brighter than the D Addarios (SP). They seem to stay in tune much sooner than the others also, if that makes any sense. (less retuning over less time). I have been using Elixirs almost exclusively and really liked them, but these are relatively cheap compared to the Elixirs, and I usually end up changing the strings too often to take advantage of the coated strings longer life span. I'll use them up, but don't know if I would go out of my way to find them again. I still like the Elixirs the best. All subjective though. |
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Location: Copenhagen Denmark | Jim,
thanks for the review, I appreciate it, and, I hope that your arm will get better soon :)
KUSTOM 1501 L
Roger,
Thank you for the opportunity to use my old PA, and, that`s something I would like to stressss,......, the review is based on how the above mentioned guitar`s sound over a
P.A system !! ,No sound-system in the world will accurately render the sound of an acoustic guitar, therefor, P.A testing is the most valid thing to do, this one, being bass-heavy (100 - 800 Hz lift) is perfect for jazz inspired music,...incidentally, this could be the reason, why my Opinion`s can differ from others, who, evaluate in a different manner,...on with the review ;...
( Your playing, makes it both Difficult, and Easy to hear said differences, I tend to "listen to the music" , where I should be listening to the Instruments, yet, somehow, I managed ) ;)
By introducing FX , I expected that Differences would be minimized, and to some degree that is so, but, they`re Still Audible,...
The Review
ADAMAS 1587
............Warm.. Smooth.. Even Range.. Very Good Definition.. can Do Anything... The Best !!
LEGEND 1769
.............Very Warm.. Dipped in the Mid`s.. Shimmering High`s.... Good for Vocal support
ELITE 6778 LX
...............Good Defintion.. TOP needs to "see" a few more seasons... (lacks a little in "overtones" )
HD 28 P
........Even - Sounding... Definition so-so... lacks "bite"..
EASTMAN AR 604
...............Good Definition.. kind of like the "LEGEND", but with more prescent Mid`s... High`s not as apparent
BALLADEER 1755
...............Even "Shimmering Tone"... Balanced Tonal Range..
The Verdict
Hmmm...They`re All Good, but that 12 stringer sounds real Great, it would be my Fav., together with the ADAMAS (which, incidentally sounds very much like my ELITE 1537).... ;)
I liked the way the test was "set-up", easy to compare, navigation was user-friendly,..and did I say, ..NICE MUSIC !! :)
Vic
...I understand, that there are members who will be up-set with the review of that HD 28, well Sorry about that, but then again, the guitar was Disappointing.. |
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Location: New Jersey, USA | Vic,
Thanks so much again for sharing your opinions! I have grown to love the Adamas. The Balladeer 12 is just beautiful. The Eastman is so unique ( Pics Here ), I love the Martin, and the LX I got for free. The 1769 I have put up for sale, because while it's just lovely, I am looking for a more subtle instrument. I'm not really a strummer, which the guitar excels at.
Obviously I don't need anything. It's all about the fun of having the variety. :D
Thanks for your nice comments about the musical component, even though it was meant to be only for demo purposes. Cheers! |
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Location: NJ | There's a store in my town (by appointmrnt only) that JUST sells jazzboxes, and has a few of those Eastman's . . . I was wondering what they sounded like . . . |
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Location: New Jersey, USA | Cliff, if you are talking about Guitars N Jazz in Summit... I have never been there, but it looks amazing, and they stock tons of Eastmans.
I love both of the ones I own. For the money, their craftsmanship cannot be beat.
Another clip of the AR604
Video of the AR805CE
I am selling the 805CE due to some of my recent leanings however. Email me privately if interested. |
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Location: NJ | THAT's the shop!
Guitars N\' Jazz
I've never been in there either,
but my nose-prints are all OVER the front window . . . |
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Location: Copenhagen Denmark | I thought Eastman had something to do with Kodak, did n`t know they made guitars.. |
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Location: NJ | Chinese-made guitars, but guitars none-the-less.
(i.e. - Don't let your kids chew on the finish) |
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Location: New Jersey, USA | Vic,
The company is Eastman Strings. They are no secret to jazz players, and they do have a flattop line as well. They are well known in the classical instrument world for violins and such.
They are Chinese, but they are also absolutely top notch and in no way related to the el-cheapo guitars made in factories. Hand carved American made acoustic archtop guitars are very expensive - upwards of $5000 USD easily. And most with a long wait on a luthier's list. Eastman seems to be a company that simply has Chinese humans handcrafting instruments as opposed to American ones. And being in China, well, that's to be expected. :)
Boy, I sense a debate and I have no stomach for it... I speak only for the guitars, not the politics! |
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Location: NJ | They ARE very nice guitars.
The Palen's look interesting, as well . . .
Since I don't play jazz, I have no need/desire. |
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Location: New Jersey, USA | The oval hole, acoustic 604 is so cool... it can be used for any style of music. Like Ovations, acoustic archtops have a very midrangey, strident, punchy tone. It's from the old days when they were played acoustically with a big band; their four-to-the-bar rhythm had to be heard over the din.
In learning to appreciate the uniqueness of the Adamas 1587 that I own, I have come to find that it is very similar to an archtop in this way. So that is why I am really bonding with it. I just love that kind of sound. |
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Location: Scotland | I first became aware of Eastman at the Shanghai Music Messe a few years ago. It was obvious they were a cut above. They have a lot of experience with carved-top instruments as they've been making violin family instruments for a long time. I was especially impressed with their mandolins.
From a couple of years of working with a number of Chinese instrument facories I think the only real problems occur when western distributors/manufacturers demand that the factories produce at the lowest possible price. Give them free reign to produce a quality instrument without having to build to a specific (low) price point and see what you get. Eastman are a perfect example. When working on my last manufacturing project the factory would come back with a unit price and were surprised when I said, "no, too cheap, use better materials, use nicer tuning machines" Every tweak I made they came back with "that will cost another 2 dorrar per unit" or whatever, expecting that $2 a unit may have been a deal-breaker. Eventually I said this is what I want, make it as well as you can to these specs and charge me a fair price. Apparantly that doesn't happen too often. Admitedly I was working with relatively small unit numbers, but you get my point.
The only other problem is overcoming the general public perception that Chinese production means low retail cost. Having said that, Bose don't seem to have a problem with the L1, and that's made in China. |
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Location: New Jersey, USA | Very interesting anecdote Paul.
Regarding the perception issue, I think Eastman overcame it by brute force: put the guitars in shops; get them reviewed; get them played; and it became obvious that they were a serious contender and that their country of origin was not a factor.
They apparently did have some improvements over the years and they've proved responsive to their dealers' feedback. They supposedly have a great rep in the US who has helped to share their story and provide a "face" to the buying public.
Anyway, I didn't mean for the thread to go off on an Eastman tangent, but here we are! Another inspiring type of guitar to play. |
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Location: Copenhagen Denmark | Originally posted by Paul Templeman:
The only other problem is overcoming the general public perception that Chinese production means low retail cost. Having said that, Bose don't seem to have a problem with the L1, and that's made in China. -------------------------------------------------
...or JBL speakers, FENDER amps., etc. etc. .. |
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Location: NJ | Roger;
We'll have to get t'gether sometime & I'll let you take my 1187 for a spin . . . |
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Location: New Jersey, USA | Sounds like fun. Yours is a '78 original? I am hoping to meet up with some local OFC folk at some point. Too bad I missed the gathering earlier this year. I'm totally game! |
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Location: NJ | Once the CO trip's over, and the gig-thing is figured-out, I'll shoot you a PM . . |
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Location: Scotland | Originally posted by Solid Top aka Enfant Terrible:
...or JBL speakers, FENDER amps., etc. etc. .. Which Fender amps apart from the relatively inexpensive entry-level stuff are made in China?
That aside, my point was that if a product is made to a consistently professional standard, with excellent quality control, then the country of origin/price point should be a non-issue. |
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Location: Copenhagen Denmark | Originally posted by Paul Templeman:
Which Fender amps apart from the relatively inexpensive entry-level stuff are made in China?
That aside, my point was that if a product is made to a consistently professional standard, with excellent quality control, then the country of origin/price point should be a non-issue. [/QB] ..I would hardly describe the G-DEC`s as entry-level stuff, I know of those, who use them for club gigs, small places, but nevertheless, money is being earned,..and with a mic. in front, the sky`s the limit,...Good Sound, No Hum, No Hiss, Usable Effects, Highly Reliable,... Effective Little boxes... |
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Location: Copenhagen Denmark | Originally posted by Solid Top aka Enfant Terrible:
Originally posted by Paul Templeman:
Which Fender amps apart from the relatively inexpensive entry-level stuff are made in China?
That aside, my point was that if a product is made to a consistently professional standard, with excellent quality control, then the country of origin/price point should be a non-issue. ..I would hardly describe the G-DEC`s as entry-level stuff, I know of those, who use them for club gigs, small places, but nevertheless, money is being earned,..and with a mic. in front, or headphone out ( stereo signal ) the sky`s the limit,...Good Sound, No Hum, No Hiss, Usable Effects, Highly Reliable,... Effective Little boxes... [/QB] |
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Location: Copenhagen Denmark | What on earth..??.. |
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Location: Scotland | Originally posted by Solid Top aka Enfant Terrible:
..I would hardly describe the G-DEC`s as entry-level stuff, I know of those, who use them for club gigs, small places, but nevertheless, money is being earned,..and with a mic. in front, or headphone out ( stereo signal ) the sky`s the limit,...Good Sound, No Hum, No Hiss, Usable Effects, Highly Reliable,... Effective Little boxes... [/QB]
Highly reliable, effective little boxes, that cost a coupla hundred dollars. Regardless of who may actually buy them and how they are used the target market is "entry-level" and the G-Dec is intended as a learning/practicing tool for the hobbyist. However when you get that much bang for the buck nobody realy cares where they're made, you just buy'em and enjoy 'em. When you put out a Chinese made product such as the Bose L1 which are a couple of grand, or an Eastman guitar in the $4K range, then the selling points and thier percieved place in the market become somewhat more sophisticated. |
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Location: SoCal | Boy, I remember a couple of years ago using a G-Dec to play "Stump The Temp"..... |
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Location: Scotland | That was fun, until it stumped me and Kim called me something unpleasant. |
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Location: Bluffton, SC | Originally posted by Paul Templeman:
That was fun, until it stumped me and Kim called me something unpleasant. Sounds pretty much like every evening at my place... :rolleyes: |
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Acoustic Roundup, Part II