AR371CE & AR580: Solid vs. Laminate - Eastman Archtop Comparison

[@FabrizioPeretti]

This guy sounds amazing holy crap

[@pageveazey9874]

My best friend showed up at mu house one day and handed me a guitar case and said, "Here, this is for you". I opened the case and there was an AR580 Honeyburst guitar in there. Since I've been doing guitar tech work for more than 20 years, I have had the oportunity to work on every type and price range guitar you can think of. The AR 580 is just the right thickness for me and the lower bout is also just the right width for me, I loved how it played and sounded. With that said, I usually prefer a really skinny neck but since I play mostly chord solos, the wider neck was great for that. I have a whole range of guitars and I find that the EASTMAN is the most enjoyable one to play because I can play it unamped or amped and it sounds good either way. As for the laminated top jazz boxes go, I'm not a fan because they lack a good natural unamped sound. I've done complete setups on 2 Gibson L5's and both were excellent guitars but compared to the AR 580, they sounded just a little bit muddy. For those who would like to know what strings I used on my Eastman, I used Ernie Ball Custom Gauge Nickel Wound 11 thru 48 power slinky's with an unwound 3rd. I have used 10 thru 46's with an unwound third and they are fine but the 11's just give me a bit more robust sound. The unwound 3rd allows me to string bend the 3rd string where the wound 3rd doesn't allow bends without a great deal of effort.

[@localpm]

Great sound and playing 2.

[@jpritch2]

would be nice to hear the solid without an amp.

[@alftupper9359]

Jeremy Clarkson's love child on guitar.

[@TheBeatle49]

Please acknowledge the guy who is playing.

[@SuchaDoofus]

No.

[@swagner3105]

both are beautiful and sound great. excellent guitarist.

[@ACaffeineAddict]

Why no acoustic demos?

[@anthonyroach1148]

Great review..Laminate Eastman would more suit my style ..react to abit Of gain to ..Both beautiful guitars

[@RiqueDropsBanter]

Yikes.... I got the ar371ce and I never knew it was a laminate maple construction. Kinda hurts in a way that I have this association with laminate that it is bad. But I guess it makes sense to have an archtop guitar in that price range that sounds and plays pretty good tho.

[@VEHICROS]

I could clealy tell the difference, the solid top is nicer.

[@davemeshamsr6000]

Looking for archtop that sounds good acoustically and through pickups

[@SmalltimR]

I would have loved to hear the same thing played on both guitars for comparison.

[@nicolavaleri5900]

the only real reason why Gibson built laminated guitars was because full solid guitars created too much feedback with the amplifier. This is the only real reason. Obviously, today's guitarists don't know this and 100,000 reasons will be created. To know these things, you don't need to be a great technician, or a musician. just be old ... like me

[@ZorbaTheGreek]

you are wise :)

[@VEHICROS]

Gibsons are cheap copies of Epiphone guitars

[@VEHICROS]

@@ZorbaTheGreek Epiphone came first, Gibson only bought them out to eliminate the competition. Because Epiphone was a much better guitar!

[@eggypop09]

​@VehiCROS you have won the (guitar section of the) internet....

[@eggypop09]

Even if the solid top sounds better (acoustically), it's not two and a half times the money better 🤑

[@AlainAuclair]

This guitar sounds great. Maybe I'm wrong but at 2'58`' I can hear a string out of tune...maybe the B string. Apart of that...it sounds very well.

[@Rightupbass]

It’s out of tune..my ears is sensitive to that shit too man..lol

[@AlainAuclair]

@@Rightupbass It's not fun for this guitar player...because he's good...sorry for him.

[@Rightupbass]

@@AlainAuclair just a minor thing.

[@golds04]

Someone needs invent /develop an amp for jazz players that sounds almost like a vibroverb , twin or bassman but portable ie light. I just never can enjoy these amps or polytones. They both sound nasal. Nice comparison/ thank you.

[@It_is_now]

But they have different pick ups in them.

[@pharmerdavid1432]

Different soundboards too, so no comparison, but both beautiful - apples and oranges!!

[@larryh.3173]

Actually they have the same pickups, Kent Armstrong HPAG-1. Check their website.

[@dantarradellas7351]

Fantastic guitars, fantastic playing, horrendous recording. Ouch. Everything below 200 is gone. DI please.

[@juliocesargonzalezruiz6962]

It Is archtop guitar

[@7849-q2i]

venetian cutaway vs florentine 😁

[@eggypop09]

Florentine ftw!!!!!

[@eggypop09]

Clearly makes the guitar sound pointier 🤣