Budget Archtop Loar VS Eastman

constantine

Hello,

Anyone ever compare a Loar guitar to an Eastman. Ive heard good things about both. I think that they are both carved top archtops and wonder if they would be suitable for gypsy jazz.

Thanks

CalebFSU

I could be way off but I don't think the loars are Carved top guitars. I have never played a loar but I really like the Eastmans I have played.

constantine

thanks CalebFSU, I had the wrong info !

Campusfive

No question - Eastman wins. I have owned both. The Loar is a good effort, but it sounded small and toy-like in comparison to the Eastman. The Eastman sounds as close to an old archtop as I can find nowadays. Its the real deal.

Bohemian

es, I ahve played a few of both

The Loar is a Loar in name only, in my opinion rather an insult to L Loar and the originals

Pressed tops, stiff as heck,, lots of engery in, little comes out. Lfeless and not much fun

Eastmans... Played good ones and better ones, no bad ones
Handcrafted, solid woods and carved tops, roughly twice the price

My fovorite is the oval hole no electrics no cutaway

For a budget and fun archtop try the new Seagull or is it La Patrie units for $600 maybe less.. kinda fun.. more tone and playability than the loar and much better deal. Why they dont have the glitz of the Loar, the have a nice gutsy raw sound perfect for blues and jazz

badjazz

The Loars are junk. Eastmans are actually very nice guitars. The one thing that I'd like to add is that the Loars have a big square soundpost in them, which is really weird. It's like a hunk of a 2x4 wedged between the top and back of the guitar. This dampens the top considerably, which may be fine for electric play, but makes it useless as an acoustic. Quite silly when it is patterned after acoustic guitars. The eastman, on the other hand, functions quite well both as an acoustic and electric. While they are not traditional GJ guitars, they actually work ok for the style--better than my more heavily built vintage archtops. And the eastmans that I've owned/played have been plenty loud.

Cuimean

Bohemian wrote:

For a budget and fun archtop try the new Seagull or is it La Patrie units for $600 maybe less.. kinda fun.. more tone and playability than the loar and much better deal. Why they dont have the glitz of the Loar, the have a nice gutsy raw sound perfect for blues and jazz

Is that the Godin 5th Avenue?

Bohemian

Yes GODIN 5th Avenue and there is a new one due any day with a floating pickup at the end of the fingerboard

No frills, very easy to play funky tone and fun plus cheap

Bohemian

Update

The new guitar will have a single P90 style pickup mounted in the top and not a fingerboard mounted unit.

Josh Hegg

I own a loar and it's fine with a good pickup. I installed a Kent Armstrong floating humbucker and it sounds great and is supper fun to play. As for the acoustic tone.... Well... it's not "all that" but it's better then a silvertone. The loar has a sound post in it and I'm very interested to know what it might sound like with that out. But i don't want it to turn into a feed back monster so I have not messed with that yet. I may some day but for now it's a fun guitar to play plugged in.

Cheers,
Josh

Bohemian

http://www.acousticguitar.com/ubbcgi/ul ... 1;t=028544

Here is an interesting review of the 5TH Avenue





Josh,
My GGF emigrated to Tacoma from Bohemia in 1885 and was a contractor there for almost 50 years.
My parents owned , and I lived at, 1002 No "L" up on Stadium Heights...