Road Trip
So yesterday I took a day trip into Massachusetts to visit a couple of shops there. First was Johnson Strings in Newton, as according to their web site they had an Eastman 404, A-body with a gloss black finish, oval sound hole, spruce top with mahogany back and sides.
They did have one, and I had to wait a bit while they got it out of their warehouse for me. I spent the time waiting by playing an Eastman 315, F-body with a satin finish, spruce top and maple back & sides.
The 315 had a nice feel & tone. It was really a joy to play. The 404 played well, but honestly my ears I couldn't detect any huge difference in tone versus a maple body f-hole mandolin. I'll be the first to grant that my ears aren't all that sophisticated, but I can for sure detect a difference in tone between my Guild mahogany body dreadnought and my Eastman rosewood body auditorium guitar. But with the Eastman 404, no so much.
Johnson also had an Eastman 515 CC, that's the unbound F-body with a satin finish and "Comfort Contours." I gave that a go, and it also had a nice feel & tone. Of the three I played at Johnson Strings, I definitely felt that the 315 was both the nicest and best value.
One thing I did learn, but should have expected - Eastman hard instrument cases are form fitting nearly down to the millimeter. I already knew this from my Eastman AC422CE guitar, and it was true again in the 404 mandolin.
I keep my D'Addario microtuner, strap, arm rest, and Tone-Gard attached to my Kentucky KM-250 all the time. The 250 came with a gig bag, and when I put away or transport it, I just stash the whole assembly into the gig bag, accessories and all still attached.
I could probably fit the Eastman 404 into its hard case with the tuner attached. The arm rest is a doubtful maybe, and the strap & Tone-Gard is a hard no.
From there I took a drive over to Lexington and poked my head in The Music Emporium. They had around 15 or so mandolins on the wall, mostly Northfield and Collins but also a few Eastman. I took down an Eastman 515 CB and had a good go on it. I also took down a $5000 Northfield and gave it a try. Without a doubt, I do not play a $5000 mandolin any better than I play my $500 mandolin.
So as a result of this day trip my desire for the 404 has diminished greatly, while my desire for a F-body mandolin has diminished not at all. At the same time I clearly still have a long way to go before I "outgrow" my current Kentucky KM-250.
I'm still saving my nickels & dimes & bottle caps & breakfast cereal box tops, and still looking hard at an Eastman 515/v, but now I'm thinking that an Eastman 315 might not be a bad stop along the way.
Then again, "Skip your 2nd mandolin and go straight to your third mandolin." I would have to save longer. Presumably I would be a better player once I finally got it.
But then the dirty little secret about MAS that most of us don't ever admit is that the wanting is better than the having.
Eastman MD-514 (F body, Sitka & maple, oval hole)
Klos Carbon Fiber (on order)
And still saving my nickels & dimes & bottle caps & breakfast cereal box tops for my lifetime mandolin.
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