Ron Carter Esperanza Spalding - Downbeat

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Eastman AR905CE Archtop
Boutique Quality, Bargain Price
Eastman’s AR905CE Uptown Deluxe is the
company’s premier 16-inch archtop model,
a prime example of the fine workmanship that
guitarists have come to expect from this Beijingbased
builder.
From the moment you first open the deluxe
hardshell case, the quality of the AR905CE
shines through. The materials are all handselected
from Eastman’s private reserve of premium
AAA tone woods, and it really shows.
The guitar’s tasteful natural nitro-cellulose finish
highlights the highly flamed maple back and
sides and shows off its tight-grained spruce top.
The 16-inch body has a depth of 3 1/4 inches and
features a Venetian-style cutaway reminiscent of
the great Selmer guitars of the 1930s.
The design of the AR905CE is classic, with a
tailpiece, adjustable floating bridge and pickguard
all made from solid ebony. The body, neck
and headstock are all bound in figured maple,
which is nicely echoed by the bound f-holes cut
into the top. The neck is carved from figured
maple and accented by two inlaid strips of ebony.
The fingerboard, also ebony, is clean, utilizing
only dot position markers inlaid into the neck’s
wood binding.
As with all Eastman jazz guitars, the
AR905CE is hand-carved from all solid wood.
Standard details—such as tap tuning of the tops
and hand shaping of the braces—really show in
the responsiveness of this guitar, which is even
capable of holding its own as an acoustic instrument.
When amplified, the AR905CE produces
a smooth, thick jazz tone with surprisingly good
detail and clarity. The pickup’s tone and volume
control wheels are cleverly mounted to the pickguard’s
underside, keeping them hidden from
view but easily accessible when needed. The
playability of the AR905CE is great right out of
the box with excellent intonation and an extremely
good setup.
Retailing for $3,550 (with a street price of
around $2,800), the AR905CE is simply a wellmade
guitar built in the tradition of the finest
archtop guitar makers. Eastman continues to
push the boundaries of affordable quality.
—Keith Baumann
Ordering info: eastmanguitars.com
RW Pro Series Saxophones
Precision, Tone & Good Looks
The RW Pro series of saxophones from
Roberto’s Winds are high-performing stepup
horns that are built in Taiwan and adjusted in
New York by one of the world’s finest woodwind
repair specialists, Roberto Romeo.
The keywork on the RW Pro series is very
similar to what you would find on a Selmer Mark
VI or other instruments that follow that template.
The horns have a slightly larger bell and bore,
which gives them a sound and a response more
reminiscent of vintage American-made saxophones
like old Conn and King models.
On the cosmetic side, the RW Pro series saxophones
offer some striking finishes to choose
from, including gold lacquer, black nickel, silver,
double-silver, red brass, vintage and unlacquered.
In addition to looking incredibly cool,
the different finishes influence each instrument’s
tone production in subtle ways; the silver and
double-silver, in particular, impart a noticeably
darker tone than some of the other finishes, making
them suitable for classical playing.
I play-tested a black nickel alto, silver tenor,
silver baritone and gold lacquer soprano (with
straight and bent neck pipe options) from the RW
Pro series. All of the saxophones were responsive
and produced a good, textured sound. I
was encouraged by the clear, full tone I could
get in the higher register. I didn’t have to sacrifice
tone for range in the lower reaches of these
saxophones, where players often find themselves
struggling against tendencies to honk.
“A lot of new instruments that are in the
same price range as the RW Pro series tend to
lose a little bit of the sparkle once you get above
your high D,” said Alberto Cebollero, sales manager
for Roberto’s Woodwinds. “With our horns,
you have a very shiny, bright-sounding high register
that’s well in tune, as well.”
Another appealing quality of the RW Pro
series saxophones was their ability to take everything
I could put into them. As I increased the
power of my air column, the horns responded
with more vibration, more overtones, more sound
spread and more volume. If you have the chops
of an experienced player and like to blow hard,
you’ll find these instruments are awfully fun to
play. You can achieve lots of dynamic extremes,
tonal shadings and other cool unique saxophone
effects without having to work too hard.
The RW Pro series saxophones are a great
value for advanced players and serious college
students who need a horn for gigs and studio
work but don’t want to pay top dollar for a vintage
Selmer Mark VI. —Ed Enright
Ordering info: robertoswinds.com
106 DOWNBEAT DECEMBER 2012