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Mandolin

Eastman MD404-BK

Name: Eastman MD404-BK
Brand: Eastman

Eastman · MD404-BK Oval Hole A-Style Mandolin

Price: 741 EUR – 898 EUR

Price history

Cheapest seen Most expensive seen

Availability: 2/10 (Very rare)

An A-style mandolin with an oval sound hole and mahogany back and sides rather than the F-holes and maple of Eastman's bluegrass models, aimed at the mellower, older-style tone Celtic and old-time players favor.

Where available? Go to the best price – 745 EUR About this instrument

About the Eastman MD404-BK

Most modern bluegrass mandolins use F-shaped sound holes and maple back/sides, following the Gibson F-5 template; the MD404-BK instead uses a single oval sound hole and solid mahogany back and sides, a combination associated with pre-bluegrass mandolins from the early 1900s and still preferred by Celtic, old-time and folk players for its warmer, less punchy tone. The top is solid spruce, hand-carved like the rest of Eastman's range, in the plain A-style body shape.

Neck and hardware follow Eastman's standard mandolin spec: maple neck, ebony fingerboard at a 12-inch radius, 13 7/8-inch scale, bone nut, and an adjustable compensated ebony bridge. The "BK" designation refers to a black-top gloss finish over the spruce, a cosmetic option alongside Eastman's natural-finish oval-hole models, with chrome rather than nickel hardware and a hard case included.

Where to buy

Reverb 745 EUR Best price View details
Reverb 891 EUR View details
Reverb 898 EUR View details

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Source: https://reverb.com/item/99079294-eastman-md404-bk-oval-hole-a-style-mandolin

Sound character of the Eastman MD404-BK

The oval sound hole and solid mahogany back/sides produce a warmer, mellower, less punchy tone than Eastman's F-hole, maple-bodied bluegrass models - mahogany emphasizes midrange over the scooped highs/lows of maple, and an oval hole radiates sound more evenly than the more directional F-holes, which is exactly why old-time and Celtic players favor this construction over the louder, cutting F-5-style voice.

Warm Mellow Woody

Technical data for the Eastman MD404-BK

Top	Solid spruce, hand-carved
Back/Sides	Solid mahogany
Sound hole	Oval
Neck	Maple
Fretboard	Ebony, 12" radius
Scale length	13 7/8"
Finish	Black gloss top

Price history for the Eastman MD404-BK

Cheapest seen: 741 EUR · Most expensive seen: 898 EUR

Cheapest seen Most expensive seen

The history of the Eastman MD404-BK

Oval-hole A-style mandolins predate the F-style, F-hole design Lloyd Loar introduced at Gibson in the 1920s; Eastman's MD404 revives that earlier body style specifically for players in genres where the F-5's louder, more cutting tone isn't what the music calls for.