Over the last year I have seen a few positive reviews of the Easttop Lightning, but have been unable to import any into The UK, which has been a little frustrating!
However, now the wait is over and I have a selection of the most popular keys available.
The Lightning has stainless steel covers (mirror shined, so watch out for finger prints!), an ABS comb in a cool torquoisey-blue, brass reed plates and phosphor-bronze reeds, which are spot welded into place. They are reasonably solid feeling (the A is 87g, a fraction heavier than the Easttop T008K, and around 20g heavier than a Hohner Special 20), and feel comfortable in the hand. Like most of the Chinese brands, the finish isn't 100% perfect, with the odd sharpish corner, but nothing to cause a problem.
Where they do excel is in playability out of the box. They have a crisp, bright sound and perform well with the lightest of touch - give them a little more air and the sound really bluesy. I found bends to be pretty good and easy to achieve. I don't overblow, but I don't believe that these will do that out of the box, but will need a little bit of a tweak.
For the price, I have found them really great to play, and they have become my new favourite. Would you feel the same? We are all different and look for different things in our musical instruments, but I would suggest that if you enjoy the feel of the Easttop T008K or The Hohner Special 20, then these are certainly worth a look.
