dcooper830 - Make this your thread - Tell us about the Epi LPs

[GAS Man]

I doubt anyone here has more first hand knowledge of the Epi LPs.

 

You comment a lot on them, but I'd like you to tell us about all of your Epi LPs and compare/contrast the different models you've bought over the years. The possibly subtle tone difference between the customs and standards, for example.

 

Other folks can add on, but I think we need dcooper to author the definitive thread. I asking you to be verbose here.

 

Why, cuz I'm a believer that Epi's have come a long ways in the tone department. Sure, none of us particularly luv the headstock, but ya don't see 'em when you're playing the darn things, so beyond guitar worship, it's interesting to hear how well they deliver the goods. And you've got to be a good authority on what you've seen/heard with your collection.

 

Calling dc!

[_pete_]

[zhyx3]

i'm in on this, i'm considering buying one soon

[cerebrix]

click my sig to see mine. but im pretty sure youd be hard pressed to find an epi LP like mine. I dig mine, which they still made them. if they did, id buy 2

[GAS Man]

click my sig to see mine. but im pretty sure youd be hard pressed to find an epi LP like mine. I dig mine, which they still made them. if they did, id buy 2

 

That's one wild looking Epi LP from the flames to the maple board to the Custom split diamond HS inlay. Nothing spared!

[carguy]

I too await Mr. Cooper's reply. Also, as a side note, what acoustic are you playing when you perform with Jenni b? Looks like a Tak Jumbo.

[dcindc]

 

[Doctor Morbius]

 

[GAS Man]

where is that dude? I even PM'd him so he'd show up soon!

[Myrdhinn]

Until the Guru shows up to mesmerize us, here's another persons opinion which I found a fair assesment.

 

http://www.nextlevelguitar.com/content/view/1005/132/

[Doctor Morbius]

Where is that masked man? What's the scoop on The Coop?

[dcooper830]

Well........ let's see........

 

The first one I got was my Alpine White LP Custom. I bought it used for $400 with hardshell case!! AWESOME deal!!

 

 

 

With the stock pickups it sounded very good! But I was determined to upgrade the pickups eventually, and I installed Burstbucker PROs. They ROCK!!!

 

This clip sounds OK..... but is not the best representation cause the Valve King 212 Peavey is kinda harsh sounding:

 

[YOUTUBE]rf7aSlIZRF4[/YOUTUBE]

 

This clip is a better example of the classic rock goodness this guitar can produce:

 

[YOUTUBE]FgWeOc4kyFc[/YOUTUBE]

 

The guitar plays like butter!! Nice low action..... but not too low. The neck is slightly chunky but I wouldn't call it a 50's neck. Maybe somewhere in between 50's and 60's style.

 

It's a Korean Unsung made in December of 2002.

 

More to come.......

[dcooper830]

That Alpine White was the first Les Paul I ever owned. I was enjoying it so much!! I was actually having more fun on gigs because of it..... cause it was so new and different.... and COOL!!!

 

And I was getting lots of compliments on the looks of it.

 

So, naturally...... it was starting to get Les Paul fever!!

 

And, looking at all the Epiphones available, I immediately decided that I HAD to have as many of the models as I could!!

 

Soon thereafter I bought my Wine Red LP Custom off Musician's Friend and my '56 Goldtop (marked 2nd) off Ebay........ within the same week!

 

It was really cool cause they both arrived on the same day!!!! :thu:

 

 

 

 

The above photos really do this guitar justice as this is exactly how beautiful it looks in person!!

 

When I first got the guitar.... the action was too high... but when I lowered it there was some bad fret buzz in spots.... so I had to take it in for a fret leveling. No problem... it only cost me $30. And then it was perfect playing!!

 

Then.... on gigs, it was sounding good an' all... but the bridge pickup was microphonic if I wasn't careful on my higher gain tones.

 

So I ordered a 57 Classic Plus and a 57 Classic, and now that guitar is absolute perfection!! The upper neck isn't quite as smooth playing as the Alpine White... but still nice!

 

It's a Quing Dao China made in December 2005.

 

This is a decent clip I think... You can hear how smooth the guitar sounds. (Except for at the very end of the clip where I turn the guitar volume all the way up....... that very last part sounds like crap) I love those 57 Classics!!! But I would like to put one up someday of me playing it through my Marshall DSL 100.

 

[YOUTUBE]bvP7LaSDnGg[/YOUTUBE]

[GAS Man]

Cool so far. Keep 'em comin, keep 'em comin!

 

P.S. Really like the finish on the red Custom!

[dcooper830]

Yes..... my Goldtop '56 Epi arrived the very same day as my Wine Red LP Custom.

 

That was a pretty good day!

 

 

 

This guitar was stamped "2nd" on the back of the headstock. It's one of the ubiquitous Ebay factory 2nd Epiphones.

 

It's an Unsung Korean made in June of 2005.

 

When I first got it the action was too high... but I was able to lower it to my liking with no fret buzz!! And I was able to set the intonation no problem!

 

As you can hear...... this guitar sounds GREAT with the stock pickups!!! Those Epi P90s are fantastic tone-wise!

 

[YOUTUBE]thR3a7wTPkk[/YOUTUBE]

 

However, when I tried the guitar on a gig I could barely get through the first song. The buzzing was tolerable.......... but the pickups had this horrible midrange microphonic problem. The other guys in the band were giving me dirty looks cause the guitar was howling so bad. The only way I could stop it was to turn the guitar down so low... you could barely hear it.

 

So I ordered these Seymour Duncan STK-P1 P90s which I think are humbuckers in P90 clothing.

 

Unfortunately..... the guitar had to be routed out before the pickups could fit. So I had to send it off to a luthier and be without it for TWO WHOLE WEEKS!!

 

But he only charged me $50 to rout out the guitar and install the pickups. Plus he did a full set-up!

 

He's EXTREMELY cool!! I highly recommend him! Rod Tuggle in Rossville, IL.

 

http://www.tunesmithguitars.com/

 

So the new pickups don't have that big warmth that the stock P90s had... as you can hear in this clip:

 

[YOUTUBE]gPUaBXLie60[/YOUTUBE]

 

However, I still love the tone of 'em!! They have a really cool sound all their own. And the bridge pickup does have some clang to it. So they sound a little P90-ish. They also have a little of this pristine high end which I love!! So they're really clean sounding.

 

And now I can actually use the guitar on gigs!!

 

One night our band was doing "Run Like Hell" by Pink Floyd and I was playing this guitar and it was the best sounding I'd ever did it because of the clean-ness of the pickups. So now I always try to use this guitar on that song.

 

As far as the pickups not sounding like P90s........ Funny thing..... other musicians come up to me at gigs and say "Man! I love the tone of those P90s dude!!"

 

I don't tell 'em that they're not P90s.

[dcooper830]

I also want to add that the '56 Goldtop plays EXTREMELY nice!

 

It does have a fairly slim neck....... which is funny cause I would think an actual 1956 Les Paul would have a fat chunky neck.

 

Oh and another thing I wanted to add was that the Seymour Duncan STK-P1 P90 pickups are 4-conductor and can be wired a number of different ways.

 

One thing that would be really cool is if I added push-pull pots to the guitar. I would then be able to take advantage of the many other tonal possibilities of these pickups.

[myway]

I was suprised by the sound difference between the stock p-90s' and the Duncans. Wow! Those Duncans make that goldtop come alive.

[dcooper830]

So, my Epiphone Les Paul fever was stronger than ever once I got the Wine Red and Goldtop squared away.

 

I came across this cute little Epi LP Studio on Ebay.

 

 

I got it for $270 SHIPPED....... with hardshell case!!

 

It's an Unsung Korean made in February of 2000.

 

The toggle switch broke during shipping..... which actually turned out to be kinda cool cause I learned how to install a toggle switch.

 

The guitar is very light weight. Somewhere between 7 and 8 pounds.

 

I was able to get the action nice and low with no fret buzz problems. The neck is a tad chunky and feels very nice! It plays very nice!!

 

The stock pickups were HOT! I could get plenty of gain with 'em.

 

But I was in pickup swapping mode and I bought and installed some Burstbucker PROs!! While I was at it...... I installed CTS pots all around.

 

I did not like the cheapie stock vintage style green plastic tuners. They were very low ratio.. so a small turn made a big difference.

 

But, fortunately..... on night at a gig..... this gig to be precise:

 

 

Shortly after this pic was taken...... the lead singer swung his arm around and accidentally hit and broke one of the tuners off!

 

It didn't bother me a bit! It gave me a great excuse to install some nice Grovers!

 

I'd never done a tuner installation before...... so my work was pretty crappy:

 

 

 

But it's a HUGE improvement!

 

This guitar rocks!! It's unbelievable! It almost feels like a toy cause it's so light. But it plays very nice, and has great tone with the Burstbucker PROs!

 

This clip through my Valve King is not the best..... but it's OK:

 

[YOUTUBE]R4fXrhoRW4c[/YOUTUBE]

 

I get much more classic rock goodness from a Marshall....... a solid state Marshall no less!!

 

[YOUTUBE]XNz9gPzIBww[/YOUTUBE]

 

Of course it sounds even better through my DSL 100 Marshall. I really need to put up a clip of that sometime!

[dcooper830]

Then, one day I went to the local Gibson/Epiphone dealer and spotted this beauty:

 

 

Actually........ this is a MUCH MUCH better pic of it and is more what it looks like in person:

 

 

Les Paul Custom Plus Heritage Cherry Sunburst.

 

When I first saw it....... the action was high and I wasn't impressed with the feel of it at all.

 

So I told the guys..... "I really like this guitar but the action is too high... I can't tell if it's a good player or not."

 

So they told me they would set it up real nice and for me to come back in a week or so.

 

I went back a couple weeks later expecting it to be exactly the same..... I didn't think they would actually set it up.....

 

But they did!! And it was unbelieveable!! Nice low action and it felt really, really good!!

 

It's a Saein Korean made in February of 2005.

 

Right after I bought it..... I ripped out the pickups and installed Burstbucker PROs.

 

This guitar is MONSTEROUS!! It plays soooo nice and sounds so sweet!!!

 

[YOUTUBE]-YDZem1xz5Y[/YOUTUBE]

[dcooper830]

Then I came across one of the best deals ever!!

 

Musicians Friend had a Epi Black Beauty "Blem" for only $399!!!

 

They're usually $699!

 

And, when I added a hardshell case to my order..... they discounted it another $45!!

 

So I got the guitar with hardcase for $424.93!!

 

It's a Quing Dao Chinese made in January of 2006.

 

As far as the blem.... there's some sloppy paint work by the upper frets as you can sort of see in this pic:

 

 

But..... I was able to get the action nice and low with no fret buzz... and set the intonation no problem.

 

The neck has a nice solid Gibson-y feel to it. It's a complete joy to play!!

 

I installed a 57 Classic Plus in the bridge position and a Burstbucker PRO in the neck position.

 

I've kept the middle pickup stock.

 

The only issue is.... that middle pickup gets in the way a little bit..... and when you have it engaged..... you will hear your pick hitting it coming out of your amp if you're not careful. But that's easy to work around..... and it's a small price to pay for such an incredibly cool guitar!!

 

 

Here's a clip through my POD XT PRO I used to have. You can hear when I switch to the middle pickup and play "Sultans Of Swing" I can get real close to that bridge/middle tone of a Strat:

 

[YOUTUBE]vDx_LinULJA[/YOUTUBE]

 

 

 

And here's a nice clip of it through my Mighty Marshall DSL 100!

 

[YOUTUBE]Hh3jZnqlybQ[/YOUTUBE]

[Puckman]

That last one's my favorite. Any chance you can tell me what settings (roughly) on your Classic 30?

 

I have that LP I've been fighting for months now, it has BB Pros in it, and I have a C30. Hehe. I wanna put it to the test.

 

EDIT: My post was about the Heritage Cherry one.

[dcooper830]

So, by February 2007 I had 6 Epi Les Pauls.

 

 

And that was it!! I was done!! I was completely satisfied!

 

Then _Pete_ put this one up on the block:

 

 

It's an Epi LP Custom Limited Edition that originally came with chrome pickguard and pickup rings and uncovered pickups.

 

_Pete_ went over this guitar with a fine tooth comb and even posted a lengthy thread about every little mod he performed on it.

 

He put a Gotoh bridge and tailpiece, Graphtech bridge saddles, Seymour Duncan Pealy Gates bridge pickup, Elitist 50R neck pickup, Tusq nut, and CTS pots.

 

Plus, he installed cream pickguard and pickup rings, and a nice set of reflector bell knobs.

 

He was happy with the guitar but ended up putting it up for sale to fund a Gibson LP Studio.

 

I PM'd him IMMEDIATELY!!! I said "I'll buy it!!"

 

And within a week or two I had it!

 

When I first opened up the case I thought "Pure class!!"

 

The guitar plays like butter!! It's awesome! And it sounds really phat and warm. It has great sustain. I think all the mods _Pete_ did really make this add up to one fine, fine instrument!

 

It's pretty heavy. I think it's right at about 10 pounds. But that doesn't bother me a bit.

 

It's a Saein (Korea) made in February of 2005.

 

Pure eye candy! :love:

 

 

 

 

Here's a short clip I did through my POD XT PRO I used to have:

 

[YOUTUBE]c6ixZNoyxG0[/YOUTUBE]

 

I really need to put up another clip through my Marshall DSL 100 so you can hear what this axe can really do!!

 

_Pete_ I will always be thankful to you for giving me such a great deal on this guitar! :thu:

[dcooper830]

That last one's my favorite. Any chance you can tell me what settings (roughly) on your Classic 30? I have that LP I've been fighting for months now, it has BB Pros in it, and I have a C30. Hehe. I wanna put it to the test. EDIT: My post was about the Heritage Cherry one.

 

 

Well..... on my Classic 30 I usually just have the mid and bass up all the way. Then I have the treble about halfway.

 

Gain I set to a little over halfway.

 

I also have an Eminence Governor speaker installed in it and I think that helped warm up the tone somewhat.

 

That amp is such a JEWEL!!!

 

 

[dcooper830]

So, after buying that LP Custom off _Pete_ I was definitely DONE buying guitars!!

 

I was extremely satisfied with my Epi Collection.

 

Until I went to the music store one day and I saw this with hardshell case for $325.

 

 

 

 

It has a pretty slim neck which is unusual for DOTs. But it plays very nice!

 

It's a Samick (Korea) made in April of 2005.

 

In this clip it sounds a little thin.... but I had my amp set to ultra clean:

 

[YOUTUBE]ztDeiAbF6G4[/YOUTUBE]

 

 

With some overdrive I start to get some classic rock goodness!

 

[YOUTUBE]cz6xM83S-Bg[/YOUTUBE]

 

 

And later I went back and added a touch of drive to the clean channel of my amp which made for a much warmer phatter tone! It really brings out the best of this guitar:

 

[YOUTUBE]JgGmKIit-F0[/YOUTUBE]

[dcooper830]

So then I had DOT fever, and over the summer ended up getting 3 more!!

 

I got this one off Ebay for $340 shipped.... with hardshell case:

 

 

 

 

It's an Unsung (Korea) made in November of 2000.

 

I was able to get the action nice and low to my liking without fret buzz, it has a big chunky neck but plays real easy.

 

But the funny thing about this guitar is..... the neck has kind of a cheapie feel to it. It doesn't feel quite as luxurious as the necks on my other Epis.

 

However, it plays real easy. And after a few minutes I feel right at home on it.

 

And another thing about this guitar..... it has a really, really warm phat tone to it! It may be the nicest sounding of my DOTs.

 

So far I've kept the pickups stock and I'm EXTREMELY happy with the tone.

 

I don't have a clip of this guitar yet. I hope to put one up soon.