Members chiro972 Posted April 29, 2005 Members Share Posted April 29, 2005 Why does everyone seem to bash epi les pauls? I have a Custom that I got as a second (the flaw is so small it's rediculous) Anyway, It needed a couple of high frets cleaned up (on top, not on th sides), but otherwise has been really excellent. The finish on the guitar is wonderful. The binding and frets (other than the two high ones) is perfect. I had an ES335 (circa 1980) that was horrible. This thing is so much nicer in every way. I'm just wondering what aspect of the epi's has everyone always referring to them as crap. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Kevin_FL Posted April 29, 2005 Members Share Posted April 29, 2005 There's nothing wrong with them. In fact, they got so good that we couldnt sell a $2200.00 LP Standard. I dont miss Gibsons in the store at all, wish we has the Epi's back though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members -=Pennywise=- Posted April 30, 2005 Members Share Posted April 30, 2005 nothing wrong with my Epi LP Custom, plays great, sounds great, handles gigs just fine.......... ............ better than yer {censored}ing gibson too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members miked58 Posted April 30, 2005 Members Share Posted April 30, 2005 I think that the thing with most guitars under $1K or so it that some are excellent, some are good, and some suck ass. I've got an Epi Korina V and my younger brother has a cool Epi DC Les Paul Special w/ some NICE P90s (he only paid $130 for it!!!!) Both rock. Alot of the guys who complain about the Epis probably either just had bad luck and got a bad one or they try to compare it to their uber-expensive Paul Reed Les Giby something or other. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members hardtdc Posted April 30, 2005 Members Share Posted April 30, 2005 I believe it has to do with their entry level guitars. They are not very good at all. The Standars and especially theCustoms are very good quality guitars. Like most brands, you have to go through several to find the "gems". I love my Epi LPCustom Flametop. Plays like butter and pretty as hell too. I get compliments all the time on it. I've always been an Epi fan, especially for their old and vintage stuff. I have a 70's BARD 12-string acoustic that when anybody has ever played it, they fall in love. It has beautiful tone and the neck and action play like an electric. Wouldn't trade it for the world. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Ancient Mariner Posted April 30, 2005 Members Share Posted April 30, 2005 When they were first launched they were pretty crappy - poor construction, bad acoustic tone, lousy PUs. I haven't bothered to pick one up since the early 90s - they might be fine now, although I understand the PUs are still poor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Kalebmation Posted April 30, 2005 Members Share Posted April 30, 2005 Anything wrong with mine? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Clyde42 Posted April 30, 2005 Members Share Posted April 30, 2005 I dont think they are any worse than other comparable imports, but are under more scrutiny because they say Gibson on them. That said, The pickups are generally tragic, with muddy tone and microphonics. Tuners are even worse than those on a real Gibson(Kluson types anyway). Many have poor wood quality resulting in a rubbery neck that you can bend out of tune just by playing it, and also wind up warping in a short time. Hardware looks good, but is made of cheap metal that sucks tone and is not durable. I had a brand new Sheratons bridge collapse and snap after being in the store for 3 weeks. The TOM bridges lose their radius quickly, becoming almost straight. Ive seen this on heaps of used Epi LPs. None of these issues are exclusive to the entry level lines. Many seconds have more going on than just blems. Most are lemons sent back by dealers. Over-set or under-set necks which limit playable string action severly are common, as is bad, uneven fretwork. Seconds of most brands need to be selected very carefully. Again, nothing different than most other guitars out there. Until recently most Korean ones were Samick built, Chinese ones built by the factory doing Jay Tursers(also Arbor J.Reynolds and Sanatoga) or the S101 guitar factory(ASC). These factories build guitars and source parts for loads of brand names, so Epis deserve no more bashing than others. There are many, many crappy guitars around, and many good ones. Epi now has their own plant in China, so at least if they suck, they can be bashed with no middleman involved! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members chiro972 Posted April 30, 2005 Author Members Share Posted April 30, 2005 Mine's Korean. I definitely am not a pup expert, so mine may suck. In fact the neck pickup does sound a bit muddy. But the guitar itself seems to be really very well made. I know I've said it many times, but the overall construction is so much better than the ~1980 Gibson I had it's rediculous. I appreciate the responses. I'm glad I'm not the only one who thinks the Epi's are not too bad. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members RainDownMyBlues Posted April 30, 2005 Members Share Posted April 30, 2005 When I bought mine (standard) I was actually looking to buy a Gibby Standard. I did find the best Epi they had on the rack, and was comparing it to the Gibson standards. I really saw absolutely no diffrence besides the headstock and the Korean sticker on the back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members abishai Posted April 30, 2005 Members Share Posted April 30, 2005 Its just prejudice and you shouldnt listen to what some say. Just as people, guitars differs from eachother in alot of ways. It's guitaracism. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Clyde42 Posted April 30, 2005 Members Share Posted April 30, 2005 While one mans "muddy" might be another mans "warm", differences in material and construction quality are a fact. An individuals perception is definitely variable. No prejudice here, I can totally dig the wide variety of cool looking, decent, and affordable guitars available, and am about to pull the trigger on some guitars from Rondo. I dont expect them to be what they are not, and I think they will be fun and cool for the money I spend. Play what you like and can afford, as long as you play! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members miked58 Posted April 30, 2005 Members Share Posted April 30, 2005 Originally posted by RainDownMyBlues When I bought mine (standard) I was actually looking to buy a Gibby Standard. I did find the best Epi they had on the rack, and was comparing it to the Gibson standards. I really saw absolutely no diffrence besides the headstock and the Korean sticker on the back. And you can take the "Made in Korea" sticker off Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members tlbonehead Posted April 30, 2005 Members Share Posted April 30, 2005 Originally posted by Ancient Mariner When they were first launched they were pretty crappy - poor construction, bad acoustic tone, lousy PUs. I haven't bothered to pick one up since the early 90s - they might be fine now, although I understand the PUs are still poor. My first real gigging guitar back in the early-mid 70's was a 335 Epi copy. It wasn't a bad guitar at all. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members tubular balls Posted April 30, 2005 Members Share Posted April 30, 2005 bad rap? just because some dildo spent a bunch of money on an overpriced gibson wants to bad mouth your guitar to make himself feel superior dosn't mean epi's are not up to par. oh yes, the subtleness of the pickups, the quality of the maple top, the magic of the finish, the history of the moniker, wow! if a company pushes a guitar by a kiss guitarist, their integrity is suspect from the jump. buy what you want, feel good, brother, & as always {censored} kiss! PEACE! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members 's mel gibson Posted April 30, 2005 Members Share Posted April 30, 2005 From what I can see is, the Casino's and Sheraton's were good enough for Lennon, McCartney and Hooker to record with. The rest,...I don't know!Besides these 3 on their semi acoustics, is there anyone else who has recorded a stellar album with an Epiphone solid body? Stock? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members sandfly Posted April 30, 2005 Members Share Posted April 30, 2005 I have about 5 or 6 Epi's and there all nice guitars . The only one I have a problem with is a G-400 I picked up . The pick ups sound harsh to me . But that's no big deal I can change them . I just don't get why they sound so harsh It supposedly has the same pick ups as my Epi Les Paul that sounds great . . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Shocker Posted April 30, 2005 Members Share Posted April 30, 2005 Originally posted by miked58 And you can take the "Made in Korea" sticker off Yes, yes you friggin' can. Did that on my Les Paul Baritone (I'm never sure if it fits into an Epiphone LP discussion). I love the guitar, though. Solid, tight construction, flawless finish, great fretwork. Never even heard the pickups, though. They were right out.//S Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members batotman Posted April 30, 2005 Members Share Posted April 30, 2005 Originally posted by Kalebmation Anything wrong with mine? Just the knobs!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members dwerlin Posted April 30, 2005 Members Share Posted April 30, 2005 I absolutely LOVE my Epi LP (finger smudges and all!), I did end up swapping out the stock pups for a pair of Gibson BurstBuckers (#2 in the neck, #3 in the bridge). I will say however, that the stock pups that came in my Epi LP Classic were pretty darn good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Shocker Posted April 30, 2005 Members Share Posted April 30, 2005 Originally posted by dwerlin I absolutely LOVE my Epi LP (finger smudges and all!), I did end up swapping out the stock pups for a pair of Gibson BurstBuckers (#2 in the neck, #3 in the bridge). I will say however, that the stock pups that came in my Epi LP Classic were pretty darn good. Oh wow Nice!//S Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members batotman Posted April 30, 2005 Members Share Posted April 30, 2005 The pattern on that quilt looks crooked....damn epi quality control.....just kidding, i really like it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Shocker Posted April 30, 2005 Members Share Posted April 30, 2005 Originally posted by batotman The pattern on that quilt looks crooked....damn epi quality control..... just kidding, i really like it! If that's a factory second, the motion passes. //S Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members miked58 Posted April 30, 2005 Members Share Posted April 30, 2005 Originally posted by 's mel gibson From what I can see is, the Casino's and Sheraton's were good enough for Lennon, McCartney and Hooker to record with. The rest,...I don't know! Besides these 3 on their semi acoustics, is there anyone else who has recorded a stellar album with an Epiphone solid body? Stock? These guys were playing American built Epiphones, and guitar constuction was a different animal 30-40 years ago. You probably haven't heard stock epis on major recordings today because as soon as some schmuck gets a recording contract and a little loot, he'll buy a Gibson because to some extent it's a status symbol, just like a flashly car or whatever. I've heard good local recordings and local bands that used epis. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members batotman Posted April 30, 2005 Members Share Posted April 30, 2005 I've played quite a few Epi LP's. I would say more than not they seemed to have problems and/or sound poopy. I've seen some great ones, some so/so ones. These were MIK's. However i went to the guitar stores about a month ago to check out the new Made in China ones and was expecting CRAP. I was stunned, every last one sounded just fine, played well, and appeared to be flawless in construction. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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