Cheapo Elec/Acou Shootout: Epi vs Iba

[Oldskool Texas]

I just bought two low-priced acoustic-electrics for a songwriting class I'm teaching this Fall. I had a strict budget, so I got an Epiphone AJ-100 CE for $149 through MF and an Ibanez V70 CE for $199 from GC.

 

Both are cutaway-style dreadnaughts.

The Epi features a solid spruce top; the Ibanez is laminate throughout.

The Epi had no on-board controls; the Ibanez has a 2-band EQ.

Epi: cheap tuners with no adjustment screws.

Ibanez: cheap tuners with adjustment screws

Epi: Body binding

Ibanex: Body and neck binding

 

The Epiphone was plagued with intonation issues and a downright dead open G string. The guitar, quite simply, would not intonate. An open string would register as in tune, then fretted on the third fret, it would be sharp by ten + cents. Playing a first position chord was thus torturous. The open strings of the chord would be in tune while the fretted notes would be sharp. Changing strings resulted in no improvement. The plastic nut seemed to be cut unevenly. The plastic saddle was rough at the point where the strings crossed it. The bridge pin holes were wallowed out so that the pins "fell" into the holes right up to their heads. The tuning pegs required a wide variety of effort to turn; some were super loose, and some were downright sticky. The guitar sounded okay - although pretty bright - but the intonation issues and the muted G string were deal breakers. I boxed this junk up and sent it back to MF.

 

On my way home from the UPS store, I stopped at GC where I bought the Ibanez:

 

Intonation is spot-on. The action is a little high, but nothing like the Epi. Chording all the way up the neck is comfortable and quick. The nut and saddle are cut well (and they even included a spare saddle blank), and the tuners work uniformly smooth. In short, this guitar is a joy to play, especially after wrestling with (and losing to) the Epiphone. The tone is not especially rich, but it's got a nice punch to it. I hear some sort of internal buzz when I play any D note - I suspect it's a wire from the pickup rattling, but I haven't investigated it yet. Extremely playable neck - much like an electric.

 

Bottom line: I don't expect much from any sub-$200 electric/acoustic, so the low quality of the Epiphone wasn't that disappointing, even though it proved to be unplayable. The Ibanez, however, is spectacular by comparison, and has really changed my opinion of this brand. Simply put, the $50 difference between the two models really buys a big upgrade in quality.

 

I own an expensive Martin and a R.I. Guild and I've been playing for 35 years. I'm by no means an expert on these things, but if you're looking for a great starter guitar, I'd be sure to put the Ibanez on your short list.

[denvertrakker]

I've played two different V70CE's and, even at my basic level, I've been impressed. They are, BTW, products of Cort's Chinese factory. The Epiphones, from what I've been told, come from either World or Samick. Shame they're not better.

[Terry Allan Hall]

That Epi can probably salvaged w/ a Tusq saddle and a little time filing where the g string hits the saddle...If you don't feel like taking this project on, a good repairman can do it for about $35

 

A pity it wasn't set-up correctly when it was sold to you!

[Oldskool Texas]

 

That Epi can probably salvaged w/ a Tusq saddle and a little time filing where the g string hits the saddle...If you don't feel like taking this project on, a good repairman can do it for about $35 A pity it wasn't set-up correctly when it was sold to you!

 

 

Thanks for the feedback, Terry. I'm sure the guitar could be salvaged, but I'm of the opinion that a brand-new guitar should at least be able to be tuned and to hold its intonation without further investment of time or money. With MF's 45-day guarantee, I just decided to cut my losses on this one. My impression is that very little (if any) set-up work is done on most of these MIC bargain boxes. That said, the overall quality of the Ibanez is so much higher by comparison that it was well worth the additional money spent.

[Terry Allan Hall]

Thanks for the feedback, Terry. I'm sure the guitar could be salvaged, but I'm of the opinion that a brand-new guitar should at least be able to be tuned and to hold its intonation without further investment of time or money. With MF's 45-day guarantee, I just decided to cut my losses on this one. My impression is that very little (if any) set-up work is done on most of these MIC bargain boxes. That said, the overall quality of the Ibanez is so much higher by comparison that it was well worth the additional money spent.

 

Absolute agreement!...send it back!

[Tony Burns]

The fact that you bought the Ibanez in person was a good thing - those low end guitars can be everything from S--t to shinolla , With some nice surprises thrown in their- I think when it comes to guitars , you pay a little more on the low end you get alot more -Their are some super Epiphones out their ( ive played quite a few ) Makes like Crafter , Takamine , Ibanez are usually good for the money .

[Oldskool Texas]

 

The fact that you bought the Ibanez in person was a good thing

 

 

Roger that. Lesson learned.