Members Goat Punishment Posted August 8, 2011 Members Share Posted August 8, 2011 Last year I purchased an Epiphone Riviera from a local shop here in Minneapolis. I was told it was a "blem" model so it was slightly less expensive than most Rivieras. I didn't see anything wrong with it, it played well, sounded great, and looked killer. When I got home I looked it up and decided that it was a Nick Valensi signature model with P94 pickups, and have told a number of people this over the last year. I noticed today that my pups are not p94's. They look more like mini humbuckers. I just looked at some photos online of the Valensi signature model, and noticed that the truss rod cover on that model has his signature on it, mine is just the epiphone "E." Also, the quadrahedron shapes on the fret markers are slanted in the opposite direction on his model, then on mine. My Riviera is Cherry and the Valensi model is only available in natural finish. Now, none of this would really bother me if I were able to find any other guitar like this online! I can't find any other Rivieras with mini humbuckers. The only ones I've seen have either the P94 (Valensi), or three P93's. This is seemingly an unusual instrument. It's really gorgeous and plays wonderfully. I suppose it's possibly a bit of a Frankenstein guitar that someone at the factory threw together using misc parts, but would it have shipped to a store as a Riviera if that were the case? Thanks in advance! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members sk8centilli Posted August 8, 2011 Members Share Posted August 8, 2011 Valensi's and the newer P93 are bastardized versions of the original which came with mini'buckers. Yours looks like this, right? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members cbh5150 Posted August 8, 2011 Members Share Posted August 8, 2011 Im not an Epi expert, but I am sure if you put up some pics, someone may be able to help Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Tweedledee Posted August 8, 2011 Members Share Posted August 8, 2011 Valensi's and the newer P93 are bastardized versions of the original which came with mini'buckers. Yours looks like this, right? Yep, sounds like a standard Riviera that Epi made for quite a while, but is no longer available. Here's a link to that guitar when you could buy it from Musicians Friend: http://www.musiciansfriend.com/guitars/epiphone-riviera-electric-guitar Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Goat Punishment Posted August 8, 2011 Author Members Share Posted August 8, 2011 Yes! That looks very similar! Mine has a black truss cover, and does not have a the E on the pickguard. Also, my knobs are the black ones. Very similar but not exactly. Is there a reason why mine would have these small cosmetic differences? I'll try to get some pics up tonight. Also, from what years did they make these originals? Thanks so much! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Roy Posted August 8, 2011 Members Share Posted August 8, 2011 those E's peel off pretty easily. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Deadbeat Son Posted August 8, 2011 Members Share Posted August 8, 2011 Yes! That looks very similar! Mine has a black truss cover, and does not have a the E on the pickguard. Also, my knobs are the black ones. Very similar but not exactly. Is there a reason why mine would have these small cosmetic differences? Small details like that are subject to change over the production runs or from year to year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Wyatt Posted August 8, 2011 Members Share Posted August 8, 2011 During the '90's, the Rivera RI's used full-size HB's, sometime around 2000 or so they switched to more historically correct mini-HB's until the model was discontinued and replaced with the limited variations. The mini's used by Epiphone...not that great, but not horrible either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members sk8centilli Posted August 8, 2011 Members Share Posted August 8, 2011 They're back (again) at the independent dealers, but I haven't seen them at the big box warehouses like Guitar Center and Musician's Friend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Goat Punishment Posted August 8, 2011 Author Members Share Posted August 8, 2011 So I took a closer look at the axe today. On the back of the headstock near the top, it looks like it has the word "USED" impressed into the wood, and covered with the laquer. Near the bass of the headstock right before the neck, there is a Epiphone Limited Edition Custom Shop emblem (also under the laquer), as well as a "Handcrafted In China" sticker, and QC Inspection Card sticker. I went to GuitarDaterProject.org and typed in the serial number and it found no matches. I found the SN on a sticker placed inside the top f-hole. On the sticker, the model name (Riviera CH) is seemingly typed, and the SN is on a label that is placed into the slot for the SN. I carefully peeled back the SN label and it looks like there was an original SN under it that was whited out. Strange. Is this guitar as mysterious as I think it is, or am I just crazy? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members sk8centilli Posted August 8, 2011 Members Share Posted August 8, 2011 crazy USED is a common stamp, just as is SECOND. USED is typically a promotional giveaway or something similar that would prevent a store or owner from reselling it as new. SECOND is stamped on blems that otherwise pass quality control, but aren't 100%. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bykeryder1 Posted August 9, 2011 Members Share Posted August 9, 2011 See Step 1: http://mircweb.com/quality.php From what you describe about the serial number, it sounds like your guitar came from a company similar to MIRC. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Folky_Grunge Posted August 9, 2011 Members Share Posted August 9, 2011 It sounds like you have a standard model Riviera (good score, I've always liked those) from at least a few years ago; you're not really describing anything strange. The Used stamp means the guitar is probably either a factory second or something that was returned to Epiphone for a warranty repair and sent to a dealer for resale. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members HanSolo Posted August 9, 2011 Members Share Posted August 9, 2011 That is a refurbished guitar. Sometimes refurbishers will leave the serial number intact and stamp it used, sometimes they deface the serial number and stick a serialized label over it for their own records. The Epiphone factory refurbs I have owned were stamped used and the serial number left untouched. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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