Well I went Gibson LP shopping recently, wanting to try out one of their "budget" models, the LP VM. I came away after trying a couple of them less than impressed. I was at a GC, pretty much had the store to myself (off hours) and looked at a bunch of higher end Gibsons and some Epis too. A couple of times I found myself saying wow that looks nice, and then realized it was an Epi. And a couple of times I looked at one only to think, yuck, and it was a Gibson. But the ones I really liked, were Gibsons, and usually the higher priced ones. But then I tried a PRS, and even the Singlecut SE model felt and played nicer to me. And the upper level models were fantastic looking. I wish they were cheaper, but the quality is there. But the $600 SE models I found, were high quality too, just lacked some feature, sort of like an Epi to a Gibson. So do I think Epi LPs are cheap? No. Most are pretty good, especially the new ones out of China. ANd less likely to get a lemon these days. I left GC not buying anything. But today I compared back to back, one of my Epi LP (which has a great looking honey burst finish, and looks a lot more expensive than it is, plus SD pups, CTS pots, etc), to a Fender JV strat, to my PRS SE CUstom, and easily, I find the PRS to be the superior playing and feeling guitar. I like all 3, but if Ihad to have only one, today I would have no problem picking the PRS (and I love my Fender, it just isn't as versatile as the PRS, and I keep hitting the pickup switch when I play). I'll get another PRS in the future, but I would never rule out an Epi either. If I get a Gibson, it will either be a SG Classic or a faded LP DC.