My first real investment into my love of music. As slushy and over romantic as I could make this review sound, I just have to be frank with myself. It's a guitar. You can't love a guitar, I can't love a guitar, it is an inanimate object and will never return my love. Yet I feel if my dot was real, it would.
I originally went out with the intention of buying a telecaster - looking for a price of maybe around £400. As a smart person would I tried out more than one guitar, lets me fair, I'm not closed minded, I liketo play the field before I settle down (still talking about guitars!) Now I've got to explain why I chose the Epiphone over one of the worlds leading guitar manufacturers, Fender. Its 22 fret through neck, hollow body and well crafted appearance are only where to start.
The Simplest introduction its appearance?
Wine red stained
wood - basically it's a thin paint, which still shows the wood detail underneath. The dark red is very sexy, and the wood stain gives it a real sense of worth, the guitar looks like a guitar, its not layered up in make up. And I guess this makes me feel like its an honest guitar, whatever that means I have no idea, but there is something very genuine about it.
It has a black scratch guard across the lower end of the strings, raised slightly from the wood surface, I think this is the rock and roll part of the guitar. For me it really just made it look more modern and expensive. The rosewood neck, is of beautiful texture which matches the wood stained body.
The headstock is the standard Gibson shape, however it is colour black, and being picky, that may ruin the aesthetics a bit. However I feel the to f holes cut into the top and bottom of the face redeems this elegance.
It is a fairly large guitar in comparison to most other models, but its light weight (hollow body) once again redeems that fact, and size can never put you off of quality.
Too right, I'm not completely shallow, whilst it draws the attention of my eyes, my ears are more important when it comes to music. The guitar's main output is the results of two fat Gibson mid range humbucking pick ups. Okay so these are no Seymour Duncan's, but they capture the resonant sound of the body brilliantly. The humbuckers effectively capture the whole mid range of tones. Great highs and great lows. It's a rhythm guitar with a kick. I play it through a Marshall AVT150 and I love the real natural sound of the guitar, there is no need to layer it in effects.One problem I have found is the output isn't as high as some other guitars. So sometimes you do really have to whack the volume up on your amp, but the resonance in the body and strings reduces the need for digital reverb effects.
And tone controls?
It has two volume knobs, 2 tone knobs, and a pickup selector. Funnily enough these are all interrelated. Basically, one volume and one tone per pick up, simple!. Three pick up selector positions, neck, bridge and both. With this small package, I am able to create a massive range from the standard mid ranges using both pickups, to shrill shrieks and massive basses with the flick of a switch. The great thing is because it is all completely analogue and running from the initial input of the guitar, it all sounds great - provided the playing matches the quality of the guitar!!!
Playing the damn thing
The action is great, I'll admit it is not a smooth as maybe some lead players may want, but its got a bit of a rough feel and because I like to play my guitar quite hard its really rewarding because it feels like the guitar responds to how I play. The great thing is if you don't share my "feel the music" approach, then its very easy to lower the action on the bridge and truss rod. However I 100% recommend getting a professional to do this, you can screw up the guitar if not break the neck by messing around.
This guitar could even be your claim to fame, with this guitar, appearing across the entire musical spectrums. Most indie/NME bands these days, will be caught at some point in their short careers donning the dot across their sweaters, ties and jackets, and that is because it is a wonderful guitar.
Technical Issues?
I've noticed, I've been having some pick up issues recently, I've been playing this guitar live for the 3 years I've had it and I've never had it serviced. In the last few months I've noticed the pick up volume will sometimes cut right out leaving me with a very flat clean sound with no depth, however in this guitars defence, I tend to spin it around and shake it a lot. I'm not somebody that delicately cares for my guitars, they are a piece of me. If I lost this guitar I wouldn't be able to replace it. Having another replica of it just wouldn't feel the same.
Should I buy the guitar or not?
Play it first I can only tell you my experience of it. it's a great guitar and looks great, but for metal players, or people that play more lead, its not the right guitar. You really have to get your arse off of your computer, get down to your guitar shops and start trying stuff out, I can not exaggerate how much you need to enjoy playing the guitar you own to progress anywhere. It's a real trial and error process
I bought mine for £400 new and that included a hard case as well. I'm not sure it is as cheap elsewhere, but I'm also sure you could find it cheaper in some places.
Stop reading, start playing!
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