Epiphone Les Paul's - ATOT, school me

[foghorn67]

I have been itching to play guitar again.
Right now I have a Charvel with a reverse head, floyd rose, humbucker and a single coil twin rail with a 5 way switch. It actually doesn't sound too bad for the 200 I paid in 1996. It's just incredibly one dimensional. Back then I worked really hard at Hammet/Mustaine style of playing and didn't enjoy it that much. I spent too much time wanting to copy others and not really just jamming.
Every time I played a Les Paul, it seemed easier to forget about everything else, and I just wanted to play.
Back then, Epiphone wasn't that great. Most of the Les Paul's looked crappy and didn't even look like a real one (Express series or similar). Now they have pretty decent looking ones that sound great for the price.

I am looking at the Ultra II and III. Those electronic gimmicks seem nice.
I live in an apt, so that USB thing makes sense to me.
But it also seems like something that would break.
I'm also thinking about the Les Paul Custom. Looks true to the Les Paul form.

Thoughts?

 

[VinylxScratches]

Gibson or bust.

 

[foghorn67]

Gibson or bust.

No. Too serious of an investment.
I would love to buy one, to support them after that dumb raid.

 

[Invisible Evil]

Srlsy if you can find one that is used and is made in Korea they are pretty decent guitars.

Look @ guitar center used section, those cats usually under price ANYTHING that isn't American made.

 

[oynaz]

Epiphone has had severe quality control issues in the past. The quality of guitars of the same model could vary from great to what was a piece of board with five strings nailed to it.

For this reason, I would never purchase an Epiphone without playing it first. Be especially wary of poor tuners and microphonic pickups.

 

[lxskllr]

I used to have an Epiphone Sheridan. It had some finish issues, but it felt, and played great. I imagine they're highly variable, so play some in a store. If you like what you see, buy it. Personally, I'm a fan of Fender guitars. I have a Tele, and Strat, and they do everything I want.

 

[Platypus]

Epiphone quality is all over the map as others have said. Absolutely do not purchase one without playing it first. There are gems and there are total pieces of garbage out there in the same model.

When you play one, look at the neck and make sure it's straight. Look at how the frets were dressed and make sure they are even and smooth. Strum a large A chord and feel the guitar. Does it resonate? Does it feel dead? If the wood vibrates and sounds lively unplugged it is probably a nice instrument..otherwise put it back, there is no helping it.

With a decent set of replacement pickups and new wiring (pots, switch) it can be a really nice instrument for the price... but I would check craigslist and see if someone is selling a Gibson. Gibson has almost the exact same quality control issues at your price point but it will hold its value better and you have a better chance of getting something nicer. There are guitars for sale all the time on my local CL.. not sure about your area but it's worth a check.

If you get nothing else from this post, do not for any reason purchase a guitar that you do not personally play, you will be sorry.

 

[dwell]

I agree with Platypus that you should play it first and that it will not retain its value like a Gibson will. You'll probably need to get it set up out the gate, so factor in another $100 or so to the cost. Any cheap Les Paul that does come PLEK"d is going to have the same issues.

If you're playing at home through a small amp or computer I would not worry about a pickup and/or electronics swap. The stock pickups are more than good enough for practice.

 

[gorcorps]

From my experience jumps in quality are pretty noticeable up until about the $700 mark for a reputible brand. After that only somebody very serious about playing would notice or need anything nicer than that. Epiphone quality varies by guitar because they simply don't have the inspection practices of other makers.

As far as the USB connection goes, I'm not sure how it works because you'll still need software. It may come with it, but I'm not sure if it'll be any good. Decent software costs decent money. IMO I would still stick with a good pedal + amp combo and then use headphones on the amp for quiet playing. The USB connection might come in handy for recording but I wouldn't buy a guitar based on it having a usb port.

I'm not sure why people are worrying about retained value. When I buy a guitar I buy it for me... not for how much I can get out of it later.

And I'd also add that IMO the best bang for the buck brand I've used is Schecter. Not everybody cares for their style though.

 

[mrrman]

if you have a limited budget check out the pawn shops or craigslist...I had a SG Epi before, great guitar but moved to the ESP line now

 

[Jesusthewererabbit]

I have no problems with buying a $300 Epi and upgrading everything on them and turning them into good guitars. It doesn't matter what the name on the headstock is, as long as it feels good to you. It will never be an actual Gibson, but it can come damn close with a little extra time and money. However, at that point, you should look at the lower end Gibsons because the price difference isn't all that much.

I agree on the Schecters. They make some great guitars and basses.

Don't waste your time on a guitar with a USB port. Your instrument needs to be as simple as possible, and that's just something else that can mess up. If you want to record on the computer, buy a $100 Maudio interface, download Audacity, some VST's, and go to town.

 

[ZOOYUKA]

Have you considered on of these?

How about this one? The amber sunburst model offers traditional LP PUP configurations.

 

[twinrider1]

Save up your money and buy used. But be careful because there are a lot of cheap fakes out there. Also, head over to the MyLesPaul site. They accept Epiphones as real guitars and can help you in your search.
Give Hamer a try.

 

[LTC8K6]

Doesn't Gibson own Epiphone?

 

[alkemyst]

I would never purchase any guitar without playing it first.

ftfy.

Epiphone can be a great buy, but IMHO I'd stick with a starter guitar and move up to the one you want.

I went from a $175 electric (maybe it was $125) back in 1984 or so to a $1500 Martin D28 about 10 years later.

 

[foghorn67]

Cool. Thanks guys.
I was going to see about buying one on Amazon. But being informed the quality is all over the place, I'll rule that out. Looks like it's GC or CL for this one.

 

[Platypus]

Cool. Thanks guys.
I was going to see about buying one on Amazon. But being informed the quality is all over the place, I'll rule that out. Looks like it's GC or CL for this one.

Good choice, just out of curiosity what is your price range? What kind of styles are you looking to play? What kind of amplifier do you plan to use this with?

 

[gorcorps]

Doesn't Gibson own Epiphone?

The same overarching corporation that owns Gibson also owns Epiphone, but they aren't made by the same people, same places, or with the same materials. There apparently a short time way back when a few Epiphone models were made in a Gibson plant, but that's long gone. These days they're effectively a different company.

 

[Imp]

When I was researching my guitar purchase, I did check out Epiphone and read about a lot of quality issues.

If you want quality but cheap, go for a Mexican Fender. Strat or Tele should be less than $500 (look around), and the quality should be good. They do use cheaper components than American made ones though I've read.

 

[gorcorps]

When I was researching my guitar purchase, I did check out Epiphone and read about a lot of quality issues.

If you want quality but cheap, go for a Mexican Fender. Strat or Tele should be less than $500 (look around), and the quality should be good. They do use cheaper components than American made ones though I've read.

Does not compute

 

[slightlyhuman]

Does not compute

There's NOTHING wrong with a good ole' MIM strat, especially if you keep it long enough and throw a jeff beck PUP in there.

in other news, i just bought my first gibson les paul:biggrin: studio deluxe and it's a dream to play.



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[foghorn67]

Good choice, just out of curiosity what is your price range? What kind of styles are you looking to play? What kind of amplifier do you plan to use this with?

500 ish sounds like it would pick up anything on CL. So I might lower my budget.
I like distorted blues. Slightly dirty without sounding thin. I like the frets and the back of the neck on Les Pauls. Most Fenders, while sounding nice and pretty sound too...small. I can't describe it. But Les Pauls are heavy handed in tone. ( good ones are at least. )
Amp? I guy I work with fixes up Epiphone Valve Jr's. 15w all tube.
He buys a few bucks worth of parts and they sound golden. I'm going to enlist him.
Also want to fiddle with the iPhone software that they sell. It will make it so I can play at night. Plus I heard they are fun in a casual way.

 

[Imp]

Does not compute

Those Mexicano craftsmen know a thing or two about guitars...

 

[twinrider1]

The same overarching corporation that owns Gibson also owns Epiphone, but they aren't made by the same people, same places, or with the same materials. There apparently a short time way back when a few Epiphone models were made in a Gibson plant, but that's long gone. These days they're effectively a different company.

Basically correct except for the first part. There is no corp over Gibson. Gibson is the parent company.

 

[Gibson486]

500 ish sounds like it would pick up anything on CL. So I might lower my budget.
I like distorted blues. Slightly dirty without sounding thin. I like the frets and the back of the neck on Les Pauls. Most Fenders, while sounding nice and pretty sound too...small. I can't describe it. But Les Pauls are heavy handed in tone. ( good ones are at least. )
Amp? I guy I work with fixes up Epiphone Valve Jr's. 15w all tube.
He buys a few bucks worth of parts and they sound golden. I'm going to enlist him.
Also want to fiddle with the iPhone software that they sell. It will make it so I can play at night. Plus I heard they are fun in a casual way.

Yeah, just say it. Fenders sound like a tin can . That is how I always described it. Then I got a tele. It had this unique raw sound to it. It's awesome. Now, I kind of like some of the Fender sounds. One I played was the Mustang. I liked it alot. It still had that tin can sound, but it's no overdone like the Strat. It just had substance.

I never had issues with Epiphones, but I only have owned one. It's an SG from Korea that is a factory 2nd. To be honest, I bought it when i was 12 because it looked cool. Sound wise, the pick ups were dull and very muddy. I replaced them with Gibson pick ups to see if I could the vintage sound. It was an improvement, but not really spectacular. I still play it more than my tele because it's my first electric and, well, I have become accustomed to it. yeah, my 52 tele reissue is better in every way, but I have just played the SG so much that I feel odd when picking up another guitar.