Chinese copies keep getting better & better!

[cheezemaster]

Re: Chinese copies keep getting better & better!

I'd actually love to have a fake Chinese Les Paul.. assuming I could get one for dirt cheap (under $200)... it would make a cool "stage smasher"/light on fire/Ace Frehley smoke bomb axe.

 

[Wattage]

Re: Chinese copies keep getting better & better!

Call me picky but I'd still like some strings... or at least something to anchor them to. hehehe

Picky

 

[gOgIver]

Re: Chinese copies keep getting better & better!

IMO, the Chinese have blown past the Koreans. The high-end stuff coming out of the Grand Reward factory in Southern China is right up there with anything that's ever come out of Korea.

And as for the Eastman jazz guitars, mandolins and acoustic guitars being hand-built in Beijing, there's never been production Korean instruments that came close to that quality level.

It's true that the vast majority of Chinese guitars are cheap on all accounts. But that's because the brands that buy them, position them for low-cost price points. The reason for that is consumer perception and expectation. Folks aren't willing to pay as much for a Chinese instrument as a Mexican or USA-built instrument. But if the Chinese want -- and the customers are willing to pay for it -- they can build electric guitars just about as well as anyone. There was a steep learning curve, but they came up it very quickly.

Yes to that. Don't know if Hanser was using Farida but the quality on one of thier former lines MIC (OEM?) blew away anything that every came out of Korea IMO.

 

[Evan Skopp]

Re: Chinese copies keep getting better & better!

Farida is Grand Reward's house brand. They build a lot of the best production guitars coming out of China, IMO.

 

[gOgIver]

Re: Chinese copies keep getting better & better!

Farida is Grand Reward's house brand. They build a lot of the best production guitars coming out of China, IMO.

Nice! If you can let us know of any instruments coming to the U.S. from that factory please do so.

 

[Evan Skopp]

Re: Chinese copies keep getting better & better!

How are they compared to Epiphone or Squier, by example?.

It's "quite possible" that one of the brands you just mentioned has some of their guitars made at Grand Reward (the factory that owns the Farida brand name).

 

[Rich_S]

Re: Chinese copies keep getting better & better!

Being the "Jazz Superme" model means you can get away with a lot of things the regular Jazz model can't

Maybe it's pronounced "Super Me". Now, THAT'S a cool name.

 

[astrozombie]

Re: Chinese copies keep getting better & better!

Maybe it's pronounced "Super Me". Now, THAT'S a cool name.

:laugh2:

how could they not notice they didnt put on a tailpiece? I mean of all things...

I stumbled onto a chinese knockoff site a while back.

i was almost temped to purchase one, i mean... 2,000 fender copies for 200 bucks? why not?

 

[Kosh Naranek]

Re: Chinese copies keep getting better & better!

The Chinese fraud thing is pretty scary. It's all fun and games when you see them advertised on line and they're obvious knock-offs with bovious errors. But already I know an owner of a local guitar shop who had some guy come in wanting to sell or trade a Les Paul, and the owner of the shop did the trade. Paid the guy what a used Les Paul Custom is worth minus what margin he hoped to make from reselling it.

It was only upon looking at the guitar more closely that he noticed the bridge and tailpiece didn't look right, the binding was pretty sloppily done, and the headstock read "Les Paul Costom". And sure enough, a call to Gibson confirmed that the serial number was bogus. Like the fake ESP in Evan's office, this "Les Paul Costom" looked like the real thing from a few feet away, and only looking at the details revealed it was a fake.

I'm guessing people all over the country are getting burned by scams like this. It's so wrong.

I know someone who is a photographer. Cameras are another item in which the market is being flooded with Chinese fakes labeled as high end cameras.

 

[J Moose]

Re: Chinese copies keep getting better & better!

The Chinese fakes have been a problem for years... its nothing new, just way more widespread now. Several years ago, Shure & Sennheiser teamed up to take down outfits that were counter fitting SM57's & 421's among other mics... at first glance they looked about right, including the packaging but plug 'em in and they sounded NOTHING close to right.

And this was dare I say, almost 10 years ago? At least 7 or 8...

Unfortunately I get the vibe that its sort of like playing whack-a-mole...

Knock one down & two others take their place.

AFAIK - I thought Epiphone set up a dedicated factory over there & weren't making other instruments, nor outsourcing the work. Yes no? That's what the Gibson propaganda would lead me to believe anyway...

But there's fake Chinese everything... from tires to toothpaste.

 

[Wattage]

Re: Chinese copies keep getting better & better!

IMO a shop owner should know better, that doesn't excuse the fraud but I have yet to see an Chinese Gibson knock-off that wasn't easily caught. If they don't know Gibson well enough to spot a Chinese made knock-off they shouldn't be in the business of buying and selling them, at least not from people off the street, that's for sure.

 

[cheezemaster]

Re: Chinese copies keep getting better & better!

It also seems like most the fakes are Les Paul "Customs" and "Supremes" - I've never seen a fake Standard, Studio, Classic or other Gibson models: SG/V/Explorer

That hollowbody in this post is the first 335 knockoff I've seen.

I guess the theory is if you're gonna do a knock-off you might as well go for the pricier models. Most of them are just horrendous looking..

They used to be even easier to spot with the 3-screw truss rod cover but someone got wise to that.

 

[BloodRose]

Re: Chinese copies keep getting better & better!

well, epi did open a dedicated factory. And, IMO the quality and consistancy improved since. I cant say if they have branched out, but with biz, Im sure if they were able to exceed the epiphone brand's needs, they probably crank some out for other cos too

 

[The_Sentry]

Re: Chinese copies keep getting better & better!

I'm probably in the minority when it comes to my opinion on this....and, eh, that's OK.

I really don't have any sympathy for Gibson at all. None, zilch, zero, nada. They do a ton of business IN China with Baldwin and Epiphone....and the Chinese Government. (I think people often forget...that's a communist state. Nothing happens over there w/o the government's consent...nothing.)

And with that being said....these copies aren't being made in someone's basement. There are entire factories that make everything from automobiles to microchips to software to you know it....there are entire malls filled with these knockoff brands...

Obviously, someone's letting it go.

It bites that people get ripped off...but that's a risk when someone buys off ebay, or craigslist, or another dealer that isn't reputable.

So...in conclusion....yeah, I do blame Gibson. They can't exactly complain about how rotten the dish is when they themselves helped to make it in the first place.

EDIT:

PS: That's a terrible copy in the opening photo. Just sayin'.

 

[apj]

Re: Chinese copies keep getting better & better!

I'm probably in the minority when it comes to my opinion on this....and, eh, that's OK.

I really don't have any sympathy for Gibson at all. None, zilch, zero, nada. They do a ton of business IN China with Baldwin and Epiphone....and the Chinese Government. (I think people often forget...that's a communist state. Nothing happens over there w/o the government's consent...nothing.)

And with that being said....these copies aren't being made in someone's basement. There are entire factories that make everything from automobiles to microchips to software to you know it....there are entire malls filled with these knockoff brands...

Obviously, someone's letting it go.

It bites that people get ripped off...but that's a risk when someone buys off ebay, or craigslist, or another dealer that isn't reputable.

So...in conclusion....yeah, I do blame Gibson. They can't exactly complain about how rotten the dish is when they themselves helped to make it in the first place.

EDIT:

PS: That's a terrible copy in the opening photo. Just sayin'.

I totally agree, I have zero sympathy for gibson. With everyone ragging on others for buying imported goods lets not forget how many corporations are fueling large amounts of money into other nations industry. Joe smo buying a korean guitar is peanuts to the amount of money corporations put into foreign interests. Furthermore, I have no problem paying 1500+ for a gibson guitar, however, for that price tag the guitar better be flawless. It's a shame that with that high of a price tag they let guitars out the door with nuts cut too low, poor binding work, etc.

 

[gOgIver]

Re: Chinese copies keep getting better & better!

Nope, Epiphones are made in Gibson's Qingdao.

No Gibson copies are made at Guangdong factory of Farida.

Been to both factory; however Farida does have a second factory in China.

RTW - Farida is a legitimate company selling in several countries and goes to NAMM.

That's interesting.

Is there a key to the serial numbers for MIC? That is, if it starts with an A,B,C, etc it's from a certain factory?

 

[Evan Skopp]

Re: Chinese copies keep getting better & better!

Nope, Epiphones are made in Gibson's Qingdao.

No Gibson copies are made at Guangdong factory of Farida.

Been to both factory; however Farida does have a second factory in China.

RTW - Farida is a legitimate company selling in several countries and goes to NAMM.

Farida is not a factory. It's the house brand of Grand Reward. Grand Reward is the factory that makes Farida and many other private label brands. You're correct that Epiphone is not one of them. But if you read my post carefully, you'll see that I never said they were.

 

[dmandude123455]

Re: Chinese copies keep getting better & better!

are those chinese/japanese modles any good? im on ebay and looking for ideas of a new guitar and i want to know if this copies are worth it. :/

 

[saladin]

Re: Chinese copies keep getting better & better!

Some one, maybe me, should take the plunge and try one! A few years ago I wouldn't even think this but my last 2 guitar purchases were an SX Strat and Tele and I'm more then happy with them and the price I paid. I keep looking at the black Casino copies they offer!

 

[mrfunnyman]

Re: Chinese copies keep getting better & better!

I own a chinese Les Paul custom and I have had it for over a 1yr. All the hardware that came on it was really generic, pickups where horrible. I installed all gold Gibson hardware for this guitar and installed a set of SD's and real CTS pots and Sprague Caps on this baby, wired it up, had it set up and the frets dressed and now it plays just as good as my new Gibson SG Standard, I play this guitar just as much as my G&L Rampage. The body is basswood with a flamed maple veneer on top with a 3 piece maple neck, I know this b/c over the summer I stripped it down to bare wood and refinished it. Just becareful buying these guitars I was gonna buy a few more last Jan but I have heard that customs is cracking down I have heard that if customs opens your package and finds counterfiet guitars in there that they will seize the guitar and destroy it.