difference between Epi & Gibson?
- Thread starter gianniboy
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Zerberus
Baron Von Shred
Re: difference between Epi & Gibson?
just plain "materials".
Gibson = More carefully selected wood in general, ebony fretboards where traditionally used (LP Custom), better hardware and Pickups for the most part. Gibson does Nitro Finishes while Epi does Poly for the most part.....
Is it worth the difference? That´s a decision only you can make. But I can tell you that the Gibson will hold it´s value much better than the Epi, and some day actually begin to appreciate in value
just plain "materials".
Gibson = More carefully selected wood in general, ebony fretboards where traditionally used (LP Custom), better hardware and Pickups for the most part. Gibson does Nitro Finishes while Epi does Poly for the most part.....
Is it worth the difference? That´s a decision only you can make. But I can tell you that the Gibson will hold it´s value much better than the Epi, and some day actually begin to appreciate in value
The JEM Ghost
New member
Re: difference between Epi & Gibson?
I fully agree with the two people above!
I fully agree with the two people above!
Zerberus
Baron Von Shred
Re: difference between Epi & Gibson?
Depends on the model, but yes, I HAVE seen plywood Epiphones before. But, to their defense, this was pre 2k, they may have changed that by now
What is more common is for an Epi to have a 3,4,5,6,7,8... piece body, but that´s not plywood. Plywood = Sperrholz / Schichtholz / MDF-Platte
Gibson´s bodies are usually one solid piece (explorers often have 2 or 3 piece bodies), that is true. ´cept the 2 piece bookmatched maple caps, of course.
pac112 said:
Depends on the model, but yes, I HAVE seen plywood Epiphones before. But, to their defense, this was pre 2k, they may have changed that by now
What is more common is for an Epi to have a 3,4,5,6,7,8... piece body, but that´s not plywood. Plywood = Sperrholz / Schichtholz / MDF-Platte
Gibson´s bodies are usually one solid piece (explorers often have 2 or 3 piece bodies), that is true. ´cept the 2 piece bookmatched maple caps, of course.
Re: difference between Epi & Gibson?
do you know exactally which models of epi"s are plywood, and how much peices are the les paul standards?
Zerberus said:Depends on the model, but yes, I HAVE seen plywood Epiphones before. But, to their defense, this was pre 2k, they may have changed that by now
What is more common is for an Epi to have a 3,4,5,6,7,8... piece body, but that´s not plywood. Plywood = Sperrholz / Schichtholz / MDF-Platte
Gibson´s bodies are usually one solid piece (explorers often have 2 or 3 piece bodies), that is true. ´cept the 2 piece bookmatched maple caps, of course.
do you know exactally which models of epi"s are plywood, and how much peices are the les paul standards?
O
Old Ghost
Guest
Re: difference between Epi & Gibson?
Yes, that's true about Epiphone using Plywood but that was years ago. Nowadays they use the same type of wood that Gibson uses but the lower grade types like mahogany and maple. Or an altenative that is really close to the two types mentioned. Poplar is very common on Epi's. Sometimes instead of Maple they use Veneer on the tops of the LP's. A cheaper way to go than real Maple. The quality of the Epi's nowadays are truly outstanding. I've never owned any ( I own Gibson LP's ) but i've seen them thru the years and the quality gets better and better. If you don't have the money to get a Gibson, the Epi is the closest thing you can ever get with more bang for your buck. They are good guitars and i wish they would have made them the way they make 'em today when i was younger. Also, a Great set of Pickups ( Duncans of course
) , good set of strings, cables and a good Amp make a great sounding guitar. Of course, the rest of the Greatness will come from your fingers. Remember Jimmy Page playing a cheap Danelectro from Sears? That sound became a legend . Now don't tell me that Dano was a great guitar :chairfall
Yes, that's true about Epiphone using Plywood but that was years ago. Nowadays they use the same type of wood that Gibson uses but the lower grade types like mahogany and maple. Or an altenative that is really close to the two types mentioned. Poplar is very common on Epi's. Sometimes instead of Maple they use Veneer on the tops of the LP's. A cheaper way to go than real Maple. The quality of the Epi's nowadays are truly outstanding. I've never owned any ( I own Gibson LP's ) but i've seen them thru the years and the quality gets better and better. If you don't have the money to get a Gibson, the Epi is the closest thing you can ever get with more bang for your buck. They are good guitars and i wish they would have made them the way they make 'em today when i was younger. Also, a Great set of Pickups ( Duncans of course
) , good set of strings, cables and a good Amp make a great sounding guitar. Of course, the rest of the Greatness will come from your fingers. Remember Jimmy Page playing a cheap Danelectro from Sears? That sound became a legend . Now don't tell me that Dano was a great guitar :chairfall
Re: difference between Epi & Gibson?
I had a 2002 model Epiphone Les Paul Custom Plus (not the elitist).
- It had a photoflame (fake flametop picture ontop (but looked killer, and no-one knew the difference) ). Honestly who gives a sh*t if there is 1/4" of maple there or not. Only you know.
- It had a 3 piece mahogany Body.
- Rosewood Fretboard.
- Tuners that went out after every song.
- Pups that were mud.
- Pots which crackled after 2 months.
- Input Jack which was a POS.
- The neck was awesome after a fret job.
So All I did was replace the Electronics (pickups (59/JB), caps, Pots (dimazio 500k DPDT pro pots), Jack, Pickup selector and the tuners (Grovers).
Got a fret job done.
- And the guitar was smokin shred machine.
However for that money I could have just bought a used Gibson Studio.
Zerberus said:Depends on the model, but yes, I HAVE seen plywood Epiphones before. But, to their defense, this was pre 2k, they may have changed that by now
What is more common is for an Epi to have a 3,4,5,6,7,8... piece body, but that´s not plywood. Plywood = Sperrholz / Schichtholz / MDF-Platte
Gibson´s bodies are usually one solid piece (explorers often have 2 or 3 piece bodies), that is true. ´cept the 2 piece bookmatched maple caps, of course.
I had a 2002 model Epiphone Les Paul Custom Plus (not the elitist).
- It had a photoflame (fake flametop picture ontop (but looked killer, and no-one knew the difference) ). Honestly who gives a sh*t if there is 1/4" of maple there or not. Only you know.
- It had a 3 piece mahogany Body.
- Rosewood Fretboard.
- Tuners that went out after every song.
- Pups that were mud.
- Pots which crackled after 2 months.
- Input Jack which was a POS.
- The neck was awesome after a fret job.
So All I did was replace the Electronics (pickups (59/JB), caps, Pots (dimazio 500k DPDT pro pots), Jack, Pickup selector and the tuners (Grovers).
Got a fret job done.
- And the guitar was smokin shred machine.
However for that money I could have just bought a used Gibson Studio.
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O
Old Ghost
Guest
Re: difference between Epi & Gibson?
Actually there is a reason why the Gibson LP's design use a Maple Top. This is to compliment the fat sound of the Mahogany body with the Bright sound of Maple. So, Gibson did not just put a Flame maple top just because it's pretty. It has a purpose. The combination of a mahogany body with a maple top IS THE sound of a Gibson Les Paul. Fat with a little Brightness on the top. It's called TONE WOODS. As you can see specially with Fender guitars, using different combination tone woods like Alder, Ash and Maple makes a difference. But they all look the same. There's a reason why some strat players prefer Rosewood Fretboards over Maple fretboards or the other way around. First they sound different, second they "Feel" different. The difference in sound between a fender and a Les Paul is not only because they were designed differently with different types of pickups used but the different types of tone woods that was used. When you hear Fender, Clear and Bright. When you hear Gibson, Fat and lots of sustain. If you put a Humbucker on a Fender Strat, it still would not sound like an LP.
Grandor said:
Actually there is a reason why the Gibson LP's design use a Maple Top. This is to compliment the fat sound of the Mahogany body with the Bright sound of Maple. So, Gibson did not just put a Flame maple top just because it's pretty. It has a purpose. The combination of a mahogany body with a maple top IS THE sound of a Gibson Les Paul. Fat with a little Brightness on the top. It's called TONE WOODS. As you can see specially with Fender guitars, using different combination tone woods like Alder, Ash and Maple makes a difference. But they all look the same. There's a reason why some strat players prefer Rosewood Fretboards over Maple fretboards or the other way around. First they sound different, second they "Feel" different. The difference in sound between a fender and a Les Paul is not only because they were designed differently with different types of pickups used but the different types of tone woods that was used. When you hear Fender, Clear and Bright. When you hear Gibson, Fat and lots of sustain. If you put a Humbucker on a Fender Strat, it still would not sound like an LP.
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