Epiphone Les Pauls
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Laughing Kookaburra
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J
Jessie Sammler
Guest
Re: Epiphone Les Pauls
Not only that, but it has to be an amp that goes well with your guitar. While not all combinations work, some of them can be magical.
Not only that, but it has to be an amp that goes well with your guitar. While not all combinations work, some of them can be magical.
Re: Epiphone Les Pauls
years ago, Epiphone meant junk.. Now that they have that designated factory, they have improved tremedously. And, Gibson has become more hit and miss. Especially the studios.. Most of the last few studios Ive played have been unimpressive.
I have an Epi LP that I LOVE. Its a great sounding and playing guitar, regardless of the name on the headstock.. It feels alive in my hands and is resonant. I got it on Ebay for under $300. I also had a Gibson Studio that was almost 3 times more. I sold it... It was heavy and not resonant. And, alot of gigging guys around here are playign Epis so they dont have to take the expensive Gibsons to the smoky clubs.
Whether you go Gibson or Epi, take time to find one that speaks to you and you are set..
years ago, Epiphone meant junk.. Now that they have that designated factory, they have improved tremedously. And, Gibson has become more hit and miss. Especially the studios.. Most of the last few studios Ive played have been unimpressive.
I have an Epi LP that I LOVE. Its a great sounding and playing guitar, regardless of the name on the headstock.. It feels alive in my hands and is resonant. I got it on Ebay for under $300. I also had a Gibson Studio that was almost 3 times more. I sold it... It was heavy and not resonant. And, alot of gigging guys around here are playign Epis so they dont have to take the expensive Gibsons to the smoky clubs.
Whether you go Gibson or Epi, take time to find one that speaks to you and you are set..
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Re: Epiphone Les Pauls
I wanted to add.
Im not saying Epis and Gibsons are the same or just as good as... blah blah
What I am saying is that just because it says Gibson, does not make it a holy grail with strings, as their pricing seems to indicate.
And, just cuz the other says Epi, does not render it bad as some people like to think.. If your budget is limited, or if you dont want to have a $2000 getting banged up or whatever, then find you a good epi..
If cost isnt an object, name matters, etc, then cough up the dough for a gibby.
One last note.. The stock pickups that came in my Epi were suprisingly good. I did swap them out and now the guitar sounds fantastic!
I wanted to add.
Im not saying Epis and Gibsons are the same or just as good as... blah blah
What I am saying is that just because it says Gibson, does not make it a holy grail with strings, as their pricing seems to indicate.
And, just cuz the other says Epi, does not render it bad as some people like to think.. If your budget is limited, or if you dont want to have a $2000 getting banged up or whatever, then find you a good epi..
If cost isnt an object, name matters, etc, then cough up the dough for a gibby.
One last note.. The stock pickups that came in my Epi were suprisingly good. I did swap them out and now the guitar sounds fantastic!
LtKojak
New member
Re: Epiphone Les Pauls
Well... Epi's p'ups have always been Epi's Achilles Heel. They come drowned in wax and the vital components like the baseplates, slugs and specially the polepieces screws suck like no others... the winds, however, are good if a bit too hot for my taste. It took me a lot of work to get decent tones of those p'ups. I had to change the brass baseplates with nickel silver ones from StewMac and the polepiece screws with good quality 1022 steel Mojotone screws, plus I had to take away all that wax... yikes!
Anyway, after that I could make some good PAFish bridge p'ups with those, measuring 8.3K and 8.6K they were too hot for the neck position.
Paired with a couple of HB103N with A5 magnets (they're very close to a Jazz neck), they sounded very good in SG type mahogany guitars. Both owners are very happy with'em.
Well... Epi's p'ups have always been Epi's Achilles Heel. They come drowned in wax and the vital components like the baseplates, slugs and specially the polepieces screws suck like no others... the winds, however, are good if a bit too hot for my taste. It took me a lot of work to get decent tones of those p'ups. I had to change the brass baseplates with nickel silver ones from StewMac and the polepiece screws with good quality 1022 steel Mojotone screws, plus I had to take away all that wax... yikes!
Anyway, after that I could make some good PAFish bridge p'ups with those, measuring 8.3K and 8.6K they were too hot for the neck position.
Paired with a couple of HB103N with A5 magnets (they're very close to a Jazz neck), they sounded very good in SG type mahogany guitars. Both owners are very happy with'em.
Re: Epiphone Les Pauls
Michael Kelly has a patiot model that has the traditional set up.. I have a Patriot Custom and I love it! Matter of fact, if it had the 4 knobs, it might have been my main player...
Michael Kelly has a patiot model that has the traditional set up.. I have a Patriot Custom and I love it! Matter of fact, if it had the 4 knobs, it might have been my main player...
FuseG4
Our Neighbor Totoro
Re: Epiphone Les Pauls
The standard epi line had a much thinner piece of maple on the top and I believe this will always suck some clarity out of the guitar.
I have heard that Epi uses some different woods apparently that it passes off as 'mahogany', like Luan.
My epi's stock pickups were way too hot for what I want from a neck pickup but the bridge pickup had this nice sizzle which to be honest instantly reminded me of many famous recordings.
In the end, I think Epi's are great guitars and standard gibsons are a tad over-priced. I think Any LP shaped guitar that has mahogany with a maple top, set mahogany neck, a RW board, and 2 buckers is gonna be a great guitar if it's built well and set up well.
The standard epi line had a much thinner piece of maple on the top and I believe this will always suck some clarity out of the guitar.
I have heard that Epi uses some different woods apparently that it passes off as 'mahogany', like Luan.
My epi's stock pickups were way too hot for what I want from a neck pickup but the bridge pickup had this nice sizzle which to be honest instantly reminded me of many famous recordings.
In the end, I think Epi's are great guitars and standard gibsons are a tad over-priced. I think Any LP shaped guitar that has mahogany with a maple top, set mahogany neck, a RW board, and 2 buckers is gonna be a great guitar if it's built well and set up well.
Re: Epiphone Les Pauls
Perfect!! My playing is very amateur and when I play a $2-4000 guitar at the store, it still sounds aweful.. Granted, having a good guitar can inspire and motivate, but aiming too high can also discourage and as you said, draw that attention.. When I take my Gibson Explorer out, people oo and ahh and players expect me to be Allen Collins.. Nope..
Buy what you like, what inspires you (unless you simply have funds to get whatever you want) and then give yourself a goal.. I really want a Hamer standard with a Quilt top. I cant afford one. However.. Ive set a goal that if my playing gets to a certain level where I can make myself happy, then Ill sell what I need to a get one as a reward to myself..
Some of the best live local bands (even traveling acts like warped tour) Ive seen have used Epis, or Ltds and similar..
One dude on the warped tour blew my mind with an LTDEC400AT. Inspired me to get mine.. And there is a Youtube vid out too where Hetfield is playing one.
Perfect!! My playing is very amateur and when I play a $2-4000 guitar at the store, it still sounds aweful.. Granted, having a good guitar can inspire and motivate, but aiming too high can also discourage and as you said, draw that attention.. When I take my Gibson Explorer out, people oo and ahh and players expect me to be Allen Collins.. Nope..
Buy what you like, what inspires you (unless you simply have funds to get whatever you want) and then give yourself a goal.. I really want a Hamer standard with a Quilt top. I cant afford one. However.. Ive set a goal that if my playing gets to a certain level where I can make myself happy, then Ill sell what I need to a get one as a reward to myself..
Some of the best live local bands (even traveling acts like warped tour) Ive seen have used Epis, or Ltds and similar..
One dude on the warped tour blew my mind with an LTDEC400AT. Inspired me to get mine.. And there is a Youtube vid out too where Hetfield is playing one.
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Stratman
Guitaris Maximus
Re: Epiphone Les Pauls
I have both brands... They each have pros and cons
I just can not see paying the price that gibson wants, when I can get a epiphone that does the same trick...
Gibson pups are all original, except for one that have Bare Knuckle pups in it. These guitars consist of Les Pauls, SG, ES-339, ES-335, and Explorer.
In the various Epiphone guitars that I own, I have the following:
Epiphone original set
Phat Staples - matched set
P-Rails with push pull pots
P-Rails with Triple-Shot
Matched set 59's
Matched set Antiquity
Jb and 59
These pickup combinations are in different Epiphone guitars, which consist of SG, Les Pauls, and Sheraton II.
AT this stage, I no longer see the need to pay big money for Gibsons, especially since I was paying less than 300 in the mid-60's for the Gibsons and they were not considered to be the cream of the crop as was Gretch, Rickenbacker, and Fender - back then...
Post your responses - I don't care, I play what I want and say the same... If you want to make a statement, play it on your guitar and then we can cut heads and see who know what is what! (Several members have heard me play and know that i know what I am talking about!)
PS: Merry Christmas - Open your presents and practice and get better, I am waiting to cut your head off...
I have both brands... They each have pros and cons
I just can not see paying the price that gibson wants, when I can get a epiphone that does the same trick...
Gibson pups are all original, except for one that have Bare Knuckle pups in it. These guitars consist of Les Pauls, SG, ES-339, ES-335, and Explorer.
In the various Epiphone guitars that I own, I have the following:
Epiphone original set
Phat Staples - matched set
P-Rails with push pull pots
P-Rails with Triple-Shot
Matched set 59's
Matched set Antiquity
Jb and 59
These pickup combinations are in different Epiphone guitars, which consist of SG, Les Pauls, and Sheraton II.
AT this stage, I no longer see the need to pay big money for Gibsons, especially since I was paying less than 300 in the mid-60's for the Gibsons and they were not considered to be the cream of the crop as was Gretch, Rickenbacker, and Fender - back then...
Post your responses - I don't care, I play what I want and say the same... If you want to make a statement, play it on your guitar and then we can cut heads and see who know what is what! (Several members have heard me play and know that i know what I am talking about!)
PS: Merry Christmas - Open your presents and practice and get better, I am waiting to cut your head off...
Re: Epiphone Les Pauls
If you really have questions about Epiphone guitars, go play either a Masterbuilt or Casino Revolution and you'll see that they can build a fine instrument. On the other hand play a late 90's or early 2000's Gibson "exotic" wood LP and you may be disappointed.
The moral of the story is that every guitar is different because there's no way to a 100% duplicate since not every wood slab even of the variety is the same. In a perfect world you could clone the perfect guitar and have the same instrument but it's improbable if not impossible.
It's all about feel and if it plays the way you want you can always change electronics and hardware. If the setup is equal on both the EPI and Gibson then it goes back to the intangibles of feel and can you evoke the emotion from the guitar. On a bad day with a bad guitar a great player will sound better than a mediocre player with a great guitar.
What do you really want? Name recognition or playability? Is it better to have one high priced guitar or multiple lower cost guitars? Are both platforms equally stable then unless you're a virtuoso the slight nuances and variations are minor.
Show me a perfect guitar and I'll bet it's only a figment of someone's imagination or it's fifty years old and has nicks, dings, chips, stains, scratches, etc when compared to a well built new guitar. Who among us would not want an old '59 LP, '56 Goldtop LP, '54 Strat, '52 Tele, '62 Strat, 1930-40's Martin or '65 Casino that's structurally sound but doesn't look as good as the new MIA model?
If you prefer the new one there's going to be some oceanfront Arizona property in a couple hundred million years that I'd like to sell to you now. Otherwise expand your horizon unless you are sponsored by one of the guitar manufacturers and take a chance and you may be suprised. Also it's easier to justify working on good platform guitar (Epi) than a high end Gibson that's supposed to be perfect from the start.
If you really have questions about Epiphone guitars, go play either a Masterbuilt or Casino Revolution and you'll see that they can build a fine instrument. On the other hand play a late 90's or early 2000's Gibson "exotic" wood LP and you may be disappointed.
The moral of the story is that every guitar is different because there's no way to a 100% duplicate since not every wood slab even of the variety is the same. In a perfect world you could clone the perfect guitar and have the same instrument but it's improbable if not impossible.
It's all about feel and if it plays the way you want you can always change electronics and hardware. If the setup is equal on both the EPI and Gibson then it goes back to the intangibles of feel and can you evoke the emotion from the guitar. On a bad day with a bad guitar a great player will sound better than a mediocre player with a great guitar.
What do you really want? Name recognition or playability? Is it better to have one high priced guitar or multiple lower cost guitars? Are both platforms equally stable then unless you're a virtuoso the slight nuances and variations are minor.
Show me a perfect guitar and I'll bet it's only a figment of someone's imagination or it's fifty years old and has nicks, dings, chips, stains, scratches, etc when compared to a well built new guitar. Who among us would not want an old '59 LP, '56 Goldtop LP, '54 Strat, '52 Tele, '62 Strat, 1930-40's Martin or '65 Casino that's structurally sound but doesn't look as good as the new MIA model?
If you prefer the new one there's going to be some oceanfront Arizona property in a couple hundred million years that I'd like to sell to you now. Otherwise expand your horizon unless you are sponsored by one of the guitar manufacturers and take a chance and you may be suprised. Also it's easier to justify working on good platform guitar (Epi) than a high end Gibson that's supposed to be perfect from the start.
Northwinds
New member
Re: Epiphone Les Pauls
I see this on all boards. Members who have not quite made the leap to a US made guitar are very quick to badmouth Gibson, Fender, Dean or whatever US made guitars. Ego is what it boils down to. No one should feel bad about what guitar they can afford. This goes both ways, those of us that do own USA guitars tend to look down on the import lines, myself included with many models out there. Some like the Czech made Dean and BC Rich Calibres' blow me away though, they really are close to USA in feel and build
Well set up and sounding good is what it's all about though. If you want better quality, you buy USA, simple as that
Import or US? You can rock a crowd with either
I see this on all boards. Members who have not quite made the leap to a US made guitar are very quick to badmouth Gibson, Fender, Dean or whatever US made guitars. Ego is what it boils down to. No one should feel bad about what guitar they can afford. This goes both ways, those of us that do own USA guitars tend to look down on the import lines, myself included with many models out there. Some like the Czech made Dean and BC Rich Calibres' blow me away though, they really are close to USA in feel and build
Well set up and sounding good is what it's all about though. If you want better quality, you buy USA, simple as that
Import or US? You can rock a crowd with either
Re: Epiphone Les Pauls
I know that this thread has been beaten to death, and this topic has been replayed many times, and that there really is no definitive answer to the age old question of Gibby vs Eppi, but I just have to add my additional 2 cents.
I am 62 and have been playing since I was 12. I currently own 24 guitars (mostly Epis, Gibs, and Fenders) and have owned an additional 4 or 5 other top-of-the-line Gibs in the past (as well as many other brands).
My current favorite guitar of all time for best quality workmanship, best playability, and best tone is my 2004 Epi LP Classic with StagMag b/'57n with coil split on the StagMag. My next favorite (especially for versatility) and a VERY close second place is a 2005 Epi LP Ultra with SD Custom a4 bridge/Pearly Gates a3 neck with Triple Shot rings and push-pull phase switch. My next all-around favorite is a '68 Gibson 345 with Varitone.
I've had some terrific Epis that I won't consider getting rid of, and same for a couple Gibsons. I've also had some Gibsons that I got rid of within 2 weeks because they were such horrible quality workmanship. I've got a couple Epis with so-so quality, but are great guitars for the money. And I've got a Gibson LP Zebrawood and Firebird 5 with so-so-quality workmanship but play and sound marvelous, which I consider great guitars for the money.
Bottom line....you'll find great/good/so-so/and crummy in any brand. I don't care if you're talking Gibson, Epi, or Fender. Don't even try to tell me that my go-to Epi isn't as good as a Gibson at any price. But CONSIDERING the price, there is NOOOOO comparison.
Do I hate Gibsons? Absolutely NOT. I love them. But my fav is my Epi.
I know that this thread has been beaten to death, and this topic has been replayed many times, and that there really is no definitive answer to the age old question of Gibby vs Eppi, but I just have to add my additional 2 cents.
I am 62 and have been playing since I was 12. I currently own 24 guitars (mostly Epis, Gibs, and Fenders) and have owned an additional 4 or 5 other top-of-the-line Gibs in the past (as well as many other brands).
My current favorite guitar of all time for best quality workmanship, best playability, and best tone is my 2004 Epi LP Classic with StagMag b/'57n with coil split on the StagMag. My next favorite (especially for versatility) and a VERY close second place is a 2005 Epi LP Ultra with SD Custom a4 bridge/Pearly Gates a3 neck with Triple Shot rings and push-pull phase switch. My next all-around favorite is a '68 Gibson 345 with Varitone.
I've had some terrific Epis that I won't consider getting rid of, and same for a couple Gibsons. I've also had some Gibsons that I got rid of within 2 weeks because they were such horrible quality workmanship. I've got a couple Epis with so-so quality, but are great guitars for the money. And I've got a Gibson LP Zebrawood and Firebird 5 with so-so-quality workmanship but play and sound marvelous, which I consider great guitars for the money.
Bottom line....you'll find great/good/so-so/and crummy in any brand. I don't care if you're talking Gibson, Epi, or Fender. Don't even try to tell me that my go-to Epi isn't as good as a Gibson at any price. But CONSIDERING the price, there is NOOOOO comparison.
Do I hate Gibsons? Absolutely NOT. I love them. But my fav is my Epi.
L.W. Badger
New member
Re: Epiphone Les Pauls
And this is the thing........Epi's are for working on and creating a beast.....not expecting a miracle guitar out the box........OTOH........Gibson, with their price, SHOULD be perfect out of the box.........but that's not happening!?
If I buy a Schecter, I may expect some flaws..........If I buy a Jackson.........there'd better be NO flaws whatsoever.........You want to charge for "American Craftsmanship".....show me what you're worth.
And this is the thing........Epi's are for working on and creating a beast.....not expecting a miracle guitar out the box........OTOH........Gibson, with their price, SHOULD be perfect out of the box.........but that's not happening!?
If I buy a Schecter, I may expect some flaws..........If I buy a Jackson.........there'd better be NO flaws whatsoever.........You want to charge for "American Craftsmanship".....show me what you're worth.
AdamR
New member
Re: Epiphone Les Pauls
I have 2 Schecter C1s, and Gibson LP Studio and a Epi LP standard. All 3 have there place, Play well and are capable of good tones.
The Schecters both came with Duncan Designs, I put a EMG 85 in my first Schecter which is great for metal tones., The other C1 plus has its original electronics in it hw ever I plan on upgrading pots which seem to be either on or off.
The Gibson LP Studio is a early 90s version with an ebony fret board and stock pick ups which I believe are 490,498s. Its sounds great, Plays very well (even after it had the neck repaired) but weighs a ton.
The Epi LP Standard I just got and havent had a chance to play it through my DSL yet but its been upgraded with a 490T in the neck and a 57B in the bridge. It sounds really good clean, Is louder then my Studio unpluged and weighs less making me think its chambered ?
I plan on swapping caps, pots, bridge and nut on it and using it as my main gigging guitar so I dont have to use my repaired Studio.
The Epi has the best feel to it out of all of my guitars and I prefer the separate Tone/Volume controls which the Shecters dont have.
I have 2 Schecter C1s, and Gibson LP Studio and a Epi LP standard. All 3 have there place, Play well and are capable of good tones.
The Schecters both came with Duncan Designs, I put a EMG 85 in my first Schecter which is great for metal tones., The other C1 plus has its original electronics in it hw ever I plan on upgrading pots which seem to be either on or off.
The Gibson LP Studio is a early 90s version with an ebony fret board and stock pick ups which I believe are 490,498s. Its sounds great, Plays very well (even after it had the neck repaired) but weighs a ton.
The Epi LP Standard I just got and havent had a chance to play it through my DSL yet but its been upgraded with a 490T in the neck and a 57B in the bridge. It sounds really good clean, Is louder then my Studio unpluged and weighs less making me think its chambered ?
I plan on swapping caps, pots, bridge and nut on it and using it as my main gigging guitar so I dont have to use my repaired Studio.
The Epi has the best feel to it out of all of my guitars and I prefer the separate Tone/Volume controls which the Shecters dont have.
