NGD... ESP Eclipse I

Red_Label

Red_Label

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Picked this up today at a local pawn shop in dead mint condition. Have had two other Eclipse Standards before... one in satin black and the other in red quilt. Black one had Duncan JB/59s in it was was special. Miss that one. Red one had EMGs and was flawless, but lacked personality. I'm going to get rid of the EMGs in this one. They define "sterile" and "lifeless" to my ears. I hate them. Will probably replace with Fishman Fluence pups, because my buddy at the LGS says they're awesome. He's also got a pair of signed Bonamassas that I could try, or I could use a set of distressed Fralin Pure PAFs that I have in an Agile 3100. Can't go wrong with any of those choices. All will be a dramatic improvement over the EMGs. I can't overstate how uninspired EMG pickups leave me. In addition to the one previous Eclipse, I had them in an Ltd EC1000, EC401, And a few other guitars that are long forgotten. All were excellent guitars, but in every case I had ESPs and Ltds of the exact same model series that were loaded with Duncans that had FAR more tone in them. They were true apples to apples comparisons in each case.

Anyways... the action on this "new" Eclipse is stupid low with nary a hint of fret buzz. It's as low as my holy grail Anderson Drop Top Classic was... which had the lowest action of any guitar I've ever had. So if I can bring the tone out of this beast, it'll stick around a while. Got it for $800. Which is about what I paid for my other two Eclipses.

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Re: NGD... ESP Eclipse I

Congrats!

My favorite non-Lester singlecuts!

Sent from my REVVLPLUS C3701A using Tapatalk
 
Re: NGD... ESP Eclipse I

Huh, I always thought they called that generation Eclipse 2's, despite it technically being a 3rd gen???

But, apparently, the 'I' thing is about something other than the generation. Confusing indeed.
 
Re: NGD... ESP Eclipse I

That's a sharp looking guitar with a nice wood grain top. Congrats on your purchase.



;>)/
 
Re: NGD... ESP Eclipse I

beautiful guitar...if you had a choice between it and a similar Gibson Les Paul (forget about price)...which would you choose?
 
Re: NGD... ESP Eclipse I

justFred said:
beautiful guitar...if you had a choice between it and a similar Gibson Les Paul (forget about price)...which would you choose?
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Depends. Sight unseen and unplayed I'd go with the ESP every time. The consistency of high quality build is on another level than Gibson. My Gibby R0 is a special guitar. But you have to play a bunch of Gibbies to find a few standouts. The average ESP might not have the mojo of the special Gibbies, but the average ESP is a far better playing and more flawless instrument than the average Gibson.
 
Re: NGD... ESP Eclipse I

Red_Label said:
Depends. Sight unseen and unplayed I'd go with the ESP every time. The consistency of high quality build is on another level than Gibson. My Gibby R0 is a special guitar. But you have to play a bunch of Gibbies to find a few standouts. The average ESP might not have the mojo of the special Gibbies, but the average ESP is a far better playing and more flawless instrument than the average Gibson.
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for me mojo happens from playing a guitar or amp...yardstick is about one thousand hours long...music soaks into to them by then...Someone like albert, Freddie or BB King could probably load an instrument up with mojo in about a half an hour...sounds weird but that's the way it seems to work...
I'd say from your answer ESP is the choice...I always go with the best odds...in the long run you will always lose betting against the house...
 
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Re: NGD... ESP Eclipse I

justFred said:
for me mojo happens from playing a guitar or amp...yardstick is about one thousand hours long...music soaks into to them by then...Someone like albert, Freddie or BB King could probably load an instrument up with mojo in about a half an hour...sounds weird but that's the way it seems to work...
I'd say from your answer ESP is the choice...I always go with the best odds...in the long run you will always lose betting against the house...
Click to expand...

I know what you're saying regarding playing a guitar to give it mojo. But some pieces of wood and builds have more life in them from the get-go than others will ever have. My beat-to-hell, played-into-the-weeds '91 LP Studio has more "mojo" than my '14 R0... but the R0 is far more lively and resonant. I have to work to get the tone/musicality out of the Studio... whereas the R0 just oozes tone/musicality.
 
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Re: NGD... ESP Eclipse I

Yes, some guitars just have "it", some dont. My trad pro has lots of mojo, the Gibson LP 2008 model I had, (and paid handsomely for) was great to look at, but had no life...

Great score Bro! Ive never played an actual ESP. Only the LTDs. You paid less for that beaut than an LTD1000 costs. Speaking again of mojo AND Duncans vs EMGs... I had an LTD1000CTM that was a great player, but with the emgs, wasnt as great sounding.. However, I had a LTD ec400ATS and it sounded and played amazing!!! (Duncan 59/JB combo)
 
Re: NGD... ESP Eclipse I

BloodRose said:
Yes, some guitars just have "it", some dont. My trad pro has lots of mojo, the Gibson LP 2008 model I had, (and paid handsomely for) was great to look at, but had no life...

Great score Bro! Ive never played an actual ESP. Only the LTDs. You paid less for that beaut than an LTD1000 costs. Speaking again of mojo AND Duncans vs EMGs... I had an LTD1000CTM that was a great player, but with the emgs, wasnt as great sounding.. However, I had a LTD ec400ATS and it sounded and played amazing!!! (Duncan 59/JB combo)
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This is my 3rd ESP Eclipse. All three were excellent. I've also had two Ltd EC1000s, a Gus G EC600, and at least five EC400AT/401VFs (can't remember if there were more). The Ltds stack up VERY well against the ESPs. You generally get 90+ percent of the playability and fit&finish... for far less cost. Having said that... all three ESPs were purchased used for $750-850 each, so consisering that excellent deal... the ESPs were a far better value. I wouldn't hesitate to buy more Ltds if they were the right price though.
 
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