John Lennon played an Epiphone guitar?

[Floogeldy]

True or false.

Thanks,

Floog

[toddzilla]

1. before they were crapola

yes

[Floogeldy]

2. Please elaborate

I don't know if you are being facetious or tongue-in-cheek.

[opiate69]

4. Well, Epiphone wasn't always Gibson's garbage line.

[two gun sid]

3. True. Back before Gibson owned them.

Seems like Epiphone gave Harrison and Lennon a couple of guitars. I can't remember what model. A couple of years ago Epiphone was selling copies.

[Floogeldy]

5. This is priced at $600

[two gun sid]

8. Have you played one of those Epi's yet?

They are really bad. The action on them is bad bad. I got an Epiphone acoustic/electric and I hate it. I never play it. The neck feels like a toothpick. But, everyone is different. Go try one out. Look at everyone you can cause from what I've seen of them the quality varies greatly with each one. You might find one that is good. You can't beat the price.

[Floogeldy]

9. Are these reviews fake?

Just as good as a gibson, maybe even better
Features: 10
Quality: 10
Value: 10
Overall: 10
Frankie Pags from Los angeles, Ca
Experience: I own it
Background: player for 17 years
Style of Music: all - you only live once
Dec 25, 2004 - After owning a gibson Les Paul classic 1960 reissue, I was a little wary about buying an epiphone. But I can't turn down a good deal when I see one. Built as good as my gibson, no picture does this guitar justice. Even unplugged it rings out like an acoustic, it's thick sounding but also screams at the same time. I did upgrade the tuners but that's nothing in my eyes. A beautiful sounding and crafted guitar, all my praise to epiphone. If you doubted them, don't kid yourself this guitar is for real.



Excellent guitar!
Features: 10
Quality: 10
Value: 9
Overall: 10
56 Goldtop from Camden, AR
Experience: I own it
Background: Active Musician
Style of Music: Christian Rock, Praise and Worship
Dec 25, 2004 - This guitar sounds great and looks great too. I use this live and in the studio too. Its tone is great. Just an overall great guitar.



Good as Gold
Features: 10
Quality: 9
Value: 10
Overall: 10
GoldLProcks from Richomnd, TX
Experience: I own it
Background: Active Musician
Style of Music: Punk, Rock, Ragae
Dec 3, 2004 - When I first played this guitar, I knew I wanted it. The neck is fast for an epiphone and the sounds are overwhelming. This LP can go from a scream when in treble to a low snarl in rhythm. This guitar has an amazing sound for an amazing price. If you want an LP get it. You won't be dissapointed.


Amazing vintage tone
Features: 10
Quality: 10
Value: 10
Overall: 10
bluesdude from Roanoke, VA
Experience: I own it
Background: Hobbyist
Style of Music: Blues, Rock
Nov 19, 2004 - I own a Gibson Les Paul Standard and Epiphone Black Beauty also and this guitar has the sweetest tone of all of them. The neck pickup is simply amazing (warm and smooth). With both pickups you get that great vintage sound like Led Zeppelin and early ZZ Top. The action was incredible out of the box and the finish was immaculate. You can't go wrong with this choice.



Best quality I've ever seen in an Epiphone!
Features: 10
Quality: 10
Value: 10
Overall: 10
Jordan from Meadville, PA
Experience: I own it
Background: Active Musician
Style of Music: All types
Nov 3, 2004 - I have owned this guitar for about three or four years now and it sounds great going through my 1965 Fender Twin Reverb amplifier! The only problem I've had was the pickup selector, but it's easy to fix with a little bit of soldering. My band plays a lot of gigs where if you don't have quality equipment you won't get asked back. But this guitar looks beautiful and has an outrageous vintage tone. For a guitarist with a budget looking for the best tone that Epiphone offers---this is the guitar to buy!



I started teaching myself to play the...
Features: 10
Quality: 10
Value: 9
Overall: 10
RCPITTS from Lakewood, CO
Experience: I own it
Background: Beginner/Intermediate
Style of Music: Rock, Blues, Heavy Metal
Oct 29, 2004 - I started teaching myself to play the guitar about 8 months ago. I started with a Squier Stratocaster. Believe me when I say that I leave a lot to be desired as a player but I felt it was time to "upgrade" to a better guitar. I had tried several different guitars, Fender, BC Rich, Ibanez and so on. Once I picked up a Les Paul I knew this is what I wanted. The only question remained was which model to choose from. I settled on the 56 Goldtop based on the excellent features it offers. Among those are the ease of moving up and down the fret board, the varying tones and the awesome finish. I now have a more determined drive to learn how to play better.



About damn time
Features: 10
Quality: 10
Value: 10
Overall: 10
Keith from Campbell, CA
Experience: I own it
Background: Been noodlin' for years ;)
Style of Music: Blue, Rock, Alternative, Punk....
Oct 17, 2004 - I've been off and on about guitars for the longest. I've owned everything from Fenders to Hofners to old vintage Kay hollowbodies. Yet, I never did have a Les Paul. Dunno, seemed like everyone played them so I avoided them; until I picked this baby up. This is everything a guitar should be, and none of what it shouldn't. Do yourself a favor and check one out, you won' t be sorry. The tone, the playability, the rock solid construction. It's all there.



Some Flaws..Still Worth While
Features: 8
Quality: 7
Value: 9
Overall: 8
Kevin from New Jersey
Experience: I own it
Background: Band Leader/Active Guitarist
Style of Music: Blues
Sep 8, 2004 - I've used this guitar quite extensively over the past two years. It has some issues: the bridge seems a little cheap and (at least in my case) the tuners virbrated severely on the 5th and 3rd strings. Other than that it's all good. If you're looking for that warm, Allman Brothers bluesy tone...this is a good option.



Overall a guitar that can rock
Features: 10
Quality: 10
Value: 9
Overall: 10
mark from Morrisville, PA
Experience: I own it
Background: Amateur Player
Style of Music: Rock and some blues
Aug 14, 2004 - Great guitar with one of a kind smooth sound. There really is a big difference. On top of that its got a great finish and stands out like all les pauls do. very fine instrument.



Very good for the money
Features: 9
Quality: 8
Value: 10
Overall: 10
Andrew Scholz from Sunbury, OH
Experience: I own it
Background: Active Musician
Style of Music: Rock
Jan 21, 2004 - Great guitar! Only had a couple minor problems. Both have been easily fixed. Very good for the money.

[two gun sid]

10. No. They ain't fake.

If you read my post I said everyone is different go play one and try it out. Can't beat the price.

I assumed you wanted to talk about guitars. Guess I made an ass out of me.

[toddzilla]

11. reviews like these are worthless

everything's a ten...

i have a 2800 dollar guitar and i wouldn't give it a ten.. it's all bullshit. the only reviews worth reading are long ones that don't give arbitrary numbers to things like tone and playability.

[Floogeldy]

15. Those reviews look fishy to me, too

[ProfessorGAC]

27. I Wouldn't Go That Far, Todd

I have A $1600 guitar i would give a 10. But, i've got another $1200 one i wouldn't give over a 7. So, i know what you mean.

But, i do agree that these reviews tend to either grossly overrate or underrate this equipment. The people most likely to go on-line to review are people who are so pleasantly impressed with their purchase that they gush, or people who expected so much that they're really upset.

When i read these i see lots of 10's or absolute bashing. Not many 6's, 7's or 8's. 2's or 10's! The reviews are useless without knowing the quality of the player or the guitar knowledge of the writer.

The Professor

[Tafiti]

22. I guess I'm alone on this one...

...but I have an Epiphone Les Paul and I absolutely love it. I bought it off some dude brand new for pretty cheap 'cause he needed fast money, and I think it's a 1995. I take it to this guy at a guitar shop once a year to have adjustments done, just to keep it in nice shape. I've also had several other people do the same, and I always get many compliments from the guys who worked on it. In retrospect, and in light of this thread, I think they were surprised that they were impressed with an Epiphone.

[dean_dem]

29. Delete

EDIT: I think I replied to the wrong post

[ProfessorGAC]

31. Well. . .

. . .i didn't want to leave you hanging. I got involved elsewhere on the thread.

My friend has one of the better Epi's from the late 90's. It's ok, but the neck is awfully flat, for me. I think it's even a little flatter than a Gibson. It's a little broad for my taste, too. But, it's solid. It's more a taste than quality issue.

I find their standard pickups to be a little unresponsive. It's like they were so worried about pushing out the hiss they forgot to give the pickups bite. When i use that guitar, i just crank everything up, turn down the tone knob half way, and play slide on it. (The flat fingerboard is good for that.)

But, for what he paid for it (and i'm assuming what you did, too), it's a serviceable guitar. I wouldn't want it for a main instrument, or even a 2nd, but i'd own one.

Now, if we get to their "compete with Squire" line. Oh my goodness. Complete junk. Noisy, microphonic pickups. Bad finishes. The necks FEEL weak. Fingerboards aren't precisely lined up with the neck. Tuner holes aren't all in line. (How does that happened with computer lathes and drill presses?)

The one you have may be fine, but i'd recommend against the cheap ones STRONGLY. If somebody only wants to spend $125 on a new guitar, they should buy Squire. They are WAY better built than the cheap Epiphones.
The Professor

[Tafiti]

42. I'm sure I'll never own another.

When I'm browsing through guitar stores, I find that no other Epiphone I've ever picked up comes close to mine, I think I just got really lucky. I don't even bother trying others anymore.

You obviously know WAY more about guitars than I do (I'm 24, bought this immediately after graduating high school), so it's really all I know. However, I've often sat down to play many a Gibson Les Paul's in guitar stores, and nothing's ever really popped out at me as being far-and-away better than mine. Again, I must've been really lucky, or I could just be ignorant.

As far as pickups go, the standard Humbucker pickup was left as the bridge pickup, but he replaced the neck pickup with Ace Frehley DiMarzio pickups. I have no idea how it sounded before, but I think it sounds great. Granted, I have a shitty amp, so I run it through a Digitech processor.

I guess at this point, there's nowhere to go but up. I'm never going to buy a cheaper guitar than what I've got. Now, if I can just make enough money to buy a Paul Reed Smith someday. I have a little crush on those.

[ProfessorGAC]

25. They Were Made In Indiana, Right?

Gibson's were made in Michigan, and Epi's were made somewhere around Fort Wayne, IIRC.

They made some very good guitars for a while. Then, they turned into mostly junk. They are resurrecting their reputation recently.

The Professor

[dchill]

6. True

John and George both bought Epiphone Casinos in 1965. John used his more, even after the Beatles' breakup.

See it at: http://www.gibson.com/whatsnew/pressrelease/1999/jan29b.html

Epiphone is a branch of Gibson.

[Floogeldy]

7. From Epiphone's web site

[BlackVelvetElvis]

12. A painting I did from a photo.

Sure looks like an epiphone!

[Floogeldy]

17. That is a beautiful painting

You are amazingly talented.

[BlackVelvetElvis]

19. Thank you. I'm a big Lennon fan too! nt

[nothingshocksmeanymore]

13. True..so did George Van Epps..one of the best jazz players ever

He played an Epi 7 string

[dbt]

14. True.

1965 Casino, P-90 pickups. DROOL!

[SouthoftheBorderPaul]

16. I play an Epi....

It's 1999 Noel Gallagher Supernova. It's sparkly blue and it's got excellent tone, a huge sound, and quite possibly the WORST INTONATION OF ANY GUITAR I'VE OWNED.

It cost me $650 cause it had a finish flaw and I have spent easily that much having it worked on. I've got it working pretty well now but I stray from open chords as the intonation is just too unreliable. Oh, and it breaks about one string an hour.

However, despite all that, it's my primary/stage guitar and I get lots of compliments on it.

Buyer beware unless you have the time and money to spend getting it to play like a Gibson product should.

[Floogeldy]

18. Wow

Is it the neck or the frets causing the problem?

[SouthoftheBorderPaul]

36. I've been told...

The intonation problems are a result of the frets being mislaid. The bridge was a little wobbly too. I had the bridge worked on so I attribute the curret problems with the frets.

[CrownPrinceBandar]

20. That sucks......................

IIRC, that guitar has the stop tailpiece like Les Pauls. Is everything at the bridge hunky dory?

[SouthoftheBorderPaul]

33. I think it was the bridge/saddles causing the string breakage.

I've head it tweaked but it still breaks quite a few strings.

[dean_dem]

35. See my post below....

I was having a terrible time with strings breaking. I replaced the Bridge and that completely solved my problem.

[johnnie]

21. I have a few Epiphones

My Jumbo acoustic I really like. The Sheraton II I like, but it's not better than my two teles. The Jumbo electric/acoustic is just fair. I like a lot of Epiphone guitars, but like any other line they make some that aren't that great.
Oh, and the answer is true.

[asthmaticeog]

23. Epiphone acoustics:

Do you have trouble keeping them in tune? I've got an Epi Acoustic/Electric from '96ish, and DAMN if the thing doesn't always go out at the worst possible times.

[johnnie]

26. I don't play it much

I got it for gigs, but I don't play many gigs.
I haven't had a hard time with it, but I have only had it for about a year and it seems fine so far. The regular jumbo stays in tune well though and I play that one all the time.

[Beware the Beast Man]

24. Ruh-roh. Epiphone flame war.

I have an Epi G-310, and if I could afford a real SG I would, but I have no complaints. It's a great guitar.

[name not needed]

28. This wouldn't be the best time to mention I want to buy an Explorer Bass

in the future.

[ProfessorGAC]

32. EEEEEEEEP!

Gibson basses! The ultimate in mud! (See what you started now!) Bad enough you had to mention it. But then you had to go and post a picture of it!

The Professor

[name not needed]

34. Could you explain a little, please?

[ProfessorGAC]

38. Sorry. I Have Never Liked Gibson Basses

Somehow i just don't think they ever spent the time or effort to really understand the bass.

I've played some, and i've found three things to be common:
1) The scale is a little too short so the strings always feel too slacked. This creates issues with the glisses we can do on bass that we can't do on the guitar. You hear the change in pitch over the fret wire too much!

2) The neck is too flat. I suppose that ok if you have big hands, but i think it promotes wrist soreness. Even John Entwhistle had carpal tunnel!

3) The sound tends to be too midrangy. It's a combination of the wood and the pickups. A friend of mine had an SG Bass that he put new Duncan's on. It still lacked ring. The pickup location and the type of woods for body and neck tend to overemphasize the low mid. So, instead of getting that piano-ish bass sound, it's thumpy and gassy sounding.

I play a 5 string Fender Jazz (with Fender Vintage Noiseless Pickups), my guitar player friend has a 4 string P-Jazz, and my other bass player friend has Tobias, a Warwick, and a 4 string Precision. All are excellent sounding and play superbly.
The Professor

[dean_dem]

30. Since this thread has gone off the original topic anyway...

I've played an Epiphone LP Standard for several years now and I'm really happy with it. I've heard people complain about the tone, but its never been a problem.

The only real problem I've seen that make Gibsons superior is the metal work, the bridge, the tuning pegs, etc are all really poor quality, so string breakage was a big problem for me. But I just put about a hundred bucks into replacing all that stuff and I've found it to be sturdier than any Fender I've played. The neck action is exactly the same as a Gibson LP Standard, and I've played both. Epiphone is NOT to Gibson as Squire is to Fender, to say that Epiphone is garbage is completely unfair.

Really, shelling out $3000 for a guitar does not make you a good guitar player. A good quality Epiphone is a great guitar if you can't afford to indulge. Just take care of them and they should be fine. Clean them, change the strings often, and don't spill bong water all over them and tone shouldn't be a problem. But it makes a hell of a lot more sense to shell out $700-$1,000 for a good quality Epiphone than it does to spend $1,000 on a low-end Gibson. Just having the name on the headstock does not affect quality.

But if anyone wants to buy me a Gibson LP Supreme for Christmas, I'll be more than happy to oblige.

[ProfessorGAC]

37. Actually, The Low End Epiphone. . .

. . .is to Gibson what Squire is to Fender. Look in the catalogs or the on-line music stores. They sort by price range and the cheaper Epi's are always right there with Squire. Squires tend to $100 - $300, and so does the cheaper Epiphone line. They are, indeed, in direct competition.

And, for that price range, i'd take a Squire over the low end Epi any day of the week. The one you're talking about is a fairly high priced guitar. It's not a PRS or standard Gibson (or a custom shop Fender or Special Edition Ibanez), but over 6 bills on an electric is starting to get up there.

So, you can't fairly compare that guitar to a Squire. They are meant to be compared, unless you take price into consideration.

But, if you paid that for your guitar, it's likely to be a pretty good piece of equipment. No guitar comes off the line fully set-up. Even a $4000 Les Paul will probably need further set up work by the time you have it home a week. If you did a minimal amount of work on yours, you got a good one for the money. And you're right, a good player can wail on anything. A bad player with an 8 thousand dollar PRS is still a bad player.
The Professor

[dean_dem]

39. I paid about $600 for mine...

It was just one of those assembly-line Guitar Center Epiphone's, nothing special really. But I was just saying that $600 will get you a pretty decent setup, providing you are careful what you get and take care of it once you own it.

But even the low-end Epiphone's are not comparable to Squire. My first guitar was a Squire, and the body was made out of particle board, the pickups lasted about a year before they started shorting out and the neck was so cheap when you made a chord you could hear the tone bending. That guitar was a POS without a doubt. I've played lower-end Epi's, and although they are certainly not comparable to Gibson-quality (as anyone who spends $200-300 on a guitar should not expect), they were still ten times more durable and playable than a Squire. A lower-end guitar is going to be exactly that: but the difference between a lower-end Epi and a Squire is the difference between a Beginner's guitar and a Completely waste of money. Price-wise they are the same, quality-wise Epiphone's are much better. I'm just saying, Epiphone gets a bad rep. It's Fender that needs to get its act together.

[ProfessorGAC]

40. Well, We Have Radically Different Takes

I found the low end Epiphones to be utter crap. Terrible, microphonic pickups. And, the opposite on the Squire. My niece has had one for almost 4 years, and there is still not a thing wrong with it. And she's a dilligent learner. She plays every day. I adjusted the action once and reset intonation twice. In 4 years! That's pretty good.

My friend has a Squire Bullet, too! He got it because it was a cheap, fixed bridge, one humbucker guitar. Same thing. Solid, stable, and in 4 years, not a thing wrong with it ever. And the pickup on it is KILLER!

So, we obviously have had really different experiences. You said, ". . .but the difference between a lower-end Epi and a Squire is the difference between a Beginner's guitar and a Completely waste of money." For me the waste of money is the low-end Epiphone. Every single one i've ever seen is totally junk.
The Professor

[dean_dem]

41. Eh, to each his own, I guess.

I've got friends who will say we're both wrong, that low-end Danelectros are the way to go.