Characteristic
This guitar was made in China and has a perfect finish. The scale is 24.75″ and the neck is 22 frets with the distinctive trapezoid inlays. The fretboard is rosewood which seems to bring out the inlays nicely. The body material of the guitar is a solid block of mahogany and quite heavy.you can feel the material is well constructed and the weight of the guitar being heavier than most adds to the “richness” of the finish.The body top is a matching flamed maple however, You can buy the same guitar. , which has all the same dimensions and sound, but it has a matte finish. It will cost you about €50 less depending on the store. For me, the flamed finish is worth it because it looks amazing. The neck set is also mahogany, the materials of consistent and professional guitars.
The bridge is the archetypal “tune-o-matic” model, finished in chrome in the same way as the pegs. The pickups are a pair of classic Alnico humbuckers, which are good and suit the guitar, but if you’re a semi-pro player or just want some extra punch, a change of pickups might benefit you. There are four controls, two for tone and two for volume. At the time I paid £399 for the guitar which seemed very reasonable to me as I have played guitars twice that amount and the impression I got did not match the Epiphone. You can also get a specific hard case for this guitar model. Very impressed. 9/10
Sound quality
I mainly play late 60’s hard rock with a bluesy edge so a lot of chords are needed for the guitar and this guitar is sure to impress when it comes to playing them. My influences include people like Cream, the Stones and Slash (for the shredding solos!). This guitar, paired with my Line6 Spider IV amp, produces all the sounds I want. From distorted rock tones on the bridge pickup, to big melodic solos on the neck p/u with the pitch down gives a great creamy tone. I always have the right volume and tone on the guitar as it makes the overall sound fuller and helps the strings resonate. Honestly, I love how the guitar sounds. Although Epiphone will never be as good as Gibson, but considering a Gibson form of this guitar would cost around £900 or more, this is a very good contender for a cheaper model. 10/10
Style
I’ve never bought this guitar online, and I never recommend people do, simply because when you buy a guitar especially like this, you want to see it in person. You want to get the guitar with a nice grain that suits your taste, and you want to make sure that every piece of freshly polished mahogany looks exactly like that. You cannot get this guarantee online. I digress… The finish on this guitar is perfect, the pickups were close together and not loose at all, a very professional job was done. However, I changed the strings when I bought it because I am a huge Ernie Ball Super Slinky lover. The intonation was perfect and the bridge was set correctly. I didn’t have to touch it. The guitar’s bridge was also set to a nice low height which optimized playability, especially with fast phrases and high fretted sequences, and weird chord shapes that require a lot of finger stretching. However, depending on taste, they are easily adjustable. What I love about this guitar more than anything is its ability to be played straight out of the box. I didn’t need to make adjustments and this can only make my life easier. 10/10
reliability
There really isn’t much to say, other than that you can play gigs without any damage, as long as you have a good, sturdy strap. The actual strap locks on the guitar are fine; they won’t loosen and so would hold a good leash well. I wouldn’t need a backup guitar if I was playing a gig because you can rely on this guitar well. The finish hasn’t come off or anything like that and I’ve had it for 6 months and played 3 gigs along with regular practice, it’s very well made and excellently reliable. 10/10
overall experience
For what I do with the guitar, this one fits all my needs. The features, sound quality and style suit me perfectly. From fast solos to slow bluesy jams, Spanish bops and western chord progressions, the Les Paul has always been the ‘superior’ class of guitar and ever since I used to watch Slash perform amazing solos, I wanted one. With this guitar, you can claim a Les Paul without the £1000 price tag. Playing like Slash will take practice though; the guitar won’t do all the work. 9/10