Features
This guitar was made in China and is finished to perfection. The scale is 24.75", and the neck has 22 frets featuring the hallmark trapezoid inlays. The fretboard is rosewood, which seems to bring out the inlays very nicely. The body material of the guitar is a solid and rather heavy block of mahogany. You can feel that the material is well constructed and the weight of the guitar, which is heavier than most, adds to the 'richness' of the finish. The top of the body is book-matched flamed maple; however the same guitar can be bought, which has all the same dimensions and sound, but has a matte finish. This will cost you about £50 less depending on the shop. For me the flame finish is worth it as it looks spectacular. The set neck also consists of mahogany making the guitars materials consistent and professional.
The bridge is the archetypal "tune-o-matic" model, finished in chrome in the same fashion as the tuners. The pickups are a pair of Alnico classic humbuckers, which are good, and suit the guitar, but if you are a semi professional player, or just want an extra kick, a change of pickups could benefit you. There are four controls, two for tone and two for volume. At the time I paid £399 for the guitar which I found to be very reasonable as I have played guitars twice that amount and the impression they gave me did not match that of the Epiphone. You can also get a specific, hard case for this guitar model. Very impressed. 9/10
Sound Quality
I mainly play hard, late 60s rock with a blues edge so lots of chords for the guitar are necessary and this guitar will surely impress when it comes to playing them. My influences include the likes of Cream, the Stones and Slash (for the shredding solos!). This guitar, paired with my Line6 Spider IV amplifier produces all the sounds I want. From rockish distorted tones on the bridge pickup, to great melodic solo's on the neck p/u with the tone turned down gives a great creamy tone. I always have the volume and tone right up on the guitar as it makes the overall sound more whole and helps the strings resonate. I honestly love the way the guitar sounds. Even though Epiphone will never be as good as Gibson, but bearing in mind a Gibson form of this guitar would cost in the range of £900+, this is a very good competitor for a cheaper model. 10/10
Style
I never bought this guitar online, and I never recommend people to, simply because when buying a guitar especially like this one, you want to see it in person. You want to get the guitar with a nice grain which suits your taste and you want to make sure each piece of freshly polished mahogany looks exactly that. You cannot get this guarantee from online. I digress... The finish of this guitar is perfect, the pickups were pretty close and were not at all loose, a very professional job was done indeed. However, I did change the strings when I purchased it as I am a fond lover of Ernie Ball Super Slinky's. The intonation was perfect and the bridge was properly set. I didn't have to touch it. The guitars bridge was also set a nice low height which optimized playability, especially with fast phrases and high fretted sequences, and awkward chord shapes which require lots of finger stretching. However, dependant on taste, they are easily adjustable. What I love about this guitar more than anything was its ability to be played straight out of the box. I needed to make no adjustments and this can only make my life easier. 10/10
Reliability
There's not much to say really other than it 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 will not come loose and therefore would hold a good strap well. I wouldn't need a backup guitar if I played a gig because you can rely on this guitar well. The finish hasn't come off or anything of the sort and I have had it for 6 months and played 3 gigs along with regular practice, it is very well made and superbly reliable. 10/10
Overall Experience
For what I do with the guitar, this fits all my needs. The features, sound quality and style all suit me perfectly. From fast solos, to slow blues jams to Spanish bops to western chord progressions, Les Paul has always been the 'upper' class of guitar and ever since I used to watch Slash drill out amazing solos I have wanted one. With this guitar, you can claim a Les Paul without the £1000 price tag. However, playing like Slash will require practice; the guitar won't do all the work. 9/10
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