Any thoughts other than pretty good? Have you had other Epiphones, if so how does it compare?
Does it sound and feel good?
I bought quick to avoid it selling out, but still torn if I really want a cheaper epiphone or just wait and get another Gibson.
Love Adam Jones and think the art is cool and like the full silverburst vs. the Gibson AJ Standard with the black back, but not sure I can get over the Epiphone and the poly vs nitro finish.
I've not had other Epis for a loooong time, but I've played on a few here and there since the recent re-vamp. It's on par with those, and doesn't have any QC faults at all to speak of, other than a slightly dry fingerboard. The internal routes etc. are very clean indeed, as is the wiring and electronics. The nut's been cut well, and the setup out of the box was decent but could be improved with some minor fettling at home (YMMV).
Sound-wise it's pretty impressive - lots of grunt from the SH-6, and the BBPro in the neck balances pretty well even with the noticeable volume drop - if you're careful with your amp settings you can use these as a clean/dirty set with just the toggle switch. That said, I seem to get some treble roll-off on the volume pots, so I might sort that out with a re-wire.
The paintjob is brilliant - they've captured the vibe of a 'real' SB pretty well, and I'm really pleased with the artwork on the back too - it's much less in-your-face than I'd feared, and it's a really high-quality job indeed.
The weight's a little high, but that's to be expected of a non-chambered model, and is in keeping with AJ's preferences too. Similarly, the neck's skinnier than
I prefer, but it's his signature, so...! Tuning is very stable though, even with the skinnier neck - I can't tell how they've laminated the 3-pc, but that might be a contributing factor I suppose.
All that said, I don't love it. I had to change the stock (Gibson) strings as soon as it arrived, as they felt like cheese graters, and that did help my first impressions quite a bit. I think it's the weight and the skinny* neck profile, whereas I tend to prefer larger profiles and lighter guitars - my main two are a PRS S2 McCarty 594, and a
surprisingly-light Gibson Explorer. Even so, I'll be keeping this for a while at the very least. I've been after an SB for years, and I'm a big AJ fan. I don't see the point of selling it - certainly not for scalper prices, but if I were to I'd probably replace it with a similarly-specced PGK build but with a few tweaks that I'd want for myself.
P.s. Less important, but the hardcase is fantastic!
*skinny by my preferences, I'll measure it up properly but it's not a Wizard or anything.
