Tell me about the ESP Eclipse

  • Thread starter Thread starter jbru91
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Pushead’s about as much of an expert on Eclipses as you’ll find, lol…

I have a couple and love them. They’re great if you like the LP-type look in a guitar that feels much more modern. One of mine is a USA build which are full thickness like a LP, I got it specifically because it ticks all the boxes I would want in a LP with none of the downsides.
 
I have a couple of Eclipse shaped guitars. One is a Ltd JH-600EC, basically a Jeff Hanneman signature with a Kahler hybrid trem and 24 frets. That thing is a really nice guitar to play, the build quality is really good. I think a comparable Ltd would be a EC1000. The neck is a bit more U-shaped than the Ibanez RG prestige I used to own, which you might like or not like, so see if you can get your hands on one to try out first.

The second Eclipse I own is an ESP Custom Shop RZK-II, a Richard Z Kruspe signature model. Like the Ltd, it has EMGs in it, but the way that guitar sounds is amazing, just so much girth and power. Fit and finish are the best I have had with any guitar. It's super heavy as well, I'd say the thickness is about the same as a Gibson.

If I had to make an analogy, I'd say the Ltd is like a Ferrari sports car, whereas the ESP is like an F1 car.

If you have the cash, I'd say go for the ESP. They are built to last, and I really love mine. Love the Ltd for different reasons, I like the bridge and I'm a big Hangman fan.
 
The guitar I’ve had the longest is a black gloss, 4 knob, eclipse. And it’s seriously good!!
 
Oh, btw, I used to own an ESP FR-27, which was a standard. Desperately tried to love it, but traded it for a Sufi DH-496c guitar that was stolen when I moved back to India.

Try before you buy, if possible
 
Bought this gloss black full thickness from the poster, @Pushead , in this thread with the video and massive collection maybe ten years ago? And have the two LPC’s also pictured. They’re essentially the same guitars, and if you want the emg sound just swap the pups on your standard and you’re there. ESP’s Thin U isn’t far off from the slimmer Gibson necks. As someone else mentioned they are more rounded than other metal oriented guitars (personally I prefer that but worth noting)

The regular thickness eclipse, I’ve owned 5 or 6 Standard ESP’s and LTD Ec1000s of those over the years, I’d liken them to more of an SG or Super Strat in terms of feel and sound, not as much heft but some people prefer that, however I got rid of all those over time, I like the thicc bois.

FWIW I play metal and very much hate active pickups, but depends on the style for sure. I play sludgy and noisy chaotic shit. PAF’s and Mid-output pups have always gotten the sound I want more than high output stuff. Actives are a bit too compressed and thin sounding to my ears so never got on with them.

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tementnoise said:
Bought this gloss black full thickness from the poster, @Pushead , in this thread with the video and massive collection maybe ten years ago? And have the two LPC’s also pictured. They’re essentially the same guitars, and if you want the emg sound just swap the pups on your standard and you’re there. ESP’s Thin U isn’t far off from the slimmer Gibson necks. As someone else mentioned they are more rounded than other metal oriented guitars (personally I prefer that but worth noting)

The regular thickness eclipse, I’ve owned 5 or 6 Standard ESP’s and LTD Ec1000s of those over the years, I’d liken them to more of an SG or Super Strat in terms of feel and sound, not as much heft but some people prefer that, however I got rid of all those over time, I like the thicc bois.

FWIW I play metal and very much hate active pickups, but depends on the style for sure. I play sludgy and noisy chaotic shit. PAF’s and Mid-output pups have always gotten the sound I want more than high output stuff. Actives are a bit too compressed and thin sounding to my ears so never got on with them.

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The middle one, damn!
 
grimmchaos said:
I'd love to get a 4 knob Eclipse I that's full thickness just like that one, but they aren't easy to find.
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They’re around from time to time but I don’t believe there are too many of the gloss black variety. You’ll mostly see the vintage black/white and sometimes the purple. I know this one and the other one @Pushead still owns were part of a special dealer run of like than 10-15 in gloss black. And occasionally some one off colors pop up too. Another friend has a Silverburst one from the same dealer and it’s fuckin sick.
 
tementnoise said:
They’re around from time to time but I don’t believe there are too many of the gloss black variety. You’ll mostly see the vintage black/white and sometimes the purple. I know this one and the other one @Pushead still owns were part of a special dealer run of like than 10-15 in gloss black. And occasionally some one off colors pop up too. Another friend has a Silverburst one from the same dealer and it’s fuckin sick.
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Yeah, I'm not super picky color wise...they just tend to be $$ when they do pop up now. I've seen the silverburst ones and they are sick. I love silverburst.
 
grimmchaos said:
Yeah, I'm not super picky color wise...they just tend to be $$ when they do pop up now. I've seen the silverburst ones and they are sick. I love silverburst.
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They’ve always been more pricey than others and I’m not sure what they sell for these days but I’ve definitely seen some dumb prices on reverb, like 3k and up but no idea if they sold for that.
 
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Not included in the video is this 2012 FT Eclipse. It's in a one-off color (for a SS Eclipse) in dark candy red. My buddy has an FT in silverburst and he paid more than I would have.

The FT Eclipses are great, but I actually prefer the regular thickness ones.
 
garey77 said:
I had a n ESP Stamdard eclipse. It’s probably in the ballpark as far as being “close” to the Gibson 60’s neck carve, but I preferred the feel of the Eclipse over the LP. LOVE the body feel of the Eclipse line. I had the slightly ‘thinner’ version…it was suuuuper comfy. There were a set of Suhr Aldrich pups in it, and it fucking slayed. I still miss that guitar. Got this one from a fellow forum member-El Mariachi, I believe.
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I’ve got the same one. Love it. I’ve got a set of Fishman Classics in it and it absolutely rips.

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Unless you go for the full thickness ESP it’s not gonna be familiar if you’re a Les Paul guy. Can’t recall if ESP is still chambering the Full Thickness or not to save weight, so that definitely won’t remind you of a LP.
 
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