Les Paul

[Beno]

Hi does any of you would be kind enough to tell me whats the difference between a Gibson Les Paul guitar and a Gibson Epiphone Les Paul i mean the differences in body shape, neck shape, etc, and woods also.

Are both guitars dimensions the same ones?

Best Regards

Beno

[samoht]

i don't know about the neck profile, but the body seems to be spot on. the neck headstock is a little different though. i've also noticed that epiphones have way better price/quality ratio than gibsons, as you can get a perfectly finished epiphone for something like 400€. most new gibsons i've seen here look like they skipped the sanding part and just buffed the lacquer after spraying it. also epiphone has started using mahogany in their bodies like gibsons (i think epiphone used to use alder or something in the past).

[Librero]

Epiphones are made in Korea, I think. Dimensions are pretty much the same, for the most part at least. As for construction, well, if you'll believe the Epiphone website, they don't always use mahogany for the body. I myself have seen an Epi LP made of this light-colored wood. Definitely not mahogany.

[bluespresence]

Most of the Epi's are made with a laminated alder/mahogany body though there are some all mahogany bodies in the Epi line up like the Bob Marley signature LP and the LP Classic (mahogany with maple top).

As Librero mentioned the Epi's are made in Korea (most of them anyway) and the pickups and other components are also made overseas which helps keep the price lower.

I have found the Korean guitars to be of very good quality for the most part. Look it over well before your purchase and make sure it all fits together tightly and the neck is straight, etc.

BTW, I own and play two Epi basses and wouldn't trade them for the finest Gibson!!

[samoht]

well i haven't seen every epiphone model, but all i've seen here are mahogany.. i don't know if the pickups on the new models are good, but the old ones used to squeal when i turned up the volume.

[Maiden69]

but all i've seen here are mahogany..

Really, have you cut them to know what kinda wood?

  Most of the Epi's are made with a laminated alder/mahogany body though there are some all mahogany bodies in the Epi line up like the Bob Marley signature LP and the LP Classic (mahogany with maple top).

Yes they are made of laminates, and the Classic is either and the maple top is a very thin veneer!!

hte Gibson is by far better than the EPI, I think the Epi is a good begginer guitar but it lacks in craftmanship and materials.

In the epi factory they substitute the wood for what ever they have around when they run out of stock.

[samoht]

i know my wood. mahogany is mahogany. there's a epiphone SG that's all mahogany and the quality of that instrument is SUPERIOR to any gibson i've ever seen in my life. the finish is perfect quality everywhere, it sounds great both acoustic and amplified.. of course i haven't seen the more expensive gibson guitars, but the ones i've seen (cost 2 or 3 times more than the epiphone) have all been really badly finished guitars.

and it really doesn't matter if the guitar is made in japan, korea or usa if it's a good guitar.

and no.. the guy at the local music store doesn't let me cut his guitars up.. so i can't really be 100% sure about all les pauls

[bluespresence]

^^^^^^^^

Dude, lay off the caffiene!!

You're right, the Classic top is a veneer. The bodies I saw on the Classics (I just sold 3 of them) were solid mahogany. They had a transparent finish so the "solid" was obvious. I also pulled the p'ups out of one just to make sure.

hte Gibson is by far better than the EPI, I think the Epi is a good begginer guitar but it lacks in craftmanship and materials.

You sound just like a friend of mine LOL He's all "Gibson this, Gibson that, Epi sucks, blah, blah, blah....." Then he comes over and plays my LP Bass and goes "Oh, CRAP, that's a sweet bass!!!"

I agree that the lower end Epi's are in the mid range in quality (and so are all low end brands - that's why they cost less), but Epi's high end stuff is comparable to most (I said most, not all) of Gibby's or any other stuff. Have you checked out the Epiphone Elitist line? Made in Japan, has the Epi name on it and the quality is out-freakin'-standing!!

In the epi factory they substitute the wood for what ever they have around when they run out of stock.

Samick makes 75%+ of all the guitars we love and play so to say "Epi" uses junk in their product is really ripping on every Korean, Chinese, Indonesian and most other foreign guitars. They almost all come out of the same factories, they just have a different label and a different design.

[guitar_ed]

I just got an Epi Dot Reissue Studio for US$225. Very basic archtop guitar w/ 2 no-name HBs from Gibson, sounds a bit raw, which I like. Feels good in my hand, which I really care about. Nice bright yellow color. Yee-Hah.

Guitar Ed

[bigdguitars]

for the cash epip is a great deal

got a black beauty that was a great guitar, would buy from them again.

avoid the cheaper guitars, spend at least 400 bucks and upgrade the pickps ou will have a screamer

[sepultura999]

here this should help. It's an article that gives a hands on review of Gibsons and Epiphones because it's not just a simple way of telling the difference due to all the different models. In the end I find the main reason of cost is because the Gibsons are made in the states with american workers and use rare honduran mahogony (not sure if they are on the endangered list and Epiphones are made overseas using common mahogony. Hope this helps!

-Jamie

[Maiden69]

First off all samoth, you need to chill out, I bet you can tell the type of wood just by liking it! There have been numerous Epi SG posted here that after that sweet looking cherry stain comes out all you got is 2 mahogany veneers and a 4pc sandwiched alder body, if you don't know jack of what you are talking about, jsut don't talk...

Sepultura999, you are right, the main reason is that the labor in Korea is cheaper than here is nthe states, just like the Mexican Fender! But if you look at the link that you posted, in the standard model, says that the neck is mahogany, mine is maple, also it says that the top is flamed maple, yeah, a very this veneer that is.

for the cash epip is a great deal

got a black beauty that was a great guitar, would buy from them again.

bigd, I'm 100% with you on this, this is the only reason I didn't sold mine when I found out about the discrepancies in the woods.

Now here a few pics to show why my replies.

Here you can see how thin the veneer is on the recess for the control knobs.

on this one the squared tenon, that doesn't even tought the body on the left side of it... If you know a bit about building guitars you know that this is the bread and butter of good tone and sustain and the reason of many debates about what neck joint is better, set, bolt or neckthru.

I just found an old thread about the same topic, this guy was redoing his SG, you know the all mahogany one!, Well after stripping the stain he got himself a nice alder body, with a mahogany neck. here is a link to his pics. If you still have doubts e-mail Epi or Gibson, tell them that you have an LP and that after shaving the neck you found out that it was maple instead of mahogany as advertised to see what they respond, I got mine in the house, I will love to publish it but theey have a disclaimer in the begining and the end of the post that states that it is not for public distro but for the intended recipient. I guess that there have been quite a few of this.

[sepultura999]

Again though it comes down to feel and sound and if you like it. I mean people in my high school go around saying "oh I got a fender" and talk how amazing their guitar is and some of them just don't sound too good at all to my ears - keeping in mind also that some can't play except a few chords I mean you're never going to find a guitar that everyone likes, some are gonna love gibsons more than epis. and some are gonna love epis. more than gibsons

Heres how you solve it...

When it comes down to Epiphone and Gibsons - best to skip school for a day, go to a guitar store right when they open at 9 AM and try out every guitar in the store until you find the one you want and which is best. Who cares about the colouring and the finishing - that can easily be fixed

-Jamie

Edited October 5, 2004 by sepultura999

[crafty]

Maiden69,

What are they going to do? Sue you for exposing their false advertising and lies to the public? If they do, you can find the ACLU in your town and they'll take your case like no tomorrow. But that's not what Gibson/Epiphone are really worried about. If it becomes general public knowledge that the Epi Les Paul is not made of the same material as the Gibson AND people perceive it as being a significantly less quality instrument, then there's a good chance that Gibson's litigation against PRS and other companies for trademark infringment could be in trouble. It's a complicated rule, but it's there.

Show us the letter! Or just give us a general idea about what it said in reply...

[javacody]

I have an epi LP Jr. here that was stripped. Mahagony neck and nice, fat, maple/alder sandwich body. It still sounds good and plays very well, but it is a cousin of plywood to be sure.

When you are talking regular epi's here, you are probably getting plywood. If you are talking the elitest line, you are getting a damn fine instrument, I'm sure. Epi's are good starter/beater guitars, but for the money, I'd go Agile any day over epi.

Check this bad boy out:

http://www.rondomusic.net/al3000rghtleft.html

Also, when an Asian guitar lists its wood as Mahagony, it means Asian Mahagony, which is different from both Honduran and African. Asian Mahagony is much whiter than either Honduran or African. It still seems like a good tonewood though.

[RGGR]

When it comes down to Epiphone and Gibsons - best to skip school for a day, go to a guitar store right when they open at 9 AM and try out every guitar in the store until you find the one you want and which is best.

This is exactly what I did when visiting Hong Kong. Spend hours in Tommy Lee Music store and tested everything out there. Some guitars felt right, some didn't. Best is to form your own opinion by trying things out.

[elburromjf]

Hi does any of you would be kind enough to tell me whats the difference between a Gibson Les Paul guitar and a Gibson Epiphone Les Paul i mean the differences in body shape, neck shape, etc, and woods also.

Are both guitars dimensions the same ones?

Best Regards

Beno

Hi,

By sheer coincidence, I am in the market for a guitar with a hard tail and a set neck, and I just happened to spend an entire Sunday afternoon working out in a guitar shop on both the Gibson and Epiphone Les Pauls. I played following guitars that day:

* Both Gibson and Epiphone Les Paul Custom.

The Gibson: This was a Les Paul Custom. Black, with gold hardware, rosewood board, and un-marked mystery tuners. Price: $1499.00

The Epiphone: This was a Les Paul Custom. Black, with gold hardware, rosewood board and gold Grover tuners. Price: $499.00

NOTE: This is only my impression. I buy guiatrs to play them, not to collect them. Remember, one man's junk could be another man's treasure.

Both of these guitars weighed (and looked) about the same (Epiphone had a better finish) and played roughly the same. Niether one of them played badly at all. Both had quality tone that carried that special fatness only Les Pauls have, especially under distortion. Both guitars also cleaned up nicely tone-wise. The controls on the Epiphone didn't have the precision feel that the ones on the Gibson had. The pickups on the Epiphone were not the same as the Gibson but they are still nice pickups (Duncan Design).

Bottom line:

The Epiphone, priced at $499.00 US is a hands-down, superior value for the money, plus it has Grover tuners. I do not think there is anything you can tell me about wood that is going to make me want to blow an additional $1000.00 on a Gibson. If I completely replaced the electronics on the Epiphone to surpass that of the Gibson, I'd still be under $800.00, and the thing would scream with undulating sustain, fatness, and tone. For my money, the Epiphone wins. If I was a guitar collector or if I was obsessed with owning a particular wood, then I'd buy the Gibson.

EB

[Maiden69]

I do not think there is anything you can tell me about wood that is going to make me want to blow an additional $1000.00 on a Gibson. If I completely replaced the electronics on the Epiphone to surpass that of the Gibson, I'd still be under $800.00, and the thing would scream with undulating sustain, fatness, and tone. For my money, the Epiphone wins. If I was a guitar collector or if I was obsessed with owning a particular wood, then I'd buy the Gibson.

EB

Have you been reading this thread at all??????

1st of all, the Epi tunners are not Grover, they are look alike POS.

2nd Since there is nothing that we can say to make you change your mind, you are in the wrong FORUM, you need to go back to the Musicians Forum, or were ever you crawl from... I'm tired of people saying that if the change the electronics they will have a better sounding guitar than... whatever dude!

Ands Gibson ain't for guitars collectors, it's for players, just like the real ESP, Fender, Washburn, BC Rich, they all have a cheap line because not everybody can afford the top of the line guitars, and believe me if just by changing the electronics on an Epi will do all you say, Gibson will have them out of bussiness in a few days, do you really think that an average Joe (that know his instruments, not like you) will be saving for almost a year to be able to buy a Gibson custom instead of just getting an Epi Custom and change the Electronics... you go to drop dead if you believe this!!!!

If that were the real fact, I guess that we over here will be buying plywood to make our guitars instead of looking around for that sweet looking Burl, flamed, quilt, crotch, etc... because it realy doesn't matter the type of wood, go tell that to Myka and Drak, tell them that when they pickup a piece of wood and they do the tap test is a waste of time, just to get good electronics and that will yield and incredible tone, with endless sustain, or go tell Eddie Van Halen that the reason why he is still looking for that "brown" sound is not because of the wood just the electronics on his guitar, maybe he will pay you to do a custom 5150 out of plywood with some expensive electronics. I got an Epi LP. Why did I got it, because it was affordable and I had no IDEA of the kind of craftmanship that the instrument was made! I bet you that a mexican Fender is better made than this POS. I have done everything to my LP, you name it, the only thing I haven't done is to put in on a nech jig and make it from a good playing guitar to an awsome one...

Remeber this is not a musicians forum, (alto there are a lot of great players here! Toni to mention one of 'em) this is a builders place, so we DO know that wood and other factors inluence the voice of the instrument, so please learn a little and them make up your mind, but that comment that you just posted makes you sound like a complete ignorant when it comes to your guitar knowledge.

[samoht]

maiden69.. i saw what you did to your epi les paul and i must say i'm very impressed!! couldn't really look any better...

there's an all mahogany epi sg at the local music store and it's IMO one of the best quality guitars i've ever seen. i'm talking about the acoustic tone alone here.. i don't know about the pickups and stuff, but the tuners seem to be reliable in that particular instrument. also the pots and switch seem to be high quality parts.

i agree that it totally sucks when some manufacturers use plywood for their bodies!! i've seen some epi les pauls with alder bodies and they sound great. alder is very good body material for electric guitar, though it may not bring the desired les paul tone, it still can produce pretty good sound. same thing with maple necks.

it is true that expensive pickups won't make a bad guitar sound great, but if the guitar is decent quality instrument, good electronics can make it a very good choice for those who are on a budget.

[Librero]

Well, if I wanted "superior value for the money," I wouldn't get an Epiphone either. A good Japanese "lawsuit" copy will beat the Epiphone any day.

Asian Mahagony is much whiter than either Honduran or African.

Dude, I believe Asia is too big a place to have just "Asian" mahogany. Here, we have our own so-called Philippine mahogany which is grainier, but just as reddish as your beloved Honduran mahogany.

[RGGR]

but that comment that you just posted makes you sound like a complete ignorant when it comes to your guitar knowledge.

Hey, maiden??? Why fry the guy like you did. He is just airing his opinion. He tried both guitars and likes the EPI better. The way he words it, it sounds like a very reasonable choice.

[vladdrac]

but that comment that you just posted makes you sound like a complete ignorant when it comes to your guitar knowledge.

Hey, maiden??? Why fry the guy like you did. He is just airing his opinion. He tried both guitars and likes the EPI better. The way he words it, it sounds like a very reasonable choice.

I agree..i think he explained his point of view very well,...and I actually don´t like Les Pauls... that´s just my opinion..

but Maiden was rude.

Cheers

[elburromjf]

MAIDEN69,

I am only going to respond to the Grover tuner issue because you are misinformed. The heads are not look-alikes. They actually say GROVER on them. I can read quite well thank you. Different outlets can get these shipped any way they want. The rest of your message isn't worth the ass you pulled it out of (probably your own). I can't believe you have the balls to tell anyone to drop dead. Dork.

EB

[Brian]

Since there is nothing that we can say to make you change your mind, you are in the wrong FORUM

Didn't realize this forum was about changing peoples minds, I always thought it was about learning from others experience and knowledge and forming ones own opinion

Somebody asked the difference between an Epi and a Gibson, for the most part it is the location where the two were made is different and the materials used are different, got that part even myself.

If I was trying to change someone's mind I could swear on a stack of Bibles the difference between a Duncan or DiMarzio Nickle covered humbucking pickup vs a potted Chinese Chrome covered humbucking pickup isn't worth the money at all based from what I have heard coming from the playing of a vast amount of local people whom I concider extremely tallented.

Just the shear mention of that starts a flame war usually. For some it is importent to the death, others could care less really. Some will always be in the middle swayed by what others say.............

In the long run what I have seen from Gibsons is a different material usually brought in from the region they have always shopped in for supplies. They use a different finish on their higher end guitars then their middle and lower end one's. Yes they bought and now own Epiphone and have taken most of their designs and transformed them with little differences into what are now called Epiphones.

They eventually closed the USA Epi Plant from what I understand (no I don't know this for a fact) and moved the whole shooting match into the hands of the highest bidder to give them a set quality job without being overly expensive.

Epi's are mass produced in a factory that can pump out 10's of thousands of guitars a month (not all of them are Epi's just so you know). Gibson has had to cut curves to keep up with the demand on LP's by becoming less and less built from hand over the decade's depending more on newer specialized equiptment. Do they pump out thousands of LP's a month? NO, but just like the old Corvette factory I wouldn't want one made on a monday or a friday and they do very more amoungst their own then the EPi's lately if you look at a massive amount of each and compair them only to the same name side by side (Epi vs Epi) and (Gibson vs Gibson).

Which is valued or worth more in the end? Thats up to the person buying it, the play, feel, tone, over all sound and joy the guitar give's you and you alone....................

[ProjectGuitar.com]

Until I get a little time to read this whole thing and find out what's going on:

THREAD CLOSED.

It will re-open soon.