The ULTIMATE Epiphone! - Is This the Best Sounding Guitar Ever??
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- Опубліковано 22 жов 2017
- The Ulimate Epi is an Army of One as it takes on Six iconic sounds from various American-made guitars!
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I came down here to say the Epiphone sounded more like a strat than the strat and I see everybody else already saying the same thing. Time to upgrade my Epi!
Hold up, you play guitar?. legendary
@@joelstatosky1817 wait , you play Pete's Picolo? What!?!
Yep, that blew my mind. The single coil setting was more strat like.
Yeah, I got that first one wrong ... wow. I would love this guitar.
I couldn't in a million years have been fooled by the epi strat neck copy. You should listen to more Hendrix. Neck pickup overdrive on the video was really spot on strat :)
omg i really got surprized by the first sound. the epi was so good that i thought it was a strat xD
+Matheus Castro Not bad, right!?!
Literally sounded nothing like a les Paul either no way you'd be able to tell unless you're some sort of expert
Carter Lord
The Strat and the Tele were the only two I picked out. Have to say, though, the Tele was tough and the Strat sound was pretty damned close. All in all I was very impressed. I think of an electric guitar as a controller on a video game console. To me it's about functionality and comfort. That is one impressive SOB.
The first Tele I picked out pretty easy, but definitely the strat in the beginning messed me up. The epi sounded great
Seriously impressed by those p-rails. Super studio friendly! Jack of all trades kinda thing
The difference in tone/quality/sound for each comparison was negligible. You just created the most useful guitar I've ever seen (heard). Awesome job, DB.
The Epi sounded more strat than the strat
+Pedro Cerda Yeah, it's not often that a Strat drives an amp harder than a LP. I think that will throw a lot of people off 😀
To me the Epi sounded more like a Strat on the bridge pickup, not enough bass. But it sounded pretty good!
I agree. When he did the reveal I was like NO WAY.
Ok, I'm not the only one who thought that
Same thought.
Not only do I think the Epi whooped them all, but it's one of the most drop dead gorgeous guitars I've ever seen. I'm jealous!
Where did that epi come from? I can't find a top like that anywhere
He said in the build video there was one store in Canada that sold them.@@bretthackett4124
The top is amazing.
The Epiphone Les paul standard pro has some really good colors. I think the quilted top he has is a limited edition
@@bretthackett4124 Yes, he said it's an Epiphone Les Paul Standard with a quilt top in a "root beer burst" finish. Agree it's spectacular, but unfortunately very hard to find. I'm so envious -- Darrell is truly living his best life.
These comparisons are SO well done - I learn so many new things I wasn't even considering before!? thank you Darrell!
+Skip Reardon I'm glad you enjoyed the video! ☺
Aww, the soloing in between the comparisons was so good I wanted to hear it again altogether at the end.
Keep up the awesome videos!
+Andrew Stump Thanks Andrew!
I'll admit i struggled to identify the EPI in nearly every case, that said what suprised me the most was my ear seemed to prefer the EPI tone overall! I'm sold......
I mirror your experience. The sound I preferred (the epi) I thought was the "other" guitar with each demonstration. I'm impressed!
Concur
jrex427 - My experience was the same as yours, I liked the EPI but am by no means an expert like Darrel Braun. My brother had a 1963 SG with the black soap bar pickups and I always preferred that sound over the tele and strat of those days. I also later spent 15 months on an M60 main battle tank which did nothing good for my hearing. Love that custom EPI!
Sounded Amazing!!! Now I wonder would an LP kit build with P-Rails with triple shots and upgraded tuners would stand up against the moded Epi?
Concur
Darrell, I like too much your channel, I'm Brazilian and l don't speak English, and I had use it to practice my listening, cause your pronunciation is so clean for me. Great video!
+Wauez Machado Thanks Wauez!
I'm glad you are a part of the channel ☺
Hey estou no Brasil tb! Comprei uma Epiphone e vou tentar fazer essa modificação igual. Hehe espero poder conseguir montagem!
Canadians are the best!
you have good English and speak it well
@Kaptain Kid
It wasn't sarcastic. Canadians are the best.
You should apologize for making unnecessary assumptions.
Wow! I am thoroughly impressed by the upgrade. Instead of picking which was which I picked which sound I liked better. The only one I picked that was not the Epiphone was the Tele with the Shaw pickups compared to the Epi with humbuckers in parallel. Nice job Darrell! Thanks for sharing.
I really liked this comparison.
The additional 3 modes on top of the standard sounds makes this Epi a Swiss army knife!
And you're absolutely right about the money savings when building an Ultimate Epi.
My Epi cost about $800 after a complete makeover... I still came out ahead as a similar guitar made in the USA is priced at $1,800 new.
The first sound was so mindblowing i didnt believe that epiphone could match up with an American guitar
+GUITAR HOARDER 👍 I thought it did amazingly well too!
Well you sold me on the pickups
Bo88y Beretta in a couple days, guys at Seymour Duncan will be wondering why these somewhat niche pickups are suddenly flying off the shelves.
Yeah.. Seymoyr Duncan should be paying Darrell..hehehe.. Im gonna buy these.
That Epi is amazing - great demo Darrell - thank you for your post
I love the sound of the second Tele with the custom wound pickup. Great video. Thank you
I failed most of the tests, and have been playing for 25+ years. Those P-Rails are amazing. I am glad to know of them, and have you to thank. This video was hecka fun to see and hear. Good job!
+Louis Grim No problem! Glad you enjoyed the comparison ☺
Awesome sounding Eppi... I'm impressed
These 2 Epi videos you did were FANTASTIC!! For any player who want an Epi to sound better/more versatile, these two vids should be textbook reference! Keep up the good work and ideas!
+Theee Chosen One Thanks man!
ive seen this video more than a year ago before I bought my custom epi and until now, this is still the only video I can find in youtube that made an epi the best of all worlds. tnx!
8:45 almost got me Bud. I screamed out loud yelling no, and you said you were joking ;)
Great shootout. Amazing how the Epiphone did, side by side with all those different guitars and pickup combinations. If I had to take one guitar to a gig, that would be it.
Fantastic upgrades for my Epi. Well done, THANKS!
Thanks for all the good and interesting work you've been doing comparing, moding and teaching. Great Job. Congrats!
+Mario Tulio Glad you have been working the videos ☺
That was one of the harder blindfold tests you've done which speaks volumes for the epi. Like you said you can hear the minute differences IF you're listening for them. However, for a work horse guitar that you don't mind bringing around it's a great substitute with amazing variety. Great video!
This would be the perfect gig guitar... You dialed in everything so close... Thumbs up
Another great vid, Darrell. Always enjoy your productions.
Thanks Mark!
Omg they're both beautiful!!!😮That first strat and the LP !!!
Unbelievable man!!. I got some of them correct(tele and strat) but the thing is when I said "thats better" it was always Epi. Those P-Rails are amazing (wish they had nickel cover)!! Thanks for the great test. You proved that with good pickups Epi can shine
I think the industry has gotten a bit out of control with the micro-analysis of the sound of guitars. When I think back and listen to blues vinyl and the countless awesome sounds of the guitars used and then recall that some were done on Harmony guitars, Supro's Teisco's etc. etc., to me the current so-called standard set by critics based upon Gibsons and Fenders is simply an Illusory standard. When you combine my Epi Les Paul with a custom tube amp (Siegmund) with field coil speakers, the sound is nothing short of amazing. The same holds true with my 2018 Gibson Les Paul Deluxe. To be fair, I think the key to all of this is whether the player is happy with the sound. Sound is totally subjective. That being said we can all agree that some sounds are more pleasing to the ear than others. But that leaves us with broad general categories of sounds rather than clearly definable standards. My hat goes off to you for this comparison because it gives hope to those of us who cannot afford a 6k or greater Gibson Les Paul Custom Shop. Back in the 50's and 60's the mind set did NOT evaluate sound in the manner in which we do today. I liked it much better then. People were into the creative aspect of the total product, and not slicing and dicing the guitar sound into the most ridiculous infinitesimal aspects of that which cannot be objectively evaluated. Bottom line, does it move you. Can you feel it in your soul. Does it raise the hair on the back of your neck, and do you smile when you listen to a phrase? Its all about VIBE my friend and let us not forget that. Rock On buddy and keep up the great work. Regards, Edward William Case
Edward William Case well said!
Just like a lot of records were recorded using practice amps.
Thank you! Agreed. 👍
I think that’s partly true, especially when trying to judge “quality”. But I think it’s useful as someone who wants to micromanage my own tone when there’s a specific sound I want.
Edward William Case what amp and speakers do you use/ recommend to get great sounds out of this Epiphone? I know this post is a year old but I'm curious what you use. Thanks
Hey man, grate job! This kind of video is really good for tone compares. Thanks!
Finished watching video. On Reverb looking at quilted used Epi Les Pauls.
I got a yellow lush honey burst epiphone les Paul quilted
Just remember guys and gals none of your guitar heroes started with any of these guitars! Forget the sniffing and start playing. 👍🤘
P.s I’m also a fan of the channel 🌮
Nailed it!!
I liked the Epi for the P-90 tone. I have Mojotone P-90s in an Epi hollow body, and it brings out the warmth/ low end. Yours did as well I felt. Interesting vid!
Really love it when you do blind comparisons, it really shows how psychological it is to relate sounds with brands.
Many thanks for this great video. I have been thinking about building a guitar with P rails for about a month already and this video helped a lot to determine the direction to go. After watching the video, I am convinced now to stick to my initial plan and to use a T-style guitar (Squier or Harley Benton) as a basis with P-rails combined with SD Triple Shot. Also, I am going to install the bridge pick up in a way where single coil will be closer to the bridge and P90 more to the center.
Thanks a lot again.
Hey, just wanted to say beautiful solos that you play in between!
Thanks man!
I got them all right. But, man, was number 5 tough... Awesome Vid Darrell
+Fluro Flash Well done FF! Blind tests are always tricky business!
Darrell Braun Guitar what is the name of the song 0.52 secs. ?
+Juan Cristobal Martinez Hi!
The songs I used are listed in the video description ☺
I got number one wrong and the rest right but yes they were tough
Been playing and recording/mixing for 30 years and I got all but one wrong. You guys should turn pro immediately.
I'm currently building one. Thank you for the inspiration.
i was listening to what i liked the best, i picked the epi every time!! I may try to do this. thanks
Geez DB, I am now going to make an appointment with my local hearing loss professional for some testing. I didn't get a single one of them correct! the answer is a definite YES! it was worth it. Don't think you missed or forfeited a thing with this build.
+td tom 😄That means the Epi definitely did well then!
showed the vid to my wife. she wants to know why I don't play like that, and wants to know if you considered gold accents on the Epi?
+td tom 😄😄😄
Gold hardware would probably look very cool on that guitar!
All the sounds from the Ultimate Epiphone were impressive, but the one that blew me away was the first comparison with the Strat. I got it wrong, not only that but I just really loved the tone and character of the Epiphone's strat impression. That was impressive! I also liked the Strat's version of itself. : )
I just found this three years since the original post. I totally agree! Strat could, of course, out -whammy that Epi.
That is the coolest epi I've seen man! Nice job!
+Marshall McElmurry Thanks Marshall!
Fantastic eppi and gotta love the p-rails . Great job with the comparisons of the guitars and you have some great looking guitars in your collection. Cheers
I preferred the Epiphone to every guitar except the first strat and the last gibson. It's weird too because the epi did sound more straty with the thinner tone than the thicker sound out of your select strat. I really love this demo!
Great video Darrell. I think a lot of people are doing things similar to what you did to your epi. I bought a PRS SE and swapped the pickups for some Seymour Duncan Pearly Gates and for me it’s good enough and I didn’t have to shell out 3k. 500 - 800 bucks these days get’s you a really nice guitar.
+Al M Agreed!
I love the "darkness" of the Epi. Great work.
Wow this is really fun to watch and listen XD nicely done!
Really love the way it sounds. Only one I could tell easily was the strat. I love me my strats and there was no mistaking on that one. Other than the strat and the Gibson LP I liked it better than the others.
Dude, your videos are the best!
+NMDA Thanks man!
Thanks man, it really helped me out!
That Epi sounds great! You've got me thinking about attempting my own customization ...
Thanks to this....i see a pickup change for my epi coming up
love the epi. saving money to buy one!
I always loved your content Darrell! 🤘
I will absolutely do this to my epi. Thanks Sir
That Epi is a masterpiece!
+Master of Puppets Thanks man!
The Epi held it's own for the most part. Within a band situation... most wouldn't know the difference. P-Rails sound legit!
Grt looking piece of kit for sure, loving the colour!
Awesome as always
+Tom Duggan Thanks Tom! ☺
Cool vid ! Very useful. (I preferred the bridge humbuck on the Epi.)
Bye!!!
Nailed it with the strat. The Epi sounded just a little too clean to be strat-ish. But still, for a pickup designed to cover a variety of tones, it's not bad.
Duncan also makes a hotter bridge P Rail that would probably take care of that. Something I'm going to look into.
I nailed it on the Strat and Les Pauls. It did a fantastic job at beating my preferences against the Tele sounds
Beautiful guitar! seems very versatile, love love love the quilted Maple top!
I've only ever played a Strat so i guessed right on the strat comparison but i picked the Epi on all the other ones. Sounds amazing! Darrell i love it when you play blues in your demos! 🙏
Definitely held its own against the lot. Outstrated a strat!!
Regardless of whether or not it sounds “exactly like” a strat, tele or an LP, it sounds great on it own! 👍🏻
AGREED 👏
Having watched these two videos, it stuck with me as an idea and months later I have bought myself a used blue burst Epi LP and put in P-Rails with a new wiring harness and I am very happy with the results! Thanks for the idea/inspiration!
Congratulations!
It such a great setup 👍
saw this pop up and was like a kid at xmas cuz I've been waiting for this since the build video! Another great job, Darrell!!
+Bobby Wolfe 😀 Thanks Bobby!
I'm not even upset I got nearly every comparison wrong!! haha
+Bobby Wolfe lol! 😎
Hi Darrel. I am glad when doing the comparisons you used a dry amp and not the gorgeous saturated 80's sound in the interludes😉. I know I should have not sold my Gibson Victory MVX. Great vid Sir😎
+Aussie Phil & Dan Thanks! Glad you enjoyed the comparison ☺👍
I found myself preferring the Epi in most of the blind tests. One of my favorites that I own is a modified Epi Sheraton II. Samick factory. Tusq nut. Flatwounds. Duncan Jazz neck, Pearly Gates bridge, independent coil taps. It's no longer the guitar I "settled for" I prefer it to a 335!
Amazing sound. My ears, as old as they are, couldn't tell the difference. Good job. Very nice.
I just rebuilt P-rails into a Carvin Bolt kit I originally finished in 2000. They brought this guitar to life! Sooo many options it’s almost overwhelming with the triple-shot style switches, a neck phase switch, a series parallel switch, and Fender TBX on the tone pots. I wired it up with 4 knobs and a 3-way much like the Les Paul style. Love these P-rails!
Just one drawback for me: Compared to the Gibson on the neck position, the Epiphone sounded way more compressed, more "in your face". Maybe suitable for some occasions, but harder to tame on others. Compared to the Gibson on the bridge position, I couldn't tell which was which.
Thank you for this. I love my Epiphone Standard, it is the only electric guitar I have and it pisses me off when someone discards a cheaper guitar right off the bat.
The EPi is the pretties guitar in the room, It screams....play me, play me,
It's cool to have those tone options avalible at your finger tips.
Those tele tones are so good!! I need that sound
This is the raddest thing I’ve ever heard/seen. Totally getting a prs to add these pickups to.
You had me at 8:38 😂😂 I was like He's fooled me again!!
I thought the Epi came close enough to capturing the single coil tones to be a legitimate option.
I was wrong guessing half the time. I'm going to have to purchase some P-rails.
They are really a game changer. thanks for the vid:)
Thanks for this Darrell
Great info !! Love it!
Very enjoyable, o merry prankster. And rich playing too
+Kevin Hoover 😀 Thanks Kevin!
i don't know instruments well enough to know which was which, i could only go with what i liked. more often than not, i preferred the Epi (and based on how you're playing, i think you favored it, or were at least rooting for it). when it got to the final fuzzy stuff, i was good with either.
for me, as a novice (that's giving myself more credit than i deserve) it wasn't "which is better", but did this experiment work? and to that i gotta say yes. you have so many sounds at your disposal in one guitar, how could that not be a win? way to go!
+Lyle W 😀👍
Hi Darrell. Firstly, thanks for putting these 2 vids together and posting them. This has to be one of the best pickup related exercises I've ever seen. That's a great Epiphone to start off with. Don't know if it's a solid maple cap or just a veneer on top, or whether it's a plain maple cap which has had the veneer added to it, but these days Epiphone are putting together some great guitars. I have the ES335 pro, and it's a keeper. That Prails pickup is incredible too, and the comparisons you did with some pretty good guitars in their own right showed just how close you got it. In the areas where the stock guitars were better, they weren't so much better as to make the Prails loaded Epi a non-starter, and there enough instances where it's level pegging or actually better to make the Epi a one instrument gigging guitar, especially if you play live and don't want to risk one of your granddad's heirlooms.
I’ve got a dozen or so Strats in my collection and I have to say I really liked its Strat sound. Enough to try my own build starting with an SG I have kicking about.
I think it nailed 4 out of 5 tests (I liked better the first Gibson comparison). Really cool video, thanks! UPDATE: it´s 2023 and I just rewatched the video with nicer speakers and first of, the "single coil" tones are really good and almost as close as the real ones but given que architecture of the whole guitar I think this is as close as a non single coil pickup will sound trying to emulate a Fender strat or tele, the humbucker sound totally crushed the Gibson ones
Thanks for itemizing the cost of the build (parts). Love this guitar, could care less about what the headstock reads, I just love how versatile it would serve as a studio workhorse. Again, great video.
+MarlonGibbons ☺👍
i got them all right BUT I preferred the Epi in most of the cases so i am totally sold now!
Also I had to chuckle a bit when you said "heavy riffing" since I am playing Death Metal haha :D
I did really enjoy this video!
It is crazy to see how fast and how much your channel has grown. I have been with you since around 30,000 subs and in a few months you have grown so much. I think it is due to your amazing playing ability, your bright personality and contagious smile.
Btw I’m a guy and I’m straight. Just realized that sounded flirtatious.
+Be a MAVERICK 😄😄😄 No worries!
I appreciate the kind words! Thanks for sticking around since 30,000!!
I won't lie, the Epi came out on top for me a few times more that I'd expect. Interesting stuff...
Great video. It didn’t perfectly replicate all the guitars, but to my ears it sounded better than most of them!
+Martin Cliffe Thanks Martin!
i love this channel. what a great video. awesome idea, great epi.
Love your videos, and your openness to "off" brands. There's so many great well built instruments out there and you realize that!!!!
I'm quite shocked how well Epi emulated bunch of different pick ups!
That Epi is amazing
Love your videos thanks for putting your info out here!
Glad to help :)
This is definitely one of the most gorgeous. Beautiful top!
Found the first one very easy, and each one significantly harder. I think the epiphone sounds amazing overall and better than some of the more expensive options. The only question is does it feel as good to play?
Really impressive guitar Darrell.
I wonder how these mods would come out on the SG-400 Pro
+Philtration Thanks!
Probably would sound killer in an SG 🤘
It would probably sound even more similar to all the competitors on a PRS kinda scale (25) with inverted pickups.
That guitar was invented to get the best of both worlds, I guess these pickups are the perfect match.
Love your channel, thank you.
That Epiphone is epic. I got them all wrong but that's alright I'm not a player. This was fun. Love this blind test and this epiphone. Great job Darrell!