This one will need some advanced set-up work to get to 100% perfect territory - but Epiphone did make a nice looking guitar! 🔴Reverb: reverb.com/item/32027791-epiphone-sg-classic-worn-p-90s-iverness-green?_aid=growsumo&gs_partner=Trogly Buying a New Guitar and want me to review it first? troglysguitarshow.com/help-appraisals/ngd/ 🐕 Episode Guide: 0:00 - Winner! 0:32 - Revamped Epiphone 2020 1:01 - Epi SG Modern Collection 1:22 - Special Features 3:14 - Finish Options 3:34 - First Impressions 5:00 - Inside Look / Specs 14:29 - Tone Demo 17:26 - Final Thoughts 19:38 - Blacklight Test 20:12 - The Box
That beautiful grain in the top is a veneer.. Also, I am disappointed that this has the slim taper neck profile, as the Gibson SG Classic it copies had a nice rounded 50's profile. Same thing with the Epi version of the batwing pickguard SG, slim taper instead of the correct rounded 50's neck. Why make the same profile for both the batwing and 61-style SG's?. Give players the choice, like Gibson does. Other than those differences, I think these new Epi guitars are a step in the right direction.
Idea for a video: I'm currently in the market for a Japanese LP Custom. I'm too impatient to wait the 3 + years it would take me to save up enough money for a Gibson LP Custom. Seeing that 'Customs are your thang, I would love to see you shoot out / do a comparison video side-by-side of a Burny, an Edwards, a Greco, a Tokai, and a Gibson. How do they compare? Of the Japanese knock-off's which are best? Are they made as well (or maybe better) than the Gibsons? What about the finishes; are the imports nitro?
I cannot even remotely believe that I won! As you clicked the button I was like "not me" and then I saw my name, comment, and pic and I think I might have pooped a little hahahaha. Thank you so much!
epiphone always has been one of the best import brands,ive owned close to a dozen and still own 8 or so .ive never had issues like this guitar has being brand new.
trillrif axegrindor : not in my experience. G&L Tribute, PRS SE, Ibanez, Gretsch, LTD and a few others are all way better for the same money. Especially G&L (USA pickups and hardware) and PRS SE are amazing guitars. Epiphone still feels like a cheap(ish) guitar with sometimes some quality problems (at least in the ones I have owned and handled). I have yet to play an Ibanez or PRS SE with uneven frets.
Some of these are now made in US now I think ..there is the Gibson inspired line that I believe is made in USA.. not sure where these are from tho.. did see sticker on back of neck with USA on it.. but might have just been partially assembled or something.. I kinda like them
@@Matthew-tn3dl the only epiphones made in the US are the old epiphone models, so the casino hollowbody and the texan acoustic. They cost exactly the same as a Gibson. Everything else from Epiphone is China (which is a downside compared to other brands for the same prices who have one or even several steps up to Vietnam, Indonesia or even South Korea). Epis have varied enormously over the years: up untill the early 00s, they built in Korea - these Guitars, especially the SGs, have a stellar reputation. After that came the first few years of Chinese and those were... a mixed bag, lets say. From then onwards I heard it has been a slow but steady climb up concerning quality control but prices rose accordingly and the competition actually made far bigger steps for far less money overall. Epiphone with its pricing and chinese quality control is somewhat outdated compared to other beginner level far eastern guitars. Take as an example the "classic vibe" series by squier: they bought fantastic PUs from a very good company in... I guess it was Vietnam? They get aftermarketed as the ToneRider PUs, just read about them, they absolutely rock. Pricing for those CVs is quite a bit lower than on the new Epis and they do a better job imho. G&L is another great example (stellar for the price).
I'm reasonably sure the light spots in the finish (near neck joint and other random spot) are where glue has seeped a bit. The wood will not take the stain as well if glue has ever made contact with it( even if you're fast wiping it off). The only way to get rid of that would to be to sand it out completely then re-stain the spots. I used to build cabinets (kitchen not guitar) and we would run into that from time to time. On a side note I am excited with the direction Epiphone is going, really looking forward to the 59.
Being that you're OCD you should work at Gibson/Epiphone guitars. As part of the QC team I'm sure nothing would pass you.👍👍👍👍. Love your reviews from one guitar nerd thanks.
I've had a vintage G-400 SG for a few years now. My favorite guitar and it looks awesome with the wear I've put on it. It doesn't take 30 years and it'snatural. Factory relics or intentional relics are for posers.
@@mattsmitchger259 There are a hell of a lot of people who like relics who I'm sure can play WAAAAAAY better than you. How about we just let people like what they like and not call them names? How about a guy who wants a worn feeling guitar and has cancer and only 6 months left to live. Is he a "poser" because he doesn't have time to wear out a guitar himself? Stop being a dick head gate keeper.
@@davecarsley8773 If that's you're situation, I apologize. I'm fine with it if people are honest about it. I'm talking about people who either try to pass off the wear and tear as their own or try to say it's an "original". I should've been clearer. They do have a certain feel and some people don't want to wait 30 years. That makes sense to me. It's just that I've actually had to call out people who were completely full of shit about what they had. If people are up front about it, they're not posers.
Personally, I hate the relic look. It's why I never buy satin or nitro guitars. I only buy heavy glossed. That's the one thing I cannot look past when buying a guitar
Yeah, my first epiphone was a 2018 sg g400 faded cherry, with super thick finish, and fake woodgrain. It feels like a cheap plastic toy. And the pickups are even less quality than the crappy stock pickups on the cheapest squier bullet strat. I actually hate that guitar, and I may just paint it with a bunch of uv paint, and mod the hell out of it. I also got a MIK 2004 g400 faded cherry, and it is far superior.
they probably can sound better, too. Since he doesn't ever mention doing it , I assume he doesn't know that he could adjust the pups to sound less compressed and open up the highs
I love the p90s in my gibson LP and SG. I hate the p90s in my epi casino - which i can't replace easy due to fucky metric dimension dog ears. It might be the casino, but I can't stand the p90s in it.
After I emailed you about these I pulled the trigger and ordered a green one. Mine is perfect! No fret buzz whatsoever and it plays amazingly well. I love the sound of the P90's and the overall feel and playability. Everyone that has seen it has been awed by the color too!
Trogly, I've only seen maybe a dozen of your videos, but I have to say that I haven't seen you rock out in a review the way that you did with this SG! That's a huge selling point for me.
I love that you showcased the guitar’s clean sounds. I always want to hear the pickups CLEAN to get an accurate impression. If they sound good clean, they will sound good with any degree of dirt. Well done!
This is the second of the new line of Epi"s that had frett issues. Lucas Fowler did a review of a LP that he had to do fretwork on. otherwise, like this one the guitar looked and sounded great. Honestly, the fretwork and playability should be top priority in the QC. At that price range, especially for someone in the beginner to intermediate range, being able to just go with it is very important
True, but it is still way better than cheap guitars 20 years ago. I have the same guitar and used to own the Gibson version and yes, that one is nicer when talking about the frets, but this is certainly not terrible at all. I would even call it good (compared to my Squier from more then 20 years ago).
Just to clarify for those that may not know: A satin finish will not necessarily wear faster or slower than gloss. Thats going to be a function of the finish type. For example, a poly satin is going to be less wear-prone than a nitro gloss. Neither is more high end than the other, but they do have different considerations in the finishing process.
SensparTech agree 100%. Ive stripped one of the epi SG fadeds and there is as much finish on them as the glossy finished ones, keep that in mind Austin
David Fuller we can only hope they’re actually thin now. Every one of those thin finishes that I’ve seen actually are pretty thick they just don’t grain fill and the poly settles in the grain. Believe me, just try for stripping one.
@@marshallmason1621 I really hope they are thin too. Polyester and polyurethane are actually fantastic finishes.. If they arent a slab of plastic on top of the wood. I think folks would be amazed at how thick one can get a finish and still feel the pores & grain. Satin only accentuates the feeling of "thin," even if it isnt. Still dont know why so many guitars out there have such thick finishes. With mass production, I would have to imagine the extra material cost alone adds up to something, and it has convinced many, many people that poly finishes suck.
As an Epiphone lover, it's music to my ears hearing you say "literally better than most of the Gibson work I've seen". I own 3 Epi's and absolutely cherish them. Flawless fit and finish, beautiful, sound and play killer. I bought their top tier guitars though.
I used to own the Gibson version, twice! And especially the first I should have never sold, but life can take strange turns. About the second one I screamed that I would never sell it. Even though that one was not as nice as the first one. However a relationship breakup and needing the money made me sell it (including everything else). And now I finally feel some life coming back to me after being really depressed and I had al of sudden I had an extreme case of GAS. I have not played in over 5 years at least and I immediately bought this guitar in cherry. Only because of the faded finish I can feel the difference, but everything else feels just as great. And maybe even greater, because this neck feels nicer due to the faded finish. Still have to wait for my Marshall Origin 20 to judge the pickups, but if they are as nice as the rest of the guitar I am really confident. Great instrument for a fraction of the price! And yeah I know all of Gibson’s' sound is in the headstock, but Epiphone has come a long way since the 90's and I do not want to be that (!) snob anymore.
Those were the unsung heroes of the mid 2000s Gibson lineup. Massive neck (seriously, like an R7 baseball bat) and absolutely killer sounding. The classy binding with dot inlays and MOP headstock logo just topped it all off. I was about to buy one from a friend for $800 some years back, but fate took that opportunity away from me for whatever reason. Regardless, Gibson needs to reissue those exactly as they were. Seriously awesome.
This thing is a winner. I fluked into one for $170 used, and it quickly became my #1. It was only supplanted (debatable) a few weeks ago when I bought a Gibson SG Tribute. They are a perfect pair :)
6.66 measuring units, that's so fun! I always thought of SG as "Satan's guitar" due to the horns and the red color which is usual, and the fact that it's a real hard rock guitar.
Thanks for taking the time make a review of an entry level guitar. I bought the Inverness Green SG on boxing day despite having gone to the shop for something much more expensive and not being an SG guy at all. Mine had fret issue as well. Thankfully a rod adjustment corrected it for now. I dig the color and history. The Inverness Highlands in Scotland are where one can find a certain Loch and house a long its shores with curious connections to the past, which have nothing to do with that particular guitar at all.
Yep... I saved up to get a Gibson SG Classic for that exact reason, and just as I got the money together, Gibson went and discontinued the line. I'm very tempted by this Epiphone though.
Someone may have touched on this already; but considering Epiphones previous quality and attention to detail, I think the issues with the new models you have reviewed so far comes down to having a whole new lineup and having to pump units out to fill demand. I think/hope we will see QC return to it's former glory in short order.
I owned one of those 2000s Gibson SG Classics. My favorite guitar that I have ever owned and the biggest regret I've ever had after I sold it in the early 2010s. And I have owned probably 2 dozen guitars (electric and acoustic) over the years. I was looking at these Epiphones today as it immediately caught my eye and reminded me of my old Gibson SG Classic w/P90 pickups.
I just posted basically the same! It is still the one that got away (twice in my case!). But this Epiphone is pretty damn close I have to say! Great instrument!
especially when poly: satin so much bigger than gloss. With my satin gibson, I actually get the point of the wear-off, nitro is just soooo much more sensitive to dings and scratches (my smooth, rounded off leather strap left marks on the guitar when I left it on once while having it in the case...), But Poly? That stuff is a bitch. It can feel cheap and plastic-y when too thick, but a thin open pore poly? best combination of both worlds, iyam.
I'm liking the classic Kalamazoo Headstock. I think it is a good marketing move. I saw the in boxing and these new Epiphones are not only inspired by Gibson they seem to have the same "quality" control department as far as fret work goes.
Very detailed review, very useful even though I play a much more overdrive style. Epi G-400s have had a veneer top and bottom and thick polyurethane finish for the last 40 years. This new SG looks like it has no veneer and a very thin poly finish, I love that!!! Glad you opened up the wiring pocket so we could see the components and wiring. Thanks a bunch!
I am very anxious for his review of that gorgeous sparkle cherry red Uptown Kat he showed us a few weeks ago in an unboxing issue. I am very interested in hearing how those Firebird pups sound.
@@ttdmcneal yeah plus they are the thin body models so they are more like the ES models. I am also not a jazz style player and a few years ago, wow, actually last year not a few years lol, I bought a Gretsch G5420 that is a traditional jazz style with the 4 inch thick body. I was wanting something more along the lines of a Gibson Byrdland actually. I like this Gretsch but that huge body width and thickness do make it rather challenging to play while sitting down. I broke my back a couple of years ago and sitting is the only way I can play comfortably now. Plus of course the feedback issues with the Gretsch make it a challenging experience as well lol. I do wish it had the trapeze bridge rather than the Bigsby, Might as well go full Ted Nugent and have the trapeze bridge so I can do all those weird things he does lol. So when I saw the new Kat models are so gorgeous and the thinner body, it intrigued me since I am trying to find a great but inexpensive new ES style for my blues playing. The Firebird pups might be a no no however. I know they tend to have a high sound and I am more looking for better mids and not muddy lows lol. I bought an Epiphone Riviera Custom 3 pickup a few years ago and oh dear Lord when I used that third pup things got real deep and muddy lol.
Ron Just Ron I’d had issues with the bridge pup in my epi lp sounding quite muddy, so being a fan of Van Halen I naturally went to full Ed experimental mode, yanked the bucker right out and cut the solder holding the cover in place. Other than raising the pickup and removing the cover, the only real way to brighten up a pup is to get a replacement. Maybe try something hotter? Speaking of hollowbodies, you should try out an Epiphone Casino. It’s significantly slimmer, about only 1 3/4 of an inch. They have ones from ‘65 all the way to today, and I believe they’re going to begin making them in the U.S again. 2 Dogear p90s, trapeze bridge on most examples, and used famously by almost all the Beatles, George John and Paul all had one lol. Pretty badass guitar if you ask me.
@@ttdmcneal Hmmm a Casino, I will look into it. I have been toying with that BB King Lucille model, I just really don't want another all black guitar. While yes they are gorgeous, they are a real mutha to keep looking good. I spent a half hour last night on my black Iceman and as soon as I touched any part of it my nice polish job had smudges all over it lol. I really like white guitars but they do show dirt pretty easy, but that I can deal with easier than the swirl marks and smudges you get on a black guitar so easily. I have never had an Epiphone with their burstbuckers but I know people who do and they say that as well, they are a bit too dark. I have a 2014 Epiphone Silver sparkle Spaceman Tommy Thayer (of KISS) LP and it has the 490/498 combo in it, Gibson of course and while I love it, lately I have been not liking how dark they sound compared to my other guitars. That's one of the reasons why if I buy a new Epiphone I would want the ones that come with the Gibson 57's in it.
This three year old video made me buy this model in Inverness green and I’m so not angry about it :) It’s a great guitar and for the money it can’t be beat. Only problem I have is I wish the middle position was hum canceling .
I'm looking forward to saving up every last penny for the faded pelham blue sg special with p90's!! it's my dream guitar because I really REALLY love Black Sabbath and I want that sick snowblind tone!!!
I'm still a little gun shy about getting this particular model, and here's why. First of all, I'm a huge Who fan, and I'm always looking for an SG with P-90 pick ups because of that fact. A few years ago, I bought a Gibson "Naked" SG with P-90s ridiculously cheap because the mail order company was overstocked, and Gibson had stopped making this particular model. I got it on "Close Out". (Sometimes I get lucky) Now this particular SG is pretty much like what you demo'd here, except mine has NO PICK GUARD. Anyhoo, I played it and immediately fell in love with it, but because it has no finish, it will remain my house guitar. So, last summer, I heard that Epiphone made not one but TWO SGs with P-90s. The one you played, and an SG Special. (NOT to be confused with the $200.00 (U.S.) model with the open coil humbuckers) Well, I bought it, and I REALLY wanted to love it, but I have two complaints: One is I found the bridge pick up to be a bit too elevated. It's not really causing me and problems, and I'm not getting any buzz or hum from it, but I still rather that it was lowered. And the big heart break was that I was getting a fret buzz on the first two strings on the third fret. I'm going to have to take it to my local luthier to see if these problems can't be corrected. I noticed that you were getting some fret buzz on certain strings and frets. This alone makes me gun shy of purchasing this model. I really want an SG with p-90 pick ups I can take out of the house, because, as I said, my Gibson is my house guitar, and I want something I can take to open mics and play live. My Gibson originally retailed at approx $1200.00 but, since it was on close out, I only paid $800.00 But still, I don't want to risk anything bad happening to it at that price.
This is the third review of this line of guitars I’ve seen so far. Two out of three of them had high fret issues. My Muse SG is being delivered today and I’m hoping that it doesn’t have the same issue.
Finally!!!!😍 Please review the SG special with P90s in Sparkling Burgundy or Pelham Blue!!! It has the same P90s but it's the only that doesn't say CTS-pots. I'd like to know if those have cheaper pots. Thank you for great content!!😍
Two of my epi sgs are worn cherry, and another one is flat black lol. Hoping to get one more flat black to tune to B standard. One worn cherry is tuned to Eb, the other is tuned to C standard, and the black it C# standard. Lolol
For a 400 dollar guitar, as long as the neck isn't warped or have serious structure issues, a few high frets means nothing to me. I once wanted the P90 SG special from Gibson YEARS ago but I never got one (because I was a kid with no job or monies), but now with a job and seeing the overall QC improvements vs my own heavily modified Epiphone LP (Heavily as in the neck was literally replaced with a long-tenon neck bought off of ebay from China), this thing needs to be in my collection.
Oh Gibson.. I have a SG Special 2019 model that you had presented in a video a few month ago, with the quick connect system. Big surprise to see that the Epiphone has a hand-wired electronic !
Hey Trogly long time watcher, first time comment-er. Just wanted to say thank you for what you do. I have learned so much in my 2 year old guitar journey. Keep it up
Damn this upload came just in time, between a customer at work calling me worthless and my preferred candidate dropping out I really needed a pick me up. Love the vids man! You should review a Washburn LI15, it's a Washburn Les Paul copy and the guitar I own, so I'd love to see how it stacks up against an Epiphone Les Paul.
Now THIS is a review! Thanks a lot. I have a Wilshire 66 reissue from Epiphone which I love but I also love P90s so this looks like a great combination for me, light, compact, beautiful body and killer pickups.
Trogs... once again - LOVING the new visual aspect of your channel in 2020 - is this your most hi tech production yet! Good to see you feature more talking to the camera and those hi contrast shots of the guitar with you playing in the front via green screen - its the best production of any youtube channel out there - Although Robert Bakers ROOM itself is a pretty sweet back drop
Never thought the day would come where I have to drop the volume of a Trogly's video Those pups have some kick to them...think I may have to put this on the list of future buys
That's what's great about p90s, they've got this awesome kick and snarl to them but aren't as thin as regular single coils. They're the most versatile kind of pickup, they can do single coil and humbucker tones in one. The original p90s had higher output than the original PAF humbuckers, so if you're getting a guitar with vintage style pickups, getting p90s would actually be better for rock because of that higher output and that incredible attack they have. The hum is really such a minor issue, you never hear it during a gig with the other instruments playing, in recording its easy enough to remove it if you really want (though arguably it makes it sound more "real" if you leave it in, like SRV did), and there's always noise gates if you still can't stand it. It's just not that big a deal, and the great tone you get out of it outweighs it considerably Never get noiseless p90s. Noiseless pickups are invariably bad sounding. Even Clapton when he was using them on his strat couldn't get a good sound out of them, and that's Eric Clapton!!! Let alone someone less talented with less access to expensive high quality amps and sound engineers
@@duffman18 oh 100%, I agree I'm picking up an Italia Strat copy with a P-90 in the bridge on Friday, for the exact reason of the snarl I just underestimated the quality of the P-90s in this SG, since it's an Epiphone, and they tend to be a little underwhelming on the volume side
@@TheJaysimus yeah true. The first thing I think about any epiphone is that I'll need to upgrade the pups. But this one doesn't sound like it needs that whatsoever. If you have a great amp, getting new pups probably wouldn't even make a huge difference, a great amp can make anything sound good. But I'd have to hear it through my own amps first before I decide to replace or not I'm definitely getting one of these new epiphones, whether it be the sg with p90s or the new Les Paul Special with p90s. Nothing beats that tone for me, the p90s mixed with mahogany. It just rocks.
Bad Frets are a "Authentic" Chinese guitar feature. You know the corporate masters at Gibson want it to be "Authentic".... Besides if they were perfect at that price point it would hurt Gibson sales. Ok that sounds a bit crazy. But Gibson does crazy. It is "Authentic".
I really dig you man! You, unlike a lot of reviewers, give an HONEST to God review and that my friend is unbeatable!!! Keep it up! I'm an older guy and i don't have time to search and find real good review and you do it all so Kudo to you!!!
the mahogany is probably an african mahogany called khaya. Sapele is typically harder and denser than mahogany and does not serve as a cheaper substitute like khaya. In fact sapele can sometimes be more expensive than true mahogany depending on the quality. Okay I'm done being a wood nerd.
Probably Khaya. Sapele is actually more expensive, and I've never seen it used on production guitars. It might actually be Nato which is an Indonesian "mahogany". Still a good wood. I have a nato Yammy and it's excellent. It seems to me that shipping Khaya from Africa to China is prohibitively expensive. I would guess that the wood is sourced in the Orient.
I would not say a ton of complaints, but I have heard many people complain about fret buzz. Get that out of the way and this is a winner in its segment for the money. And yes, congrats to Anthony :)
I bought one of these a couple of years ago...and I like the playing feel, the weight, etc. But the pickups seem to be INCREDIBLY noisy. They seem to be really susceptible to EMF interference, because the hum changes with the orientation of the guitar as I sit with it. If I rotate 90 degrees from maximum hum, it almost goes away. However, it gets really noisy as soon as you play anything with some gain. Any ideas if this just needs some shielding or is it a grounding issue?
P90s, they are all noisy really. I have a Jazzmaster junior which has copper shielding and an all aluminium pickguard and its still noisy. You can buy stacked P90s with a secondary coil to eliminate the hum (P100 i think they are called) but they are deeper and don´t sound exactly the same. Failing that you can buy P90 shaped humbuckers (GFS sell them for example) or drop in a mini humbucker with soap bar surround but again they sound nothing like P90s. I guess the closest you can get to a single coil sound without hum (but closer to a strat sound than a p90) would be Firebird mini humbuckers (not new Gibson ones as they are hot ceramic and junk, try Dimarzio or Seymore Duncan Antiquity) or just get a noise suppressor pedal/live with the hum. Doesn´t really bother me much these days, just got used to it.
I just bought the Modern Black Fade SG. Once tweaked for action and string gauge, I'm happy!. I use a strap with suede lining. It grips better to offset a slight neck dive. Love your videos.
You snuck in the "Let there be Rock" riff man! Nice work.. this lil guitar was made for that stuff! My friend Brad has one.. its not the "classic" one. I want to buy the Classic one myself though and mod it a little. Thanks for this post.
Was the QC tag # on your’s left blank as well? I’m wondering if they’re just pressing the frets in and not leveling at all...the Gold top I got had mega fret issues.
Good point Lucas. What may be happening is the factory can't keep up with demand and they are shipping them out before they are finished (QC Checks/Sign-Off). Not sure if the figuring is a veneer or not, but at that low price-point it doesn't really matter, still nice looking instruments.
I am glad you give this a positive review as this is the model I'm most interested in getting from the new Epiphone line-up. I've always liked the late '60s Gibson SG after seeing Pete Townshend playing one in the Woodstock movie. I'm hoping to check one out soon.
An SG with Jazzmaster pickups in it? Now _THAT_ would be interesting. Jazzmaster pickups are so different from other kinds of single coils like the regular fender ones or p90s, there very very trebly, and so when put into a dark sounding mahogany body you'd probably get a really meaty yet bell-like tone, like what SRV managed to achieve with his strat. Fat yet clear at the same time. Gonna have to add that to the list of projects, mod an SG to have Jazzmaster pickups
Gibson P90's are among my favourites ever so it could be a great upgrade for not a lot of money. You tend to find the big difference between US made guitars & budget models is in the electronics but you can find companies that sell full sets (50's wiring kit, CTS pots, bumblebee or Sprague orange drop caps, Switchcraft switch & jack) all for around £50 on ebay (about $65), so if you can find an Epi body that you really dig you could do a full electronics swap (including the pups) for around 150 bucks (I did it on an old Gibson LP Deluxe I bought that had broken mini-humbuckers).
@@jubei7259 yep that's a good way to get a quality instrument. Have the higher quality control and build quality of an epiphone, with the upgraded electronics and pups from a Gibson I always have this line of thinking in my mind that's probably inaccurate, that all default pups from all brands including Gibson and fender are always a step below the dedicated pickup companies like Seymour Duncan or Dimarzio, Lollar, Bare Knuckle etc. That's probably wrong. But I just seem to think upgrading with default modern Gibson pickups wouldn't be so much of an upgrade compared to getting ones from one of those companies. Like I've heard a lot about the various modern Gibson pickups, that they're bad, that they don't sound anything like the old Gibson pickups from the 50s, 60s and 70s. People pay a huge amount to get vintage pickups from those various eras, with Gibson specifically they go after pups made by specific pup designers and say that when they left and were replaced the pickups changed or got worse. Like, I hear a lot that Gibson don't know how to make Firebird pickups anymore, that the modern ones sound awful and nothing like vintage ones, and so people replace their firebird's pups with Seymour Duncan ones or whatever It's probably all just academic. The biggest factor of good tone is the amp. A great amp makes every pickup and guitar sound great. Some replacement pups do the same thing a slight adjustment of the EQ or an EQ pedam could do arguably I dunno Pickups change as they age. Vintage pups sound the way they do because decades of aging has made them that way, and they didn't sound like that originally. So maybe modern pickups need a few decades to age and the magnetism to decay and then they'd sound as good as the vintage ones perhaps
duffman18 hahaha I realize they aren’t the same pickups but I have been toying with the idea of making a mahogany Jazzmaster or getting an sg and putting jazz pickups in it.
That's a beautiful piece of mahogany and the neck is unreal. Light weight and balanced, awesome. Neck binding and batwing pick guard. I'd buy that guitar in a heartbeat. Screw the frets, that's no big deal. No circuit board, no quick connects. At this price point, swapping pu's or pu's and pick guard isn't unreasonable. Some Mojotone P90s or whatever humbucker you prefer. The only thing that I really question is the fretboard. I like this guitar a lot. But then, there's that Modern Black Fade...
I agree, I wouldn't pay that kind of money for a guitar that doesn't play well straight out of the box, It might be cheap for a guitar but it's still a substantial chunk of cash!
I picked up one of these from American Musical for around 300.00 US. This is a really nice guitar at this price point. I have several other SG's and this is the only one I have with p-90's. I compared it to the 2019 Gibson worn and liked it better, the Gibson had fret sprout and buzzing fret's. My Epi had none of these issue's. I used to be a Gibson snob, but lately Epiphone has been putting out some really nice lower priced guitar's that are really nice sounding and playing. I also just got the new 2020 Les Paul 59' reissue in Dark Burst and am VERY impressed with that guitar. They are doing a great job and Epi's are becoming a larger section in my collection.
I just bought the 2019 Epiphone SG Junior. Had some fret scallop, I filed then polished the edges down. I lowered the action a bit. now I'm really pleased with how it plays and sounds. Really stays in tune. I had the Angus Young SG from Gibson years ago, nice guitar, but could not get it to stay in tune. I had sent it in to the guitar store, for a Pro setup and that didn't help.I ended up selling it. I really want a real Gibson again, maybe one without the tremolo, but they are so expensive for my budget. Living on a disability income is rough. Love your videos, makes me want to dream about the day I can move up to the real thing. Here i am putting on some guitar inlay stickers on the SG jr to dress her up. (just having fun) ua-cam.com/video/FGCzPkint6Q/v-deo.html
This one will need some advanced set-up work to get to 100% perfect territory - but Epiphone did make a nice looking guitar!
🔴Reverb: reverb.com/item/32027791-epiphone-sg-classic-worn-p-90s-iverness-green?_aid=growsumo&gs_partner=Trogly
Buying a New Guitar and want me to review it first? troglysguitarshow.com/help-appraisals/ngd/
🐕 Episode Guide:
0:00 - Winner!
0:32 - Revamped Epiphone 2020
1:01 - Epi SG Modern Collection
1:22 - Special Features
3:14 - Finish Options
3:34 - First Impressions
5:00 - Inside Look / Specs
14:29 - Tone Demo
17:26 - Final Thoughts
19:38 - Blacklight Test
20:12 - The Box
That beautiful grain in the top is a veneer..
Also, I am disappointed that this has the slim taper neck profile, as the Gibson SG Classic it copies had a nice rounded 50's profile. Same thing with the Epi version of the batwing pickguard SG, slim taper instead of the correct rounded 50's neck. Why make the same profile for both the batwing and 61-style SG's?. Give players the choice, like Gibson does.
Other than those differences, I think these new Epi guitars are a step in the right direction.
Idea for a video: I'm currently in the market for a Japanese LP Custom. I'm too impatient to wait the 3 + years it would take me to save up enough money for a Gibson LP Custom. Seeing that 'Customs are your thang, I would love to see you shoot out / do a comparison video side-by-side of a Burny, an Edwards, a Greco, a Tokai, and a Gibson. How do they compare? Of the Japanese knock-off's which are best? Are they made as well (or maybe better) than the Gibsons? What about the finishes; are the imports nitro?
As far as the knob placement is concerned, I always replace them so that when the pot is at 10, the 10 number will be pointing up at the player.
Hey Trogly! You got any info on the Prophecy Epis? Why do they keep it a secret?
Do you know if any of the new Epiphones are available in a left handed version
I cannot even remotely believe that I won! As you clicked the button I was like "not me" and then I saw my name, comment, and pic and I think I might have pooped a little hahahaha. Thank you so much!
Congrats!!!
Congrats! OwO
Congrats big daddy! Hope you love it!
Congratulations mate 👍
Congratulations can't lie I'm jealous!
seeing this makes me wanna play black sabbath riffs for days.
Slap some chrome covers on those pickups and it’d really look the part
The Ccarbiter and a small pickguard
Epiphone is becoming one of the best import brands out there.
epiphone always has been one of the best import brands,ive owned close to a dozen and still own 8 or so .ive never had issues like this guitar has being brand new.
trillrif axegrindor : not in my experience. G&L Tribute, PRS SE, Ibanez, Gretsch, LTD and a few others are all way better for the same money. Especially G&L (USA pickups and hardware) and PRS SE are amazing guitars. Epiphone still feels like a cheap(ish) guitar with sometimes some quality problems (at least in the ones I have owned and handled). I have yet to play an Ibanez or PRS SE with uneven frets.
Some of these are now made in US now I think ..there is the Gibson inspired line that I believe is made in USA.. not sure where these are from tho.. did see sticker on back of neck with USA on it.. but might have just been partially assembled or something.. I kinda like them
@@Matthew-tn3dl the only epiphones made in the US are the old epiphone models, so the casino hollowbody and the texan acoustic. They cost exactly the same as a Gibson.
Everything else from Epiphone is China (which is a downside compared to other brands for the same prices who have one or even several steps up to Vietnam, Indonesia or even South Korea).
Epis have varied enormously over the years: up untill the early 00s, they built in Korea - these Guitars, especially the SGs, have a stellar reputation. After that came the first few years of Chinese and those were... a mixed bag, lets say. From then onwards I heard it has been a slow but steady climb up concerning quality control but prices rose accordingly and the competition actually made far bigger steps for far less money overall.
Epiphone with its pricing and chinese quality control is somewhat outdated compared to other beginner level far eastern guitars.
Take as an example the "classic vibe" series by squier: they bought fantastic PUs from a very good company in... I guess it was Vietnam? They get aftermarketed as the ToneRider PUs, just read about them, they absolutely rock. Pricing for those CVs is quite a bit lower than on the new Epis and they do a better job imho.
G&L is another great example (stellar for the price).
Luis Gustavo Ferreira I agree. Just got the 61 SG vibrola. Blown away. Top quality
I'm reasonably sure the light spots in the finish (near neck joint and other random spot) are where glue has seeped a bit. The wood will not take the stain as well if glue has ever made contact with it( even if you're fast wiping it off). The only way to get rid of that would to be to sand it out completely then re-stain the spots. I used to build cabinets (kitchen not guitar) and we would run into that from time to time. On a side note I am excited with the direction Epiphone is going, really looking forward to the 59.
Being that you're OCD you should work at Gibson/Epiphone guitars. As part of the QC team I'm sure nothing would pass you.👍👍👍👍. Love your reviews from one guitar nerd thanks.
😆
if these details were rejected in qc gibson and epiphone would never release a guitar and the scrap pile would be the size of mount everest
@@trillrifaxegrindor4411 maybe they would sell them at a discount.
Good way to make less money than UA-cam
Really.. yes he would be an asset to them !
I LOVE the thin finish. I want a guitar that wears in, and gets dings, and is MINE. Everybody wants a reliced guitar, and this is better.
I've had a vintage G-400 SG for a few years now. My favorite guitar and it looks awesome with the wear I've put on it. It doesn't take 30 years and it'snatural. Factory relics or intentional relics are for posers.
@@mattsmitchger259 There are a hell of a lot of people who like relics who I'm sure can play WAAAAAAY better than you. How about we just let people like what they like and not call them names?
How about a guy who wants a worn feeling guitar and has cancer and only 6 months left to live. Is he a "poser" because he doesn't have time to wear out a guitar himself?
Stop being a dick head gate keeper.
@@davecarsley8773 If that's you're situation, I apologize. I'm fine with it if people are honest about it. I'm talking about people who either try to pass off the wear and tear as their own or try to say it's an "original". I should've been clearer. They do have a certain feel and some people don't want to wait 30 years. That makes sense to me. It's just that I've actually had to call out people who were completely full of shit about what they had. If people are up front about it, they're not posers.
Personally, I hate the relic look. It's why I never buy satin or nitro guitars. I only buy heavy glossed. That's the one thing I cannot look past when buying a guitar
Congratulations Anthony!!!
Thanks!
Can’t wait to see Trog demos of the rest of the new Epi line. Super impressive.
Nearly at 100k man well done!
Pretty impressed with what you get out of the "low-end" offered by Epiphone and for once not a guitar dipped in plastic!
Yeah, my first epiphone was a 2018 sg g400 faded cherry, with super thick finish, and fake woodgrain. It feels like a cheap plastic toy. And the pickups are even less quality than the crappy stock pickups on the cheapest squier bullet strat. I actually hate that guitar, and I may just paint it with a bunch of uv paint, and mod the hell out of it. I also got a MIK 2004 g400 faded cherry, and it is far superior.
The Epiphone P-90’s are decent. Plain enamel wire and Alnico magnets.
Your playing is improving! Keep it up Austin!
they probably can sound better, too.
Since he doesn't ever mention doing it , I assume he doesn't know that he could adjust the pups to sound less compressed and open up the highs
I was going to say the same thing. Austin, your playing is definitely improving! Gives me hope I can get better myself.
I love the p90s in my gibson LP and SG. I hate the p90s in my epi casino - which i can't replace easy due to fucky metric dimension dog ears. It might be the casino, but I can't stand the p90s in it.
@@shaft9000 are you just talking about adjusting pickup height or is there something else you can do to these pickups?
DiMarzio's Phantom Power P 90s are noiseless.
After I emailed you about these I pulled the trigger and ordered a green one. Mine is perfect! No fret buzz whatsoever and it plays amazingly well. I love the sound of the P90's and the overall feel and playability. Everyone that has seen it has been awed by the color too!
Trogly, I've only seen maybe a dozen of your videos, but I have to say that I haven't seen you rock out in a review the way that you did with this SG! That's a huge selling point for me.
I love that you showcased the guitar’s clean sounds. I always want to hear the pickups CLEAN to get an accurate impression. If they sound good clean, they will sound good with any degree of dirt. Well done!
This is the second of the new line of Epi"s that had frett issues. Lucas Fowler did a review of a LP that he had to do fretwork on. otherwise, like this one the guitar looked and sounded great. Honestly, the fretwork and playability should be top priority in the QC. At that price range, especially for someone in the beginner to intermediate range, being able to just go with it is very important
True, but it is still way better than cheap guitars 20 years ago. I have the same guitar and used to own the Gibson version and yes, that one is nicer when talking about the frets, but this is certainly not terrible at all. I would even call it good (compared to my Squier from more then 20 years ago).
Just to clarify for those that may not know: A satin finish will not necessarily wear faster or slower than gloss. Thats going to be a function of the finish type. For example, a poly satin is going to be less wear-prone than a nitro gloss.
Neither is more high end than the other, but they do have different considerations in the finishing process.
SensparTech agree 100%. Ive stripped one of the epi SG fadeds and there is as much finish on them as the glossy finished ones, keep that in mind Austin
Yeah, but these open grain finishes are also really thin.
David Fuller we can only hope they’re actually thin now. Every one of those thin finishes that I’ve seen actually are pretty thick they just don’t grain fill and the poly settles in the grain. Believe me, just try for stripping one.
@@marshallmason1621 I really hope they are thin too. Polyester and polyurethane are actually fantastic finishes.. If they arent a slab of plastic on top of the wood.
I think folks would be amazed at how thick one can get a finish and still feel the pores & grain. Satin only accentuates the feeling of "thin," even if it isnt.
Still dont know why so many guitars out there have such thick finishes. With mass production, I would have to imagine the extra material cost alone adds up to something, and it has convinced many, many people that poly finishes suck.
As an Epiphone lover, it's music to my ears hearing you say "literally better than most of the Gibson work I've seen". I own 3 Epi's and absolutely cherish them. Flawless fit and finish, beautiful, sound and play killer. I bought their top tier guitars though.
I used to own the Gibson version, twice! And especially the first I should have never sold, but life can take strange turns. About the second one I screamed that I would never sell it. Even though that one was not as nice as the first one. However a relationship breakup and needing the money made me sell it (including everything else). And now I finally feel some life coming back to me after being really depressed and I had al of sudden I had an extreme case of GAS. I have not played in over 5 years at least and I immediately bought this guitar in cherry. Only because of the faded finish I can feel the difference, but everything else feels just as great. And maybe even greater, because this neck feels nicer due to the faded finish. Still have to wait for my Marshall Origin 20 to judge the pickups, but if they are as nice as the rest of the guitar I am really confident. Great instrument for a fraction of the price! And yeah I know all of Gibson’s' sound is in the headstock, but Epiphone has come a long way since the 90's and I do not want to be that (!) snob anymore.
Those were the unsung heroes of the mid 2000s Gibson lineup. Massive neck (seriously, like an R7 baseball bat) and absolutely killer sounding. The classy binding with dot inlays and MOP headstock logo just topped it all off.
I was about to buy one from a friend for $800 some years back, but fate took that opportunity away from me for whatever reason.
Regardless, Gibson needs to reissue those exactly as they were. Seriously awesome.
This thing is a winner. I fluked into one for $170 used, and it quickly became my #1. It was only supplanted (debatable) a few weeks ago when I bought a Gibson SG Tribute. They are a perfect pair :)
6.66 measuring units, that's so fun! I always thought of SG as "Satan's guitar" due to the horns and the red color which is usual, and the fact that it's a real hard rock guitar.
Thanks for taking the time make a review of an entry level guitar. I bought the Inverness Green SG on boxing day despite having gone to the shop for something much more expensive and not being an SG guy at all. Mine had fret issue as well. Thankfully a rod adjustment corrected it for now. I dig the color and history.
The Inverness Highlands in Scotland are where one can find a certain Loch and house a long its shores with curious connections to the past, which have nothing to do with that particular guitar at all.
Trogly you have to do the SG modern figured ‼️‼️‼️‼️‼️‼️‼️ that guitar looks pretty Badass ‼️
This looks 200% better than my Gibson SG Fusion. Consider me tempted
You just made me want an SG. Love the look of this one!!!! I really like the green one!
Perfect to play Pete Townshend on a budget!
IKR ! 👌
yes, drop that cymbal on the stage and start hammering, and roger d said that the sound is quite incredible,
The reason I own a gibson SG special loaded with p90s :D
Yep... I saved up to get a Gibson SG Classic for that exact reason, and just as I got the money together, Gibson went and discontinued the line. I'm very tempted by this Epiphone though.
And black sabbath
Someone may have touched on this already; but considering Epiphones previous quality and attention to detail, I think the issues with the new models you have reviewed so far comes down to having a whole new lineup and having to pump units out to fill demand. I think/hope we will see QC return to it's former glory in short order.
Just bought one in Pelham Blue. Frets and finish are spot on, really can't find anything to fault.
Not at all disappointed.
I played the Gibson SG Classic in 2003 and LOVED IT.
I love mine very much.
I owned one of those 2000s Gibson SG Classics. My favorite guitar that I have ever owned and the biggest regret I've ever had after I sold it in the early 2010s. And I have owned probably 2 dozen guitars (electric and acoustic) over the years. I was looking at these Epiphones today as it immediately caught my eye and reminded me of my old Gibson SG Classic w/P90 pickups.
I just posted basically the same! It is still the one that got away (twice in my case!). But this Epiphone is pretty damn close I have to say! Great instrument!
Satin finish > gloss finish any day
On SGs I don't really like satin on the body at least. Not really sure why since I like satin a lot on other guitars.
especially when poly: satin so much bigger than gloss. With my satin gibson, I actually get the point of the wear-off, nitro is just soooo much more sensitive to dings and scratches (my smooth, rounded off leather strap left marks on the guitar when I left it on once while having it in the case...), But Poly? That stuff is a bitch. It can feel cheap and plastic-y when too thick, but a thin open pore poly? best combination of both worlds, iyam.
Yeah, I turned my MIM strat to a satin finish and it feels so much better
My Inverness Green SG Classic is my go-to guitar. Love the P90s and how the finish is changing.
I'm liking the classic Kalamazoo Headstock. I think it is a good marketing move.
I saw the in boxing and these new Epiphones are not only inspired by Gibson they seem to have the same "quality" control department as far as fret work goes.
Very detailed review, very useful even though I play a much more overdrive style. Epi G-400s have had a veneer top and bottom and thick polyurethane finish for the last 40 years. This new SG looks like it has no veneer and a very thin poly finish, I love that!!! Glad you opened up the wiring pocket so we could see the components and wiring. Thanks a bunch!
I sure frickin HOPE it is!
It friggin BETTER BE.
Uh yeah, i sure HOPE it does
Walmart Slayer
*_You are a man of culture._*
Austin - I am so impressed by how much your playing has improved! Keep going!
Ohhh man, I been waiting for you to review one of these new epiphones, Trog. Can’t wait to hear what you have to say.
I am very anxious for his review of that gorgeous sparkle cherry red Uptown Kat he showed us a few weeks ago in an unboxing issue. I am very interested in hearing how those Firebird pups sound.
Ron Just Ron Never been quite the jazz guitar enthusiast but those Uptown Kats are downright classy, especially in that sapphire blue finish.
@@ttdmcneal yeah plus they are the thin body models so they are more like the ES models. I am also not a jazz style player and a few years ago, wow, actually last year not a few years lol, I bought a Gretsch G5420 that is a traditional jazz style with the 4 inch thick body. I was wanting something more along the lines of a Gibson Byrdland actually. I like this Gretsch but that huge body width and thickness do make it rather challenging to play while sitting down. I broke my back a couple of years ago and sitting is the only way I can play comfortably now. Plus of course the feedback issues with the Gretsch make it a challenging experience as well lol. I do wish it had the trapeze bridge rather than the Bigsby, Might as well go full Ted Nugent and have the trapeze bridge so I can do all those weird things he does lol. So when I saw the new Kat models are so gorgeous and the thinner body, it intrigued me since I am trying to find a great but inexpensive new ES style for my blues playing. The Firebird pups might be a no no however. I know they tend to have a high sound and I am more looking for better mids and not muddy lows lol. I bought an Epiphone Riviera Custom 3 pickup a few years ago and oh dear Lord when I used that third pup things got real deep and muddy lol.
Ron Just Ron I’d had issues with the bridge pup in my epi lp sounding quite muddy, so being a fan of Van Halen I naturally went to full Ed experimental mode, yanked the bucker right out and cut the solder holding the cover in place. Other than raising the pickup and removing the cover, the only real way to brighten up a pup is to get a replacement. Maybe try something hotter? Speaking of hollowbodies, you should try out an Epiphone Casino. It’s significantly slimmer, about only 1 3/4 of an inch. They have ones from ‘65 all the way to today, and I believe they’re going to begin making them in the U.S again. 2 Dogear p90s, trapeze bridge on most examples, and used famously by almost all the Beatles, George John and Paul all had one lol. Pretty badass guitar if you ask me.
@@ttdmcneal Hmmm a Casino, I will look into it. I have been toying with that BB King Lucille model, I just really don't want another all black guitar. While yes they are gorgeous, they are a real mutha to keep looking good. I spent a half hour last night on my black Iceman and as soon as I touched any part of it my nice polish job had smudges all over it lol. I really like white guitars but they do show dirt pretty easy, but that I can deal with easier than the swirl marks and smudges you get on a black guitar so easily. I have never had an Epiphone with their burstbuckers but I know people who do and they say that as well, they are a bit too dark. I have a 2014 Epiphone Silver sparkle Spaceman Tommy Thayer (of KISS) LP and it has the 490/498 combo in it, Gibson of course and while I love it, lately I have been not liking how dark they sound compared to my other guitars. That's one of the reasons why if I buy a new Epiphone I would want the ones that come with the Gibson 57's in it.
I love it. The one I bought a coupla years ago is miles below this. Congrats Anderino!!
love to see more reviews of these new epiphones, the firebird and the sg's in particular. cheers trogman you do good work
This three year old video made me buy this model in Inverness green and I’m so not angry about it :) It’s a great guitar and for the money it can’t be beat. Only problem I have is I wish the middle position was hum canceling .
I'm looking forward to saving up every last penny for the faded pelham blue sg special with p90's!! it's my dream guitar because I really REALLY love Black Sabbath and I want that sick snowblind tone!!!
I love to watch your videos before I go to work in the morning, always a good way to start the day. Congratulations to the winner!
You should review the new Epiphone Les Paul Junior in TV Yellow. I’m very interested in that guitar
I'm still a little gun shy about getting this particular model, and here's why. First of all, I'm a huge Who fan, and I'm always looking for an SG with P-90 pick ups because of that fact. A few years ago, I bought a Gibson "Naked" SG with P-90s ridiculously cheap because the mail order company was overstocked, and Gibson had stopped making this particular model. I got it on "Close Out". (Sometimes I get lucky) Now this particular SG is pretty much like what you demo'd here, except mine has NO PICK GUARD. Anyhoo, I played it and immediately fell in love with it, but because it has no finish, it will remain my house guitar. So, last summer, I heard that Epiphone made not one but TWO SGs with P-90s. The one you played, and an SG Special. (NOT to be confused with the $200.00 (U.S.) model with the open coil humbuckers) Well, I bought it, and I REALLY wanted to love it, but I have two complaints: One is I found the bridge pick up to be a bit too elevated. It's not really causing me and problems, and I'm not getting any buzz or hum from it, but I still rather that it was lowered. And the big heart break was that I was getting a fret buzz on the first two strings on the third fret. I'm going to have to take it to my local luthier to see if these problems can't be corrected. I noticed that you were getting some fret buzz on certain strings and frets. This alone makes me gun shy of purchasing this model. I really want an SG with p-90 pick ups I can take out of the house, because, as I said, my Gibson is my house guitar, and I want something I can take to open mics and play live. My Gibson originally retailed at approx $1200.00 but, since it was on close out, I only paid $800.00 But still, I don't want to risk anything bad happening to it at that price.
This is the third review of this line of guitars I’ve seen so far. Two out of three of them had high fret issues. My Muse SG is being delivered today and I’m hoping that it doesn’t have the same issue.
aunt jenifer I did a quick review on my channel yesterday. Check it out if you are interested. Overall not good but...
hans meier not a turd but did have some issues. You can check out my review but the quality of video is not to the level of Trogley’s page
Finally!!!!😍
Please review the SG special with P90s in Sparkling Burgundy or Pelham Blue!!! It has the same P90s but it's the only that doesn't say CTS-pots. I'd like to know if those have cheaper pots.
Thank you for great content!!😍
Worn SGs are the prettier for me.
Two of my epi sgs are worn cherry, and another one is flat black lol. Hoping to get one more flat black to tune to B standard. One worn cherry is tuned to Eb, the other is tuned to C standard, and the black it C# standard. Lolol
They feel so good to play too.
For a 400 dollar guitar, as long as the neck isn't warped or have serious structure issues, a few high frets means nothing to me. I once wanted the P90 SG special from Gibson YEARS ago but I never got one (because I was a kid with no job or monies), but now with a job and seeing the overall QC improvements vs my own heavily modified Epiphone LP (Heavily as in the neck was literally replaced with a long-tenon neck bought off of ebay from China), this thing needs to be in my collection.
Oh Gibson.. I have a SG Special 2019 model that you had presented in a video a few month ago, with the quick connect system. Big surprise to see that the Epiphone has a hand-wired electronic !
So glad they put a 60s style'slim-neck' on it, I hate chunky SG necks. I'm really wanting one of these.
I can't wait to check out when you do the SG Special review. I've been torn between getting one of these or a Special.
Specials are selling like crazy since Nam, I got one on backorder myself. They make great project guitars for upgrading since the body's are so nice.
i picked up this guitar a few weeks ago ,in Inverness green ...and its my new favorite guitar I own !!it looks good.plays great !
I'm guessing those P-90's have much to do with the pleasing tone I'm hearing
really want one! Looks amazing!
Hey Trogly long time watcher, first time comment-er. Just wanted to say thank you for what you do. I have learned so much in my 2 year old guitar journey. Keep it up
Damn this upload came just in time, between a customer at work calling me worthless and my preferred candidate dropping out I really needed a pick me up. Love the vids man! You should review a Washburn LI15, it's a Washburn Les Paul copy and the guitar I own, so I'd love to see how it stacks up against an Epiphone Les Paul.
James Hunter I’ve never hoped someone was a Trumper before in my life! (Before anyone says anything that’s a joke and I’m with you )
Noooo
Please leave the politics separate from guitars/music.
Feel you pain though, politics are the worst these days.
I'm guessing Yang's gonna endorse Bernie, so jump on the Sanders side!
12 South I heartily disagree
12 South Again, I disagree friend, I disagree with that assessment
Now THIS is a review! Thanks a lot. I have a Wilshire 66 reissue from Epiphone which I love but I also love P90s so this looks like a great combination for me, light, compact, beautiful body and killer pickups.
Nice one Anthony
Trogs... once again - LOVING the new visual aspect of your channel in 2020 - is this your most hi tech production yet! Good to see you feature more talking to the camera and those hi contrast shots of the guitar with you playing in the front via green screen - its the best production of any youtube channel out there - Although Robert Bakers ROOM itself is a pretty sweet back drop
I want a muse les Paul how do I buy one through you. And the jr.
troglysguitarshow.com/help-appraisals/ngd/
I have one and it's great. The neck is unreal. It's better than my last 4 Gibson sgs. Honest!
My 2013 Epiphone ES335 Pro had horrendous fret work, I took it to a luthier and for $40 he did a great job and left set the action perfectly.
Frank Marino Plays One So It’s Got To Be Great
Honestly, I've never paid attention to P-90 pickups before. I get it now.
I own a silvertone guitar. They are underrated but you should check some out
Never thought the day would come where I have to drop the volume of a Trogly's video
Those pups have some kick to them...think I may have to put this on the list of future buys
That's what's great about p90s, they've got this awesome kick and snarl to them but aren't as thin as regular single coils. They're the most versatile kind of pickup, they can do single coil and humbucker tones in one. The original p90s had higher output than the original PAF humbuckers, so if you're getting a guitar with vintage style pickups, getting p90s would actually be better for rock because of that higher output and that incredible attack they have. The hum is really such a minor issue, you never hear it during a gig with the other instruments playing, in recording its easy enough to remove it if you really want (though arguably it makes it sound more "real" if you leave it in, like SRV did), and there's always noise gates if you still can't stand it. It's just not that big a deal, and the great tone you get out of it outweighs it considerably
Never get noiseless p90s. Noiseless pickups are invariably bad sounding. Even Clapton when he was using them on his strat couldn't get a good sound out of them, and that's Eric Clapton!!! Let alone someone less talented with less access to expensive high quality amps and sound engineers
@@duffman18 oh 100%, I agree
I'm picking up an Italia Strat copy with a P-90 in the bridge on Friday, for the exact reason of the snarl
I just underestimated the quality of the P-90s in this SG, since it's an Epiphone, and they tend to be a little underwhelming on the volume side
@@TheJaysimus yeah true. The first thing I think about any epiphone is that I'll need to upgrade the pups. But this one doesn't sound like it needs that whatsoever. If you have a great amp, getting new pups probably wouldn't even make a huge difference, a great amp can make anything sound good. But I'd have to hear it through my own amps first before I decide to replace or not
I'm definitely getting one of these new epiphones, whether it be the sg with p90s or the new Les Paul Special with p90s. Nothing beats that tone for me, the p90s mixed with mahogany. It just rocks.
Bad Frets are a "Authentic" Chinese guitar feature. You know the corporate masters at Gibson want it to be "Authentic"....
Besides if they were perfect at that price point it would hurt Gibson sales. Ok that sounds a bit crazy. But Gibson does crazy. It is "Authentic".
I really dig you man! You, unlike a lot of reviewers, give an HONEST to God review and that my friend is unbeatable!!! Keep it up! I'm an older guy and i don't have time to search and find real good review and you do it all so Kudo to you!!!
the mahogany is probably an african mahogany called khaya. Sapele is typically harder and denser than mahogany and does not serve as a cheaper substitute like khaya. In fact sapele can sometimes be more expensive than true mahogany depending on the quality. Okay I'm done being a wood nerd.
Probably Khaya. Sapele is actually more expensive, and I've never seen it used on production guitars. It might actually be Nato which is an Indonesian "mahogany". Still a good wood. I have a nato Yammy and it's excellent. It seems to me that shipping Khaya from Africa to China is prohibitively expensive. I would guess that the wood is sourced in the Orient.
I have a sapele les paul copy and it weighs close to 15lb
I have a sapele les paul copy and it weighs close to 15lb
I have a sapele les paul copy and it weighs close to 15lb
I have a sapele les paul copy and it weighs close to 15lb
I would not say a ton of complaints, but I have heard many people complain about fret buzz. Get that out of the way and this is a winner in its segment for the money. And yes, congrats to Anthony :)
I bought one of these a couple of years ago...and I like the playing feel, the weight, etc. But the pickups seem to be INCREDIBLY noisy. They seem to be really susceptible to EMF interference, because the hum changes with the orientation of the guitar as I sit with it. If I rotate 90 degrees from maximum hum, it almost goes away. However, it gets really noisy as soon as you play anything with some gain. Any ideas if this just needs some shielding or is it a grounding issue?
P90s, they are all noisy really. I have a Jazzmaster junior which has copper shielding and an all aluminium pickguard and its still noisy.
You can buy stacked P90s with a secondary coil to eliminate the hum (P100 i think they are called) but they are deeper and don´t sound exactly the same.
Failing that you can buy P90 shaped humbuckers (GFS sell them for example) or drop in a mini humbucker with soap bar surround but again they sound nothing like P90s.
I guess the closest you can get to a single coil sound without hum (but closer to a strat sound than a p90) would be Firebird mini humbuckers (not new Gibson ones as they are hot ceramic and junk, try Dimarzio or Seymore Duncan Antiquity) or just get a noise suppressor pedal/live with the hum. Doesn´t really bother me much these days, just got used to it.
My suggestion.......turn it to 11 and let it rip!
@@arwinemediallccreativedeve133 Don't disagree! However, I found some P90s recently that are noiseless and sound great. So much happier at 11 now!
I just bought the Modern Black Fade SG. Once tweaked for action and string gauge, I'm happy!. I use a strap with suede lining. It grips better to offset a slight neck dive. Love your videos.
Please review the Epi Les Paul TV yellow Special!
Loved the playing demo! The quality on your videos just keeps getting better! Awesome Job!
17th view! New haircut?
The exact review I’ve been waiting for. Thanks.
Wow Man i like what i saw Yessssssss Definitely get me one
We have a winner! Congrats Anthony!
Just think if this was a Gibson their would most likely be Tons of issues with it
You snuck in the "Let there be Rock" riff man! Nice work.. this lil guitar was made for that stuff! My friend Brad has one.. its not the "classic" one. I want to buy the Classic one myself though and mod it a little. Thanks for this post.
Was the QC tag # on your’s left blank as well? I’m wondering if they’re just pressing the frets in and not leveling at all...the Gold top I got had mega fret issues.
Maybe I was lucky, my muse has zero issues. Out of the box!
@@poodlenme That's awesome!
Good point Lucas.
What may be happening is the factory can't keep up with demand and they are shipping them out before they are finished (QC Checks/Sign-Off).
Not sure if the figuring is a veneer or not, but at that low price-point it doesn't really matter, still nice looking instruments.
Epiphone won't be spending the labour time doing fret dressing aside from real rudimentary end filing
@@hkguitar1984 They use veneers over their mahogany these days which is weird
I am glad you give this a positive review as this is the model I'm most interested in getting from the new Epiphone line-up. I've always liked the late '60s Gibson SG after seeing Pete Townshend playing one in the Woodstock movie. I'm hoping to check one out soon.
Wanted to snag an SG with P90s or Jazzmaster... now I want the epiphone version.
Do you think it would be worth it to upgrade the P90s in this?
An SG with Jazzmaster pickups in it? Now _THAT_ would be interesting. Jazzmaster pickups are so different from other kinds of single coils like the regular fender ones or p90s, there very very trebly, and so when put into a dark sounding mahogany body you'd probably get a really meaty yet bell-like tone, like what SRV managed to achieve with his strat. Fat yet clear at the same time. Gonna have to add that to the list of projects, mod an SG to have Jazzmaster pickups
Omg what have you made this up to
Gibson P90's are among my favourites ever so it could be a great upgrade for not a lot of money. You tend to find the big difference between US made guitars & budget models is in the electronics but you can find companies that sell full sets (50's wiring kit, CTS pots, bumblebee or Sprague orange drop caps, Switchcraft switch & jack) all for around £50 on ebay (about $65), so if you can find an Epi body that you really dig you could do a full electronics swap (including the pups) for around 150 bucks (I did it on an old Gibson LP Deluxe I bought that had broken mini-humbuckers).
@@jubei7259 yep that's a good way to get a quality instrument. Have the higher quality control and build quality of an epiphone, with the upgraded electronics and pups from a Gibson
I always have this line of thinking in my mind that's probably inaccurate, that all default pups from all brands including Gibson and fender are always a step below the dedicated pickup companies like Seymour Duncan or Dimarzio, Lollar, Bare Knuckle etc. That's probably wrong. But I just seem to think upgrading with default modern Gibson pickups wouldn't be so much of an upgrade compared to getting ones from one of those companies. Like I've heard a lot about the various modern Gibson pickups, that they're bad, that they don't sound anything like the old Gibson pickups from the 50s, 60s and 70s. People pay a huge amount to get vintage pickups from those various eras, with Gibson specifically they go after pups made by specific pup designers and say that when they left and were replaced the pickups changed or got worse. Like, I hear a lot that Gibson don't know how to make Firebird pickups anymore, that the modern ones sound awful and nothing like vintage ones, and so people replace their firebird's pups with Seymour Duncan ones or whatever
It's probably all just academic. The biggest factor of good tone is the amp. A great amp makes every pickup and guitar sound great. Some replacement pups do the same thing a slight adjustment of the EQ or an EQ pedam could do arguably
I dunno
Pickups change as they age. Vintage pups sound the way they do because decades of aging has made them that way, and they didn't sound like that originally. So maybe modern pickups need a few decades to age and the magnetism to decay and then they'd sound as good as the vintage ones perhaps
duffman18 hahaha I realize they aren’t the same pickups but I have been toying with the idea of making a mahogany Jazzmaster or getting an sg and putting jazz pickups in it.
Got it had it a few weeks now and LOVE IT!!! great review always love watching your videos they have great detail and are very imformative ty.
That's a 2019 November model, I've seen other videos of people's 2019 November models needing fretwork, perhaps the QC is already better?
I thought it looked too close to my August 2019 model
The slim profile neck is why it balances. I really like that you can change it out to humbuckers and the worn satin will look great.
Wow im really early
That's a beautiful piece of mahogany and the neck is unreal. Light weight and balanced, awesome. Neck binding and batwing pick guard. I'd buy that guitar in a heartbeat. Screw the frets, that's no big deal. No circuit board, no quick connects. At this price point, swapping pu's or pu's and pick guard isn't unreasonable. Some Mojotone P90s or whatever humbucker you prefer. The only thing that I really question is the fretboard. I like this guitar a lot. But then, there's that Modern Black Fade...
Figuring on the neck can lead to twisting & warping. IMHO, the straighter the grain the better on necks.....
i think this is rather a problem of a one piece necks vs multiple piece necks, and the latter having less problems with that
I'm so glad you reviewed this, I've been wanting the green one so bad! I've never owned a guitar with p90s so I'm excited to try those!
That’s hot
Your playing is sounding a lot better! Keep up the great work
Mine came with a busted middle position. Happy NGD to me :( Which is sad because its an amazing instrument otherwise.
I played with a green one of these a couple days ago, and I absolutely loved it
Man that's a lot of enthusiasm for a guitar that is messed up right outta the box. It Looks good but dang.. kinda disappointing.
That guitar is fine. It just needs some love.
@@TheJeffcurran sounds like most of the new ones need love from the reviews. Uggh!
I agree, I wouldn't pay that kind of money for a guitar that doesn't play well straight out of the box, It might be cheap for a guitar but it's still a substantial chunk of cash!
I picked up one of these from American Musical for around 300.00 US. This is a really nice guitar at this price point. I have several other SG's and this is the only one I have with p-90's. I compared it to the 2019 Gibson worn and liked it better, the Gibson had fret sprout and buzzing fret's. My Epi had none of these issue's. I used to be a Gibson snob, but lately Epiphone has been putting out some really nice lower priced guitar's that are really nice sounding and playing. I also just got the new 2020 Les Paul 59' reissue in Dark Burst and am VERY impressed with that guitar. They are doing a great job and Epi's are becoming a larger section in my collection.
I just bought the 2019 Epiphone SG Junior. Had some fret scallop, I filed then polished the edges down. I lowered the action a bit. now I'm really pleased with how it plays and sounds. Really stays in tune. I had the Angus Young SG from Gibson years ago, nice guitar, but could not get it to stay in tune. I had sent it in to the guitar store, for a Pro setup and that didn't help.I ended up selling it. I really want a real Gibson again, maybe one without the tremolo, but they are so expensive for my budget. Living on a disability income is rough. Love your videos, makes me want to dream about the day I can move up to the real thing.
Here i am putting on some guitar inlay stickers on the SG jr to dress her up. (just having fun)
ua-cam.com/video/FGCzPkint6Q/v-deo.html
Fantastic review. I really like your thoroughness and approach/style.
Sounded a little weak, messy, and muddy when you hit it with gain Austin.
Yeah, I agree. I've thought that about a lot of Epi's I've tried)
Agree
Clean tones we're pretty thin as well
Put some respectable pups in it and it'll clear up the sound
@@TheChadPad I've watched a video between this guitar and a Gibson 60's SG with p90's. it sounds 99% the same.
I got a SG special, p90's... Epi has done thier homework.. These guitars are arriving in excellent condition!
Best thing they've finally done, was to modify that ugly ass headstock from yrs gone by