I like that it's almost exactly the Gibson I want, except I'm not paying $6,000 more for it because it says Gibson on the headstock... so much so, that I just ordered a used demo from Sweetwater. Also, with things like Sweetwater and Zzounds installment plans, people shouldn't be really complaining about not being able to afford these guitars.
And unlike the competition, who outsource their import lines to Ghost Builder Factories who build for all the brands, they are built in an Epiphone owned and operated factory by Chinese Epiphone employees.
I just ordered the guitar. I have been looking for the Gibson SG Kirk Douglas for years but there are not on the second market or they sell it for twice the retail price so I got this one instead. I’ll see how I like the electronics setup but I kinda already have the plan to rearrange it to match the Kirk Douglas with 3 push-pull volume control for each pick-ups and one general tone control. The 3 switch positions are the same as for any 2 humbuckers set-up but you can dial in the middle pick-up in every position. Apparently, the tone range you get is insane
Weren't you the one complaining about the unfiled frets on the high frets? I took mine out the other day to remind myself why I bought one of these babies. Boy, did I have FUN! These things are a bit pricey, but remember that the Gibson counterpart will be much more expensive! I got one back in June. I absolutely love it! (Of course it's my "Special occasion" guitar, but I love it!)
My real problem with Epiphone is that it's mostly all Indian Laurel, had the korina explorer and liked most everything about it except the fretboard. I think the Inspired by Gibson line is a great way to have a Gibson esque guitar without paying for it. Just last week I played an Epi LP with p90s, everything about it was just ok. I picked up a Gibson LP afterwards with p90s and before I played a single note, everything about it felt better. I don't doubt the Epi could be great with some love but off the wall the Gibson was miles above it. This SG is sick and it's got most everything you'd want except the name on the headstock. Also never buy from Epiphone direct. You will continuously receive guitars with issues until you give up or they run out of stock. They just grab the next one ready for shipping from the 3rd party warehouse. That was a fun month and a half.
I wanted the old Epiphone variant of this SG without the vibrato system years ago because its such a beautiful combo with the gold hardware and cream color (although the old one is worse) but I never considered the pickup getting in the way of strumming the guitar. You convinced me that I'd hate it
Nice! I got a chance to play one this past weekend actually and it’s pretty nice. A great candidate for a re-bevel and nitro refin for sure. It’s got great bones, and needs those final touches to get it equal with the Gibson. I own an original 61 standard and the Custom, and I think really all that one needs is some body work and a nitro finish. At a fraction of the price of the Custom shop at 8K.
Good on ya, man...life is short, splash a little! I tried one of those over the summer at our local emporium...not bad at all. I was in a Gretsch frame of mind so I went that way instead, but yeah, I thought it was cool as hell...enjoy!!
I will never knock on anyone for playing Epiphone, like more power to you! It’s an awesome way to get into Gibson territory without completely breaking the bank. I just probably couldn’t ever be seen playing one, maybe it’s an ego thing or something idk. I almost caved and got that newer Tommy Thayer signature that came out a couple years ago. But yeah, I 100% do not mind taking months if not years to get an actual Gibson, especially one of those Mod Shop ones. At the end of the day I’m not the biggest fan of 24.75” scale lengths
I dig it. I like just about everything with these new inspired by Gibson models, except for the larger necks. Hopefully they'll make some other models with more of a 60's style neck in the near future. As an aside, I also like the 3 pickup configuration. I played a Les Paul Black Beauty for years and it never caused me grief. It messed up a couple of my friends when they borrowed it, but it always felt natural. Cool video! Keep up the good work.
Bro no matter how cool this guitar looks, I still can't trick myself to spend that much money on a Chinese guitar. Gibson is making sure those Epi's look good but hell no man. More power to you for having disposable income you don't have to think about.
@@PikaBFF It's about VALUE and LEGACY. Made in China, India, Indonesia or whatever other Asian country holds zero value with the exception of Made in Japan or Korea but even S.K. models face depreciation.
@@albertmarkethinkpr1325US made guitars depreciate too my dude. I’ve seen Gibson guitars that cost $3k brand new go for as low as $1500. Now if you’re talking about legacy, i 💯 % agree with you. Also for quality control as well, although Gibson has been slipping with theirs lately, so much so that more people are saying it’s not worth spending so much money for a guitar you’re gonna end up returning.
@@itslikethesamebutdifferent8020 luck of the draw I guess. ATM the ebst buy would be a PRS SE if you are planning to be a working musician. If you are a bedroom guitar player just buy whatever.
I had just the two pickup white 61 les paul SG epiphone IBG version. The gibson pickups made it worth the purchase. I also like the white VOS finish. BTW epiphone has been around in some phone linger than Gibson.
Very cool! I love three pickup SGs with trems. Still don’t love the price even if it has the Gibson headstock and the custom shop is involved. It’s still made in China and doesn’t use premium woods, hardware, etc. Squiers all have the original headstocks and also don’t use premium components. But Squier prices don’t break $500. Pickups don’t add $850 of value for a demo, or $1,000 if you buy one brand new. You can get American Fenders, American G&Ls, Harmonys (made in Michigan) Japanese, and Korean guitars for that price and they all carry the main brand name rather than the budget line‘s brand. On the import front, PRS SEs and G&L Tributes are made in Indonesia, cost less than this, and are largely, though not completely, faithful to the American designs. The G&Ls even use American pickups and hardware. So yes, this is another Gibson/Epiphone money-grab, and this is before we even discuss relative quality control between competing brands.
Why do folks rip on Chinese guitars so much when practically everything else they use in the course of their daily lives comes from there? Smartphones, laptops, microwaves, all smart electronics in your cars etc etc. Typically all those things are made very well and are very reliable.
Ah yes. The time when Gibson tried to make a strat that was still definitely a gibson. You got the three pickups, you got the double cut horns, and you got the whammy bar… but it’s still a fuckin gibson, baby!
$1,500 for Chinese firewood is insane! It looks like Les Paul's wife, Mary Ford's 1963 Gibson Les Paul Custom "SG." Epiphone has made electric guitars since 1935.
The “label” is Inspired By Gibson CUSTOM so no it doesn’t apply to all the latest models. Get your facts straight. Also middle pickup just lower it since you’re not gonna use it and it won’t be in your way. P.S: this is not the first time Epiphone has been putting Open-book headstock on their guitars, they used to do it in the late 90s when they were manufactured at the Fujigen factory in Japan.
Cadillac = fully appointed The saying “The Cadillac of…” is just used to connote that a product has all the proverbial bells & whistles offered in its segment. Most auto brands are crap, save for Japanese-assembled Lexuses and most Porsches post-1983.
Everyone should get the guitar they like the most, why should it matter what others think, they dont have to play it xD
LITERALLY this! I dont care if you dont like gibson cause theyre expensive. Even if they could afford one theyd still bitch about it
At the end of the day it is YOUR guitar and hands. If you love the epiphone then it does not matter what anyone else thinks!
I like that it's almost exactly the Gibson I want, except I'm not paying $6,000 more for it because it says Gibson on the headstock... so much so, that I just ordered a used demo from Sweetwater. Also, with things like Sweetwater and Zzounds installment plans, people shouldn't be really complaining about not being able to afford these guitars.
I purchased the 1962 reissue Joe Bonamassa ES 335 ,one of the nicest axes I have ever owned.
Great value. Chinese builds save labor costs. Those craftsmen and ladies work as hard as anyone in the industry.
And unlike the competition, who outsource their import lines to Ghost Builder Factories who build for all the brands, they are built in an Epiphone owned and operated factory by Chinese Epiphone employees.
I just ordered the guitar.
I have been looking for the Gibson SG Kirk Douglas for years but there are not on the second market or they sell it for twice the retail price so I got this one instead.
I’ll see how I like the electronics setup but I kinda already have the plan to rearrange it to match the Kirk Douglas with 3 push-pull volume control for each pick-ups and one general tone control. The 3 switch positions are the same as for any 2 humbuckers set-up but you can dial in the middle pick-up in every position.
Apparently, the tone range you get is insane
Weren't you the one complaining about the unfiled frets on the high frets? I took mine out the other day to remind myself why I bought one of these babies. Boy, did I have FUN! These things are a bit pricey, but remember that the Gibson counterpart will be much more expensive! I got one back in June. I absolutely love it! (Of course it's my "Special occasion" guitar, but I love it!)
My real problem with Epiphone is that it's mostly all Indian Laurel, had the korina explorer and liked most everything about it except the fretboard. I think the Inspired by Gibson line is a great way to have a Gibson esque guitar without paying for it. Just last week I played an Epi LP with p90s, everything about it was just ok. I picked up a Gibson LP afterwards with p90s and before I played a single note, everything about it felt better. I don't doubt the Epi could be great with some love but off the wall the Gibson was miles above it. This SG is sick and it's got most everything you'd want except the name on the headstock.
Also never buy from Epiphone direct. You will continuously receive guitars with issues until you give up or they run out of stock. They just grab the next one ready for shipping from the 3rd party warehouse. That was a fun month and a half.
I wanted the old Epiphone variant of this SG without the vibrato system years ago because its such a beautiful combo with the gold hardware and cream color (although the old one is worse) but I never considered the pickup getting in the way of strumming the guitar. You convinced me that I'd hate it
Nice! I got a chance to play one this past weekend actually and it’s pretty nice. A great candidate for a re-bevel and nitro refin for sure. It’s got great bones, and needs those final touches to get it equal with the Gibson. I own an original 61 standard and the Custom, and I think really all that one needs is some body work and a nitro finish. At a fraction of the price of the Custom shop at 8K.
Totally agree. Not sure I'm the biggest fan of the finish
Good on ya, man...life is short, splash a little! I tried one of those over the summer at our local emporium...not bad at all. I was in a Gretsch frame of mind so I went that way instead, but yeah, I thought it was cool as hell...enjoy!!
Hell yeah
Epiphone has been making guitars for 150 years...
Mine is arriving on Thursday with the IBGCS ES-355 in White. I placed the order for both 6 months ago...
I will never knock on anyone for playing Epiphone, like more power to you! It’s an awesome way to get into Gibson territory without completely breaking the bank. I just probably couldn’t ever be seen playing one, maybe it’s an ego thing or something idk. I almost caved and got that newer Tommy Thayer signature that came out a couple years ago. But yeah, I 100% do not mind taking months if not years to get an actual Gibson, especially one of those Mod Shop ones. At the end of the day I’m not the biggest fan of 24.75” scale lengths
I dig it. I like just about everything with these new inspired by Gibson models, except for the larger necks. Hopefully they'll make some other models with more of a 60's style neck in the near future.
As an aside, I also like the 3 pickup configuration. I played a Les Paul Black Beauty for years and it never caused me grief. It messed up a couple of my friends when they borrowed it, but it always felt natural. Cool video! Keep up the good work.
Bro no matter how cool this guitar looks, I still can't trick myself to spend that much money on a Chinese guitar. Gibson is making sure those Epi's look good but hell no man. More power to you for having disposable income you don't have to think about.
does the country its made in affect the playability or anything? i havent played a lot of american made guitars so idk
@@PikaBFF It's about VALUE and LEGACY. Made in China, India, Indonesia or whatever other Asian country holds zero value with the exception of Made in Japan or Korea but even S.K. models face depreciation.
I personally don’t care where a guitar is made, assembled, or otherwise, so long as the instrument itself plays and sounds amazing.
@@albertmarkethinkpr1325US made guitars depreciate too my dude. I’ve seen Gibson guitars that cost $3k brand new go for as low as $1500. Now if you’re talking about legacy, i 💯 % agree with you. Also for quality control as well, although Gibson has been slipping with theirs lately, so much so that more people are saying it’s not worth spending so much money for a guitar you’re gonna end up returning.
@@itslikethesamebutdifferent8020 luck of the draw I guess. ATM the ebst buy would be a PRS SE if you are planning to be a working musician. If you are a bedroom guitar player just buy whatever.
I had just the two pickup white 61 les paul SG epiphone IBG version. The gibson pickups made it worth the purchase. I also like the white VOS finish. BTW epiphone has been around in some phone linger than Gibson.
clean tones on this one are cool
Very cool! I love three pickup SGs with trems. Still don’t love the price even if it has the Gibson headstock and the custom shop is involved. It’s still made in China and doesn’t use premium woods, hardware, etc. Squiers all have the original headstocks and also don’t use premium components. But Squier prices don’t break $500. Pickups don’t add $850 of value for a demo, or $1,000 if you buy one brand new. You can get American Fenders, American G&Ls, Harmonys (made in Michigan) Japanese, and Korean guitars for that price and they all carry the main brand name rather than the budget line‘s brand. On the import front, PRS SEs and G&L Tributes are made in Indonesia, cost less than this, and are largely, though not completely, faithful to the American designs. The G&Ls even use American pickups and hardware. So yes, this is another Gibson/Epiphone money-grab, and this is before we even discuss relative quality control between competing brands.
Glad your having fun
Why do folks rip on Chinese guitars so much when practically everything else they use in the course of their daily lives comes from there? Smartphones, laptops, microwaves, all smart electronics in your cars etc etc. Typically all those things are made very well and are very reliable.
I'm convinced some people still think the year is 1991
Ah yes. The time when Gibson tried to make a strat that was still definitely a gibson.
You got the three pickups, you got the double cut horns, and you got the whammy bar… but it’s still a fuckin gibson, baby!
I doubt it's out of fase, probably just the 3 hb in parallel
I believe the tuners are called kidney
@@bxsoup username checks out
$1,500 for Chinese firewood is insane! It looks like Les Paul's wife, Mary Ford's 1963 Gibson Les Paul Custom "SG." Epiphone has made electric guitars since 1935.
The “label” is Inspired By Gibson CUSTOM so no it doesn’t apply to all the latest models. Get your facts straight.
Also middle pickup just lower it since you’re not gonna use it and it won’t be in your way.
P.S: this is not the first time Epiphone has been putting Open-book headstock on their guitars, they used to do it in the late 90s when they were manufactured at the Fujigen factory in Japan.
cadillac = crap
Cadillac = fully appointed
The saying “The Cadillac of…” is just used to connote that a product has all the proverbial bells & whistles offered in its segment. Most auto brands are crap, save for Japanese-assembled Lexuses and most Porsches post-1983.