I got an acoustic guitar several months ago in a trade that was simply not tripping my trigger, so I decided a couple weeks ago that it was time for a replacement. My acoustic arsenal is fully stocked, so the search focused on electrics.
I'm good on the usual suspects -- Strat, Tele, Les Paul, Jazz Box, hybrid -- All here. One thing missing was a 335. Granted, I have a Hamer Newport (double cutaway semi-hollowbody with humbuckers), but that is an animal unto itself (in a good way). Okay, target acquired.
Headed to GC with trade bait in hand. They appraised the trade on the low end of my acceptable range, but after eBay fees, PayPal fees and shipping costs if I sold it myself, it was an easy decision. Gave my sales guy the go ahead to write up the paperwork and started playing the variety of different options -- Gibson (For reference point), Epiphone, and Gretsch.
When the smoke cleared, the Epiphone Sheraton II Pro was the clear winner.
All guitars in this category have laminated Maple bodies. The difference really comes in the neck material/shape, hardware and electronics. Of course, tone is a key factor as well. The Epi Sheraton sports a 5 piece Maple/Mahogany neck with a very comfortable carve and Grover 18:1 tuners. The pickups are their new ProBuckers - Epi's take on the Gibson BurstBuckers. I have to tell you -- They sound FANTASTIC! Gone are the days of muddy, toneless pickups from Epi. These are incredibly balanced and rich with ample clarity. Lots of definition -- Very surprising and good change from the offerings of even just a few years ago.
Also surprising was the smooth taper of both the volume and tone pots. Again, no mud. The volume pots for both pickups are push/pull to provide the option of pickup splitting. This gives even more tone versatility. At the end of the day, this Epi had, to my ears, everything the Gibby 335 had in the tone department and even a little more. Warm and clear when dialed back, and a nice crunch with the gain turned up. Very dynamic. I likey!
Granted, the Epi sports a Urethane finish rather than the nitro on a Gibby, but it is a fraction of the thickness of the plastic goop that once covered Asian imports of years gone by. The body is very resonant when played acoustically. For the cost savings, I'll "sacrifice" a bit in the type of finish used.
I ended up going with a wine red finish and spent the extra $100 on the Epi hardshell case (not as good as a Gibson case, but the guitar fits well and it will do the job for everything I'll ask from it). Even with the case & guitar, after the trade I got to put a couple spare Benji's back in my wallet -- Major win!
Now, to be fair, once I got it home I had to do a few tweaks to make her road ready -- The lock nuts on the pots needed tightening as did the tuner set screws and nuts. It also needed a few tweaks to the intonation and bridge height to bring it into optimal playing condition. The nut was cut well, so no changes there. The frets were pretty well polished. A fresh set of strings and it was ready to go!
I have to tell you, I am incredibly impressed with the value this guitar brings to the player. I highly recommend taking a look at the Sheraton II Pro -- You won't be sorry!
Here's a link to pics --
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/wywv6f9ey...HaonnkvBa?dl=0