Epiphone AJ 45 me

TBman · #1 07-22-2017, 04:37 PM

If you want a J-45, but you're on a budget... Not a gloss finish though. I played one yesterday and it was good.

http://www.zzounds.com/item--EPIEME4?siid=174708

learner · #2 07-22-2017, 04:53 PM

Funny you mention that, TBman. I just played one at GC not two hours ago. I liked it a lot, but I'm not in the market.

jricc · #3 07-22-2017, 04:56 PM

I think the non gloss finish is a plus. Epiphone has a tendency to pile on the gloss finish. BTW, I love Epi's, I have 3.

EMLPicks · #4 07-23-2017, 07:05 PM

I played one of these as well as a couple of their new Masterbilt archtops last week and was really disappointed in all of them. They all felt (and more importantly, sounded) overbuilt. Perhaps the wood they were using was too thick, and the substantial electronics glued under the top of the 45 weren't helping. Either way, I thought they were very subdued and lifeless, especially compared to how my Masterbilt AJ-500R sounded out of the box a decade or so ago. I hope they take critical feedback and improve all of these new models over time, because they have a lot of potential.

mdshax · #5 07-23-2017, 08:37 PM

Hey, I just played one of these a few hours ago! I thought it sounded good, but not really like a J45. It has a little of that Gibson tone, but it's a different beast IMO. Kind of light on the bass end, but not a bad midrange sound. The feel was good when playing, too. I personally wasn't a fan of the satin finish, but others might be. If I were looking for a decent guitar at that price point I might be tempted.