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Old 06-30-2021, 09:50 AM
wren hinds wren hinds is offline
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Default Epiphone Sheraton II

Greetings from South Africa! I've recently enlisted an Epiphone Sheraton II into my arsenal, and boy is she a beaut... What are your folks' thoughts on the new Epiphone instruments out of China? I've also got an Epi Emperor II Joe Pass edition who has been a solid workhorse for 7 years, but now relegated to the "B-Team" and will likely retire from my ownership, hence the Sheraton will take the reigns from the Emperor.

I looked at two 80's Korean Sheraton's and they were each totally different from one another, but the neck felt super skinny and didn't seem as beefed up as the Sheraton II... The 80's korean models however look pretty cool to mod out and customize to create something unique (add a bigsby, change pickups etc) I don't know why, but for some reason this folk-head is on a Sheraton binge, just love the look and feel of the guitar.

My main instrument is a 1980's Yamaha CJ818 Jumbo Acoustic which is my lifetime partner.

Interested to hear your opinions friends.

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Yamaha CJ818, Epiphone Emperor II, Epiphone Sheraton II, Yamaha Guitalele
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Old 06-30-2021, 06:20 PM
Steve DeRosa Steve DeRosa is offline
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If you're looking for a true '60s Epiphone tone, the full-size humbuckers on the current Sheraton II won't cut it - more along the lines of the traditional thicker Gibson sound IME; by the same token, one of these (a step below the Sheraton in the original Kalamazoo lineup) should be right up your alley, for similar money:



https://www.sweetwater.com/store/det...body-royal-tan
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Old 06-30-2021, 08:03 PM
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keith.rogers keith.rogers is offline
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I had a Kalamazoo Riviera. Great guitar, that got stolen back in the mid 70s through my own bumbling (got home late from a gig and a little too lazy/loaded to unload the car, left everything in, visible, duh). This looks like a great re-creation. They (Asia Epiphone) did one before - maybe with gold appointments?, and also a 3 pickup model with whammy (as if they weren't heavy enough...) - passed on that. This one looks right (back should be darker, IIRC, or maybe a tobacco-ish SB), and makes me a little itchy.

p.s. I got a Sheraton II for a friend - another heavy guitar, but, really, they can be quite good. His sounds terrific, and was $400 in the used market, with a hard case, from GC! (a few years back).
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Last edited by keith.rogers; 06-30-2021 at 08:09 PM.
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Old 07-01-2021, 04:59 AM
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ssstewart ssstewart is offline
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Congrats on the new Git would love to see a pic. with the Epiphones/Fender Squires/ Yams/etc etc whether Made in China (MIC) or MIM/MII/MIK etc etc. they vary alot is quality and material with the biggest determiner being which run? 1st/2nd 3rd etc...you would think further down in runs would lead to greater quality or consistency but i have not found this to be the case... 1st runs usually have the highest quality material and conformance to what epi/fender etc expect, as you get to 2nd and 3rd runs the factories usually delve into alternate material/shortcuts based on what they have and time to expedite building. I have owned many many foreign made gits and some of them are 10x better than the USA or Quebec made gits..in the end dont judge a book by its Made in ???, some are amazing...some suck

Congrats again an happy picking.
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Old 07-01-2021, 07:57 AM
wren hinds wren hinds is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Steve DeRosa View Post
If you're looking for a true '60s Epiphone tone, the full-size humbuckers on the current Sheraton II won't cut it - more along the lines of the traditional thicker Gibson sound IME; by the same token, one of these (a step below the Sheraton in the original Kalamazoo lineup) should be right up your alley, for similar money:



https://www.sweetwater.com/store/det...body-royal-tan
Wow these look fantastic, and pretty gorgeous too, thanks for sharing! Perhaps when I stumble upon a Riviera I'll pick her up and give her a test drive, love that they're fitted with those retro tailpieces!
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Old 07-01-2021, 08:06 AM
wren hinds wren hinds is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by ssstewart View Post
Congrats on the new Git would love to see a pic. with the Epiphones/Fender Squires/ Yams/etc etc whether Made in China (MIC) or MIM/MII/MIK etc etc. they vary alot is quality and material with the biggest determiner being which run? 1st/2nd 3rd etc...you would think further down in runs would lead to greater quality or consistency but i have not found this to be the case... 1st runs usually have the highest quality material and conformance to what epi/fender etc expect, as you get to 2nd and 3rd runs the factories usually delve into alternate material/shortcuts based on what they have and time to expedite building. I have owned many many foreign made gits and some of them are 10x better than the USA or Quebec made gits..in the end dont judge a book by its Made in ???, some are amazing...some suck

Congrats again an happy picking.
You're spot on there ssstewart, just gotta pick em up and play em. I'll post up a pic soonest! As much as I prefer older, vintage instruments, the 2014 Sheri II definitely looks and feels like more of a solid build, like a cadillac... For truckers... The 80's Sheri was appealing mostly for the age and novelty, but I did notice it seemed a little more cheap looking even though it held its tune beautifully. The 2014 has got a nice chunky neck and you feel like you've got more of a beast in your hands It's a little on the glam side with it's ebony body and gold hardware, but definitely worth placing in the 1st team for abit.
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