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  #1  
Old 11-19-2020, 08:44 PM
29er 29er is online now
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Default NGD - Epiphone ES-335 Figured

The latest edition of the Epiphone ES-335 will hit my porch tomorrow. Officially, it is the ES-335 Figured in Raspberry Tea finish. I have been wanting a lower cost semi hollow body for a while and Epiphone has produced a guitar that I'm hoping will scratch that itch. Also hoping it plays & sounds as good as it looks
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  #2  
Old 11-20-2020, 03:51 AM
pieterh pieterh is offline
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It looks awesome! My band mate has an Epi semi-hollow and it is a fine guitar!
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Old 11-20-2020, 06:00 AM
rmp rmp is online now
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NICE! I'm glad Epi reissued these.
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Old 11-20-2020, 08:08 AM
Steve DeRosa Steve DeRosa is offline
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That finish/wood is absolutely stunning - use it well, often, and LOUD - but is it really Epiphone...?

These are - and part of Epiphone's new heritage-inspired lineup for 2021:



Frankly, it's about time they shook off the "cheap Gibson" legacy of the Henry J. years - there's already enough stuff on the market in this category/price bracket (don't get me started on the Fender wannabes ), and IME there's nothing since their pre-2008 Korean-production period that distinguishes Epiphone from their competitors in terms of either quality or features (pickups are good - some very good - but that's about it) - and took on Gretsch heads-up as an "affordable vintage" brand. They're off to a good start (there's also a USA Casino in the works, if they can get the period details right before release - that '59 neck is way out of character - and long-standing rumors of a line of New York-style archtops, to compete with Eastman's highly-respected jazzboxes and replace the ill-conceived Masterbilts), and if the new regime at Gibson/Epiphone can sustain the momentum they could be poised to re-establish the unique brand identity they enjoyed in their NY/Kalamazoo heyday - without the risk of running afoul of the Gibson division (as they did with their too-good-for-their-own-good circa-2K Elite/Elitist line of ultra-high-quality Gibson knockoffs); that teaburst Riviera looks sweet - I'm a big fan of mini-buckers anyway - and if they ever release a cherry-finish '66 Sheraton with a dove-wing headstock you won't have any problem prying my wallet open...
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Old 11-20-2020, 11:25 AM
6stringpickin 6stringpickin is offline
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Congrats, hope the itch is scratched! I purchased one of the Epiphone “63” Dot Elitists before they were discontinued and it is a definite keeper. Hope yours is the same, that’s a great finish it has.
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Old 11-20-2020, 02:59 PM
Dru Edwards Dru Edwards is offline
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Wow! That's a stunning top. Congrats on the Epi and let us know what you think of it when it arrives.
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Old 11-20-2020, 03:16 PM
29er 29er is online now
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Disclaimer, that photo is not of my actual guitar. Mine did arrive today and I will need to change the strings to my favored 11-48 gauge and do a little tweaking of the truss rod & action. Also, my timing is horrible for a NGD because I've been suffering from a horrible sinus infection and can't trust my ears to judge anything right now!

I bought the guitar from Sweetwater and downloaded some of their professional pics of my actual instrument but the AGF site is not letting me upload them. I will look into this and post a few pics soon.

Current sinus situation aside, the guitar seems very well built and the finish is stunning. The tuners and hardware are very good and maybe even a touch above what I expected for an instrument at this price point. The fret work is excellent. I will withhold judgement on tone until I can hear again.
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Old 11-20-2020, 03:44 PM
ghostnote ghostnote is offline
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Looks nice! I have acquired three Epi electrics over the years and they are all fine guitars that I'm very pleased with. I'm betting you'll be happy with yours.
(FYI, mine are a Sheraton, a Casino, and a Johnny A) Enjoy!
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Old 11-20-2020, 03:56 PM
DukeX DukeX is offline
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Very, very nice! I think you ae going to love it.
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Old 11-20-2020, 05:21 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 29er View Post
The latest edition of the Epiphone ES-335 will hit my porch tomorrow. Officially, it is the ES-335 Figured in Raspberry Tea finish. I have been wanting a lower cost semi hollow body for a while and Epiphone has produced a guitar that I'm hoping will scratch that itch. Also hoping it plays & sounds as good as it looks
That is pretty. congrats
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Old 11-20-2020, 10:25 PM
The Growler The Growler is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Dru Edwards View Post
Wow! That's a stunning top. Congrats on the Epi and let us know what you think of it when it arrives.
This. ^^^

A winner with that top if you like the sound. Beautiful.
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Old 11-21-2020, 10:32 AM
lowrider lowrider is offline
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I'm looking forward to seeing more of your impressions of this guitar. I know I'm going to get one. I'd like to wait until I can feel comfortable going to the store to try them out, but I don't know if I can hold out that long!

I think I want the traditional red finish. Your's looks beautiful, give us some live pick when you can tell us more about it!
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Old 11-22-2020, 08:02 AM
29er 29er is online now
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Here are few pics I took this morning. They aren't nearly as nice as the pro shots from Sweetwater but I can't seem to load them on this site so my own low-fi pics will have to do.

My initial reaction? Epiphone did a nice job on this guitar. AFAIK, the changes made were pretty much all cosmetic and if making it seem less like a cheap Gibson copy (which is what it is) then they did good work. I much prefer the "new" headstock shape and the lack of the cheesy E on the pickguard. The flame veneer looks great and the burst finish has a nice subtle fade. It is a looker.

Out of the box, I had to give the truss rod a half turn due to too much relief. The rod was completely loose and the first 1/4 turn resulted in simply getting it snug. The 2nd 1/4 turn did the trick of reducing the relief to my liking. The tuners feel great and the nut is cut very well, no catching or pinging when tuning. The CTS pots seem fine and they taper as you would expect when changing volume/tone. As I mentioned before, I am dealing with a sinus infection that has my ears plugged up so I am not going to try to judge the quality of the pickups yet, but I am able to tell the the neck pickup seems fairly hot compared to the bridge. I lowered the neck pup just a bit and they seem more balanced now. Epiphone says the finger board is Indian Laurel. I am not an authority on woods, but it looks very much like a lighter hued rosewood. The fret work on the guitar is fantastic. I find no dead spots. They are leveled very well and there is no fret sprout. Nice work.

The main problem I am having is that since I don't play much electric anymore the 10-46 gauge strings feel like wet noodles and I push the darn thing out of tune when I play. No fault of the guitar, I just need to adjust to the fact that I'm not playing my flat tops when I grab this baby. My thought on buying this is to work on the T-Bone Walker/Gatemouth Brown type of electric blues that I love to hear. Anyhow, I think it's an awesome guitar and I hope to be able to hear it properly soon!
Attached Images
File Type: jpg Epi 1.jpg (30.8 KB, 67 views)
File Type: jpg Epi 2.jpg (31.0 KB, 64 views)
File Type: jpg Epi 4.jpg (24.5 KB, 63 views)
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  #14  
Old 11-22-2020, 08:06 AM
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2 more from my low-fi photo shoot.
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File Type: jpg Epi 3.jpg (20.3 KB, 65 views)
File Type: jpg Epi 5.jpg (25.2 KB, 64 views)
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Old 11-22-2020, 08:39 AM
Steve DeRosa Steve DeRosa is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by 29er View Post
...The main problem I am having is that since I don't play much electric anymore the 10-46 gauge strings feel like wet noodles and I push the darn thing out of tune when I play. No fault of the guitar, I just need to adjust to the fact that I'm not playing my flat tops when I grab this baby...
No, you don't - just like the "1-3/4 or death" cult in the steel-string acoustic world (check the General subforum ), there's no law that says you can't use heavier strings (including a wound G) if it suits your stylistic/tonal/physical needs; FYI I've been an electric player virtually all my life: never used a plain G, and until very recently - and only as a concession to age - never used anything lighter than 12's on any of my electrics. FWIW you'll also reap the sonic benefits of getting some body resonance and "wood" into your tone - lots of electric players' complaints about "thin" tone could be better-addressed with a $10 set of strings than a $300 set of upgrade pickups - that IME has turned many a one-trick pony into a highly-versatile tone machine. BTW the '50s jazzers and rockabilly cats all knew this - don't forget that Leo Fender's creations shipped with flatwound 12's, typical hollowbodies with 13's, and the bop guys often used 14's - and, with a similar setup (you'll need a good pro job - nut, frets, neck, bridge, tailpiece break angle - to get the action properly low), unless you're bending up a third or more on every tune, IME you'll have no problem executing any common electric-specific technique...
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