Epiphone les Paul

JAYJO

There are a few types of epiphone les paul about and i was thinking of maybe getting a used one off the bay. Are they any good? I have a Strat and Tele but fancy a les paul. Any opinions? I cant afford a original Gibson. Any opinions/advice  Much appreciated.

Lestratcaster

The new 2014 (or whatever year they are) models are quite decent. I have a 2012 one which cost £299 and with a good setup plus a few pickup/hardware changes it plays really nicely (on par with a Gibson imo). 

Quality control is a lot better than it was 10-15 years ago and they do bring out some half-decent guitars people on a budget.

hollywoodrox

I have a 96 Korean and had a 2016 Chinese one. Both really great .

JAYJO

Lestratcaster said:

The new 2014 (or whatever year they are) models are quite decent. I have a 2012 one which cost £299 and with a good setup plus a few pickup/hardware changes it plays really nicely (on par with a Gibson imo). 

Quality control is a lot better than it was 10-15 years ago and they do bring out some half-decent guitars people on a budget.

Would you not recommend 2002 unsung Korea std model? £285 delivered. 

JAYJO

hollywoodrox said:

I have a 96 Korean and had a 2016 Chinese one. Both really great .

The one I'm looking at is 2002 unsung Korea. 

Lestratcaster

JAYJO said:

Lestratcaster said:

The new 2014 (or whatever year they are) models are quite decent. I have a 2012 one which cost £299 and with a good setup plus a few pickup/hardware changes it plays really nicely (on par with a Gibson imo). 

Quality control is a lot better than it was 10-15 years ago and they do bring out some half-decent guitars people on a budget.

Would you not recommend 2002 unsung Korea std model? £285 delivered. 

I don't know much about those ones, for £285 I'd expect a decent playing guitar though.

Perdix

I have a 1996 Korean Epi Les Paul, had it 18 months and I still love it. Don't see how a Gibson could be so much better to justify the additional cost.

thermionic

Keep a look out for a Tribute Plus - proper maple cap, better switch & pots, and Gibson Classic ‘57 pickups. The only upgrade you’ll need to do is to add a pickguard.

Reverend

I had a korean 96 one that was a joy to play 

Alnico

I had an '02 Korean Goldtop and it was a beautiful guitar.

I'd buy a Korean Epiphone again in a heartbeat, probably a white LPC this time but yeah, they're great when they're in nice condition.

Nikc

My eldest son has an Epi Les Paul Std from new which is now over 10 years old - still a nice guitar sounds great with a pup upgrade and a decent set up

Nunogilberto

Decent enough guitars. I had a 2000 Korean Standard and a 2004 Korean Custom a couple of years ago and they were great. I've also had a couple of Chinese models and there was nothing wrong with them.

Mind you, the Vintage V100 is a cracking guitar in the same sort of price band, not to mention the ESP LTD EC256 or EC401...

Rabs

If I were going Epi, I would go for one of the ones with the new more "Gibsony" headstocks..  Seem very nice
https://www.andertons.co.uk/epiphone-les-paul-standard-50s-heritage-cherry-sunburst
https://www.andertons.co.uk/epiphone-les-paul-classic-worn-metallic-gold
£529
https://i.imgur.com/wnGeBqw.jpg?1
£399 for this one
https://i.imgur.com/vgGaXc1.jpg?1

Cols

I have a ‘97 Les Paul which I’ve had since new, I believe this is the same era/factory as the one you’re looking at.  It was a good guitar, and after upgrading all the hardware and electronics it’s a great guitar.

siremoon

I've got a 2006 LP standard which I got for very little on ebay a few years ago.  I changed the pickups and whilst it's not "the best LP I've ever played and beats every Gibson ever made out of sight" good, it's certainly decent enough.

TTBZ

I had an Epiphone Les Paul custom for a long time and thought it was a great guitar. My main guitar now is a Gibson SG and going back to an Epiphone does feel like a bit of a downgrade but it's also not as pronounced as you'd imagine given the price difference. The new ones feel good and the Custom comes with an ebony board and Probuckers which are nice. CTS pots too I believe. I felt like the finish was a bit cheap feeling but maybe properly flattened off with some wire wool might give it a nicer feel. I'm still tempted by one because it's the closest I'll get to a proper LP Custom in my lifetime.

Balrog68

+1 for 1996 Korean Epi LPs...I've had mine for 4 months and it's become my goto 6 string. Best built, prettiest guitar I've ever had. 

hollywoodrox

JAYJO said:

hollywoodrox said:

I have a 96 Korean and had a 2016 Chinese one. Both really great .

The one I'm looking at is 2002 unsung Korea. 

If you got to a forum called mylespaul I think they have an epiphone sub forum on it ,they have loads of info on there and know almost everything

hollywoodrox

Mylespaul epiphone forum. One of the best les Paul forums around

https://www.mylespaul.com/forum/epiphone-les-pauls.3/

oldfoxy

Whilst you can't say guitars built in any particular factory will be better than anything else, the Unsung factory has a good rep among the epi aficionados.  I have a 56 goldtop Pro which was tweaked by Clive Burnage of Unsung Hero Guitars, now living stateside, and it's a great player.  Has a bigsby fitted and there is nothing cooler than a les paul goldtop with a bigsby

JAYJO

hollywoodrox said:

Mylespaul epiphone forum. One of the best les Paul forums around

https://www.mylespaul.com/forum/epiphone-les-pauls.3/

Thanks for the link mate.