FUQ (eff -yu - cue) - FAQ's with an EDGE

Tagged As: Epiphone Guitar Review

Question:
When I saw the cheap price MF has on the Emperor II I had to order it. I've only had one other Epi before - a Dot Deluxe, which was a pretty good guitar. The reviews for the Emperor are pretty good, here are some snippets: I own a Gibson ES-175 which is great, but find myself playing this Joe Pass model more frequently. Can't believe the price for the sound! Just because they price is lower than most arch tops, the sound is equalled or better. I own a Custom Shop ES 175 and wow, this guitar rivals my Custom. Not quite as solid but an excellent addition to my arsenal. I'm a die hard Gibson freak so that comment doesn't come easy. Plenty more reviews like this. Will it be as good as they say? Do I trust MF reviews on the products they sell? The only ES 175 I have every played actually seemed pretty bland to me, at least for what was being asked for it! Will the Emperor II be any good - I'll have to wait and see. But could it be that one of these is actually better than a Gibson that it is coping?

Answer:
I was looking at an Epiphone Firebird reissue and came very close to walking out with it. Played and sounded fine. This shop had lots of vintage guitars, so I picked up a few old Strats and a couple of LPs, and I to me the feel was not appreciabley better on the vintage guitars than on the Epiphone. Cost was $540, and if I can talk the finance manager (the wifey) into it, I'll have it in my hands soon. I get Guitar World and have come to the conclusion that they have never found a product they didn't like. I've never seen a negative review, certainly nothing that said spend your money elsewhere. I think I would find more objective reviews in Motor Trend magazine. At least some of Motor Trend's advertising comes from non-automotive companies, so maybe that gives them more freedom. If GW gave a bad review to a Gibson and they pulled out of the mag, that would really hurt.