Epiphone Dot or Ibanez AFS75T?

[lunarsoul]

Any opinions or reviews for these two guitars? Can't decide between the two of them.

 

[popeye]

Any opinions or reviews for these two guitars? Can't decide between the two of them.

they are two different guitar aren't they?
One is plain semi hollow body and the other one is full hollow body with bigsby.

If I were you, I would choose based on the tone I want to achieve. Say, if I play jazz more, I would choose the full hollowbody. But for versatility, I would choose the semi hollow. It is not bad for jazz, very nice for blues, and it can rock too

 

[subversion]

avoid the Ibanez bigsby-type whammy, doesn't hold tuning well + stiff. the bigsby-less Artcores are excellent for the money.

 

[lunarsoul]

Thanks for the advice guys.

Subversion, when you say that it doesn't hold the tuning well, I assume that's if you frequently use the the bigsby? Read that its a problem on such Bigsby style tremolos. Is it harder to re-string guitars like that?

 

[subversion]

one can say that for a bigsby/ bigsby type whammy in general, they're bound to be inherent tuning-realated issues. rightfully so because the string saddles weren't made to address this concern, unless you replace them with the roller type.

stringing- not as time-consuming/ meticulous as a floyd-type locking bridge.

2nd Artcore coming my way... 8)

 

[Crawldaddy]

Hmm.

I've tried both a while back (and I've heard the Artcore played live before)... the Dot has a slightly wider and chunkier neck compared to the Artcore if my memory serves me right...

Sound-wise... the Artcore would definitely shine more for cleans (depending on your amp of course), but the Dot may have a slightly better edge for overdrive tones.

The Dot is also slightly heavier compared to the Artcore (due to the Dot's semi-hollowness compared to the full-hollowness of the Artcore?)

But if you give me a choice between the two... I'd choose the Dot because I play rock and roll. However for Jazz (which I do not play, btw) I'd say the Artcore because of it's better overal sound clarity.

 

[popeye]

2nd Artcore coming my way... 8)

artcore custom? :twisted:

 

[subversion]

nope- AGS83... have always wanted a satin finished Artcore

 

[ArcWelder]

Hi .... just to mention a few things that might help u decide..

The AFS75T does come with roller saddles ... it works quite well with the Bigsby knockoff ... given a well lubricated nut ...And provided u don't go too crazy on it (it's meant for a wobbling/vibrato effect rather than dive-bombing).

Setting up(Intonation/string change) can b a pain if u'r not familiar as the bridge moves (it's a seperate piece hold on to the body by string tension)
...Also if u'r a heavy handed player ..it might shift thus tuning issue arises...
One solution is to 'Pin' the bridge ... that's a different story ...

Another difference between the Dot n AFS other than whats mentioned ..is the fret acess/neck joint ... it's easier to reach the high frets with the Dot ..

And of course they sound totally different ....so go do a head to head n see which u fancy ... :lol:

 

[subversion]

The AFS75T does come with roller saddles ... it works quite well with the Bigsby knockoff ... given a well lubricated nut ...And provided u don't go too crazy on it (it's meant for a wobbling/vibrato effect rather than dive-bombing).

everytime i try any Artcore with that Bigsbyesque vibrato, i get upset by the stiffness of the mechanism more than anything else. then comes the tuning & set-up concern...

 

[tany]

do ur use the semi hollow guitars strictly for jazz only?

 

[subversion]

definitely not. i didn't buy an Artcore just to play jazz. in fact, it's used for high gain stuff as well.

 

[ArcWelder]

Subversion .. can u pls elaborate on the "stiffness of the mechanism" ....
r u comparing it to an original Bigsby or other types of trem units ?

Just want to know ....have not tried any original Bigsby before ....Thanks ..

One thing for sure ... string gauge also plays a very important role ....

Oh .... I'm using the AFS75T for high gain stuff also ... just have to watch that feedback ...

 

[lunarsoul]

Arc Welder,

Thankz for the info. Will prob try out both guitars before deciding.

 

[subversion]

Subversion .. can u pls elaborate on the "stiffness of the mechanism" ....
r u comparing it to an original Bigsby or other types of trem units ?

definitely comparing to the bigsby. i've tried several in Gretsches/ Electromatic models. it might be due to the materials used (metal grade) for the assembly components.

 

[ArcWelder]

Lunarsoul , don't mention it .. by discussing we learn from each other ...

Subversion , I see ..thanks ... will find out more ...

 

[subversion]

for those who are about to invest in a bigsby-type vibrato Artcore, it's isn't a bad unit for sure.