subversion
Moderator
Epiphone Les Paul Std Plus
List: $1,000
Players with shallow pockets yearning for a sumptuous Gibson Les Paul would revert to Epiphone’s economical offerings by default; why look elsewhere when Epiphone was formally commissioned to replicate the industry’s legend. Nevertheless, buyers should walk into the guitar store with full awareness that there is a grand difference between a Gibson & an Epiphone; the latter isn’t simply a budget alternative.
Construction/ fit/ finish/ features
The initial Epiphone LPs were American but as the years go by, owing to the guitar’s budget philosophy, it made economical sense for the manufacturer to shift production to the Far East. Production standards were appalling initially but much progress was chartered especially in areas of electronic concern. The current Epi LP Std models (this Plus included) are Chinese end products.
The Chinese constructional, fit & finish standards are more than satisfactory judging from this guitar alone. Gone are the ill-fitted nut, protruding fret wires & dodgy switching system. The overall make of this Plus is worthy of the Gibson affiliation but the finishing needs refinements. The test model displays lacquer stains on selected fretboard areas, glue splashes over at the nut vicinity (nothing too catastrophic, mind you), dark stains on the fretboard binding adjacent to neck pickup’s mounting ring & frayed body binding but fortunately in minimal accounts.
The hardware here is faultless, all controls knobs are rather stiff but the default tuners & pickup toggle switch are effective & functional. There is a certain plastic quality coming from the lacquer here so the Gibson worshippers handling this one would deem the feel to be on the wrong side of appeal.
The manufacturer promises a carved top guitar featuring a maple cap & a mahogany back but that is never an assurance when you invest in all things Epiphone. Countless mod squads were horrified to discover non-mahogany blocks (up to 5 pieces in some cases) beneath the solid finish & the maple cap being a ply offering. The audition model here isn’t any different, the wood material beneath the translucent finish displays a wrong mahogany hue & the block joints are rather obvious but all these economical attributes are saved by the glorious maple cap so from front view, the Plus remains to be a visual pleasure.
Rating:
• Construction/ fit: 90%
• Finish/ features: 70%
Tone/ feel
Naturally with a guitar of this nature, the constructional compromise is secondary to tonal concerns. The manufacturer would be financial morons if they do not include a certain attraction in their wares knowing the concessions in other departments.Arguably, the primary attraction here is the Plus’ playability & tone. Despite a lack of inspiring lacquer grade, the Plus remains to be a very playable guitar. The excessive gloss coating would impede fretting hand maneuverability for some of us but it isn’t a choke for sure.
The default humbuckers here are a complete make-over from the detestable versions of the ‘90s. They prove to be above-average for players looking to propel blues-rock & contemporary pop music. The drive maniacs would lament a loss in form at higher gain settings which no boutique grade pedal could rectify- it’s all about reputable inherence, not external rectifiers. The frustrations in this department could be effectively alleviated if the player is ready to invest in some tasty replacement humbuckers. Clean, the bridge pickup suffers from a bland response but the neck unit is so much more appealing; jazz cats would be pleased to say the least.
With this in mind, please do not expect immaculate tonal parallels of a Gibson counterpart. While the Epiphone LPs of today are much more superior to the cohort a decade ago, they remain to be mid-priced guitars in the market despite adopting the immortal Les Paul outline.
Tone test equipment:
• Amps: Randall RLG75/ Ibanez ValBee/ Roland Cube 30X
Rating: 88%
Conclusion
Are you still perturbed by the fact that this guitar features 4 – 5 pieces of body blocks & that wood in there, well, isn’t mahogany for sure? Get over it, please. If you are troubled by such feature deviations, do well to invest in a Gibson. This is an above average set-neck guitar with the correct attributes, especially the mass, to propel that hallowed LP tone but it’s not 100% on target, again owing to the constraints as mentioned.
The talk now is that Korean Epi LPs are superior in make & tone compared to the current Chinese substandard- what bollocks. If there is any superiority to be stamped, it has to be the initial American version; the subsequent models are simply far eastern compromises. Is superiority a cascading concept then? So if the Epis turn Singaporean, will it be any inferior to its Chinese manifestation? A good guitar is a good guitar, regardless of its country of origin but this philosophy isn’t about to be readily embraced by buyers any time, especially so when they get bad accounts with the current production. Epiphone should continue to refine their wares to campaign against rising copies like Burny, Tokai & Edwards, among others, whose LP copies incorporate ready refinements, making them more desirable than the commissioned product.
All in all, the Std Plus here is a deserving LP copy but it’s not a comprehensive Gibson substitute by any means.
Overall rating: 78%
Likes:
• Playability, tone
• Fair price
Dislikes:
• Finish standard
• Knobs could have been smoother
Worthy competitors:
• Burny RLG75
• Tokai LS75
• Edwards E-LP85
