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ESP: Phoenix II
List: $1,950
Lest we forget, the Phoenix is essentially a fire bird & ESP’s ribbing of the legendary Gibson Firebird is manifested here but the headstock holds the manufacturer’s own outline. The other marked differences would be the treble side cutaway- do note the subtle hooked bout design- & upon handling, the Phoenix II gives you the 25.5” scale length experience as opposed to the 24.75” of the Gibson version.
Construction/ Fit/ Finish
As makers of fine musical instruments, ESP gives us a quality electric guitar per se as opposed to being bent on varying a copy. The fitting of this Phoenix II befits the exacting standards of a product in this price range. We can observe some careful attachments of the body wings to its primary through-neck block. This is an area of observation because the export model on appraisal here sports a toned colour gradation which reveals much of the attachment process. It would be shameful for a guitar this fine to manifest reckless production glue spills upon close scrutiny but no inequity of this nature was to be discovered. The other area of surveillance would be the guitar’s neck binding. We often observe frayed edges when it comes to such meticulous job description but it’s trim & proper across the fingerboard edges all along the neck. To top it all off, as aforementioned, the Phoenix II is finished in an impressive gloss overcoat (less the ebony fingerboard, of course) adding much good to the instrument’s overall mass which would influence its tonal content.
Touching on the Phoenix II’s hardware, ESP decides to give us simple fixtures much in line with the original Fire Bird’s intent & purposes; an instrument to dabble tone with & not be bogged down by excessive user mechanics. We have Gotoh’s tune-o-matic type bridge & hard tail over at the body to keep things fundamental but functional & this reviewer is particularly appreciative of the manufacturer’s inclusion of (Gotoh’s) Magnum Lock tuners over at the headstock. All hardware appointments here are well seated in their respective dwelling places, this includes the 22 XJ frets- approvingly crowned & pressed.
Rating: 92%
Playability/ Tone
The reverence for any respectable guitars should culminate in its beautiful singing tone & exclusive feel. The ESP brand name holds its own philosophy in this aspect; the level of performance here is reflective of the instrument’s asking price as well as the privileged aura it exudes. The Phoenix II, upon handling, feels absolutely solid & ready for some heavy duty music. A quick unplugged testing reveals a healthy dose of midrange & no treble excess (excessive brightness to the rest of us) to suggest chambered body parts. The default action is a fair representation of playability; a guitar prompting you to dig in & play with lots of feel but coupled with that thin U-profile neck, it’s hard not to showcase some shred. It is also a worthy notice that the Phoenix II’s rear body is a leveled affair unlike the Gibson manifestation where the centre slab remains raised both in front & flipside. The player gets equal comfort playing this sitting down & strapped on, thanks to the ribcage chamfering as well.
Moving on to the pickups on board, the presence of Seymour Duncan’s JB (bridge) & ’59 (neck) humbuckers means the Phoenix is equally adept to driven & clean tones. The covered units also means less protrusive upper end frequencies, very geared towards classic rock as evident with a crunchy Marshall. The quick attack ebony fingerboard could also be heard in this channel through the ’59. However, the subject of sheer dichotomy has to be the controls- ESP offers the user a twin volume attack, opting for a very open, no-tone concept instead of the traditional volume & tone pairing. Some of us would frown upon an excessively bright voicing at maximum volume but a good serving of wooliness could be dialed in with a little knock off the guitar’s volume. This is very rewarding for players employing a straight-through plug in & the reviewer here was very pleased with the chemistry manifested by this guitar plus the aforementioned Marshall, with no pedal interventions whatsoever. Extensive tonal offerings could be acquired with the fusion of both pickups at various volume settings; how about that to keep us occupied?
Tone test gear:
• Amplifier: Marshall JVM410
Rating: 92%
Conclusion
With every ESP-tagged instrument, we need not ponder over quality issues. The same assurances could be said for feel & tone; the manufacturer makes no accommodations here as implied by the price tag. We get a wholesome instrument whose performance dynamics belie its traditional looks (albeit some unique & tasteful tampering). The Phoenix II differs fundamentally in tone to the Fire Bird as it employs a pair of full-sized humbuckers unlike the latter’s mini humbuckers. Players who wish for a simple but striking tone to work with should check the Phoenix II out for its fiery performance (pun intended).
Final rating: 90%
Product availability: Davis GMC
Likes:
• Playability
• Tone
• Locking tuners
• Hard case included
Dislike:
• 2 volume offering isn’t everyone’s cup of tea
Worthy competitor:
• Gibson: Firebird V
