2008 Epiphone Les Paul Custom Guitar Review

Howdy!

Today we are looking at an Epiphone limited edition Silverburst Les Paul Custom guitar that was only sold for a brief time in 2008, though they must have made o ton of them because I see them pretty often. It is a fine looking instrument and is well built, but the electronics have not held up too well over the years.

The Custom has always been the top of the Les Paul line-up, and this one is a tribute to the original Silverburst instruments that were made from 1979 to 1985. The vintage Silverburst Les Pauls have been the go-to axe for Adam Jones from Tool, so they have developed a cult following and they are stupidly expensive now.

Les Paul Customs are set apart from the Standard models by more intricate inlays, as well as multi-ply body binding. This Epiphone got these adornments, but not the usual gold-plated hardware (thankfully).

Other than the color, the specs are fairly standard for an imported Les Paul. It has a mahogany body with a carved alder top, which is surprising considering that these usually have maple tops. The 24.75-inch scale set neck is mahogany, which is normal, but differs from the maple necks on the original Silverburst Les Pauls. The whole thing has a coat of thick poly and the Silverburst fade is only on the front. The back is glossy black, while the originals were Silverburst back there instead.

The neck has a 1 11/16-inch wide nut, and a fairly fat profile. The rosewood fretboard has trapezoid pearl inlays, and it has an evenly applied cream binding. The headstock carries the 5-ply binding over from the body, and it is equipped with chrome Grover sealed-back tuners. In case you care, there is a diamond mother of pearl inlay on the front of the headstock, and an Epiphone Custom Shop Logo on the back. I would be curious to see their Custom Shop…

The rest of the hardware is standard fare, with a chrome Tune-o-matic bridge with a stopbar tail piece and a multi-ply black pickguard. And the electronics are just about what you would expect on an Epiphone. These Customs come with plain-Jane Alnico humbucker with the usual Les Paul 2 volume / 2 tone knobs set-up.

In the end, this turns out to be a good collection of parts, and Epiphone’s Chinese (factory did a fab job of sticking them together. I am continually astonished that the public continues real-deal Gibson Les Pauls with terrible necks and frets when there are much better alternatives out there for less money.

This Silverburst Les Paul Custom has a nice neck with perfect frets and a pretty low action with no fiddling around or modifications. It has a C profile and its thickness is right in the middle between the 50’s and 60’s neck profiles that are so popular. This translates into a lot smoother playing experience for me, which is worth a bunch because I do not have much talent.

Unfortunately, the years have not been kind to the electronics on this one, as one of the pickups has dies and the other has a whacky tone that is super muddy. It certainly could benefit from new pickups and wiring, and I think a set of Burstbuckers (maybe out of phase) would be magical in this guitar. If you are going for the full Tool mod, Jones says he uses a Seymour Duncan JB at the bridge, though I have my doubts that he is being truthful, and without a maple neck and ebony fretboard it just will not sound the same anyway…

When this run of Epiphone Silverburst Les Paul Customs was originally on sale their street price was around $600 (with no case), which is pricy for an Epiphone Les Paul. But nowadays they go for around $300 to $400, which is a good price for a nice guitar. But, make sure you plug it in before you buy…

Mahalo!

Shredneck Dreadneck DN-7 Guitar Trainer Review

Howdy!

A while back I reviewed the kind of odd Shredneck guitar trainer. This is a practice tool that is designed to simulate the string tension of an electric guitar help improve strength and dexterity in your playing hand, as well as helping to build or maintain calluses. Well, I just got one of their Dreadneck models (the DN-7), which is the same concept except for acoustic guitars, so here we go!

It is weird - just a chunk of guitar neck with tuners on the end. You get seven frets to play with, so you can master the cowboy chords in no time flat. This acoustic model has a 1 ¾-inch wide nut, and the whole thing is about 16 inches long. I have no idea what it is made of (mahogany?), though the fretboard appears to be rosewood with just a little grain. There are not really any specs on their website about what it is made of. It has a nice feel, with flat C-profile that does not feel like any Martin or Taylor I have ever played.

When you play it, it does not sound like a guitar, or even terribly musical. How could it? With such a short scale length the frets would have to be stupidly close together to make it sound like a guitar, so just tune it so the strings feel like the same tension as your regular guitar and go to town. The headstock acts as the body, and there is some felt stuck to the end so it does not slide off your knee. There are also strap pins, but I am not sure how you would ever use them.

And, you know what? It works pretty darned well. For my left had, it feels like a guitar, and I can sit there and noiseless fret chords while chatting on the phone or watching TV in the hotel room. It is pretty cool to keep my fingers in shape and my calluses nice and thick while on the road or when parking my butt in otherwise useless situations.

The one I got is relatively well built. The fret ends are good, and it is a solidly made piece of work from China. My wife has messed around with it a bit too, and as one who ants to build up her calluses she gives it her seal of approval.

The Dreadneck comes with a handy carry case, and it would be easy enough to throw in a briefcase or carry-on bag for your next flight. One nice add-on is the tuner tips which fit over the ends of the tuner posts to cover up pointy string ends that could puncture your hand or snag on your sweater. All of this can be yours for the low price around 70 bucks from Amazon or Musician’s Friend (MSRP is $99.99).

If you like the concept of this tool, it is also available in models that approximate the feel of 6 or 7-string electrics, basses, and a model that simulates playing in the upper registers. Also, if you have a hankering to get one that is inspired by your favorite artist (Zakk Wylde, etc.) they might be able to hook you up.

Mahalo!

Hofner Ignition Series Vintage Violin Bass Review

Aloha!

Most every bass player on the planet over the age of 40 can picture Paul McCartney playing his Hofner bass as he stood up in front of The Beatles. I have never had the desire to own one of these instruments, though I have often wondered how well they play. After trying out their super bargain basement version Ignition Series Vintage Violin bass I still have to wonder, as there is no way he played something this crummy if he had any other choice.

These unique basses go back 60 years, when they were designed by Walter Höfner in 1955. The 500/1 Violin Bass is the one that McCartney plays, and they are still being made in Germany, with price tags that approach $5000 ($3500 street), and they must be at least pretty good for that kind of money. Now, the Ignition Series instruments like the one I am reviewing are made in China, and judging by this example they are miserable chunks of crap.

If you take a casual glance at this violin bass, it has the same shape and style as the original. It has a spruce top and flamed maple sides and back. It is available in sunburst or black, though why would you ever get a black one? McCartney didn’t play a black one. There is simple white binding on the semi-hollow body and a “mother of toilet seat” pickguard to give it a classier look.

The set neck is made of maple and beech with a rosewood fretboard. This 30-inch scale neck has 22 frets and little dot markers set into it. The neck is not bound and the nut is 42mm wide, and it has a relatively thin profile so those with smaller hands might be happy.

On to the hardware and electronics. Tuners are open-geared nickel-plated Waverly copies and the bridge is rosewood with what looks like little chunks of frets set into it. There are two humbucking pickups that are wired through a volume and a tone knob. There are also three switches: bridge pickup ON/OFF, neck pickup ON/OFF, and a rhythm/solo switch.

This all sounds pretty good, but when I looked at how this thing is put together and how it sounds things go south in a hurry.

The finish on the body is poor, with fisheyes and dirt in the paint. The binding is sloppily applied, with finish running over the edges of it, and a portion of it looks like it is already coming loose. Everything about the neck is terrible. The frets are not level, and the edges have such a large ramp on them that the E and G strings easily come off the edges of the fretboard when digging in a bit. The headstock end of the fretboard looks like it was cut with a chainsaw and you can see the chipped end in the gap between the fretboard and the very crudely cut nut. On to the electronics! This thing sounds terrible. The pickups have almost no output, and the tone knob seems to do nothing at all.

It plays terribly too. Because the nut is cut so high the action is incredibly high on the first few frets, and the intonation is especially bad on these. Intonation is universally bad on the rest of the frets, and there is virtually no way to get this thing so that most of the notes on each string are in tune.

Pretty much the Hofner Ignition Series Vintage Violin bass is a toy, as it feels and plays like something you would get with your Guitar Hero video game. If you have to get something that looks like this and use it for more than a wall decoration, Rogue makes something similar that is acceptable. Or you can pay a few thousand bucks and get a German-made one…

Should you go against my recommendations, at least you will not be paying a ton of money. The Hofner Ignition Series Vintage Violin bass has a street price of $349 (List $499), and no case is included. Do not say I did not warn you, though.

Mahalo!