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 Post subject: Had to try one....
PostPosted: Mon Feb 26, 2018 9:32 pm 
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Location: Albany, NY
Read a lot of positive things about these new Epi Les Paul SL's, and for $99 delivered, how can you go wrong? I got some cash for my birthday and figured, "What the heck?!?" I like the looks, and the guitar plays well and sounds remarkably good. The single coil pickups aren't the greatest, but they're not bad at all. I particularly like the neck pickup with some overdrive on it. The neck is a comfortable C profile, and on the thinner side. The pots and switch have a good solid feel and function smoothly. The finish on mine is flawless and the intonation is quite good, too. The neck pocket is nice and tight, and it may be the lightest electric guitar I own.

It's not all good news, though. The strings that came on it were trash, but I expected that on an inexpensive Chinese-made guitar and immediately installed a set of D'Addario 10's. The fingerboard was very dry, so I oiled it up well with Dunlop 02 conditioner. The biggest negative was the tuners, which are cheap crapola. Lots of slop in them, and the one on my high E binds badly through part of its rotation. I've got a set of vintage style Grover 133N tuners on order to fix that deficiency. So it'll end up costing me $135, which is still a real bargain any way you look at it!

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 Post subject: Re: Had to try one....
PostPosted: Tue Feb 27, 2018 9:31 am 
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Congrats, I hear good things about it as well.


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 Post subject: Re: Had to try one....
PostPosted: Thu Mar 01, 2018 7:39 pm 
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duhvoodooman wrote:
...The biggest negative was the tuners, which are cheap crapola. Lots of slop in them, and the one on my high E binds badly through part of its rotation. I've got a set of vintage style Grover 133N tuners on order to fix that deficiency.

These tuners arrived today and I've already installed them. HUGE difference!! The guitar now tunes smoothly & precisely. These are the split-shaft variety, which I prefer over solid shaft tuners. I find string changes to be faster, and there's no sharp string end poking out to catch a dust cloth or a finger! They're also the smaller "vintage" shaft diameter, which matches the headstock tuner holes on the Epi LP SL, so no need for any additional drilling/reaming for the larger "modern" tuners.

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 Post subject: Re: Had to try one....
PostPosted: Mon Mar 05, 2018 2:08 pm 
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My wife looked over my shoulder at the OP photo and said: "That's pretty. I'll bet it sounds good."

I'm still in love.

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 Post subject: Re: Had to try one....
PostPosted: Mon Mar 05, 2018 3:04 pm 
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Maple Larynx wrote:
My wife looked over my shoulder at the OP photo and said: "That's pretty. I'll bet it sounds good."

I'm still in love.

That’s the whole reason we buy guitars right! My wife does the same thing. That’s true love right there.


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 Post subject: Re: Had to try one....
PostPosted: Fri Mar 09, 2018 7:23 am 
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I keep passing over this one at Sam Ash, only because I can’t decide on the Blue or the Yellow. Maybe I should buy both. I have a spare pair of the tuners you put on, DVM, so maybe I’ll stop and pick one up on the way home today.

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My, that IS a big one!


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 Post subject: Re: Had to try one....
PostPosted: Mon Mar 12, 2018 9:05 pm 
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I picked one up on Sunday. Actually, pleasantly surprised. Stays in tunes rather well. When playing both PUs together it sounds fantastic. The PUs are a bit noisy when used separately. I hated the knobs (very cheap looking, too), so I put chrome ones on. My neck was dry, too, but plays very nice. Overall, beside the thin body and light weight of the guitar, it’s just feels and plays like a mid-level guitar. I can’t believe it’s a $99 guitar.

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duhvoodooman wrote:
My, that IS a big one!


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 Post subject: Re: Had to try one....
PostPosted: Mon Mar 12, 2018 9:08 pm 
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dcountry13 wrote:
I picked one up on Sunday.

Blue or yellow?

dcountry13 wrote:
I can’t believe it’s a $99 guitar.

Amen!

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 Post subject: Re: Had to try one....
PostPosted: Mon Mar 12, 2018 10:05 pm 
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duhvoodooman wrote:
dcountry13 wrote:
I picked one up on Sunday.

Blue or yellow?

dcountry13 wrote:
I can’t believe it’s a $99 guitar.

Amen!


Blue. I am tempted to go back and buy the Yellow, but can’t justify it.....yet.

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duhvoodooman wrote:
My, that IS a big one!


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