Indonesia"gibson les paul" Gibson Les Paul High Performance 2019 Electric Guitar Specifications Body Body shape: Single cutaway Body type: Solid body Body material: Solid wood Top wood: AAA Figured Maple Body wood: Weight relieved Mahogany Body finish: Gloss Orientation: Right handed Neck Neck shape: Asymmetrical SlimTaper Neck
Home Forums The Guitar Epiphone Guitars You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites should upgrade or use an alternative browser. made in china or indonesia... Thread starter Wolf Start date Oct 14, 2019 Joined Oct 14, 2019 Messages 1 Reaction score 0 1 I bought my first Epiphone Les Paul custom pro a few days back, and would like too know out of the two, china or Indonesia what one makes the better Les Paul. 2 I have no direct experience with Indonesian Epiphones, I've heard they can be hit or miss. I'd take a Chinese Quigdao made in the last dozen or so years any day though. Joined Nov 11, 2017 Messages 41 Reaction score 34 3 My only Indonesian was a 1994 Trad Pro 1. The good 1st rate solid build, flawless finish, fantastic pickups/electronics, good setup out of the box. The bad Sharp fret ends, neck too thin for me. *Sold it because of the neck. I had a 2004 China Les Paul Standard that was 1st rate also. If not for the great Trad Pro pickups and the too thin Trad Pro neck, it would be a toss-up between the two. Last edited Oct 15, 2019 Joined Jan 16, 2015 Messages 7,554 Reaction score 9,281 Location Kraut-Territory 4 I bought my first Epiphone Les Paul custom pro a few days back, and would like too know out of the two, china or Indonesia what one makes the better Les Paul. Hi, Welcome here âŹpiTalk Congrats on your first âŹpi LP-Custom The Question IMO is Can you see/feel/hear any difference if they would not write the country of manufacture on the guitar ? Countries don't make Epis - the employees make them Joined Jan 16, 2015 Messages 7,554 Reaction score 9,281 Location Kraut-Territory 6 The employees at the Quigdao Epi plant make some darn fine axes. just like those employees at the Indonesian Samick factory and those at the Korean Unsung factory.... Joined Sep 1, 2017 Messages 123 Reaction score 122 Location Charlotte, 7 Both factories from what I've bought and have had the pleasure of owning. Indonesian built Artisan models and the Thunderbird are just Fantastic. Close as possible to the big daddy without stepping on toes. The '55 Inspired by Custom and Jotun, as well as the ES-335 are Quindao China masterpieces. You just couldn't expect too much more. Unbelievable, so just be careful where you purchase. That's my only hang up. I can't explain how the GC here just has had bad quality stuff. Always a problem. zZounds and AMS have been better than I expected Last edited Oct 16, 2019 Joined Feb 20, 2018 Messages 600 Reaction score 536 8 It's all about material selection, specs and quality control. Joined Jan 25, 2019 Messages 24 Reaction score 18 9 I have experience in this, and I have a take, but I'm going to keep it to myself because I only buy very cheap used ones and I don't want to rock the boat. Joined Jan 16, 2015 Messages 7,554 Reaction score 9,281 Location Kraut-Territory 10 ......... but I'm going to keep it to myself.......... If we all did this - you would have nothing to read and learn here...... Joined Jan 25, 2015 Messages 5,134 Reaction score 6,925 Location Sutton QC 11 I have experience in this, and I have a take, but I'm going to keep it to myself because I only buy very cheap used ones and I don't want to rock the boat. And why do you feel inclined to share this bit of wisdom with us then ? 12 I have experience in this, and I have a take, but I'm going to keep it to myself because I only buy very cheap used ones and I don't want to rock the boat. Pointless post is pointless. Joined Jan 13, 2020 Messages 2 Reaction score 3 Location Pasadena, CA 13 Found this conversation as I searched Epi MIK vs MIC. I've owned many Epiphones and other guitars. Five years I started buying, keeping and playing, then selling guitars, many Epis, and mostly hollow or semi-hollow bodies. I now own as my keepers the following MIKs Sorrento, Alleykat, Regent; and an MIC Broadway 2018. I purchased all of these used Reverb, Guitar Center, Craigslist. I've been playing guitar for decades, and between 18-28 I played out regularly. I still play nearly every day. I consider my self a very good player. Now, what I have noticed about these Epiphones has been quite interesting. I find that the build quality is about the same for MIKs and MICs. Feel, playability, etc, seem to be equal. I have had a MIK Broadway and my current MIC Broadway. What I've discovered is the difference lies in the pickups. Yep, I've narrowed it down to the pickups. I took my 1999 Sorrento with P90s to Guitar Center and compared to the a Wildkat and the Casino. The Sorrento was a much better tone all the way around. I've also compared the '96 Regent pickup to the new D'Angelico EXL-1 both are 17" single pickup hollow - Epi doesn't make the Regent anymore and the Regent pickup was astoundingly superior. In fact, everyone who plays my Regent is blown away at the clarity of that pickup. I hold three music events at my studio in Pasadena every month so dozens of musicians come around each month. I recently purchased a 2002 MIK Alleykat, and this is when I decided that I must get more info on these MIKs because the pickups on this inexpensive Alleykat were astounding. I have two Gibson ES-275s, one semi-hollow Thinline, the other a full hollowbody. I compared the Alleykat to both of them. Results were as follows, the 275s both have Gibson's MHS pickups - some of the best and most articulate pickups I've every heard. I first compared the Alleykat to the full hollow and deeper 275. As expected, the 275 was a warmer sound, the pups were a bit louder, the highs were a bit more chime-y, but the Alleykat's pickups held their own very well. They just sounded like a different style guitar, because it was semi-hollow vs hollow, but the pickups did not compare as duller or muddier, they are very well voiced. I then compared them to the semi-hollow 275. The Alleykat pickups were not as loud, but very close in clarity and tone. I was really surprised. I never expected such a similar tone - not equal, but very similar. I must add that all the guitars have D'Addario 11 half-round strings, with the exception of the Broadway, on which I have installed 11 flats. So there's my story. I find the build quality pretty much equal, but I discovered that the older MIK pickups sound much better than the newer MICs. Why? I've no idea, but my ears can certainly hear the difference. Maybe Korea was making the Epi pickups in the same way Gibson was making their pickups, and maybe this all stopped once production moved full-time to China? Just guessing here. At any rate, keep playing whatever ya got! Joined Dec 7, 2015 Messages 3,352 Reaction score 4,038 Location Fort Collins, CO 14 Interesting observations. Could be why Epi has brought pickup mfg. back to the US to build the Pro line models. Pickups aren't complicated but there's still a lot of science that goes into designing good ones and an art to winding them well to avoid issues that can impact performance. On top of that you can take two identical sets and put them in different guitars and they may sound different to the ear. Then you can toss personal preference into the mix where one players wants absolute clarity and transparency and another prefers some woollier tonality for jazz or even for high gain distortion so everyone who winds them produces different "flavors" like jelly beans to meet demands. Anyway, always good to hear opinions from other players. Joined Jan 6, 2020 Messages 117 Reaction score 118 15 A lot of the voodoo about pickups would disappear if LCR meters were more affordable. The bare minimum, a DE-5000, costs as low as $80 at the moment, still way beyond a $10 multimeter. If you like a pickup, with no other information available it might be tempting to look at factors such as where it was made, how made it, or how much it cost, but with an LCR meter you might find that all the pickups you like just happen to be the ones with lower inductance, or higher inductance. DC resistance only correlates with the inductance to a degree, resistance rises linearly, but inductance rises to the square of the number of turns on the coils. If there was some secret to how pickups in the were wound, that secret would have leaked out ages ago. If there is a secret it's this stick to vintage specs, a lot of the import pickups tend to be either a lot hotter or very under wound, but sets like the ProBucker line show that they're taking vintage specs seriously now. Last edited Jan 13, 2020 Joined Jan 16, 2015 Messages 7,554 Reaction score 9,281 Location Kraut-Territory 16 Could be why Epi has brought pickup mfg. back to the US to build the Pro line models. Where is/was it stated that the Epi Pro-buckers are made in the US ? They are using some identical parts - that's all Joined Dec 7, 2015 Messages 3,352 Reaction score 4,038 Location Fort Collins, CO 17 Where is/was it stated that the Epi Pro-buckers are made in the US ? They are using some identical parts - that's all Well you would know better than I but I thought I had read that they were being produced in Nashville and if not I stand corrected. Anyway, how they're being made is a lot more important than where they're being made. I'm not one who cares much about point of origin. Joined Nov 5, 2019 Messages 24 Reaction score 32 18 I have no experience with Indonesian Epiphones but I can attest to Indonesian Squiers. They are just as fine as their Chinese counterparts where the Classic Vibe guitars are concerned. Joined Jan 25, 2019 Messages 24 Reaction score 18 19 And why do you feel inclined to share this bit of wisdom with us then ? Conversation is conversation. If I'm breaking some kind of rule that you have, I don't mind. Joined Jan 16, 2015 Messages 7,554 Reaction score 9,281 Location Kraut-Territory 20 Conversation is conversation. Not telling your opinion/wisdom/expierience at all is absolute NO conversation If I'm breaking some kind of rule that you have, I don't mind. we will tell you if you violate a rule Home Forums The Guitar Epiphone Guitars
FirstI list the features of the Gibson Les Paul 59 FB Light Aged guitar. Then you have a video or two, purchase links. I'll tell you how this post is built. First I list the features of the Gibson Les Paul 59 FB Light Aged guitar. Then you have a video or two, purchase links
MusicRadar Verdict A Traditional Les Paul in every sense, and one that's bound to please purists. Pros +Tidy build with a most classic feel. +Thereâs no weight relief or compound radius here and appealing beef to the neck shape.+Nicely voiced pickups match the style. Cons -Wouldnât vintage-style wiring be more appropriate here? MusicRadar's got your back Our team of expert musicians and producers spends hours testing products to help you choose the best music-making gear for you. Find out more about how we test. While Fender splits its guitars into series and periodically updates or refreshes them, Gibsonâs main USA production division prefers the annual makeover approach. This yearâs line-up was seen by many dealers as a return to form âA new chapter in Gibsonâs illustrious history, with their focus firmly back on crafting only the worldâs finest guitars!â said one. As ever, the Les Paul sits central, with eight models if we count The Paul 40th Anniversary bookended by the start-up double-cut Les Paul Junior Tribute and topped off with the Les Paul High Performance. Add to the list the Les Paul Studio and Studio Tribute, and that leaves us with the three most classic Les Pauls, the Standard, Traditional and Classic. Today, weâre looking at the its name implies, the Traditional is closest to the Les Paul weâve known and loved over the past six and a bit decades and thatâs reflected in its colour options, the only change for 2019. At launch it was offered in Tobacco Burst, Heritage Cherry Sunburst, Manhattan Midnight and Transparent Cherry Red; latterly itâs just the Heritage Cherry Sunburst as here and Tobacco Burst. Check out our pick of the best electric guitarsOutwardly, all three of the 2019 models share the same construction one-piece neck, headstock widening wings and two-piece centre- joined backs, with the maple top grade on the Traditional rated as AA. The Traditionalâs top is not in an ultra-blingy style, with a classic striping that, in this finish, helps this model to edge up on our favourite list before weâve even played a note. The Traditional is old-school with a hand-wired loom and Sprague orange drop caps. It uses Gibson Burstbuckers a 1 and you believe old is best, the Traditional is probably the Les Paul for you. It has no truck with weight relief, and although slightly heavier than our Standard itâs still nicely under 4kg/9lb. The neck, too, will appeal to those players who prefer an older style with more front-to-back taper and a bigger, rounded many ways, the Traditional is the Fender American Original of this interim Les Paul line-up itâs the most vintage spec before you get into the Gibson Custom Historics. It looks great with that deep red âBurst to the front and the lovely red hue to the rest of the guitar, but itâs the simplistic drive that makes it such a pleasure. The crisp, clean acoustic response gets the guitar working as it should with an almost second bloom to the sustain tail - so much a part of this classic design. The Traditional has a subtly, vintage-y voice - snappy with volume reduction and smooth in the highs. Unplugged, the Traditional is a beauty. But itâs more than that the good weight without weight relief , the bigger neck... it feels like a good Les Paul and looks the part. It will no doubt be a while until new Gibsonâ settles in and has a noticeable effect on the instruments we can buy. These interim models, however, are three strong dishes that employ existing features weâve seen before, albeit not in quite the same combinations. With the horrors of roboticâ tuners, over-wide necks and zero frets now pretty much consigned to the past, this Traditional model zones in on the Les Paul in classic might well be a quite historic model, too the end of an era. Just as we conclude our test at the start of 2019, the new Gibson management announced there will apparently be a completely new 2019 range of Classicsâ âDesigns like the Les Paul and the SG once again embrace the features and construction details that made them legends in the first place a Les Paul Standard â50s spec and a Les Paul Standard â60s spec as well as one with P-90 pickups,â says Cesar Gueikian, Gibsonâs chief merchant officer. âThe Contemporary line also introduces a new concept with the Les Paul and SG Modern.â These new ranges âwill be available for purchase later this yearâ. What that means for the original and clearly short-lived 2019 models that are in-store is anyoneâs guess, but we suspect as the year progresses there will be deals aplenty to be had 2018 models are already discounted in many stores. Whatever happens while the dust settles, it looks like 2019 is going to be quite a year for Gibson lovers. Watch this space! Dave Burrluck is one of the worldâs most experienced guitar journalists, who started writing back in the '80s for International Musician and Recording World, co-founded The Guitar Magazine and has been the Gear Reviews Editor of Guitarist magazine for the past two decades. Along the way, Dave has been the sole author of The PRS Guitar Book and The Player's Guide to Guitar Maintenance as well as contributing to numerous other books on the electric guitar. Dave is an active gigging and recording musician and still finds time to make, repair and mod guitars, not least for Guitaristâs The Mod Squad. Most Popular
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Will Gibsonâs newest Les Paul stand up to our strict standards? Cost $ find yours on or Sweetwater and learn more on Overview & Final Score Well the day has finally come where Gibson has sent me a guitar to review. Quick personal tangent, this guitar really makes me feel like I âmade itâ in the guitar review world. Nevertheless, Gibsonâs rise in 2020 started on the back of the Epiphone re-launch and continues here with the new 2020 line of USA models. Gibsonâs Les Paul Studio 2020 is powered by coil tapped 490R and 498T humbuckers with otherwise standard wiring configuration 2 tone, 2 volume, 3-way selector. The Mahogany body is even weight relieved beneath the figured Maple top, making it a real comfortable departure from heavy LPâs of the past. The Mahogany neck features a return to Rosewood fretboards yes! and 22 medium jumbo frets. The neck shape is a slim taper, that still feels like a classic Gibson, just with a bit more utility and comfort than your vintage baseball bat. I fortunately received one featuring the gorgeous âSmokehouse Burstâ finish featuring gloss nitrocellulose lacquer. This LP Studio sports Grover Rotomatic tuners, Gibsonâs Nashville tune-o-matic and stop bar tailpiece, and a lovely soft shell case as well. Sound 9 No surprise here, it sounds like a Gibson Les Paul and I mean that as a compliment! The neck pickup is creamy, bluesy, and has all that warm goodness weâve come to associate with Gibson. While it is no â59 burst, these LP Studio guitars really sound like the real deal, even though they are the more affordable end of Gibson USA. While this guitar is weight relieved, I didnât really feel any loss of sustain or resonance compared to other, full weight Gibsonâs Iâve played. The bridge is obviously more bright and aggressive, and in my opinion provides the real Gibson tone that Iâve always loved and tried to emulate. Huge, classic tones pour out easily from Led Zeppelin to The Clash and everything in between. Gibson seems to have rightfully prioritized a return to the vintage blues and rock basis that made the brand famous. This guitar is perfect for the sounds you expect to get from it, and honestly had a few atmospheric licks up its sleeve. However, it definitely isnât the most versatile guitar for maybe clean Jazz sounds or rhythmic chiming sounds. But if youâre buying a Les Paul Studio from Gibson you probably know what youâre getting and will not be disappointed! Oh and the in-between setting on the 3-way selector switch was maybe the best Iâve ever heard from a Les Paul. I usually strictly avoid that setting but it was a real charm here. Lastly I want to speak about the coil cuts. It is a really great feature that theyâve included here as it certainly makes the Studio a bit more versatile, but they werenât the most impressive. The neck one sounded far more âcoil splitâ-like than the bridge one. In fact, I could barely tell the bridge cut was anything more than a volume reduction. Not a major problem, but just something to think about and maybe I just got a dud. Playability 8 Les Pauls have not always won me over because of their feel and Gibson has a well recorded history of quality control and tuning stability issues. However, this guitar has far superior tuning stability to my 2011 Gibson Les Paul. I was really happy to see this and I assume it is because theyâve put more effort into perfecting the nut and how it is cut on each model. Furthermore, the G string still goes out of tune fairly often, which is just a known and respected flaw in Les Paul construction. This isnât ideal, but I can certainly live with it in return for the huge upgrade in playability on my older Les Paul. The action was great out of the box, and I really liked the feel of the slim taper neck. It sat comfortably in my hands, with some of that baseball bat chunkiness as you move around the neck. Finish & Construction 9 This is where Gibson is really making me happy in 2020. This Les Paul Studio is just built so much better than some of the 2010âs Gibson guitars that Iâve played and owned. The fretwork was great, the finish was spotless, the nut was cut correctly. Everything seems to be pointing towards increased quality control coming out of Gibson. Their PR faults aside, this certainly made me think that Gibson is on its way back to the top of the guitar world. Even if the guitar is far from the perfection of higher end Gibson models, it feels so good to get an off the shelf, relatively affordable Les Paul with a Gibson logo that feels great. The lightweight construction also should appeal to many players like myself who prefer to swing a light Fender guitar around the stage. Smokehouse Burst is also just such a beautiful finish, with more depth and nuance to the color than Iâve seen on older burst models. Iâve been super critical of Gibson but they earned praise with this one. Value To be fair, there are some many great Les Paul guitars out there for less than the price of a Gibson. That Howl Sirena 3 I reviewed is one of them. However, Iâm ultimately impressed with how Gibson seems to have put the attention to detail back into these lower priced Studios. While Les Paul studios have typically been the biggest offenders during Gibsonâs leaner years, they got this one right. Overall you can get a real Gibson Les Paul with only a few minor, modern upgrades, for under $1500. Thatâs a win for everyone who canât afford Customs, reissues, or vintage Gibsonâs. Sometimes the name on the headstock does matter and if that is the case for you, Gibson has worked towards winning you back with this 2020 Les Paul Studio. Good for Blues, Classic Rock, High Gain, Players Looking For Lightweight Les Paul, Versatile Players
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Home Forums The Guitar Epiphone Guitars You are using an out of date browser. It may not display this or other websites should upgrade or use an alternative browser. Epi LP,s made in indonesia Thread starter tony2911 Start date Jul 1, 2020 Joined Sep 9, 2019 Messages 13 Reaction score 2 1 Hi Peeps, what do you folks think of the quality of Epi LP,s made in Indonesia Joined Jun 7, 2017 Messages 6 Reaction score 1 2 My only Epi/Indo experience would be with my 2018 Sheraton ll Pro. If the quality of that guitar is any example of what the Indonesian plant is producing, you should be very happy with the LP. Joined Jun 8, 2016 Messages 1,809 Reaction score 2,803 3 Unlike china, Indonesia makes some very nice Guitars. Well that's just a silly thing to say. If you played one from each country side by side, I'd wager a large amount that you wouldn't have the slightest idea which one was made where unless you knew beforehand. Epi has their own dedicated factory in China now and makes some fantastic guitars these days. CNC machines don't know what country they are in. Every factory puts out a lemon every now and then. Have you some of the pieces of shit that have come out of the Gibson Nashville plant the past few years? I have 3 Made in China Epis, 2 Made in Indonesia, and 2 made in Korea. I love all of them. Judge the guitar by the guitar, not by where it was born. Don't say dumb shit. BTW, welcome to Epi-Talk Joined Jan 16, 2015 Messages 7,554 Reaction score 9,281 Location Kraut-Territory 4 Unlike china, Indonesia makes some very nice Guitars. ...... Countries don't make guitars..... companies and their employees make guitars Epiphone has their own two factories in China since ~2003 Samick produces for Epiphone since ~1985 in Korea and for at least two decades in Indonesia. they make 'em as good as they are allowed to do for the $$ if they didn't write 'made in xxx' on the guitar, most of us could not tell where they were made.... It just goes to show that free people being paid a fair wage do a better job than those condemned to labor in a factory prison! you can have a look and a bit of reading about those Epi-factory prisons here.... and Welcome here âŹpiTalk Joined Jul 12, 2016 Messages 3,364 Reaction score 3,902 Location Maryland, USA 5 It just goes to show that free people being paid a fair wage do a better job than those condemned to labor in a factory prison! Yes. Just imagine how productive Ted Bundy's murder victims would have been, had they lived to work and earn a fair wage. Seriously, WTF is up with your avatar? Joined Jan 16, 2015 Messages 7,554 Reaction score 9,281 Location Kraut-Territory 6 China is an aggressive communist country. With a track record of human rights violations as long as the great wall. Don't kid yourself. My point is simply this, NO guitar company goes to China to build their Top line guitars. Not true with other Asian countries. I believe Epiphone went to Japan to build the Elitist Series for a reason. I don't really care about your political view on China And remember it was the US located CEOs who decided to move the production to China The reason Epi moved production to Japan was back then Japan was what China is today - cheaper than US Ever heard of Eastman guitars ? High end made in China Joined Dec 7, 2015 Messages 3,352 Reaction score 4,038 Location Fort Collins, CO 8 Nice to meet the board bullies right off the bat! There are no "board bullies" here but there are those of us who are willing to step out and correct personal opinions stated as unsubstantiated fact as you did. So allow me to add yet another correction. The current Squire CV line are primarily former Vintage Modified models whose specs and appearance have been modified to replace the former MIC Squier CVs. The VM line has always been built in Indonesia and though good instruments in their own right have always been considered a notch down from the MIC CVs. What it all boils down to as Paruwi posted is cost. US mfgs like Fender who contract with Asian mfgs to build guitars and basses for them ask for an instrument they can buy for $$$ and sell for $$$$ to earn a profit at an established price point. For the CV line Fender's retail price limit appeared to be $400 for the majority of those models. When the cost of manufacture in China began to require pricing higher than $400 to retain the same profit margins for Fender and it's distributors and dealers production was moved Indonesia and VM models with slightly altered specs and finishes replaced most of the former MIC models. This is fact. Unlike Fender, Epiphone owns it's own Chinese manufacturing plant so ultimately they have complete control of cost and quality. And unlike Squiers the MIC Epiphones are also inspected here in the US before being shipped to dealers to assure the best QC they can provide. This is also fact. So......I believe what we're trying to say is that your post is based solely on your own opinions which are not based on substantiated facts. And if workers being paid a fair wage in a free society make far better instruments then why has Gibson struggled so much with their own QC issues on models costing many times more than their import cousins? You are certainly entitled to your own opinions but that doesn't make them true based on fact. Joined Dec 7, 2015 Messages 3,352 Reaction score 4,038 Location Fort Collins, CO 9 China is an aggressive communist country. With a track record of human rights violations as long as the great wall. Don't kid yourself. My point is simply this, NO guitar company goes to China to build their Top line guitars. Not true with other Asian countries. I believe Epiphone went to Japan to build the Elitist Series for a reason. The first statement is quite obviously true. The second may be true to an extent but it's not an absolute when you consider that many US companies have top of the line product built in China and I own some of it. In some cases where the traffic will bear because a much higher price can be charged a US company may elect to have an instrument built in Japan but then those models you mention have always been built in Japan. Some high end models from other US companies are also built in Korea and Indonesia by the very same companies who build their budget priced models. So in reality few if any absolutes actually exist. Joined Dec 7, 2015 Messages 3,352 Reaction score 4,038 Location Fort Collins, CO 10 I changed it just for you! I won't want any snowflakes to be offended. Ah ha, me thinks your politcal persuasion is now showing and we try hard to avoid that here. But if you'd like my opinion it seems to me that based on all the whining and wailing I hear from your side the true snowflakes are you and you're melting fast as this summer is showing. So please do depart. Joined May 2, 2019 Messages 82 Reaction score 105 Location CenTex 11 DavidSG, I think posts 7-11 pretty much earned you the responses you received. It's fairly obvious that you are one of those individuals who has a political bone to pick, especially considering the hyper political "snowflake" comment. If you thought that your politics would be welcomed into this guitar forum, you thought wrong. On that note and without further ado Joined May 4, 2020 Messages 123 Reaction score 194 14 The only reason there may be slight quality differences on guitar made in other parts of the world is... the managing bodies CEO's board of directors, upper management, etc, etc decided to only allow those guitars to be built with wood, hardware and electronics that fit their pricing paradigm. They choose from their management seats to limit the quality of guitars on purpose. As far as the OP's question about Indonesia-made guitars... they have been doing high quality wood working in Indonesia for centuries. Long before there was an Orville Gibson, Leo Fender, or Paul Reed Smith. Wood working is part of their culture. Google has plenty of info on the wood working and furniture making industry in Indonesia The geographical location of a guitar shop has zero to do with what quality of guitars are made in a factory within that country or location on the globe. The managing body that owns and operates the factory dictates the quality control and materials used inside the factory. So, if we send folks to Mars, then send them luthiers, and now we say "Martian guitars suck" only because they are maqde on Mars, what sense does that make? It has much more to do with the supply chain and decisions upper management makes that makes the overall end product. Globalization is a big 40 dollar word that means in part somebody knocked down the trade door to places like China and many other third world countries. There is something of value in these countries that appeals to businesses. Profits. The savings is, among other things, because the price of human resources in a third world country is way lower than trying to convince American workers to work for those levels of pay. I don't know exact labor statistics but I get the general idea that... a trained luthier in the USA might make I'm guessing $25-30 dollars an hours, plus demands benefits like health insurance, paid time off and vacations, etc, etc. Labor in America is very high compared to third world countries. So, with the trade door wide open with China, and BILLION people to employ, China becomes a target for saving a BUNCH of money on human resources labor costs. As does the price and cost of labor in many other countries in the world. Which may be why less guitars are Made in Japan now, because Japan's labor price has went up. I'm just gonna throw out a figure, but it is something like this... In the USA you have to pay a skilled craftsman $30 + benefits... I don't know the exact wage savings, but let's say in China or Indonesia people will work for $ an hour. Plus they will work 14 hour days, 7 days a week, never take vacations, and don't get a huge benefits package. In that scenario the company that owns the factory and sells the guitars back in the USA or world wide has way more hours of production per week, and is getting the products for pennies of the cost of labor. I think a more important question is how could a company like Gibson charge a ridiculous amount like $4, for a Les Paul Custom, and allow products to hit the sales floor with even ONE TIME having some kind of quality issue?? A guitar at that price should have been built by the hands of God and angels. It should be perfect... every one in that price range should be perfect. But instead they are simply a man made product and since man is not perfect, neither will the things he makes with his hands be perfect. I have this for an idea... let's take off the gloves and allow Indonesia and any other third world country that makes guitars the same exact quality of wood, hardware and electronics the USA Gibsons are allowed to use. I think the work ethic in these countries is much higher than what we typically see in the US worker. I think their love to HAVE a job drives their job satisfaction level. They live in very poor countries and don't have many of the things we take for granted in the US. As an observer, the typical US resident is full of "entertainment-itis" I call it. Whereas if you had tonsillitis or appendicitis a part of the flesh would need to be cut out to save the body. Americans tend to worry more about what sports team or what level they got in their newest X-Box game more than what type of work they placed over the counter at the factory. Entertainment is something Americans seem to hold more dear than any other aspect of life. What movie to entertain themselves with next, what new phone to buy so they can entertain themselves with a new phone, what big screen TV they can buy so they can watch their favorite entertaining sports team in vivid color. Not everyone, but this is the culture of people making guitars in America. Folks who come in late on Mondays and want to leave early on Fridays. I worked in the production/factory trades for a better part of my life and that is my observation of the typical American worker. Plus its my opinion from my perspective. I didn't work in the auto factories, but I grew up in Michigan and just about every family member I have worked in the auto factories. Places where you can go off in the corner and sleep and can't get fired because the Union UAW will protect you. One of my best friend's husbands would have somebody punch his time card for him at the factory, and be at home all day doing nothing, and getting paid for nothing. Meanwhile the cost of labor at the unionized auto plants has sky-rocketed as has the price of automobiles. Ten times the ridiculous price Gibson charges for a Les Paul Custom. As far as Asian-made guitars I have a bunch of them and I love them all. I have USA-made stuff, too, but I am more in awe of the Asian-made stuff because the price makes it a lot of fun to have several guitars rather than one guitar you're afraid to play because it might get scratched. I'm not really thrilled with the sound of the electronics from the Epiphone brand. But what I am thrilled with is the price I can find them on the used market, then I take that guitar and make it into something I am very proud to have changed. For example... I gave $150 for this Epiphone Les Paul Traditional Pro with an Epiphone hard LP case... It had lots of issues. No pickguard, no strap buttons, the Alnico Classic and Alnico Classic Plus pickups sounded like trebly, ice pick bee poop. One of the knobs was broken, and one of the push/pull pots didn't work. Plus, when engaging the push/pull for coil split on the pickup that did work, the pickups were so much ice picks there was little difference in tone, LOL. So, I drove down there as fast as I could before someone else saw the ad for this guitar for $150 on Craigslist... got a pickguard, installed Dunlop strap buttons, gutted all the electronics toggle, jack, caps, pots, wires as well as the ice pick pickups. Replaced the pups with Dimarzio John Petrucci Dreamcatcher bridge and Rainmaker neck. Wired the new pots 50's style... Now this is one helluva guitar, its dinged up plenty already so I don't fear playing it, and it has IMHO better tone than a $4,700 Les Paul Custom... I call this one "The Holy Trinity" as the pickguard I found at GreasyGroove has the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit in the form of a dove. Then there is the Epiphone Les Paul Custom I found at the pawn shop for $285. It had rusty crusty strings and was in need of a new home. Brought it home, discovered it needed a new output jack which is why nobody had bought it, soldered that in, now I have another project waiting to happen. Thinking maybe this time Dimarzio 36th Anniversary PAFs, we'll see. As if I don't have enough black/ebony guitars, just got this Epiphone Dot from the pawn shop. $200. The strings were corroded and looked like it had been sitting somewhere not played for years. It needed a new home... Thinking either a Seymour Duncan JB bridge/Jazz neck set, or maybe a Seymour Pearly Gates set have Alnico 2 magnets like the Gibson '57 Classics for a lot less money... '57s with 4-conductor wires are $200 EACH on the Gibson page... NOT... But this one, made in Indonesia just takes the cake... a 2011 Epiphone Nighthawk Custom Reissue... spotless and mint as they come, still had the little washer thing on the tone knob... $200... absolutely gorgeous made-in Indonesia quality... 5-way switch and tons of tones, wouldn't change a thing on this one... this one among others has made me an Epiphone convert out of a previously American-only snob... Last edited Jul 11, 2020 15 I'm am leaving this board. It seems piling on and trolling rule here. I have no desire to be part of a board where honest discussion is not tolerated, and "don't say stupid shit, is." Tell Karen we said she should stay home too! Why do people trolls feel the need to announce that they're leaving? At the risk of repeating myself Joined Dec 7, 2015 Messages 3,352 Reaction score 4,038 Location Fort Collins, CO 16 Well said Jam Handy. I'll just add one more thought relative to labor costs. We live in a capitalist free market nation and our basic cost of living is much higher here than it is in many Asian nations where some basic human needs such as health care are not provided by a consortium of for profit corporations selling insurances, drugs, hospitalization, surgeries, etc. which make our basic health care costs outrageous and increasing at a far greater rate than we can easily cope with. To that you can add many other basic human needs being provided completely or via heavily subsidized government intervention and control of availability and cost. Asian nations more like our own also have higher labor costs so much guitar manufacture has often been moved away from those nations to those with lower labor costs like Indonesia or India. But they still build what we pay them to build. Throw in currency valuations as yet another major variable and you have yet another element why US designed guitars are often built in Asia where they can be produced far cheaper and a strong dollar buys more quantity and quality than it can buy here. Like it or not our capitalist world can't compete with theirs in terms of building something like a guitar far cheaper than we can and we will never again "catch up" or compete with this unless we somehow design and build robot guitar builders who don't eat. sleep, or require health care and retirement/pension plan benefits, cars to drive, or houses to live in. This isn't meant to be a political lecture it's simply an "it is what it is" statement of facts. Last edited Jul 13, 2020 Joined Mar 14, 2020 Messages 2 Reaction score 2 17 Well said Jam Handy. I'll just add one more thought relative to labor costs. We live in a capitalist free market nation and our basic cost of living is much higher here than it is in many Asian nations where some basic human needs such as health care are not provided by a consortium of for profit corporations selling insurances, drugs, hospitalization, surgeries, etc. which make our basic health care costs outrageous and increasing at a far greater rate than we can easily cope with. To that you can add many other basic human needs being provided completely or via heavily subsidized government intervention and control of availability and cost. Asian nations more like our own also have higher labor costs so much guitar manufacture has often been moved away from those nations to those with lower labor costs like Indonesia or India. But they still build what we pay them to build. Throw in currency valuations as yet another major variable and you have yet another element why US designed guitars are often built in Asia where they can be produced far cheaper and a strong dollar buys more quantity and quality than it can buy here. Like it or not our capitalist world can't compete with theirs in terms of building something like a guitar far cheaper than we can and we will never again "catch up" or compete with this unless we somehow design and build robot guitar builders who don't eat. sleep, or require health care and retirement/pension plan benefits, cars to drive, or houses to live in. This isn't meant to be a political lecture it's simply an "it is what it is" statement of facts. Very much agree. Just the facts. Home Forums The Guitar Epiphone Guitars
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