Epiphone Guitar Packages

I aquired this unit from Joe's Guitar in Wallingford, Connecticut: one of the few remainging 'real' guitar shops, operated by 'real' musicians that is not a chain or warehouse. I paid $150 for the package which consisted of: guitar, gig bag, strap, chord, and the 9 volt amp. I thought that it would be an excellent addition to any guitar collection and a fun unit. It, actually, has more than it appears to have. The neck is straight. It stays in tune. It is very compact and portable. Above all, no one that I know, has one. The pick-up is open and hot. There is no tone control; which, increases the 'hotness'. A metal-head would love this unit. The supplied strap works well for its light weight. I own other Les Pauls and this one just cracks-me-up; especially, plugged into a large stack. Attention: Engineer. If you put .012 gauge strings on it you can tune it to normal A=440 (E,A,D,G,B,E) instead of other odd tunings because of the short string length. Because, of the small size, it could use a some more mass on the bridge. The angle between anchoring the strings and the saddles needs to be increased to ensure no-string-buzz (especially when using 'thick' strings), but the stock bridge does work. Since, the pick-up is hot and no tone control is in-line, it is very responsive to your picking technique. So, if you want to get jazzy or clean, you must be light, if you want to blow the windows out, go-for-it. You cannot be too loud with this little friend. Large stacks are recommended. It is well made. The tuning pegs are at a reasonable ratio. The finish is fine. The lettering on the head is clean. I have no problems with the quality. Sheer fun. I would like to put a bridge of more mass and a pick-up with shielding to see what it can do. Other than that, I am just a sick guitar fan that can have loads of fun at any price and size. Every time I present this piece at a practice or party, everyone plays it. It is what a "Pee-Wee" should be. The psycosis will follow. This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com