ESP Jeff Hanneman Urban Camo

ESP guitar company really has taken a new turn for their manufacturing and product lines. Many of their guitars seem to be simply signature guitars anymore. Their branch company called LTD seems to make some other previously built guitars that are just the average generic style instruments. However, those are built overseas where the ESP Manufacturing lines are still built here in United States. It seems to me that many other guitars carry the signature line and they seem to be moving even more towards that way. This guitar is the Jeff Henneman urban commando model.

UTILIZATION





Features and Specifications:

Construction/Scale: Neck-Thru Body / 25.5”
Body: Alder
Neck/Fingerboard: 3-Pc. Maple / Ebony
Nut Type/Width: FR Locking / 41mm
Neck Shape: Extra Thin U
Inlays: Eagles & Dots
Frets: 24 XJ
Binding: White (N/H)
Hardware: Black
Tuners: Gotoh
Bridge/Tailpiece: Kahler 2315
Pickups: EMG 81 (B) / 85 (N)
Electronics: Vol / Tone / EMG SPC Control / Toggle

SOUNDS


This guitar is not an instrument that features anything that is out of the ordinary or spectacular. There's nothing really special about this guitar and quite honestly I cannot justify the price point in this instrument. This guitar features alder wood with your basic, run-of-the-mill type electronics such as the EMG 81/85 mix. Overall it doesn't really have that exciting of my features going on. I've seen Jackson guitars and Charvel guitars basically do the exact same thing. This guitar does sound good with most high gain or even median gain settings. So that's where you're really got to get the bang for your buck with this guitar.


OVERALL OPINION


This is where things get a little hairy for me. The prices point is $4500. That is so huge amount change to put down on a signature instrument and pretty much any instrument for that matter. That is an outrageous in almost insane price point guitar. You have to be insane an slayer fan or really just completely loose with your money. $4500 for guitar is really quite overstretching their price point.I mean you can buy car for that kind money. This guitar is not to going to get a good grading from me because there's nothing special about this guitar to make the price four times what it should be

This is the ESP Jeff Hanneman signature model. Jeff has been playing ESP guitars for a long time and they have put out quite a few models for him. The biggest difference on them is the paintjob and the choice of inlays. Lower end models also get a more common tremolo system. This guitar is kind of old school in its hardware. The guitar has an alder body with a neck through maple neck. The neck has a super thin u shape. The neck has an ebony fretboard with 24 jumbo frets. The fretboard has H and Dagger inlays. Up top there are Grover tuners and down at the bottom is an old school Kahler floating tremolo with a locking nut. The pickups are active EMG with an 81 in the bridge and an 85 in the neck. The controls are simple with a volume and tone with a 3 way toggle switch. The guitar is topped off with the Urban Camo paintjob that covers the front and back of the guitar.

UTILIZATION

If you are not use to Kahler tremolos you might not like this guitar. They have a quite different feel than the more popular Floyd Rose systems. Back in the 80s you could get both but Kahler went out of business and you could only get Floyds for a long time. Now Kahler is back and you can get them and they are back on some signature model guitars. The Kahler has a more heavy duty build than a Floyd Rose. If you are working your tremolo hard like Slayer does you might want a Kahler. The neck is thin and the fretboard is flat and the frets are big. This lets you get a super low action on the strings. The ebony fretboard feels great under your fingers. This is a made in Japan ESP so the fit and finish is custom shop quality.

SOUNDS

With the alder body and maple neck through neck you get the classic 80s high end sound. This sound can really cut through the mix and the EMG's just amplify that. The natural tone of the guitar is pretty bright and the 81 in the bridge is a bright pickup so this guitar really cuts. The sound is super crisp. The 81 is a classic metal pickup. It has an old school high end sound for when cutting through lots of effects was important. Nowadays the pickups are great for clarity when running a ton of gain and tuning low. When you are playing superfast you need a super clear pickup to get the sound right. The 85 in the neck is like the 81s brother. They can be interchanged and I think the 85 is more versatile. It has a fuller less high endy sound so it has a bit of a smoother tone which is great for leads and better for cleans. If you want both the pickups to sound even better you can do the 18v mod which I think Slayer uses. This is when you run the pickups on 2 batteries instead of 1 and it gives you an even clearer sound but also more organic in nature.

OVERALL OPINION

Normally a signature guitar with a painjob like this would stand out but ESP paints normal non signature guitars like this so it isnt that bad. The inlays dont stand out that much. If you like Kahler tremolos there arent many guitars out on the market for you. This is one of the few models you can buy new with a Kahler on it. If you arent into the Urban Paint job you can get this model in black also which is always in style. If you are looking for an old school shredder with active pickups and the Kahler feel this guitar is one fo the few out there that fills that void.

As almost all of ESP, this guitar is made in Japan, and inspected in the USA. Although the logo is behind the head "Signature Series", she released the Custom Shop Kiso, as evidenced by the serial number starting with a K (K = CS Kiso, T = CS Takada, S = CS Sado, while the Signature Series have a serial starting with SS usually). Anyway, Jeff Hanneman Camo all pass through the Custom Shop, because of the Kahler bridge and paint job.

Small clarification: the skyscraper is not imported by the official distributor (Gaffarel / La Boite Noire) ESP in France, and indeed, I found a distributor in Europe which offers in a timely manner (otherwise it's officially 4 to 5 months and 7 to 9 months really ...), but at a very high price. In short, if you want to acquire this miracle, it will bring in the Steïtses, there is no choice: ESP does not distribute his guitars the same everywhere, some models are reserved for Japan, others to the U.S., others Europe, etc. ...

The model is so rare in France, I will try to do a review as comprehensive as possible. Too bad, it will be long, but the itch is really worth ...

So, for the characteristics:

- Channel crossing, pace 5.25
- Alder body, maple neck, ebony fingerboard (crazy)
- Kahler Tremolo 2315 (series so "Pro", the best, entirely handmade in factories Kahler U.S.)
- Floyd Rose type locking nut
- Profile stick "Extra Thin U" (I will discuss later)
- 24 Extra Jumbo frets
- Gotoh Tuners oil bath
- Pickups EMG 81 bridge and 85 neck, with a master volume, 1 tone overall, and an SPC control.

I have a 2007 model with the inlays showing the logo in the shape of Slayer Eagle, chrome and black hardware. I put pictures in the end.

In short, it has everything from a Rolls. Frankly, the finish is to die, everything is nickel, graph, beautiful, perfect. Then we like it or not finishing Camo, obviously, but anyway, the job is really a terrific finish. Also note that the guitar arrived set the hair. Basically, no defects to report, so note max. Although the inlays are mother of pearl: it looks more like the brushed aluminum. The mother might have had even more cachet. -> 9

UTILIZATION

Frankly, I was pretty used to the LP and my Explorer as superstrate forms, but trying a Kirk Hammett signature and an M-II, I was impressed with the ergonomics of this form, especially the handle . The concern is that everyone has a KH-2, and, above all, it has 2 EMG 81 (poop for clean sounds and warm), and Floyd, which I hate. And M-II is also fitted with two EMG 81.

I'm not a shredder from hell, but I know still recognize a handle on top when I came across a (even if it's still subjective, I admit). The profile is an "Extra Thin U", ie it is not flat as can some of Ibanez Jackson and other compet ', but rather rounded. It is against thinner than the handle of an Eclipse / Truckster or a Viper, for example. We add to that a monstrous ebony fingerboard and satin paint does not catch, and it was a highway in the hands. Really. In rhythm, we still seem to have sth in the catch-I personally find it more enjoyable, and solo is played not on a tree trunk: ideal.

Access to acute is perfect: we reached the 24th square as you reach the fifth, with the same hand position and the same ease. Thank you the neck-thru, no barriers, nothing that shit and forces him to destroy the wrist, it passes on its own. I took a picture of the joint body / sleeve, you'll see what I mean. Next, the interface is that of a superstrate. The bevel behind the body can not come out with the back edge of the scraper embedded in the belly, and one in front to put the arm in a royal comfort. The Kahler tremolo, meanwhile, is more ergonomic than a Floyd, more enjoyable for palm mute as to dive bomb or pull backs. Nothing to do with a Floyd, really, is the day and night. That said, I never liked Floyd ... this is totally subjective!

The right sound is achieved easily: just plug the beast. Note the presence of EMG SPC control, a knob that can enhance the potato in the middle frequencies. The result is a "thickening" the sound, making it more fat, more saturated too. On a clear sound, it makes it crunchy, so you have a check directly to the guitar crunch ... A distortion, it makes it even bigger and punchy, without cradifier provided. Stunning, I knew it, it kills.

Only small downside: weight. The beast is a tad heavy for this kind of shape. But hey, quality has a price, and the wood used by the ESP Custom Shop is not really plywood, what ...

SOUNDS

I play everything from blues to thrash, to rock, heavy, hard, death or old-style stuff more English pop ... So I typed the metal guitars, but still versatile, and that's where Jeff Hanneman makes sense. Having tried the KH-2 and others, they are too specialized: the EMG 81's sound ass clean sounds, they are cold and nasal to death in short, unbearable. The EMG provides 85 sounds much warmer, rounder, may not be as crystal with an EMG 60, cons but by a little more grain, which is not unpleasant, quite the contrary. The SPC also allows users to change the sound by boosting or by cradifiant. In short, a very wide range of sounds, which is not surprising when you know the slightly fussy technician and Hanneman's father! However, one must know the microphones into the rope, as the horses get carried away quickly. On alder + maple, the attack is very lively, and sometimes it is good to lower the volume a little to calm the whole.

I particularly like the sound distortion, the EMG 81 with SPC at the bottom. Compared to a normal scratching, it seems to have suddenly over 200 hp in the ass, it's fun ^ ^

Oh, I also wanted to clarify something on the vibrato Kahler: There is a misconception as to what Kahlers go out of tune as soon as we made a bend (it would then make a dive bomb to get everything in order). A video making a Comparo Floyd / Kahler also shows that on YouTube. Well this is false, or at least, this is not a generality. I can assure you that the first thing I did to test the scratch, it was to make bends in all directions! No problems with stability, the tuning returns to its initial position without any problems. However, the Kahler 2315 series is part of the Pro, the Rolls Royce of Kahlers ... I will also try to make a video also on YouTube to prove that all Kahlers do not go out of tune by the bends. Anyway, I can not imagine for one second that guys like Kerry King, Jeff Hanneman, Paul Gilbert, Glen Drover scratch or Judas Priest agree to play stuff that is out of tune at the slightest bend. Knowing Kerry King, the thing would have gone out the window rapido, and Mister Kahler could already chewing a salad ...

OVERALL OPINION

Well, I have only a few days, but I have blisters on your fingertips to keep playing it. I update this notice in a while, with hindsight, of course.

What can I say? Ben is a Rolls, you know. I read on a forum the advice of a guy who had one, and said in substance that anyway, Jeff Hanneman was really a gift for composing dream guitars. Well that's exactly what I told myself playing it. Y has it all! Ergonomics and comfort at the top, a handle of hell, who smashes a mouth, a killer vibrato, a sound that hard, knowing to be gentle when necessary, a touch of beautiful, flawless finish ... I was looking for some time my Excalibur, I think I found, honestly.

The quality / price ratio ... I am not well placed to judge. I ordered the U.S. dollar with a super low to a store that still had 2007 models in stock (my favorite), while the 2008 was out. In short, the price of a normal Hanneman Camo is $ 4,200, and the guy gave me the 2007 model (new, huh, I said) to $ 2600 ... Including the purchase, the cost of international money (they took no Paypal), shipping by FedEx in 3 days delivery, customs fees and VAT, I paid a total of just under € 2200 the price of one at Thomann KH-2 base, while the only guy who could be in Europe within a reasonable time proposed to me € 3700 ...

With experience, is what I would do this choice? I have yet to experience, in fact, to tell, so I'll do an update. Anyway, one thing is certain, I do not regret my purchase as of today. And if you can get your hands on one Hanneman, please, it's really the stove compet '(with the flat, however, that some older models wear inlays to graphics a bit dubious).

Some pictures ...