Epiphone Explorer [1984-1997]

i baught my explorer from a shop in newcastle called sound control. i paid 340 quid fore it.

the guitar is very well manufactured. it has an excelent aggresive look to it and sounds like a bomb going off when u crank the volume up to full. this guitar is by far the best i've played and i recomend every metal loving head banger to buy one.

the guitar is a little hard to play sitting down because of the shape. but it can still be played if you have quite a bit of space. my hand started to cramp up a little bit after playing sitting down. on the tone switch i get a little bit of crunching when ajusting it but other than that its wickid

quality wise, this guitar comes as good as it gets for its price. designed by gibson you can expect it to be good and it lives up to the name stamped on te top of it. epiphone have made a great job on the construction and theres no problems from whati can see.

overall this guitar is awsome. i recomend every metal lover to get 1. it has a great sound even through small amps and i have tried it through a 200 watt stage amp and it blows the windows out. go out and buy 1 and find out fore yourself what im talking about.

This review was originally published on http://www.musicgearreview.com

Epiphone is Gibsons affordable guitar line. These guitars have almost exactly the same specifications that Gibsons do except they are not made in America. Since they are officially licensed the shapes are exactly the same as you would get on a Gibson. Some foreign copies have to change the shape to avoid copyright infringement, Epiphone does not have to worry about this. This Epiphone is a copy of the 1976 reissue of the Gibson Explorer. This Epiphone model is made from the mahogany wood. It has a 22 fret mahogany neck with a rosewood fretboard. Two humbucking pickups which are a Epiphones own alnico humbuckers. Two volume and one master tone control with a 3 way toggle switch pickup selector.

UTILIZATION

This Explorer has the Gibson 60s profile neck. Gibson changed the neck profile in the 60s to make the guitars easier to play. The 50s necks were very large and some people found them hard to play. The 60s Gibson neck profile is one of their most popular. The upper frets are easy to reach because of the Explorers design. The radical shape actually gives the guitar a perfect balance for playing while standing up. When playing an Explorer you forget about the radical shape because the guitar is so comfortable. The shape gives the guitar perfect balance.

SOUNDS

This Epiphone gets the warm tones you would normally expect from a Gibson guitar but at a much lower price. The guitars large shape means that there is a ton of wood. The more wood a guitar has the better it typically sounds. With this much mahogany the guitar has awesome resonance. The Explorers pickups come from the factory with the covers removed. Guitarists in the 70s found that if you removed the covers from humbuckers you could get a little more bite in your sound so Gibson decided to do it from the factory for the players. These pickups match well with the wood. The nice high end bite they give balances out the warm tones from the mahogany.

OVERALL OPINION

This is as close as you are going to get to a Gibson Explorer without paying Gibson prices. Being an official copy means that all the specs are correct and the shape measures up the same. Head to head soundwise this guitar does not sound much different than the Gibson version. And that sound is good. A lot of Les Pauls are being chambered for weight now. This means that some of the wood inside them is removed to make them lighter. This hurts the tone a little bit. The real Gibson tone comes from the wood and this Explorer has plenty of wood. If you want the Gibson tone for Epiphone prices you should check this guitar out.

The Epiphone Explorer is an electric guitar that I believe is made in Korea.  The guitar has dueling pick ups with volume and tone controls for each, as well as a standard pick up switch.  I'm not sure about what types of wood the guitar is made from, but overall it has quite a sturdy build and is pretty heavy for a guitar.  I've only played the guitar few times, so I don't know all of the details relating to it's characteristics, but Epiphone's site should give you everything that you need to know.

UTILIZATION

Playing the Epiphone Explorer is overall a real pleasure.  The neck has a good feel to it as I felt I was able to play easily up and down the neck.  The body is the classic Explorer shape and it is generally a rather large guitar.  Getting a nice sound from the guitar isn't a hard thing to do in my opinion, as the two pick ups allow more than enough control over your sound.


SOUNDS

The sound of the Epiphone Explorer can be described as thick and meaty.  It's great for playing both lead and rhythm guitar parts, as it has a full bodied sound no matter where you are playing.  I've used the guitar in tandem with a Vox AC30 and a few different effects like a Tube Screamer and some reverb and delay, and I found it was quite easy to get the sound that I wanted out of the guitar.  Flipping between the pick ups will give you a variety of tones that are pretty versatile and is perfect for switching back and forth between playing rhythm and lead parts.  While the guitar is generally associated with heavier rock music, I think that it is suitable for any type of music where you would want a thick guitar tone.


OVERALL OPINION

While Gibson's version of the Explorer is certainly a bit more refined, the Epiphone Explorer surprisingly stands up quite well.  I really don't have too many complaints about the guitar as it has a killer look and the tone to match.  The guitar is definitely reasonably priced, and is perfect for those who don't want to spend the big bucks on the Gibson Explorer but still want a high quality guitar.  If you're into the Explorer look and sound, Epiphone's version is definitely a guitar worth trying out.

It is a Korean production of good quality. Despite the size of the guitar, it does not weigh too heavy. The varnish is good, but not great (light fitting trace).

The handle is very late for Gibson (Gibson or copy). Perfect for the rhythm, but probably less easy for the solos, while it seems rather cut out for this.

USE

Usage is very agréable.La back shape of the guitar allows to put his arms as an armrest. So we can play long enough without a problem.

THE guitar has the same problem as the SG. She has a tendency to lean forward, but with the usual, this is not a problem.

Access to acute cases is a real treat. It can grow without problems in a corner this guitar.

SOUNDS

This guitar is made for its saturated. Just plug it into a small Marshall (not even lights!) To be immediately saturated sound good rhythm. The transition between the neck pickup alone, and the dip is not super sensitive.
As against acute position allows her to have another well defined and "clean" very well defined.

In his clear, we find pleasure precise and clear sound on which to apply effects without losing accuracy.

This guitar has a sound so good at it ....

NOTICE GLOBAL


I've had 15 days. I cracked on the form, because it is a legendary guitar and it amused me to have in my collection. But I was surprised to see that this guitar was excellent and perfectly complemented the other models sounds (TV, Strato, SG, Les Paul.

Excellent chois given the price. Do not hesitate if you want to please you.
One tip though, given the size of the thing and its sharp angles, buy the Epiphone flycase hard, rather than a cover, this will let you keep the beautiful as the first day!