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1964 Caballero Reissue


StRanger7032

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My Limited Edition 50th Anniversary "1964" Caballero arrived today and I'm very pleased with it. Its the first acoustic Epiphone I've owned. I wasn't even shopping for an acoustic, but I saw one online and just had to have one. Mine is the mahogany version, which was hard to find. Zzounds was the only place that had one in stock. Everyone else showed them backordered until December. The ebony ones were plentiful for some reason. I got it for $249 shipped, which is incredibly cheap for a guitar that looks so nice. The neck is mahogany, and the top, sides, and back are very well done mahogany laminate. It also has a pickup, which adds even more to the value. Its the best playing acoustic I own (24 3/4" neck scale helps with that), and the tone is great. I actually hope it doesn't mellow too much as it ages. There are a couple tiny flaws under the topcoat, but its a $249 guitar made in Indonesia, so I'm not really upset about them. The setup was great right out of the box with super low action. Being a limited run guitar made of such nice wood, I'm pretty optimistic about it holding a good bit of its value. I feel like I should have paid $400-$500 for this guitar.

 

IMG_1142_zps12323ec1.jpg

 

IMG_1143_zps26250de2.jpg

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Congrats.

 

I really like the fact that Epiphone designed the reissue with a 1 11/16" nut as opposed to the 1 5/8" nut on the originals.

 

I was interested in your review as I have a friend who is looking for a guitar for his daughter and this one sounds like it might do the trick. Your comment about the wood though makes me think you missed something - the Epiphone site lists the top and body wood as select mahogany which means they are made with laminate rather than solid wood.

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Congrats.

 

I really like the fact that Epiphone designed the reissue with a 1 11/16" nut as opposed to the 1 5/8" nut on the originals.

 

I was interested in your review as I have a friend who is looking for a guitar for his daughter and this one sounds like it might do the trick. Your comment about the wood though makes me think you missed something - the Epiphone site lists the top and body wood as select mahogany which means they are made with laminate rather than solid wood.

 

I'm sure you're right about the "select mahogany" being laminate. At this price range, they have to save money somewhere. It does look nice, though. I would describe the size as being about 5% larger than what you would find on a standard nylon string classical guitar. Its very comfortable for me to play compared to my huge dreadnought Fenders. The short neck scale helps with playability as well. I think it would be a perfect guitar for a new player.

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I'm sure you're right about the "select mahogany" being laminate.

 

Just from looking at the gorgeous figuring on the top, I didn't think that could be solid at that price. Laminate makes for some really good looking front, back, and sides, and yours is a good example. Beautiful! If you like the tone, that's what matters!

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Just from looking at the gorgeous figuring on the top, I didn't think that could be solid at that price. Laminate makes for some really good looking front, back, and sides, and yours is a good example. Beautiful! If you like the tone, that's what matters!

 

Looking inside it, its definitely not solid mahogany, other than the neck. It looks, sounds, and plays great for $249 though. I bought it for a daily player, rather than as a collectible. The size of the body and short neck scale make me want to play more often and longer. I found myself getting fatigued pretty fast playing my big Fenders and my full-bowl Ovation. Plus, I want to keep the wear to a minimum on the Ovation since it is collectible and has already appreciated in value since I bought it. This little Epi will get played a lot, and I won't be devastated if it gets a few dings. Its a nice compromise for a guitar that I won't be afraid to play that also looks amazing as a bonus.

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It does seem rather misleading when the web stores advertise: "Limited-edition 6-string Acoustic-electric Guitar with Mahogany Top, Mahogany Back and Sides, Rosewood Fretboard, and Shadow Electronics..." Granted, they do eventually clarify in the description that it's "select" mahogany, and even that is pretty deceptive unless you know that's the codeword for laminate mahogany.

 

Still, it's a cool little guitar. What weight strings do you put on it (or did it come with)?

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Still, it's a cool little guitar. What weight strings do you put on it (or did it come with)?

 

I still have the original strings on it. I think they're 12s, but they may be 11s. Considering the short neck scale, I'll probably stick with 11s. I may try a set of 10s, but I think that would be pushing it for a 24.75" neck scale.

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  • 2 weeks later...

When I was looking to buy the EL-00 Pro I also looked at this model. I was trying to decide which one since the price of both is very close I like some of the laminated top guitars . For one thing they don't tend to sink in if they get dry like a solid top and I had a few that sounded great. I know Musicians friend had a few in stock. It has nice tuners as well . and the tort shell binding. It does have electronics that have a lot more functions than the El00 pro. It's a great looking guitar , real nice.

 

I went with the EL00 pro because I didn't really care about the electronics and liked the body shape better and the sun burst finish . On the Pro you can't see the electronics and I like that but that's just me.

 

One thing I noticed on some of the Epi's and it shows on both the Caballero Reissue and the EL00 . If you look into the sound hole at the inside back of the body you see a wood center strip running the length of the body and the cross braces notched over it. I think it's a nice touch , something only used on solid back acoustics. I know my EL00 has a laminated back and sides yet I'm not certain if the back is one solid piece or has a joint down the center and needs this extra re enforcement . That is to say I can see a glue line down the back like a joint on the EL00 a glue line like one see's in the center of a book matched solid top. Yet I see the same sort of center joint on the EPI AJ100 top and that's a laminated top. Wonder if they make the laminate so the outer ply is actually two pieces and the other two ply's are just one piece.

 

Doesn't matter , just something that caught my attention . Epi does do a very nice job.

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Is there anybody besides me that really wanted a Caballero size guitar with exactly that electronics but can't get past the plywood top? Really wish this was solid...I would have paid more for that.

For me, it would need to include a solid top & soundhole electronics only.

 

Fortunately for only a few dollars more, we find exactly that in the EL-00 Pro.

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I don't think the two are that similar...but OK. The EL-00 just hits my eyes funny. Kinda a cross between a 00 upper and a 000 lower bout. No bad...just not either. Sounds good tho. The Caballero looks prettier and sounds worse...lol.

Absolutely agree, they don't have much in common. I strongly consider the EL-00 Pro to be one of the very best buys currently on the market. That's assuming you try a number of them out & pick out a good one - which is exactly what I did, and I'm amazed by the overall package at such a lowball price. I've owned a lot of higher end acoustics in the past 42 years, including the nine I currently have. This includes a vintage Epi Cortez and the new Gibson LG-2 American Eagle, which are the same body shape as a Caballero, but with solid spruce tops and X bracing. I've also owned a '65 Gibson B-25, and a '64 Epi Cortez, so I know these guitars pretty well & really like them. The EL shape is different, but in terms of playing comfort and tone potential, it's very much in the same league.

 

Back in the day, I played many vintage LG-Os and Caballeros, and always found them to be lacking in the kind of tone I was after. Most of this could probably be attributed to the ladder bracing, but this new version goes one step further in the wrong direction by utilizing a laminated top.

 

At a difference of only $50 on the listed new price, there's just no comparison, imho, between the current Caballero and the EL-00 Pro. Now visual cues are another matter, and if it doesn't work for you, there are of course plenty of other guitars to choose from, but you might want to give the EL a test spin to at least have that frame of reference in your hip pocket.

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The EL - OO visually takes a little getting used to if one is used to the LG body, but after awhile it looks quite appealing as a small guitar. And, it's sunburst is really well done. Regarding the Caballero reissue, the only thing I can guess is that maybe Gibson will come out with a LG-0 reissue at some point that will be a solid top mahogany guitar and sell for considerably more. That could be why they reissued the Caballero with a lam top, we wll have to see. Either way, the EL-00 is a great guitar for the money playing wise, sound wise, and looks wise. When I compared my solid top 1965 FT-30 Caballero and my 1965 LG1 to the EL-OO, they are all in the same league IMHO.

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Regardingy above post...good synchronicity. On the Acoustc Gibson forum they are discussing a solid mahogany top J-45 that just came out at Sweetwater. Obviously selling for a lot more than the Caballero reissue. I think that's why they made the Caballeto reissue a lam top. So they could sell a Gibson solid mahog top whether it's now a mahog J-45 or a future LGO.

 

 

Jazzman Jeff aka QM

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  • 2 weeks later...

An Epiphone Cortez...now that would be a "killer" little acoustic guitar...lolmsp_rolleyes.gifmsp_mellow.gifmsp_smile.gif Do a reissue of that one too...Epiphone, you can do it, and, I'd certainly check one out msp_thumbup.gif maybe even obtain...you know I dig Epiphone's...lol

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  • 2 months later...

My Limited Edition 50th Anniversary "1964" Caballero arrived today and I'm very pleased with it. Its the first acoustic Epiphone I've owned. I wasn't even shopping for an acoustic, but I saw one online and just had to have one. Mine is the mahogany version, which was hard to find. Zzounds was the only place that had one in stock. Everyone else showed them backordered until December. The ebony ones were plentiful for some reason. I got it for $249 shipped, which is incredibly cheap for a guitar that looks so nice. The neck is mahogany, and the top, sides, and back are very well done mahogany laminate. It also has a pickup, which adds even more to the value. Its the best playing acoustic I own (24 3/4" neck scale helps with that), and the tone is great. I actually hope it doesn't mellow too much as it ages. There are a couple tiny flaws under the topcoat, but its a $249 guitar made in Indonesia, so I'm not really upset about them. The setup was great right out of the box with super low action. Being a limited run guitar made of such nice wood, I'm pretty optimistic about it holding a good bit of its value. I feel like I should have paid $400-$500 for this guitar.

 

IMG_1142_zps12323ec1.jpg

 

IMG_1143_zps26250de2.jpg

 

 

She's a keeper

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Ranger, how do you like this now? I'm thinking about getting one of these with Xmas money.

 

Oops! Haven't checked this thread in a while. Its holding up just fine. I still play it a lot. Its very comfortable as a practice guitar, with a neck profile similar to a Gibson/Epi Les Paul or SG. The quality is about what one might expect from a $249 guitar made in Indonesia, but the standard of quality has increased drastically for cheap guitars in the last 10 years. It looks pretty, plays nice, and I think its a good value overall. As long as you aren't expecting a $4000 guitar for $249, you should be happy with it.

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  • 6 months later...

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