gtrman100 Posted May 12, 2016 Share Posted May 12, 2016 I just finished a saga, and because of the outcome I want to alert possible buyers. Guitarcenter.com has a deal for $329, so I pulled the trigger. I had a Gibson Nighthawk, sold it, but missed it. I had it shipped to my local GC store, it came in with a broken head stock. So I did the return and waited for the 2nd one. The second one arrived and looked in perfect shape. Here's where the problem arrived: I took the guitar home, changed the strings and checked intonation. It was off by a mile! Every string was almost a 1/4 tone sharp at the 12th fret. Adjusting the bridge saddles, a had to move them all the way back, but the low E and A strings still were pretty sharp. And, since the guitar is string through the body, the hole through the body is covered by the saddle! Obviously, the bridge was mounted too close to the nut; the scale length is off. There is no way to adjust the guitar unless the bridge is moved which would ruin the top of the guitar. So I took it back, sadder but wiser. If you buy an Epiphone Nighthawk, double check that the guitar can be intonated properly. The front edge of the bridge plate should be almost a 1/2 inch from the bridge pickup ring. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve112 Posted May 12, 2016 Share Posted May 12, 2016 I just finished a saga, and because of the outcome I want to alert possible buyers. Guitarcenter.com has a deal for $329, so I pulled the trigger. I had a Gibson Nighthawk, sold it, but missed it. I had it shipped to my local GC store, it came in with a broken head stock. So I did the return and waited for the 2nd one. The second one arrived and looked in perfect shape. Here's where the problem arrived: I took the guitar home, changed the strings and checked intonation. It was off by a mile! Every string was almost a 1/4 tone sharp at the 12th fret. Adjusting the bridge saddles, a had to move them all the way back, but the low E and A strings still were pretty sharp. And, since the guitar is string through the body, the hole through the body is covered by the saddle! Obviously, the bridge was mounted too close to the nut; the scale length is off. There is no way to adjust the guitar unless the bridge is moved which would ruin the top of the guitar. So I took it back, sadder but wiser. If you buy an Epiphone Nighthawk, double check that the guitar can be intonated properly. The front edge of the bridge plate should be almost a 1/2 inch from the bridge pickup ring. Yikes, a horror story that is not unprecedented. I've ran across this before on a different Epi model (LP Special?). Same issue, bridge installed in wrong position. It happens and it sucks. It would be nice if Epiphone gave you a replacement at a decent discount. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
capmaster Posted May 13, 2016 Share Posted May 13, 2016 Probably the fretboard has the 25.5" Nighthawk scale and the hardware was mounted to 24.75" specs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Parabar Posted May 13, 2016 Share Posted May 13, 2016 It would be nice if Epiphone gave you a replacement at a decent discount. A decent discount???? Nothing less than a free replacement or a full refund should suffice. If you paid for a guitar that is supposed to be playable (as opposed to something to hang on a wall), you shouldn't settle for anything less. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kidblast Posted May 13, 2016 Share Posted May 13, 2016 wow.. 2 duds in a row, and I'd be hitching it out of town too!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dReit1 Posted May 13, 2016 Share Posted May 13, 2016 Sorry to hear of this problem. I have one of the early China NH RIs and it intones fine. I would certainly return that guitar if I had that type of issue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sledge57 Posted May 13, 2016 Share Posted May 13, 2016 A decent discount???? Nothing less than a free replacement or a full refund should suffice. If you paid for a guitar that is supposed to be playable (as opposed to something to hang on a wall), you shouldn't settle for anything less. He said he got it from Guitar Center, he can return it until they get it right or get a full refund, no issues...... I'd take it to a GC store and not fool with online to get it right. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StRanger7032 Posted May 14, 2016 Share Posted May 14, 2016 I feel your pain! I've returned 2 new American Strats in the last 2 years that had such bad fretboards that they couldn't be set up to Fender's own specs without massive fret buzz. You'll find a good one eventually if you keep trying! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve112 Posted May 14, 2016 Share Posted May 14, 2016 Very few guitars these days will be good out of the box. Manufacturers are not in the business of fret leveling and custom luthier work. Their business is banging out whole guitars. This is valid whether talking Gibson, Fender, or Epiphone, etc. Both my new Fender Strats, an American Std and Mexican Std needed fret leveling, truss rod & general setup. One needed nut filing as well. Both my new Epiphones, an ES 339 and 335 Dot required fret leveling, nut filing & setup before they would play properly. I had my buddy's Gibson Les Paul Classic setup by my tech and he had to build the nut up slightly as it had been cut too low from the factory! All of these guitars turned out to be exceptionally good players once properly attended to. It's a rare guitar that through good luck has parts that somehow mesh well together and allow the odd good one (that doesn't need a whole lot of tweaking) through, not too many of those though! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gtrman100 Posted May 15, 2016 Author Share Posted May 15, 2016 Very few guitars these days will be good out of the box. Manufacturers are not in the business of fret leveling and custom luthier work. Their business is banging out whole guitars. This is valid whether talking Gibson, Fender, or Epiphone, etc. Both my new Fender Strats, an American Std and Mexican Std needed fret leveling, truss rod & general setup. One needed nut filing as well. Both my new Epiphones, an ES 339 and 335 Dot required fret leveling, nut filing & setup before they would play properly. I had my buddy's Gibson Les Paul Classic setup by my tech and he had to build the nut up slightly as it had been cut too low from the factory! All of these guitars turned out to be exceptionally good players once properly attended to. It's a rare guitar that through good luck has parts that somehow mesh well together and allow the odd good one (that doesn't need a whole lot of tweaking) through, not too many of those though! There is a difference between a guitar needing some attention like fret leveling, truss rod adjustment and setup, and a guitar that is not able to play in tune. I have bought many guitars that needed some work; this is the first that had a manufacturing flaw this serious. BTW, thanks for the replies. The 2nd Nighthawk was returned, GC was very good about it. I bought a Danelectro 12-string with the money. It's a great guitar, forget about the price. I've had Rickenbacker 12-strings that didn't play as well. Also, it plays in tune! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve112 Posted May 15, 2016 Share Posted May 15, 2016 "There is a difference between a guitar needing some attention like fret leveling, truss rod adjustment and setup, and a guitar that is not able to play in tune. I have bought many guitars that needed some work; this is the first that had a manufacturing flaw this serious." Totally agree, just an observational comment. Didn't mean to imply a linkage between what I was describing and your disaster! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gtrman100 Posted July 6, 2016 Author Share Posted July 6, 2016 Happy ending- I bought a '14 custom quilt on Ebay and it intonates just fine. I'm rewiring it to get all pickup combinations now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve112 Posted July 6, 2016 Share Posted July 6, 2016 Happy ending- I bought a '14 custom quilt on Ebay and it intonates just fine. I'm rewiring it to get all pickup combinations now. Excellent news! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dReit1 Posted July 7, 2016 Share Posted July 7, 2016 Happy ending- I bought a '14 custom quilt on Ebay and it intonates just fine. I'm rewiring it to get all pickup combinations now. Great! Glad it worked out for you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Purple_String Posted July 14, 2016 Share Posted July 14, 2016 Does anyone know a US retailer selling the Epiphone Nighthawk custom quilt in purple finish? Or does Gibson even sell this finish in the US? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dReit1 Posted July 14, 2016 Share Posted July 14, 2016 Looks like most of those are gone butMusicians Friend say they will have them again in October http://www.musiciansfriend.com/guitars/epiphone-limited-edition-nighthawk-custom-quilt-electric-guitar?rNtt=nighthawk&index=1 Good luck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Purple_String Posted July 15, 2016 Share Posted July 15, 2016 Looks like most of those are gone butMusicians Friend say they will have them again in October http://www.musiciansfriend.com/guitars/epiphone-limited-edition-nighthawk-custom-quilt-electric-guitar?rNtt=nighthawk&index=1 Good luck Thanks! I only saw some Japan website and Amazon Japan have the purple. Thought it might be Asian market exclusive. Hope MF really would get it in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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