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Epiphone Inspired by 1966 Century


blues_breaker

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Hi all,

 

I know these have just been released but was wondering if anyone has played one and can comment on the fit and finish of the guitar as well as the sound?

 

No dealers near me seem stock this model so can't try one myself unfortunately.

 

They certainly look the part:

 

century_ch_all.jpg

Aged Gloss Cherry

 

century_sb_all.jpg

Aged Gloss Vintage Sunburst

 

Any opinions would be greatly appreciated.

 

Cheers,

Keir

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Apologies for the delay in replying - completely forgot I posted here!

 

Can't offer any useful opinion except to say that this guitar has been giving me GAS too.

 

This is the first video I've found (and I see Epiphone have already snagged it for their website)

 

Yeah I saw that video too - only other one I've found is this short clip from Japan -

 

 

GuitarGuitar in Glasgow and Edinburgh have them in stock.

£499 with a hard case.

 

Thanks for that, I'm not in Glasgow or Edinburgh very often unfortunately but it's good to know. EDIT: Just checked their website and they seem to be out of stock in both colours now - must have sold out fast!

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Hi all,

 

I know these have just been released but was wondering if anyone has played one and can comment on the fit and finish of the guitar as well as the sound?

 

No dealers near me seem stock this model so can't try one myself unfortunately.

 

They certainly look the part:

 

century_ch_all.jpg

Aged Gloss Cherry

 

century_sb_all.jpg

Aged Gloss Vintage Sunburst

 

Any opinions would be greatly appreciated.

 

Cheers,

Keir

 

Hi, Keir

 

Just got mine this AM from Sweetwater. They do a great job of inspecting and setting up their guitars, even a less expensive one like this. Arrived in perfect shape - no rattles or loose parts, flawless finish. We all have our own preferences, so I immediately lowered the bridge and changed the strings. Plays and sounds really good to me. Very loud played acoustically, and plugged in, the P-90 gives a nice range of tones - surprisingly bright for a neck position PU. The P-90 is good, but not great. I might change it out for a Lindy Fralin someday, but not yet. I have Fralins in one of ES-330s, and they sound great. So why do I need this guitar when I have 2 ES-330's? Because it sounds that much different from them. Much more woody and acoustic guitar-like. Neck shape is crucial for me- bad arthritis in my left hand and thumb make it very painful to play necks that are too thin. So far, this one is fine for me - a nice, full C shape. I recently sold my Epi Inspired by John Lennon Casino because the neck was just a touch too flat for my hand... but this one seems a bit fuller in hand. The finish is very cool - color is great, it doesn't look fuzzy at, and it's not reliced or anything... just not glassy. And the guitar is so resonant, I have to believe the finish plays a part. So, my review is: so far, I'm very happy. Plays and sounds great. Seems like a good value for the money. I think it's a keeper .

 

IMG_0394_zps7w5l4aa8.jpg

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  • 2 weeks later...

Hi, Keir

 

Just got mine this AM from Sweetwater. They do a great job of inspecting and setting up their guitars, even a less expensive one like this. Arrived in perfect shape - no rattles or loose parts, flawless finish. We all have our own preferences, so I immediately lowered the bridge and changed the strings. Plays and sounds really good to me. Very loud played acoustically, and plugged in, the P-90 gives a nice range of tones - surprisingly bright for a neck position PU. The P-90 is good, but not great. I might change it out for a Lindy Fralin someday, but not yet. I have Fralins in one of ES-330s, and they sound great. So why do I need this guitar when I have 2 ES-330's? Because it sounds that much different from them. Much more woody and acoustic guitar-like. Neck shape is crucial for me- bad arthritis in my left hand and thumb make it very painful to play necks that are too thin. So far, this one is fine for me - a nice, full C shape. I recently sold my Epi Inspired by John Lennon Casino because the neck was just a touch too flat for my hand... but this one seems a bit fuller in hand. The finish is very cool - color is great, it doesn't look fuzzy at, and it's not reliced or anything... just not glassy. And the guitar is so resonant, I have to believe the finish plays a part. So, my review is: so far, I'm very happy. Plays and sounds great. Seems like a good value for the money. I think it's a keeper .

 

IMG_0394_zps7w5l4aa8.jpg

 

Hi,

 

Thanks for sharing your opinion, sounds like the guitar is definitely a keeper! Would you describe the neck as more of a 'baseball bat' or perhaps similar to a 50s Gibson neck profile? I normally prefer slim necks but realise in this type of guitar a fairly substantial neck is common.

 

I tried out a 'The Loar' LH-301T, which is basically a copy of a Gibson ES-125T, this weekend and was pretty disappointed with it. The guitar looked the part and played relatively well although the action was set too high for my taste. Was surprised how light and acoustically loud the guitar was - I've got a 335 but never played a fully hollow thinline model before. The tuners however had strangely been replaced with black grover rotomatics and the thing didn't hold tune at all. I'm guessing this was just a bad specimen of the model and the shop had tried to fix the tuning stability issues by replacing the tuners, but it clearly didn't work and has put me off buying one completely. Was considering it as an alternative to the Epiphone due to the 'teardrop' burst and slightly cheaper price.

 

Saw a 1959 Gibson ES-125T in excellent condition go for £1000 locally the other week and was very disappointed that I didn't have cash at the time to buy it. A new century sells for £499 here which makes me wonder if I should hold out a little longer for a Gibson. Anyway will definitely have to try out a Century as soon as I can so that I can properly make a decision.

 

Cheers,

Keir

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Hi,

 

Thanks for sharing your opinion, sounds like the guitar is definitely a keeper! Would you describe the neck as more of a 'baseball bat' or perhaps similar to a 50s Gibson neck profile? I normally prefer slim necks but realise in this type of guitar a fairly substantial neck is common.

 

I tried out a 'The Loar' LH-301T, which is basically a copy of a Gibson ES-125T, this weekend and was pretty disappointed with it. The guitar looked the part and played relatively well although the action was set too high for my taste. Was surprised how light and acoustically loud the guitar was - I've got a 335 but never played a fully hollow thinline model before. The tuners however had strangely been replaced with black grover rotomatics and the thing didn't hold tune at all. I'm guessing this was just a bad specimen of the model and the shop had tried to fix the tuning stability issues by replacing the tuners, but it clearly didn't work and has put me off buying one completely. Was considering it as an alternative to the Epiphone due to the 'teardrop' burst and slightly cheaper price.

 

Saw a 1959 Gibson ES-125T in excellent condition go for £1000 locally the other week and was very disappointed that I didn't have cash at the time to buy it. A new century sells for £499 here which makes me wonder if I should hold out a little longer for a Gibson. Anyway will definitely have to try out a Century as soon as I can so that I can properly make a decision.

 

Cheers,

Keir

 

 

I wouldn't call it a baseball bat - but it has a substantial C-shaped that fills the hand nicely. I found the Loar neck to be just a shade too thin for me - not in width, but depth. I own a couple of sixites Gibsons, and the Century's neck is similar to them, but actually a little heftier. Might even be closer to the '59 profile - bot nothing like th eold Kays and Harmonys that really had baseball bat necks.

I brought the Century to Steve Morrill,a great luthier in Boston, for a setup. He reshaped the nut slots, tacked down some frets, smoothed some sharp fret ends, and fine tuned the bridge a little before installing a set of D'Addario Chrome .10 gauge flatwounds. The action is low and super smooth now, and it feels perfect all the way up and down the board. Rings out really loud acoustically, and the P-90 is surprisingly strong. Really good tones available - much more interesting than the tones from the Loar 301T I tried.

I thought the Century was a keeper before. But the way it plays and sounds now, it's a bargain beyond my wildest dreams. Epiphone provides some really good value in their guitars, and you if you just do a few things to tweak them, you can put them completely over the top. I would recommend this guitar 100%, without reservation.

 

 

 

 

 

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Hi,

 

Thanks for sharing your opinion, sounds like the guitar is definitely a keeper! Would you describe the neck as more of a 'baseball bat' or perhaps similar to a 50s Gibson neck profile? I normally prefer slim necks but realise in this type of guitar a fairly substantial neck is common.

 

I tried out a 'The Loar' LH-301T, which is basically a copy of a Gibson ES-125T, this weekend and was pretty disappointed with it. The guitar looked the part and played relatively well although the action was set too high for my taste. Was surprised how light and acoustically loud the guitar was - I've got a 335 but never played a fully hollow thinline model before. The tuners however had strangely been replaced with black grover rotomatics and the thing didn't hold tune at all. I'm guessing this was just a bad specimen of the model and the shop had tried to fix the tuning stability issues by replacing the tuners, but it clearly didn't work and has put me off buying one completely. Was considering it as an alternative to the Epiphone due to the 'teardrop' burst and slightly cheaper price.

 

Saw a 1959 Gibson ES-125T in excellent condition go for £1000 locally the other week and was very disappointed that I didn't have cash at the time to buy it. A new century sells for £499 here which makes me wonder if I should hold out a little longer for a Gibson. Anyway will definitely have to try out a Century as soon as I can so that I can properly make a decision.

 

Cheers,

Keir

 

 

I wouldn't call it a baseball bat - but it has a substantial C-shaped that fills the hand nicely. I found the Loar neck to be just a shade too thin for me - not in width, but depth. I own a couple of sixites Gibsons, and the Century's neck is similar to them, but actually a little heftier. Might even be closer to the '59 profile - bot nothing like th eold Kays and Harmonys that really had baseball bat necks.

I brought the Century to Steve Morrill,a great luthier in Boston, for a setup. He reshaped the nut slots, tacked down some frets, smoothed some sharp fret ends, and fine tuned the bridge a little before installing a set of D'Addario Chrome .10 gauge flatwounds. The action is low and super smooth now, and it feels perfect all the way up and down the board. Rings out really loud acoustically, and the P-90 is surprisingly strong. Really good tones available - much more interesting than the tones from the Loar 301T I tried.

I thought the Century was a keeper before. But the way it plays and sounds now, it's a bargain beyond my wildest dreams. Epiphone provides some really good value in their guitars, and you if you just do a few things to tweak them, you can put them completely over the top. I would recommend this guitar 100%, without reservation.

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  • 4 weeks later...
Just got mine this AM from Sweetwater.....

 

Nice! Man, I love a good dark fretboard. Did you oil it or did it just come dark like that. I know it's not ebony, but a good dark (or darkened) rosewood works well too....

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