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Favourite Epiphone acoustic


olie

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I only have one Epi Acoustic so far, but IMO they have made so many beautiful ones. So, I would have to go for the one that I own...Masterbilt DR-500RANS. I wanted to post a nice picture of it here, but for some reason it is not letting me...saying the file that I can attach can only be 43k, which is weird, but oh well.

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Wow, those are impressive. I've got to go with my 2008 EF-500 RAVS, which never ceases to amaze me how good it sounds.

 

mbt373.jpg

 

Wow...beautiful guitar!! I have a DR-500RA, which is basically your guitar in the DR Series. Mine is in Natural Satin(NS) though.

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Wow...beautiful guitar!! I have a DR-500RA, which is basically your guitar in the DR Series. Mine is in Natural Satin(NS) though.

 

Thanks, Jase. Welcome to the boards. Glad you got that photo posted. Nice! Yeah, I had an EF500RANS but opted for the RAVS when it came along, which happened to come with nice fossilized walrus ivory bridge pins and saddle. It's got great tone.

 

The RANS, now gone....

efra067.jpg

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  • 1 year later...

My vote goes for my 91 SQ 180 (I also have a 94 and an 06). Per Gibson's former web page manager and assistant historian, the 89, 90, and 91 models were all made in Gibson's Bozeman MT plant not that long after Gibson acquired Flat Iron. Solid spruce top, solid maple back and sides. Only part of guitar made in Korea was its neck, which is narrower than the Gibson J 180 (1.65" at the nut on the Epi). Trade regs at the time required that if any part of the guitar was made in another country, the product was labeled as such. Per the former Gibson employee referenced above, he has seen the production runs for those three years out of the Bozeman plant, and these were made there. My 94 is all laminate, and I switched out the plastic nut, bridge and pins for bone. Greatly improved the sound, but sounds nothing like my 91 which goes to a different level totally. Has that percussive, punchy Everly Brothers/J-180 sound that you recognize instantly. These 89, 90 and 91 models turn up on Ebay for $400 to $600 on occasion (one on there now to be bid on starting at $450). I found one in mint condition in Nashville and paid $950 for it and haven't regretted it one bit. Have played it with guys who have J-180's and I'd put this up against those any day. After playing it, the reaction from Martin, Gibson and Taylor players is "hey, let me see that thing."

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  • 3 weeks later...
  • 1 month later...

Epiphone Masterbilt® De Luxe Classic, my favorite so far!

 

Nice! How is it plugged in? With that adjustable saddle setup, I don't see how it could have undersaddle electronics. But it's got nice hidden controls in the f-hole!

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I have four Epi's (six if we count Mando's) there all great sounding and I love them all. But the DR500MCE built in November of 2011 that I bought new in 2012 tone wise is the best of them all and that includes a 1966 Texan I bought in 1968. That said I will still love playing all of my Epi's till the day I can't anymore then my son and grand children get them to enjoy for there lives. B) Mik

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  • 2 weeks later...

I have been staggered by the build quality, acoustic sound, fit and finish of my new Masterbilt Century Deluxe round sound hole archtop. Like many of us, I probably own too many guitars (is that possible?), including high-end acoustics and a couple of f-hole archtops (where my Epi Broadway is the instrument of choice) but my Lowden stays in its case now, while the Masterbilt gets to wear the party dress.

 

For pub/restaurant sessions and Renbourn-style finger-flinging, in my opinion this guitar is about as good as you can get. Can't say I'm overly impressed with the onboard electronics, which seem to amplify all finger noise (and whose EQ/volume controls have a limited range), but there are alternative sound-reinforcement options. And it looks stunning, which doesn't hurt...

 

The sound projection - a function of the slightly arched top and longitudinal bracing - is simply phenomenal: I'm surprised to have so far seen so few of them out in the wild (I'm sure that all it would take is one big-name performer to adopt the model and do what Tommy Emmanuel did for Maton).

 

I've got no axe to grind here, I've owned Gibsons, Martins and any number of mid-range instruments over the past fifty years: In terms of value-for-money though the Century De Luxe, at under £350 delivered in the UK, knocks them all into a cocked hat.

 

Si

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  • 2 months later...

As far as a favourite Epi acoustic goes,I'd have to declare a tie between my Korean made (Samick plant) 2002 EJ-200 (the early Korean made model with GIBSON printed on the truss rod cover and my Indonesian made 2009 EJ-160E John Lennon model. The EJ-200 is a natural finish non-cutaway model.I'd have no qualms whatever putting my EJ-200 up against any current Gibson made J-200.The tone of the Epi is incredibly well balanced and its volume and projection is incredibly loud and clear.My nephew is a tech at Canada's largest guitar retailer and after playing my Epi J-200 for quite a while he said that it was far superior to its current Gibson counterpart in both playability and tone,in fact he said that it was closer in tone to a '50s or '60s J-200.As far as the EJ-160E John Lennon model goes,its tone-although similar to the '60s original,doesn't exactly reproduce its tone.All that changes when the guitar is plugged into an AC-15 or 30.When I first plugged my EJ-160E into my AC-15 for the first time and played the opening riff of "I Feel Fine" I immediately got a serious case of goosebumps-the closeness to the sound of the original was uncanny.I'd have no problem recommending either of these beautiful guitars to anyone,they are first rate playability and excellent tone.

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