GuitarLight Posted June 30, 2014 Share Posted June 30, 2014 Short scale! I'm very impressed and pleased. I humbly apologize for for cynically thinking Epiphone would release this as along scale model. Now--more Masterbilts, please! Red 333 Yes indeed! More Masterbilts please! In particular, I would love to see a Masterbilt Hummingbird...to complement my Epiphone Hummingbird, and my Gibson hummingbird....three Hummingbirds in a nest! What a nice set that would make for me! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meanstreak Posted July 2, 2014 Share Posted July 2, 2014 Yes indeed! More Masterbilts please! In particular, I would love to see a Masterbilt Hummingbird...to complement my Epiphone Hummingbird, and my Gibson hummingbird....three Hummingbirds in a nest! What a nice set that would make for me! I wholeheartedly believe Gibson has banned Epiphone from making any Masterbilt's with the short scale AND the 1.725" wide nut. My DR-500M sounds sssssoooooooo fantastic, if it had the short scale/wide nut of the Gibson Hummingbird it would be a HUGE competitor to the more expensive models. In fact, I'd put it up against Guitar Center's Gibson Hummingbird Pro with the same long scale and 1.68" nut width and I PROMISE you would agree with me that it sounds miles better than the HBD Pro. I'm actually in the planning stages of making a blind sound test video series for YouTube where I compare all my guitars plus those of a few friends. I'm thinking I'll do - AJ-500M vs AJ-500R AJ-500M vs Gibson J-45. DR-500M vs Gibson Hummingbird DR-500MCE vs the Gibson Hummingbird Pro Cutaway Then on to the Martin D1-GT vs the D-28 probably will shoot the first one around the end of July. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DennisB643 Posted July 3, 2014 Share Posted July 3, 2014 I wholeheartedly believe Gibson has banned Epiphone from making any Masterbilt's with the short scale AND the 1.725" wide nut. My DR-500M sounds sssssoooooooo fantastic, if it had the short scale/wide nut of the Gibson Hummingbird it would be a HUGE competitor to the more expensive models. In fact, I'd put it up against Guitar Center's Gibson Hummingbird Pro with the same long scale and 1.68" nut width and I PROMISE you would agree with me that it sounds miles better than the HBD Pro. I'm actually in the planning stages of making a blind sound test video series for YouTube where I compare all my guitars plus those of a few friends. I'm thinking I'll do - AJ-500M vs AJ-500R AJ-500M vs Gibson J-45. DR-500M vs Gibson Hummingbird DR-500MCE vs the Gibson Hummingbird Pro Cutaway Then on to the Martin D1-GT vs the D-28 probably will shoot the first one around the end of July. Thanks for the great information. Yes, I was playing my DR-500MCE last night and thinking, "What a great sounding guitar". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DennisB643 Posted July 4, 2014 Share Posted July 4, 2014 Yes, I have to admit that I have been fortunate to have acquired my Masterbilts for the prices that I have. And if I had to replace them, I would pony up more if I had to. I agree with your assessment the they are better built than their price indicate. My Masterbilts play as well as my friends Martins and Taylors. They even say that. A Masterbilt 12 string would be great addition. Along with a Maple Masterbilt Jumbo and the afore mentioned Excellente and Frontier. Hell, even a Masterbilt Texan. I really do not see why they are doing Gibson versions when Epiphone has such a great history of their own models. A Maple Masterbilt Jumbo would work nicely as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meanstreak Posted July 5, 2014 Share Posted July 5, 2014 ya I'd agree a maple jumbo would be a great choice in a Masterbilt! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cliffmac Posted July 7, 2014 Share Posted July 7, 2014 makes you wonder why epiphone would allow Gibson ( and Fender) to say no more than 2 masterbuilts at a time. If they ran the whole line I'd bet epiphone would a top acoustic choice then they, by they I mean fender and Gibson, could jack the prices. A jumbo Masterbuilt would be awesome be it maple mahogany, or rosewood. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cliffmac Posted July 7, 2014 Share Posted July 7, 2014 ya I'd agree a maple jumbo would be a great choice in a Masterbilt! Just wondering meanstreak, how your AJ's compare to your J45 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meanstreak Posted July 7, 2014 Share Posted July 7, 2014 Just wondering meanstreak, how your AJ's compare to your J45 Well, I've had the J-45 now for a year and I truly love it. Great guitar, sounds awesome and plays super smooth. I have huge hands (I'm 6'4" 275) so the wider nut is a welcome thing. But if I'm being honest, I think the AJ-500M actually sounds better than the J-45. It's just not as comfortable to play (IMHO) with the 1.69" nut. My AJ-500R is pretty nice too, but it seems to be a bit muddy on the bass side. I've heard others play it and it sounds fine then, but when I play it myself I sometimes don't like the way it sounds. I guess I'm comparing it to the others though which isn't fair I guess! My AJ-500M is actually a factory 2nd that has a scale right at 25" so it's in-between long and short scales, making it fairly unique I guess. I spend 85% of my playing time at the first three frets though so I've not run into any issues with it. It really is an amazing guitar, I'm blown away by how great it sounds every time I play it. I use Martin 12's on all my guitars as well, so it's not a string thing. If this new AJ-45ME sounds anything like my AJ-500M then I'm sure it will be fantastic! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meanstreak Posted July 7, 2014 Share Posted July 7, 2014 Just wondering meanstreak, how your AJ's compare to your J45 I should add, they look terrific next to each other too! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DennisB643 Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 I should add, they look terrific next to each other too! Very, very nice collection. Can I ask how the Hummingbird compares to Masterbilts and the Gibson? Every time I play my AJ-500R, I am amazed how good it sounds and what I paid for it($400). If you had to pick one to take to that proverbial desert island, which one would it be? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meanstreak Posted July 8, 2014 Share Posted July 8, 2014 Very, very nice collection. Can I ask how the Hummingbird compares to Masterbilts and the Gibson? Every time I play my AJ-500R, I am amazed how good it sounds and what I paid for it($400). If you had to pick one to take to that proverbial desert island, which one would it be? wwweeellllllll, that's a bit of an oddball there. It was the 2nd Epiphone I bought after the PR-100. First off, I've never bought a brand new guitar save for my first one, an $80 Johnson acoustic. After that one everything has been used when I got it. The PR-100 was next and it was off eBay sight unseen for just $100 including a cheap cardboard style case. It played and sounded pretty good right out of the box. I've never done any mods to it all, not even a setup and it's great every time I pick it up. The Hummingbird was next, many years later in 2008. It is of course a gorgeous guitar, but I wanted an older Korean made one as I heard they sound better and I like the Les Paul style headstock over the current one that's been going since about 2001. To make matters tougher I was living in the UK at the time (back home in Texas now) and having to try to find one of those for sale over there wasn't easy. I finally found one and drove about 50 miles to get it. It came with a nice leather DSL strap, a capo, a tuner, an Oasis chord book, two amp cables and a very nice gig bag. To top it off it was super cheap, just £125 for the whole setup. I barely even glanced at it when I bought it! When I got it back to the house and started to have a closer look I realized why it was so cheap. It sounded TERRIBLE! First off the soundhole fishman pickup was actually upside down, not sure why. One of the tuner posts was bent like it had been dropped on it. Then when changing the strings I noticed the nut was just barely away from the fretboard. At first I thought it was just a loose nut but turned out the fretboard was separating from the neck. Not a huge deal but outside my experience to fix those. So I took it to a luthier for the repair. While there I went ahead and had him put a new bone nut and saddle in it. After that it sounded pretty good, and I was quite happy with it. When I moved back home in 2010 I started to build up my collection and got the AJ-500M first. It was so great a strummer that I took the Hummingbird back into the shop and had it set up with what is probably the lowest action ever on an acoustic that didn't buzz. My brother used it to play lead guitar when we would go to open mics and play small acoustic gigs at bars and restaurants, as he didn't actually own an acoustic at the time. It is pretty much useless as a strummer when setup like that though! He liked my Masterbilt so much though that he ended up buying a DR-500MCE with the cutaway there to help with the leads. Anyway LONG story I know, but even now while I do really like the look of my hummingbird, I'd have to say that even when perfectly setup I doubt the very best Epi hummingbird out there could possibly sound as good as any of my Masterbilts, they are really high-end guitars! Your AJ-500R is easily better than the junk so many guys are buying for around $1,000 from Taylor and Martin just because of the name on the headstock, man they are really missing out! BBBUTTT as for the deserted island guitar, I'd have to go with the Gibson, as it's got the best combo of sound and playability for me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cliffmac Posted July 9, 2014 Share Posted July 9, 2014 wwweeellllllll, that's a bit of an oddball there. It was the 2nd Epiphone I bought after the PR-100. First off, I've never bought a brand new guitar save for my first one, an $80 Johnson acoustic. After that one everything has been used when I got it. The PR-100 was next and it was off eBay sight unseen for just $100 including a cheap cardboard style case. It played and sounded pretty good right out of the box. I've never done any mods to it all, not even a setup and it's great every time I pick it up. The Hummingbird was next, many years later in 2008. It is of course a gorgeous guitar, but I wanted an older Korean made one as I heard they sound better and I like the Les Paul style headstock over the current one that's been going since about 2001. To make matters tougher I was living in the UK at the time (back home in Texas now) and having to try to find one of those for sale over there wasn't easy. I finally found one and drove about 50 miles to get it. It came with a nice leather DSL strap, a capo, a tuner, an Oasis chord book, two amp cables and a very nice gig bag. To top it off it was super cheap, just £125 for the whole setup. I barely even glanced at it when I bought it! When I got it back to the house and started to have a closer look I realized why it was so cheap. It sounded TERRIBLE! First off the soundhole fishman pickup was actually upside down, not sure why. One of the tuner posts was bent like it had been dropped on it. Then when changing the strings I noticed the nut was just barely away from the fretboard. At first I thought it was just a loose nut but turned out the fretboard was separating from the neck. Not a huge deal but outside my experience to fix those. So I took it to a luthier for the repair. While there I went ahead and had him put a new bone nut and saddle in it. After that it sounded pretty good, and I was quite happy with it. When I moved back home in 2010 I started to build up my collection and got the AJ-500M first. It was so great a strummer that I took the Hummingbird back into the shop and had it set up with what is probably the lowest action ever on an acoustic that didn't buzz. My brother used it to play lead guitar when we would go to open mics and play small acoustic gigs at bars and restaurants, as he didn't actually own an acoustic at the time. It is pretty much useless as a strummer when setup like that though! He liked my Masterbilt so much though that he ended up buying a DR-500MCE with the cutaway there to help with the leads. Anyway LONG story I know, but even now while I do really like the look of my hummingbird, I'd have to say that even when perfectly setup I doubt the very best Epi hummingbird out there could possibly sound as good as any of my Masterbilts, they are really high-end guitars! Your AJ-500R is easily better than the junk so many guys are buying for around $1,000 from Taylor and Martin just because of the name on the headstock, man they are really missing out! BBBUTTT as for the deserted island guitar, I'd have to go with the Gibson, as it's got the best combo of sound and playability for me. Your opinion how does the DR500mc compare to the AJ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meanstreak Posted July 9, 2014 Share Posted July 9, 2014 Your opinion how does the DR500mc compare to the AJ? Hard to say on the DR-500MCE as my brother uses 10's so the sound is very different to my guitars all with 12's. As for my non-cutaway DR-500M it's really great, very comfortable to play seated and sounds awesome, but if I had to pick between them I'd say the AJ is better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajsc Posted July 12, 2014 Share Posted July 12, 2014 Scalloped bracing. Solid wood. 1.69" nut width. 24.75 scale length. Bone nut, & saddle. 18-1 Grover Sta-tite tuners. (open back) I'd like to see one of these up close, & personal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cliffenstein Posted July 23, 2014 Share Posted July 23, 2014 Scalloped bracing. Solid wood. 1.69" nut width. 24.75 scale length. Bone nut, & saddle. 18-1 Grover Sta-tite tuners. (open back) I'd like to see one of these up close, & personal. I wonder how easily that pickguard would come off. I'd like this guitar without the pickguard...a LOT! Anyone heard of a release date on these yet? Hopefully this comes out in time for my birthday (11/6) or Christmas. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meanstreak Posted July 28, 2014 Share Posted July 28, 2014 I wonder how easily that pickguard would come off. I'd like this guitar without the pickguard...a LOT! Anyone heard of a release date on these yet? Hopefully this comes out in time for my birthday (11/6) or Christmas. I pulled the pick guard off both my DR-500M and AJ-500R without any heat and using just my fingers. No damages or any finish issues, other than the usual tan lines. Of course, I also didn't care if I caused any damage anyway, so you should proceed at your own risk! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cliffenstein Posted July 28, 2014 Share Posted July 28, 2014 I just ran the serial number from the guitar in the photo from the press site that this thread is about. 14032314965 Made in March 2014 in Indonesia What's taking so long to formally announce this? By contrast, my Texan was made in February 2014 at the Indonesian plant as well. Perhaps they are trying to time this to get Christmas season sales. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cliffenstein Posted July 28, 2014 Share Posted July 28, 2014 From Gibson customer service: "Thanks for writing. Unfortunately, this model is still in development and no release date or details have been announced at this point." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickthemiller Posted August 3, 2014 Share Posted August 3, 2014 ...The guitar world waits with bated breath...for an authentic, high quality " Masterbilt Hummingbird! " .....There will be a line three city blocks long...and I'll be in the front of the line! ...Many musicians simply can not afford a $3100 plus Gibson Hummingbird...but do not want to be seen with a $299 laminated Epiphone Hummingbird on stage or at home....How about a much needed quality middle of the road respectable Masterbilt Hummingbird version? That would be a sure fire hit! ...the AJ45ME Masterbilt above looks great, nice burst and overall refreshing to see this new Masterbilt finally. The pick guard on it however, does not seem to have nearly the same quality of my three Masterbilts, in which the pick guards are thicker, very high quality, beveled, and much more three dimensional, and beautifully rich in tortoise shell color. This one looks more like an inexpensive, thin vinyl glue on. The vinyl type found on my own much less expensive $199 AJ220S which does the job, but should not be found on a much more expensive Masterbilt. The bridge wood also seems somehow thinner and less quality, less chunkier, than on my present 3 Masterbilts and it looks more inexpensive than what I would expect in a Masterbilt. And unfortunately the sound hole rosette is also diminished as compared to my three Masterbilts, and is not nearly as nice as those found on the previous Masterbuilts. These things on the surface to me, seem to indicate a re-entry of Masterbilt into the market, but at lower quality build to cut corners. Let's hope not, or the Masterbilt line will fail. If Epiphone decides to add more Masterbilts to their line....let's hope they do it right, and not cut corners...because on a Masterbilt those cut corners will not pass the grade. This Masterbilt AJ-45ME looks just like the Epi Limited Edition 1963 J45 but with a Masterbilt headstock. It needs a few changes. The rosette is too wide and too fussy. It needs to be more like the simple rosette on a Gibson J45. And as for the pickguard!! Well what can I say? It needs to be a teardrop at least. If this guitar is all solid like other Masterbilts and looks the part, I for one cannot wait!!! ps having looked closely at the spec I would prefer a slightly wider nut 1.72 at least Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mgrasso Posted August 18, 2014 Author Share Posted August 18, 2014 Not to be a skeptic, but I just noticed that the "Pending" page is now gone. I think we might not have supposed to see those. Now that the Elitist Texan has been announced, maybe the AJ-45ME is not to be. Not sure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mgrasso Posted August 18, 2014 Author Share Posted August 18, 2014 My bad, they just changed the name of the page/url: 2014 Pending Epiphones But there seem to be a few missing, I think. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DennisB643 Posted August 27, 2014 Share Posted August 27, 2014 My bad, they just changed the name of the page/url: 2014 Pending Epiphones But there seem to be a few missing, I think. I resend my previous statement...if it's a short scale I'm pitching a tent to be the first in line... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nyghthawk Posted January 22, 2015 Share Posted January 22, 2015 Harmony Central has a news article saying that this will be introduced at NAMM 2015. Wish I had the cash...:( Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DennisB643 Posted January 22, 2015 Share Posted January 22, 2015 Yep looks like it's gonna happen. http://www.epiphone.com/News/Features/2015/New-for-Spring-2015.aspx Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cliffenstein Posted January 22, 2015 Share Posted January 22, 2015 Freaking awesome. I wonder what the street price will be. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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