spider13 Posted May 18, 2009 Share Posted May 18, 2009 so back in 2002 i was looking for an epiphone casino not knowing anything else but me wanting to have a beatles type guitar. sadly now i know more and find the epiphone casino i have is made in china, sound is kinda okay not tooooo bad, except when i finger pick on bluesy numbers the thinest string around the 12th fret kinda sounds tooo low as far as volume and the sustain is lousy, i now play in a rockabilly/psychobilly band and love the sound of gretsch guitars, is there any upgrades or mods i can do to make my guitar sound like a gretsch or at least better so the sound could stand out, as i play in a rockabilly /psychobilly band i use a blues driver pedal to add some crunchy didtorted metal type sound with out the fuzz. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bluelake07 Posted May 18, 2009 Share Posted May 18, 2009 Save up some money, sell the Casino and buy a Gretsch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TWANG Posted May 19, 2009 Share Posted May 19, 2009 some of the gretsch guitars use humbucks that are lower output models. and that can make a radical difference in sound. you say the string loses volume at a certain fret or fret area.. which indicates a set up problem.. could be a dead fret.. or it could be fretting out a bit.. or something else. some gretsch are made in china, too, by the way. unless you spend a few grand. the epi casino can produce a great rockabilly sound.. I don't think you need new pups.. probably, and I'm guessing, you just need a competent tech to go over it. You can change saddles, or bridge.. and that can make a difference.. do you have metal or nylon saddles? your nut is probably plastic, and that doesn't do your sustain any favors... go for a tusq there, it helps quite a bit with tone and sustain. It's hard to say more on little information.. so I'll stop here and let you get a word in.. maybe we can get you there. Rev. Horton Heat is coming to Sioux Falls in August. I am SOOOOOOOOO there. tWANG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bender 4 Life Posted May 19, 2009 Share Posted May 19, 2009 The "entry level" Gretsches I've test driven were TERRIBLE..........unless you LIKE sounding as if you're playing a cardboard guitar. Try killing some bass and boosting the treble on your amp. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spider13 Posted May 28, 2009 Author Share Posted May 28, 2009 some of the gretsch guitars use humbucks that are lower output models. and that can make a radical difference in sound. you say the string loses volume at a certain fret or fret area.. which indicates a set up problem.. could be a dead fret.. or it could be fretting out a bit.. or something else. some gretsch are made in china' date=' too, by the way. unless you spend a few grand. the epi casino can produce a great rockabilly sound.. I don't think you need new pups.. probably, and I'm guessing, you just need a competent tech to go over it. You can change saddles, or bridge.. and that can make a difference.. do you have metal or nylon saddles? your nut is probably plastic, and that doesn't do your sustain any favors... go for a tusq there, it helps quite a bit with tone and sustain. It's hard to say more on little information.. so I'll stop here and let you get a word in.. maybe we can get you there. Rev. Horton Heat is coming to Sioux Falls in August. I am SOOOOOOOOO there. tWANG[/quote'] lower oupput model on hambucks whats that mean? i dont know anything about pickups or which are good. whats a competent tech? is that an amp? i dont know what are saddles or bridge everything is stock. i think i know what the nut is that one is the white peice at he top of the neck near the tunners right? yeah im preaty sure that one i got is plastic. dude im soooo lost#-o Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stevie Nazarenie Posted May 28, 2009 Share Posted May 28, 2009 stick some gfs nashvilles or liverpool humbuckers or even some dream 180's in any guitar capable (humbucker routed epi would do.) you don't need a gretsch! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spider13 Posted June 1, 2009 Author Share Posted June 1, 2009 does any one know if tv jones are any good? i know brian setzer and the guy from the living end use those. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HarpBoy Posted June 1, 2009 Share Posted June 1, 2009 does any one know if tv jones are any good? i know brian setzer and the guy from the living end use those. I'd encourage you not to think about trading your guitar until you get more experience. As Twang said, if you notice a significant difference at a particular fret, you might benefit from someone looking at your fretboard. You might also consider a compressor/sustainer pedal which can brighten up your sound a lot. I like the JangleBox, but there are others that are good as well. Your Casino is a good guitar and the pickups are generally considered quite good as well. Take it in and get it set up properly and go from there. Good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
clarkuss Posted June 1, 2009 Share Posted June 1, 2009 what amp are you using? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest icantbuyafender Posted June 2, 2009 Share Posted June 2, 2009 If you'll notice, a LARGE number of us forum members recommend and own either a Les Paul Gold Top or Casino( or other hollow/semi-hollowbody epiphone guitars) and can attest to their superiority in (playability, sound and quality) in the line of epiphone products. I strongly urge you to have someone take a look at your guitar and try it out. Perhaps its just a minor issue. Also, the pickups on the Casino weren't designed for high-gain-metal-rock at all. Plus the hollow ES-330 style body tend to have a feed back issue if you are within close proximity to your amp... But, by going by what you say about the guitar... have someone experienced check it out. Perhaps you just bought the wrong type of electric guitar? Good Luck! P.S: Let me know if you decide to sell it!!!! Seriously!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
g61201281734168 Posted June 2, 2009 Share Posted June 2, 2009 The "entry level" Gretsches I've test driven were TERRIBLE..........unless you LIKE sounding as if you're playing a cardboard guitar. Try killing some bass and boosting the treble on your amp. There is some truth there as I was at the guitar center the other day and just for kicks thought I would try one of the entry level gretsch guitars kinda looked like a 6120 but the cheaper model dont know the model # maybe 5120 ? not positive but everything looked cheap . In the past everyone that gets one wants to upgrade some of the parts when they have it for awhile . Your casino is a fine instrument but you may need another guitar for what your looking to do . If your thinking gretsch than maybe a 6120 may be the route you need to go . Dont give up on the casino because it could work for your application you just need to work with it a bit more and find that sweet spot its there . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stevie Nazarenie Posted June 2, 2009 Share Posted June 2, 2009 http://www.tvjones.com/pickups/tvclassic.html there are some sound samples there. you know what you like when you try them, thats why i went gfs on these to try them out. i like the dream 180's in g400 and i added a bigsby ripoff. i called that my ac/dc guitar as it was a malcom (gretsch) pickup and angus style sg. it worked very well! but they dreams got toppled by my alnico 2's for now. the only other gretsch style pickups i own are a set i got off ebay for £15 all in. they were meant to be alnico 5 as sold by axesrus but the magnets have been swapped for thin ceramics. still these too are nice and are in a fretlight guitar. as far as the casino goes the only reason i wouldn't like it is because i'm not a beatles fan but i have to say don't mess with it unless you have to because you may like it better later. i hated my low gain sg as a kid but now i like those alnico 2's. p90's are nice. just put any gretch style pickups in a epi.or even a strat. you can bet you can get an ok strat for £30 off ebay. i see them go for that price all the time. and if you don't like the pickups use it as your test guitar for other pickups. the gfs liverpools are meant to be pretty good. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rouge Posted June 2, 2009 Share Posted June 2, 2009 you probably don't need to sell the guitar (yet). firstly, you can probably adjust the pick-up, and the level for that particular string. Dont know which pick-up it has. But might simply need a flat-head screwdriver adjustment. Other than that, a parametric EQ alongside correct use of compression (the term "twang" usually focuses on the attack or transient of a particular sound) will probably work wonders. and STRINGS!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stig Posted June 2, 2009 Share Posted June 2, 2009 The "entry level" Gretsches I've test driven were TERRIBLE..........unless you LIKE sounding as if you're playing a cardboard guitar. Try killing some bass and boosting the treble on your amp. As an "old guy" who owns a bunch of old guitars, I can attest to the fact that a lot of affordable guitars just have this feel and sound of cheapness. They're good, playable instruments, but with the polyurethane finishes and lighter metals and stuff, there's just a barely tangible feel as soon as you touch the neck - plastic-like and lacking density. The vibration feels different through the wood when you hit the strings. And that translates through the pickups and into your amp. You know it when you feel it, and those new Gretsches have it in spades. So does the Chinese Casino, but I still really like mine. I'm 100% sure that in a blindfolded, side by side test, I could tell the difference between pretty much any classic American-made guitar and it's foreign-made counterpart. Most people probably could. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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