Saein factory korea

[timandbob]

Hey all, what is the general opinion of the Epis made at the Saein Korea plant. And also what do you think of the Shine guitars (especially the archtops) made from that plant?

[brad1]

Some from there are very good. Others are good. Still others are OK. And the rest are not very good.

Yeah, I'm being a smart ***.

But I'm also trying to make a point. Which is.....NOT ALL THE GUITARS FROM THAT FACTORY ARE THE SAME!

I wish people would wake up to that fact. I know you asked for a general opinion, and perhaps one can make some general opinions on certain specific factories. But the problem I see with that is that so many folks hear that the (insert name of factory here) plant makes crappy guitars or the so-and-so plant makes great LPs. And people believe this.

I have played a great guitar built from the plant you mention. I have also played really, really, poor ones as well.

I don't think it does any service to anyone to make a general, blanket statement about any of the factories.

But you, of course, have the perfect right to do so.

That's just my opinion. I'm sure many will not agree.

[Sjael]

Brad is completely correct in the fact that quality varies with any plant. I will, however, say that my Explorer is from Saein, and it's one fantastic tool! Pretty much flawless.

[timandbob]

Some from there are very good. Others are good. Still others are OK. And the rest are not very good.

Yeah' date=' I'm being a smart ***.

But I'm also trying to make a point. Which is.....NOT ALL THE GUITARS FROM THAT FACTORY ARE THE SAME!

I wish people would wake up to that fact. I know you asked for a general opinion, and perhaps one can make some general opinions on certain specific factories. But the problem I see with that is that so many folks hear that the (insert name of factory here) plant makes crappy guitars or the so-and-so plant makes great LPs. And people believe this.

I have played a great guitar built from the plant you mention. I have also played really, really, poor ones as well.

I don't think it does any service to anyone to make a general, blanket statement about any of the factories.

But you, of course, have the perfect right to do so.

That's just my opinion. I'm sure many will not agree.

I understand your point, but I was asking, as you stated somewhere in your "rant", for a general opinion. I totally understand that there are varying levels of quality from every plant that makes everything in the world. But manufacturers earn a general market consensus for a reason. For example. Ford quality was poor in the 70s; yes there were some good cars, but for the most part, the cars were not great. Now, however, their cars (generally) get much better quality marks. And I understand that every once in a while, there is a lemon and you have to drive it (or play it) to be sure.

 

And I disagree that it does not do anyone any service to make a general statement about quality. I was not asking for a "blanket" statement, I am asking for a general opinion.

 

So, there is my "rant-back"; and my question still stands -- what is the general consensus of their quality.

[Ron G]

Steve, perhaps you could submit your question as a poll. The results would be interesting and informative.

[brad1]

And I disagree that it does not do anyone any service to make a general statement about quality. I was not asking for a "blanket" statement' date=' I am asking for a general opinion.

[/quote']

 

First, a "blanket statement" IS a general opinion.

Second, I did not "rant" at all. I wrote in an orderly, clear and coherent manner.

 

And BTW, my answer still stands.

Some from there are very good. Others are good. Still others are OK. And the rest are not very good.

[sjtalon]

I have a 2006 Casino from Saein. I had to file the ends of the fret wire a tad as a few stuck out enough that you would snag them.

 

Other than that, very good quality, workmanship. Nice neck and fretboard, electronics are good. It plays and sounds GREAT.

[ladyscaglyc]

My Emperor II JP VS (Saein-2000) is beautiful, flawless & a real joy to play.

I'm now having "issues" with the wiring & will be upgrading soon.

 

That production wiring/pots is the only thing I can find fault with,

so overall IMO, The Saein Factory makes a fine guitar.

 

Of course I can only

"speak for myself or of this very guitar"

[timandbob]

First' date=' a "blanket statement" IS a general opinion.

Second, I did not "rant" at all. I wrote in an orderly, clear and coherent manner.

 

And BTW, my answer still stands.

Some from there are very good. Others are good. Still others are OK. And the rest are not very good.

[/quote']Brad, I meant no disrespect, which is why I put "rant" in quotes. You did write in a clear and coherent matter.

 

And a blanket statement is not the same as a general opinion. For example (with my Ford example), a general opinion is: "in general Fords are of above average quality". A blanket statement is: all Fords are of above average quality. They are not the same thing.

 

Thanks for your answer. I'd be interested in others' opinions as well.

[tgifntx]

Hey Steve,

What's a goin' on buddy! Well, I have two LP's from the Saein plant and I wouldn't

take for 'em. I always say I got lucky... And I don't mean that in any mean spirited

way of course. I also look at it like "Swoop" has stated, "A Wednesday run"... In

all reality, There's good and bad ya' know. In my honest opinion, There's absolutely

nothing wrong with an Epi that rolled out of the Saein plant. Ironically, I just talked

to a guy that in the past month, Has sent 2 separate Gibson Les Pauls back due to

craftmanship issues on both in different areas. He sent the last one back and ordered

a Carvin..? He couldn't be happier. Carvin, Epi, Gibby... Heads or tails

[midiman56]

Is the Saein Korea plant different from the Unsung plant? Geeze ... this is all so confusing!!!

 

All I know is that I own six Epis:

 

The Lucille, LP Ultra, Korina Flying V and Firbird VII are all from Korea - they are excellent guitars in my opinion and I have no issue with any of them.

 

In the other hand, my two Prophecy GX series guitars (a Les Paul and an SG) are Chinese made - they are among the best guitars I've ever played!

 

So there you go. Two sets of guitars made in Asia by people that don't get paid a whole lot for their labor. All of them clearly worth the price I paid for them.

 

Being that none of these guitars are made in the USA, I personally tend to pay more attention to the sound, feel and looks of the instrument than the country of origin sticker on the back of the headstock. Then again, as I've said many times before, I don't think like a collector/investor - which would be pretty silly to do with Epiphone guitars in either case. Pretty much any collectable Epi's were made decades ago. Everything since then was built to make music.

 

Jim

[Muskank Sally]

Some from there are very good. Others are good. Still others are OK. And the rest are not very good.

Yeah' date=' I'm being a smart ***.

But I'm also trying to make a point. Which is.....NOT ALL THE GUITARS FROM THAT FACTORY ARE THE SAME!

I wish people would wake up to that fact. I know you asked for a general opinion, and perhaps one can make some general opinions on certain specific factories. But the problem I see with that is that so many folks hear that the (insert name of factory here) plant makes crappy guitars or the so-and-so plant makes great LPs. And people believe this.

I have played a great guitar built from the plant you mention. I have also played really, really, poor ones as well.

I don't think it does any service to anyone to make a general, blanket statement about any of the factories.

But you, of course, have the perfect right to do so.

That's just my opinion. I'm sure many will not agree.

I have a 2006 G-400 Custom from Saein (I) Korea.

It is a beautiful guitar.

Nonetheles, mine came with Pros' and Cons

Cons:

crappy bridge & tuners

Poorly Cut Nut: Was binding and causing a fuss. I used it but had the slots widened out and graphite added. It is OK to this day.

The old B-2 bridge was very problematic because the saddles would not hold still, constantly vibrating and losing intonation.

A $25 Gotoh replacement cured that.

The Gold Grover tuners that were on this guitar could not have been worse. They would not stay-tight to hold tuning and

were unlike the Grovers that are on my newer Epiphones that have never slipped once and are amazingly tight....

I ordered some Sperzel Locking Tuners and had them installed

Problem cured

Of course another set-up and I added a TP-6 for my own tuning satisfaction

 

Pros:

Good Neck: The frets and the feel of the neck are outstanding. I have been told by a couple of players that the neck feels as good as an actual '61 Custom

and that the frets needed no work.

Good Pickups: The '57 replica's that came with it were smoking hot and the switching was unique and friendly in it's delivery of combinations.

regardless they were swapped out for Duncan Distortions in the need for an even hotter sound, I added push-pull pots to it as well.

Durable body and paint: This guitar had a run in with a ceiling fan shortly after the Sperzels were put on. What happened?

I lifted it over my head in the playroom while jamming with my son. Whack! I was scared to look...

Needless to say the iron cast body and neck of this guitar rang through unscathed. There was a tiny little dent on the edge of one of the Sperzels that took the knock. The guitar never showed a sign of damage. To this day I wonder how the hell I got away with that. Must be fate. She belongs to me forever.

 

 

My best Epiphones are the LP and the SG Vintage, both made at Qingdao China between 2007 and 2009....they only needed set-ups.

(The LP of course got new pickups by my choice)

[Fefo78]

Hola, tengo una guitarra epiphone sg fabricada en el año 1997, en la fábrica de Saein, Corea. Lo que quisiera, es saber de que madera está hecha. Si alguien puede ayudarme, estría muy agradecido. El código de fabricación es: I97110478

 

Edited June 6, 2020 by Fefo78

[Erock Scott]

I own a LP Custom in black from saein....I have friends who offered  to buy it from me due to how good it plays. I have zero issues with it and the fretwork is really good as well as the neck on it...I did put Gibson pickups in it as the 57 copies in it seemed a bit muddy for my taste but were of good output. The tuners are gold grovers and they hold tuning very well. My Les Paul was made in 2003. Its a very well made guitar.

[Bfalley]

I have a 2000 Epiphone Les Paul Standard Translucent Amber made in the Saein factory. It is flawless in construction. I had a weird issue with the bridge pickup. I open it up and test all the points with a multi tester and it worked perfectly after putting it all back together. My guess would be something in the pots but who knows.

I also have a 1998 Epiphone ES-335 Dot made in the Samick factory. 

My family had a music store around that time and I would say over all the Samick factory products were slightly better (negligible). Any thing produced in Korea was excellent quality though. In my opinion the 3 best Korean factories were Samick, Saein, and Unsung. Different people will argue about which is the best. You would have a hard time telling the difference unless you had a wall of dozens to compare them to.  They all play and sound excellent and you won't be disappointed with any of them. I can't comment on Chinese quality because we got out if it around the time they switched. 

Most importantly don't make any decisions based on other people's opinions. If they feel right and play well to you listen to your heart.

 

[HintsfromHomie2]

I have identified a guitar i bought on EBAY 4 years ago for about $200, case and all as being an Epiphone es335 Deluxe  VS made at the Saien plant in 2000. Serial number is I00011952.  That said: this guitar was barely if ever played and certainly never abused. This is no matched grain plus top, pretty much working mans  grain on top and back  but it sure reminded me of the two matching  Gibson es335s the lead and rhythm guitar players owned (both now sadly deceased)  in a band I played in back in 66-71 in Vermont, just outta high school and into college. I was the bass player then  The only guitars I'd had  til then were two Martin (  '52 model 0-18 which I still have ) and a  '61 D12-20  that I bought used and sold when the neck went, no receipt for a free reset and i was a poor colletch kid) and that's my story.  Grainy cosmetic issues aside this one I can play unplugged and it has a  sweet voice and vibe all its own. 

I have a few  more guitars now that I play at age 72, this being one I bought mostly for nostalgia and  because I knew it would be OK for playing both  jazz and blues and I was right: the  neck is perfect, frets same, nice tone from those old gold  Humbuckers... My issue was those questionable old gold   "Grover tuners" not staying in tune at all, at least the  B and E not holding the bends. The more I played the worse it got until I finally bought some Kluson Gold locking Revolution  3x3 tuners to replace all  the originals.  Then there was no problem at all: that guitar I started pulling off the rack more than the others when I felt like working on some progression or learning some YouTube lesson or just noodling on the couch instead of hanging out in my small music studio  getting all serious.  This one looks, plays and sounds like those two Gibsons my old friends had except for two things: the binding on those was a bit deeper "yellowed by age" but not much ....and theirs as I remember had plain truss rod covers,  old school Kluson non locking  tuners and that was pre SNARK, pre-BOSS Tune pedal .  The organ player would  run a  riff in E or A,  we'd ear check...Mine has  the name GIBSON etched on it which makes  me think that Gibson in 2000 still cared enough about products which carried their name and "patents, characteristics" even though Gibson planned to spin off Epiphone in the near future to identify it as their own below an EPIPHONE headstock brand . Glad I bought it when I did. 

I'm about to put a Bigsby B3 and Towner down bar on it because I dislike the tremolo and its action on the  '86  Fender Strat (Texas Hots mod)  I own ( too stiff, too much effort and it's standard bottom mount installed whereas SRV's top mount  arm makes more sense) and  I have played  that one until it looks like a real relic .... I am not inclined to put a tremolo on the 2019 Epi LP Standard Plus Top Pro I like just the way it is.  

Maybe some of you have been there and beyond, can get a few grins from reading this.  I still do a 9-5 and really love playing. 

 

 

 

[MrRFasters]

On 9/17/2009 at 5:59 PM, brad1 said:

Quote

And I disagree that it does not do anyone any service to make a general statement about quality. I was not asking for a "blanket" statement' date=' I am asking for a general opinion.

[/quote']

 

First, a "blanket statement" IS a general opinion.

Second, I did not "rant" at all. I wrote in an orderly, clear and coherent manner.

 

And BTW, my answer still stands.

Some from there are very good. Others are good. Still others are OK. And the rest are not very good.

Pls answer the question.

Not doing so is a showing a lack of respect.

And your answer is drawing focus away from the question put forward. So you re also hindering. 🤔  Repeatedly.  And 5hat s a shame.

[Larsongs]

I think it has to do with what Price Point Guitars they are Contracted by Fender, Gibson, Gretsch etc. to build… The higher Priced with better Content & better Build quality…