frenchie1281734003 Posted February 28, 2010 Share Posted February 28, 2010 I will try and be as thorough as I can with this review. I only purchased this guitar last Thursday from Dawson`s music in Chester (U.K.), Having spent a good couple of hours in their store, and having played all the models on display, I just had to have this "Antique Natural" one, but let me add that the "Cherry Sunburst ones look very nice too. All three that I played were well made, although all have some minor cases of finishing defects. One had a small chip out of the Rosewood bridge, another, a dollop of varnish, that had built up at the end of the fretboard, and mine has a small stain inside. Another point of interest, is that, on all three models, the string post holes are not in a straight line, which means, the very good "Wilkinson Kluson" three on a plate tuners, dont fit as good as they should, with the centre posts leaning in on both sides!, this also means that the ferrules do not sit properly. I intend to get some individual "Kluson type" tuners, and put those on for a better look and function. Starting at the headstock you can see that my Texan has a one piece neck (With added heel block) and doesn`t have the extra wood strips either side of the oversized Epiphone H/stock, which others I saw do! The front of the h/stock, has the mother of Pearloid inlay`s that have been done very well,plus the traditional flanges to the side of the h/stock, that the originals have. However it does carry a three screw TRC, and I think most would have preferred a two screw one, but there isn`t the wood underneath it to do so, but on the bright side, the "E" logo has gone back to the classic style. Both the Nut & Saddle are made of bone, with the saddle being of the compensated type, and have been done well, although I have reshaped them, to look better. The neck has a very nice medium C neck profile, and a 1 11/16ths width at the nut, which in my opinion is a big improvement on those skinny late 60`s necks. The frets are on the medium side and have been fitted very well, with no sharp edges. A very nice piece of dark Rosewood has been used for the fretboard, and the Trapezoid Pearloid inlays fit precisely, and have a look of the 60`s ones. The neck joins the body at the 14th fret, apparently a dovetailed joint, with a good solid heel (An area where the Texan changed over the years). The bracing inside looks tidy, with the two visible Spruce back braces being of the thin tall type, and the two further back being heavier, the Kerfing is very fine & tidy, and made out of a type of Mahogany. I felt inside for the X bracing, and the other scalloped braces, so well done Epiphone. The Blue label inside the F/hole is a nice touch. The two piece Sitka Spruce top, is not very thick, and has been finished to look vintage and does the job well, as for the quality of the wood itself, it looks very similar to the 64 Texan on pages 146-147 of Andy Babiuk`s Beatles gear book. The scratchplate with "Foil E" is a welcome nod to the past, and looks good, although a little rough around the edges, and the sound hole Rosette looks good too. The new bridge design looks solid, and I would bet that it`s an improvement on the old tone killing plastic bridge with ADJ ceramic saddle. I don`t know why they rounded off the two inner ends though? The back of the guitar is two piece solid Mahogany, which looks very nice, and may in fact be Sapele, oddly enough and I didn`t notice this till later, it isn`t quite centre joined! sides are laminated Mahogany and are well bookmatched, how much bearing on acoustic tone this has I don`t know, but as this Texan is an electro-acoustic, it fits the Takamine template. The bridgepins are cheap cream plastic, and I have already ordered some Ebony ones to replace, although they do the job well. The finish is not overly thick, infact, when I was sorting out the Ferrules, I chipped some finish off the h/stock in a couple of places, and would say the finish was about half the thickness of that of my 1983 Ibanez Artist 1505, if that is of any help at all. Now the sonic evaluation, firstly, the original strings, are about a 12 gauge and do not do this guitar justice, so I have set mine up for D`addario 11`s Phospher Bronze, and those combined with the longer 25 1/2 scale length (compared to the Gibson J45/50) gives the feeling, that the tension is lighter. Strumming an E chord, the tone is very balanced and even,quite mellow, and you get the impression it will get more mellow as it opens up. Strum hard, and this guitar seems to project in waves, with excellent sustain and projection, with the neck and back vibrating against you. Play pick & strum, and the bass notes have good definition, but don`t overpower the chord. Intonation on this particular Texan is spot on. As for fingerpicking, this guitar really starts to excel, the balance between bass and treble is lovely, the bass rumbles along never overpowering the sparkly trebles, bass runs are a delight. There is a certain new guitar boxiness to it, but you just know that this Texan is going to develope, the more she is played. I compared this guitar to recordings made by Wizz Jones (Worth looking up on Youtube), and Paul Mccartneys "Chaos and Creation in the back yard" album, where he uses his Texan extensively, and you know on which tracks. I think this guitar compares very favourably, and you just know it is going to get better. One other point, tune this guitar down a whole step, and it is even better! Plugged in, to my Laney VC15 tube amp, and I find that the best setting is, volume up, and bass and treble rolled off. It does the job well, but if I were to gig out with it, I would probably mic up as well, although I have yet to try it through an acoustic amp. In conclusion I am stunned at how good this Texan is! It far surpasses all my expectations, and as a guitar in it`s own right, warrants attention. I feel Epiphone, with their "Inspired by" range of models are trying to do a Chinese"Elitist" thing , if that is so, they have hit the nail right on the head, I can see Elitist type traits in there, like the one piece necks with added heel block for example, they just need to tighten up on the quality control aspect a little more. I would suggest to anyone interested, to go out and try a few, don`t buy blind, because most have minor finishing faults of some kind or other, but find a good one, and to be fair the other two I tried were good (This one to me, was just a bit special) and you will have a friend for life. The price was £300.00, and if you take into account the RRP of the Shadow Nanoflex pickup is £157.99 (on Shadows site), that basically means this guitar is actually £140.00!! Barmy money. Don`t get me wrong, this guitar is no boutique Santa Cruz, Collings, etc, but then, neither is a 1960`s Texan! I have it on good authority that prices are going up soon, and you may have a bit of trouble finding a suitable case, but go try it, it`s great!!! Steve. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dhanners623 Posted February 28, 2010 Share Posted February 28, 2010 Thanks for the review. Very helpful, and makes me even more excited about the one I ordered, which should arrive mid-week. Sounds like you landed a winner. One thing I'm wondering, though -- How is the soundhole edge unit (or whatever the proper name for it is) for the Nanoflex attached to the top? Is it movable? Have fun with your guitar, but it sounds like you're already doing that.... http://www.davidhanners.com Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red 333 Posted February 28, 2010 Share Posted February 28, 2010 Good review, Frenchie. The pictures really helped, too. It's interesting to me that the lower two back braces (the #3 and #4) are low and wide. That's the way the Elitist Texan was built, but not the McCartney Texan, which used all tall and thin back braces. Since they were both built in the same place (Tedara in Japan), I've always wonderd why the decision was made to use one set versus another (all the vintage Texans I've examined have tall and thin lower back braces, so that I understand). I have no idea what effect, if any, this has on tone, it's just interesting to me when Gibson/Epiphone chooses one pattern over the other in otherwise simlar guitars. My J35 and J45 TV has the same difference, too. Without examing one, I can only surmise that the x bracing is different from the Elitist and McCartney, and is probably more like that of the Masterbilt AJs, which is further from the sound hole than is traditional for a Gibson design. I say this because the saddle is very close to the top of the bridge. If it's located correctly for the Texan's long scale (and it sounds like it is, given the excellent intonation you report), then it indicates that the designers moved the bridge itself away from the sound hole, as would be expected if the x brace was also located further away. The bridge pad underneath the top fits below the intersection of the x braces, and the bridge itself is in a corresponding location on the top itself. Of course, I say all this without benefit of actually measuring an IB texan, but it would explain some of the unusual aspects of that bridge. The shape of the Texan (and the limited edition J45 that was out a year ago or so) looks more Gibsony, too, and is not the generic dreadnaught shape, but with rounded-off shoulders, like so many other imports. I've noticed the recent Masterbuilt AJ bodies have also adopted this more correct shape (with the narrower waist), too. Like the the Texan, they are less bean shaped that past Epiphone slope-shouldered bodies. Epiphone must have gotten some new side forms, as they increase their focus on reproducing more correct Gibson body shapes in their Chinese factory, as we have seen in the shape of Dot and Casino horns, the more contoured SGs, etc. It's nice to know Epiphone has done well by the Texan, and made it more affordable to more people. It really does sound like a steal, especially considering the addition of the electronics. I hope you continue to enjoy yours! Red 333 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frenchie1281734003 Posted February 28, 2010 Author Share Posted February 28, 2010 One thing I'm wondering' date=' though -- How is the soundhole edge unit (or whatever the proper name for it is) for the Nanoflex attached to the top? Is it movable http://www.davidhanners.com [/quote'] Hi dhanners, I have had a look inside the soundhole, and it looks as though the unit is held in place by adhesive pads, I can see two, and would imagine there are a couple more. If I try to wiggle the unit, it doesn`t move. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peeper Posted February 28, 2010 Share Posted February 28, 2010 It's held on with double sided tape. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frenchie1281734003 Posted February 28, 2010 Author Share Posted February 28, 2010 Without examing one' date=' I can only surmise that the x bracing is different from the Elitist and McCartney, and is probably more like that of the Masterbilt AJs, which is further from the sound hole than is traditional for a Gibson design. I say this because the saddle is very close to the top of the bridge. If it's located correctly for the Texan's long scale (and it sounds like it is, given the excellent intonation you report), then it indicates that the designers moved the bridge itself away from the sound hole, as would be expected if the x brace was also located further away. The bridge pad underneath the top fits below the intersection of the x braces, and the bridge itself is in a corresponding location on the top itself. Of course, I say all this without benefit of actually measuring an IB texan, but it would explain some of the unusual aspects of that bridge. Red 333[/quote'] Red, I took a measurement from the edge of the soundhole (Underside) to the centre of the X brace V if you know what I mean, and it measured 3cm or 1 3/16ths, but another thing I noticed is that apart from the front of the saddle being further forward, so are the bridgepins as well. Oh and something else, it also has the famous popsicle sticks around the soundhole. Does this help? and what does it all mean! Steve. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Red 333 Posted February 28, 2010 Share Posted February 28, 2010 Red' date=' I took a measurement from the edge of the soundhole to the centre of the X brace V if you know what I mean, and it measured 3cm or 1 3/16ths, but another thing I noticed is that apart from the front of the saddle being further forward, so are the bridgepins as well. Oh and something else, it also has the famous popsicle sticks around the soundhole. Does this help? and what does it all mean! Steve.[/quote'] Every vintage Texan I've seen had the popsicle sticks, as do the Elitist and Japanese-made McCartney Texans. The USA made McCartney Texans did not have them, maybe because Gibson doesn't use them on their slope shoulder guitars at this time, so may not have had them to build with (though I'd be surprised they couldn't slice up a few, you know). Honestly, that bit of reinforcement around the sound hole probably doesn't mean much by itself, though some luthiers go so far as to attribute the amount of sound hole rosette purfing as contributing to a guitar's tone, so who really knows? I don't have the notebook with me that I record various x brace angles and locations, so I'll post some comparitive measurements later. Your measurements do indicate for sure that the x brace is further back, but I can't say for sure how much. Maybe by a 1/4 inch or less, but I'll let you know. Some guitars are said to sound a certain way, or different from the same model produced in a different year, as a result of the x brace being closer to the soundhole (ala the Gibson Advanced Jumbo and some Martins). Epiphone has had great results with shifting the x brace away from the sound hole further than usual in the Masterbilt series, though, so it only proves that whatever makes the guitar sound good is what makes it sound good! Red 333 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frenchie1281734003 Posted March 1, 2010 Author Share Posted March 1, 2010 Red, I keep finding out new things about this Texan all the time. I was checking over the fretboard, wondering why I couldn`t see the fret ends, like you can on all the other versions, when I noticed, that in fact, the fretboard is bound in Rosewood! It is hard to see, but it is. You can just make it out in this shot. Steve. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnMcClane5000 Posted March 1, 2010 Share Posted March 1, 2010 I agree about the pickup.... Roll of the Treble and Bass and maybe use a nice clean boost pedal (I use a Diamond Compressor as a boost) and everything will be just dandy...! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frenchie1281734003 Posted March 1, 2010 Author Share Posted March 1, 2010 I agree about the pickup.... Roll of the Treble and Bass and maybe use a nice clean boost pedal (I use a Diamond Compressor as a boost) and everything will be just dandy...! Thanks for the advice John. Incidently, you have had yours a bit longer than mine, so how do you rate the Texan now? And is the tone on yours opening up? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnMcClane5000 Posted March 1, 2010 Share Posted March 1, 2010 Thanks for the advice John. Incidently' date=' you have had yours a bit longer than mine, so how do you rate the Texan now? And is the tone on yours opening up? [/quote'] Yeah, I've had mine some weeks now and I've been playing it extensively. It's a great great great guitar. Much better than I anticipated. The only thing that's a bit a pain is the whole pickup situation. You can't crank the volume or else there a deep hum that's barely controllable. I'll be gigging with my Tex in 1.5 weeks but I don't think it's that much of a problem. The Diamond Compressor works wonders and it's a superb pedal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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