JayF Posted February 15, 2012 Share Posted February 15, 2012 I have heard that the quality of Epiphone Hummingbirds varies from guitar to guitar. Because of this I don't want to purchase online or ebay and think it would be best to purchase new. But what needs to be looked-at when demoing new Hummingbirds and shopping for a new one? Thanks in advance, Jay Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brannon67 Posted February 16, 2012 Share Posted February 16, 2012 Well its like any guitar out there. Its best that you play it first, listen, etc before you buy. The thing about MF or other online stores, you can get it, and if you dont like it, you can return it, but you have to pay the $30-45 shipping fee to send it back to them. Its best to go to GC or another local music store and see if they have one in stock. Thats just me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JayF Posted February 16, 2012 Author Share Posted February 16, 2012 Thanks but let me clarify. I am interested in anyone's specific experience with Epi Hummingbirds and what to look for in person. Jay Well its like any guitar out there. Its best that you play it first, listen, etc before you buy. The thing about MF or other online stores, you can get it, and if you dont like it, you can return it, but you have to pay the $30-45 shipping fee to send it back to them. Its best to go to GC or another local music store and see if they have one in stock. Thats just me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RaysEpiphone Posted February 17, 2012 Share Posted February 17, 2012 Thanks but let me clarify. I am interested in anyone's specific experience with Epi Hummingbirds and what to look for in person. Jay OK, you got a good point about any one model but it's still the same in the end and like brannon67 said, you got to try it out first. Id go to a store that has lot's of guitars on display and try out as many as you can, many stores will have more than one of any/all model's. I love Epiphone but most all of them are made over sea's in less than optimal factories. Don't get me wrong the Chinese Epiphone's are very good for the price you pay but..... they have a lot of semi-skilled and non-skilled worker's in there plant's. The NATO wood that they use is not meticulously graded so they just piece together what "looks good" from any batch that come's in. I wouldn't trade my Chinese $350.00 Texan for any Takamine, Yamaha or Fender or even a low cost Martin for that matter. But a vintage guitar... I may think about giving up my year old Texan for something nice but not any other brand name, there's just something about a Gibson product that ya can't beat in my book. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wayne Posted February 18, 2012 Share Posted February 18, 2012 I think it looks funny next to a Gibson bird. You might want to look at that if you care about looks. I like the sound...The one I've played at a local store has pretty high action so you might want to watch out for that...I know, not much help but its all I've got. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SakoHunter Posted March 23, 2012 Share Posted March 23, 2012 I just took a chance and ordered one from MF and so far I think I got lucky. Set up is very good.....intonation was a little off and the action is a little high but not bad at all. Neck-straight Binding-excellent Finish- very good, a couple minor flaws but have to look close to see Voice-bright but not very loud Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JKK Posted March 24, 2012 Share Posted March 24, 2012 Beautiful. Is it an Indonesian made one? My next purchase is definitely going to be a hummingbird. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LPDEN Posted March 24, 2012 Share Posted March 24, 2012 With any acoustic and already mentioned here, I look for the neck to be straight, the neck pocket joint to be seated properly with no pulling or signs of separation / gaps, if the top is sunken in from lack of proper humidity exposure that there are no cracks, and check under the pickguard with a mirror through the sound hole too. Then as with all instruments that the fret work is clean with no lifting fretwire, etc. Some guitars may need a basic set-up and is why I prefer to buy local at a shop that has an excellent tech and will set up the guitar to ensure there is nothing going on that can't be remidied by the basic adjustments. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SakoHunter Posted March 24, 2012 Share Posted March 24, 2012 Beautiful. Is it an Indonesian made one? My next purchase is definitely going to be a hummingbird. Thanks...made in China and set up in USA. Sr# 1103180345 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LPDEN Posted March 24, 2012 Share Posted March 24, 2012 Hummingbird GAS indeed! I need more space for acoustics like these! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jinder Posted July 19, 2012 Share Posted July 19, 2012 My checklist is as follows: Make sure the action is decent If action is a shade high, make sure there is plenty of saddle left (ie prominent above the Rosewood bridge by 5-8mm at least) so saddle adjustment can be made to optimise action. This is handy to have, even if the action is dead-on. This indicates a good angle of neck set and will enable you to compensate for any geometric changes as the guitar settles into the environment in your home, and as it gets used to the idea of being a guitar rather than a tree. Check intonation...this is REALLY important. I carry a tuner with me when guitar shopping to check intonation. Often Pac-Rim guitars can have intonation issues, and sorting them out can be a real pain, sometimes involving major surgery. Listen with your ears, not your eyes...it's too easy to fall in love with a handsome guitar and overlook tonal or intonational issues that will do your head in after a week, when the novelty of the looks and new guitar joy wears off. Don't dismiss a guitar that sounds great and plays well because of a finish blemish or two-use any blems as a haggling opportunity! In a few days you'll not notice that ding or lacquer overspray patch, and you'll have an extra £20/30/40/50 in your bank for strings, a fancy strap or a case (a hardshell for the guitar, or a case of beer!). I've played plenty of Epi Hummers and Doves, and on balance I'd say they're both very nice, but I'd probably buy the Dove. I'd audition both before you put your beans on the barrelhead. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meanstreak Posted July 22, 2012 Share Posted July 22, 2012 I'd add that an older 1990s Hummingbird might be for you. My 1994 is a true gem IMHO. Sounds heads and tails better than the ones hanging in the shops. I will say that the Hummingbird Artist models I've tried have all been fantastic though! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meanstreak Posted July 22, 2012 Share Posted July 22, 2012 Here's a bigger pic of mine, taken with just a regular camera, I'll try to get some better pics with my DSLR soon Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
milod Posted July 23, 2012 Share Posted July 23, 2012 I think there's a bit of a problem with woods regardless where/how one buys a guitar. I saw one in the closest guitar store that's a bit over an hour's drive in low traffic conditions. It was "just off the truck" and the strings were flat on the frets. And I mean "on," not stretched above them. I picked up another Epi flattop from Sweetwater and it started off with a problem of strings hitting the frets and after I'd set it aside for a week or so 'cuz it was in rodeo season (which means 16-18-hour work days), and it was worse. So... back to Sweetwater. The next one wasn't exactly set up as I'd choose, but decent. After another set of strings and another cupla weeks sitting in a case while I worked the local rodeo season (I'm literally in cowboy country, btw), it actually shifted enough to be pretty nicely playable. Also, I recall at one point several Brits complaining about Gibsons where the wood on the neck had seemed to do various odd things. So... given that I tend to believe that Sweetwater checks guitars before sending them out - and the packaging lent itself to that conclusion, and given that I doubt Gibson was sending out guitars with frets sticking out from fingerboards... I think we tend to point at the manufacturer and/or retailer for what climate can do in certain moves from place to place, and how those moves might have been made at what time of year. The point about the woods chosen for a given guitar in the Epi plant in China isn't entirely off-kilter in my own opinion, but I'm rather certain they would not have been worked through for the degree of consistency one certainly would hope would have been the case with a Gibson. Variables could include curing of the woods, humidity and temp on a given day, etc., etc., etc. I have a hunch "we" should let a given guitar just plain sit there for a cupla weeks before we even think about messing with it, whether we're running a retail store or buying one mail order. The thing is, if the truss rod is okay, the bridge is okay, ain't nothin' broken, you can probably get a guitar set up appropriately. Even frets sticking out can be, if you look, a function not so much of bad qc but rather significant "drying" or desiccation of the woods. Whether that affects the price tag on a new instrument is up to the seller and the purchaser. I doubt that really answers your question, but... m Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GuitarLight Posted August 11, 2012 Share Posted August 11, 2012 These Hummingbird guitars are very beautiful, sound great, and are a real bargain, were it not for the pick guard designs wearing off in weeks of regular play, leaving a scarred hole where the hummingbird, or flowers once were. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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