I think there's something wrong with me...

[iankinzel]

I was at a guitar shop yesterday with a couple friends, Chris and David, when I commented that I really liked the tone on a particular guitar that Chris was playing. The pair was a bit surprised, and David suggested blind-testing me; they had me go a few aisles back and face the wall while they took turns playing, and switched guitars back and forth. Every time they stopped playing, they asked me if I'd preferred guitar A or guitar B (they compared 4 different pairs).

 

...Apparently, no matter which amp, no matter which player, no matter which song, I consistently picked the Epiphone Les Paul over the Gibson Les Paul.

 

I'm not talking about Epiphone Elitist vs Gibson Studio here...I mean, straight-up Epiphone Les Paul Standard (Made in China, no less) vs Gibson Les Paul Standard. I think what I was picking up on was that the Gibson sounds fuller and mellower, whereas the Epiphone has a sharper, thinner sound...and for some reason, if you blind test me, I pick the thinner, sharper sound.

 

Is there some way to correct this? I know Gibson is supposed to be the better guitar, but it looks like I just don't appreciate it the way I ought to...

[damian]

:unsure: .........

[brad1]

There may be something wrong with you. But it's not your hearing.

 

We all hear stuff differently.

I too usually like my guitars/amps sounding more on the treble side. I like listening to music like that too. I always have.

Never been a big fan of a lot of bass.

 

So there is absolutely no way you need any "correcting". There is no "right way" a guitar should sound. It's all up to the individual.

 

That's why we have so many music genres. That's why we there are so many different types of guitars, pickups, amps, etc., etc.,.

And I say Thank God for diversity! Otherwise we would all like the same stuff; music, tone, speakers, etc..

 

I say, be thankful for what you perceive is a negative. It's a positive. You like the sound of cheaper guitars.

Why would you want to change that? Dude consider yourself lucky.

 

This is just my opinion.

Welcome to the forum. :)

[Lord Summerisle]

...and for some reason, if you blind test me, I pick the thinner, sharper sound.

 

Is there some way to correct this? I know Gibson is supposed to be the better guitar, but it looks like I just don't appreciate it the way I ought to...

 

Not sure how you can "correct" a subjective appreciation of music or the particular tone of a musical instrument (or why you'd want to).

 

As a player, there are so many factors that influence the selection of a particular guitar, but the two most important ones are how a guitar plays and how it sounds in your hands (not someone else's).

 

If you play guitar yourself, and happen to be looking for a guitar, then your subjective opinion is infinitely more important than conventional wisdom on the supposed quality of any guitar.

[SNick]

I can relate to that. I was at GC the first week of February this year. Spent 3 hours playing most of the Gibson LP's and Epi's. I liked the Epi. I went home to "think" about it. Came back the next day and played the Gibson and Epi I liked the day before. I brought home the better sounding of the two. The Gibson Traditional just did not sound as good as the Epi I played. The Epi Standard Plus top got my vote for best in tone, does not hurt the eyes either.

[iankinzel]

As a player, there are so many factors that influence the selection of a particular guitar, but the two most important ones are how a guitar plays and how it sounds in your hands (not someone else's).

I'd long suspected that I was harboring a secret preference for the Epiphone sound (I've owned a G-400 and an Epiphone LP Standard), but it was hard to tell in the scientific sense when I myself was playing - I always knew which guitar was being played, and for several other reasons I've preferred the Epiphone brand over the Gibson brand (necks, hardware, wider variety, affordability, etc.).

[sdgails]

I played A EPI DOVE AND a GIBBY DOVE side by side. I told the guitar center sales man to turn around and guess which sounds better. He picked the epi, turned around and looked stunned.

[rednefceleb]

Pickup winding is not an exact science. But..Epiphone can not accidentally "best" Gibson p'ups over and over. My best friend in the early 70's had a studio in his Ranch Garage. A guitarist: (Tim Barnes),played a "lawsuit Les Paul" from Japan. He could not tell the difference. Overall though, I prefer Gibson products over Gibson. Epiphone makes reasonably priced faithful replicas. "Beauty is in the '(ear)' of the beholder"! Rednefceleb.

[alfunkz]

so you like the sound of the cheaper guitar, whats wrong with that? :)

[Plus Top Dan]

so you like the sound of the cheaper guitar, whats wrong with that? :)

 

That sounds like a result to me!! I honestly find myself playing my Epi 339 and LP more than my much more expensive fenders - I'm obviuosly in a humbucker mood at the moment!!

[Vinlander]

That sounds like a result to me!! I honestly find myself playing my Epi 339 and LP more than my much more expensive fenders - I'm obviuosly in a humbucker mood at the moment!!

I play my upgraded Epi Sheraton II much more often than my Gibson Les Paul Standard; it is my main guitar...

[hawkfanatic]

The problem is not you, it's with the general perception about inexpensive guitars vs expensive ones. The perception is that a more expensive guitar is made better out of better woods and therefore should sound better. Thats almost a complete fallacy. First of all, not that epis aren't constructed well, because they are. But even if a gibson were constructed better, build quality has almost nothing to do with tone. Barring really bad quality which in today's market doesn't even exist anymore thanks to cnc machining. There are 3 things that dictate tone...wood, design, and electronics, the latter being the least of them and one thats easily changed and many change anyways even on expensive guitars. Wood is the main thing. It varies tonally sometimes a LOT from piece to piece even within the same species. And quality has little to do with it. Any piece of wood no matter what grade or type has the potential to sound phenomenal, and because it cannot be determine till the final product is built, they have no consistent and accurate way to determine what wood to use on a higher end guitar and which pieces to use on the cheapies. So they cannot possibly determine which is going to sound best. the things they CAD do to make the better models sound better is use what knowledge they DO have with wood such as tap toning it and hope for the best. Thats not accurate or consistent, but a way to help get a little closer to what they are looking for. Then theres pickups, but if they mad ehorrible pickups for inexpensive models people would replace them anyways.

 

Design also dictates the tone, but mainly the type, not quality of the tone. But the fact is that the differences between epi and gibson just like any other brand's models such as squier cv and fender labeled stuff, is all marketing. The want to build great cheapies because they know there are lots of players that will never buy expensive guitars, and if they build cheapies that can't compete with the other companies they will fail. So they don't want thier low lines to compete with thier higher lines, but they are forced to to some extent due to market pressure. So they do little things like lesser pickups, cheaper pots and switches, even allowing tiny cosmetic flaws past QC. But they cannot sell low line stuff thats not great because other companies will then slaughter them. It's all marketing. And thats great for the consumer because as the OP noted, a epi at 1/2 or 1/4 the price sounded better than a gibson. And the main reason is that epi simply had blessed wood. Also, there are times they will use a different species of the same wood, like different types of mahogany. And the inexpensive wood will go to thier low line, yet sometimes it turns out to be the better sounding wood generally.

 

Lots of reasons really, but wood variance and the inability to control it is the main reason you can get killer cheapies today that beat the upper line stuff. I have 3 cheap electrics right now that are IMO the best ones i have ever own of each or thier respective designs, a strat, a tele, and a nighthawk. I will never buy another expensive electric because in my experience the extra $ you pay all goes into things that don't matter. It's easy to find cheapies that beat thier expensive counterparts today, and no reason to pay more. But also note that one of if not the only reason companies like gibso can sell a low line like epi and not see thier top end stuff fade away from lack of sales is due to one important fact....theye are now and ALWAYS will be enough people buying thier high end stuff to keep it in production because there are tons of people who will NEVER believe low line guitars can be as good and also many who need the headstock to have a certain name or they cannot live with it. Be thankful to those losers, becase they are they reason we are able to buy inexpensive guitars like epis that are killer axes.