Paulocon Posted August 11, 2012 Share Posted August 11, 2012 Wow, imagine my disbelief finding out that my beloved epiphone actually once made a stratocaster guitar! If anyone out there has one please let me know what your thoughts are on it and how it compares to the fender brand etc. I'm thinking about trying to find myself one, as they look awesome. But are they any good?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigneil Posted August 11, 2012 Share Posted August 11, 2012 They cover a wide price range, from extreme budget to nicely made. I had a s200 when I was a kid , it was a budget model but the neck was nice, on the down side the body was a sort of plywood style laminate and the electrics and pickups were a bit nasty. However the ones which were higher budget address most of those issues. A cheap one could be found on eBay and fixed up onto a nice guitar for not much. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigneil Posted August 11, 2012 Share Posted August 11, 2012 I am tempted to buy one just for the neck and build myself an epi parts-caster. Some had neck throughs and double locking trem's n stuff too. Edit. Ps here is some good reading from Robins unoficial epiphone wiki. My link Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RobinTheHood Posted August 13, 2012 Share Posted August 13, 2012 The most common Epiphone strat-style guitar you will find is the S-310 and S-300 - in that order. They are about on par with the Squier guitars as far as general quality. Some of these guitars were laminates and some where mystery mahogany. Hard to say why or exactly when the differences occured. As for the sound of this particular model, they had low budget ceramic pickups similar to what you find in a typical Squier. Nothing special and quite frankly, I'd probably opt for the Squier in this instance. They are more common and their modular design and replacement parts are still in production today. It is much harder to find replacement parts for an Epiphone S-Series guitar than a Squier. The rest of the S-Series (S-400 through 900) were actually super strats guitars. These featured better (but not great) pickups and hardware. Again, the modularity of these guitars comes in to play when looking for replacement parts. Pickguards, bridges and locknuts are all non-standard sized and common replacement parts dont fit properly...at least without some modifications. As well, you run the gammut with body materials from laminates to mystery wood to poplar depending on the year and model. One thing I can say though, is that the necks on these guitars were superb and the playablilty is top-notch. The rest of the guitar leaves a little to be desired, but worth while if you are a modder that really likes Epiphones. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmj5150 Posted August 16, 2012 Share Posted August 16, 2012 Remember the Gibson Stratocaster Jimi Hendrix Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
adam411booking Posted September 2, 2012 Share Posted September 2, 2012 Wow. Do they still make these? Even as a beginner guitar, it's kind of interesting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
damian Posted September 2, 2012 Share Posted September 2, 2012 I own six Strats.......None of them are made by Epiphone.....Just sayin'..... .... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PJ Posted September 3, 2012 Share Posted September 3, 2012 I ran across an Epiphone Tele in the used section at GC, and as a Tele player of the past 40 years, I would say it was pretty nice. Not at all a bad guitar. But, not really a Tele. They come from the other guys. Don't know much about the Strats, but the Tele was OK. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pada2013 Posted December 15, 2020 Share Posted December 15, 2020 Don’t know if anyone still reads these since I’m replying eight years later, but my first electric was an epiphone strat. I recently replaced the pots, switch, and Jack and put some Texas specials in it. However, I noticed it has a hand carved serial number on the neck that won’t pull up in any serial number database searches. I was just interested to see what year and factory it’s from. Serial no. 248-35-5137 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mihcmac Posted December 16, 2020 Share Posted December 16, 2020 Check this link for the Epiphone Wiki on the S-Series It should help identify your exact model and provide some information. The Epiphones with bolt-on necks usually had a serial number on the neck plate, but older ones not a lot of SN data survived.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZG123 Posted May 11, 2021 Share Posted May 11, 2021 I just got what I think is a PRO 1. It plays well and sounds nice, but the bridge is confusing on how to raise action, etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BJH Posted October 1, 2023 Share Posted October 1, 2023 I’m currently customizing a S-310 to a single humbucker and locking tuners guitar. My S-310 is a 1995 model and appears to have a solid wood body, although very light. Neck pocket show no sign of laminate. The neck is the reason why I bought the guitar in the first place. The neck is super nice. I’m also a fan of the Explorer head. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BJH Posted October 11, 2023 Share Posted October 11, 2023 On 10/1/2023 at 1:23 PM, BJH said: I’m currently customizing a S-310 to a single humbucker and locking tuners guitar. My S-310 is a 1995 model and appears to have a solid wood body, although very light. Neck pocket show no sign of laminate. The neck is the reason why I bought the guitar in the first place. The neck is super nice. I’m also a fan of the Explorer head. …oh, and I paid like $70 for it. Used but in very good shape. Totally worth it. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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