Which is more value for money and is there any real difference??
Everyone know the Gibson Les Paul.One of the most recognizable and legendary guitar that ever was and most of us guitarists dream about having one! The guitar that legends used like jimmy page,angus young,gary moore, and many more!Then from the other side we hae the Epiphone Les Paul more affortable made with very good materials and being in the first name of low budget guitars.Just for the comparison being fair we compare the standard versions of the guitars and the some things apply to the sg's and es-335's.So we start!First we have the Epiphone Standard:
- Mahogany body and neck with a maple top and a rosewood fingerboard
- Trapezoid position markers
- 24-3/4" scale length
- 22 frets
- 2 humbuckers
- 2 volume controls and 2 tone controls
- 3-way selector for pickup switching
- Chrome hardware
- Grover tuners
- Stopbar bridge
Now its time for the Gibson:
- Tuners: Traditional locking Grover tuners
- Neck width: Historic original 1-11/16" neck width
- Nut: Graph Tech nut
- Neck heel: Classic Les Paul heel
- Case: Traditional brown hard shell case
- Body: Carved maple top on mahogany body with modern weight relief
- Pickups: Burstbucker Pro humbuckers
- Fingerboard: Thicker rosewood fingerboard
- Setup: Comprehensive hand-finished setup
- Top: AAA maple top with translucent finishes
As a constuction.
You may already know this, but Epiphone is owned by . That means Epiphone is licensed to use the Les Paul name, and follow Gibson’s specs. That makes an Epiphone not just a Les Paul copy, but a real Les Paul. Does that mean an Epi is pretty much the same as the Gibson? Nope.
You may already know this, but Epiphone is owned by . That means Epiphone is licensed to use the Les Paul name, and follow Gibson’s specs. That makes an Epiphone not just a Les Paul copy, but a real Les Paul. Does that mean an Epi is pretty much the same as the Gibson? Nope.
Gibson guitars are made in the USA and of much higher quality when it comes to materials and construction.
In contrast, Epiphone Les Pauls are built overseas. This accounts for some of the price difference between the two, but it goes a bit deeper than that.
Both guitars appear pretty identical at first glance. In fact, they look similar enough that unless someone is at a close enough range to see the name on the headstock, or they’re a guitar geek like some of us, they probably aren’t going to know the difference.
So that’s a good thing to get out of your head from the beginning: Except for a very small percentage of musicians and guitar nerds, most people aren’t going to know or care if your Les Paul is an Epiphone or a Gibson.But there are a few aesthetic differences for those who look closely enough. The Epi headstock has a different shape, the body is not quite as thick, and, for guitars with a sunburst finish, the wood underneath isn’t as pretty as their Gibson brother’s.
However,the Epiphone
PRO series features the new ProBucker pickups, and these do an
impressive job of narrowing the gap between Gibson and Epiphone.Epiphone has also done a great job of improving their switches, jacks
and other hardware over the years. It seems Epiphones are more and more
becoming a good alternative to the Gibson Les Paul.The Gibson Les Paul is a bit heavier than the Epiphone, but all Les Pauls are weighty.Gibson makes their fingerboards out of high-quality rosewood or
ebony, and they are beginning to experiment with some other woods in
order to ease the impact on the world’s rosewood resources.Epiphone makes their fingerboards out of rosewood as well, but the pieces usually are not as pretty.From this information it’s pretty clear that a Gibson Les Paul is
superior to an Epiphone in construction and quality. But that doesn’t
mean Epiphones are bad! Gibson guitars are among the best in the world,
so Epiphone has a lot to live up to.
In contrast, Epiphone Les Pauls are built overseas. This accounts for some of the price difference between the two, but it goes a bit deeper than that.
Both guitars appear pretty identical at first glance. In fact, they look similar enough that unless someone is at a close enough range to see the name on the headstock, or they’re a guitar geek like some of us, they probably aren’t going to know the difference.
So that’s a good thing to get out of your head from the beginning: Except for a very small percentage of musicians and guitar nerds, most people aren’t going to know or care if your Les Paul is an Epiphone or a Gibson.But there are a few aesthetic differences for those who look closely enough. The Epi headstock has a different shape, the body is not quite as thick, and, for guitars with a sunburst finish, the wood underneath isn’t as pretty as their Gibson brother’s.
Gibson
and Epiphone both construct their guitars using a similar combination
of tonewoods: a mahogany neck set in a mahogany body with a maple top.
But they’re not quite the same. Gibson uses higher-quality woods, and
their tops are solid maple where the Epiphone has a thinner top,and
often incorporates a veneer.The electronics and hardware in the Gibson are superior as well, and
less likely to wear down over time. Gibson Les Paul Standards feature
Gibson's powerful Burstbucker pickups. Historically, Epiphone pickups
have been good, but do not match the depth and clarity of the Gibson’s.
Conclusion.Its up to you now you want something that you will save money for a long time or something more affortable with les quality!You want something thats going to fulfil your dreams or you want something that is less good but as beatiful as a gibson the choice is yours!Just keep in mind you will pay 3 or 4 time more money for the gibson so the value for money goes to epiphone ! But the difference is way to big !If you want to see a blindfold challenge between these 2 check out this video!
