Is the Epiphone Guitar...dorky?

Question

I'm very interested in the Gibson Les Paul models of guitars, but I simply can't afford the $1000+ price tag for one. People have recommended the Epiphone substitute to me, which has a MUCH lower price point.

I know the differences between the two of them, and have done a great deal of research on the two, but there's one question that I've been curious to ask...

Shallowness aside, would I look "dorky", "cheap" or "rookie" playing an Epiphone? I know they are great guitars, but I'm not to sure how guitar vets view them.

Thanks to all who can help.

Answer 1

if you like it, thats all there is to it. who cares what others say. You should be playing music for yourslef anywasy right?

Answer 2

You probably won't find a really decent Gibson Les Paul for less than $1000.

I would say a lot depends on your level as a guitarist. I owned a Gold Top Epiphone Les Paul a few years back. It was an awesome guitar. It was one of the ones in the $450 -$500 range.

I do agree with another poster here: if you are really looking for exact classic rock tone, you probably want to go with a Gibson Les Paul Standard. If you can get up a couple of thousand, buy the Gibson Historic Reissue 58 or 59, or one of the new VOS series. These guitars are light, and they have far greater sustain and tone than the newer Standards.

Answer 3

to answer your question to the point, it would not be dorky.

a little longer answer:
some epiphones rival actual gibsons (the epi custom, better IMO than say a low priced gibson). plus gibson started chambering their guitars, although i dont know if its exactly called that. basically there are ports of air in the body, so its hollow in some areas, or they put in a cheaper grade of wood. gibsons are known for having solid mahogany bodies, thus why they are also known for being a real heavy guitar (weight wise). but with this weight, comes the tone that gibsons are known for.. epiphone les paul customs have a solid mahogany body. put some gibson pickups in an epi LPC and youve got a gibson LP.

if you have any other questions, head over to the ultimate-guitar.com forums. those dudes know alot of stuff about gear, but tend to be alittle biased towards ibanez.

all in all, if you like the guitar, regardless of brand, go for it. but do some research on that type first.

Answer 4

Get a used Les Paul instead. If you are a tone freak don't get a Studio - they are OK, but they don't sound as good as the Standards. Look around for a deal on decent condition used one, and you might just get lucky. Also, you can upgrade a "Studio" with hotter pickups and circuitry to get the sound closer to that of a Standard, but the larger body of a Standard seems to make a difference in the "beefiness" of the tone.

You can also take the pickups out of an Epiphone and upgrade them that way. They don't look "dorky", but they don't have the build quality of the Gibson stuff which is ALL made in the USA.

Answer 5

Hey, I'm with you, I can't afford an actual Gibson right now either. There will be some guitar players that are going to act like they are elite no matter what, they will rip on your guitar, your skills, everything... Nothing you could possibly have or play can impress these types, or at least they won't let you know it impresses them ;) Some guys with guitars are just jerks. Don't worry about it. Play what you like and what you can afford.

Answer 6

You really need to go with dean guitars because they have guitars ranging from $49 to $3000 so i think that it would help but you got to look around for the right guitar for you just look around the website below. Me personally i dont like epiphone because it just looks like a very cheap gibson

Answer 7

a guitar is a guitar you play music to be creative