ESP Guitars: Darkest Hour on the ESP E-II Arrow

Guitarists Mike Schleibaum and Mike "Lonestar" Carrigan from Darkest Hour visited the ESP offices to tell us what makes the ESP E-II Arrow the right guitar for them. For players on a tighter budget, we also offer the Arrow in two LTD versions.
E-II Arrow: www.espguitars...
LTD Arrow: www.espguitars...

[@palix5925]

Not only are Offset V shaped guitars badass looking, but they are SUPER comfortable to play sitting and standing. Best shape in my opinion.

[@fearofthedark88]

This will be my next guitar

[@cia4393]

Adrain Bolton

[@AWMJoeyjoejoe]

Did you get one?

[@Ramdas_Devadiga]

Play's like butter and sounds even better! This is going on a T-Shirt of mine :-D

[@penoyer79]

sound like my girlfriend in high school.

[@aryshikarugmail.comaryshik4211]

I love ESP guitar 😍🤘🎼

[@user-mr8jt8os4y]

I bought my Arrow recently, and this video was a great showcase that made me want it even more.

[@ashleyjackson8538]

Love these guitars . I understand exactly what they are saying . Sitting with the guitar in classical position . Seems the correct body mechanics to play correctly .

[@chancelacinak7630]

One of the reason I want an arrow!

[@solarfallmori]

I can´t stop watching this video. I have an arrow black metal and I´m thinking about getting that white one of the video 🔥🔥Btw, Knife in the safe room is a fcking killer tune 🤘🤘

[@americanmetalhead3954]

I love you ESP!

[@vincentdelmas2792]

Plays like butter and sounds even better , cool sentence !

[@PhoenixAndTheRaven]

Definitely the best looking, best made and most practical V shape metal orientated production guitar there is. Disclaimer: the guitar won't play like "butter" if you don't practice for years.

[@samuelxander]

sounds like a kirk hammett solo

[@anderssvart3257]

Kirk Wahmett solo

[@brianwillis8447]

Sounds like Slayer to me

[@_yungfrankz]

Samuel.ne to me it kinda sounds like Dave Mustaine

[@Metalwhore89]

It’s thrash so it sounds like all of those players lol

[@johnbraucher1499]

More of a megadeth solo.

[@akumakami9727]

I getting one soon 😊. Though I do wish they would make a left handed 7 string version.

[@elimarsilvanikock7818]

brutal and awesome playing

[@DesGardius-me7gf]

Matt Harvey from Exhumed uses the E-II Arrow.

[@georgesamios966]

put the esp logo back!!

[@isMike999]

still better than that cheesey LTD logo

[@The_Apothecary]

I actually like this logo layout better

[@AWMJoeyjoejoe]

Never gonna happen. Besides it's been like 6 years. Get over it already.

[@bullred9498]

The E-II logo is geeeeey, ESP block letters will always be the best betas

[@Acepilot1312]

BullRed94 I hate the font of the ESP and LTD logo. Can’t they change it to a beautiful one just like Jackson does?

[@King_V2]

I've always wanted a white RR body shape w no Floyd rose but don't want to settle for 22 frets.. I stumbled upon this guitar and omg that white one looks perfect!!

[@The_Apothecary]

Wow nice guitar

[@ThePizzamage]

Is that White e-2 arrow going to be available at some point?

[@stgeorge9147]

Awesome 💪👍

[@hoesnihoesni6867]

I have to return to this cover cause i miss darkest hour with mike lonestar carrigan in thr band 😭 #BringBackLonestar

[@Sammael757]

Older vid I know, but I am torn on a new guitar purchase - I really want an ESP USA VII FR, but these EII Arrows look SO simar in most regards and are much easier to get ahold of. Neither is available to test, even in a mid-sized city like Indianapolis, because dealers just don't keep much inventory any more.. For any who may have played both, do they play/feel similar as well? Thanks!

[@ltomczak]

LTD1000 if you want SS frets - they still aren't on the E-IIs yet (surprisingly...)

[@davidt8546]

Darkest hour are awsum ....and scary good live

[@infinidominion]

I want an upside down one for lefty but with the cut for 24th access and same direction inlays

[@curistophermason545]

This is the one I waaaant but I only had money for a kelly :(

[@vincentzombi3916]

Just bought me a guitar then noticed these… gotta start saving

[@vinaymulukutla358]

I nearly got one of these.

[@naturaljourney2431]

Any issues with the volume knob getting in the way?

[@atakdragonfly1675]

The only V I ever got along with.

[@dylanbarnett6099]

Are these guitars well balanced or are they very neck heavy and dive while holding it ??

[@CreatureFeature1313]

Does anyone else feel like esp have shot themselves in the foot with the EII line? Great guitars no doubt but paying just under 2k for a esp and it doesn't even have the esp name. It's made japanese esps from pre EII shoot up in value as people want the esp logo on the headstock. Esp usa is strange as they've always been a Japanese company and the USA line are 3500 plus. Just my thoughts

[@AllTheRamenOnTheSky]

Haven't kept up with this band since The Human Romance (still like them, just haven't kept up) when did they get this thrashy, hardcore - esque sound? I don't dislike it, just wondering when they changed.

[@Thomogon]

Only gribe I have with the Arrow... It has a floyd rose and it's not optional. I don't like floyds personally and I think they look rubbish but I also hate paying extra for a feature I'm not going to use. This is the same reason I skipped on the Chapman ML-V

[@fearofthedark88]

Thomogon block it so you have that sweet sweet tuning stability. Depending on the cavity, you might only need a 9 volt battery, or worst case, a tremol-no

[@Thomogon]

The thing with blocking it off, I'm still paying for a piece of hardware I'm never going to use, if it were for something minor like a locking strapbutton for example's sake then I wouldn't mind as much but we're talking about a few hundred dollars extra on an instrument that already costs around 1000 anywhere in the world depending on the currency. The regular LTD V got taken out of production too, so I guess if that is the way ESP are going I'm going to be out for a while. Blocking off a tremsystem with a 9 volt battery? Are you out of your mind?! There is a reason you're not supposed to apply pressure or heat to chemical containers and that's because they can and will implode and then explode under pressure which will result in battery acid running down your whole cavity ( or in worst case scenario your guitar lighting on fire due to the spark that ignites). Remember, empty batteries never run out of charge, they just have insignificant charge to power the application you're using them for. So to summarize, no I'm not going to block off a several hundred dollar piece of hardware just so I can buy a 1000 dollar guitar with a giant block of aluminium on the front. And no I'm not going to use a 9 volt battery to do so if I ever get the stupid idea to be a hypocrite and still buy a floyd equipped guitar to then block it off anyway because of serious safety hazards.

[@fearofthedark88]

Thomogon calm down bro. Im giving you suggestions to deal with the proplem you are complaining about. I have several floyd guitars and my most EXPENSIVE guitar is blocked with a 9v battery to stop the bridge from moving. There are hardtail ltd Vs on Reverb and Ebay, not to mention the the clearance section of Espguitars.com. Go get one.

[@fearofthedark88]

Thomogon not to mention, having a Floyd is not just so you can do divebombs. Floyds offer superior tuning stability compared to hardtails, and plenty of players buy floyd equipped Guitars to block them specifically. Its the best option until evertune becomes cheaper and more widespread.

[@Thomogon]

I still hate Floyds with a passion though, so no thank you :P

[@darthvader5623]

What’s the difference between the arrow 1000 and this ???

[@espguitarsusa]

Several differences. First and foremost, this is 24.75" scale while the other Arrow models are 25.5" scale. Second, Mike's signature MSV-1 comes stock with an EMG JH (James Hetfield) pickup set. Third, it's available in Olympic White and has block inlays, and some other design details are unique.

[@JSG-mw4qr]

I just wish they came with passives, also I'd rather get the 1000 because it has mahogany. I feel like alder is too bright for a floyd rose which eats a lot of the bottom end anyway. The 1000 has ebony fretboard, mahogany body BUT still active Probably will get the sl1 from jackson Still might get one of these though

[@300WINMAG360]

Did you get the Jackson?? I was going to order a Jackson DK1 through Sweetwater and they said wait time is 1 year.

[@300WINMAG360]

I'm going to get one of the 2019 E-II Arrow Hardtails that have been announced but I can't decide if I want to get the black or the white.

[@robconerty5164]

Did you ever get one? I got a black one recently and love it

[@isMike999]

@@robconerty5164 getting a white hardtail this week

[@300WINMAG360]

I haven't gotten one yet. I bought the E-II Horizon NT-7B in purple Sparkle earlier this year but I'm looking at ordering another guitar this week. Now I'm torn between the Arrow and the Snow White Satin E-II Eclipse

[@isMike999]

I returned mine because I like really thin necks and my 2011 M-I ESP is the perfect guitar....I have found that the E-II necks are a tad bit chunkier than some the original Standard Series....THE MOST smoking guitar that I bought lately was the LTD Black Metal....killer neck and the SD Black Winter is awesome.....

[@300WINMAG360]

I just ordered the white one. It should be here Friday

[@eddiem4868]

Dh is not dh without Kris norris

[@TheEnduranceaddict]

Mayhem shirt

[@firststep7750]

I'd like it better if the lower horn was about 2.0" shorter. Still...nice guitar.

[@vincentdelmas2792]

This or Strandberg BOden metal 6 ?

[@patrickshannon9281]

So this is not an LTD it's a ESP?

[@penoyer79]

it's a legit ESP made in Japan, nothing has changed except the name. ESP has simply reserved the ESP logo for their custom shop guitars....

[@nckhed]

@@penoyer79 I still don't really understand why they did that. It also really makes me regret selling my Standard Series Eclipse II. Bought that thing brand-new for $1399 in 2007. That was after I bought a USA-made Jackson RR1T for $1499 in the same year. I sold it and got the Eclipse. I can't believe how damn cheap those two axes were back then. They've pretty much doubled in price now, at least the Jackson nearly did.

[@perchiks]

Лучшие

[@corneliodelrancho3638]

I think the best heavy metal guitar needs a mahogany body, alder wood is for playing funk

[@Ziri0615]

Why the Jackson inlays?? C'mon ur fucking ESP!!

[@stanislavstanislav3081]

Дизлайк больные на голову поставили.

[@9hk38f]

I love Darkest Hour. And V guitars are cool for sure! But, can we not sit here, and pretend you NEED a V, to access the high notes? As much as strat bodies aren't exactly the coolest looking, and teenager me would be VERY disappointed in adult me. But I find a nice, smooth, super strat, to be by far, the most comfortable. And make high fret access the easiest. It's just the most conventional body style. Please don't think I am trash talking V's by any means! I just find it annoying, when people are doing a demo for a guitar, and they act like this specific body style is a MUST have, if you want to play high notes.

[@remingtonatcheson8106]

I don't think that was their intention at all and I didn't hear them say you MUST have a V. However, the claim that this guitar will allow easier access to higher frets seems likely because of the location of the strap button where the neck meets the body changes where the upper frets are in relation to your body and hands (which is kind of what he's trying to say). The shape and placement of the strap buttons makes a big difference in terms of how the guitar sits in relation to your body when playing standing up and also can affect how "cool" it looks when you're playing it. It also changes the natural hanging angle of the neck.

[@johnbraucher1499]

If you have the $5,999 to get it DO IT!! Lol

[@espguitarsusa]

Hi John. We know this was an attempt at humor, as indicated by you "lol", but the E-II Arrow sells for less than half that amount in the USA. Thanks for the comment, though.

[@AWMJoeyjoejoe]

Locking tuners on a Floyd equipped guitar is like fitting wheels to a ship. It serves no purpose and only adds to the expense.

[@eddiem4868]

I dunno I would say it makes guitar strings changed easier?

[@nckhed]

I see what you mean, but many guitarists do that. Sure, the locking tuners don't really serve a purpose for tuning stability since a locking nut is present, but it'll most certainly make changing strings that much quicker, as stated above.

[@hoofhearted6900]

Couldn't be more Jackson looking if they tried.