Inspired By Gibson - What's The Difference?

[@arthurblackhistoric]

Guys, you could have dialled in a better tone, for goodness sake! That awful "desk distortion" didn't do either guitar any favours.

[@Jef-sj6zc]

Oh man , that's not the way to compare those two guitars. Start with a nice clean sound with the same settings on the amp . But what you do is put this terrible distortion between guitar and amp. It's impossible to get an objective opinion this way about those guitars . This is bad comparishing ...................

[@markv.5962]

agreed

[@tonywhetham8165]

Too much distortion for a demo.

[@neatspy]

Why make both sound nasty as hell in a comparison video??!

[@jvin248]

Don't get hung up on 'tone glue' and 'tone finish' -- they don't matter. More important are the pickup height setups, pots and caps actual measured values, and the pickups. (The video really needed to have blindfold comparisons to attempt separating which is which, look at the youtube videos comparing 'two buck chuck' by trained sommeliers blindfolded). ... Finally, what is the fragile headstock strength comparison for ultimate owner risk of breakage while they own it or try selling it using dropper shippers?

[@johnwhitehouse4100]

Playing in a band in a club , Bare , no one would hear any difference ! But playing at home then maybe. As a gigging player I use the Epiphone , cheaper to replace it if the worst happens🎸🎸

[@motorbikeray]

Would've been interesting to watch both Nina's and Lealand's thoughts about which guitar feels and sounds better to them if they did so blindfolded. Show them after they choose their "the better" guitar which guitar they picked. I think that no matter how much people say that "the name on the headstock" doesn't matter, it really does.

[@LMmayfield]

True enough! These guitars are probably similar enough that they wouldn't be immediately distinguishable by simply picking them up.

[@mickeystanic4750]

For the love of God! It's a 335 not a BC Rich Warlock.

[@robertgladstein]

Exactly

[@craigtodd8297]

He couldn't have demo'd it on a worse tone.

[@arthurblackhistoric]

@@craigtodd8297 . . I completely agree! If that's the best sound either guitar was capable of producing, you'd be justified in taking it out back of the shop and smashing it! It wouldn't be fit to play in public. A friend of mine makes distortion pedals that sound remarkably similar to whatever piece of shit processor these guys were playing through. I asked him to look into why my old Marshall VS15 practice amp was acting up, and instead of fixing it, he replaced the circuit with his "desk distortion" circuit, as I refer to it. I played one A chord through it and threatened to beat him to a pulp if he didn't undo that awful mod!

[@Hundenminhelmer]

This is probably the worst comparing I've ever seen. How the f..... is anyone going to get an impression of the sound different from the guitars when you play it through that "box" whatever it is.

[@carsonelliot1147]

bro es 335 are literally described as one of the most versatile guitars ever if not the most versatile guitar ever look at Ted Nugent he plays hollow bodies with a lot of distortion or what about Eric Clapton with cream he literally played an ES 335 with the fuzz and distortion and everyone loves that so stfu telecast aren’t just for country and gibson sgs aren’t just for metal or rock

[@3p192]

This is hands down the worst guitar review ever filmed on the entire internet. Probably the worst review of anything on the entire internet. You could have just said “this guitar looks like that guitar and it makes sounds.”

[@davidkoral1673]

I once called Gibson directly, and asked pretty much the same question: Why was the '61 ES-335 reissue going for $5,300 while the other, very similar model, the '60s 335, going for $2,900? The specs were mostly the same, so what was I getting for the extra money? I had a very friendly customer rep, who explained that the more expensive model was hand-assembled, using hide glue. The differences in price were due largely to labor costs. And hide glue does contribute to better resonance.

[@anthonycraig1458]

For me, that's the crucial point that hardly anyone ever mentions. You can bet your life that the person making the Epiphone in China is not paid the same as the person in Nashville making the Gibson.

[@jackstephens2519]

Not to mention that you could spray 100 Epiphone’s in the same amount of time it would take to spray 1 Gibson with Nitro.

[@oldasrocks9121]

Buy the Gibson and you're supporting (your fellow?) American workers who are compensated with a living wage, benefits and an amazing work environment. IMO that's the most important difference. The Epi have a lightweight stopbar? If not an aluminum tailpiece would get more string energy resonating in the body.

[@RavenMadd9]

Bought the inspired by Gibson......before seeing this video .....one love your points and review .....I love to work on guitars .....changed pickups to SD Seth Lover set ....guitar is not bad ....gets job done

[@jansabarth9466]

USD 4000 difference ... I don't need to put anything into my hand. Decision made for Epiphone.

[@adeptgopnik]

Believe it or not the Epiphones have alot of hand work done too.. There are some videos of the factory on YT and theres more hand craftmanship than youd think.

[@Lumpschlevot]

Oh my goodness, sample the guitars clean. Would like to hear its voice. I can’t tell if it sounds like a 335. They both just sound terrible.

[@mattbryonphoto2357]

Ugh. You don’t run it through a fuzz pedal to figure out the differences in a guitar lol fuzz Is fuzz.

[@85rockhound]

I just bought the Epiphone, same as the one you demonstrated. Getting set up now. Looking forward to getting it back. Your video the kind of comparison info I was looking for. Thanks.

[@LMmayfield]

Thanks for watching! We're happy you found the video helpful.

[@kdakan]

You could test two Gibsons or two Epiphones and arrive at similar conclusions as well. I tried two Epiphone ES-335 inspired by Gibson models at the shop, one had a fuller acoustic sound and more mids less treble when amplified. I bought the one that had the color I like (blueberry burst figured top). Gibsons the same. Just adjust your tone pots on the guitar or amp and keep playing. Minute tone differences are expected from any two guitars of the same brand and model.

[@lumberlikwidator8863]

I once walked into a Guitar Center with $2500 cash in my pocket and played five different Gibson Les Pauls, some used and others brand new. I found something wrong with every one of those guitars. The used ones had issues like scratches in the soft nitro finish, twisted necks, unacceptable fret wear, you name it. The new ones had issues that you should never find on a brand new guitar in the 2K-3K price range. Poorly scraped binding, sticky tuning machines, and dull, weak sounding pickups. I really wanted a Les Paul style guitar, so I demoed a couple of Epiphones and really fell for a blue sunburst Standard Plus Pro. I found that the Epiphone pickups had a lot more balls than any of the Gibsons, and I liked the way the thick synthetic poly finish tamed the shrill highs that most guitars put out. I left the store with a new Epiphone in a hard shell case, new strings of my preferred brand and gauge, and over $1600 in my pocket. For me it’s Epiphone all the way, baby!

[@musicalgear1024]

“Higher grade of wood”. Where’d you gather that info?? The “finish” has very very very very very very little to do with the overall tone. Guarantee you if you pop a few ‘57 classics in the Epiphone it’ll sound and play better cause generally the Epiphone inspired by series I’ve handled blow the gibsons away until someone sets them up.

[@VN9001]

Totally agree with you on the "finish" issue. The "breathability" of a Nitro finish is nothing more than marketing hype. I challenge anyone to hear the difference between poly finish vs. nitro finish on the exact same model guitar blindfolded. Gibson (and Fender) originally used Nitro in the1950's because that's all that was available at the time. It was simply automotive paint, nothing more.

[@michaelmills7543]

The distortion sounds horrible. Like a 40 dollar solid state amp I had back in the 70s. Wow

[@chrisk3754]

Well, guitarists are very detail oriented. So, there is a lot of subjectivity. Sometimes the hands just find one guitar to their liking. Interesting channel.

[@guitaristaccountant]

I have the Epiphone Raspberry Teaburst "inspired by..." which I bought new - it's lovely, but has some fret buzz issues (probably just needs a set up). Sounds great though, although I slightly prefer my older (and 2nd-hand) Epiphone Dot (with the elongated headstock) in natural. Both great guitars. Why pay £2,500 when you can get a more than adequate guitar for £600? I do LOVE the new "Kalamazoo" headstock on the newer Epi models. I'm a Brit as you can guess - work our the $ equivalent for yourself :0)

[@LMmayfield]

Sounds like your Raspberry Teaburst just needs a little TLC! The older Dot models are also an excellent guitar, and it's so true - why buy a guitar with a huge price tag if you can get all the instrument you need for a fraction of the price?

[@robertgladstein]

Agreed. Unless your a pro then you probably want the Gibson

[@robertwillett4122]

Allen, gòd sir. I had a dot, very good guitar. This is why I bought an inspired by Gibson. But I bought the 339 basically the same but a couple inches smaller, about the size of a L.P. I'm an older man living in a small town,I was a General contractor so I am my own luiter. I became decent at it, had a lot of practice since I've at one time or another have had most all the major brands. My 339 had a buzz, I like my strings as low as feasible. I would drop the strings down, adjust the neck, nut all the above. I couldn't quite get it were I wanted. But I knew I was going to keep it. It is really close to the Gibson 335. Blind test I doubt many people can tell the difference except for the finish. I got mine to lay down to were I like it. Really anybody can do it. Level the frets real lite with sandpaper stuck on a level. Use a fret rocker to make sure there no low or high frets. Lower the strings till they buzz. Then adjust the neck. You do these steps over and over till you find the sweet spot. I did this and it was still buzzing with what I thought to high of an action. So I got a roller bridge which has a lower profile. After fine tuning it I have an unbelievable playing killer guitar. The roller bridge was the secret, plus it stays in tune all day, bending the hell out of the strings while playing. I actually got the action, with no buzzing lower then my prized P.R.S. The inspired by Gibson 335 and 339 are great guitars. I recommend a roller bridge if you can't get the action you want without the buzz. I will keep and play it as long as I have a pulse. Roller tone bridge makes the difference of the world. Have a nice day.

[@robertgladstein]

I mean Epiphone sorry

[@jimmyhansen5842]

I only heard a pedal. Not the sound of the guitars. The worst demo so far. Sorry😔

[@anthonycraig1458]

Have to agree, sounded terrible but hey, maybe other people think it sounds fine

[@mortonwilson795]

Yup, yet another 'guitar comparison' that turns out to be a 'pedal demo'. Pointless.

[@56bigmike]

I’m glad others notice this as well. This has frustrated me for years watching guitar reviews.

[@brentsims8002]

Please don’t set up anymore AB tests … we’re good .

[@stancoleshill8925]

After you take the "new" guitar down from the wall, you can bang it around on a few things and it will quickly become a "used guitar" then Long and McQuaid will sell it to you at full price.

[@musiccreation1198]

Epi with Lollar Imperials pickups ?

[@aitken1965]

Let’s compare these guitars through an extreme fuzz pedal so that you can’t hear the guitars, just the pedal. Oh look, they sound the same!

[@michaelmills7543]

Great idea to invite customers to bring their pedal boards.

[@Zoso981]

The most important difference is that after buying the Gibson, you can immediately look down your nose at the "inferior" import brand. Guitar Snobbery 101.

[@lawrence1960]

What’s with the distortion? I was hoping to hear the guitars.

[@robertrouleau1000]

Tone differences are more apparentwhen playing clean.

[@albionvideo]

Fun video! But Gibson has rarely been very accurate about its own specs - and often doesn't seem to even know what ingredients its Epiphone contract factories are using. I'd hardly describe poplar as a "higher-grade" wood than maple, because poplar isn't a real tonewood at all. It's a cheap alder substitute or filler. I'd also be surprised if the Epi's don't also have a poplar middle layer, because as a less-dense wood, poplar makes the maple sandwich easier to bend into shape. Also, while a richly flamed outer maple layer looks fantastic, it's not higher-quality wood. In its 1950s Golden Age, Gibson considered flamed maple to be slightly flawed, and wouldn't touch quilted maple at all. Although in a plywood guitar like a 335, figured maple won't affect the tone in either direction. It's just a cosmetic bonus. If the Epi's really do laminate more and thinner layers of wood, that's an interesting revelation. Although,again, in this kind of construction, much of the resonance depends on the neck and solid center block.

[@SergiOrtiz]

Both sound bad in the wrong hands and wrong settings

[@clarencevickrot3531]

Nothing like fuzz to demonstrate a guitar's tone. Thirteen-year-olds cannot afford either

[@stancoleshill8925]

Sorry Long and McQuade but I paid cash and don't consider a guitar that has been hanging on the wall for 2 weeks a "new" guitar. It had a dent in the binding. I am a collector of mint condition guitars. This one was not mint. I ordered a new one in a box but I cancelled my order after waiting for 18 days with no correspondence about the new one or when or if it would arrive, and bought one from a North Bay store (not L&M) It is arriving in 2 business days and $30 cheaper. I was not impressed with the total lack of service from L&M. The new store called Acclaim Sound and Lighting in North Bay Ontario, treated me like a good customer should be treated and I really appreciate that. I would buy again from them. It's also free shipping.

[@donkeevney]

Lol

[@1958bytor]

Is the Gibson $4000 better?

[@doomwreckertelevision3527]

Its an epiphone that identifies as a gibson...

[@clarkbabin9799]

I priced the Epiphone red dot pro compared to the Gibson red dot pro. The Epiphone was around $700 depending on where you purchased it may have been closer to $1K. Where as the Gibson version was around 2K or better also depending on where you purchased it. I also checked out demos and I really couldn't realize much definable differences so I went with the Epiphone model. I also later purchased a Casino not American made. The American made Epiphone and Gibson might be $400 to $600 dollars difference. But neither the Epiphone or Gibson American models had the blonde finish so I went with the foreign made model. It actually is a great example but you will need to do a set up and tweak the guitar to your specs.

[@kennyblackbird5674]

I own an Epiphone guitar and I would have to say that some Gibson guitsrs tend to play themselves compared to an Epiphone! Epiphone guitars unpolished frets hurts my finger tips.

[@bassyey]

I'll be more confident to bring the Epiphone on a gig, only because I won't cry if it gets damaged or stolen lol. Bring the Epiphone to tech/luthier, have him do a full setup including fretworks and nut and it'll play just as good.

[@VN9001]

You really need to compare clean sounds to hear any true nuance or subtlety of tone difference. As soon as you add an effects pedal, and especially a distortion pedal, you remove such a large portion of the true instrument tone. Just sayin' 🙂

[@jonatherton]

More playing and with a cleaner sound would have been helpful.

[@oceansiderecordingstudio]

The Gibson holds its value

[@folderol8487]

I wonder how true that is. If you bought x Gibson 5 years ago and then list it at the price you paid for it, you're bound to get "I can get it new for about that price". I think these things appreciate mainly over decades (at which point I probably won't be around anyway) and/or because they're some sort of limited run which makes them rare. In any case I buy guitars to play, not to resell or treat as museum pieces.

[@oceansiderecordingstudio]

@@folderol8487 I feel they hold their value because there great to play and are well made. And it is possible that one day they can become sought after or as you say a museum piece. Everyone has there own reasons for why they buy anything.

[@folderol8487]

Fair enough

[@Mikephotog-b9z]

There are no more guitar heroes left to inflate the prices of these modern built guitars...unless you have a 59 les paul original...very few guitars hold their prices after retail...

[@oceansiderecordingstudio]

@@Mikephotog-b9z A 59 LesPaul became sought after not because of who played one but because of how and what it was made of and how it sounded. It’s impossible to buy a guitar today and expect it to be a collectable tomorrow. There was a time when a 59 LesPaul was worth $100 at a pawn shop. I have a 1954 gold top LesPaul that’s increased in value over the years not because of who played one but because it’s an antique. I think there are plenty of great modern guitar players (they were never heroes) like Steve Vai, Eric Johnston, John Mayer and many more who have signature guitars and this is more prevalent today than ever before. Cheers.

[@pauljohnson3686]

The Gibson is a real professional instrument and the Epiphone can also be used in a professional situation... The gibson is absolutely pointless for the bedroom rock stars.. and this is where the Epiphone is the perfect choice.....home use..

[@RickMcCargar]

U.S. you pay for worker and environmental safety regulations and taxes. U.S., your money stays here and can be loaned out to other citizens and corps from banks. China - you pay far less, and get very lax to almost no employee and environmental regs and taxes. Your money goes and stays overseas.

[@monmixer]

Good review.

[@leftyzappa]

You summed it up well: epiphone = lesser grade of wood + glue sandwich. Gibson = higher grade of wood + less glue involved. The *resonance* is the difference. It *feels* different. It breathes different. This makes a Huge difference if one is a good enough player and sensitive to those subtleties.

[@johnwhitehouse4100]

Plug either one in to the same amp at a club gig and you would not distinguish any difference .

[@Kdschaak]

@@johnwhitehouse4100 Yup. Add power to those pickups and its all the same. Its plywood and glue. Very fucking expensive plywood and glue.

[@craigtodd8297]

@@Kdschaak IS it though? A da Vinci is a tube of oil paint and canvas. Is there nothing to be said for heritage, history, and the fact that Gibson actually invented it? Just saying.

[@stricknine8623]

​​​​​@@craigtodd8297Its very important to remember that the Epiphones are Gibson Products.....Every facet of Epiphone is owned operated, blueprinted and controlled by Gibson. And the flame top burst finished Epiphone Les Pauls are solid plain tops with a wood veneer that is cut from an aesthetically pleasing slab of flamed maple. It is very thin but gets the job done for the visual and it is still WOOD....the layer of adhesive between the plain maple top and the flame maple veneer is almost microscopically thin. The adhesive is likely .001 thick. I've been playing 43 years and playing live gigs for the last 29 years now. I jumped on the Epiphone bandwagon in 2019 and have never looked back.

[@stancoleshill8925]

2:07 . . . . . . the word you are looking for is . . . . . expensive. $$$$$$$$$

[@seektruth5074]

Distortion destroys the discernment.

[@karlobluesman]

Price!

[@KawazukiYama]

Why not play it and let us decide. Without the shite ten quid distortion and Mary sues. Could literally have been any guitar.

[@yetivanmarshall1473]

Ah, finally from a women's perspective. Refreshing. I'm waiting for a sale on the Epiphone Jim James model. TY

[@arthurblackhistoric]

That ain't no woman!

[@TexasBlues-123]

$4,000

[@omwilsonow]

I'm sure both guitars sound great but that demo sounded like trash. Sorry 😞

[@voxvera112]

4:45-6:40 🤮

[@chrisullery3386]

Yall suck at demos!

[@mtp04987]

Worst guitar amp I’ve ever heard. Unusable review.

[@tschaffner4970]

This is a how to make an Epiphone guitar sound horrible video. The playing and choice of amp and guitar settings is terrible. How can you put out such a poorly executed video? Are you trying not to sell guitars?

[@thomasbarr5940]

Awful demo ...so no you won't c me next time 💤💤💤💤

[@zx4race31]

Greed