ESP LTD EC-1000 Deluxe
Features: This is a 2004 ESP LTD EC-1000, the LTD Deluxe series, it was made in Korea, not that it matters LTD put out guitars equal to their ESP counterparts for 1/4 of the price. The neck scale is 24.75, 24 frets, pretty thick neck, but not unconftorable it feels solid and awesome. Like a Les Paul neck but nicer, also it has a sharper cutaway than a Gibson LP to get to those 2 extra frets easier. As for the finish, the guitar comes in all black, sunburst, red, purple, green, gold top, matte black and many other finishes with albalone inlayed around the guitar and neck etc. Bosy style by the way is Les Paul style. It has a stop tail bridge, but the real beauty of this guitar lies in its tone, generated by two Active EMG 81 pickups or EMG 81/60 and in various models seymour Duncan pickups. I could write a novel on these things, they are so clear, and they have so much heavy heavy tone but not muddeled in the least, best pickups I've ever used, and I have by no means a small collection, Fender Strat, PRS Custom 24, and I play this guitar 10 times more than my PRS for instance. Since I got this I hardly pick it up, the tuners are locking sperzels I believe, keep in mind folks, if you get the flame top version of this guitar you'll get dual Duncans instead of EMGs, just a heads up. // 10
Sound: Sounds amazing, no noisy feedback when you're not playing on the pickups which is awesome, I love the treble on this it's so driving, the bass is very very smooth too, not too raunchy. Tone wise this guitar isnt gonna limit you. Unless you like country or something, I would say this is meant for metal and maybe some borderline cool blues playing along with rock, and alternative. // 10
Action, Fit & Finish: Facotry setup was perfect, action was perfect, pickup balance to eachother level wise was perfect, everything was in order, this guitar was absolutely perfect and new, not 1 single thing wrong with it, hell the GHS strings it came with hadn't even been played //10
Reliability & Durability: I use this and my PRS live, and this is my main guitar. This thing kills anything, my only suggestion would be make sure to check your battery in your active pickups (compartment in back of it so you don't have to muddle with the inside) so it dosen't die on you, active does mean battery operated for those who don't know, but it hasn't died on me, and if you have to change the battery it takes about 3 minutes, I tried it just for security. // 10
Impression: For metal/blues kind of stuff this fits like a glove,If that sounds appealing to you go buy this sucker. I love the neck on it, the way it feels to play cords and lead on it, the pickups rock the house, if this thing got stolen id go out and buy another one immediately, if you want something with more reach but the punch of this I would suggest a MH or M series guitar from ESP, I have played heavily on both of them and they have the same bite and more reach, but this has such an amazing body, it's your decision.
ESP Eclipse
Hardware-wise, everything here is top-notch: Gotoh Magnum-lock machine heads, tune-o-matic bridge (somewhat suprisingly, not a locking unit), EMG 81/60 pickup set controlled by two volume knobs, a tone knob and a 3 way selector, and a bone nut. All in all, none of these parts selections are that special, but they illustrate the desire and necessary attention to detail to produce a really professional quality instrument.
By the way, shame on you ESP (and any other guitar company who does this) for not including a case. Thats a little sad. // 8
Sound: I play most any kind of music, but this guitar was purchased to fill my need for a high-end metal guitar. Consequently, this amp spends most of its time playing through a Peavey 6505+ combo (with a 4X12 cab, no effects). However, I do use it as a backup to my ASAT, so I've played it through my Fender Hot Rod Deluxe (running 12AT7 tubes instead of 12AX7).
Through the Fender, this guitar is suprisingly good, considering the pickups. It is suprisingly quiet, which is really quite nice. The bridge pickup is a little too powerfull for the cleans on this amp though, and it pushes the amp into a brittle break-up too easily. Both pickups together give a good, albeit bright, rhythm tone with a somewhat Acoustic quality. The neck pickup is a real suprise though, cranking out good jazz tones and awesome blues tones with a little gain added to the amp.
Through the Peavey, this guitar really shines. On lower gain settings (think classic rock), the guitar is a little brighter than a typical les paul, but it coaxes a good cruch tone out of the amp. Turning the gain up furthur, the bridge pickup starts to sound really mean; notes jump out of the amp with pop and clairity. Even complex chords maintain definition. At the same time, the neck pickup is able to really sing, with a vocal like quality and sustain that just beg you to keep playing.
Getting the gain up to modern metal levels leads to a predictable result: the guitar kills. The bridge pickup refuses to be overwhelmed by the amp. Whatever you play comes out with a clairity and Precision that I haven't heard in many guitars. Also, pinch harmonics are a total breeze. The neck pickup gives the guitar a totally different voice. It is smooth and buttery without being sluggish or imprecise. It just sings while maintaining enough definition for even the fastest of licks.
Overall, this guitar excells as a metal guitar, which was to be expected. However, the fact that it is capable of handling the cleaner stuff is a totally unexpected and much appreciated (and used) bonus. // 9
Action, Fit & Finish: The factory set-up on this guitar was near perfect. Action was low without any hint of buzzing, intonation was flawless and it just played right out of the box. Aside from that, my only gripe is that the strings were not the best, but thats a pretty small detail. Beyond that, the fretwork on this guitar is perfect; nicely dressed, no sharp ends and great consistency. This consistency continues to the fret markers, where you really have to look quite hard to see any filler.
All the hardware on the guitar seems to be very good quality, and the satin gold plating is consistently great. The guitar arrived with no loose bits rattling around and I'm yet to find any significant issues at all. However, the neck pickup was a little lower than I would have liked from the factory, but this was a 10 second fix.
Also, kudos to ESP for the quality of the matte finish. These tend to show flaws, and this one has none. // 9
Reliability & Durability: I haven't had the chance to gig this guitar too much yet (injured myself), maybe 10 or 12 times, but it seems really solid. The hardware is all sturdy, the guitar barely needs to get tuned up over the course of a show which is kinda nice. Also, the overall construction just leads you to feel that the guitar is going to last.
My only concern at all, it is a big one, is the strap buttons: they suck. The shape of the strap buttons causes them to push the strap off when the guitar moves about. Though its easy to put in straplocks, better buttons really are a must! // 8
Impression: I am mostly a jack-of-all-trades-master-of-none type of guitarist, I play whatever comes to mind. I've been playing close to a decade now, and in that time I have accumulated many guitars (many of which I've parted ways with). This guitar was purchased to fill my need for a metal guitar. The Eclipse 2 does all forms of metal with ease. What really sold me on the guitar though was the ability to play things other than metal. Its not the best all-rounder, but it is definately commendable.
Also, this is probably the best playing guitar I have ever owned. It is just really easy to play it and that is the main draw for me. Currently, I'm looking to get a second one with a Floyd Rose. I would encourage anybody looking for a pro-quality metal guitar to give theESP a serious look.
Check out the video to the right, to listen between the two tones of each of the guitar's styles.
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