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Sound:
The tone is great. Full frequency and pretty versatile.
Feature:
Just a nice piece. The Bigsby is a very nice touch.
Ease of Use:
The pickup selector switch is in a starnge place. If you like to change picups on the fly you probably should consider something else.
Quality:
In order to top the fit and finish you would have to spend twice as much money. Mine is a “blem”. The book match on the wood on the face of the guitar body could be better. Perhaps that is the reason that they considered mine a “Blem”. But all in all it is a beautiful instrument.
Value:
Undoubtedly the best bang for the buck out there. Excellent build quality. I got a “blem” and I am still not sure what is blem about it. I would love to see what a perfect one looks like. It is not without flaws, but it a $600 guitar with gold hardware and a Bigsby. You cant have everything.
The Wow Factor:
Very sexy. The gold hardware and the Bisby, along with the unique (without being obtuse) bidy stylngs, give this axe a very old school meets new school vibe.
Overall:
The only complaint is that is that it came with the strings routed incorrectly through the Bigsby.
Nice weight and balance. If you like the feel of a Les Paul you will like this neck. My favorite thing about ESPs is the the frets. Expecialy how nice they round the ends. The big guys could take a page or two from the ESP builders standard book. I have never seen a guitar in this price range with this much attention to the quality of the frets work
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Sound:
crisp, chimey and slightly jangley at lower volume. the seymour pro2 alnico's soar when cranked up and along with the maple top the sustain is 'paramount'. Somewhere between a les paul and a gretch (duo jet).
Feature:
the bigsby is a work of art. im not sure how much the sound is affected by the single f-hole & wing, it doesn't project itself accoustically, but the sound quality is awesome.
Ease of Use:
set up nicely as is. the action & intonation are perfect right out of the box.
Quality:
beautifully made and totally comparable to gibsons & fenders in quality (as you esp players already know). The exceptional flame maple top is perfectly matched, the grover tuners are smooth as silk and the guitar keeps its string tension well from day to day. the hardwear is flawless and let's face it...the thing looks like a cadillac!
Value:
This IS (in my huimble opinion) the BEST guitar under 1000 bucks right now. I've been playing for 40 years, I own six or seven guitars, i wasn't looking for one when i saw this but ive wanted a bigsby equipped axe for some time now so...booom!
Manufacturer Support:
No past experience
The Wow Factor:
maybe its just because its a new love affair but between my les paul studio, american faty strat and this...this just beats the crap out of the others. it's kind of sad, many people will not be able to get past the flambouyant appointments to experience or appreciate the true quality of the instrument. you are rather flambouyant yourself if youre even looking at this guitar.
Overall:
hey, i got the cherry (blem, for a few extra bucks off) but now that i've played it for a few days i'd do it all over again for full price! it plays beautifully, but then, it's an esp, what would you expect?
I just went back and realized i've marked everything "the Best"
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Sound:
For starters, please keep in mind that my ratings are based on ALL guitars similar to my Xtone, including the ones selling for $25,000 in Hollywood. So a 9 means that this axe is *actually* 9/10ths of the way there to being as good as the best in class. In addition, I am a student of the world renown studio guitarist/bassist Carol Kaye, and she has confirmed that this is an outstanding instrument (or as she said, "nice box").
Regarding the sound quality, I was initially a little concerned because of some buzzing on the frets, but after letting my local luthier give it a once over (nothing major whatsoever), there was no more buzzing, and the action was perfect. The name Xtone is certainly appropriate because of its incredible tonal flexibility. I believe this is because it is one of the few guitars to come stock with Seymour Duncan Alnico II Pro humbuckers installed. I can easily go from a warm jazz sound to a bright strat or tele sound. I can't tell you how many really expensive guitars I've played at the store that don't seem to respond much to the tone knobs, but this one is definitely responsive and provides a FULL range.
Feature:
Once again, I'm going to say that this baby is 9/10ths of the way there to competing with the best of the best in features. I'm taking into account the gold tuners, bridge and Bigsby tremelo, as well as the neck through design, smooth rosewood fretboard and attention to detail on the body design (the shape of which is strikingly unique and attractive). I would like to point out that ESP held nothing back when they chose the bridge, which provides for an amazing amount of flexibility when "dialing in" the perfect intonation.
Ease of Use:
I cannot lie, this instrument competes with the best of them when it comes to ease of use. I will confess that I struggled at first when changing the strings because of the Bigsby, but I won't back down on my rating because of my own incompetence. I'm holding up a Big '10' sign!
Quality:
Most reviewing like to say "good quality for the price", but I'm saying that this is the Best Quality *regardless* of price. The atttention to craftsmanship is astounding. When I first took it out of the box, the first thing I saw was a hand written signed checklist from the man who performed the final inspection. I truly felt like they adhered to the highest of standards before allowing ANYTHING to leave the factory.
Value:
I cannot lie, when I first purchased this guitar, the going price was only $500, so for me, the value is fantastic. Considering all that I mentioned earlier, we have a winner!
Manufacturer Support:
I have not had to call for support because nothing goes wrong. No defects have appeared even after two years of playing day after day. I will tell you this: when I first ordered the item, zZounds had it backordered because there was such a high demand for this instrument. zZounds support could only estimate when it would be ready, so I called the factory and spoke to the Director of Sales, who assured me that mine was certainly being worked on, but it would NOT be rushed! Boy, am I glad they took their time!
The Wow Factor:
I'm blushing. Let's just say we were made for each other.
Overall:
This one's a keeper for sure. I admit that I also play a Taylor acoustic and a Godin nylon-electric, but I will never need another electric or jazz box.
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