Old 90's "Custom Guitars" ESPs

[narad]

What about the Bang Dream fans and Hatsune Miku fans?

I've never actually seen anyone buy or interested in buying one of those, but seems like most sold. When it's the 60,000Y model, I sort of understand it as random idol fandom, but when it's the 600,000Y variant, I am very confused.

They tried a similar thing with .strandberg* doing some anime model with what I think are supposed to be cat ears 12th fret inlay. But on a 600,000Y guitar. And those sat for foreeever. I think there still might be some new old stock floating around like 4 years later.

 

[Whoman Bean]

Check the serial number. Is it from the Korea custom shop or the Indonesia custom shop?

Korea.

 

[Robslalaina]

Hold up, do these really cost about 2,800 without tax over there? Are they easy to come by or only built to order? Also, does SS really mean stainless steel in their lingo? I'll be in Japan next month and this is getting me even more excited...

HORIZON-II NT | ESP GUITARS

ロングサスティーンを生み出すスルーネック構造にマホガニーウイング材を採用。太く豊かな中低音。

espguitars.co.jp

 

[narad]

Hold up, do these really cost about 2,800 without tax over there? Are they easy to come by or only built to order? Also, does SS really mean stainless steel in their lingo? I'll be in Japan next month and this is getting me even more excited...

HORIZON-II NT | ESP GUITARS

ロングサスティーンを生み出すスルーネック構造にマホガニーウイング材を採用。太く豊かな中低音。

espguitars.co.jp

Not sure where you're getting $2800 but yea, about $3k. The problem is finding one, as they're mostly made to order and I don't see many in stock at the ESP dealer shops.

 

[Robslalaina]

Not sure where you're getting $2800 but yea, about $3k. The problem is finding one, as they're mostly made to order and I don't see many in stock at the ESP dealer shops.

You assumed dollars and I assumed euros If I luck out and find one it'll be veeery hard to resist bringing one home. Even after import taxes it'd be less expensive than buying one here from a dealer.

 

[Nightside]

Korea.

How does it compare to the Indonesian 1000s?

 

[Whoman Bean]

How does it compare to the Indonesian 1000s?

Like done by the same people in the same facilities and I bet they even shared the same gloss lacquer from the same can.

 

[MAJ Meadows SF]

Oh, you're that guy...



That's just simple branding renaming. It's not the creation different quality tiers, with different manufacturing techniques, relocating, reorganizing, across huge spans of time. But even over time these things lose comparability, too. See the "where are Edwards made when" debate.

I don't care what you want to think to yourself. But I am annoyed when seller after seller refers to their old ESP as custom shop, by virtue of it being old, when no literal custom shops nor custom shop brands existed.

This is the point where most of the discussion here needed to end. The word “custom” is so bastardized and abused anymore it’s stupid, and clearly as stated by Narad, all brands do it. It’s a ri-off potential ripe market, and I see the ESPs adverts daily on 4 forums. FFS, car makers do it too. Chevy needing to create another truck line between a base model and LT came up with the “Silverado Custom”. It’s half of what an LT offers, but gawd damn I haz me a a cuh-stohm Chevy! (I literally drive a 2022 because I got a deal on it, so I will rip on myself, thank you.)

 

[RevDrucifer]

I mean, how many clear polyester finishes do you think exist and moreover, why would they only be available exclusively for one shop in one country?

You're right, this is fucking dumb, why triple and quadruple down on it?

People just lose their minds when Edwards guitars enter the picture. Like ESP is just sitting around like "hey, let's fuck with everyone and make the same guitars but with a different logo and watch people lose it on the internet!"

I mean, that is sort of ESP's thing, but it's just too meta to be real.

Come on dude, you’re being intentionally obtuse.

If someone spends 30 minutes buffing out a finish, does it feel the same as someone who spent 60 minutes buffing out a finish, even if it’s chemically the same finish? No.

All I’ve said about my Edwards is that I can’t even conceive how they’ve been compared to Epiphones and it’s a ridiculously well built guitar for the $1200 I paid for it. and that it feels identical to the E-II my buddy owns. Which doesn’t feel like the LTD he owns, which is far closer to a Epiphone in overall fit/finish quality.

There’s no hysterics or losing of minds, that’s the same political gaslighting bullshit dumbasses use for internet arguements.

There’s definitely someone who has a weird thing with Edwards.

 

[MaxOfMetal]

Come on dude, you’re being intentionally obtuse.

If someone spends 30 minutes buffing out a finish, does it feel the same as someone who spent 60 minutes buffing out a finish, even if it’s chemically the same finish? No.

All I’ve said about my Edwards is that I can’t even conceive how they’ve been compared to Epiphones and it’s a ridiculously well built guitar for the $1200 I paid for it. and that it feels identical to the E-II my buddy owns. Which doesn’t feel like the LTD he owns, which is far closer to a Epiphone in overall fit/finish quality.

There’s no hysterics or losing of minds, that’s the same political gaslighting bullshit dumbasses use for internet arguements.

There’s definitely someone who has a weird thing with Edwards.

I thought we were done?

You said something really dumb. You doubled down on the dumb. Then tried to change the subject, which made zero sense given what you already said.

Who is trying to gaslight who?

I will never not think what you said is stupid. But what does my opinion matter? You can try to frame it after the fact however you want. I don't know why this needs to stretch into a week long argument. Own it. Move on. Or don't.

 

[narad]

All I know is that I can tell the difference between like an Ibanez j-custom finish and an ESP finish, as the former is so thin you can see little ripples in it where it sinks into the flametop along the pattern of the figure. But that's a rare case. I can't tell the difference between the finish of an MIJ jackson, a MIA jackson, or an ESP standard series. Might as well be the same people as far as I'm concerned. Though I won't claim they are, and they'd have to do a santa clausian teleportation between continents to make it happen.

 

[Swarm]

These 7 pages of arguing prove my point, we need more accurate info and history on ESPs. If only there was a guy like Trogly but for ESP that would at least document them on youtube it would be a good starting point for sure. Somebody needs to do that so these kinds of threads get a bit shorter and we all know what we're looking at lol

 

[budda]

These 7 pages of arguing prove my point, we need more accurate info and history on ESPs. If only there was a guy like Trogly but for ESP that would at least document them on youtube it would be a good starting point for sure. Somebody needs to do that so these kinds of threads get a bit shorter and we all know what we're looking at lol

I think the takeaway is that even the ESP historians dont know. It wont get a lot more accurate imo. Everything being meticulously catalogued is very much so a post-2000s internet phenomenon as far as guitar stuff is concerned. ESP is not unique in that aspect.

If official records arent super accurate, thats as good as its probably gonna get. Do the best research you can, decide how badly you want the guitar and buy it or dont.

 

[Nightside]

I think the takeaway is that even the ESP historians dont know. It wont get a lot more accurate imo. Everything being meticulously catalogued is very much so a post-2000s internet phenomenon as far as guitar stuff is concerned. ESP is not unique in that aspect.

If official records arent super accurate, thats as good as its probably gonna get. Do the best research you can, decide how badly you want the guitar and buy it or dont.

This. I want an MX220 but I'm not going to pay 25000 euros for some old Esp that wasn't even made in the custom shop. I'll spend 250 euros for an AliExpress copy and pretend I'm cool.

 

[narad]

These 7 pages of arguing prove my point, we need more accurate info and history on ESPs. If only there was a guy like Trogly but for ESP that would at least document them on youtube it would be a good starting point for sure. Somebody needs to do that so these kinds of threads get a bit shorter and we all know what we're looking at lol

I was considering writing a book, but it's one of these backburner ideas when other projects are out of the way. Sadly I don't take book grade photos of all the ESPs that pass through the house, otherwise like half the work would be done already.

 

[Sermo Lupi]

Well, apropos of my last comment, apparently someone leaked classified tank docs on the War Thunder forum again

The triple letter crowd might be preoccupied for the next few days if any of you lads wants to be a hero and clear up this ESP matter once and for all...