Epiphone ES-335 Figured Blueberry Burst

Overall:Where to start?! First off the most obvious is the finish. I was interested in the OD green, but was curious how it would look in person versus the picture. All I can say is WOW! The binding really pops with the green. Second, I haven’t weighed it yet but this one is on the heavier sides of semi-hollow bodies which I think gives it a better tone. Third, the neck is a rounded C closer to the 50’s style, which fits my large hands perfectly! It did require some minor adjustments for the set up the fretboard was a little dry but that’s usually the case with imports. Epiphone has really stepped up their game in the past few years and I’m all for it! You will NOT be disappointed with this one!

I've had my raspberry burst ES-335 for almost 4 months now, and while I'm overall satisfied with my purchase, it wasn't all perfect off the shelf. First the positives: the guitar's body panels have very generous flame patterns for a mass-produced import model. Perhaps they were more selective for these LE runs. The online pictures are pretty true to the actual color of the guitar, and there aren't any paint issues on mine. The stock pickups are fantastic and if it weren't for the fact that a friend has offered to give me a set of Gibson pickups, I wouldn't even bother changing them out. They will offer plenty of chime, warmth, cream, or grit for you to dial into, so unless you want a little more dirt, you might be able to save yourself the hassle of swapping ... MoreI've had my raspberry burst ES-335 for almost 4 months now, and while I'm overall satisfied with my purchase, it wasn't all perfect off the shelf. First the positives: the guitar's body panels have very generous flame patterns for a mass-produced import model. Perhaps they were more selective for these LE runs. The online pictures are pretty true to the actual color of the guitar, and there aren't any paint issues on mine. The stock pickups are fantastic and if it weren't for the fact that a friend has offered to give me a set of Gibson pickups, I wouldn't even bother changing them out. They will offer plenty of chime, warmth, cream, or grit for you to dial into, so unless you want a little more dirt, you might be able to save yourself the hassle of swapping pickups. Volume & tone knobs are responsive, the guitar holds tune after a few songs, and for a 6', average-build guy like me, this guitar feels extremely natural in my lap or hanging from a strap. The neck feels very similar to Epiphone's 58 Les Paul Standard or the IBG acoustic line, so it's slightly large, but by no means a baseball bat. I prefer my necks this way, though, so that's a positive in my book.Now for the not-so-great things. One cosmetic issue I noticed was that the binding is kind of splotchy near the neck heel. You'd have to be holding the guitar to notice it, but it's not too big to be an eyesore for me. Another issue is that one of the volume pot labels fell off suddenly. Not sure what caused it to fall off, but I've considered replacing all the knobs because I'm not exactly in love with their look, anyway. More egregiously, the fret work was somewhat lacking on this model within the upper register. The frets feel noticeably taller, and the edges don't appear to have been filed all the way. It doesn't render the guitar unplayable, but it's definitely something I plan to have corrected by a tech or luthier.Overall, this can be a wonderful guitar. Despite the flaws I pointed out, I'm happy with my purchase and don't mind taking the guitar to a highly skilled person to get it in perfect working order. The guitar sounds amazing, feels well-balanced and comfortable in playing position, and just looks so dang good! It's a well-designed package, just make sure to give yours a combover before you decide to settle.

The only reason for the 3 star rating is the work it needed. A brand new instrument may need a setup, but it shouldn't need repairs. More details below, but lets start with what was really good.This "Inspired by Gibson" model has some awesome improvements over prior models. The Kalamazoo styled headstock is really nice. It still has the same challenges as the Gibson models, but it has a much more refined look than its predecessors. Same thing with the pick guard. These two improvements provide a far more polished look to the final product. These features may seem small to some, but I appreciate them. The higher grade pots also result in a more professional feel and tone for the player. I was pleasantly surprised to find that I prefer the pickups in this model over ... MoreThe only reason for the 3 star rating is the work it needed. A brand new instrument may need a setup, but it shouldn't need repairs. More details below, but lets start with what was really good.This "Inspired by Gibson" model has some awesome improvements over prior models. The Kalamazoo styled headstock is really nice. It still has the same challenges as the Gibson models, but it has a much more refined look than its predecessors. Same thing with the pick guard. These two improvements provide a far more polished look to the final product. These features may seem small to some, but I appreciate them. The higher grade pots also result in a more professional feel and tone for the player. I was pleasantly surprised to find that I prefer the pickups in this model over the T-Types found in the the Gibson model. They don't have the same note separation or clarity as the T-Type, but they do have a warmer jazzy tone that I prefer, so I'm going to keep the pickups.On the "still not perfect side" of the conversation, many of these will require some additional work to get it in playable condition. Some reviewers have reported that they were perfect right out of the box, so it may be a hit and miss situation, but mine was a bit of a miss. I knew the issues were fixable, so I purchased it anyway. The factory setup was quite poor. There was far too much neck relief and the bridge was way too high. This wasn't a matter of simply not being set up the way I like my guitars. When I picked it up off the display, this one was unplayable. After fixing the relief and action, I found 2 dead frets. Not a buzz because the action was too low, but two completely dead frets (without bending). A fret level and crown was needed. My biggest critique is the fret ends were so sharp that I literally cut my finger on one. That had to be fixed. I had a professional do the fret repars and a full setup. Now, it plays flawlessly. One day I may end up replacing the bridge and tailpiece. They are fairly low quality, but on par with comparable instruments in this class. If you can do these types of repairs yourself or don't mind spending a little extra to have them done by a professional, this is a good value for most players and I would recommend it to my friends.