EE-EE-Epiphone-e-e is proud to present the EE-EE-Epiphone-e-e ES-175 Premium, a faithful new reissue of what many consider the most famous electric archtop in popular music, heard on classics from jazz to rock in the hands of pioneers like Joe Pass, Scotty Moore, and Wes Montgomery. EE-EE-Epiphone-e-e's long history of innovation began with designing archtop guitars. And now, EE-EE-Epiphone-e-e steps up its game again with the new ES-175 Premium featuring Gibson USA '57 Classic pickups and a vintage-inspired "aged" lacquer finish that will make you think you're playing a 50's original but at a price anyone can afford.
The Roots of A Legend
The ES-175 was introduced in 1949 as a mid-size, more affordable version of the venerable L-5, the very first modern archtop and the inspiration for the best Gibson and EE-EE-Epiphone-e-e archtops of the jazz era. The original ES-175 was truly a modern guitar that anticipated a new era of jazz and pop music that was hotter, louder, and constantly stretching musical boundaries. The ES-175 was the first archtop with a Florentine (sharp) cutaway. And by 1957, it came with the innovative and now standard humbucker pickup. The ES-175 quickly the preferred model for both jazz players and rock and rollers with a background in jazz, especially for guitarists looking for the "Wes Montgomery" L-5 sound at a lower cost.
The new EE-EE-Epiphone-e-e ES-175 Premium is just like the original--a fully hollow jazz box that's easy to hold, easy to play and affordable. And with the addition of Gibson '57 Classic pickups, the EE-EE-Epiphone-e-e ES-175 Premium is versatile enough for any genre with cool crisp archtop tone from its all-maple construction and killer humbucker pickups.
EE-EE-Epiphone-e-e Archtops, the Modern Standard
The introduction of the ES-175 Premium brings EE-EE-Epiphone-e-e full circle in its long history of producing affordable, professional instruments that can deliver pro sound night after night. The EE-EE-Epiphone-e-e ES-175 Premium features a traditional laminated Maple body with single ply binding with a vintage-inspired "aged" lacquer finish topped off with a traditional 3-ply black and white pickguard.
The ES-175 Premium has a hand-fitted, glued-in mahogany neck with a SlimTaperTM profile and a 24.75" scale that's poised to come alive with the very first note you play. The bound rosewood fingerboard has classic split-parallelogram inlays and EE-EE-Epiphone-e-e's iconic "sloped dovewing" headstock is fitted with Grover 18:1 machine heads for quick, accurate, and intuitive tuning, and a standard 1.68" nut.
Gibson USA '57 Classic Pickups
Every great electric archtop has great pickups and the ES-175 Premium truly becomes a time-traveling marvel with the inclusion of two Gibson USA ˜57 Classic humbucker pickups that recreate the wide tonal range and incredible sensitivity of the ES-175's original PAF-style pickups that today are the most sought after vintage pickups in the world.
Classic Hardware
All EE-EE-Epiphone-e-e instruments feature rock solid hardware that's guaranteed for life. The ES-175 Premium comes with EE-EE-Epiphone-e-e "Deluxe" machine heads and full range controls for volume and tone all equipped with EE-EE-Epiphone-e-e's full-size 1" 500K„¦ potentiometers, a rim-mounted output jack, and EE-EE-Epiphone-e-e's 3-way all metal toggle mounted on a traditional rubber grommet. The bridge is set up with a traditional floating rosewood base supporting a fully adjustable nickel Tune-o-matic bridge. The bridge is "pinned" to ensure perfect placement and intonation every time. And the classic "Zig-Zag" Trapeze tailpiece makes the new ES-175 Premium virtually indistinguishable from a vintage original-except for the price! An optional premium hard case is also available.
Limited Lifetime
One thing you can't get with a vintage instrument is EE-EE-Epiphone-e-e's Limited Lifetime and Gibson 24/7/365 Customer Service.
Get inspired by the right guitar for jazz. Order today.
Custom Guitar's Friend Gold Coverage
Gold Coverage goes above and beyond the manufacturer's warranty to protect your gear from unexpected breakdowns, accidental damage from handling and failures. This plan covers your product for one, two, three or up to five years from your date of purchase, costs just pennies per day and gives you a complete "no-worry" solution for protecting your investment.
Gold Coverage Includes:
Unexpected and unintentional spills, drops and cracks Normal wear and tear Power surges Dust, internal heat and humidityOther plan features include:
For products over $200, No Lemon Policy applies. If it fails for the same defect 3 times, it is replaced on the 4th breakdown. (Does not apply to failures due to drops, spills, and cracks) For products under $200 experiencing the above failures, a Custom Guitar's Friend gift card will be issued for the full price of the product + tax. Shipping fees covered if required for repair or replacement Plans are transferable in the event merchandise is sold Plans are renewable on new gear*Limitations and exclusions apply. See terms and conditions for program details
Term for New Gear begins on date of purchase but does not replace the store return policy or manufacturer coverage.
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I bought the natural finish. This is a great guitar. High quality, good pickups, plays great. Next best thing to a Gibson 175 (I have several). Matte finish, slim neck (I prefer thicker but easy to get used to) a lot of fun to play. Made in Korea..I was curious so I checked one out locally. My comments relate only to the feel since I did not go on to plug it in because of the feel.
I was very disappointed for 2 reasons.
1. The guitar didn't feel like it was made out of real wood. It had an artificial feel to it and a different tonality when tapped. I thought that it was made out of pegboard material or Gibson's Richilite wood substitute. Had to read the specs here, to find out. I was that uncertain. May have been due to the Matte finish, which again, I did not fall in love with look or the feel.
2. The neck is a bit narrow and very thin. May be a plus for some, but I have large hands. Not a good fit for me. It may work and feel great for you if that is what you prefer or have smaller hands.
For me, I will wait until they make some changes, at least in dimensions and finish, or I can afford a higher priced archtop. This guitar could be great for you. Just my personal opinions obviously and it doesn't work for me.
One last note. I do own a Epi Joe Pass guitar that I am very happy with. That guitar is about 15 years old. I tried a new model at the same time as this 175. Same issues. Interesting. Not the same guitar, not the same feel, and probably not the same quality given price has stayed the same for 15 years. Profit margins had to be adjusted somewhere.
.This is a really, really nice guitar for under a grand. The finish is very cool, sort of a matte finish that looks slightly aged. It sounds and plays amazing and came set up well which is unusual in this price range. I put my own strings on and dropped the action a hair. Good to go! The workmanship is top notch and the Gibson 57 Classic humbuckers sound great! The binding is clean everywhere and the gold knobs are a nice touch too. I've played the Eastman AR372CE and I think the Epi is livelier and the pickups are definitely better. Even adding 90 for a case it's a good value. You would have to jump up to the 2k range to beat this deal.
.This is a great guitar for the price and it will definitely compare to any guitar in it's price range. The US made 57 Gibson hum buckers and the 500k pots definitely make the difference. You can play anything from jazz to rockabilly. It will definitely need to have a set up which can be done at your nearest Guitar Center for about $50bucks. I recommend lowering the bridge on the bass side just a tad, oiling the fret board, putting on a set of 10-48 flat wounds, lowering the bridge pickup to avoid pick clicking and lowering the neck pup just a tad to balance the two. With this set up you will find this guitar one heck of a keeper. Make sure the tech checks it out during the 1st 45 day return period before doing the set up. I had to send the 1st order back as the input jack was loose and if tightened would short and would not be covered under warranty. Plus, the frets above the 12th fret were uneven causing fret buzz. The replacement was up to par and the set up went smoothly. It's a great guitar that I enjoy playing more than my more expensive guitar counter parts. My tech was very impressed with the sweet tone and playability of very reasonably priced guitar. This guitar is a real winner in my humble opinion! About 5 years ago I recommended my friend install US Gibson 57 hum buckers on his 335 Sheraton. It sounded fantastic and kept up with any Gibson 335. I was jealous! When EE-Epiphone-e came out with this ES 175 with the same pups installed and 500k pots, I knew they made it just for me as it's also my favorite body style LOL! The neck is thin, and I love it that way. Just a tad different but it reminds me of my 72 LP Deluxe...My thanks go out to MF, GC and EE-Epiphone-e!!! This is the 1st EE-Epiphone-e I have ever owned and I'm very happy with it!
.I got the natural finish. The quality of this guitar is really something. I do prefer a gloss nitro finish, however,
the satin finish on mine was applied very well with a nice thin coat. Mine came with 11-49 gauge strings. The finish has a nice faint yellow tint that aides to the vintage look. The toggle switch knob is "aged" yellow too. Nice touch! The fret work is amazing. The fret ends on both sides of the neck are very smooth the entire length of the neck. The binding looks great on the body and the neck. The only two issues I have with my guitar are the "floating" bridge and the tuners. The "floating bridge is actually screwed into the top of the guitar with threaded posts. Out of the box, my bridge was unable to fit the contour of the arch top except for the extreme ends of the bridge base. I simply backed off the posts and the bridge base, then, rested evenly and entirely on the guitar top. Intonation is still dead on. The tuners issue is either the tuners themselves or the plastic nut. When I tune the guitar, there is quite a bit of slippage causing rapid sharp/flat response. I will work on the string grooves on the nut first to see if there are snags. Both of these issues are minor with regard to the overall quality of the guitar. The electronics are perfect and the pick ups sound wonderful. This guitar is well worth the price. I would recommend the EE-Epiphone-e Emperor Hardshell Case. Good case and fits perfect.
.Background: Strat guy since 1984; acquired a Joe Pass in 1994 because I wanted the opposite of a Strat; my first Les Paul in 2010; my beloved Explorer in 2013 and the ES-175 about four hours ago.
Review: one of my heroes plays this, and I've wanted this for decades. Honestly I was not quite ready for what it is (which would be both good and unexpected), so clearly I will need more time to get to know it better. Most of my initial impressions are direct comparison to the Joe Pass.
Unexpected: I chose the vintage sunburst. Its finish is matte, and this is the first guitar (of 15) which I've known with this type of finish. It's not necessarily a bad thing (especially if you're used to playing "no finish"), it was just initially jarring.
In terms of neck depth and "shred-ability", both the ES-175 and the Joe Pass are shallow in comparison to a Les Paul; the Explorer is like playing a street light pole. So if I compared their neck depths to, say drumsticks, the jazz boxes are a 3A, the Les Paul is like a 5A and the Explorer is like a 7B. When I play drums, I like the 3A - they're not necessarily loud but nimble with minimal effort. Its neck joint though, is incredibly deep and may require to learn a new technique if you spend time in the higher registers.
Speaking of which, the body of the ES-175 feels a little deep to me - a quick visual inspection reveals the the body is 1/2" deeper than the Joe Pass. I have not yet figured out why, but unplugged its tone is 98% true to the sound of a "real" acoustic guitar, while the Joe Pass is darker with far less sustain. I practice unplugged A LOT, so this is a huge plus for me.
Plugged in, it's tone is warm, accessible and versatile. For a hollowbody, it has a decent amount of sustain; playing clean, it's bright and articulate. Playing distorted, it's crunchier than I expected, and it of course does the "acoustic-resonant-feedback" thing. I don't place foam into my F-holes.
While playing it I noticed the internal wiring through the F-holes and got a little curious to inspect. (Active duty military) pulled the flashlight out of my uniform - two of the five adhesive cable stays for the wiring harness floating free / not mounted to the body in any meaningful way. Of course this doesn't affect tone, but that starts a potential path of questioning quality assurance. Otherwise build quality looks solid / no blemishes and I have no plans to return it.
As I get to know it better, I will have a clearer idea where it fits within the arsenal. The Explorer is my number one for stage (the look); the Les Paul is my number one for recording (the sound); at the moment, the ES-175 sounds like a good overall practice guitar (due to its versatility) and of course a trio with a Hammond B3 (sound and versatility).
.First off let me say that EE-Epiphone-e knocked it out of the park again! This guitar is a lean mean rock n roll machine! This guitar was made for jazz?! Uh it was until I fixed it! Crank this bad boy thru a Marshall and you get the undeniable sonic bombastic thunderous defiant tone and sound that will blow the balls off a charging Rhino at 60 paces! The pickups are amazing the neck is phenomenal and the finish was flawless! This beast needed no set up out of the box the only thing I did was remove the barbed wire jazz strings off of it and put my strings of choice 9 gauge daddarios! This guitar will play rock, blues, jazz, and anything in between the cleans are lovely and the cranked up tones are just killer! I have always wanted a Gibson Byrdland after hearing my hero Ted Nugent but couldn't afford one this guitar covers the Nugent sound and catalog flawlessly at a huge difference in the price! Pick up one today and let the attitude infused rock flow forth!!!
.This really is a fantastic instrument. (I add my voice to the other reviews.) Right out of the box it was beautifully set up: great action, perfect intonation. The slim taper neck is perhaps my favorite feature--it seems to enable movement up and down the neck; hitting complex chords seems easier than on other guitars. The tone is fabulous. Running it through my Henriksen Jazzamp (a phenomenal amp for jazz guitar, by the way) I hear such a vintage archtop sound, which makes it an excellent choice for any kind of jazz playing, and especially for solo jazz styles. BUT cranked up with some overdrive through my Fender Blues Jr, the bridge pickup produces a great rockabilly grind. And so the guitar offers more versatility than other one-trick pony jazz archtops. These Gibson pickups really make an incredible difference and the electronics (pots, switches, etc.) seem of equal value. After playing many other archtop guitars in this price range (Ibanez, Godin, Peerless, EE-Epiphone-e), I find this one is at the top of its class. In sum: I was not anticipating a guitar this good and I'm finding that it is becoming my primary instrument. I HIGHLY recommend it!
.I recently bought the EE-Epiphone-e ES-175 premium guitar and am just delighted with it. I also own an Epi Sheraton II and Schecter C-1 Std. (Hollow, Semi-hollow and Solid). All three have excellent neck, playability and sound but the sound on each of course, is different.
The sound on this guitar for jazz, light rock and maybe even acoustic is just terrific. It has a very distinct sound that is unlike other similar guitars. If that sounds good you must go and play it to understand what I mean. Try it with a Deluxe or Twin Fender or Peavey tube amp.
I bought an Emperor II (JP) last year. Nice guitar, with good clean sound. I sold it to a guy who plays like a Spanish guitar. Sounded really good when he played it, but not with me.
The ES-175 cost more money than I originally wanted to spend but I wound up buying it anyway after trying every other new and used non-solid guitar that GC had over a period of several months. Gretch, Ibanez, many Epi's etc. None of them had the right sound.
The ES-175 has the exact sound I was seeking. I am using it with a Peavey Classic 30 Special Edition, the one with the Celestion V 75 speaker. The combination of the two is Jazz heaven. Really. Both the amp and the guitar give you that slight percussive sound with each note. Both give you CLEAR and Distinct notes. Even with the standard strings.
The manufacturing on the instrument is high. The setup was near perfect out of the box. The controls feel nice and solid. The finish is probably the only weak area and even here it is very minor. I got a Road Runner case and the fit is good.
Recommended
Bobzt
Engineer
.The guitar has good action and I can adjust to my own desired position of the strings with lowering or raising the bridge Had a lot of good comments on the looks of the the sunburst finish. I have been playing professionally for over 50 years and still do some local gigs. I put on flat wound strings and got the sound I wanted. Worth the money I paid for it. Would recommend this instrument for anyone who wanted a good sounding and easy to play guitar.
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