Dean Guitars EVO P Playmate

Features are as listed above in the previous review.

It's a unique duck shape/cross between a Les Paul and Telecaster.

Korean and Gibson scale. Basswood body. Maple neck. Rose-wood fretboard.

**IF you're a poser the looks will put you off**

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Technical bit : pots are 500k long shaft minis, switch is enclosed, cap is 0.047 Uf, obviously they're cheap ..but, do their job..well.

Neck pickup measures 9.45k Ohm (far too hot) and the bridge 10.5 K ohm and is a little lacking in mids, even radiusing the poles. Pickups are wired parallel in the middle position so you get a 4.9K output, which gives a kind of Jangly "middle tele" vibe - this refers to the guitar as standard

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How does it suit your music style = Very well. I play most things including Classic Rock,Blues,Black Sabbath type stuff..but usually stick in the area of ZZ Top, Led Zep.. you know.."Pub rock".

What amps and effects are you using it with? Vox Cambridge,Park Combo,Johnson Combo.

Is it noisy? On what settings? No it's humbucking, although does not seem to be earthed at the bridge.

Rich/Full sound? Bright sound?-

Here's the short review...It's been modified,but the stock pickups give a nice warm "Gibson" sound at the neck and a more trebly sound at the bridge...
8 for the neck humbucker, 7 for the bridge as it's more Telecaster than Lester. The nickname of this thing is "Lestercaster"..I don't take it THAT seriously,really.

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Technical Bits
I've repolled [and repotted] the Humbuckers so the slug sides are now screw and the difference it makes was quite large [Does this make the pickups "James Dean"?]. As the pickups are hot, I've raised and radiused all the poll pieces,dropping the bobbins so the string pull is weaker for a more "vintage sound". The neck sounds much more defined and taste-full than the vintage Ibanez pickup in my other basswood bodied cheapo-almost-a-Gibson-copy. The bridge is also very good,but, not as "Harmonious" as the neck.

I can compare it to my Gibson if you'ld like,but, that's a dubious comparison,because if I really wanted a refined sound I'd put a Stewmac Golden Age or Kent armstrong in the bridge


Also changed the cap from 0.047uf to 0.022uf which allows more treble through.


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The pickups are actually "Samshin" and are found in various low end guitars including Cort CLs and BC Rich bronze series,so you can play adequate Rock,Metal and blues using them.

It'll never be a real Dean/Gibson sound without changing the pickups,but, is OK. Standard buckers 7 with mods 8.5.

I like the more jangly middle selection and the pickups individually are damn good.

Short Review..

Good,very good and playable right from the box, may want to have a shop change strings and set it up for you though.


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Technical Bits

It's a very adequate cheapo-almost-a-Gibson-copy I had a chance to try one of these against a 2001 Epiphone Les Paul Studio, last year and allowing for the shop setup, the Playmate had a better standard of overall finish [ IE, it felt like it was designed rather than slapped together,or,it was put together rather than slapped together].

I actually bought mine for a song from ebay...but they usually go for around the same as an Epiphone Basher or Bully.

"Is this a Dean?" I asked the youngster in the shop. "Yep" was the reply. Ok thinks I, Plug in.... test it.

Do you know what? against the Epiphone, which was twice the price of the playmate, had better tuners,control "sweep" and no paint/overspray faults on the side of the neck-as the Epi did.

Now that IS impressive for half the price.

Having played a Gibson for a while,i'm getting the feeling that bolt on necks are much more "fit and forget" as well, Ie, if your Dean falls over it'll survive..if your Gib..I won't finish that sentence.

Very neat little recessed and contoured neck joint so this is one neck join which does not get in your way...Taking notes anyone-Fender,Yamaha??

Kudos to Dean for this feature on the low end Evos.

The neck profile is Between a Pacifica and a telecaster and is not thin enough to damage your hands like an Ibanez wizzy-woo neck.

Fretwire is very good, and is low and sort of medium. (Sorry I know next to nothing about fret gauges etc..try one.)

Factory setup --now that's an oxymoron if I ever heard one.

Yes, the nut could have been cut a little lower and the neck was shimmed up a little to get the action lower, higher up the neck.
Ok, I had to reverse the treble saddles in the ABR copy [intonation] and tighten the tuner nuts and screws. This is what I've had with every sub #300 guitar I've bought. No real woes, tuners are fine and it will stay in tune over night. To some people it'll be obvious that the standard strings are crappy...a generic set of 10s and she sounds so much better.
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This guitar does seem to be sensitive to to strings and wears them out more quickly than,just about any guitar I have.

Action and relief [12 thou] is nice and low,while not THE lowest,it'll get near the "big boys" factory specs.

Everything was fine,really> I like this guitar a lot more than MY [Vintage VS6cg] SG copy, in terms of playability, fretting and sound quality. Even though it's a cheapie it's one of those guitars where it makes you want to play harder and reach for harder notes,etc. Whereas your usual tricks become a doddle..to me this is the sign of a good guitar.

To the superficial bits of it..

The finish is sparkly silver and seems very tough.The "pearlescent" dot markers look quite nice and catch your eye well.

Will this guitar withstand live playing-Yes.

Does the hardware seem like it will last-Yes.

Is the finish good enough to last, or does it seem thin and easy to wear off
with lots of playing-Yes finish seems like it will last.

Are the strap buttons solid-Yes.

Can you depend on it-Yes.

Would you use it on a gig without a backup-No,no-one in their right mind would take ONE guitar to a gig would they,If I was busking or feeling a little crazy I'd take just one decent guitar and this is a decent little guitar.

Bought on ebay this is Irelevant.

I've been playing too long to bother with absolute tat [19-20 years if you must know how old a fart i am),I've played enough piles of shite in my life to be able to tell a nice guitar. Currently own,Gibson,Yamaha,"Vintage",Fender and Cheri guitars.


As per the SG copy I bought this to preserve my Gibson from fretmelt ,and as backup,it'll do as good a job,if not better than most copies.
This is one of the best "Gibson scale" humbucker equiped cheapies i've played. BTW,it's replaced the SG copy as number 2/3 in the "ranks".

I'll be heading in the Dean direction again if i ever sell any of my other guitars and if a beginner wants a good Lester impersonation,i'll steer them there or toward the FT/X evos.

Model name on tag says EVOCBK. Made in China (2002?). Flat Top, Black finish, Bolt-on Construction, Chrome Hardware, Die Cast Tuners, 2 Humbucker Passive Pickups, 3- position switch (N-M-B), Tune-O-Matic Bridge, LP Gibson style Single-Cutaway Basswood Body, Maple Neck, Rosewood Fingerboard, Dot Inlays, 22 Frets. Factory set-up signed off by "BF". Limited 5-year warranty with online registration.

The sound is much better than comparable price-range electrics such as Squire and Epiphone. No noise. Sounds great with my Fender 212 Hotrod Deluxe and Blues Junior. A nice guitar for playing Blues and surf with a fair amount of distotion. However, I advise playing several units and comparing them before choosing one. The pickups in the unit that I picked sounded better to me that the ones on other EVP P and similarly priced models thta I tried. Low-end and medium range guitars have much more variability than expensive models, so a new buyer should always "try everyone in the store. "Sound" is an objective thing, so pick the unit that sounds best for you and your style of music. this particular setup had a nice chunky flavor with excellent low-end in comparison to my Stratocaster and Telecaster. this guitar stands up well in comparison to many guitars that retail for twice the price.

Dean has very good quality control. The inspector-- BF-- checked off the finish, electronics, neck adjustment, bridge, frets, hardware, pickups and a "Play Test". Guitar setups will naturally get altered a bit during shipment and in-store handling. The bass E string was a bit low and caused some rattle at first, but after I raised the string height a tad using the tune-o-matic bridge and re-tuned the guitar, the buzz was eliminated. The intonation was slightly sharp on three of the strings at the 12th fret, but I will adjust that tonight. I do wish that all guitar manufactureers would effectively stretch the strings on their new guitars. That would serve to insure that the factory setups are truer. I am apalled at some of the facory string jobs I have seen on many brands of guitars. String setup is critical to the playability and sound of a guitar. A lot of novices think that their guitar tuning problems are caused by poor tuners when the problem is actually sloppy, inadeqaute stringing.

This is a straigtforward electric guitar. It is as solid as a Louisville Slugger ans shold be simple and easy to service if the need ever arises. However, treat all of your guitars like they were new-born babies. Dings, scratches and dented hardware will hurt you if you ever need to sell or trade your guitar. A conscientous guitarist should always play with clean hands and wipe down his/her guitar after playing. I also dust my guitars with pressurized air. Strap buttons on all guitars need occasional checking and tightening. I would never show up at a gig-for-pay without a backup. The EVO P is a nice backup guitar if you are on a tight budget. If this guitar gets lost or stolen, it is inexpensive to replace.

The warranty is good for 5 years. The Dean web site (www.deanguitars.com) is not as easy to navigate as it could be and I still have not found a Model EVOCBK on the web site. That made it impossible for me to properly register my Dean, but that should not be a problem if I ever need service. Authorized Dean dealers facilitate warannty service requests and shipping. I have met the regional Dean rep and he is a very helpful guy who knows just about eveything that one could possibly know about Dean guitars.

I would be glad to help Dean with their web site if they just ask.

I have been attempting to play guitar since the early 1960s. I have a Stratocaster, a Telecaster and a heap of gear. I would buy one of these again if it was lost or stolen. I love the way this guitar looks and sounds. Sure, I wish that it was a $2500 Les Paul, but that is soemthing that I could never afford. I am quite satisfied with this Dean. All new guitars should come with a strap, cleaning cloth and picks as part of the package.

Don't be embarrased to buy this guitar if it is all you can afford. Other people might be able to play with more expensive guitars, but that does not mean that they necessarily play with more heart and dedication than you have. Your technique is much more important than the price of you guitar. Practice, practice, practice. And play tunes that you love.