ESP LTD Viper-400

What year was it made? 2004
Where was is made? (Japan, Mexico, USA, etc...)
How many frets? 24XL
Solid-Top? Laminated top? Solid Mahogany
Which controls are given? volume, tone, 3-way,
Pickup configuration? H/H,
Make and model of pickups? EMG 81 active
Body and neck woods? Mahogany bofdy and neck, rosewood finderboard,
Finish: Polyurethane gloss over Vintage Sunburst
Body style: SG
Bridge style: Tune-O-Matic
Tuners: Grover,
Neck/Scale: 24.75" 24 frets,
Any included accessories? Used - nothing else

How does it suit your music style (and what is that style)?

I bought this because of the active EMG's, the 24 jumbo frets and the SG style for rock n roll. Played through a clean channel of an amp, you really can play with the volume, tone and picup switch to get an incredible range of tones for almost any type of music you would want to play.

What amps and effects are you using it with?

Right now, I practice at home through a PA, but in the rehearsal room, I use Marchall half stacks.

Is it noisy? On what settings?

No noise at all!

Rich/Full sound? Bright sound?

So far, the actives PUPs seem to really push the sound out well, and clean, with a rich tone.

How well was the guitar set-up at the factory?

I bought it used - the old owner had it set up with 10's and a medium action. I like 9's and as low as it can be, so, that needs to be done next.

How well were the pickups adjusted?

I wil l have it set up by my tech for optimal play, but they seem VERY responsive and I don't see a need for them to be played with too much.
Properly bookmatched top? Properly routed bridge?

The mahogany finish on this is incedible.. truly a stunner - darker at the edges and lighter in the middle.

Did the guitar contain any flaws? (misaligned bracing, poorly filed fretwire, finish flaws, poor quality wood, rusted or oxidized hardware, loose tuning pegs, poorly cut nut, poorly fit saddle, noisy pickup selector, loose controls, etc...)

Again, used, and in perfect working condition.

Durability seems to be an ESP trait - I wont know for a while, but the previous owner swears by them.

I have been plying over 35 years, own a 1996 Gibson Les Paul Studio, 2007 Epiphone Custom Shope Likited Edition Les Paul Silverburst, 2008 Fender Stratacaster Koa, and now this.

Each guitar I own provides a different kind of sound. This Viper now provides that SG rock n roll/metal capability that I lacked to date.

Im partial to the 60's Les Paul, but this Viper really feels good to play, as well!

made in korea it has 24 frets a volume and tone control two humbucker emg 81 and 85 active finish is really nice and banged it agianst a couple of walls before still almost flawless except for some spots a type of sg body i find the neck to be a bit thick but it still has great playability

it suits alot of music style if u know how to set up an amp u can get almost an sound u want from this guitar without it distorting it is actualy pretty qiuet surpirsing for active pickups i think it has a middle range sound thick but yeat bright highs and as for the guy who siad the 81 sounds bad ur a effing idoit ur probaly the person who turns all the settings up on his amp doesnt bother to replace the batery ever and plain sucks at gutiar and as he siad a sg is better i own both and i find the sg to have a very thin sound to it and u cant lower the action bc all the thing does is buzz and almsot always sounds tinny and there is pretty much nothing to dislike of the sound of this guitar

it was set up perfect from the factory and the action was almost perfect how i like it and the picks up needed to be lowered just a bit and it contained absolutly no flaws when i got it

this gutiar is very reliable it is probaly the most reliable guitar i have and i ahve jacksons gibsons fenders schecters and ibeneaz and the finish will last for ever on this thing the clear coat on the gutiar very thick i thought the strap buttons were solid even though i replaced them with strap locks i ahve giged wihtout a back up before iw ould be more worried about my amp then i ever would about this guitar and i have a jcm 2000 and a mesa triple rec

never had to call them biult a good guitar more then ic an say for gibson and jackson

i ahve been playing for 22 years now and have owned or own almsot every kind of amp and guitar that is name brand of corse nothing i should have asked it was perfect i compare this to my sg and pick it bc it sounds better and is more reliable and stays in tune better i wish it had a lfoyd like the perfessional signature model they make except they need to make it is red

Set neck, active EMGS (81 and 85) H-H pickup configuration. etc. I got to Guitar Center, Sam Ash, and local music stores just about every weekend. I play every guitar i can get my hands on. And to be honest, this guitar is by far the best. It's light for the body, but a tad bit neck heavy. The tuners are nice, they stay in tune pretty well. I got it in white, and was hoping it would come with a white headstock and black hardware like the newer ESP VIPER 400 models, but it came with a black headstock and silver hardware. Either way, the guitar is sexy.

To start, the emg's are amazing. It can be hard to get a good clean sound out of them, but if you tweak your amp just right, it sounds perfect. And ofcourse its PERFECT for metal. You can't be human and hate the 'Active' sound. I can honestly say i can get ANY sound out of this guitar. Blues, metal, soft rock, punk, you name it. Sadly im using a Vox Ad30 with it at the moment because i haven't decided on what half stack to get -_- The brdige pup is perfect for brutal riffing. Think Black Dahlia Murder or Lamb of god.

LTD is supposed to be the ''cheaper line'' of esp. But i could not imagine how amazing a custom ESP would be. This guitar came in perfect conditon. I didn't even adjust the active or pickup height. AMAZING! Nothing came missing or broke, and it came packed tight in a safe box. The actives are really quite. When you have the volume on but not playing the guitar, you can't hear any hum at all, unless you have a feedback problem. The guitar came with nice SIT (stay in tune) strings. And later in the mail i got a new packedge of SIT strings for free, just for buying a esp =D

Considering tons of metalcore, metal, black metal, etc. bands use the viper 400 for videos and gigging, im sure it will withstand live playing. The hardware seems nice and strong. I bumped the guitar into the wall a few times on accident and nothing broke. It didn't even go out of tune. I put strap locks on it, because i would hate to throw my viper around and have the strap come off >:[. I would never gig without a backup, but if i didn't have a backup guitar at the time, i would feel pretty safe with this guitar.

I orderd this guitar on the phone cause i had a 20 percent off coupon if i orderd by phone -_- The guitar came in like 4 days. I was shocked when i saw a huge box at my door so soon. I bought it from Music123.com and got it for 460 thanks to that coupon =D. They have amazing service. I talk to one of the people who run ESP'S myspace and they seem really nice and helpful. ESP really cares for their customers. I never tried to get it repaired cause it never broke...yet >:[

I've only been playing for about a year and a half, but i know my stuff. The only other thing i could wish this guitar had was a coil tap for a wider range of tone, but you cant have it all. If this was stolen i'd buy a new one for sure. But since i never put the guitar down i think it wont get stolen. I love EVERYTHING about this guitar. It's sexy, sounds great, looks METAL. I did a lot of reserch on this guitar before buying it, cause 600 dollars is a lot of money to me. And i didn't want to waste all that money on a crappy guitar. Turns out this guitar is worth every penny.

* Finish Vintage Sunburst
* Body style SG-Style Mahogany Body
* Bridge style Tune-O-Matic
* Tuners Non-Locking Grover Tuners
* Neck/Scale Thin-U Shaped Neck With Cream Binding 24.75" Scale
* Any included accessories? No
* What year was it made? Where was is made? 2006 Korea
* How many frets? 24
* Which controls are given 1 Volume 1 Tone 3 Way Selector
* Pickup configuration? 2 Humbucker Pick-ups
* Make and model of pickups? Neck: Seaymour Duncan Jazz Pick-Up; Bridge: Seymour Duncan Custom 5
* Active or Passive electronics? Passive
* Body and neck woods? Body: Mahogoney Neck: 3-Piece Mahogoney
Rosewood Fretboard with flag inlays

I play things that range from blues to metal and this guitar is capable of a wide range of noise. The Jazz pick up is perfect for any situation and style. I use it with a vox valvetronix amp and with this amp and guitar I can create almost any sound I want. This guitar is a bit noisy but the volume control is pretty good at taking care of that without taking from the guitar's tone. The sound is rich and using GHS guitar boomers you can have a great mix of bright and full. I'd say you can use this guitar for anything. It sustains well with it's set neck construction. There really isn't anything I don't like about it's sound.

This guitar came set up pretty well from the factory. I just had to tune it and it was good. The intonation was great right out and there was absolutely nothing I didn't like about it.

I've been playing it for 3 months and it's so far held up to some falling and jam sessions without any problems. the finish is still intact and it doesn't yet need to be re-intonated. The strap buttons are solid and big. I have trouble putting a strap on it sometimes. I can depend on this guitar very well. Although I wouldn't think to gig without any back up I would suggest that this guitar be the first guitar in your rack. It's great bang for your buck.

N/A

I'd rate this as one of the best quality guitars you can get for this price. It sounds awesome and is definitely going to be in my collection for a long time.

go to esp website.

This guitar fits my style perfectly. I play iron maiden,metallica,black sabbath etc . The emg pick ups have great sound. I use a marshall mg15cd amp and it makes it sound amazing.

My guitar was setup pretty good. The action is about medium height. The low E buzzes a bit but its fine. The finish was perfect when i got it.

This guitar is built like a tank. It is tough. The strp buttons are good and solid. I could depend on this guitar.

I've only had it 2 days.

I have been playing for 2 years and this guitar is alot better than my previus guitars. If my guitar got stolen i would go absolutely mad. I don't know what i'd do but would love to get it again.

You Know

The Active EMG-81 Bridge pickup provides a decent tone for hard metal- it has a very aggressive metallic bite to it with very little warmth. This is great if you want to play 80s/90s speed metal all day, but it lacks the versatility to allow you to convincingly play any Zeppelin, Sabbath etc and Blues is completely out of the question-there isnt the warmth and depth of expression in the tone to suit this. Like I've said it is great for metal- try some earlier metallica stuff, but the sound isn't rich enough and is too lacking in the bass register for any Classic Rock, Save up and get a real SG if you want that, because this guitar is nothing like a Gibson. A very positive aspect of the EMGs is that they are extremely quiet the moment you stop playing- its really quite eerie and a welcome change to squealing feedback! However, The '81 at the bridge is a waste of time- it is terrible! I was shocked at just how bad it sounds, but I suppose if you're a metal player you'll probably not be too bothered about this.

The guitar was set-up perfectly when I recieved it. It was set-up in the store so I can't comment on ESP's set-up standards. The action is low and comfortable, and the neck is fast. You can play like lightning on this thing! The finish seems of a high standard for the price range. There are a couple of little messy parts like the battery compartment and the strap buttons dont seem too sturdy, but overall it is a smart nicely constructed instrument for the money.

This guitar seems pretty solid, and I know they have a great reputation for resilience, so I would be quite confident taking this guitar on the road. I would not take it without backup however-why would you ever take any guitar gigging without a backup? Again, small concerns about strap buttons giving way, but this can be easily remedied.

Never had to find out.

I have been playing 11 years and I would definitely recommend this guitar to a metal-orientated guitarist on a budget. Its a sleek sexy looking guitar of sound construction, with a comfortable and fast neck and plenty growl to it. However, If you can hold on a little longer and save a bit more for a Gibson, because thats what you really want, then do it. If you want to play classic rock, or some Blues or Jazz keep saving because this guitar does one job and one job only: metal!

The Viper has a skewed SG body, with an Olympic White gloss finish.
The strings end at a stop tailpiece that holds them in well.
Nonlocking grover tuners feature at the other end of the strings.
The neck is in mahogony, with a rosewood fingerboard. Supposedly extra-jumbo frets are actually not too big, but this isnt an issue, with 24 of them.
Made in Korea, where the producers ofcheaper guitar have been getting quite a reputation for good quality of late, one that is well recognised.
A 3way pup selector and one volume and one tone knob control the two humbucking EMGs. These are both active, with an 81 in the bridge and an 85 in the neck.
The body is a hunk of mahogony as well as the neck.
The only disspaointment was no free gigbag, but hey, you cant win them all.

I play almost exclusively metal, and boy is this guitar perfect for just that!
I'm running it through a Boss ME-50 into a 50watt Marshall solid state (I hate tubes). With the noise cancelling active pups, theres almost no need for me to use the noise gate on my pedal any more - its so quiet! However, if youre driving amp distortion with an overdrive pedal, it can, naturally, still produce some feedback.
The EMGs have a full, chunky tone thats to die for! Crank up the amp and the palm muted riffs come crashing out like a train. As I said previously, I play mostly metal, and the distorted tones are mostly perfect. The 81 in the bridge can at times lack bass, sounding thinner, but adjust the amp settings (or better an EQ) and voila!
Clean, the pups still do their best to break up the sound, and the neck 85 especially can at times sound muddy and overly bassy. No problem - as if you roll of the volume and tone knobs, a whole new range of clean tones are possible. However, I still give the sound a 9 due to the difficulty in getting good clean tones.
I love the harmonics the 81 can achieve, and for me these are the ideal pickups for this guitar.

The action was like all good ESPs, not too low, not too high. If you want to shred like Malmesteen or whatever, go buy a shredders axe, cos you cant lower the action much more than its setup without string buzz.
The pickups were nicely setup (I adjusted the neck one to fix my clean tones).
Gnerally it was in perfect condition, although one of the grovers was slightly loose, and the guys at the shop sorted this for free.

I havent had the opportunity to gig this yet, but already I can tell it built to last. All the electronics and hardware are solid as a rock, and the gloss finish is applied well all over.
One small problem here, as with most gloss finishes, is that the surface is quite suscpetible to fingerprints. However this is a small price to pay for a professional look and feel.
The strap buttons, annoyingly, are the cheapest ESP could get their hands on, and had I not had a ClipLok strap I would have been forced to buy lockers.
I never gigs without a backup, though of all the guitars I have owned, ESPs are always the most reliable.

Never dealt with ESP, still have the 1 year warranty that came with it, but never expect to need it.
The website is pretty much self explanitory, easy to use and helpful.

Ive been playing nearly three years, but have already owned too much kit for my wallet to handle! Im a bit of a gear head, and for effects I use the ME-50 live, but I also own a Maxon TS-9, a Dunlop Crybaby from Hell, and AnalogMan modded BOSS MT-2 and SD-1(silver w/pushpullpot). For amps I use a solid state Marshall 50watt for live and practise, but Im in the process of buying a JCM800, which ill use exclusively for gigs. My other guitars include an ESP M-400, ESP Viper Custom Shop, Ibanez RG42DFX, BC Rich Mockingbird NT Series. To be honest my Custom shop Viper was my number one for a long time, but I wanted a guitar a could use for rhythm playing without the fear of damaging it live, and so went for the LTD Viper. For the price I paid it is a great guitar, which I hope to get much service out of in the future.
The one niggle I have with it is the weight of the neck, which, being mahogony drags the head down when standing wiht a strap. Hopwver, once this is conpensated for, it is bearable.

Made in 2005 in Korea. Features are listed ad nauseum in previous reviews. Mine Tobacco sunburst. No case or gigbag - ouch - deduct 3 points here.

good for heavy rock and lead work. "Mutated SG" body fits well if you are stuck sitting in a studio all day. Sounds good clean or dirty, somewhat darker than my Les Paul, and a lot fatter than my Fenders. I use it for dirty work when I need to get leads high up on the neck.

I had some adjustments to do. Factory set up was not all that bad. Action was too high for me. Fit? perfect. I have huge hands so I like the thick neck. Finish? Flawless. Unusual for this price range.

This guitar should be ok live as long as you keep a few extra 9 volt batteries for the active pups.

I didn't even know this company existed until now. They are in Asia right? I would not expect any support from Korea.

Benn playing since I was 12. If it were stolen I would probably check the local pawn shops to see if I could find it. I would compare this to my PRS Santana SE, also a single slab of mahogany with a set Mahogany neck and two humbuckers. I like the PRS better because the coils are tapped, but this guitar is of extremely high quality for the $$.

i think mine has active emg 81/60 pickups.at least thats what the guy at c&m said.grover tuners(i tune it very little).i guess it would be considered to have a U- shaped neck but its amazing.actions great.better than some 2000-3000$ guitars ive played(except for othe esp/ltds of course). sg style body.

i play mostly indie/emo/screamo/pop punk and this guitar is awesome for anything.it nails every style.i use a b-52 at- 100 and it kills.the ONLY thing i dont like about my viper is that its neck heavey but i got used to that

the action is amazing.i adjusted the front pickup(60) just because thats how i like it.i have change nothing else since i got it.im thinking about getting a floyd rose put on it.

i have slammed the head of my viper into my half stack and my guitar is just fine its a solid amzingly well built guitar.i change the buttons to strap locks but thats just bcause i swing it a lot and dont want it to fly off of me.i always use it without a backup

i have been playing for two years and if this guitar was stolen id buy a shitty rogue and beat the guy who stole it into a bloody pulp( i love this guitar very much)i play it through a b-52 at-100 head with a marshall 1960A cab.i still want a peavey triple x though

made in late 2004 or early 2005. Came with all the 30th aniversary packaging but sports all the 2004 options. Grover Tuners, Earvana Nut, dual EMG 81s, Olympic White. Its all been listed before Im not gonna go through it all again. Its an SG style guitar, pretty bare bones.

Love the sound of this guitar. The 81s are great pickups and they really work well with this guitar. I used to use Duncans in my guitars but the EMGs really changed my mind. Very chunky and clear, I tune to C and everything really pulls through on this guitar. Distorted tones really shine through. Almost noise free thanks to the EMGs. It can sound a little thin but play with your amp and I think youll be able to get some really good tones with this guitar. It does hard rock/metal. Great tone but it does lack a little in the bass range.

Set up was great, I tweaked a few things, threw on some bigger strings, drop tuned it and it sounded great. The Earvana really does make a difference, one of the best innovatons in guitar tech in a while. The finish was perfect. The binding is great. I really cant compain at all, I care more about how it sounds, not how good the binding is applyed. The neck is great, nice thin U (flatter then my SG)plays quick enough for me. I had to slot the nut for bigger stings but otherwise this guitar played great out of the box.

Its an LTD, these things are bombproof. Its one of the reasons I like the brand so much. Very solid feeling. Ive owned LTDs before and Ive never found any other brand that could take a beating as well, although I dont intentionally try to destroy my guitars. The only weak link is those cheap strap buttons. get some lockers and you are good to go. This is my new #1, its totally reliable for live playing or studio work.

Ive been playing for about 7 years now. I play in band that mixes stoner metal with hardcore and this guitar really fits in well. Like I said this is my new #1 and I love playing it as much as I can. I also owne a heavily modded Epi SG 400, which is a great guitar but this one tops it. Ive owned more guitars then I care to remember and Ive never played a guitar that sounds as good as an LTD for the price (this is the 2nd one Ive owned and I regret getting rid of my first one). I think this rivals some of the lower end gibson SGs. Great touring quality guitar for very little scratch. There are better guitars, but not in this price range.

You already know from the other reviews.

Overall, it sounds really good, but it's lacking a little in the bass register. To tell the truth, it makes Les Pauls that I've owned slink away and sulk in the corner.

Arrived just about perfect. The neck was slightly warped as you should expect it to be considering it was mail-order. By the way, to the guy that gave this guitar a bad review because the neck was slightly warped, here's a quick idiot's lesson: loosen the screw on the truss rod cover and move the cover out of the way. Next, insert the included Allen wrench in the end of the truss rod, make 1/4 turn in the clockwise direction. Hot damn!! It's fixed.

Don't know yet, I've only had it for 2 wks.

Overall, one of my favorites ever. So what if it was made in Korea. I'm not oblivious about these things, I've been playing for 10 yrs. and give advanced level lessons. The only thing I wish it had is active electronics, active p/u's are nice, but you lose some control over tone w/o active eq.

Viper 400. 2004. Made in Korea I believe. 24 frets 24.75 scale length. Two Active EMG-81 Pickups. Solid Body Mahogany with Rosewood fretboard. Glued in neck. 1 vol. 1 tone 1 3-way selector switch

came from manufacturer wired incorectly and had really bad action , so i cannot comment on the sound plus other problems listed below

the action was terrible all the top frets buzzed the nut was pretty high to start with so i had to raise the bridge to near its full limit to stop the buzzing , so therefore its the worst action on any guitar ive ever had , the wiring hummed when plugged in upon checking the wiring schematics with the EMG website it was also wired incorectly

having used a viper 301 for a couple of years i cant see Reliability/Durability being a problem

baught for me as a gift from a freind in the US from www.samash.com and the logistics of sending it back from the UK isnt possible , tried to contact both samash and ESP but no replys

having has a viper 301 for a couple of years , with perfect action and the only reason i got a 400 was for the active pickups and locking tuners . which it has pickups wired wrong , worst action ive ever had on a guitar , my first cheap strat copy is a vast improvement , lesson learnt NEVER BUY A GUITAR OVER THE INTERNET

GO TO ESP WEB SIGHT FOR FEATURES

SOUNDS GREAT FOR MY HARD ROCK/METAL/THRASH STUFF.(ZAKK, SLAYER, C.O.C., DANZIG, PANTERA, SABBATH, ECT. I USE 2 DIFFRENT AMPS. A LANEY AOR PRO TUBE LEAD 100 WATT AND A MARSHALL JMP 100 WATT LEAD MASTER VOLUME. BOTH HOOKED UP TO 2 4X12 MARSHALL COPY CABS W MESA BOOGIE SPEAKERS. EFFECTS ARE A MODDED E-H SMALL STONE W ADDED FOOT CONTROLL(OLD WAH PEDAL HOUSING), E-H SMALL CLONE CHORUS, DALLAS ARBITER FUZZ FACE, ROGER MAYER RED LION WAH, BOSS 0C-2 OCTAVER, AND A MXR ZAKK WYLDE OVERDRIVE. OCCASIONALLY I ADD A EH BIG MUFF W THE MARSHALL W PRE TURNED UP ON THE AMP FOR A TONY IOMMY SOUND. OF COURSE ALL EFFECTS ARENT USED AT SAME TIME. GUITAR IS SLIGHTLY NOISY ON SOME SETTINGS BUT IT SUITS ME FINE. SOUNDS RICH BUT COULD STAND A LITTLE MORE BOTTOM END. PINCH HARMONICS ARE A BREEZE. GET SOME GOOD JIMI TONES W CERTAIN PEDALS AND AMP SETTINGS

ACTION WAS SET UP OK, BUT I TWEAKED IT A LITTLE TO MY TASTE. I SET THE NECK PICK UP A FEW TURNS AND SLIGHTLY MOVED THE BRIDGE P.U. UP.
NO FLAWS. GOOD ALLIGNMENT GOOD FINISH FOR KOREAN MADE GUITAR. EVERYTHING SNUG AND FIT UP GOOD.

GOOD GUITAR. SEEMS LIKE IT WILL HOLD UP. CANT SAY IF THE FINISH WILL LAST B/C I HAVE PROBLEMS KEEPING FINISH ON MY GUITARS.(I WEAR PAINT OFF FAST).STRAP BUTTONS SEEM STOUT BUT IN TIME THEY ALLWAYS STRIP.
GUITAR IS DEPENDABLE, BUT I USE SEVERAL GUITARS SO I ALWAYS HAVE A BACK-UP.

HAVENT HAD TO USE WARRANTY BUT IF YOU READ AN ESP WARRANTY CARD YOU WILL SEE ESP WARRANTYS SUCK ANYWAY.

BEEN PLAYING FOR 13 YRS. OWN VARIOUS 1970'S FENDER STRATS, GIBSON COPIES, AND SOME FRANKENSTIEN GUITARS. IF IT WERE LOST OR STOLEN, I WOULD TRY TO GET ANOTHER LIKE IT. LOVE THE SOUND AND FEEL OF IT NO COMPLAINTS AT ALL. IF YOU CAN GET ONE OF THESE YOU WILL NOT BE DISAPPOINTED. GOOD GUITAR FOR THE MONEY. NOT TYPICAL HALF ASSED KOREAN JUNK.

mine is the satin off-white, pearloid binding, abalone flag inlays, special made earvana drop-D nut, 24 frets, 2 piece rosewood neck, EMG pickups specifically made for Pantera. Has a mahogany body and tone pros hardware. Two controls for volume boost and tone cut. reinforced aluminum set neck joint.

Sounds like a Fender if u like or Pantera if you have the right picks and overdrive pedal

Mine came setup with the action perfect for playing Downstairs to Hell. I didn't care for the lame straplocks on it.

Dropped it twice because the neck is too heavy to balance. Only cracked the finish tho. Should last for at least 5 years.

Super for twang players if you split the buckers.

2004, made in Kore, 24 frets, set neck construction, mahogany body and neck, rosewood fretboard, EMG-81 active pickups, volume, tone, 3-way toggle, black hardware, earvana compensated nut, grover tuners, tune-o-matic bridge. Has much more extras than any other guitar in this price range.

I basically play Metal and punkrock, this guitar suits both styles well. I play it through a v-amp2 and a marshall MG100DFX. Its sound is really bright, I think the pickups are not bassy enough for the kind of palm muteing I need and what I really like is it's sustain due to the mahogany body and supose the active pickups too. Played with a clean set-up through the neck pickup is the greatest I've ever heard and also the open chords sound well, thank's to the earvana compensated nut, I supose.

The string height and the pickups were well adjusted from the factory, or the shop I don't know. Although It is not a high-end guitar It is well crafted. It did not contain any finish flaws and everything was hard tight.

I have an Ibanez RG270 with a diMarzio PafPro and the Viper is my main guitar nawadays. I would use it on a gig and think it will last cause it is built strong.

Never dealt with them

I've been playing for about 4 years, owned a toy-like electric guitar and then bought the RG 3 years ago.
If It was stolen I think I would definately buy it again I love it's sound in spite of houw the palm muteing sounds.
I choosed it because it was the one with more "extras" (mainly the active pickups) in it's range of price and because it was a not pure Metalish guitar so I knew it would fit my other styles well.

2004 korea, 24 frets, 3 way selector emg 81 pickup set, body/ neck:mahogany, finish: gloss black, tune o matic bridge with tailpiece, black and earvana compensated nut, grover tuners, xj frets.

At first i thought the sound of the emg 81s sucked but after looking in the battery slot i found that there was a rusted battery in there and after a quick change the emgs were screaming doing over the top pinch harmonics,a word of caution though if you try it with standard tuning and any type of string thicker than 10s than the sound gets very very muddy but if you use 10s or lower the sound is unbelieveable.

now this is where the guitar got me realy pissed off,I got it with a slightly warped neck,it was still perfectly playable but because it was warped there was some bad cracks in the binding where the frets were and the action was ballsed, also the pickup heights were terrible.Bad work esp bad work.

the guitar would withstand live playing if it werent so god dam top heavy making it a real chore to keep the neck up,the hardware is great and i can tell it will last a lifetime same with the finish and the strap buttons,Its a ver dependable guitar but i would have to be stupid to gig with it without a backup.

never dealt with them but the warrenty was fucked it had to be sent back within nine days of sale with a reciept which it says in small and i mean small print what assholes now i cant claim for the warped neck.

ive been playing for just under two years now but dont let that fool you i know my stuff when it comes to guitars,if it were stolen or lost i might get something like a jackson ke3 and replace the pickup as i know that thats not from korea,i love the way it gave me so much bang for the buck but i hate the way the korean wood warped on me,if there would be one thing i wish it had it would be a flamed maple top but all round its a great solid guitar worth it deffinatly for the money it could be compared to guitars worth twice its price easily.

2004, made in korea. 24 frets, you know all the features. grover tuners, set neck, beautiful finish. (vintage sunburst). I love this guitar. 1 volume, 1 tone, 3way selector.
emg 81's active pickups (wow)
mahogany body and mahogany/rosewood neck, so this thing sounds like a beast. :)

man, when i played this guitar in the store, it took about 2 seconds to know i was leaving with it. unbelievable sound. especially for the great price.

i changed the strings (thicker gauge), barely had to intonate it, it was set up fu#%ing great from the factory. had to adjust the pickups a bit, didn't have to touch the neck at all, or the action. no flaws. again, wow, esp is on top of their shit. the volume and tone pots are amazing for control, roll off the volume a bit, and you get a real nice slightly distorted tone. finish on this thing is amazing.

this guitar hasn't been played live yet, but it's my main axe as of now. the hardware is solid, the tuners again, are amazing, this guitar never goes out of tune, and i play rough.

i've been playing for 8 years, i've owned everything from strats, to paul reed smith, schecter, esp, and this rates right up there with the best of them. i wouldn't be surprized if the price of this guitar went up by $500 in the next few years.

It's got everything listed below in the other reviews. EMG 81's, Earvana, Grovers, etc. Good bang for the buck.

I had a Viper 301 before this. The 400 is definately a step up. If you're thinking about buying active pickups for your 301, just buy the 400. You'll save money. I can't say the Earvana or Grovers make a big difference in the sound. I'm using a Mesa Boogie Triple Rectifier running into a Mesa 2x12 Recto Cab with a 15 band EQ and a THD Hotplate.

I had the action setup by the shop I bought it from so I dunno how well it was originally setup. The finish is better than the 301. The 301 finish seemed to smear fingerprints a lot. I had a problem with ESP not having the correct hardware on the guitar (Earvana and Grovers weren't on) but the shop replaced everything for me.

Never had a problem with any ESP guitar I've owned.

I would definately buy another if it got stolen or lost. I actually sold my 301 to get the 400. Most of ESP's new 400 series is a great value. Just pick the shape you like.

2004 Korea, inspected in USA. 24 frets. 1 Volume 1 tone 1 3 toggle switch. Two screaming EMG 81's active pickups. Mahogany body. 3 Piece mahogany / rosewood neck / fretboard. Black + Earvana compensated nut & Grover tuners. Flag inlays. And so on.........

This fucker has such a nice sound. I play mostly metal but i often switch my playing style. This thing can handle everything. I am using a Randall RG75 combo amp with a Digitech GNX 1 and it just blows everything away. There's no work for the rich sound.

Great quality. Setup really nicely.

This would definatly withstand live playing. Everything from the headstock to the bottom strap thing is just perfect. I've dropped this guitar several times and i dont even notice a single scratch or dent. Definately dependable.

No comment

Too lazy to comment.

Brand New Release of the ESP Ltd Viper 400. 2004. Made in Korea I believe. 24 frets 24.75 scale length. Two Active EMG-81 Pickups. Solid Body Mahogany with Rosewood fretboard. Glued in neck. 1 vol. 1 tone 1 3-way selector switch. Black hardware + Earvana compensated nut & Grover tuners. Sweet. See thru Black-Cherry Red. (comes in 4 colors I believe)

This is the new 2004 ESP Viper ltd 400 guitar. It's a step up from the much loved and admired 301 which was discontnued and became hard to find in late December 2003. This guitar is by far the best LTD Viper to date and over the next year we will see this guitar take off to become ESP's most widely purchased instrument. I take my hat off to ESP for taking this bold step and actually listening to their customers. With Active EMG 81 pickups and grover tuners this guitar looks great and plays even better.

It also comes standard with an Earvana compensated nut which until now has only ever been found on custom built guitars. There is some confusion about what this is exactly. From what I understand, not only does it allow the guitar to be brought to tune with a tad less tension making playing eaier, but it also allows the open played strings to sound as though they have been fretted. Thats a big improvement since I've never liked the sound the open string make even when using a metal or graphite nut. Most nuts are made from plastic which makes a drastic tonal change from fretted notes. This improvement alone will make other guitars you've owned seem like a toy. Just when you thought guitars couldn't evolve!

The particular guitar was exceptionally well set up. The finish was simply beautiful. The playability of the guitar was a dream. I'd easly compare this guitar to anything in the $1500 range. Better quality and feel over any off the shelf guitar you'll ever find anywhere.

I'm sure this guitar will withstand live playing no problem. Hardware seems like it's had an overhall from the previous 301 version and seems a little higher quality. The 301 had a tendancy of wearing out the black coating on the bridge with lots of playing. I can't say for sure if the new version is immune to this or not. Strap buttons are solid, seems very dependable and well built. I'd use this without a backup after my tech checked out all the interal electronics to make sure there are no cold joints. In the past ESP guitars have always had super nice soldering work so I have no worries. The finish looks a tad bit nicer than the old 301. This guitar is destined to be a classic. I'm sure these will fly off the shelfs. I know of no other guitar with active EMG-81 pickups and an Earvana compensated nut in this price range anywhere on the planet. You simply won't find a better guitar anywhere for the money!

Haven't tried them except a few years ago when I had a cheaper ESP Ltd mv-200 guitar. They sent me a good e-mail response and even told me that the mv-200 had been known to have faulty pickups which could result in poor sound and I was impressed with their honesty. I'd recommend them, but you may want to check other reviewers for similar guitars to see what people have to say. Otherwise I get a good vibe from ESP.

I've been playing for 20 years. I've played as a stand in musician for Radiohead and many other bands in the u.k. and the u.s.a. I currently work as a professional session musician for various rock and punk bands and work as a creative consultant for various musical projects from Seattle to Portland to L.A and San Francisco. If it were stolen I would probably replace it. It's an excellent professional instrument for very low cost. I give ESP two thumbs up for being the most interesting and innovative guitar company in the world! They seem to have a heart too!