Epiphone AJ-1

Its a mahogany guitar, and didn't come with any accessories, because of the rock bottom price. It has a decent finish, and I like the dreadnought style. Its made in China, like everything else. Although its nothing too jazzy, its really good for the price.

I'm a rocker, and this guitar has a good sound. One thing though- change the strings before you start, and you're ready to go.

No flaws at all. Here it was perfect.

I wouldnt use this on a gig with no backup or anything, but again, for the price, its pretty dang good.

Never dealt with them/

I've been playing like a year and a half and I loved it. Buy it: its super cheap, and pretty decent.

I wrote the previous review on this one "Steve H." on 8/7/05. I have to say that this instrument started to grow on me, but I ended up sending it back to trade up to an Epi Masterbilt AJ-500RE. It's about 10 times the price, but I'm sure I will be happier in the long run. Based on the price point, it deserves all 10s, but will leave one as a 9 because of the gloss finish, which I didn't care for.

This guitar has great intonation out of the box, but on a lesser guitar, being perfectly in tune is key. It goes with out saying, but since it's a beginners guitar I'll mention- if you're a tad off on a great guitar the sounds will still jump out. This one needed extra tuning care to get any harmonic quality. I suppose if you're struggling to form chords it's a moot point :)

Also, I never changed the strings, it came tuned about a full step down, and I gradually brought it up to A=440Hz over two days. I thought the strings were pretty good out of the box. "Back in the day" the OEM strings were awful, even to look at. Must be a tribute to overall improved quality of Asian products.

Action and fitting is great out of the box, I don't care for the glossy finish on a lesser grade top, but its my opinion and not like Epi did a bad job, so 9 here. This is a great player though, ask any musician born before 1975 what they had to learn and they'll tell you. The Asian made stuff is really good now. Years ago, their stuff not only looked goofy, but played horribly as well.

For the price point sure. I didn't keep it long enough, but if my observation is correct that the "binding" is just painted on and not inlayed, it will peel away on the edges under a lot of use. Had that happen on my starter a "GEM" acoustic, whatever the heck that was, and was one of the crappo bad starter instruments referred to earlier.

N/A, if one arrives defective, most mail order houses like MF or AMS will take care of you faster than the manufacturer. Can't beat MF's 45 day trial period.

Got to give this one a 10 for what it is.

Some features I would rather NOT see and wouldn't affect the price point: The high gloss finish and the
"binding." I think a satin finish would be better on this axe with no binding. It would make a really cool
workingman's J-45 entry level. Obviously the top on an $89 guitar is not going to be the luthier's choice
so there are flaws and they are brought out by the glossy finish (waves and bumps etc). I'm not saying
it's warped or will affect the tone, but I think asthetically satin would be better. Same with the binding
(border edges- usually white/ivory on more expensive models), it looks like painted black rather than
plastic or ebonite. And painted on bindings are the hallmark of a cheapo guitar. No binding, and satin
finish would have made this a really sharp blue collar guitar. But that might not catch the beginner's eye...

The sound is reasonable, little lacking on the bass end compared to higher end acoustics. If you tune it to 440Hz concert pitch it's going to be a little tough to play as many acoustics are. I don't
believe a $2K Gibson would play any easier. Ones that advertise playing like electrics aren't in the same
tone league as a Gibson or Martin, so the Epi is in line with it's heritage. That said, this instrument blows
away what I had to learn with in the late 70s! I recommend tuning it to E flat and get a good dunlop capo
to play along with records etc. It's unbelieveable the quality and low price of these starter instruments!

The Epiphone AJ-1 is excelent for it's price point. It has some interesting features for a starter guitar.
Like the neck strap button on the heel at a 45* angle toward the ground. Right where I've always put
them when I drilled into my previous beaters! There's a compensated bridge which you wouldn't normally
see on an $89 guitar. And best of all the neck is very clean with no sharp fretboard edges common on
countless electic guitars out of Korea with "Duncan Designed" humbuckers (this is made in China incidentally,
and I am guessing largely by computerized machinery).

Lately, I've gotten the itch for an acoustic... who knows, it might have been the ads Epiphone has been running
with the recreation of Paul McCartney's 1964 Texan, which was basically Epi's version of the J-45. This thing
sort of fills the bill, but I wish I would have picked up one of the Japan "Elite" Epiphone models. I'm sure they put the kabosh on those for the same reason they put the kabosh on Tokai Strats (embarassment factor).

n/a

I'm an experienced electric player, and have been in bands since the 80s. I've owned a couple of acoustics
but never a holy grail like a Martin D-28 or D-18. I just never gigged with an acoustic so I didn't see the
need and sold them off. So when I did get the itch to play an acoustic again, this one sort of fills the bill, but I will likely trade up.

Bought in 05 from musicians friend for $89. Guitar is made in China with a Spruce top,Mahogany back, sides, and neck.Rosewood fretboard and Chrome hardware. Actually is a very beautiful guitar! I cant believe that its under $100 bucks!
And Sweatshops are a bad thing, why?

Out of the box it comes tuned, and ready to play. Very very bright and tinny sounding, with absoulutely no low end. The strings are horrible!!!! You must change them imediatly! since anything over $99 is free shipping from musiciansfriend, just order 2 sets of D'Addario EJ16 Phos-Bronze Lights.
After I got the new strings on, The sound was ALOT brighter, More crisp, and had a little bit more Bottom. Lead work on this guitar sounds very nice IMO.
This is the Perfect starter Guitar!!!

Besides the strings that were on here, This guitar was set up perfectly. Nice low action, makes it very easy to fret chords,and do hammers, and pully's. Which in my opinion is very important for a starter guitar. I bought this guitar for my Mother, who wants me to teach her how to play. Women, and young children alike should be able to learn on this thing very well. I remember 15 years ago when I started...My first acoustic guitar was $100 and it played like total ass. Ended up frustrating me and I eventually stomped it to death!
If I only could have started with this thing!

You could use this for live playing, but at that point in time, I would hopefully have something a little better, like say,a Taylor!
Dont really know how long these parts will last(its cheap Chinese crap), but it stays in tune forever, and seems like it should hold up.

Overall, for the price, theres no way you could possible bitch about anything. It plays great, It looks Great,and sounds decent after you thrown some new strings on.
As I said before, A perfect starter Guitar!

- 2003 AJ-100 Vintage Suburst (Beutiful Color, great finish)
- Chrome Hardware, 20 Frets, Solid mahogany back, Mahogany sides, Rosewood fretboard and bridge

Looks good, but like most guitars, it only comes with a box.

-Beutiful Bright, bold sound.
-Nice long, sweet sustain.
-Has limitations (After all its Acoustic)
-For under $200, it sounds great, there are more expensive guitars that dont sound as good as this..

-Dreadnought Shape
-Comes in tune right of the box, stays in tune for days, weaks at a time.
-the frets are good, flush, and filed.
-Wood is nice and sturdy. (doesnt compare to a solid spruce top, but again its under $200, so its still a good deal)

-This guitar withstood all i put it through
-I recommend it as a steady, and backup guitar
-everything on it is build and installed solid.

I havent had any problems yet, so no opinion.

Overall, compared to the other guitars i played, the price and sound compliment each other very well on this guitar, also, the vint. Sunburst color is really good looking.

Bought brand new from MF in Oct. 2003. Select spruce top, mahogany sides. Thick Gibson-like gloss finish, slope shoulder, dreadnaught acoustic. No case, no humidifier, no electronics. About as basic as you can get. Made in Indonesia.

I will use this guitar for basic rock/pop banging and pounding. I also have a Gibson Songbird which I don't let anyone else play. The Epi was bought to be a sacrificial guitar for clients in my studio and any acoustic experimentation I may feel like trying. It sounds great for the price ($89), but, of course it doesn't match up to the Gibson ($1600). I would recommend this guitar for electric guitarists looking to record acoustic parts or beginning acoustic players. This is NOT a professional level acoustic guitar! Compared to the Gibson it sounds small, boxy, flat and "two dimensional". Based on it's own, it passes for an acoustic sound and, if mixed with other instruments, will hold it's own. Again, great bargain for $89 and is worth more. It's extremely unfair to compare a Gibson Songbird with this Epi, but what the hell.

Plays real well right out of the box, but change the strings immediately! It's very easy to play with low action and easy string pull. Comfortable and no buzzing. The thing to be aware of with cheap imports is that they sometimes don't let the wood dry completely, so be prepared to adjust the truss rod at some point. I've actually found some great deals on "unplayable" guitars which straightened right up with just a little maintenance.

There's a little blemishing in the corners and edges. Whaddya expect for $89?? Overall, you'll never notice it and it actually looks great.

Haven't had it long enough to have it crap out. I've seen other Epis survive the most brutal of treatment and survive. The brand that gets no respect... I wouldn't use it without a backup, or I should say this _is_ the backup.

Gibson support sucks. Does Epi?? I don't know.

I'm an old fart. Been playing a long time. I make my living recording music and TV. I own way too many guitars and basses to list. If this was stolen or lost I'd go out and get another one. For the price it's an awesome guitar, but as an instrument it's a little below the middle. I've played other more expensive acoustics that weren't as nice, though. For the electric player and beginner you can't really go wrong with this model. Remember, change the strings! It will make a huge difference.