Epiphone Ace Frehley Signature Series Custom

i purchased this from american musical supply for $775.00 and it came with a hardcase..the guitar is set-up right out of the box,however-it did need a good cleaning.you would think that this would be done at the end of the production[i guess not].it has the 3 dimarzio pickups that sound great.the finish is perfect as is the sound.the hardware is chrome ie...tuners-tune-o-matic bridge and in top condition.in someone elses review they said the guitar was neck heavy[i find the guitar very balanced]...

i play hard rock--soft rock,it fits this style very well.and it has a rich and very full sound.i think you could play just about any style of music with this guitar[yes;even country]...used with a fender princeton amp[not vintage].the guitar is very quiet to operate.it does click when the three way switch is used during playing.this is easy to fix,wear it out and install a gibson 3way.an 8 here because of the switch...

action was set at the factory,i played it right out of the box.p/ups needed no adjustment.very nice maple top.finish is very nice-all p/up routing was very good.the only flaw is the noisy 3-way switch and to be honest with you--it's not that noisy...no loose controls or screws.all hardware in nice condition...

this epiphone will still be here long after i'm gone.one person that gave a review said the hardware was cheap---compared to what??[of course- a gibson ace frehley].what do you want from a guitar that costs much less than the gibson model and he had one locked away in his room.if your not going to play it,what the hell good is it.go up to your room-open the case-pick the gibson up-and play the thing.thats what it was made for...

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i play guitar and bass.i've been playing about 10 years.i have owned many guitars[prs-gibson-jacksons-ibanez].this is as good as any of them.the only thing i regret is not buying the guitar sooner.if it were somehow stolen,yes i would buy another one.it does need straplocks and when the switch wears out-i'll install a better one.other than the guitar needing a cleaning--it kicks butt.mine came in ex.condition.

Made in Korea 2000 Epi version of the Gibbo all singing Ace Frehley model. Based on ther Les Paul Classic range. 22 average fret maple (unusual...) set neck with rosewood board. The body is mahogony with a highly flamed maple cap. Very pretty guitar.

Stock fitted with 3 USA DiMarzio super distortion units, usual Les Paul 2 vol and 2 tone pots, which control the neck and bridge p/ups. The 3-way selector is a little out of the ordinary, position 1 (up) is the neck H/B only, position 3 (down) is bridge only, but the middle position, intead of the typical outside coils of neck and bridge, brings in all 3 H/Bs in series. Huge sound.

Standard Epiphone tune-o-matic stop tail. The mahine heads are fairly cheap, but adjustable. I found them a bit loose to start with, but a couple of turns on the adjusting screws and they're fine. You could always swap em for something a bit more classy.

A couple of points. Someone said that the top was a lacquered print - i had the middle p/up out and had a look and i think it really is a maple laminate; fairly thin sure, but it is. And the body is mahogony. Not the Honduran wood used on the Gibson model, but still... it's a cheaper guitar.

Right. Sound. Mmmmm ok. As with any range of guitars, the individual instrument will vary within any range. Acoustically, my guitar has a very thick rich tone - a good sustain and loads of bass depth. I compared two and liked mine better.

Plugged in, the pick-ups are loud and thick sounding, great for a valve driven sound. Some people might say it sounds old-fashioned, but that's what i was after. A good vintage rock and roll sound. The 3-pickup middle sound is just enormous, to the point of mush with too much gain, but fun at about 60%. The neck position has just a little too much wood for me - again, this is personal taste. But the bridge position is great. Lots of harmonics and clarity with a double helping of depth. Yum. Good for mild overdriven blues too.

It does what you'd expect, given the Ace Frehley connection. Probably not much use for dropped tuning nu-metal or jangling indie. Great for pretending you're Billy Duffy. OK, that may just be me....

The quality on cheap(er) guitars is always going to be a compromise. And will vary from model to model. There are a few flaws in the finish, the binding is a little uneven in places, but overall i'm happy. But that's just cosmetic. The neck is good and straight, no dead spots and no hugely uneven frets. It's never going to play like the Gibson, but at the price, i wasn't expecting that.

Played it live a few times, used it on a lot of recordings and it performs fine. I found it hangs a bit funny on a strap, it only feels comfortable worn very low. The finish has held up and the electrics and mechanics have given me no problems.

The question says "Would you use it on a gig without a backup?"
Would anyone gig without a spare guitar???

Never dealt with them - hope i never have to.

Overall a nice guitar. Great for the style of music it represents, but maybe not versatile enough for some. I've been playing for 16 years, pro for the last 8. It's not my first choice for a working guitar; that's my trusty strat. But i like it. If it was stolen, i think i'd try to get another, even though i'd have to hunt one down second hand. Mind you, the reviewer who gave it '1' for everything may sell me his! :o)

Someone said in another review that this guitar IS different to the Gibson model, but no #2000 different. That says it all. A bargain.

You've all seen the features on this guitar. But in case you haven't I'll run them down for you. Three DiMarzio USA Super Distortion Humbuckers; lightning bolt fingerboard inlays and Ace's signature at the 12th fret; flamed maple top; mahogany body; rosewood fingerboard; bound body, neck, and headstock; high-quality chrome plated hardware;
24.75? scale; 1.68? nut width. Color options are Heritage Cherry Sunburst or Translucent Black.

The sustain is there, the pickups are there. This beauty packs a pretty good punch. Straight out of the shipping container I did a quick tune up and plugged it right. I cranked out Deuce and Rip It Out. I was very impressed with the Epi?s sound. It does sound remarkably like my ?78 les Paul and so much better than my Washburn AF-40 Ace. With a decent setup you?ll get that ?Ace? sound down pat.

From the initial inspection there were no problems. On the second look there are some manufacturing boo boo?s. There are a couple of spots of glue from between the fingerboard and neck on the bass side. I know it's minor, but one would think that the quality control folks would've caught it. The flame on my Epi far exceeds the photos of the Epi I?ve seen in the Epiphone catalog, their website and various internet music store sites. Frankly, it?s quite beautiful.

I?ve only had this one about a month, so I can?t really give comment on how it will do in the long run. The only trouble I?ve had so far was the input jack came loose the first time I unplugged. No big problem there, anyone can fix that themselves. It was just a little irritating to have to do that to a brand new guitar. If this Epi holds up like my '87 AF-40 and '78 Les Paul it will do just fine in the long run.

I haven?t had to contact Epiphone as of yet, so no comment there. I do have good things to say about Musician's Friend though. I was very skeptical about ordering another guitar without having played it and very concerned with what condition it would be in when it arrived. Kudos to MF, it arrived in A+ condition in only four days (and I'm in Hawaii).

As excited as I am over this guitar I cannot give it a 10. A 10 is perfect and only a Gibson would be perfect. I've played and owned many guitars over the past 23 years that I've been playing. This guitar is well worth the price, even if you get it at the MSRP of around $1,200. For the price I?m willing to get the Epi my hands until I can afford the Gibson version. The guitar plays extremely well and I highly recommend it to everyone, not just Ace fans. As I said earlier, the flame on this one is beautiful and it sounds very good. Do yourself a favor and pick one of these up before Epi decides to quit making them.

It's great I bought it from Muscian's Friend, and it's great. It's got a AAA flame top, body neck and headstock binding, 3 USA Dimarzio Super Distortion humbuckers, a figured top, nickel hardware, heritage cherry sunburst, 4 knobs (2 vol.,2 tone) lightning bolt inlays, Ace's face on the headstock, Ace's signature for the inlay on the 12th fret. 22 frets total, I think the frets are regular gibson sized ones.

I played it through big amps little amps, and everything in between, and this definately does the job. Nice solid sound just like Ace. Soon as I got it I jammed out "Black Diamond", and it was awesome!!!!!!!!!!!!

Everything was great not 1 flaw, absolutly perfecrt!

Can't say enough abput this one, I think it sounds every bit as good as the Gibson. In fact I have the Gibson one, and I keep that one in a locked case in my room in mint condition since KISS (the hottest band in the world) isn't touring anymore.

Never had to talk to them

I have been playing for about 3 years, I'm self taught, and if tthis axe was stolen or lost I would go nuts. Iwould buy it agan definately, as a matter of fact I plan to buy the other color so I have both (other coler is transparent black)

I bought this because it looked nice what else can i say, then i was invited back to the shop where they had a Gibson Les Frehley to compare it with just incase I wanted two guitars that looked the same. Well we wired them up and played them both and there wasn't #1200's worth of difference between them

It has one sound really and thats ok if you like that one sound, but the thing seems poorly put together .......compared with a guitar that costs three times as much......? The tuning keys and metal work need changing, the strings needed changing, the pick up surrounds were of poorer quality than the Gibson and it just feels in need of some fettling up.. But then Dr Robert just did my SG so i assume he will breathe on this for mew later this year and get it set up a bit better

this goes over what I just said my guitars appearance was blemish free and looked quite good but on closer inspection it does need a bit of "fettling"

here i have to agree with some others the thing finds it diffcult to stay in tune, Compared with my SG. On the other hadn I had a Strat with the same problem so who knows if better tuning keys would resolve this?

No problem at all I got a #100 discount when I bought the Guitar they changed the nut for a graphite one lowered the tension re strung it and it works well enough so 10 for back up on this...

Playing since i was six, what could i have asked? Have you got a Gibson perhaps...What would i replace it with? Hmmmm...I know anothe just like it with the Gibson Label on it.
What do I love about it... well it would certainly lay out a Burglar...
I have just Bought an SG and a Sheraton, and next on the shopping list is the LP custom in White with tripple pickups...

This is guitar Ace Freely. I don't know what that is but he has a good guitar. It has 3 Dimarzio Pick ups and spiky inlays on the part where it has frets. Four nobs that change the ways it sounds and loudness to make it bigger or more louder. One switch to move around and make the sound change into different sounds to. It weighs about the same weight as my Straddicaster that I have of which I am the owner. I am the owner of this guitar also. Its body style is a good style which is very pleasing to me. Finish is good. Tuners really suck. Whever I play, people say I am not in tune. Thats because this guitar has bad tuners. So does my other guitars--Straddicaster and Martian DXM-BR guitar with simulated Brazilian Rosewood back and sides (a $100 option on this instrument). They are both good guitars that are good but the tuners suck too.

My music style is classic meddle. My sister's friend's is the guy who's uncle designed the album cover art for Great White's CD. We play things like Great White, Ratt, Winger, Dio, Doken, Scorpians, and Krokus. We also like Motley Crue and UFO but we don't play like them. The guitar has good sound for my kind of music style that I play. I play this guitar thru my Fender Bronco tweed amp and three Dumlup Crybabys. And then I have a ZOOM too. Pick ups are very extremely quiet and not noisy except they make the sounds of the guitar louder. There is lots of varietys of kinds of sounds available with the guitar and I like it's sound.

The set up sucked. The strings were broke when it came in and the neck isn't sraight. And the guitar looks real cheap and dumb.

I'd rather use my Straddikastur but I use this one sometimes because I don't like using the good guitar. I depend on this guitar it is good.

None

I own lots of other gears. This guitar is not the best, but it is good. Im very picky about my sound thats why I use ZOOM effects and a red strap with two Fender picks. And I also have a drum stick that I got from the guy from Survivor. They had a big hit from that Rocky movie. He threw his stick into the crowd and I caught it. The Ace Freely guitar is good for all sounds.

Sorry ACE fans, no pyro, smoke or rockets included. Made in Korea. Set maple neck. Epiphone advertises it as with a mahogany body and maple top. The body is not mahogany. Tap you finger on the body; it sounds like a plastic lawn chair. The top is a thin photo (Fuji film?) picture (barely flamed) glued to the body. The tuners are non-locking cheap chrome. The tune-omatic bridge and tailpiece is cheap chrome. All hardware is not "high quality" as advertised and substandard than that of a REAL Les Paul. C'mon Epiphone ..... advertise the thing correctly! The humbuckers are 3 Super Distortions. It has a quality selector switch. The fretboard is rosewood with cheap plastic lightning bolt inlays. The first run of guitars ('98?) had 2 lighning bolts at the 12th fret in lieu of the signature block logo. This review is for the logo model. Frets are typical Epiphone, cheap, low and wide. The thing weighs about 7 pounds. To me, it probably is a Epi custom (alder body) with a different color and the 3rd pickup. My '71 Les Paul Custom weighs 12 pounds and plays circles around this piece of junk.

The Dimarzio's FORCE it to sound like KISS. A good Marshall tube amp makes the difference here. The neck pickup is wired seperately and with it's own volume control. The bridge and mid pickups are wired in parallel and with a single volume control. The selector switch allows the neck in 1 position, all in another position and the bridge in the other position. Why not have a seperate volume control for the mid pickup? Does anybody out there ever use the tone controls? Those knobs are totally useless. This thing feels like a typical cheap Jap guitar in my hands.

Finish was ok for a cheap Jap guitar. Photo flamed top. The back looks better than the front! Junk frets. Cheap chrome hardware. The headstock has a sticker of ACE. No pickguard. The pickups and trim rings are creme color; they should have been white. Plastic creme colored covers on the back. It's neck heavy. Comes with cheesy Epiphone strings. Epiphone really made this CHEAP. Not even close to the quality as any REAL Gibson.

All guitars should come with straplocks. None ever do. I won't play without them. This thing will never last like my '71 Les Paul Custom.

Never had to deal with them.

If you want the Kiss sound then buy it and get a good Marshall tube amp. This cheap PIECE OF JUNK .... a NOVELTY item ..... something to take out with you for halloween. Don't worry about scratching this junker. Lace up the platform boots, paint your face and start wailing. Better yet, make this thing a smoker; route out the back and put a heavy steel plate over the smoke bomb compartment. The plate will help compensate for the top heavy neck. When you have proper funds, go out and buy a REAL GIBSON ACE FREHLEY LES PAUL. The Epi lists for $1300 and the REAL GIBSON ACE lists for $6200. You get what you pay for. My '71 Custom and the REAL GIBSON ACE feels like a qualty work of art in your hands. Not this thing. Epiphone should pay me to take it away or should have made it a smoker and complete with pyro and rockets.

This guitar has lots of features! Hey, what do you expect, Ace plays it! Lets see, it's got 3 big humbucker pickups (the salesmen said they are the same that Ace likes! Rock on!), 2 strapbuttons, 6 tuners (one for each string), 4 knobs, 6 strings, cord jack, Ace's face on the headstock, lightning bolt inlays! I think that about covers it. Oh yeah, there is NO FLOYD ROSE WAMMY! I should take a couple points off because of that but since Ace's does'nt have one either I guess I probably should'nt. Hey wait, I just realized Ace's has smoking pickups and lights up and mine does'nt! I should knock it down a few notches! OK, I give it a nine instead of 10.

This guitar sounds great, it's the bollocks, IT ROCKS JUST LIKE ACE!

This guitar has a great action fit and finish! Someone tried to tell me these are made out of crummy plywood and cheap materials. I told him to sod off! I don't know what kind of wood this is and don't care about any of that fancy mumbo jumbo. I know all I need to know - this guitar flat out ROCKS. End of discussion.

This guitar has great reliable durability. I can depend on it to ROCK just like it can depend on me to make it ROCK!

I don't care. Hey, if it ain't broke why fix it? Besides, it was made by a bunch of orientals who were probably paid 3 cents an hour to make my guitar. What would I do if it broke? Fly over to Asia? I don't think so! Actually, I'd probably just try and get a hold of Ace somehow since this is his model and nobody would know more about it than the chap himself.

I guess I still give this axe a 10 even though there are no smoking pickups and the inlays don't flash, and the guitar does'nt launch fireballs. It's a wayyyyy killer axe that I am proud to own. Ace, if you're reading this, e-mail me! Next time you come to the UK we can rock out together on our sig models! Cheerio!

This is a korean made Epi Ace Frehley Les Paul sig series. You know what it comes with, and what it dosent. I do like the dimarzio super hums it came with stock. A bit to crunchy for soft music, but excellent for hard, crunch and distortion. Just wish it came with a pickguard, and as an option to have it installed at a later date for those who do not wish to have screw holes in the finish

This guitar rocks for what it designed for. Dont try to play Barry Manilow on this baby. It just wont cut it. Hello Kiss, Metalica, ect.

The day i bought this guitar, when i got home i had noticed that there was what looked like to be a grain in the maple, but actually turned out to be a 3 inch long scratch that was filled with poly laquer. Also, where the head rests on a hanger, there seemed to be a indentation like it was hung to early before the finish had hardened. There was also another scratch in the wood finish inbetween the volume buttons, that was also covered up. Very dissapointing. So i took it back and excanged it for the only one they had left. The flame wasnt as nice as the original one, but this one didnt come with any defects. Just one spot where the binding on the head looked a bit off center. About 1/8th inch long. Nothing majour. Plus, in the first guitar, the cord was very, very hard to push in. Another majour flaw. That guitar should not have been id as number 1. Should have been labeled as a second. The flame was the best ive seen though. Too bad.

Too new to tell. It seems to be able to withstand some punishment.

Good. No questions asked when took the first one back to exchange for the second one.

I bought this guitar for what its designed for. Pure rock and roll. And that is what this guitar does. I love the looks, the feel, and the sound. Would sooner own the Gibson version, but at about 1/4 the price...its well worth it.