Epiphone Casino

The Chinese made Casino I have is just a fine guitar. I paid around $700 for it case and all. I.ve never put any different keys or pick-ups on it. The pick-ups by the way, on mine at least, are just excelleny. Even the bridge pick-up has a good "throaty" sound, not tinny at all. The only change I made was taking off the white pickguard, which I think made my cherry finish Casino look better. That's just an opinion though. I got the case that goes w/ it, black w/ Epiphone written on it.

I play a "Beatle-ish" style. I use a Fender Twin, a Fender Hot Rod Deluxe, and I use a Morley Wah and a Boss Rotory Speaker Simulator. I also use an old Boss Delay-Pitch Shifter effect. You can't get 'em anymore, don't know why. I have a Boss 1180 studio that I've been running the guitar through w/ an Ampeg bass amp, getting all the different effects and amp sounds. The Casino sounds good w/ that although if I turn it up too much it'll feed back. That's single coils for you.

The finish is just great, very comparable to great old Gibsons. I like it. The pick-ups were amazingly just about right, right outta the box. I did raise the screws on the lead pick-up.

There's not a thing wrong w/ this guitar. Since Epiphone sold to Gibson way back in the early '60s, it is only now that they again have their very own designated Epiphone factory. until recently, Epiphones have been farmed out to Samick etc. So the Chinese Epiphones are the best that have been made since they were made here in the US so many years ago. Totally dependable.

Never dealt w/ customer support.

I,ve been playing almost all my life and I'm 55 now. I have all kinds of other insruments. I just got this Casino because I thought it'd be a good one and I was right. I really mostly just liked the way it looked though. I also knew the Beatles liked 'em and used them a lot. I relly didn't, for some reason, expect it to be so good. I don't have a vibro bar on this one. I kinda wonder if they stay in tune good w/ a hollow body and all.

1995 korean made casino ch. made at peerless plant korea. bought it used, today. For $450. the original owner put new sperzel tuners on it. thats good, since the stock tuners arent super. This is my third casino. i really want to say. the second casino i bought was made in china. IT WAS HORRIBLE. JUNK. even unpluged, it acoustically was a dud. The korean ones are a better instrument. My favorite guitar is a casino. And i have gibson les paul std., special and american strats. Oh yeah check your serial number here: http://www.guitardaterproject.org/epiphone.aspx

i play 60's style original brit rock...if you like the sound of the kinks, or the beagles (the beatles) this is it. Put on a set of flat wound strings and play through a ac30 or your favorite tube amp and it is phenominal...p90's is the sound of the 60's. Warm rich tone, that you really can only get from this guitar. i use a vox ac30, ac50 and a marshall jcm2000. mostly i use amp dist. but also really like the fulltone ocd.

well this guitar is 15 years old. actally made in 1994. The set up that the previous owner has is pretty good. has a set of 9's standard round strings on it. the bridge, neck, body and head stock seem good. no manufacture defects. but it is used and there are a few scratches and maybe a ding or two. But i think that i gives the guitar more character. i only buy old used guitars. Because their made better and more interesting than new ones.

These guitars hold up nicely. this is a completely hollow body guitar. and just like acoustic guitars their tone improves with age. ive played many shows with this as my main guitar and never had any problem.

I really like this guitar. the only thing better than this would be a gibson 330. which probably sounds a little better. and would be made out of better materials. but that is for a guy with $3000+ to spend. john lennon played one these. and he was a millionare. who could have easily bought one. so there must be something to them.

Made in China, 2008.
22 Frets.
Laminated Maple Top.
2 Volume, 2 Tone and 3-way selector.
2 single coil pickups.
Alnico V P-90 pickups.
Passive Electronics.
Maple body, Mahogany neck.
I believe the finish is polyester.
The body is similar in shape to the ES-335 (or ES-330 which is what this guitar is modeled after) and is completely hollow.
The bridge is Tune-O-Matic and the tailpiece is trapeze.
Tuners are Epiphone stock chrome tuners.
Rosewood fingerboard with parallelogram inlays.

Features sufficient for this type of guitar.

I play mostly 60's music but the best way to describe my style is clean with little or no effects. Tremolo, reverb and light overdrive or distortion is the most I'll use for now.
I am playing through a Peavey Bandit 112 'Solo Series' amp made in the U.S.A.
Now before you shake your head and tsk tsk tsk about Peavey, bear in mind that this amp is made in the U.S.A. is is a much older Bandit than the ones presently being made. It is an incredible amp for the price I paid with a very nice and deep reverb, surprisingly good sounding distortion and crystal clear clean channel.
The guitar sounds like every guitar sound that ever caught my ear and many more that did not. Great classic tone.
It is capable of a myriad of tonal varieties ranging from thick Gretsch-like twong to nasal country twang. Pickups are very bright and glassy although noisy due to their being single coil. Hum does not bother me at all and the feedback can be subdued. The tone more than makes up for this minutiae.
This guitar covers all bases. Rock, Jazz, Country, Bluegrass, you name it.

This guitar needed to be set-up. Period. Never expect a guitar to be perfect when you get it. Thankfully the tune-o-matic bridge made intonation easy. The neck did not need adjusting, thankfully. Action was fine when I got it but it can be set very low without string buzz even with thick strings.

However, there are flaws that really shouldn't have been (especially on what is supposed to be Epiphone's signature electric guitar) but for the most part this may be just nitpicking on my part:

The input jack was loose
The poly finish is nice for the most part but there is a spot on mine where it looks rough.
The wood is very nice with nice grain but in certain areas the contours of the body on the top and bottom have inconsistencies in the wood.
The contours of the f-holes are painted black and they could have done a much neater job.
For a guitar that costs eight-and-a-half bills at the store they could have used some better quality knobs and seated them correctly on the pot (some were loose, some seated lopsidedly). This can be fixed by removing the knob and using a flatheaded screwdriver to gently pry apart the pot shaft.
E logo is flimsy and pointless and should have been moulded or set flush into the pickguard.
Selector switch feels cheap and loose.
Tuners could be better.
The pots could be better as well.

Despite the cosmetic flaws guitar seems well built and sturdy.
I don't know how long the poly finish could last. It seems thin and already has inconsistencies. However, if the guitar is well-cared for it will provide years of playing enjoyment. Strap buttons are solid. I do not play live but I don't see the guitar falling apart on you while on stage.

Never dealt with the company.

I have been playing off and on since 1998. I own an Epiphone Viola bass that is a factory 2nd and must admit that it fells like it was built better than this guitar although the bass was made in Korea. I may just be comparing apples with oranges.
This guitar was a great purchase and I am thoroughly satisfied. I was looking for a semi-hollow guitar and I like it much better than the Epiphone Dot 335 that I was looking into. I recommend it to anybody looking for classic tone.

My Casino is a 2008 model made in China with a Vintage Sunburst finish, which looks stunning by the way. It has 22 frets, although it is extremely difficult to reach much beyond the 17th-19th frets where the neck joins the body.
If there's one thing I can fault about this guitar it would have to be the tuners, they don't hold tune very well and it can be very difficult to tune right.

This is where this baby shines, it's tone cannot be faulted at all! Really full, rich and warm sound. It does give out some quite versatile tones, think The Beatles 'I Want You (She's So Heavy), the bright intro progression part as well as the Bluesy lead solo sounds from the verses. At the moment I'm just using a Vox AD50VT-212 amp with it, saving up for a Marshall 1962 Bluesbreaker although I might be waiting some time. However, the Vox does seem to bring out the tone of the guitar beautifully (the Boutique Clean setting is really nice, especially if you crank the gain all the way up, great crunchy tone).
I've read people complaining about the P90 pickups being a bit noisy but for me they've been surprisingly clear. Haven't had any trouble with the infamous bridge rattle as of yet.
Although this baby's strongest feature is her clean tones, it can handle some moderate distortion quite nicely, as someone else on here said, think along the lines of Paul Weller's 'Sunflower' and 'The Changingman', as well as The Beatles 'Taxman' and 'Revolution'.

Mine was brand new from the factory and the action did need lowering a little, and of course the strings needed changing. Only had to make a few minor adjustments to the intonation as well, otherwise it was set up pretty nicely.
The Vintage Sunburst finish is absolutely stunning! Although I wish they'd bring back the more orangey sunburst of the late 60s, that was gorgeous.

So far this guitar hasn't let me down, everything is sturdy enough.

Haven't needed any customer support as of yet.

Overall this is a fantastic guitar, the neck is nice and fast (although nothing beats my old strat), and most importantly its a real tone monster!
I've been playing for about 6-7 years and have had a few guitars since the Casino, I started off with an old Squire Strat, although the pickups were cack I've never found another guitar as comfortable to play. Also had an Epiphone Firebird, which was good for studio recordings as the humbuckers on it are silent, but the neck on it was far too fat an awkward for me, plus I hate the shape of it, just wont stand up anywhere. So far the Casino has to be my favorite, nice and comfortable to play, plus the most amazing tone!

It's a new guitar "hand crafted" in China. I've always wanted one and got the plain wood version(John Lennon 1968 onwards). The finish was fantastic; gleaming wood and brightwork, no blemishes at all. However, I thought it was worth paying for a setup and got the standard machine heads replaced with chrome Grover Rotomatics. The guitar now plays like a dream, the action and intonation is great. I bought the guitar new for GBP 347 and spent about another GBP 100 setting up and replacing the heads. Well worth it! As far as I'm concerned, the guitar sounds great, the P90s deliver that authentic Sixties sound and the iconic status of the Casino is a bonus. Overpriced John Lennon "Special" anyone?

It sounds great, either clean or through an effects processor. I've used the Casino through a V-Amp 2 and old combo and you can get a very pleasing range of sounds and tones. Is there a problem with feedback ? - likely if you're cranking up the volume in a limited space. I've yet to try it live on stage. The pickup combination means that you can get a bright, chiming sound on lead and middle settings and a chunky rhythm setting.The mid to late Beatles guitar sound is easily achievable with a bit of experimentation and practice

Paid for a professional set-up. I was happy with the guitar finish and appearance, but had reservations about the action and the machine heads. The set-up cured any minor problems and was well worth it. I would particularly recommend upgrading the standard machine heads to Grover or Gotoh as this will practically eradicate tuning difficulties.

The guitar is equal to long term playing in my opinion and will age well. However, I'm an amateur musician, and not in a position to assess long term durability. The guitar is well made with simple electrics- what's to go wrong?

I've been playing guitar for over 40 years. I have had a variety of inexpensive guitars, some of which are still going strong after 35 years. My amp is an old Laney combo which has seen better days. I have an Epiphone J-200VS which I think sound like its Gibson sister. I researched the guitar fairly thoroughly and sourced it through a reliable and well established online company

Mine says "limited edition custom shop" on the back of the headstock, but it's just a standard Casino. I heard these necks were originally made for the Casino with a Bigsby added. By the way, I installed my own Bigsby on this, more on that later.

The tuners are high-quality kluson-type (made by Kluson?), the hardware, electronics, and pickups are all of medium quality and work fine. The pickups are decent, not really worth switching out for anything else unless you have good ones laying about. Why put $200 pickups in a $400 guitar? I don't get it, but that's what a lot of people do. Just buy a 70's vintage or custom shop guitar - they already come with better everything for not that much more. I saw someone selling one of these Korean Casinos with better parts for $1200 on craigslist and it just blows my mind...

I like the P90's that come with the guitar, but they are not balanced in output and not too adjustable. I would like a higher output for the bridge pickup because I like that one to be louder. If you adjust the screws too high on the pickup the low E string hits the screw with your palm and sounds less than great. If you adjust them too low it tends to have a weaker sound that becomes unacceptable at a certain point (especially since P90's buzz a lot anyway).

There is noticeable hum with these guitars but I would argue that hum isn't a factor when playing with a band or making recordings (just turn at the right angle where there is the least hum) because it blends and gets lost in the mix. I only notice it if I play alone at home, and even then I'm too busy paying attention to the music than being bothered by a little hum.

It does feedback at very low volumes which is awesome for live performances (especially with the Bigsby to manipulate the feedback). What you can't do with these is crank up your amp too loud or with too much gain and stand within a 5 foot radius of it. I learned that the hard way last Saturday night - it squeals like a pig. Hollowbodies are powerful tools in the right hands (is Ted Nugent really powerful, though?), but if you aren't ready to ride the balance, or you play through some expensive overdrive something or other all the time (instead of just cranking your amp like you are supposed to), expect to be humiliated by your guitar. I'm sure you will sell her immediately to find another victim and someone like me who appreciates such things will pick her up and make her sing like she should.

I'm a huge fan of the quality control of Korean CNC Manufactured Epiphones these days, even though they're not perfect by any means. If you've ever played a vintage Kay or Harmony or even a Silvertone, you will know that the cheap "US Made" vintage guitars that are so highly coveted (and overpriced) now were made with crappy whammy bars, thin and sharp-edged frets, horrible sunbursts, non-adjustable pickups, necks without trussrods or that were just plain horrible designs, bad neck-to-body joints, and cheap nuts and bridges that broke and fell apart (that's why people pay top bucks for replacement parts on eBay - suckers!).

Let's put it this way - there were several dead spots on the fretboard when I dropped the action low, partly because the nut was too low and the frets weren't leveled. The pickguard flew off in the middle of a gig one night, and one of the saddles kept breaking high E strings. But I haven't played a better guitar in this price range for action, playability and construction. The neck joint is flawless, the cherry finish is quality without any visible flaws, the knobs all stay on and the jack hasn't come loose after an initial tightening. The pots are smooth (better feeling than my Gibson SG Standard), and the neck is dead-on straight with well-finished frets. All the hardware (screws, plastic pieces, etc.) were properly installed and the tuners are pretty straight (although one of the screws was stripped out - I think that was my fault from hitting it against a cymbal or something). I think it's reasonable to assume that if you want this guitar to play like a Gibson you will need to level the frets, replace the nut with a Gibson one, and file the saddles. This can all be done by a luthier for under $100, no? It's worth it if you play professionally and demand playability from your instruments. If you just play for fun or aren't that serious, a basic setup would suffice, too. I am going to do the work myself because I am poor.

One thing to be aware of when purchasing this guitar, or an ES-330 (Gibson's version of the same thing), is that the neck is hard to reach after the 15th fret because the body connects right there. So you can't play up high (like in A). I don't do that much on this guitar, but it's something to be aware of. Gibson woke up to this and just reissued the 330's with the neck connected the same as the ES-335. If Epiphone has any geniuses working there that read this, they should do the same...

One last thing. If you want to put a Bigsby on this guitar (which I HIGHLY recommend), then you buy the B7 or B70 and DON'T bother buying a new bridge. I installed a B70 in about 30 minutes and bought another bridge that was the wrong size from StewMac. The existing bridge stays in tune just fine for me, and I use this guitar so much more now. You can get a Bigsby B70 for around $90, and they do not cause the top to cave in or anything like that. For me this has been a 100% safe operation. Just make sure that you line up the Bigsby with the old strap button hole (should be dead-center), and make sure the poles that you put the string eyelet on lines up with the saddles (you can pretty much eyeball this or use a piece of string.

Super reliable and durable, I needed a backup guitar for my last tour and put all the old funky "vintage" guitars for this one because it was new. I've had a few minor issues with it (always do with a new guitar), but I can depend on the guitar and the hardware has roughed it through thirty gigs or so without fail. The pickguard is cheap, so it flew off, but you don't actually need that I realized. This is a great workhorse guitar that sounds professional and I don't have to worry about leaving it in the car for more than fifteen minutes or sleep with it next to my head on tour like I do with my Gibson. Once you've had a guitar stolen, you never fully trust anyone ever again...

I bought a guitar. It doesn't come with or need customer support.

Great guitar for the money, sounds great - leave the pickups in and learn how to play the guitar instead of blaming the "cheap overseas" crap on it. Do you know how pickups are made? Do you know what makes a Lollar pickup better than an Epiphone one? Just because things are made on machines with minimum labor doesn't mean they don't sound good. Some of the best pickups I have ever played were on cheap no-name Japanese guitars from the 70's. The original pickups for Fender were made by women who weren't musicians or guitarists, and each one is radically different from the next. Don't believe in hype, and learn to play your ******* guitar before you waste money on **** you don't know anything about!

Love your guitars for what they are - pieces of wood that are fussy and fragile that may not do everything you like all the time. If you're lucky and you treat them right and love them often enough, you might actually get laid by that pretty girl standing under you.

I bought a used 2001 Made In Korea (Peerless factory) Epiphone Casino NAT.

The fit is practically flawless, it is lightweight, has 2 P90 pickups, fully hollow-body, separate V & T controls for each pickup.

The pups have been replaced, and I think they are Seymour Duncan P90s (from discussion on the Epiphone forum).

It has a tune-o-matic bridge, and the tuners are Grovers.

The neck is superb, touch and go. The action is low. It has the famous Gibson Slim Taper neck.

I also have a Gibson ES-330, basically the same guitar, and the Casino is 90% the guitar that the Gibson is for about 1/4 the price.

I would have given it a 10 in features, but I guess you could have added a Bigsby or something else. It is a basic, 2 pickup electric guitar.

The sound is awesome. Note: The previous owner changed the Pups from the stock Epi P90s to what I believe are Seymour Duncans (judging from my description and the responses on the Epiphone forum).

The sound us super clean, bright or mellow, with lots of overtones. From Beatles or early Rolling Stones bite, to mellow jazz tones, to blues sounds, this is one versatile guitar. I wouldn't use it for metal, but I'd use it for just about anything else.

I play in a middle-of-the-road duo http://www.s-cats.com doing mostly country clubs, yacht clubs and private parties for the adult audience (baby boomers and up). IMHO It is the perfect guitar for those ears.

The only flaw I could find on this guitar is a slight gap between the dog-ear pickup cover and the body of the guitar itself right at the spot where the neck almost touches the pickup. Since the original owner changed the pups, I cannot fault the guitar. Besides, the gap is so small, it would take a thin pick to get into the gap.

I am gigging with it without a backup. 'nuff said.

Never had to use support.

I have been playing guitar off and on for over 30 years. I also own/play sax, wind synthesizer (WX5), flute, bass (faux P-Bass), keyboards and drums.

The other guitars Leilani (my wife) and I own are, Gibson ES-330, Parker PM-10, ESP/LTD EC50, Ovation, Alverez Classical, and Epi flat-top.

If I was restricted to one guitar, I would own either a Casino or a Gibson ES-330 (they are basically the same guitar). I'd also choose the 330 since it is worth more for resale.

If anything happened to the Casino, I'd replace it.

Why did I choose this one? (1) P90 tone (2) lightweight (3) great neck (4) "Gibson" scale and radius (5) Gibson style V & T controls (6) I love my 1970 Gibson ES-330, but the 330 is now a collector's item and worth about $4-5K. Since I double on sax, flute, wind synth, guitar, percussion controller, vocals and sometimes keyboards on stage, and since I often have to switch instruments in a hurry, I didn't want to ruin the 330, so I go the closest thing to the 330 that was available at the time. I'm very happy with it. (Note: Gibson just re-issued the 330 so if I had to make the choice now, I'd have to weigh having the genuine Gibson for $2K or the Epi for 1/4 that amount

2008 made in china, vintage sunburst model.

All standard features - fully hollow, 2 p90 pick ups etc..

Not overly feature Laden but great for what I use it for and an absolute steal for ??350 brand new.

Having now had it for 2 weeks and put it through its paces, it's time to review.

Having read practically all of the reviews on here before even ordering the Casino, then waiting for the thick end of 4 months for it to arrive after ordering, it was with some trepidation that I opened the big cardboard box, plugged in and started to play.

I have to say that I fell in love with it instantly, even though I'd pretty much set it up to fail. I use it with my Fender Blues deluxe amp and its like they were made for each other. On clean and on the bridge pup it rings out like a bell. Neck pick up is pure chunky rhythm, or fat blues lead. With the amp on Overdrive mode, I get fantastic lead sounds in the bridge and Neck and great rhythm sounds when the selector is set to the middle.

I play in a band and so have tried the casino with a couple of other amps - Marshall JCM 2000 again sounds very good clean and overdriven, but if you want to use heavy distortion, then it does get noisy (a bit of hum and certainly a whole load of feedback). And some Fender stack amp which suits the casino very well also.

On the issue of feedback, much has been written on these pages, some of it unfairly, some justified. As already written, this thing will feedback - its hollow, no getting away from it. However, its very controllable and very musical. I've been using it as an atmospheric addition to some of my bands tunes and even the other guys in the band think it sounds awesome. However, if you really don't want feedback at all, then look for something else.

The style of music I use it for is similar to early Verve, mid 90s sound. I can get fantastic Paul Weller sounds ranging from great chunky rhythm parts to fairly dynamic leads - think Changing Man or Sunflower - spot on.

If you want it to nail your beatles stuff from 65-68, then you don't have to worry - but it's so much more capable than that.

It doesn't give you a whole spectrum of variety admittedly, but as I have mentioned, for my needs it seems to fit the bill and I love the fact that it feels half the weight of the les Paul, looks beautiful and sounds sweet as a springlamb or as fearsome as a Lion depending on what you're after.

The set up straight out of the box was pretty good if a little high for my taste - it took 2 minutes to sort this out. there is a little string buzz that will take some fine tuning concerning the height of the strings from the fretboard, but nothing to worry about.

The finish is beautiful, the wood grain is lovely and the paintjob immaculate. I have seen better finished fretboards, but they have generally have been on guitars worth at least double this one.

The white pick guard looks ok, but I removed it as a matter of taste.

I will certainly be using this at our next gig, but I would never gig without a back up, because of the spectre of string breakage...

I can't comment on whether it will stand up to the riguours of live performance, but should it fail I will post an update.

I agree with a number of posts here that remark on the quality of the selector switches on their casinos...it seems to be the trade off for the relatively cheap price tag, again the tuners could be better but presumably, you will have tried and tested this guitar before making your purchase, so if these factors are important to you and you go ahead and buy anyway, can you really complain too much?

N/A

Been playing for 11 years now, I also own a Fender Tele '72 deluxe and an epi les paul. Two very good guitars, but this Casino just looks the business and seems to cope with exactly what I want it do (maybe its still the honeymoon period talking) and being the only guitarist in my band allows me to stick with it, rather than change between the other two depending on the needs of the song. I find the P90's very adaptable.

Its my first hollowbody and I would definitely consider investing the money in another of these as I cannot remember feeling this excited about the overall feel from either of my other two guitars. Maybe there's now a little experience coming into play, some refinement into what it is I'm trying to get out of a guitar - this is ticking all of those boxes so far.

If you are currently reading this and mulling things over heres a summary:

Excellent value (350 quid)
beautiful - people respond to this guitar
P90s offer a unique alternative to humbuckers and normal single coil
Will not cope with screaming distortion
Prone to 'musical' feedback
switches, tuners not particularly sturdy
Light!!!!
Provides a real 'kid in a sweet shop' factor

Its a Casino! I'd buy again, I wouldn't change a thing about it - it is what it is and it's for me.

Standard 2-pickup Gibson features.

My custom strat is my main axe, but this work really well for a lot of specialty work. When I bought this guitar I was disappointed in it's sound. For being used by Lennon on every album from 1966 on...it didn't sound much like it to me. Then I discovered Thomastik-Infield flatwound strings. It nails the Beatles. (Try a Boss Blues Driver set pretty light and play Revolver tunes.) It's great for jazz. It's been called the perfect rhythm guitar and after 8 years of owning this guitar, I may finally agree. It's hums. It does suck that it hums. But it's so versatile. The bridge does rattle. I gotta fix that. Once your plugged in and playing though...
In short, put some high quality flatwounds on it and hope for a venue without much hum.

It's a damn good thing sound is most important. The finish around the f-holes is awful. The tuners were badly set and don't hold tune very well. I replaced with grovers. Neck feels unstable. Electronics are cheap and should be replaced. Bridge buzzes. Can't...make it....STOP!
You can't tell from the sound of it, but this is a cheap guitar.

It's lasted me 8 years. It's not my main guitar though. I don't trust this guitar to be a main axe like Lennon's. I plan eventually retire this guitar to the living room in favor of an Elitist Casino for stage and studio. I've seen and played one and it is very much an upgrade.

Great entry level jazz guitar or first beatle guitar. Then you learn to play over the course of time and tune in to a guitar's strengths and weak points. You'll move on to a really jazz hollow body for jazz and an elitist casino for 60's british tones. This is, though, a great entry level hollow body. If lost or stolen, I'd move up to the elitist.

Standard casino with case. The rest has been covered.

I love rock and play mainly brit rock. I will say at first i played a casino on honeymoon in singapore and fell in love with the clear crisp clean sound. When i eventually got home and bought one i was so dissappointed cos i couldnt get the same sound there was loads of feedback every time i looked at an amp. However after sitting down for a few hours and playing with my JVM410H I have got it set up beautifully to the point where i am really keen to keep it now. the only dissapointment is that I cannot use the OD1 or OD2 channels now without horrible squealing feedback. I palyed last night at a gig with the casino for the ifrst time worried that it was just going to squeal and low and behold it did when i switched it on, but i reduced the gain on the amp and turned the guitar volume down and it was no problem sounded sweet! Given 6 cos i can only use half of my amp with this guitar.

It looks immacualte, so cool!! There is a small buzzing sound which i believe to be the metal bratcket that holds the scratch board in place or how close the scratchboard is to the fretboard that when it resonates it vibrates the scratchboard. 9 because of this buzz.

Nothing has failed on it yet but the pickup did come loose but just a nip up and its all good.

not used them yet,touch the guitar.

I havent played anything worth a large sum of cash yet, as i am working my way up the ladder. My first guitar was a rockwood strat which i traded in for a epiphone les paul which will soon be part ex'd for a gibson but not made my mind up which. I also own a telecaster which is also going cos i cant be bothered with it, i love my noisey casino too much.

Two P-90s, Gibson style controls, Tunamatic bridge etc. It's the same as all casinos

First up, it does resonate if you turn it up and don't cover any strings you aren't using. As for feedback, it doesn't. Seriously. I know every other review goes on about feedback problems but that's because they are using the wrong terminology. Strings resonate, pick-ups feedback. Try getting one to feedback with all the strings damped, you'll need a loud amp and plenty of gain, much more than you would need to set a telecaster off.

Anyway, now I've got off my soapbox...

I've always though of P-90s as the perfect cross between single coils and humbuckers. These ones are just what this guitar needs. Not as brutal as humbuckers but warmer than single coils. I usually put it through a Laney VC-30 with the mid & bass up to ten, treble on about 3 and just enough gain for blues. Since I've had this guitar I've nearly retired my Tele and my Les Paul. The casino covers everything I can do with them and more.

As with any single coil pick-ups it is prone to mains hum.

I've only raised the action a little and removed the scratchplate since it came from the shop. I could see myself catching the scratchplate when going for the switch as the are very close to eachother

As far as I can tell there are only two weak points with this model. You really do need to bear in mind that this is a hollow guitar, so you can't stand on them like you can with teles and a hard case is a must. Also, it has the Gibson style of switch which should always be left in the middle position when not in use or it won't last too many years.

I only have a backup guitar in case of broken strings.

Never dealt with them.

I can't believe it's an Epiphone, it's just too damn good.

I owned an Epi Casino for about a month. Its a very, very nice guitar but it wasnt for me. Mine was Korean made, 2002.

The P90s on the Casino sounded vintage great, with plenty of bite - but as they hum at the mere sight of an amp, let alone of a computer monitor (in which case they dont hum, they go berserk) I found it to be a really problematic guitar to record with. There is no self canceling wiring, even when the two pickups are used together. Being a true hollow body, its also extremely prone to feedback wildly, much more than models such as the Dot or Sheraton, which have a center block.

Action was good, playability great and the finish very good. A lovely guitar if you dont mind the problems I mentioned above

I havent had it for long, but it seemed very well made and exudede a quality feel.

If you dont mind the inherent noise problems with the P90s and can manage to keep the feedback under control, its a gem of a guitar. Its light, great looking and just wants to be played.
If you use your guitar in a studio environment a lot, you may want to loook at a model with humbuckers. I eventualy chose a Hofner Verythin Standard.

same old features. natural finish. the only reason I gave it an 8 instead of a 10 is because I had to replace the tuners with schallers and the tailpiece with a Bigsby.

I play indie/alt. pop/rock stuff, and this guitar fits that style perfectly. I'm using a Vox AC15 amp with mainly Danelectro pedals (with 1 Boss Compressor and 1 MXR Phase Shifter thrown in the mix). the tubes in the Vox give the pickups (which are fantastic, by the way) a great chimey sound, but it's still alot darker than models like the Dot.

this guitar can be used for loads of different style. the only complaint I have is that it doesn't sound too great when distorted. I don't mind though, I've got other guitars for that.

I don't notice any feedback. there's the typical P-90 hum, but other than that no real noise issues.

the only complaint I have is that the action was too high. a quick set-up, and that was fixed. other than that, the tuners/tailpiece weren't too great, but that's to be expected from a lower priced guitar.

I've been gigging with this guitar for 6 months and I haven't had any problems so far. now that I've replaced the tuners/tailpiece, the hardware is all completely solid. it takes HOURS of playing to get it out of tune. the finish seems pretty good to me. it's slightly worn down but with the way I play, I'm not surprised. the strap buttons seem solid too, they've not crapped out on me yet. I always bring backups to gigs just in case, but I haven't had to use one so far.

I've been playing guitar for about 10 years. the other electric guitars I own at the moment are a Fender MIM Stratocaster, a Fender '62 Reissue Jaguar, and a Gibson SG Standard. as far as I'm concerned, the Casino is right up there with the SG and Jag.

I was looking for a semi hollow/hollowbody guitar, and also considered the Dot, Riviera, and the Gretsch Electromatic. the Casino floored all of them. if it was stolen/lost, I would definitely get another one. hell, I might get another one regardless. the only thing I wish I had done before buying it was getting one in the black finish rather than the natural one.

I own the Korean made version. Features are just as they were when the Fab Four purchased them back in the 60's. Simple, yet effective. P-90's. Finish is poly and not nitro.

The sound is very distinctive and very 60's. This is the guitar I turn to everytime I want to play Beatles or british invasion music. The tone of the P-90's is wonderful. I love the play of all hollow body or simi-hollow body guitars, but there is somtething about the Casino that just stands out. I also have an epiphone Dot that plays beautifully, but I still prefer the Casino.

It was set up fairly well from the factory. I adjusted the tune-o-matic bridge and now it plays like a dream. Nice wood-work, binding, ect....... I have several "High-End" guitars and this model compares very favorably.....

Seems solid enough for live play.... will find out soon!

Limited lifetime warranty!

I own American Fenders, Gibsons, Taylors, as well as many other quality guitars and I proudly put the Casino in the same class with them..... Simply the most enjoyable guitar I have ever played!!!!!!!

I won't really go over it since its been covered. Mine is a Sunburst model made in Korea.

The sound of this guitar is amazing. Its exactly the sound I've been looking for. I primarily play blues/slide and its perfect for that. Very full, rich, creamy, and nasty. I don't play out, but here's my home setup. Casino>Crybaby Wah>OCD>Epiphone Valve JR head w/2x10 cab. I sometimes also use this setup. Casino>Wah>Fender G-Dec JR. To be honest, the guitar sounds great with any amp. I've tried numerous amps with this guitar and it was all good. I love everything about this guitar.

I've had it a little over a year, and its been through a couple of setups that I did myself. One when I first got it, put .11s on the guitar, and when I switched back to .10s. I had some slight buzz, but it went away after fine tuning. Out of the box it was good to go. The sunburst finish is nicely done. No issues with tuning, frets, binding, etc. The jack comes loose from time to time, but its just a quick tighten. Pickups are awesome and I've kept the guitar completely stock with the exception of removing the pickguard. Just thought it looked better.

I don't gig, but I may start soon, and I would have no problem using this guitar on a gig. The whole guitar seems like it can take a lot of playing and was a solid build. The only reason I might not gig without a backup is that it can be prone to feedback. Its very manageable, but every venue is different so you never know.

Never dealt with them but the guitar has a limited lifetime warranty.

I've been playing for about 13 years now, and I really should be better than what I am, and I've owned lots of guitars that I thought would make me play better. I played Strats for the majority of the time, and I just got tired of them. The sound just wasn't there for me. I always wanted a 335 type guitar, but I couldn't afford one or find one I really liked. On a whim, I grabbed a Casino off the wall at my local music store and was simply amazed. Can't remember what amp I plugged into, but it sounded and played awesome. I couldn't really afford the Casino at the time so I had to sell my Strat to finance the purchase. Wasn't a big deal since I was done with my Strat anyway. I really wanted a Sunburst and all the local shops had was Natural. So I had to order from an online dealer. I loved it once it arrived and played it steadily for a month. I got distracted by the Squier '51 which became an obsession for a while, which turned me onto Teles. I thought Teles were the be all, end of all of guitars and the Casino sat in its case for many months. The second time I tried to sell it, I decided to give it one last play before I put it on eBay. I'm glad I did, and its been my #1 ever since. The Tele has been in its case since. I absolutely love this guitar and can't believe I tried to sell it. Its so versatile and sounds great with slide. If it were stolen, I'd definitely buy another one, but I'd probably go with the Elitist version this time. Awesome guitar.

Custom Shop Ltd. Edition Vintage Sunburst with trapeze tailpiece
2 P-90's etc etc
Made in China

Sound is great. Blues, jazz, Beatles stuff. I prefer P-90s to HB's, but that's a matter of individual taste. Neck pickup is very woody; nice bite from bridge. Neither is as hot as the ones on the 2 Korean Casinos I had before.
There's a little P-90 noise, but less than from my 330.
Could stand a little more brightness form bridge PU, but I'm OK with it as is. See no need to replace them - surprisingly close to my 330 in tone. Very resonant acoustically, too.

I tried twice before to replace my Gibson ES-330 with a Korean Epi Casino, but the Gibson always won. Just sounded better, felt better. Then I tried this Made in China model and whoa!!! This is what I wanted. The switch and V & T pots all felt more solid and worked better. The neck is bigger and more comfortable to play. Frets are well finished - not one needed adjustment. Plu topcoat isn't as thick as Korean models, either. Sold the 330 (handsome profit) and am very happy with the Casino and the Eastwood Airline Tuxedo I got with some of the proceeds.

Always had to replace switch and a pot or two on previous Casinos. Not this time. This baby is glitch free. Feels and looks remarkably well made. Had to make a little trussrod adjustment when the weather got cold, but it's fine again.

Haven't used it

Been playing many years. Have lots of vintage stuff. This guitar enabled me to sell my '66 ES-330 and feel good about it. How great is that? The more I play it, the better I like it, too. Less noisy through amps than the 330. Of course, it's not 100% the equal of the old 330. Not quite the 3-D, woody tone of that beauty, but the price differential more than makes up for it.

Standard Korean Casino made in 1996. Beautiful vintage sunburst with cream/yellow body binding; scores 11/10 for finish. It looks old but cared for. Neck a joy, fingerboard bound. Completely as made with no mods.

Needed two slide guitars for laying in open D and open G. Already have one Korean Casino that I had Fralin P90s fitted to and listening to them side by side, my newer Casino sounds virtually identical. For slide, the combination of P90 and semi-acoustic is unbeatable and through my Peavey Delta Blues these guitars sound like a dream. Bridge pickup is correctly louder and clips nicely through the clean channel. Neck pickup has a sweet mellow sound but it's the two-pickup bell-like jangle that sounds so great for rhythm work and chordy lead figures. Overdriven, the bridge pickup has a healthy, mississippi-mud snarl while the treble pickup is pure George Thorogood. You will NOT need to upgrade the pickups.

This is how good modern Gibsons should be. Both my Casinos are FLAWLESS in this department.
All the Casino colours are gorgeous, I have the natural and vintage sunburst but the cherry is a lovely antique shade. Rosewood on neck is healthily dark, not like that cheap, dry, reddish rosewood you sometimes get. Fretting superb. ANother 11/10

Have gigged one Casino for fourteen years and the only breakdown has been the toggle switch; funnily enough, my new one had the same prob but v easily sorted for UK ??20. Tuners stable, both gtrs show no pitting or tarnishing of metalwork. I gig regularly as these are dependable, sturdy and reliable working instruments.

No need for customer support so far.

Have played for forty years and these Korean Epiphones definitely ring my bell. I'd always have one. Neck narrowish for big hands but I can get my large paws round it ok. Got my newer one for about UK ??300 off Ebay. Both of mine are of identically high quality and that says a lot.
GRIPES? Just two minors: The famous Casino vibration which is, I'm told, due to truss rod rattle. The luthier I use says it's all to do with wood shrinkage in the neck. I tightened the truss rod slightly and, hey presto! the noise has all but disappeared.
GRIPE TWO, the pots aren't the best but they are ok rather than poor and don't cause serious problems. Bearing in mind the price of these
guitars I have NO real complaints.
If you are seriously considering one of these, go for it; you won't regret it.

I purchased the vintage sunburst Epiphone Casino nollow body guitar made in Korea. The guitar has laminated maple top, sides and back. It has a three way selector switch and volume and tone controls for each of the two alnico P-90 pick-ups. It did not come with a case bvut I bought an epiphone case that fits it really well.

I really love the sound of the guitar. When I bought the guitar I fully intended to replace the Alnico P-90 pick-ups but in a short time grew to love the sound from them, especially with 50's and 60's music. I also use the guitar on country using the pick up by the fret board. I read about feed back and noise problems from the pick-ups but have experienced none. I play it through a VOX 15 amplifier and couldn't be happier.

The action was okay direct from the factory but I had it set lower and went from the factory .10 strings to .11 D'Addario strings. I also had a bone nut installed in place of the plastic one. For $42.00 these changes gave the guitar a lot more resonance. With these minor changes this guitar is the easiest plying guitar I have owned including Fende, PRS and Gibson Les Pauls. I have played it against a Gibson 335 and I can tell you that the Gibson is not worth $2,000+ more dollars. The finish was top quality - not a mar anywhere and I am very particular with my guitars finsh!

I feel that this guitar will stand up as well as any. I don't know about the eletronics but if it all goes to hell it won't cost that much to replace it. i will be recording an album soon and have picked this guitar over my American Fender stratocaster and Gibson Les Paul to use in the studio. On acoustic I will use my Martin HD28 so that says a lot about this guitar. I have seen and played the Elite version on this guitar and would not pay the additional $700.00 to move up.

I have no opinion since it has not needed repair. I also would use Dave's Guitar in LaCrosse Wisconsin for any repairs I need done on a guitar.

I presently own the following guitars: Martin HD28, Martin D-16, Takamine 2003 Limited edition, Fender American ash strat, and Gibson Les Paul. If anything happened to this guitar I would replace the same day! As I said it is the most playable guitar I own. I love the sound and the level of variation I can get from the electronics. I can't think of anything I don't like about it.

late 90s Korean made - factory bigsby - 22 medium jumbo frets. 24.75 scale - 2 p90s - turqois color. Medium C neck. chrome hardware. Previous owner upgraded tuners to tone pro ( similar to LP tuners sbasically ), and changed to a roller bridge. I guess I'm not really reviewing the original guitar. These are the two changes that change it to a stable tuned guitar unlike stock.

I played teles and strats into tweed fenders since I was a kid until I found this casino a few years ago. I held off until I could find one of these late 90 factory bigsby models. Bigsby's add some magic to the tone on casinos - shimmer and chime. Also the bigsby makes the whole guitar feel balanced - you know what I mean if you ever compared. No buzz at all on this one ( original Korean PUs ) and feedback is only when I want it - well controlled - really use this alot. Like others have said the transition to hollow body from solid fenders took a while - but worth it - also the change to shorter scale length. I even found out that I had to change to a lighter pick. It makes sense because your not pushing against 9-10 lbs of alder anymore. Now I never play my tele or strat. I didn't make the mistake of running out and buying an AC30. Casinos sound sweeter through 10" speakers - especially 4 of them ( tweed bassman ). I stopped using as many effects when I switched to this. Like others said it has 2-3 incredible sounds - and that's all you need. It has all the bark and growl - mid position is great - I have the neck PU volume backed off to 5 and bridge full - can also be sweet - bridge PU on it's own is pretty special - just enough twang but no tele ice-pick sound. I do add a Keeley mod Blues Driver sometimes but mostly it's straight into the amp. I also stopped using a compressor after I started playing this - that 6th string bark is divine.

Impeccable finish ( unlike some others reviewed below ) No defects - Previous owner had this set up incredibly well so I can't comment on the factory set-up. Tuning stability is better than other Casino's I tried before ( the roller bridge and tone-pros ). Of course it has the unavoidable 3rd string intonation issue - but not bad - I tend to tune it so the 2nd fret A is on - so open G is slightly flat
( anybody who says theirs does not have this problem are lying or stoned ) - All controls are well done - no pot noise - PU selector is solid and quiet.
It has awonderful playability - the shorter scale length and balance just feels right. I get no buzz - all the way up - I use tens- love the slightly higher action ( bend up the third string a whole tone above the octave and you can slide under the 2nd sring - feels right.
As far as finish - this is the first guitar I ever played ( and I mean over 100 guitars ) that brings complements on its looks.

Finish has held up - also the crome. I have been fine with the stock strap buttons - no need to change to strap locks.

I have played too long to admit it - let's just say I've played long enough to use coiled guitar cables, 64 DRs when they were new, Sunn amps. When I started you were only cool if you had a tele or SG. Strats were cheap and stupid looking. I play in a cover band now - gig once a month - usually a local dive - all the goofy dance stuff people like. This was the right guitar to change from solid bodies to - never would have believed that my tele would stay in its case for 5 years. I never have like the semi-hollows. Casino's are not 'semi' at all. I would never change out these PUs - very happy with it. If it needed to be replaced I would be in trouble ( not made any more ) I really appreciate the look, feel, balance, action and tone - hard to find this kind of workmanship in the US these days.

follow up review from 5/30/06;
i sanded off the finish of the geetar, just like john lennon did, and its much nicer because i dont like poly coat finishes on geetars! i also put in 2 duncan antiquity p90's and a bigsby b3 vibrato bar, and after those improvements, the geetar is much more fun to play! i get almost no microphonics from the pickups, and i can waggle chords on it, and thats a nice thing for me! i done a few gigs on this geetar, and it shines, unlike when i originally got it, and there was nothing to it! i plan to put locking tuners on it and have a fret set up soon. i also need a new case for it cause the old one isnt that good

now that i got a bigsby and duncan antiquities, it sounds like a million bucks! epiphones are every bit as good as the gibsons of yesteryear with a little bit of love! i wish i can get a quarter inch shim for the neck pickup, so i can raise it up a bit and not just the pole peices (that just pulls the geetar out of tune)

1997 Epiphone Casino made at the Peerless Plant, Korea.

Vintage Cigarette sunburst in colour, REALLY beautifully done.
Tune-o-matic bridge
Epi tuners
Medium width neck, perfect for rhythm I'd say, because top frets at 19th + hard to reach (not that I mind)
Came with Epiphone case used, which is useful as I believe some Epiphone thinlines are hard to fit in some cases.

2 volume and 2 tone knobs and switch selector, for the 2 P-90 pickups.

Overall pretty good, pretty much perfect for this guitar.

Lovely sound for a thinline archtop, glad I got hold of this rather than an Epi Dot.

Suits a lot of my Indie (Libertines-y), Britpop(Oasis-y), 60s (Kinks, Beatles..especially) style music, however, I am buying a Fender Telecaster soon, if that helps show the gap which is missing in its sound, but what do you expect!?

I really have little problem with feedback that most people seem to have, but I bought it second hand from a caring Mod so I think he might have sorted that out a bit.

You can get quite a kick out of this guitar, like I say, you can get a good Beatles-y, Kinks-y, vintage-y sound from it.

I am giving an 8 purely because I am playing it through a poor Marshall amp, unless it on an AC30 and I think it would be pushing 11 !

Was bought second hand, and the guy had had it set-up relatively recently to the time.

I have 4 minor problems from it being perfect:

1. That infamous Casino buzz! Where it comes from I don't know! It is mighty hard to source, but it is only a problem when played acoustically (which still sounds nice by the way)

2. Neck has very slight 'bleeding' on it, but I shall attend to this soon

3. Hardware not perfect looking, and two of the knobs feel off whilst playing, however bit of thread-tape sorted that.

4. The input jack seems a little bit touchy, sometime got to give it a bit of a nudge to work, could do with a looking at this summer, Casinos aren't easy to get hold of inside mind!

I think a good set-up this summer will perfect it.

Has been gigged before, and in the past, I trust the beaut.
I think everything hardware-wise will last for years to come, good enough for me at least, but I hear many people change tuners.

Strap buttons are good, not perfect, as the neck strap button seems to be a bit tricky, luckily no smashes to the floor yet, but almost once! Might invest in 1 strap lock for that button (they ruin the look, of course)

I wouldn't gig it without a back-up, but I never would.
I could gig it without a back-up though.

Never needed to contact, however, I have contacted Epiphone before, and I found them pretty helpful.

I have been playing for 10 years now (I'm only 18 mind, so I'm not a super guitar geek) and I would love to play this with a Vox amp!

If I could I would get an Epiphone Casino Elitist, as good as a Gibson quality, but still keeps that cool Epiphone Beatles style (In my opinion)

I wish that damn buzz would go away, and I will sort it out, but overall a very good guitar.

I much prefer it over the Sherry and Dot's, however I would be interested by a Riviera, especially Nick Valensi's.

It's a hollowbody of course, and because of this I am buying a Telecaster, the world's strongest guitar, to take to uni, as I would cry if this was to crack...

Gloss finish, "trapeze" bridge, p-90s, blond finish, true hollow-body. No bells, whistles, etc - as it should be.

Perfect for powerpop/rock -n roll. I play it through various amps; 72 Super Reverb, 59 Bassman RI LTD, and Sovtek Mig 50.
It's got chime. It's got growl (pickups rate a whopping 12.50). It's got sparkle. There's not a huge variety of sounds, but the sounds you get are ALL great.
One issue the guitar had was a low mid resonance (not a bad thing) which caused some feedback issues at higher volumes. Not a major problem, but I had my guy put a little foam rubber between the pickups and beneath the f-hole on the bass side. Amazing response. cleared up low mids and added a touch of definition. I can feedback whenever I want and play it like an ebow. Astonishing tone from this one.

Just had the frets cleaned up and the action/ intonation set up. It plays better and sounds better than most 70s Gibson 330s I've played. My luthier fell in love with it the few days he had it.

This is a players guitar. The hardware (all of it) is just fine. I'd never play a show without a back up, but the back up (Epi dot with z-90s) stays in the case. I don't even undo the clasps.

Bought it used so I've got no opinion.

Been playing for 22 years and this is the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. I've had a 59 Junior, a 74 Tele Deluxe, 70s Specials and Standards, a 90s Rickenbacker, and a few odds and ends, and I have found "the one". I've had it for three years and it has and will be my main guitar.
If it was stolen, I would weep like an aging widow, then I'd buy another in a heartbeat.
The only thing I wish it had was some DNA so I could clone it.

Korean made 2000. P90's, cherry red, chrome metal parts. Bought used on eBay cause I wanted something cheap $$ wise, something to play the Bealtes on and see if I would stay with it this time. Got an Epi case with it also. 2 Vol and 2 Tone controls, switch and standard tuners. Nothing special. 22 frets, standard assembly line built guitar.

Well my thought of cheap$$ got me a great guitar, for the price. I play Rock and Roll, Blues, and any acoustic. Led Zep acuostic songs sounds great. It sounds like a more expensive guitar. Playing though a Line 6 SpiderII and a GNX3 processor. I'm just a guy who like to play guitar, not a pro. But I know what guitars and music are suppused to sound like. And this one has sound. With 10's on it and no amp this guitar has acoustic quaility and that is what I wanted. Not a loud as an acoustic, but could also plu into an amp. Wanted something to play without an amp and still jam as I got better. Never indended to keep this guitar if I stayed with it. WRONG. Everytime I think about selling this to support anther purchase, I put new strings on and then remember why I love theis guitar. especially at the price I paid.

Bought use, so I cant rate factory on setup. Once setup buy my local shop it is fantastic. No the shredder, not grease lightning, but this is not a rock lead guitar. But I can play lead just fine with this as long as I dont try to rip the strings. The finish and fit is just great. It is not custom, but there are no flaws, or mistakes I can see or notices now after 3 years of owning it. Once again I bought used. Bad part: The tuners suck alng with the 3 way switch, but this was easily fixed. Changed the 3 way with a Gibson switch and the tuners with Grovers. Now it stays in tone like forever. The strings go first before the tuning. That was the best 70$ I spent. Intonation is perfect and I get good tone all the way up to 20the fret. HArd to get to but sill has god sound. The pick guard did need some attention as it was touching the PUP

So far it has been great. No cracking onthe finish and it looks like brand new. I love way this looks and if it ages properly I hope to pass this on to some in the family many years from now. Button and all hardware, once replaced (see above, are rock solid. I can always count on this guitar when I pick it up to sound and play fantastic.

Never had to use. NO

For the price I paid I have to give this guitar a 10. I know it cant compare to other 10s for higher priced/guality guitars, but for what I expected and got it deserves a 10. Once the tuners and switch were replaced it is rock solid. I've been playing since late 60's, but have quit playing 3 time over the years for around 15 year total due to other activities. Not a pro, but still love to play. I have a 52 Fender reissue, and Gibson SG standard and have had 73 Tele that I started with and and ovation acoustic. This guitar is a keeper for the sound. The luther who set ip up said this was the best Casino he has ever heard. For what ever that means, but the is HO. Would I but again, yes but not off eBay, Don't think I could get so lucky again. What I don't like is the feedback whan playing loud in front of an amp, but what do you ecpect from as hollowbody. $375 deliverd is hard to beat with a case

1978 Casino, made in Japan by Matsumoku. This was the second generation of Epiphones made in Japan (the first being Shiro Arai.) Absolutely beautiful finish - sunburst with deep brown figured maple. Matsumoku reverted to 1965 USA Epiphone Casino specs on every aspect except changed neck material to 3 piece maple instead of the usual one piece mahogany (not sure why.) Over the years and several owners, some parts of this guitar have been changed including the addition of Grover 108C tuners, a Gotoh nylon saddled bridge, and a Gibson ES-345 trapeze tailpiece. The pickups and electonics are original.

Easily sounds like the Beatles "Ticket to Ride." It can also go to a mellow jazz type sound or a cool, almost overdiven treble sound without effects. I have an old Jen Cry Baby and the P-90s sound great with it. Being a full hollow body, it can sound like an acoustic too.

The guitar had many canges when I bought it, and the action is nice as a result of a new bridge, nut, and trapeze tailpiece.

It's already 28 years old and the wood still looks brand new. The hardware was tarnished, but I removed it.

N/A

Been playing guitar and bass for 30 years. I looked at many guitars off and on for a few months until I saw this one. I bought it the next day.

most likely 2002, made in korea, 22 frets, no money above the 12th fret! maple top, sides and back, mahogany neck, rosewood fretboard, came with 2 vol/tones, 2 p90's, korean made, hollow 335 style, everything else has already been mentioned in previous reviews

ok, this is where this guitar shines.....got it cause we like the sound of p90 pickups on a hollowbody...very sun records/50's r & b/chuck berry/john lennon, the sound of the pickups fits our bands music better than gretsch w/tv jones filtertrons or rickenbacker high gains. using it with vox ac15 (90's uk) and ac30 (cc2, regular speakers, wattage cut to 22 watts)its noisy, but not annoyingly so. the sound is very rich......think all good music. theres not really much variety with this guitar, and the pickups never seem to loose that lower mids fullness to their tone, but after years of playing, we realized thats a good thing, since other guitars fade in and out of the mix, while this one stays in the mix at all times. the korean p90's it came with sound good, full, and rockin, so we dont think were gong to change them (thats a first for us!) we sanded the finish off the body, since john lennon took the finish off his back in the 60's, and he claimed the guitar 'breathed' more, well we attest that this is true, since no finish makes this lighter, and even with the finish off the neck, it plays smoother than ever. the only thing we would do for customization is that we want to put a b6 bigsby on this baby. this right now is our only professional electric guitar without a bigsby, and we miss that! put a little analog delay on this, and youre in sun records heaven. with the vox ac 30 on full power, and more of a clean sound going, we managed to get john lennon's tone on the later beatle records! all in all, great sounding guitar. does psychobilly better, too!

factory set up sucked. we got it used, and the pickups were totally out of balance, but we got them high to the strings, and working well, and they sound very powerful compared to our other axes now! the action was too low when we got it, but that too was taken care of when we adjusted the bridge. there are tons of flaws on this guitar, but they can be removed easily, or smoothed over, so thats not a problem

this is where this guitar isnt such a hot instruments, or at least til we bring it to our repair guy/luthier/person whom can do a mean set up on a guitar. this can withstand live playing, with better hardware, we sanded the finish off it, so we guess that doesnt apply here. the strap buttons are fine, but we will soon invest in strap locks. we can depend on it, only margainally, because it doesnt feel 100% tight, like our gretsch or rickenbacker. we would gig without a backup, since we always trade guitars with the other band we play with!

never dealt with them, never need to, since we got it used! we did the minor 'repair work' ourselves, but when it comes time to put on the bigsby, well have our repair guy help us out with that.

playing for 15 + years, and had a casino before (w/humbuckers, from the 70's) have gretsch, rickenbacker, martin acoustic, you name it effect pedal (which we dont really use!) vox ac15 and 30. if it were stolen/lost, wed eventually get another one, if the price is right, but this is our travel guitar, sicne we dont want anything happening to our gretsch/ric on the road, but found this one has better tone than either of them for what we do right now, which is funny, cause the whole thing, with everything is less than half of the price than we paid for either of the others. we love the tone of this beast, hate the cheap feel of how this came, but that can be changed. we chose this one because the beatles all played them, and liked the tone, and we feel the same way. we also get the 50's sun records/rockabilly tone, and we like that, too! we just wish it had a REAL bigsby, which we plan to obtain upon our next paycheck, to make it a real rocker's axe! played it saturday night with our side project, and people asked how come were not using the usual gretsch, then told us it sounded better, and we liked that, since it cost less!

Ordered this guitar from an internet retailer. BIG MISTAKE ON MY BEHALF. I will never buy another guitar sight unseen or unplayed before I buy it. I reccomend everybody try a guitar before you buy it.
Korean Made Casino with Natural Finish
Lam Maple and Spruce Body
Very comfortable mahagony neck
2 Volume and Tone Controls that are garbage and need to be upgraded
1 garbage, rattling, disfunctional 3 way pickup selector switch
2 useless P90 junk, garbage, rattling, squealing pickups
1 rattling buzzing tune-o-matic ABR style bridge
6 tuners that don't keep the guitar in tune

In my opinion, the guitar sounded terrible. Could not use it live. I am not a shredder, nor do I play loud or with a lot of overdrive/distortion. I play in a Motown, 50's- 60's cover band. The pickups were so microphonic and prone to squealing, that the guitar was virtually unuseable live. I attribute all the squealing to poor wax potting and the the el cheapo chrome pickup covers. I know that full hollowbody guitars will produce feedback, however the picups in this guitar would squeal like pigs. The Neck pickup had zero clarity, clear as mud and the bridge pickup was awfully harsh. the pots for volume and tone are garbage too. They are scratchy and noisy when dialing. Not plugged in, the guitar sounded terrible from all the rattling junky garbage hardware that Epiphone installs on this guitar.

As I said I ordered this guitar from an internet retailer. Out of the box, the intonation was pretty good, and in all actuality the neck felt great, very comfortable the fretjob was of highy quality. The finish was excellent had a very grain pattern. Very sharp looking, and the action was set great. Was a pleasure to play but the all the rattles and buzzes ruined it. ....... READ THE NEXT CATEGORY

This guitar did not withstand live playing as it could not stay in tune, the pickups squealed, and all the the hardware on this guitar is absolute junk, crap, garbage. After a few weeks, the guitar started to develop buzzing at the bridge, did not keep in tune for anything due to the lousy tuners, the pickup selector failed, the neck pickup cover developed a buzz due to a poor solder job. Even the pickkguard that was on the guitar buzzed due to contact with the pickups. I could not rely on this for gigging and always had a backup. IF you are a gigging musician and are looking to purchase and use a Korean Epi Casino for gigs, I highly reccomend stripping this guitar of all its hardware and replacing it with HIGH QUALITY aftermarket replacement parts. The hardware, as is on this guitar, will not keep up with the abuse from gigging. With the money you will spend replacing the hardware, you are better off buying an Elitist Casino, if you can ever find one.

Should have sent it back. Like a dummy, I didn't.

I have been playing over 20 years. I gig almost every weekend.
In a nutshell this is what I have to say about my experience with this guitar. The crappy hardware and pickups on this guitar ruins this guitar. It has a very comfortable neck, great finish, high quality fret job. I did make the mistake of ordering this online without playing it. But like I said over the course of several weeks, I noticed more and more problems, all due to the lousy failing hardware. I recently sold this gutar for a Gretsch Electromatic G5120 in Orange (which I got to play before I bought and absolutely love).
I did not have the energy or the money to track down and buy all new hardware and pickups, then pay someone to install everything the correct way to get this guitar up and running the way it should be.
I do not miss my Casino. Again, if you are a gigging musician looking to purchase a Korean made Casino, I highly reccomend stripping all the hardware and pickups off, and replacing it with high quality parts to withstand the abuse from gigging. These parts will not hold up. By the time you spend the extra $$$ on quality parts, you might as well just buy the Epiphone Elitist Casino, if Epiphone will ever get their crap together and start making them available. Haven't been able to find one since they have released the series. Every retailer that carries the Elitist line is always out of stock for the Casino and for many months at a time, so I give up.

I have a 1961 USA Kalamazoo Michigan made "Original" Casino.
Tobacco sunburst in color, with original black - P90 pickups. Totally hollow, not semi-hollow, Stop tail piece, tune-o-matic bridge.
Original tweed beat up case.

I play mostly Blues and classic rock.
Great guitar, but good only for low volume type gigs due to it's hollow nature.
Smooth as silk about tone. Typical P90 hum.

Awesome quality instrument from the original Gibson factory!

I've had this guitar from 1981 until now ( 2005). It's just now needing a fre job after countless gigs and hours of playing.

NA

I've been playing for 25+ years and own a fine variety of instruments - 1988 G&L SC-3 and 1990 G&l Skyhawk, 1991 LP Studio, 1972 Guild S-90, 2000 American Fat Tele, 1981 Yamaha SSC-550, and a Heritage Stat.
I love the Casino, especially due to it's age and Mojo. John Lennon played one just like it. I've seen pix with him holding an identical colored Casino as mine.
The con is - hollow and it feeds back at louder volumes.

2005 Casino made in Korea. Laminated maple top and body. 2 x volume and 2 x tone controls (one set for each of the P-90 pickups). Mahogony neck, sunburst finish (love that!), classic semi acoustic, two f-hole body style with tune-o-matic bridge and trapeze tail. 1.62 neck width. I bought the Epiphone case and it fits like a glove and got a strap and strings thrown in. The guitar itself is the feature and I got what I wanted.

I've wanted a Casino for about 10 years and really hoped it was going to suit what I play. My concern was that it would only suit a few styles and not be very versatile. Well, I'm not concerned any more! The Casino is incredible.
I mainly play acoustic (Maton 225, being an Aussie) and wanted an electric to round out my sound and add something special and perhaps different. The music I'm into is acoustic rock so Crosby Stills Nash, James Taylor, Joni etc and I wanted something that would fit well in that mix. My live playing nowadays is in a church worship band and after using the Casino for the first time the other night, I can honestly say I've never had so many people tell me how good I sounded.
I'm playing through a Fender Frontman 25R (check them out, an incredible little amp!) and on the clean channel it is beautiful. You get that classic 60's jangle but there's something else that is hard to describe ? it's like a shimmer, a silky velvety sound that just warms the heart. It's really a gorgeous sound. With a bit of overdrive, the Casino goes into a very different realm. I play a bit in open and alternate tunings and play some slide. When I tuned to Open G for some slide and went to overdrive I nearly fell over. The sound of all those classic blues rock bands from the 60's came screaming out of my amp and it was sonic heaven. There was one sound in particular that was really familiar and then I worked it out ? Robbie Krieger. That spun me for a while until I figured he probably had P-90's on his Gibson SG and that's what gave him the unreal Doors slide sound he created (think Moonlight Drive from Alive She Cried). I could be wrong on that but that's what it sounded like. If you like electric blues, you really really need to try one of these!
For most of my own music, the covers I play and what I play in church, the clean channel is best but it's nice to know where I can take it if I need to.
The P-90's can be noisy and a lot of gain will send the Casino screaming as it's totally hollow. For a bright, jangly and warm sound the Casino is beautiful. Reverb is sensational with it and I would suspect some Tremolo and maybe a Chorus or Delay would also add something sweet.
I've found the front pickup a bit muddy and so have the tone on that set to 10. The bridge pickup can get overly bright so dialing down its tone to 4 or 5 suits really well. Combining the pickups at these settings is pretty much plug-and-play for me. Flicking between the two gives a bit more warmth or something a bit brighter. Great if there's variety in your set.

Straight out of the shop the Casino was great. Most stores in Australia set them up before they sell them and I suspect it was the case here. The action is incredibly low with no buzzing. The 1.62 nut width is pretty narrow and it's taking some getting used to. It's not a problem though, just different.
Everything appears fine but I wouldn't say excellent in the hand-made sense. Although there's nothing in particular that I can point to, there is an overall feeling that it is factory made but considering the price, it is a fantastic guitar.
Many folks have complained about the pickup selector switch and I mentioned that when I bought it. Apparently leaving them in the middle position when not in use helps a lot. Mine seems fine for now but time will tell.
Whatever strings they came with are excellent and they feel like 10-46's. Not sure if they are factory fitted or shop fitted but I might ask as they have lasted so well (2 months!). I've got some 11-50's I want to try and see what that does to the sound.
The intonation is pretty out, however, and I'll adjust that when I change strings and decide which gauge suits my style best. Although a bit annoying, those things are usually fixable to well within the acceptable range. With the tune-o-matic bridge, adjustable bridge height etc, I can't foresee this being a problem for too long.

Like anything, if you're rough on your gear then it wont last. Treat it with respect and it will last. There's nothing to indicate that it wont last or not withstand live playing but being hollow, I'd be a bit more cautious. If you're used to playing acoustics it shouldn't be any different.
It seems pretty rock solid I reckon and I'd feel safe without a backup. Depends on your music and the gig I guess.

All good so far.

I've played guitar for 18 years and owning this guitar is a long awaited dream come true. I honestly believe I've found 'my guitar'. I've got a great acoustic and now a great electric and I'm stoked.
I'd buy another one in a heartbeat if the need arose. I was considering a Telecaster as I thought it might be more versatile but the Casino has proven to give me all the versatility I was looking for and much more. Absolute tone city. It even sounds great unplugged! A great feature, by the way, if you want to play without waking up the family and an acoustic is too loud.
I love the look of semi acoustics and love the P-90 sound. Combine the two and you have the Epiphone Casino ? a fantastic guitar.

2005 Korean Epihpone Casino Cherry. P-90x2 No case

Boy this really sounds good. The resonance of the guitar is amazing for a laminate. Everyone keeps saying 'great for Beatles sound' which is true sort of. I didn't approach this guitar looking for anything other than great hollow P90 crunch. It has it much to my suprise. I have never played a '60s Casino but I have picked up and played a lot of guitars. I am not Jimi Hendrix or even a good player, just a hobbyiest that has been playing on and off for 20 years. HOWEVER, I do know TONE. For a sub $700 guitar made in Korea I am AMAZED how good this guitar sounds. Resonates very well and the pick ups (which I planned on replacing right away) are really good and have all the P90 sound most people will want. I first bought an Epiphone Joe Pass Emperor II. Totally different I know. Nice but left me flat. Humbuckers. Completely different sound, I was temporarally enamoured with it but woke up and realized it wasn't a fit for me or my style. That's when I decided to try the Casino. I think the Korean semi-hollow guitars are hit or miss. A lot of 'good' guitars and some that are really great. Also some models just seems to be made more consistently than others. The Casino is one of those models. Really good.

Very well set up from the factory. I will have my luthier give it the once over but by all appearances they set it up great.
Only 'flaw' is some slight finish issues where the neck meets the top. Minor. No buzz, nice and clean all the way up the fret board. Top notch.
-1 for the small finish issue.

Seems to be very durable. Nothing feels or looks 'cheap' though I will probably replace the pots, switches and wiring at some point. Tuners are suprisingly good. That is where you usually see serious skimpage.

I really like this guitar. You can get great rock sounds out of it. AC/DC Malcomb Young rhythm? Dead on. Gretchy DeArmond crunch? Yeah. Mellow sweet lead? Hell yeah in neck or neck/bridge. Alt-rock sounds. U-betcha. Slayer? No.

This is a 2004 Epiphone Casino Natural. I bought it new, because I am a huge gear head, and I've always wanted one of these. Didn't need it at all, I just bought it for fun. It's a full hollow body, and its got 2 p-90s, 2 tones, 2 volumes, trapeze tailpiece, tune-o-matic bridge, vintage tuners, 21 or 22 frets, 24 3/4" scale, laminted spruce top, laminated maple sides and back, 3 piece mahogany neck, rosewood fretboard. The neck is a little thicker than a 1960's Les Paul, and a litte thinner than a 1950's Les Paul. It's a good mix.

The only complaint I have about this guitar, is that it could sound just a little brighter, but considering that it's a hollowbody with p90's, I guess I can't complain. The pickups are a litt noisy, like all single-coils, but Epiphone did't reverse one of the coils so it would be hum cancelling with both pickups activated, which is stupid. The pickups kind of suck, but I keep getting good tones out of them, so I haven't replaced them yet. I might not at all. I use this guitar with a variety of amps: Marshall JCM900, 1966 Fender Pro Reverb, Fender Prosonic, & a custom made & hotrodded champ. This amp sounds thick and full through each amp, and it will always sound thick and full until you play it through a solid-state amp. It's clear and distinct, but full at the same time. Nice and fat and mellow, great for blues, fingerpicking, pop, anything where you dont need a biting tone or too much overdrive. This guitar isn't the most versatile thing around, but I get good tones for the following genres: blues, country, blues rock (not too much gain, or it'll feedback, but that can be fun too), fingerpicking stuff, vintage pop, funky jazz tones, surf, rockabilly. It's a really fun guitar to play... it gets more attention than my other 5 guitars, many of which cost more than this Casino by a great deal... Awesome tone for blues rock a la Black Keys, White Stripes...

It's a great looking guitar, cosmetically there are only MINIMAL blemishes, and in a $600 guitar from Korea, that's pretty good. This particular guitar had the best finish and action out of ANY Epiphone or cheap guitar I've ever played... I was surprised because I own other Epiphones, and this is MUCH better than the others. The nut is actually spot on, low action, good playability even though it comes with 9 gauge strings on it, which is stupid on a hollowbody. I've played it with 10's and 11's and 11's are the best by far. They make the most of the hollow body. The woods are pretty good on this guitar, and my only gripe is that the neck is joined to the headstock in a weird way... I can't really explain it in type, but I've never had any problems with it...

I wouldn't use this guitar without a backup, just because of the hollow body, sometimes even high volume will set it into feedback hell. Although at most volume levels, even some concert levels, the feedback is controllable. The guitar doesn't feel flimsy, but it's hollow so you do have to be a little more careful with it; I think this thing could take a beating and live to tell about it. The finish is thick and durable, and for some reason modern Epiphone hardware never rusts, so thats awesome.

Never need it.

Very cool guitar, I really enjoy it. I play it more than my new Gibson Les Paul, or any of my other guitars for that matter.

Good Features. Dont; know what year, Korean made. 22 fret. Laminated top. Two Gibson P 90's, with a tone and volume for each. Three way selector. Neck and fretboard are mahogany.The body is cherry. Cherry finish. Hollowbodied. Trapeze bridge. Non-locking tuners. Very skinny neck, not quite ibanez though. Nothing to complain about here.

I play Classic Rock Blues, and Jazz, and this fits all three. The bridge and neck brige combined positions with some grit make those beatiful screaming p-90 sounds. At lower gains it has more of the 60's pop sound. The neck Pickup with the tone rolsl off works great for jazz. The coils make slightly more hum than a strat, but nothing to worry about, and the two pickups combined together of course cancel hum. Overall the sounds it Dark, Warm, Rich and Full. However it is still possible to get bright, punchy sounds out of it. Personally I love it.

The Guitar is plently playable, although it came with two problems. The action was far to low, although that's not hard to fix. Also the nut was sharp and had a habit of breaking strings. This is also fixable. Still more costly that preferable.

I bought this used, and have had it for three quarters of a year and no problems so far.

haven;t dealt with company

Overall, I love it. Especialy considering it's value. Sure, it's not a LP, but it cost a third as much, and sounds nearly as good. Not good for Metal distortion, but handles everything else wuite well. Great guitar, especialy for the budget minded.

My Epiphone Casino was made in Korea 2004 and I bought it new at Long and McQuade. It has a vintage sunburst finish with chrome Gibson designed Alnico P90's. I had bought this guitar to act as my travel guitar since I didn't feel all that too comfortable bringing my gibson around (if I dented my Gibson I would probably have to die).

This guitar is perfect for the style of music that I play (very Beatlesk stuff). Accoustically it is quite nice due to the fact that it is a hollow body and does't have the wod center block like other archtops have. I've read reviews about people complaining about the Anico P90's and was worried on how awefull they would sound; I had the intention of replacing them immediately with Gibson P90's. However, upon plugging the Casino in I was shocked to discover that they sounded perfect! They totally blew me away! The one thing that I did notice was the buzzing when you are standing idle with it. I havn't had any feedback problems yet but I havn;t had a chance to play this in a gig just yet. I hear a solution to this is to stuff a cloth in the body? Well, if the Beatles could play on stage with it.. Anyhow, fantastic sound especially if you are into Early rock and Jazz.

The one and only real complaint I have about this guitar are the tuners. Put simply, they suck. Those I replaced immediately with vintage Grovers and since then it stays in tune fine. Another thing I noticed was that my vibrato was slightly bent to one side. I found that this caused some buzzing when playing acoustically, but that was easy to fix. The Sunburst finish is absolutely beautifull with no flaws. I was originally going to get the natural finish Casino (like Lennon's) but the difference in the colour of the neck and the body bothered me. All in all I am very glad that I chose the sunburst finish, no complaints there. Some people also complained about the selector switch being terrible, well, so far mine is fine, although a little shaky. So far it hasn;t given me any trouble but I bought a spare Gibson selector switch just in case this one dies on me. So in sum, the tuners suck and should be replaced. Other then that, no major flaws.

This guitar seems to be solid enough. I wouldn't want to drop it or anything but I am pretty carefull with my guitars so I am not all that worried about that. If I were to go on a gig, I would bring it along with my Gibson accoustic. Altough this guitar does play fine accoustically, it is a mere shadow to the Gibson. Electrically however it is superior, so it ballances out.

I have not needed to deal with the customer support yet and hopefully will not have to.

I have 7 other guitars and have been playing for 12 years. In terms of electric guitar, this is my perfect guitar (with a few modifications). This one goes right up there with my Gibson J160E; if either were stolen I would replce them immediatley. Considering that this guitar was relatively cheap, it is definately worth more than it sells for. Overall a fantastic guitar!

I got this guitar used from a guy at a gig. I had been wanting a Casino for a long time as i love p-90's and light weight guitars. It is korean made and the guy said he got it new in 97. It is turquoise with chrome p/u's and the trapeze tail piece. all in all not feature laden, but very nice and awesome to use onstage, although as with all the Epi's me and my brother Ras own, it needed some mods and upgrades to get it where it needs to be. I got this axe for 75 bucks because it got it's head broken at the gig. Cool bargain...now where is that Elmers? hmm..

this Casino, though loaded with my beloved p90's has a drier more woody attack than my epi 56 reissue or LP junior. I use it with my Sovtek head and Sound City 4X12. It is completely hollow unlike a 335 and howled like a banshee at higher volume, so I stuffed it with rubber foam. Problem solved! I like its bright airy clean sound and toothy detailed distortion tones. It has a surprising amount of different tones and is now my favorite guitar for recording demos.

I played this axe several times as we toured with my pals band.I loved it's sound and pimp-o-licious turquoise finish. When my bud accidentally snapped the head and replaced it with a Gibson es135 I snapped it up when he offered it cheap. I reglued the head and stuffed it as well as replacing the nut and crowning the frets-axe has a lot of road wear but no flaws really. If not for a clumsy accident, I'm sure it would never have been sold by this guy-he loved it.

I just got in from 4 months of solid touring so it's definately holding up at gigs-in fact I have used it and my 56Epi goldtop for everything except slidework(doublecut junior Epi handles that), honestly I'd say I used it for 30% of my set. It has become the preferred backup for my LesPaul. I changed the nut and it already had straplocs. the finish is a durable poly, but arm wear and belt buckling are evident. The rosewood fingerboard is fairly soft and looks very worn compared to the frets, but no problem, really.

used gear never dealt with em

My band, 3rd Strike has been working for a while now-we have a ton of gear. I own a Martin DXM, and 4 Epis-a 56 LP, junior,and this Casino, as well as a 58 V reissue that my brother just won't return...dangit!I use a line6 pod at home and the rig mentioned above live. I love its tone and it's looks. I would pay full pop for another if this one was stolen and that is saying a lot as I'm a total cheapskate!

2002 Casino, cherry finish.

Since there are so many reviews already, i just wanted to point out a few things. The sound wasn't great on mine because the pickup magnetism was so strong. It was pulling the low E string out of tune above the 12th fret. (you strat guys know what i mean.) Actually, replacing the strings helped. i don't know why, but the factory strings must be pretty crappy. The biggest change was the pickups. They were replaced with DiMarzio virtual P-90s. The original pickups favored the bass strings. No matter how high i raised the pole pieces and lowered others, this problem was still there. The Dimarzios fixed that. With two rows of pole pieces it's easy to "dial in" the balance. And, they have reduced magnetic string pull. If you want to use the Virtual P-90s, you'll probably need a repairperson because mine had to put in two small wood blocks to support the pickups.

Interestingly, i also have an Epiphone Sorrento with the same pickups, but that guitar doesn't have the problem. Those pickups are balanced and sound great. (built 7 years earlier.)

Everything in the set up was good, escept: the string spacing was too narrow for the fingerboard. We recut some new slots in the bridge and now it's fine. Guitar is almost flawless in its construction, paint, binding, etc. Amazing for a budget guitar.

Great little guitar for practicing, traveling (it's light in a gigbag). I even used it one night on a jazz gig instead of a full depth archtop. Epiphone should just check the string balance on these pickups and cut the bridge slots for a wider spacing. The neck on this guitar is great! Wide and flat like a 1963 Gibson es-335.

I bought the guitar new (serial # says 2004) in vintage-sunburst. I always wanted a Casino because I?m an old Beatles and Merseybeat (early ?60s Brit-ish tunes) fan - these guys played Casinos all over the place. I was considering one of the Elistist series but someone told me that the much cheaper Korean Casinos are almost on par with Japanese quality. That was confirmed by har-mony-central?s user reviews. So I ordered one without having seen and played it before because no store carried a VS Casino in stock. I tested, however, two 2003 Korean Casinos in natural color (like John Lennon?s later version). These ones had some quality problems (e.g. bridge pickups too close to the strings), so that I was a bit worried how my guitar would be.

What can I say? I?m a lucky guy (or Epiphone builds great hollowbody guitars these days). My one is a perfectly built guitar. I can hardly believe that one can buy a quality hollowbody these days for such a low price. My explana-tion: Korea is under intense pressure from the Chinese (think of Ibanez? AF series which is surprisingly good for an even lower price).

My Casino VS has got all the features I expect and want from a classic Ca-sino. It looks like the 1966 Beatles? guitars with the longer headstock. I added a US-made Bigsby (125 euros) myself: I chose a B3 because a B6, which otherwise would look a bit nicer, would produce a very flat string an-gle. A B7 would be historically correct - remember George! - but I hate drilling holes into the guitar?s top. Adding the Bigsby was a minor operation: simply removed the tailpiece and threw the B3 in - even the screws fit on mine.
And I added a DeArmond roller bridge with more weight than the factory T-O-M bridge. It makes the guitar sound even fatter.

Now the pickups: It?s got two P-90s, ?Alnico, designed by Gibson?, as the sticker read. These must be new because they are apparently more powerful than earlier ones: both 11,3 kOhms (measured). And they are perfectly aligned: The bridge p.u. is higher and closer to the strings than the neck p.u. The middle position is not hum-cancelling but you can hardly hear the noise.

It?s the lightest guitar I own: 2900 metric grams with the B3, 2700 with the tailpiece. That is 6,4 resp. 5,9 US pounds.

Friends (among them professional guitarists) and I tested the Casino with some Fender tube amps (Deluxe Reverb RI, Vibrolux RI, an old Super-Champ, a first-series Roland Jazz Chorus etc.) together with two bands and on our own in the living-room. The guitar has got the classic powerful P-90 sound - and it sings!
All strings (10 - 46, Fender 150s) are equally loud on every p.u. The bridge is full and twangy but not harsh or shrill, the neck clear and warm but not muddy. It?s very authentic for oldie music (50s and 60s) and blues. You can use it for modern tunes, too, but a Gretsch (like my new G5125 - look up my review) is more versatile as it sounds a bit crisper.
The sound is a ?10? for a Casino but the restricted use is my reason for giv-ing it only a ?9?.

I have never had a better guitar as far as far as this chapter is concerned. The craftsmanship is outstanding. String action can be set incredibly low without buzz. Painting and fretting are perfect.
Just yesterday I made a tour through some guitar stores and played several guitars, from 500 to 3000 euros. Regular Epiphones are not in the same league as this one. It plays on the same level as Gibsons in the 2.000 euro range.
My impression is that the Casino has a special rank in the Epi product line: it?s a true hollowbody (thus harder to build) and it?s of historic significance (Beatles!). They probably let their best builders work on it.
The only guitar I had (among ca. 30 others) that is equally well built is my Gretsch 5125.
Oh yes, there is one disappointment like one of the latest reviwers said: Epi used one part that is real junk - the pickup switch. That one needs replace-ment soon. It?s flimsy, sometimes not working properly - that?s no honor for this great guitar. That's why it only gets a "9".

I play the Casino for 5 hours on rehearsals without any problem at all - beside the p.u. switch (but I play mostly in the middle position anyway). The Bigsby stays in tune perfectly.
Ranking would be a "10" without the p.u. switch issue.

No idea. I?ll ask the dealer for a new switch (see ?action & fit?). If necessary. I?ll buy one for 10 euros or so and solder it myself.

It?s a wonderful guitar and I?m happy I bought it. I play it almost every day at home (Vox Pathfinder 15) and take it out to the band. The G5125 and the Casino are my main axes now.

Mine is like all the others, however it is finished in gold flake, with a clear coat. The back sides and back of the headstock and neck are also gold flake painted. I assume this one was made in Korea, but I don't know for sure. Really an eye grabber, well applied paint. DOes any one know about these gold flake ones? Were they a limited production, what's the history. Were they made in Korea too? E-mail the info to garyguitar1117@yahoo.com

This is the best part. One of the better bang for the bucks bargains. Upgrade the pickup switch, and pots and maybe pickups.
The pickups on this particular Casino are mighty fine. I have had a Gibson 330 ('62) and also a '66 that I just sold, and these pickups to my ear sound as good.

For the bucks, really well done. Slick gold flake paint job, good looking hardware. Fret work is better than adequate. The worst features are the pickup switch that is loose and sloppy, and the tuners are barely adequate. I bought this on ebay and when I got it, the tone and volume controls were loose, but I had them tightened in 30 minutes. I am going to replace the tuners and switch immediately and later all the pots. Plays fine after I adjusted it a little and put 10's on it instead of the 9's. I also raised the bridge a little, the neck is medium beefy and is almost straight with a slight relief. Plays as good as my Gibson 335.

As I said, fine finish, cheap hardware ( I always enjoy replacing this stuff and seeing the improvement). These true hollowbodies with P-90's will squeal like a pig caught in the gate unless you play quietly, at stage volume, there are few remedies that help. I have already stuffed this one with foam, then covered the foam with black felt with a peel-and-stick backing that I didn't peel. This helped quite a bit. On my '62 Gibson 330, I installed sound posts made from dowel rods and stuffed it too. These remedies help, but you also need to mute with your palm and find the best position and distance in relation to your amp to stand while performing.

Gibson has been helpful to me before, but I am fairly proficient at set ups and minor repairs, and I would rather do them myself.

Been playing since 1955, mostly in a working band. The best feature of this guitar is the tone. It has a very musical, usuable tone. You can get a believeable fat jazz tone, a rude agressive rock tone, and a great blues tone. To my ears, these hollowbodies with P-90's sound better than humbuckers. I have owned MANY guitars from '55 Les Pauls to '57 Strats, PRS's, 335's, ES-175's on and on, blah blah. File this in the "who cares?" file. I wish I had my 1966 ES-330 w/Bigsby back. Let me know if you have info on these gold flake models, thanks.

2004 Epiphone Casino made in korea. I wanted a sunburst but apparantly Epiphone does not make it much anymore, so decided on a cherry. It still looks great, but you must wipe it down occasionally because finger prints really show up on it. It's a semi-hollowbody Gibson 335 look alike. Unlike other semi-hollowbodys, though, it has no center block, which creatves a very unique sound. Has 22 frets but due to the shape of the body the first 16 are most accesable and it gets a little harder drom there. One volume and tone control for each pickup. The pickup selector allows you to switch between the neck pickup, bridge pickup, or a mix of the two. The pickups are very warm sounding P-90s. Neck is thin and well made, and it's easy to quickly move up and down the neck. The stock tuners are vintage non-locking, and in my experience were VERY shoddy. After a few weeks I replaced them with some Sperzel locking tuners which fixed the problems. I'd reccomend changing the stock tuners if you plan to do gigs. Bridge is Tune-O-Matic, which has been fine for me, but I might replace it with a bigsby vibrato one day. No included accessories.

The combined factors of the P-90 pickups and body shape create a very unique mellow sound. It's perfect for 60s and 70s British clean rock (Beatles) and sounds very good overdriven, emulating Classic Rock guitar riffs flawlessly. On clean channel you get a very bright mellow sound. It also sounds superb with my Dunlop Wah pedal and Marshall 30 watt amp, turning out Hendrix like sounds. The only styles of music I cannot see the Casino useful for is metal, grunge, and other styles that use heavy distortion. The Casino can't play that "deep" style of distortion due to the pickups and feedback issues. At high volumes you must stand at a distance from the amp facing away for it, or you WILL have feedback issues. I've heard that stuffing a rag in the body will reduce feedback, but have never tried it.

For what I play (Classic Rock, Jazz, Blues) the Epiphone Casino fits well. I love the sound but will admit the feedback can be a problem if not properly controlled.

I bought my guitar from Guitar Center so they set it up at the shop. The action is set low and the guitar is very easy playable. It's easy to quickly move up and down the neck. I've heard that people have problems with the pickup selector, but have not had one yet and I've used the guitar for 4 months now. I probably will end up changing it anyway. The volume buttons are all fine and work as intended with no problems. The only problem I had with the hardware was the tuners, as I mentioned earlier. I don't know if I recieved a guitar with badly set up tuning heads or if all Casinos are like that, but the tuning problems did become quite bad and it was tedious to have to retune the guitar every 5 minutes.

I wouldn't reccomend gigging with the Casino from it's stock setup. Tuning problems may be an issue. Also, make sure you know of the feedback and how to properly play at high volumes with it. The finish looks great but needs to be taken care of. Wiping it down with a cleaning cloth is advisable. Although the strap bottons were solid, I would reccomend strap locks due to the fact that semi-hollowbodys cannot take a beating like a solidbody and would not risk it falling. With the new tuners I would use it on a gig without a backup with no worries.

Have never had to deal with Epiphone customer service, but the warranty is a year long and gurantees quality. If anything electrical breaks, it will be replaced. I am satisfied.

Overall the Epiphone Casino in my experience has been a great guitar that I can use in many different situations. I bought it hoping to achieve a Beatles and The Who sound and am very pleased. If it were stolen I would replace it immediatly. The only flaw I've experienced is the tuning heads.

Basic standard Casino, '96 or '97 Korean made in black finish. Standard Casino configuration: hollowbody, double cut, 22 frets, 2 P90, standard Gibson style controls (2 volume, 2 tone), laminiated maple back/sides, and supposedly a spruce top (however, I suspect the top is laminated maple). Purchased used...that makes me the third owner.

First thing about this guitar: forget about running this through an effects box as you'll loose much of the character that makes this guitar unique. If you use an amp, use a tube amp. If you use an effects box, be sure it's a good one. Played through a Fender HotRod Delux, this baby kicks ass; played through my Adrenalinn II, this baby still kicks ass (particulary with the class A amp models).

I bought this because I wanted the twang and growl of P90s, controllable feedback, and that spanky hollow body character. Excellent for blues, old-school R&B (think Beatles, Stones, Who), jazz, country -- this guitar is versatile. In comparison to my G&L Legacy, the single coil P90s are slightly warmer yet retain the single coil twang one could never get from humbuckers. And that's why single coils rule the universe.

Well, like I said, this was purchased used. One of the previous owners had some work done on it as the frets were leveled and filed on at the edges of the neck. Epiphone has a bad reputation when it comes to their fretwork, so additional fretwork is often required to make an Epiphone playable. The previous owner had this guitar setup for low action and gauge 9 strings. For the Casino, this is the wrong setup to have: first one needs to use heavier strings (10s or 11s) and the action needs to be raised. This will need a professional setup. And a fret polishing, strictly for cosmetic purposes, would not be all that bad either.

The Casino is a solidly build guitar, just don't pull a Pete Townshend on stage and you'll be fine. Seriously, you'll need stap locks.

My Casino in it's current condition needs some more work before it's gig-worthy: the output jack needs to be replaced, the setup needs to be redone to my specifications, and the stock tuners could use an upgrade to the locking variety (Grovers or Schallers would be a good choice). Once this is done, she's ready to roll.

Backup? Backup? Don't need no steenkin' backup. In a gig situation, I'd trade off with the G&L depending on what we're playing.

Well there's a lifetime warrantee, but this expired two owners ago.

Well, if it was lost, stolen, burned or mutilated, I'd have to get a replacement. I'd probably buy another used one. Casinos generally retail around $600, which is over priced since these generally require additional work. Bottomline: if you want a classic hollowbody sound and you love single coils, this is the bitch for you.

Pretty much as listed in other reviews. It looks like a Epiphone Casino from any era. Thin-line double cutaway hollowbody Gibson ES-330 lookalike. I bought mine from ebay, second hand. The fellow before me did the right things: replaced switches and pick-ups.

This is an affordable alternative to a Gibson hollow body, especially if, like me, you long for a single coil hollow body like the old jaazers and blues men played. There are not enough models being made these days with these features. Even the Epiphone Elite Byrdland sports humbuckers. Forget Gibson. Even their custom shop axes have humbuckers. For rockabilly, swing, and early blues styles one really needs to have that single coil sound. This particular guitar was retro fitted with Rio Grande p90s (Jazzdawgs and Blueshounds). They are HIGH output p90s. Real good sounding but they overdrive my tweed Deluxe too much.

This is an excellent blues-mobile, if we're talking pre-humbucker style B.B. King, T-Bone Walker, et al. I am a Chuck Berry nut and feel his best sound was on his ES 350 pre-Humbucker, and for a time in the late 60s and early 70s when he was liable to show up with a 330 rather than 345 or the other humbucking models. The live stuff on "London Sessions" is a 330 and for me that is THE sound. It has fullness AND bite. Yes the Bealtes played Casinos in '66 and on and off in later years (particularly John). I feel this connection is somewhat over-stated, as the Gretsch/Rickenbacker sound is more classic Beatles, in my opinion, and in the studio they used Les Pauls and Fenders as well.

I put heavy strings on 12's to 52's with an unwound "G" for bending purposes. Had it set up appropriately. No flaws that I can determine. Playable action.

I started out figuring this would be a back-up to my '67 Gretsch Anniversary but lately it has been axe # 1 on gigs. I really enjoy the light weight and thin neck after years of struggling with a big fat guitar with a fat neck. Still new to me but it seems sturdy and reliable.

Not applicable.

A damn good alternative to much more expensive Gibsons (and Epiphones). One would probably want to invest on upgrading the electronics. As far as snob factor, this is something that in the 21 century were all going to have to get over. Just try to buy a quality American made hollow body guitar with P90s on a modest budget. Good luck.

I don't know what year it was made. Not too long ago, anyway. I bought it second-hand with case, absolutely spic and span for 375 euro's, a nice deal. It is a cherry-red one with white bindings and a black head. The transparant red laquer looks more like red wine than cherry IMO. Anyway, it looks gorgeous. Chuck Berry played this version a lot. It has a white-black-white laminated pickguard fitted to it, with a large black and chrome Epiphone trident-E-logo on it. The Casino is an Epiphone original, the Gibson versions came out later, a couple of years after they bought Epiphone.

It is a true hollow-body, which means that it produces quite some sound when played unamplified. This gives the guitar a somewhat other sound than other, comparable semi-hollow-body guitars, like the epiphone Dot, Sheraton and Lucille. Of course this is also largely due to the fact that the Casino has totally different pickups.

The guitar is quite lightweight, but it has some presence, and the balance is good.

The body is made from laminated maple, and is very well built, and nicely finished. The guitar has a trapeze tailpiece.

The two chromed, single-coil Gibson P-90 pickups are wound reversely, so you can turn them both on and then cancel one out with its volume knob while it still cancels the other one's noise. In fact they can act as a gigantic humbucker. The pickups are both height-adjustable per string. They are a bit susceptible to getting scratched by the plectrum.

It has a lovely rosewood fretboard and a mahogany neck. The neck is glued in very, very precise. Aparently, the guitar has been laquered afterwards, in one piece. The action is very easily adjustable, and can be set incredibly low, which i think is lovely. The head has just the standard Epiphone-inlay (done very nicely), the fretboard has parallelogram inlays, which were not placed very accurately, but finished nicely. Every inlay has different dimensions (larger towards the head) which I think is cool.

The Casino features chromed, non-locking tuners, which aren't bad, but could have been better. Fetishists will probably replace them. They look very nice anyway.

Unfortunately, one thing on this guitar absolutely SUCKS: the 3-way pickup selector swith. Within no time the contacts go bad (unexpected silences), it rattles, it feels flimsy, AAARGH! Why didn't they spend $2 more on just a decent switch?! A disgrace to this guitar, which is overall of awesome quality.

The casino is a very versatile guitar, which can produce a vast amount of totally different sounds, from very clean and bright to a deep, warm sound with a lot of Bass. You can use it to play Rock-'n'-Roll (like Chuck Berry did), it is THE typical John Lennon guitar, Reggae, ska, jazz, but it's suitable for almost anything you can think of, except for metal and Slipknot-like music; but hey, wouldn't it look a bit awkward playing Rammstein on a hollow-body?
Further, you have to keep in mind that this guitar has single coil-pickups. No matter how versatile it is, it will never sound like for example a Les Paul. It has a unique sound that some people just may not like.

Coming from a strat, the pickups give high output and a lot of bass, and an overall clear sound. They're not too noisy IMO. As mentioned before, you can cancel the noise a great deal using both elements.

When using overdrive you'll find a whole new spectrum of sounds, from a warm light tube drive to an absolutely awesome, brutal, barking, throaty sound. It's not suitable for metal I suppose (just not the right sound), but to make an incredible amount of ear-shattering noise is not a problem. To get everything out of this guitar, I recommend buying an amp with both tube and transistor drive.

The amp choice is very important, as with all guitars, but especially with this one. I Use a Trace Elliot Super Tramp 100W combo (no longer produced) which features both transistor and tube drive, and a MOSFET (transistor) power stage - and sometimes a somewhat smaller BOSS/Roland transistor amp. The difference between the two sounds, besides volume, is stunning.

Sometimes I use it for playing blues, but I guess a guitar with humbuckers fitted is preferable. The Casino might sound a bit too bright and clean. However, if you want to use some overdrive/distortion, this is definately the one to go for.

I fix the resonance 'problem' at high volume, mentioned in a lot of other reviews, (it's more like a feature you should expect from a true hollow-body IMO) by stuffing a towel into the body.

It's very sensitive to the way you play it, it really responds tremendously to everything you do. An imperfect setup immediately kills this guitar. When you practice a little, you'll be amazed of how many different accents and sounds you can put into your playing. Of couse, this also means that this guitar is very picky. Coming from e.g. a Stratocaster, you'll be disappointed at first - don't blame the guitar; it's your skills and technique.

Dislike: sometimes i find that this guitar produces too much bass - even from the bridge pickup. Maybe an equalizer pedal could be useful sometimes.

I don't know how well this guitar was set-up at the factory, because I bought it second-hand. The guy I bought it from did a terrible job. For this guitar, it's absolutely neccesary to get the setup EXACTLY right - it really makes a tremendous difference. Luckily, everything is very easily adjustable.

The action can be set incredibly low without any problem, and very high as well (e.g. for slide playing). This guitar plays very easily, and it's possible to play incredibly fast on it.

As mentioned before, the pickup selector switch is of absolutely laughable quality, I'm looking for an alternative. I guess my patience will be put to the test when I replace it, because the only way to reach inside the body is via one of the f-holes which aren't that big...

Overall the finish is nice and beautiful. Apart from the switch, and to a lesser extent the tuners, mine is absolutely flawless.

This guitar looks a bit vulnerable at first glance, but now i can say that it will withstand live playing easily. It can take quite some beating and accidents without being damaged at all. Still, it's less violence-proof than most solid-body guitars, of course.

The hardware looks fine overall, maybe I'll replace the tuners one day, the selector switch is a piece of crap, the volume/tone knobs are not bullet-proof, but they're ok.

The finish is downright fabulous and very durable.

The strap buttons are good quality examples of the usual cone-shaped type.

I can depend on this guitar, and I use it without a backup.

N/A

I love it, except for the switch...

I own a Fender strat too, I'd love to have a gibson/epiphone SG or Les Paul.

If it were stolen, I'd definately save up for another Casino.

Sunburst finish. According to the serial # is made in Korea in 1997. Bought second hand, fairly good overall conditions. Price paid (May 2004) Euro 450,00 including hardcase. It has all the stock features.

Since I adore the FabFour I couldn't miss such guitar. Please note: I already have a vintage Casino (1967 - Kalamazoo 230TD cherry) with specs matching tighly the ones owned by certain mssrs Lennon, McCartney & Harrison. Since theirs Casino's sported the sunburst finish I got this last one mainly for a closer visual connection. Once back home with the newer Casino the next thing I did was an A/B comparison between the 2 worlds. Of course regarding the sound I expected the 1967 as being the front-runner: believe or not, the winner is the Korean! Much punchier and a wider range even on the bass side. Those who know the Beatles 1966-1969 repertoire can understand what I mean. Plug this baby into a Vox Conqueror with its built-in fuzz and you are John Lennon playing Revolution or Yer Blues. Or, if like more recent groups, you can get easily an Oasis or Strokes sound. While it's ideal for a Britpop style band this guitar could work pretty well in a jazz/ blues ensemble.

Action: it's where the 1967 Casino claims its revenge. The Korean model is more edged on bindings so its playing is slightly affected when compared to its older relative. Dealing with the fretboard on the ol' brother is like sailing on a sea of oil! When I got the guitar the setup left something to desire especially about the intonation on certain strings (D,B), then after some adjustments on the bridge things got fairly better. Those Kluson style tuners aren't perfect either, they seem sometimes a bit loose so they cannot guarantee a steady tuning for longer times specially on live situations.

Everything is like an average current stock model.

No warranty, no contact! (so far)

I've been playing guitar for 25 years, even though I consider myself mainly a bass player. Gear owned: tons of Rickenbacker, Gretsch, Hofner, Vox, etc. stuff. I can master pretty well sounds a la Beatles. If stolen I'd probaly get another other one. A good instrument to own even for a non-Beatles nuts. My moral of the story: never think that a vintage instrument is 100% better than its current production counterpart!

2004 Epiphone very well made in Korea. I'm sure it's laminate city where the woods are concerned, but then even the expensive Gibson and Elite Epiphones hollow and semi-hollows are laminates. There was not a flaw on it. No space around inlays, the binding is simple but perfect, no extra glue showing through. This one is the beautiful red finish with a bit of grain showing through. Two volume and two tone and a pick-up selector switch. The only improvement over this set-up might be a master volume for those who like to keep a particular blend across all volumes.

It has a wonderful sound. I use it for Chet style finger-picking and favor the neck pick-up. It has single coils but is much less noisey than my strat.

I pulled new out of the box at Guitar Center. I could find no flaws with the factory set-up. The action is right on although they ship it with 9's. When I switched to 10's, I gave the bridge a slight drop in height and the action is still great with no buzz on any fret. The screw and net holding the pick-guard was slightly loose but was easily finger tightened.
The frets are perfect.

This is not the guitar for loud live playing. It is a true hollow body so the top will vibrate and cause feedback. Go for the Sheraton II if you have a loud stage volume. Everything else about the guitar is road worthy. It is a light guitar and may appear delicate as a result fo being hollow.

I've been playing 35 years and own several guitars. The Casion and Sheraton II korean made Epiphones are probably the best deals on the market today.

It's a standard Casino in natural finish

I play in a beatle tribute band. So this is an excelent guitar for the lennon parts during let it be and the white album periods. I use a Fender m-80 amp through a Fender vibratone cab. It isn't a noisy guitar. The output is pretty high. It has a very warm sound even wehen i play on the bridge pick up it's is warm. The only thing that's a pitty is that it's feed backing like hell. When i'm performing i can't turn my guitar to my amp and not play a note, cause then the audience will be deaf.

When i bought this guitar the action was pretty high. So this was "fixed" in the store. Now it's lovely. The rest of it was great

I've been playing on this guitar for 4 years now. the last 2 years i've giged with it. never had any problems.

Never had contact with them.

This is a great guitar. if it would crack or something i would buy a new one immediatly. So what I want to say: if you want a good sounding reliable guitar: BUY AN EPIPHONE CASINO

My Epiphone Casino has the usual features, but it dates from the early 1980s and so was made in Japan.

I like semi-acoustics for their looks and versatility. You can get a rock'n'roll or funky sound just by the way you play them, without changing anything on the amp.

I have played the Casino both through Marshall valve amps and a Laney solid state one. It worked well with both, but feedback and noise was more of a problem with the transistor amp.

It has a great sound unamplified and is lound enough for you to practice and learn new songs without using an amp. It is superior in this regard to other copies of the Gibson semiacoutics.

There were no problems for many years. I just had to have the frets leveled after a couple of years since they had developed holes.

I'm probably being a bit mean giving only a 6. I got many years of trouble-free playing out of the guitar. However, I had to stop playing it recently since the electics were shot (it developed a nasty hum and the neck pick-up would stop working altogether sometimes) and it became almost impossible to tune or to keep in tune (the fiddly little knobs don't help). I bought a second-hand Vantage for ?200, since it was quicker and cheaper than getting the Epiphone repaired.

Didn't try. The guarantee had expired long before the problems arose.

If current production is as good as the earlier models then they are good value. They cost the same today as mine did almost 20 years ago!

As mentioned above, I have now bought a Vantage semi-acoustic. It does not sound so nice and is quieter when not amplified, but otherwise it as good or better than the Epiphone (less noise and feed back, lower action, longer neck, larger tuning nobs).

Just for the record: this Casino is a fully hollow archtop with a small peg inside supporting the bridge. Trapeze bridge, P-90 singlecoil pickups, vintage tuners, parallelogram inlays, etc. Check the website for further details.

The sound is very unique. This sounds very different from a 335 with humbuckers. It's hollower, more note drop off, but with more dynamics and an acoustic quality that a 335 just doesn't have. The pickups are somewhat noisy, being singlecoils, but not terribly bad at sane volumes. I found using my Boss EQ pedal with a slight bump at 1.6k and 3.5k through my Deluxe Reverb really did wonders for tone. The guitar is really sensitive to the player's dynamics. Sounds good acoustically, too.

The fretwork was a little poor, some dead spots and choked notes. I got it fixed. The pickups are flush with the body, you adjust the pole pieces. I'm a little nervous about that infamous pickup selector switch, but things have been fine so far.

Stays in tune well. I've gigged twice with it with no problems. It's got a hard case, which I highly recommend. The guitar is extremeley lightweight and a little neck-heavy, so a proper strap helps. In my opinion, it's a professional instrument.

n/a

A nice guitar. Certainly not one for all applications. I think it favors more clean or slightly overdriven tones, but that's just me. The Beatles influence was obviously strong in my choice. I like the shape. It's red. It's nice.

Brand new Korean made thin hollow-body with two single coil pickups.
3 way pickup selector, individual volume and tone knobs.
Mine has the natural finish.
Tune-o-matic bridge.
I bought the hard shell case as well.

I play a variety of styles on live gigs, and home recordings - rock, blues, country,Irish nusic, and soft-rock.
I really like the clean rhythm guitar tone with both pickups on, but with the neck pickup volume down a little from full.
I've used on two gigs recently - one through an amp (73 Fender Deluxe Reverb), and one through a Mesa Boogie V-Twin direct through the PA.
Through the amp, and using a Rat overdrive pedal for occasional distorted leads, I had to back off the gain and the volume on the Rat or I'd get feedback - not surprising, the guitar is hollow, with no center block like on a Gibson 335.
Through the Mesa V-Twin and a PA, on a stage with dimmers for the lights, the guitar was noisy...on some single coil gtrs. with two pickups, the "both on" setting is quiet due to the pickups being reverse wound, but that does not seem to be the case on the Casino.
When I play the same room with the same set-up next week, I will bring a different guitar.
I do like the sounds the guitar produces, but it certainly is not the right guitar for high gain sounds, and I'll bring an additional guitar at least for the first time I bring the Casino into a room I haven't used it in yet, in case the noise is too great.

Action was set up great - I'm used to .010s on Gibson scale length guitars, and this came with .009s, and the action low, but I may stick with the .009s.
I'm not much of an expert on finish flaws and the other things in this category, but I haven't found any flaws yet.
I've heard that the Korean pickup selectors were noisy or defective, but the one on mine seems to be fine.

This would seem to be a more delicate guitar than say a Tele or a Les Paul, so I wouldn't beat on it too hard.
I'd use it without a backup once I determine which rooms it'll be quiet enough in...

I've been playing for over 35 years.
I own 12 guitars including this one (3 acoustics, a bass, and 8 electrics, including a Les Paul Custom, a Les Paul Special, a Telecaster and a Rickenbacker 12 string.
I pretty much knew what the Casino's good and bad points were before I bought it, so there were no major surprises...I might buy another if it were stolen or lost.
One really great feature - it weighs next to nothing compared to a solid body, so wearing it all night on a gig is a breeze.

2003 Casino, in Cherry red, Korean Made, Lamnate maple all around, mahogany neck, pair of p-90's wired in series... The standard as can be viewed on the manufacturers website.

It's a pretty typical no frills 6 string, but I do like that it has lots of ways to adjust your fit, feel and intonation

Ok, here's where it gets interesting. This guitar sounds absolutely beautiful when played cleanly, or with a light drive. It's sparkly, resonant, and beautiful. Quite frankly, it's become my favorite guitar for using on recordings and live when a clean sound in desired.

The bad part is, high gain. This poor critter doesn't do high gain, period paragraph. It will squeal like a wounded beast, and make you want to claw your face off with the noises that pour out from within. This in mind....

Effects like chorus, tremolo, reverbs, and a genuine tube with a touch of overdrive sound truly wonderful. Just a sweetheart of a sound... It's sold as a "retro rock" guitar, but keep in mind that the first real distored lead sounds didn't come around til around 64.... this guitar does what it was made to do beatufully, hook it up to a distortion pedal, or a fuzz tone, and it will give you nightmares.

For a clean rhythm guitar, there's nothing finer in this price range I do believe.

he he... welll.... Setup was mighty fine, except for the 9's for strings... 9's on a hollow body? come on... 10's work great, so that's what I run with on it now... Epi's are quite a bit better than they were a few years back... I can't say that this one is really flawed, a few minor paint lines imperfect, and the pick guard cut-out could be a touch neater. The pickgurd liked to vibrate on the pickup housing, so I added a piece of cloth in there to stop it... now all is happy.

It's light, so for a gig it's be great as to not fatigue me... and the build looks to be quite nice... the neck strap button makes me wonder, but the light weight makes it easier on the straps.

When I first checked it out, I was thinking.... Oh crap... Kluson style tuners... another needed tuner change. However I'm pleased to report that these are better than earlier epi models... they hold tune well for a change, but I wish the gear ratio were lower.

I don't see why it wouldn't hold up, and it will most certainly accompany me to select shows... I'd have to use something else if I wanted to play distortion sounds though.

They've backed up their warranty on other epi's and answered my quiestions satisfactory... not bad

I have 11 guitars now... and about 4 years into playing like an addict... Great guitar for what it does, love the feel, love to play it, gonna get some similar ones like a sheraton or a riviera.. love the feel, awesome sound clean. Play one, perhaps you'll fall in love.

This is a follow up review. Please see my prior review.

O>K> In my first review of this guitar- I ended up returning the instrument due to several cosmetic and quality issues. This is my second Casino purchased from Musicians Friend. This Casino has no cosmetic issues at all that I could find. The toggle swith works on this one and is nice and tight.No misaligned tuners. The bridge is very quiet (no rattle like the first on), although I did put a drop of clear fingernail polish (and old trick) on all of the moving bridge parts to KEEP it quiet.
The neck is extremely straight however the frets were a mess- It needed a full fret level and dressing right out of the box ($80 with set up and a new set of 10's included). My tech found several high frets and three loose ones that had to be reseated. It now plays perfectly with no buzzing and action as low as desired, although I personally like a medium action (5/64" on the 6th string down to 3/64th" on the first string, measured at the 12th fret).
My tech said there are a lot of beautiful guitars coming out of Korea these days, the weak link being the fret work. I'm giving this guitar a 10 for the finish, and a 7 for action and fit before the fret work.

Should you have to spend $80 for fretwork and a set up on a brand new guitar? Apparently the answer (unfortunately) is yes, and it's not just on the imported guitars. I bought a Gibson ES333 that was a total dog. Had that infamous hump on the neck where it joins the body making it impossible to set up. Right out of the box it needed a refret ($275). Total crap. I've played several Gibsons since then from Pauls to 335's and the majority had neck/fret problems as well as among the worst factory setups I have ever seen. I have talked to many luthiers and techs that have had to do refrets on brand new $6000 "custom shop" Gibsons. At least the Casino ,and also a brand new Tobacco Sunburst (rare color) Sheraton I recently bought only needed a level and dressing. I suppose I could have kept returning them in hopes of getting perfect ones, but I'm convinced such a bird does not exist, and since they were cosmetically perfect with nice straight tight necks, the fretwork was a small price to pay. Now both of these guitars (Casino and Sheraton)are 10's, but I'm rating at 9 because of the extra work and expense of making them playable.

2003 Sunburst model with all the features a thinline archtop should have.

P-90's sound great, Nails that classic Beatles "Revolver" sound, ie:Taxman, He Said She Said, Your Bird Can Sing, etc. Also sounds great for Blues, which I play a great deal of. All in all a great, classic sounding guitar. P-90 single coils were much quieter than I expected, and much fatter sounding than my American made Strat. Nothing thin about the sound of this guitar.

Here's where all of the problems arose with this guitar, and the main reason I am writing this review. About a half dozen black specs which went through the polyurethane finish of the top side of the guitar. An area about the size of a nickel on the bottom side had no Sunburst finish at all, just unfinished wood that had been polyurethaned over. Three position toggle switch was defective right out of the box. Bridge rattled more than any I have ever heard. Made me wonder what was even holding it together.Misaligned tuners. Left side in a straight line, right side top tuner positioned out of line. This guitar was NOT a factory second, but clearly should have been.On the plus side the neck was straight with low action and only very slight buzzing.Adjusting the Truss Rod and raising the bridge a bit eliminated the buzz while still maintaining a pretty low action. No excess filler around the trapezoid inlays as some have mentioned.No overspray around the headstock or F-holes. Really nice fret work. All in all, though, very disappointing.

Sent it back immediately so did not have a chance to put it in a gigging situation.

Don't know about Epiphone, but Musicians Friend emailed me a prepaid Fedex label immediately and are sending another guitar. They could save themselves a lot of return shipping by simply checking out their gear before they sell it. I have never experienced a problem dealing with Musicians Friend.

I have been playing approximatly 35-40 years. I had read all available reviews for this model and was really looking forward to getting it. I'm going to try again , but what a disappointment this was! Incidently, I also ordered an Epiphone Deluxe Hardshell case for this guitar which arrived with a defective lock, so THAT had to be sent back as well- C'mon!!! I just bought a Diary at the 99 Cent store for one of my students and the lock worked perfectly- gimme a break! (And believe me, the case lock was no more complex).

I didn't think Gibson's horrendous quality control (which is another story altogether) had bled over into the Epiphone Division, but apparently it has. Hopefully the one I got was a fluke and the next one will be better- I'll let you know as soon as I recieve it!

This guitar was made in 2001 I think, by the SN, in Korea. 21 frets with a laminated maple top, back and sides; 2 P-90 open coil pickups with a volume and tone control for each and a 3-way selector switch. Neck is mahognay with a rosewood fretboard. The guitar features a glossy poly finish over a curly maple top; the body is fully hollow with 2 f holes. The guitar also features a tune-o-matic bridge, trapeze tailpiece and Kluson-type tuners. Like most guitars in this price range, the deal includes nothing else--no case, strap, cable, no nothin'. It seems that someone who can afford a Gibson ES335 or similar guitar would be able to afford the case as well, but the case is always included with guitars at that level.

I've been a folkie, strumming away on accoustics for years and decided to learn to play jazz. This unit has a great jazz tone with 11-guage strings (shipped with nines) and it was just what I was looking for. It does feed back but controlling it is a simple matter of adjusting your position relative to the amp. Not much tonal variety, but I mostly play it on the neck pickup with the tone control rolled down.

Chris at Robert M. Sides in Williamsport, PA where I got it did a great job of setting it up, but it didn't really need much right out of the box. I had to have it set up again (by Jack at Magdon Music in Olyphant, PA this time--closer to home) when I went with the heavier guage strings. Everything is great now--perfectly balanced pickups, low-but-not-too-low action and again, just the sound I was looking for. Now that I think of it, I should have had the pickup selector switch replaced while it was in the shop for that last set up. I am having the usual problems with that.

This guitar would be great for a live gig, but treat it gently--it IS delicate. I would have no choice but to play without a backup, as it is my only electric. The strap buttons seemed solid, but I replaced them with Strap-Loks anyway because I'm afraid that even one hit would knock the guitar seriously out of whack.

Haven't had to deal with customer service yet but I do know from experience on other purchases that Sides backs up what they sell very well, and I would probably never have to deal with Gibson/Epiphone directly.

I have been playing for about 30 years, but as I said, mostly as a folkie accoustic strummer. I have a 1981 Madiera, a 2000 Epiphone AJ 15E acoustic/electric, and a 1934 Gibson L4. This is my only electric and I chose it for its fat jazz tone, looks, price, and reputation. There is nothing that I especially love or hate about it; it was simply the guitar that had the most of what I was looking for at a price that I could handle.