Epiphone Explorer

This is a korean made copy of the gibson shape that we probably know best from james hetfields ESP explorer. its got the bog standard 22 frets with dot inlays. its got the same control set up as hefields esp with 2 volumns (one fer each pickup) and a master tone. this is accompanied by a toggle selecter switch. The best thing about this guitar has to be its thro-neck. very cool for the price of the guitar. the finishes are white, black, natural and kornia (not every finish is availiable in every country)

the guitar has a turn stop bridge - mines gold (on the ebony/black version) the machineheads are ur eppi standard ones - nothing special. the nexk on these guitars are also quite fat - if ur not used to it then make sure u play b4 u buy!

this guitar isnt really a metal guitar (sorry all u metal heads!) it will werk fer metal if u have a LOT of disortion but its very thick and power chords do sorta mush up. im using a boss GT-3 and a marshall 1/2 stack. the guitar is however more versitile than u might think and can go from really think to really think with the flick of the swtich.

i got my explorer mail order but it was ste up quite well. the biggest problem that i have with this guitar tho is the ballence. its sits like a poorly weighted duck that ballencing on a pin head. as soon as u let go of the neck it falls down to the floor. its doe to the possitioning on the strap button on the nect end. it makes playing very very hard!!!!

tbh - i havent played this guitar live. it should stand up to live playing. other than that theres not much to go wrong but ill be nice cuz eppi have a good reputaion and give it an 8.

NA

ive been playing fer 7 yrs and this was a gimic guitar for me becuz i couldnt afford an ESP. i also play a Jackon DR3 - lovely guitar.

Explorer Guitar Shape with 2 knobs and a 3-way switch.
Zebra Distortion Pickups HH 22 frets
Blue
floyd rose bridge.
Non-locking tuners

Distortion Pickups
Good For heavy Metal
I play it with a DOD tech8 pedal and Peavy Backstage 110
Sounds Great. Good for any METALLICA

ALL is good
Slightly rusted

Good All knobs, screws, and strap buttons are tight.
Very Good for Live Playing.

Got it on EBAY.

I have Been playing for 4-5 years.
My other guitars are Harmony Les Paul Copy
Squier Double Fat Strat
It is a Very good guitar for Heavy Metal and plays fast.
I love the good sound and the fast neck.
I wish it had 24 frets.

Black Body, alder i think, 22 frets, fast neck ! 2 knobs, one volume and one tone, a 3 way pickup selector, 2 pickups H-H config. ,
tremolo bridge (an imitation to Floyd Rose Bridges !) not the same
as a floyd !

For the pickups, they are a lot better than any epiphone guitar on
the market ! they're cool but of course not perfect !
You can rock with them easly, if it's whay ur lookin' for !
But you won't be able to get any sustain after the 12 fret ! and i mean it : NO SUSTAIN !!! even, you can't get easly to play the 19,20,21 and 22 frets , because of the body ! But the sound is good for a guitar to rock with !

Here the frustration ! very bad body material ! very very very bad tuning system ! you must tune every time ! and that tremolo bridge !
I wish it wasn't there ! not because i don't use that kind of bridge, in fact i'm a lead guitarist, and i use tremolo system very widly ! (on an ibanez Flying V guitar of my friend in the band...) that tremolo on the explorer is very bad ! if you use the tremolo arm, consider urself to tune ur guitar again !

This guitar is a rock ! you can't break it ! Live ? no, it's bad live,
cause it loose tuning, and don't have that sustain for solos ! no , i prefer using a better guitar live like a Gibson Flying V ...
The straps buttons are good, i don't know why they say that the guitar will fall down ! didn't have this problem yet ! (i have this guitar for 1 year and a half !)

Never dealt !

Well, this guitar is good for beginners , but very bad and annoying for any advanced player ! you really hate playing guitar because of it. If you have any question, please feel free to e-mail me ...

Don't know when/where it was made, and what wood it's made of.

22 frets, solid top, 2 volume knobs, 3-way switch, Hum/Hum Configuration, Stock pickups.

Black Satin finish, Floyd Rose Tremolo, Explorer shape.

No stuff included, i got it used.

I play Heavy Metal, and this guitar is exactly what i need. I run it through a Peavey Rage 158, no effect pedals, and i'm really satisfied with it.
It's not noisy at all. Bridge pickup sounds bright, Neck pickup sounds a lot darker. Don't know if it's rich or not.
I like both pickups, you can get whatever sound you want out of this one IMO.

Got it used, action was low but it's really fun to play it. It has some chips in the finish, but they're small. The volume knob for the bridge pickup doesn't turn as smooth as the one for the neck pickup, and both make noise if you turn them, but i'm using a shitty & damaged cable.
No other flaws.

I don't know if it will withstand live playing.
Hardware looks sturdy, i think i can trust it, same goes for the finish.
God damn those strap buttons. I can play for some hours, and then the strap will get loose, until now i've been lucky and it didn't drop the ground but it really annoys me.
I would depend on it if i had strap locks...
I'd never gig without backup, though, because i already broke 2 bass strings with this oneGod damn those strap buttons. I can play for some hours, and then the strap will get loose, until now i've been lucky and it didn't drop the ground but it really annoys me.
I think i should never gig without backup, just in case a string breaks etc.
But if i had no choice, yeah i would give a shit to the backup.

Haven't dealt with them & Instrument is used

I've been playing for about 9 months now, i got this one 2 weeks ago, and my Peavey amp for christmas. I own a Yamaha acoustic and this one, nothing else. If it were stolen i'd probably hunt the fucker down, rip his balls off and punch them so deep into his throat he'll suffocate.
I love it's sound, until now I got anything I want out of it, and i hate the goddam strap buttons.
I had the chance to get a new squier strat or this one used, and well i want to play heavy stuff (MetallicA, mostly old stuff), so i went for this one and i do not regret it.

Its a '58 reissue made in Korea I think. 22 frets. 3 way tone, 3 way pick up selector, H/H, stock pick ups(the usual trashy pick ups you get with epiphone, Korina body with rosewood fingerboard, dot inlays. Satin finish, it scratches easily but be careful and you should be ok. Tune-o-matic bridge, Gibson non locking tuners, quite a wide neck with medium frets, no accessories, I had to buy a huge bag for it, the shop said its the only thing it would fit in but I don't see how. If anyone can help with what kind of gig bag/case to get then tell me as I cannot see Dave Grohl wandering about with the size of bag I have!!!

This guitar is fine for my musical style which is rocky/punky such as foo fighters, green day, early blink 182. I use it through my Marshall VS 265 R which helps the sound of the guitar through both clean and overdrive channels. Its not as easy to play at amazingly igh guitar settings, I have to turn the amp up rather than the guitar as if the guitar is up really high settings(past about 7) then the pick ups squeal like pigs. The sound is ok, but the top strings sound a bit too chunky for my taste due to the poor pick ups. Its quite a variable sounding guitar, you can get really crisp sounds or really thick sounds. The guitar does the job, but I have to say that if you get it, change the pickups and get good ones!!!

The factory settings were not good really, I had to fiddle about for ages to get a half decent sound, but again its down to these pick ups!! All controls and everything on the guitar is excellent, as epiphones always are, the only thing that lets this guitar down is its pick ups.

This guitar withstands live playing easily, ive played two gigs without problems and never have any problems during practise. It looks like it should last for a long time. Again, as epiphone have high standards the finish is fine, and the strap buttons never move!....you can depend on it, however I have had to put it in to get it repaired due to the pick up selector breaking after just adjusting it with nor force and the bridge being too low and the top string touching other frets with playing so it made a twanging noise instead of a note.

it was under warranty when i got it fixed so everything was fine and I emailed gibson themselves about the pick ups and they were helpful.

I have been playing for two years now and both guitars I have owned have been Epiphone. I wish I had known more about the technical side of guitars before buying it, as in the pick ups!! I would move on to a fender or something else if this guitar was stolen or lost, I would not get it again although I am happy enough with it. The main thing about this guitar is how cool it looks, and with new pick ups it will be an amazing guitar, but the pick ups are so dreadful that they take a good few points off it!....when I put new pickups on it I would give this guitar an easy 9, pushing for a 10 but that can't be said before the pickups get slammed on!!

2000 Korean Explorer
Price $948.75AUD inc. GST
22 frets
Solid top
2 volume 1 tone
H/H, 3 way toggle switching
Gibson ceramic magnet Humbuckers
Korina body, Maple Neck, 1 peice neck/fretboard, (i got it customised)
Satin black finish, easily scratched, but i'm careful
'58 Explorer reissue with stop tailpiece
gibson tuners, Medium/jumbo frets,
came with 2 free spare pickups, i think their EMG-81's

it sounds great for the music i play, heavy metal, with the ceremic magnet pickups it sounds deep, and full, and with the EMG's, it sounds, a lot more powerful.
I run it through an old CMG 100w solid state AC powered amp, but it sounds better though my mate's Marshall Valvestate Full Stack

The action was set too low, i had to raise it to a little over 1.5mm
Everythin was adjusted perfect, no problems with the controls, swiching, pickups, output jack, even the strap holders don't spin.

I've used this guitar at around 7 gigs, without need for any backup
the only backup ive got is a ONYX PIECE OF SHIT, and i wouldn't use it at a gig for $100.

3 year warranty,
i never had to get it repaired so i wouldn't know.
i'll give em a 6 and hope their helpful.

I've been playing for nearly a year, and i've moved onto some pretty damn good music.
I have an onyx strat copy, and a magnum ElectricAcoustic
I compared it with a les paul and a flying v all by epiphone, but they were cheap chinese shit.
I hate where it doesn't have a master volume, as with all gibsons,
for christ's sake maybe they'll hear me and put a fucking master volume on 1 of their designs.

I paied 500 for it.I believe it was made in japan.22 frets,2 volime knobs and 1 tone knob.2 humbuckers with a 3way switch.The body is made of korina,the neck made of mahogany with a rosewood/dot inlays.It has a tune-o-matic bridge,non locking tuners.The neck I believe is"fat" compared to a fender strat neck.Regular frets on a wide neck.It came with a nice plastic hard case.It has a set neck as well.

It's a good garage/rock and roll guitar.I play alot of rock/punky garage(early greenday,foo fighter,nirvana).I wouldn't advise it as a good metal guitar.I use a Marsshall jcm 900 with it,I use both clean and overdrive channels on the amp,the guitar sounds great with it.I use a danelectro daddy-o as a booster for channel b on the amp to pump out the highs I need.The guitar seems to have trouble pumping out high up on the neck.With a nice overdrive sound and a booster to get the highs out it's perfect for rock and roll.It takes time getting use to the body and where the switch is,but it really it a good "over all" sounding good.I don't like how wide the neck is.The tuners are a little big.

Action was low.The low action was good though...because of the wide neck.Pickups are good hard to get feeback from.Has a little bit of a noisy 3-way switch,pickups have just the slightest touch of rust.Finish was perfect no dents no scraps nothing.

I would definately recomend this guitar as "gig worthy without a back-up".Although It's never good to goto a gig with out a back-up no matter what guitar,still.This guitar will last (you get what you pay for).I paied 500$ for it,seems to be great.

It is under warranty for life.Epiphone is a great company,thats why I bought an epiphone explorer.It's basically second best next to gibson!Gibson owns epiphone and I trust gibson.They don't sell crap,so I wouldn't expect them to let their little sister company to sell anything short of greatness.

I've been playing since 5 years.I also own an 2 epiphone les-pauls,1 a standard les-paul,and one a LP100.I also own a fender stratacaster.Marshall jcm 900,danelectro daddy-o(great overdrive).If it were stolen I'd probly buy another one,maybe a used one.It was alot of money so I'd probly take that extra step to make sure it would get stolen in the firts place.I love the look so rock and roll!I hate the extremely curved head-stock.my favorite feature is the tune-o-matic bridge,stretch the strings and go no problem.I just need to break it in more I've only had it 3 months.I choosed it because I always loved the way they looked.

My Explorer is a `98 model, and apparently the last year of the non-Korina models. Unlike the Korina Explorer, this one has black finish and chrome hardware, including a Floyd Rose-licensed "vintage" tremolo instead of the Gibson tune-o-matic bridge. There are 22 frets, two stock humbuckers, one 3-way pickup selector, one volume knob and one tone knob. The body is alder or poplar rather than the Gibson version's mahogany, and the neck appears to be maple with an ebony fretboard. The tremolo and locknut seem to be rather cheap, but unlike most Floyd Rose setups, this one can be adjusted without allen wrenches...big plus! The tuning keys seem more sturdy than most.
Plenty of features for an inexpensive guitar. I'll dock a couple points off because there's only 22 frets and the bridge is obviously a cheapie, but still nicely decked out for the price.

I'm primarily a Jackson player, so I was expecting a big difference. The Explorer has a thicker sound than my Jacksons, especially the low end. The highs aren't as sharp as I like, and the crunch isn't quite enough for me, but I'm reviewing this with the factory strings still on, so I'm sure that makes some difference. I use a Peavey TransTube amp with the midrange at zero, and an ART "kill your neighbors" Xtreme pedal for distortion. The sound of this guitar makes it better suited for heavy, maybe down-tuned rhythm (is "chunge" a word?) playing, but the factory pickups aren't the hottest -- maybe something else would be acceptable for leads.
The sound should get better with some tweaking, but I try to review guitars as they sound right off the showroom floor, not after modifications.

According to Epiphone propaganda, their guitars are assembled in Korea and setup in the USA. Compared to the older Vs and Explorers I've tried before, this was far lighter and more comfortable to play, sitting or standing. But whether it's the difference between bridges, the non-angled headstock or the wood, I haven't been able to get any sustain when playing solos beyond the 12th fret. The action probably needs to be raised a tad, and as I said above, these are the original strings...who knows how many people beat on this thing at the store?
The ebony finish was amazingly free of nicks or scratches of any kind, and the pickups and bridge were in perfect adjustment. The neck is faster than any Gibson or Epi I've tried out before, which made it very easy to move around on.
The only visible flaw was a chip out of the pickup selector switch, but that's easily replaced. The lack of sustain bothers me (minus a few points), but the physical condition of this guitar is as it should be for a new one.

This guitar will be my "third-string" backup, or maybe a rhythm-only axe...a 24-fret Jackson Dinky is my choice for lead duty. The chrome hardware looks cheap, but it seems solid enough for daily play. The tuners and strap buttons are sturdier than many, but the neck strap button is on the back of the guitar, so the strap gets twisted and could possibly work its way loose. The finish seems safe from wearing off, but the body shape puts it at risk from dings and dents, especially the fins. And as I quickly found out, if you bump into ANYTHING while your locknut is loosened for tuning, you better start over.
Overall, a fairly reliable guitar. I'd use it live, but never without a backup.

Never contacted them...yet.

I had no intention of buying an Explorer, but it was a "Manager's Special" and only set me back $220 (rather than the list price of $549 or the "sale" price of $339). I wanted to add something different to my arsenal, so for the price, what better way to try something new? I don't plan to do anything fancy with it, but the price was right and the feel and features work for me.
I wouldn't buy this as a lead axe, but if you already have your dream machine, this makes a good backup.