Epiphone Flying Vee-Wee

Bought in April '06. I think made in China. One Volume, no tone control. Sealed tuners. V shaped gig bag and 9V powered amp.

HERE IS THE DEAL: I bought this for my 6 year old son. I've played every mini guitar in this town, and this was the least impressive sounding, and I tried to steer him to something else, like a full size BC Rich or Dean (which the MIC versions are exceptionally nice for about $150).

However, he had his mind made up - he wanted the bright red V. So I swallowed hard and bought the thing thinking he didn't care initially how it sounded, and this was for him, so I wanted him to be excited about the whole experience. So we took the lil' V home.

HERE IS WHERE I WAS ABSOLUTELY AMAZED: This thing is not a real "guitar" in the traditional sense, but it is a really cool instrument. Plugged into one or both of my lil' practice amps (Roland Cube/Vox DA5), this thing really rocks! Forget clean, you have to turn it to crunchy, a little reverb, chorus, and delay, and this thing starts to sing!

Most reviewers say "you can't tune a mini to E." Why not? Mine tuned right up, and I'm sure GC must have set it up out of the box, because I've done zero to the damn thing and it plays. Tuned to E is especially cool because the strings are so loose. Bending and solos take on a whole new dimension! The action is nice and low, and harmonics are easy to achieve in the distorted mode. Pink Floyd, Van Halen, AC DC, they all sound good. Over a weekend, I found myself unable to put this thing down. My poor son was actually having to fight me to get to play it!

The little amp it came with is so bad it is actually cool. You can't get this thin and papery a sound with anything else. This amp would be good to record with because you could not (and probably would not want to) duplicate this sound if you tried. I plug into the Roland or Vox and run the line out into this thing and make it suffer. Poor lil' 9V amp does not know how to handle actual sounds, so the reactions you get out of this little piece of crap is almost worth the money spent.

WARNING: This guitar will feedback at the drop of a hat. You cannot play this like a nice, normal, good guitar. This is great for a kid, because the action and sounds (especially through a good amp) very easily mimick what they are trying to accomplish i.e. feedback, powerchord distortion, easy action, thin neck, light weight.

Mine has stayed in tune reasonably well, but I've only had it a few days. We'll see.

The main problem I've encountered is the poor stability and construction. Even with the strings at such low tension, the neck wants to bend to and fro. You have to remain quite still while playing or you can actually HEAR the neck bending back and forth, putting the thing out of tune. This might be cured by a higher pitch tuning or heavier gauge strings, but I'm really scared to modify this thing. It seems so cheap and brittle, and I've been so pleased so far. This will likely change, both the guitars impressiveness, and my apprehension to modify it, and I'll report later on what I find. A resounding 8 FOR WHAT IT IS. THIS IS NOT YOUR LES PAUL STANDARD. This is your kids V, and you are having $150 worth of fun (what I pay for about 3 movies, popcorn, etc. for the two of us).

Lots of this addressed above. Nice red finish. Nice low action. Sealed tuners, was easy to tune, and knock on plywood or particle board, hope it stays that way. Nice black uncovered humbucker. Easily the best selling point of this is its appearance. It's a V with black and chrome hardware. Looks cool just sitting there. Almost alone justifies the purchase for a collector. A 10 for what it is (maybe I just got lucky, this is the only one I've seen). However, the flimsy neck attachment does suck so 8. Maybe I can glue set the neck?

Had it now for three days. Bought it only because some of you gave it a good rating. Very glad I did. I'm going to start collecting these little, cheap, guitars.

No idea. We'll see.

Think this thing should be priced at under $100. However, the above stands. This thing is really a cool instrument. Not great quality. No sweet ringing tones. Just good distorted rock and roll fun. I've already enjoyed the &*%$ out of it over just one weekend! GUITAR COMPANIES: PLEASE BUILD MORE COOL LITTLE ELECTRIC GUITARS.

First, I need to explain why I bought this guitar. To some, it may seem to be a joke. And as pointed out in other reviews, it isn't a particularly good guitar in terms of intonation and playability. But when I first saw it, I realized it would be a really cool lap steel. Details to follow...

Now back to features- This guitar is stripped to the basics- one humbucker and a volume control. No tone control, pickup switch, trem, etc. Simple one-color paint job (mine is gloss black). Heavy-duty bridge/tailpiece with individual saddle adjustments.

I preferred this minimal configuration for my intended use as a lap steel, so I give it a provisional 10.

With such an inexpensive guitar, I was afraid I would have to chuck the pickup. But I was pleasantly surprised. Played as a lap steel with a heavy bar slide, the sound is heavenly. Really nice full tone, and a great twang if you pick near the bridge. It breaks up real nice through my MXR distortion box. This pickup is a keeper.

I can't comment on the factory setup, because I completely reworked this guitar for lap steel:

1- Installed a Slide Guitar Extension Nut (Stewmac #4596 or similar). I shaved the bottom of the truss rod cover to get the extender to fit flush to the peghead.

2- Removed the two black intonation screws from the bridge. Adjusted all saddles to full forward position. This is necessary for proper intonation when using a slide.

3- Installed HEAVY strings- best for slide. I used Dean Markley DT 13-56, which has these gauges: 13P, 16P, 26W, 36W, 46W, 56W.

4- Adjusted pickup height to .1 inch (3/32") from poles to string bottoms.

5- Removed strap buttons. One was installed with an extra long screw in the neck/body joint, so I removed the screw, removed the button, ground the screw down to the proper length and reinstalled it.

6- For slide, these are the standard open tunings you can use with this guitar: C = GCGCEG, D = ADADF#A, G = GDGBGD, A = AEAC#AE. Drop the major 3rd tone a half step to get the minor tunings. Note: This short-scale guitar will not allow the 6th string to be tuned to E.

7- Bought a Shubb SP2 bar slide. Very heavy, but easy and comfortable to hold. Really nice shape allows full chords, pairs of notes, and single notes due to the rounded end.

Dispite the low price, this guitar is very well made. The paint is tough and the wood feels very solid. The bridge is quite massive and strong. The pickups and mounting ring are standard Gibson quality and everything fits, mounts, and adjusts well. The tuners are kind of wimpy, but they get the job done. I might replace them someday with better quality ones with a higher turn ratio.

Never needed it.

Modified as a lap steel, I absolutely love this guitar!!! For only about 150 bucks, I had a total blast modifying and playing this little guy over a weekend. I've played regular slide before, but never lap syle. The "VeeWee" is the perfect shape for lap- you can rest your hand on the upper arm of the "V", or put it your hand in the point of the "V" to pick right near the bridge. The controls and cord jack are in the perfect position for lap style as well.

Since it is so small and inexpensive, I carry it with me everywhere. I wouldn't dream of bringing my Les Paul into the office, but this VeeWee is perfect for break time noodling.

As I mentioned, the sound is great. Lately, I have been playing with an open G minor tuning (GDGDBbGD) and this pedal chain: Distortion (high) -> Tremelo (slow and big) -> Delay (lots, no feedback) -> Reverb (tons). With this setup, I am in space-rock heaven! I set up some nice drone sequences on my soft synth for background and explore the galaxy...

I now own 5 guitars, and my lap-steel PeeVee wins the "Most Fun" award hands down!

I didn't have many problems hitting the lower notes but on the higher notes it is kinda hard to get your fingers down to the 19-22 frets. You need to switch your fingering a little bit but no biggie. I found that the neck was a bit wide for me and my palm rubbed against the high E string sometimes. Once again, a little fingering adjustment fixes this.

This is the best sounding guitar I have ever heard. My friend has a $300 Fender and my Epiphone sounds better on his amp than his does. Works very well for 80's metal and hard rock. Very dark deep sound on the low strings. Amp that came with it wasn't the best but you could have expected that for the price. Just turn overdrive up and volume all the way and you have a great metal guitar.

Action was a little bit high but still able to play with it like that. Paint looks nice and so does the chrome.

This guitar is VERY durable. I had to carry it downstairs and I bumped against the wall a couple times with absolutely no damage done.

This is the first guitar I have owned but I used to rock out on my friends Fender Stratocaster and Fender Telecaster. I will definately look to buy something like this again.

This guitar package has everything you need for a travel guitar. one volume control, one humbucker, 19" scale neck, Les Paul JR style bridge. Package came with battery amp, strap, cord, picks, and tools for adjusting guitar intonation.

For the price, the sound is just fine. the battery amp has a pretty cheap sounding overdrive, but has more than enough fuzz. the guitar isnt very bright, but has a decent sound. good for overdriven/distorted tones, but rather poor for clean sounds.

the guitar was set up pretty well from the factory, needing only minor adjustment. the only major problem with the factory setup was the standard string guages. i put on a set of 13-62 guage strings, and it corrected the tuning/playability problems, as the short scale has a much lower string tension. the action was set a little too high for the short scale, and the medium/tall fret wire can cause trouble to the heavy handed, again due tot he short scale. paint is suprisingly nice, with few flaws, no runs.

This is not a heavy gigging guitar. it is built plenty sturdy for a travel/practice guitar, and should stand the test of time. the guitar's simplicity should ensure no major problems.

N/A

ive been playing for several years, and i play a '67 Fender Mustang, Fender Duo Sonic, Jackson Rhoads, Marshall Silver Jubilee, Peavey Ultra 120, Hendrix FuzzWah, Boss SD-1. I am really happy with this guitar package, and may buy another one down the road. this guitar is a lot of fun; i take it almost everywhere. i like the feel of this model much more that that of the pee wee les paul, which seems much less comfortable to play.

korea made (paid in apples)
22 fret which i can deal with
fully solid finish
vol and tone controal and a 3 way pickup switch no bar
2x double humbucker TO BE UPGRADED TO EMG
black wood finish and white scratchplate
box and case came with it

it suits 80`s Metal fine
i use Marshall amps and a zoom 707 box
i like it`s clean (chorus) and distorted sound, best on bridge or both pickups
i love it!

it is v. well balanced with the neak pickup too high and bridge too low but i ajusted that, if you dont slam the pickup selector its quiet

it stood up to pmu playing, which is lotsa hard strokes repeatedly
and easy playing in the same night, its still on 4 month old strings.
the strap buttons are solid, and its relyable i wouldnt do any gig with just one guitar!

didnt

i played since 2k3 xmas on vee, but bass for 3 years,
i know it was an honest deal.
no one found any flaw so far, the great thing is anyone warms to it very fast and is better balanced than a jackson
i also have 2wo bass amps, compared to a les paul (gibson custom origional) i preser it but i still want to get a les and i have a lust for Metallica`s kirk hammet Mummy guitar, as well as a official v

One humbucker and low quality amp that has a pretty harsh overdrive.

I play it thru the little amp that came with it and crank the overdrive all the way up. Keeping it in tune is as bad as the other reivews say (I'll have to try the higher tuning) but it works well for slide. It sounds reasonably like Hound Dog Taylor's guitar. I give it a five based on using it for slightly juiced blues jamming on slide only.

E string does buzz. Came from the store ready to play but for some bridge adujstments.

Seems fine. I haven't hit it on the cement yet.

?????

I've been playing on and off for 20 years, mostly slide on electric, mostly country on acoustic. I own a fender strat and a couple of hot-rodded pawn shop things, plus lots of acoustic string instruments.

This guitar is exactly what I expected for my son. There is another review from a guy who obviously doesn't know how to play guitar, so I will give this a shot backed by almost 20 years guitar playing experience. It is difficult to tune but there is an easy fix. Just move your strings up one so your A string becomes E, D becomes A, and so on. When you get to high E, just use a light guage (like 9) for both E and B. Tune the guitar and you are ready to go. I jammed on Enter Sandman from Metalica with no problems.

Sound is fine. It was a little bright, but nothing major. I play it through a BOSS Metal Zone effect pedal and a Fender Ultimate Chorus. No problems. Had it cranked with nothing really different than any other guitar. Minimal feedback, but it was there if I wanted to use it.

Factory settings suck, but then again... Who is going to buy a guitar off the rack and not set it up? A tweak here, and tweak there, and it was good to go.

Built like a rock!

No need to contact Customer Support.

Been playing about 20 years. Have Les Paul, Custom Fender Strat, 2 Kramers, EVH Music Man/Axis, and a few built from scratch. I think my 6 year old is going to get a kick out of this, and soon enough he can jam with me! The size of this guitar is perfect for kids becuase it is small and durable.

This scaled down guitar came with one humbucking pickup. In my opinion, the plug hole(?) should be on the face of the guitar instead of on the bottom, where it interferes with your leg and ruins a good cable. It came with the perfect little strap and a decent gig-bag. Scaled down neck. You need to tune it to G to make it stay in tune at all. Comes in red or black.

I bought this guitar for my 3 year old. It sounds great. I like to sit around and jam on it, and he loves it. It's very comfortable, balanced nicely.

The action was great. I had to take a screwdriver and adjust the pickup, coz the base side was all the way down; no big deal. Putting the pickups back even made the guitar sound even richer; fuller. I don't know what key they meant for this to be tuned to, but I know A and G work great. It was nowhere near either one of those from the fractory.

For my 3 year old, who takes it off and drops it on the ground, it's great. Very solid, the finish is fine. Good, sturdy guitar. I would not use it for a gig. Why would anyone? Great for young, learning guitar players. But, works great for me, just goofing around, too.

Warranty is for the life of the instrument under normal playing. Never had to deal with the company; which is a good thing.

I have been playing for 11 years. I own a Gibson v and 2 strats, A fender bass, Yamaha classical and Yamaha 12-string, Casio keyboard. This guitar was just as I expected it to be, because I read up on it before I bought it. The extremely negative review in this same forum is obviously from a non-player, and should be ignored. I chose this one because I just bought the Gibson V and thought the boy would love the miniature one. I was right.

Bought this for the kids, so they would leave my SG and Strat alone. It's got one hum, volume, shorter than normal scale so it's hard to tune(still haven't got it right) Seems pretty well put together (the kids ain't broke it yet) The tuners are crap.

The pickup on this thing is very high output. Sounds pretty good actually. When plugged into the amp with my Gibson SG, this thing is so loud I can't hear the SG.

not bad for what it is. action was too high so I lowered it abit so the kids could play it easier. like I said before,crappy tuners

built like a brick

This is a small sized guitar supposedly good for travel. It has cheap pick ups and only has like 20 or 22 frets. The frets are closed together which was a plus for me.

The sound was 10 times worse then a blood curdling scream. When the guitar arrived at my house it was out of tune and I never got it in tune. I bought it at Mars and when I couldn't tune it I brought it to them. They used their big expensive tuner and they still couldn't tune it!!!! It has to be tuned to a g scale not the classic e so it is really hard to tune. I never got it tuned so I returned it. The top 3 strings (i dont know there names but the fat ones) made a vibrating sound agiainst the neck when you even lightly strum them.

The pick ups were loose, the guitar was in okay shape, and the controls were loose.

Under normal conditions this guitar would probalby last a very long time but that is because once you see how horrible it is, you will never play it and it will just collect dust. I bet the way that it is most likely to break is by the owner smashing on the cement because they hate it so much.

I didn't deal with epiphone but they have to stink to sell this piece of garbage to anyone. Mars is very good, they will let you return this piece of garbage if you didn't listen to this review and u bought it.

I have small hands so I bought this guitar thinking that it would be good for me. I was wrong! The guy at Mars pretty much tolled me that this guitar is the electric guitar equivalent to one of those cheap plastic toy guitars that you can buy in wal mart. I'm gonna buy a BC Rich after I return this chunk of elephant dung.