Epiphone Sheraton II

MORE OR LESS SAME SPEC AS EVERYONE ELSE. GOLD STOCK PICK UPS AND HARDWARE. VINTAGE SUNBURST FINISH, LOOKS THE BIZ! THINJ ITS KOREAN YET AINT SURE. IM NOT BOZZED WHERE IT WAS MADE OR WHEN, I LUV IT.

IF YOU ARE A FAN OF NOEL GALLAGHER THEN THIS GUITAR IS GREAT. I PLAY A LOT OF INDIE/ALTERNATIVE MUSIC IE, OASIS, SUPER FURRY ANIMAL AND I ALSO WRITE MY OWN STUFF. I USE A MARSHALL G80RCD AND FENDER PRINCETON 65 AMPS WITH THIS MAMA AND IT SOUNDS LOVELY THROUGH BOTH. WITH A WAH WAH U CAN CREATE A LOVELY SOUND STRAIGHT OFF 'DYA KNOW WHAT I MEAN?'
WHEN YOU FIRST GET IT YOU HAVE TO PLAY AN OASIS SONG, ITS THE LAW!

NO QUALMS WITH THE FINISH AT ALL, THE ACTION IS LIKE A DREAM, SO EASY TO PLAY COMPARED TO MY EPIPHONE SG AND FENDER SQUIRE STRAT. THE GUITAR SITS LOVELY OFF THE HIP AND IS QUITE COMFORTABLE. I THINK THE PICKGUARD LOOKS CHEAP YET U CANT HAVE EVERYTHING. I JUST CANT PUT IT DOWN, IM HAVIN WITHDRAWAL SYMPTOMS NOW!

A LOT OF FOLK SAY THE GOLD WEARS OFF BUT IVE HAD MINE FOR 3 MNTHS AND I PLAY 1-2 HOURS A DAY AND MINES STILL INTACT. I HAVENT STARTED GIGGING AS YET BUT PLAN TO SOON SO THATS THE REAL TEST. I DONT HAVE A DECENT BACK UP GUITAR SO I HOPE I DONT NEED ONE. I TRUST THIS GUITAR WITH ME LIFE.

HAVENT HAD ANY PROBS APART FROM DELAYS IN DELIVERY BUT THAT WAS SORTED OUT QUICKLY AND EFFICIENTLY.

AT THE PRICE IT WAS A SNIP, IVE SEEN IT IN LEEDS SHOPS FOR #525, SO I CHUFFED I GOT IT SO CHEAP. IVE BEEN PLAYING ABOUT A YEAR SOLID AND HAVENT OWNED A DECENT GUITAR BEFORE SO ITS A CHANGE TO CHEAPO CRAP. I WISH THE PICKGUARD WAS MORE CLASSIER. IF IT WAS STOLEN ID BUY IT AGAIN OR MAYBE A SUPERNOVA MODEL YET THERE HARD TO GET NOW. MY FAVOURITE FEATURE IS THE TONE IT WEEPS AND HOW COOL IT LOOKS. IF ITS GOOD ENUFF FOR NOEL ITS GOOD ENUFF FOR ME.

Korien made ES-335 copy. Purchased new in '92. 22 frets, Maple laminate body, set maple neck, rosewood fret board, gold hardware. Passive psuedo Epi PAF pick ups. Finish is vintage sunburst. Tune-o-matic style bridge. Came with Epi 335 style case. Two tone, two volume controls and a 3 position switch.

Theorhetically, this guitar should have matched my style well, but it came short. I try to play progressive rock with heavy influences from both classical and jazz. (yea, yea, it's been done before.) Both jazzy clean and with vintage (jethro tull'ish) marshall distortion. My hopes were that this guitar would replace my need to play both my 73 Les Paul Custom, and my EMG packing frankenstien strat. It didn't work. Anyway,
I don't use alot of effects. I run a DSP128 through my marshall, basically fixed on med.rm. verb, and I have a 69 Fender Bassman 50 watt head that I'm still trying to get along with.
All in all, the Sheraton looks better than it sounds.

Had to dress the frets as there was some uneveness to them. Otherwise, the action was very low and fast. There is a slight mis-alignment with respect to the strings lining up over the pickup poles, but not too far off to be a problem. Otherwise, the finish of the guitar body was very nice. The binding, including around the F-holes was very nice.
Naturally, the electronics bite. They seem cheap and have been redesigned for 2001. (Nearly 10 years too late for me.)

The gold plating on all the hardware sucks. It wears off in short order with a little playing. The frets hold up well. The finish is still perfect. Pick gaurd scrathes easily, but I suppose that's what it's for. The strap buttons are oversized and work well. Sure wish they used std. chrome hardware, as the gold hardware is the only real problem with the guitar durability.

Don't know. No need to bother them.

I would not buy this Guitar again. Over the years, I found that I didn't play this guitar much. Never played it live, and rarely used for rehersals. Only used occasionally for recordings if it happen to capture the tone I was looking for. (not very often.) Tried replacing the pickups recently in an attempt to start using this guitar. (Active EMG 89's). Still don't like it. I ordered a De Armond X-155 "pig in a poke" style. (Never played one!) based purely on my research and am hoping that this will give me the nitch sound that I have been looking for for years. (aka Steve Howe meets Pat Matheney.)
I believe that if I spent the cash for real Gibson pickups, that this guitar would have a chance at sounding like an ES-335, but am unwilling to make that investment, as it would still be a comprimise from the sound that I really want.

alright, here we go. I just picked up my sheraton from the repair shop yesterday and I almost creamed my shorts after hearing how it sounded with the new pickups. no joke. the sound flows through the air like melting crystals...
well, now for the rundown.
I think it was made in '99. Korean. you all know the specs, so I won't bother getting into that.
So, the pickups! The stock PU's sounded like they should for the price. The neck PU was kinda mushy, and the bridge was kinda shrill. So after owning the guitar for two days I ordered a pair of Seth Lover PU's (Neck and Bridge). you have no idea. This guitar sounds like gold. All the talk about how this guitar can be the equivalent of the ES-335 is DEAD ON!!!
That aside, I'm kind of worried about string saddles. I've broken one string, although I was playing a little hard. But I think a little filing job should solve that problem.
I'm going to replace the tuners tonight. You might notice a "clink" while tuning certain strings. This is the tuning peg "slipping" from the tension. I think I'll go with some grovers to fix this.
Everything else is perfect. i mean it. perfect.
I'm giving a 10 here, but that's only with replacement parts, other wise, it's a 5.
oh yeah, I also changed the volume knobs because the stocks are really ugly. It's like they're trying to hard to make it look vintage. In my opinion, their just plain ugly.

I play tons of different styles of music, but "Shoegaze" is the focus of my sound. The warm/crisp/melting sound of this guitar should suit anyone except for the skids(megadeath/slayer)...
let's see, effects. well, I'll just list em, cause I've spent 7 years adding and ditching effects, and I've finally got the perfect set up. So, Electroharmonics Bigg Muff, Small Stone Phaser, Boss Volume pedal (FVsomething), DOD 2-second Digital Delay, Cry Baby wah( I think I'll get a vox sometime soon), Boss Pedal Tuner/Power supply, Dalelectro "Tuna Melt" tremolo, Boss Chorus, Danelectro "Fish 'n Chips" equalizer, Boss DD-5 Digital Delay, E-bow plus, Alesis Quadraverb II(Q2)... that's it. done.
oh yeah, amp. I run through a fender Deville 2x12. The reverb on this amp accents the sheraton II's(well, the sheraton II with Seth Lover pickups) sooooo well.
So yeah, it's Gold. (now...)

Set up was perfect.
As I said in my other entry, the gold wore off within two weeks. But who cares... not me, I've got new pickups!!!
Oh yeah, the PU Selector sucked too, it started cutting out and it was really noisey, so I ousted that and replaced it. perfect.
Again, with replacement parts - 10, without, 6

The new hardware is going to last until my dying day. I've got two guitars and I'll be bringing them both to my shows and using both of them...

N/A...

I'll stop now and just say that this guitar, when overhauled, is the shit!!! the sound is orgasmic.

just a short review, I'll update the entry in a couple days. I bought this guitar knowing that the electronics sucked. I intended to replace everything from day one. After owning the sheraton II for two weeks the gold finish started to wear off, the pickup toggle switch started cutting out as changed positions... Soooo, yes, this guitar sucks if you're not willing to spend some coin on an overhaul.
More to come

The body is excellent but the pickups and toggle switch are terrible, I'll be spending $400(Canadian) on new pickups, toggle switch, and electronics. From what I've read here, I hope to have a sweet ass guitar when I get it back from the shop.
I'll let you know.

1998 and Made in Korea, 22 frets, hollow bodied semi-acoustic with 2 volume and 2 tone controls, 3 way selector, laminated body etc etc etc. It also came with a free hard case, as I refused to buy it otherwise!

I play a lot of blues and folk based music, and this guitar is surprisingly versatile, especially using capo or bottleneck. The top end can be cranked up to give a nice bright sound, and the more bassy qualities come in handy too (for faking a bass line!) I run it thru either a 50 watt Poker combo, or a Fender automatic, and it sounds better than either of these amps might otherwise promise. The only downside is that with (too much) Boss distortion, you suddenly sound like Soundgarden.

The action is great, the pickups needed a little tweaking for comparative volume (ie neck pickup louder than bridge, although this can be handy in a small combo). Everything else fine, except the strap button uder the neck had obviuosly sheared off in transit and been re-fitted by an idiot.

I have had this guitar for nearly 3 years and it is the same as the day I bought it. Solid piece of wood. My strap button gruipe is recorded above. The only reson I might use a second guitar is for a different sound (tele style noises are beyond this macine), or to save my back from the immense weight!!

I've never used this facility.

I have been playing the guitar for nearly 20 years, and have several acoustics (12 string, E-acoustic, hot-rodded acoustic for slide, plus a few other pieces of junk!!). I bought this guitar to replace stolen fender and aria electrics, and I have no complaints. You can sit and play it without it falling off your lap (handy for recording!), and compared to other semis, it does feel indestructable.
If it got pinched? I think I'd buy another epiphone of some sort, perhaps something even bigger for extra protection!

You know this beast I guess (ES335 Copycat) . Mine is natural with gold parts. I own it for 2 years now, and still happy
Just one thing : the metal parts are quiet "cheap",
if you use this axe intensively and if you sweat a lot like me, the gold "color" go away quite quickly. One thing more bad is that the bridge metal itself go away, (i.e on the low E saddle ) like if my hands would be sand paper. And I have trouble to find a repleacemnt bridge or even saddles that fit with this guitar. Maybe i'll try Graphtech Saddle but they are quite expensive. Another thing : I break quite a lot of high E stings. I've tried to sandpaper the saddle but with little succes. I thing the metal quality is behind this prob.
really nice flat jumbo frets

Nice for me, I play jazz with a singer.
a good axe for comping and get a modern jazz sound for soloing
I use only the neck pickup, I think the mic are not what can be the best (especialy the bridge one), but nevertheless the sound is decent with the standard mic. even if I plan to change them in the future. I'm left handed so my choice is thin, but compare to many, it is one of the best I have tried in this kind of axe.
Just would like to have a more progressive ton pot

Really perfect action, good finish, i have just lowered the neck pickup because the sound was too bassy
Really easy to play in the high, but like any es335copy

no prob at this stage
use it with all my gigs (3 - 4 per month) without a backup

don't know

Really a good axe for the price

Bought in '94.. this is an update on how it's been for me for the last six years. Korean, Samick made, 22 frets, laminated maple top bakc and sides, center block, rosewood fingerboard, five piece maple/mahogany neck. standard gibson style controls, two tone, two volume, three way switch. double humbucks. standard gibson style bridge and tailpiece. natural finish. grain looks way cool. semi hollow, double cutaway, twin f hole. epi tuners are ok, not great. 24.5" scale. came with case. gold hardware. fantastic neck inlay and multi ply binding all over, even the pickguard.------the gold only wore out where I rest my hand on the bridge, and where I rest my pinky on the lower edge of the bridge pickup. It still doesn't need a fret dress, although it's getting close. Played daily, left on the stand for almost the first two years and this baby would be like new with just a little polishing. (finish is just a tad hazy.. about what you'd expect) It's a beaut, and it's strong. I wouldn't trade or sell it.

I play rock and blues and also use it for travis style finger picking. I run it through my fender hot rod deluxe, sometimes via my digitech rp 7. I got a hell of a deal on a set of gibson pickups, free, so I took them. (thanks John Cole). however, the original pickups were NOT microphonic as some have reported. (very little more than the gibsons) and the original pickups were only slightly less tonally and volume wise than the gibsons. The gibsons are an improvement, but I don't think I would have paid the going price on them for that difference. (sorry gibson). Attenuate my comments on the guitars current sound with gibson pickups just a bit, and you'll know what it sounded like stock. It has plenty of bite, it can play very jazzy and warm, and you can get a BB type sound from it as well. When I really crank the HRdeluxe both the amp and the guitar come alive in the nicest possible way. I'd rate this very highly as a do it all guitar soundwise. I love the clean 'acoustic' tones, it has plenty of sustain. Played dirty, it ROCKS, make no mistake. Honestly, if I were going to spend 2 to 3 grand on a gibson, I'd get four or five epiphones instead, and mix and match pickups. You might not have the resale, but man.. you'd have some great sounding and playing instruments.

The important thing here is how has it held up over the last six years. And the only thing I can say is, it's wonderful. If I used a little finish polish it would be like new. The gold has only worn off where I rest my hands, as stated above, the tuners are still well plated. Really, for the money, you get a lot of fancy guitar, and a lot of good guitar. I'm giving it a nine just because it wasn't 'perfect' in the first place. there is some visible filler around a couple of the abalone/pearl neck inlays. big whoop.

This guitar takes a beating. I clean it about twice a year, now, except for wiping the strings and dusting. I put dunlop strap locks on it right off.. still solid. You could gig with this guitar all you wanted, no backup required. Nothing has gone badly with it. I've used it with .009s, .010s and .011s and all I needed to do was set the bridge height and adjust intonation. It always intonates very well. The frets are holding up really well.

Lifetime warranty. I don't know if it's voided because I swapped out the pickups myself. I don't care. This guitar will never need anything but a fret job, which you'd expect after years of use. Epiphone/Gibson has always replied to my emails and have sent me free catalogs and posters whenever I wanted, so I'm giving them a ten.

I've played since 1964. I've had too many guitars and basses to list here. I currently use the sheraton, a taylor 310 acoustic, an esp ltd b-50 bass, the digitech rp 7, a fender hot rod deluxe, a tascam 424 MK III cassette, and have a dod fx 7. ---- If it were lost or stolen, I'd check out the epiphone dot first, but if it didn't measure up, I'd pay the extra for another sheraton II. ---- I love the sound, and the action and the look. It's a bit weighty, but I don't really mind. I think it's a tossup between sound and playability for fave feature.--- If I were to change anything, I'd replace these gibsons with the same seymour duncans that are in the Hamer 25th anniversary chevron mahogany model, then I'd kick everybodys ass with it. --- My overall rating is ten because this guitar simply has not let me down in any way for six years. It's my pal, my therapist, my ally, .. I'm taking this one to the grave. --- I do wish it had an ebony fingerboard. For two reasons. Ebony would look much better on this guitars neck. And The Sheraton II deserves another 'feature' over epis other models to set it apart. If I were gibson, I'd add the ebony fingerboard, be more picky about the inlays, put in slightly better pickups, make sure all of them had better fret work ( I see some people have complained.. my frets were fine) and add a hundred bucks to the price. I don't think anything could beat this guitar, overall, for as much as five hundred bucks more, then. They seem to sell at just over six hundred, now, and I think that's a fair price. I'd pay it.

The Features are that it is cheap and looks real nice. Has a nice flourish of fretboard inlay. I doubt it is mother of pearl, but it looks like it. Headstock is also very pretty, but I doubt it is real abalone. Two el crappo humbuckers. The workmanship seems to be pretty tight as far as the woodwork is concerned. The hardware is another story. 4 knobs one three-way switch. It is a semi-hollowbody. My friend says it feel like a Cadillac in his hands. I agree. It has a nice feel. I think these are made in Korea. Wherever it is, they do a good job. Body is laminated maple. I am not sure how that is different from regular maple.

It took me a while to find the right pickups to put in. Finally I got it right with Classic 57's. Get them cheapest on Ebay. The stock pickups were not horrible in general, but did not work well with the Princeton Chorus DSP I was using. They had a nice overall tone, but were very imbalanced. Treble was way out of control and bass was muddy. But the sound and reverberation of the guitar is great. I am talking about the tone without the pickups on. The stock pickups make the guitar sound like the rhythm guitar on Velvet Underground's "What Goes On." The guitar has the same character of their non-distorted songs. Gentle and sustained. I think Lou Reed was using semi-hollow bodies. The sustain is great. The chords just roll into one another. I feel like this guitar would best suit rhythm playing. The chords really sounds nice and balanced. Once you find the right pickups for you. The sound is like a Cadillac.

In the Fender Princeton Chorus DSP the guitar can sound really nice with the effects, i.e., reverb and chorus. Clean, it has this far away sound that annoys me. In my Deluxe Reverb this guitar sounds incredible. So rich and strong and full of history. I don't think I like the Princeton. Because my other guitars sound far away in it too. We were wooed by the effects of the amp in the store. The clean sound is just OK.

The setup wasn't bad at all. I have only had to adjust the intonation. Neck was straight and curved just right. No buzz spots on the neck. Like I said earlier. The workmanship was great on the woodwork. The hardware should probably all be replaced. I replaced the pickups and tuners. Also, one lame thing is that the volume and tone must be wired wrong. When I lower the volume it lowers the tone too, and vice versa. It is workable, but stupid. The finish is nice. The natural looks great.

The dials and toggle seem cheap, but they may last forever. Who knows. Everything else seems very durable. The guitar has a very nice solid feel, not delicate like a hollowbody.

Don't know yet.

It seems like a pretty good deal for the money. Be prepared to at least get some new pickups. Strangely, you can sell the Epiphone pickups for up to $100 on ebay. Maybe there are fetishists out there. The guitar does have a great feel and sound and looks great on you. Just about all you need.

Not quite sure about the year, but made in Korea. Semi-hollow guitar. It's made of maple i think. Two decent humbucking pickups. Good tuners, with a stop tail-piece and gold hardware. Did not inclued case. Solidly made, set neck

It suits my need perfectly, i play in a jazz group, but I also play blues and rock. This guitar can hanlde it all. I use a crappy crate amp with it, but it still sounds great even while distorted. It can have a soft dull sound, which is good for jazz, but it is very versitile.

It's action is good. The pick-ups are pretty good too. THe gold finish rubbed off the guitar. THe tone switch make the guitar buzz while turning it...not a big problem though. I like the bridge and tuners. No real problems.

THis guitar is great for live playing. It is structuraly solid and fairly durable. The finish is without scratches and hasn't been a problem and seems like it will last along with the guitar. A volume knob fell off once and i glued it back on. The gold finish rubbed off the bridge. I always gig with a back-up, but never had needed one with this guitar

I bought it used

I own several other guitars inclueding a guild, and ESP a Seagull and some basses. THis is a gem, and worth the money. You will not find another guitar of this quality for the price. I thought is was much better then the Joe Pass Emporer, and the Casino, regardless they cost more, I highly recomend it.

All the same stuff the others have

This was the worst part of this guitar.

Very nicely finished and all that binding and abalone was beautiful. Action was downright OK.

Can't really say only had it a year and only played it to test out amplifiers

No comment

Case was extra but still a fair bargin. Guitar would be so nice and worth more if Epi/Gibson put some decent pickups on this thing.

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