Peavey HP Signature EXP

This is what the Peavey web site says:
- Korean made, metallic gold body, comfortable to handle.
- 24 3/4 inch scale, set-neck guitar with a one-piece maple neck
- Rosewood fretboard with white synthetic binding on neck
- Flame maple veneer top on a three-piece agathis body
- 22 frets
- Grover?? die-cast machine heads with 18:1 ratio, dual torsion rod
- Tune-o-matic bridge and stop tailpiece
- Two humbucking pickups
- One master tone and two master volume controls with three-way switch
Gold-plated hardware
Case not included

I feel that the straight sound may be just a little inferior, somewhat cloudy. However I use Boss pedals to enhance the sound and it is acceptable for gigs. When distortion is used, it delivers very well. Not a major issue.

Action: This is why I bought this guitar. The action is incredible for the price and sets new pricing standards for all the rest. Though I had never laid my hands on a Peavey, after feeling out several guitars at the guitar shop, such as Fender, Gibson, etc (for almost 1$k more), I came across this Peavey and was totally blown away. The neck felt like it was custom made for my hand. Months later at a gig, a member of the audience was asking about this guitar and how great it looked. As a courtesy to a fellow guitar player, I let him try the guitar out. After telling him that I paid $320.00 for it, he expressed that all the other guitar manufacturers were in trouble. He begged to buy it for that price, and I declined.
Fit: The Fit is excellent.
Finish: The finish is excellent.

I have owned the guitar for about 6 months with no problems. I read one review about issues with maintaining tuning. This is not a guitar issue, it is a knowledge issue. To help in preventing the strings from going out of tune, especially new strings, do this. After installing new strings, or prior to tuning, grab the string with your fingers and stretch the string and let go. This will pull any slack out of the string along the neck. Then check and adjust the sting tuning. Repeat this process one more time. The string will remain in tune much longer this way. One more hint to maintain the strings from rusting is to use the ???quick??? car wax after playing the instrument. This will prevent rust build-up from the sweat of your hand. It also helps the slide action.

I give this a ten. I emailed Peavey Support one time and received a timely response.

TEN. I have been playing for 35 years. I have owned quality guitars such as a Gibson Les Paul Custom and Fender Stratocaster (American). Since I have owned this Peavey Signature, I don???t even bring the Stratocaster to gigs any more. In my opinion, the action quality of this guitar is one heck of a deal that you cannot legally buy through another manufacturer. If you???re a working person, before you spend $1200 or more on another guitar, at least try this guitar out. You won???t be disappointed. I was disappointed that Peavey did not provide a guitar case with this, but I got over it.

This neat guitar is a 2005, Korean made, Translucent Black HP Signature EXP model.
Laminated quilted maple top.
Three piece mahogany back and solid mahogany neck.
Lovely Grover tuners.
Two solid humbuckers
Ebony fretboard
Dual compression bridge (strings can go through the body or mount straight off the bridge itself which is my current setup).
All gold plated hardware.
Wide - but comfortable - neck with good quality inlays.
No Case included, and costs extra.
Body style similar to PRS but slightly larger - I prefer this

Until recently I was only playing Ibanez GB10 or most jazz sounds and events, and a custom made - beautiful - Strat (Necx Guitars UK) for just about everything else. I have a friend whose PRS is a neat instrument but I just can't really justify the spend so I was on the hunt of a humbucker sound like a Les Paul or PRS. The EXP appeared on ebay. I checked a whole bunch of reviews on the web and became convinced this might be what I am looking for. I have not been disappointed. The sound is so close to the LP and PRS it has to be heard to really be believed!

I play through a Roland JC120, with an old Boss GT3 setup, xotic RC booster pedal and Daphon overdrive. This is a sweet rock setup but the settings on the GT3 had to be tweeked most of the stock settings are OTT! (read the manual and reprogram,.. there is a lot of fun waiting for the patient!)

The EXP performs so well through this line up but equally pleasing straight to the amp, balanced EQ and slight reverb. I can get a LP roar out of this and also a fat sweet crunch for rythmn sounds. This axe is really versatile, BUT the absence of coil splitting means no 'twanging'! Tele/Strat sounds would not be possible without pickup replacement and a rewire (No problem for me I have an amazing Strat!).

I am now looking for a vintage Fender amp to to widen the sonic options.

The guitar arrived very well setup but - as is my custom - I always go to a local shop for 'my action setup'. The luthier said,"I hardly had to do anything, this puppy was already barking!"

For a used guitar it was in an immaculate condition not a ding in sight, but with one slightly loose strap peg (Three turns on the screwdriver fixed that!)

The transparent black finish is good, and compliments the gold hardware.

Discoverd a noisy pot on the back pick up volume and in the clean up decide to change ALL the pots. Others have noted this as a common fault...easily corrected if a problem at minimal cost

The neck action is fine but is came fitted with 009 string set. This may be just a little light for the beast, as string bends and pedal riffs tend to move the tuning slightly. I will be changing to medium gauge.

All the hardware was secure.

This is a solid guitar and I wll continue to gig with it and even play it at church!!!(our congregation can rock!). My only reason for the backup/additional guitar at event would be the need for a single coil sound on the gig!

The hardware my lose the gold finish but the jewellery quarter will fix that - should I want to

Very depandable axe

No comment. A private sale means I have no dealings with peavey reps etc

I have been playing for over thirty years and had a number of guitars including some high Fenders, Grimshaw and Ibanez and custom models.

I let my Fender princeton amp go to pay for rent (a giggers nightmare and a BIG mistake!) but the roland JC120 is cool and will probably stay until a new Fender amp arrives.

The EXP is a very good new addition to my current collection (Ibanez GB10, Godin steel, Ibanez spanish cutaway, Necx Strat)

If it gets stolen I WILL replace! the quality and affordability make it such a attraction and a fantastic deal. I did well on ebay to get the deal I did, but even at standard shop retail price, The EXP will not breal the bank and delivers so well...try one out today!

Finish is great quality although the range of colours is not great (I got the Tiger's Eye which although is the best of the three available in my opinion it still looks a little like somebody has puked coffee over it).
The body style and shape is compact with surprising sustain and looks good.
Tuning drifts a little from time to time but this is not problematic for me at all.
The frets are quite small and thin which I actually don't mind and in some respects are easier to live with than "jumbo frets".
I would have liked to see a coil-tap feature available to give access to single-coil type sounds, hence only a 7.

The sound is very full and meaty and similar to that of a Les Paul, albeit not quite as chunky. Of all the guitars I tried, this came closest to the Les Paul sound, and compared favourably with pretty much everything else I tried, although a ?2,500 PRS Singlecut was a close competitor.

If you want a Les Paul type of sound, this guitar is only beaten by the original. If you like a twangy single-coil sound then this guitar is not ideal.

The factory set up is superb. Action is very low with practically nil fret buzz. Intonation is pretty good and I haven't noticed any problems, but I've yet to get the tuner on it and see. As far as the woodwork goes it looks flawless.

The guitar seems to be rock solid and I don't believe there would be any issues with durability.

I have not needed to contact Customer Support. The guitar has a standard 1 year warranty.

I would rate this guitar very highly for sound and playability. Visually it's not a totally stunner but this is more the choice of colours available than the shape; however I was prepared to make the compromise for the sound.

I recently purchased a Peavey Signature Series EXP guitar with the Tiger Eye finish. It has a three-piece mahogany back and veneer maple with a solid mahogany neck and ebony fretboard.

It has a 24 3/4 inch scale with a set neck with 24 frets, Grover? die-cast machine heads with 18:1 ratio, dual torsion rod, and Tune-o-matic bridge with Dual Compression? tailpiece with string-through tubes, two humbucking pickups.

It has one master tone and two master volume controls with three-way switch and gold-plated hardware.

The guitar has very good sound for my use. I play mostly rock and blues. My little Fender amp has seen better days but when I play it through my effects peddle it sounds great. I started playing as a teen when the Beatles were hitting the charts. Played for a few years and then pretty much gave it up until about 5 years ago. In my history I have had some fine axes, 62 Strat, Gretch Country Gentleman, and unfortunately sold them without knowing what they would be worth today. Had a Fender Super Reverb amp back then too. Ah, hindsight!!!

This guitar sounds as good or better than any I have had.
PRS, Gibson, and Hamer guitars. This guitar is a real competetor
to these lines at a price that can not be beat. The stock pickups
are adequate for most rock. The guitar has a real punchy sound. I
may replace the bridge pickup eventually with a Seymour Duncan JB
just for a little more gain.

The guitar was set up perfectly from the factory. The finish is smooth and shiney and there is only one little ding near the rear strap button, but I got it for a reduced price because of it, and it won't be noticed. The rest of the finish is beautiful. I bought a Peavey Preditor a few years back when I got the bug to play again, and was impressed by the quality of what is a very inexpensive guitar. I always thought I'd be able to justify getting a getting a better instrument as time went by, but when I started looking,(Fender, PRS, Gibson) I realized I'd have to sell the kids to be able to afford what they were asking. I was so impressed with the playability of my little Preditor, that I was just checking the Peavey website to see what else they had in their arsenal. Bang! I took one look and I was hooked. I live in the midwest and guitar stores with knowledgeable employees are not on every corner. I finally located one in a nearby town, drove over to see and play it and wound up bringing it home.

I don't play gigs or travel with my instruments, so for what I will use it for, it should last a good long time.

Haven't had to.

Overall, I'd give this guitar a 9. It is light years ahead of the instruments I have owned previously, but then you would expect technology to improve. I played lots of instruments before going after this one and was disappointed by many. I was very surprised at the PRS offerings. I had heard they were really good, but I wasn't impressed. For the asking price of some of these instruments you can't go wrong with this Peavey. It compares very well with guitars that are 2 and 3 times the price. I am an old school guy and not up on all the fancy dodads and things the modern equipment has, but this guitar will serve anyone well and not break the bank.

usa made 24 fret solid one p. Mahogany back Maple arc top.all controls are top rate. verey good looking guitar.finish is perfect.the guitar is smaller than it looks on there web site but that makes it easyer to handle.6 lbs in all.Schaller Tuners. the Pickups H/H are Passive verey hot peavey made with a gold outer rings. Bridge style is there Dual-Compression Bridge System includeds a case

this guitar plays all types and dose it verey well.has a vere bright clear sound no feed back that i can hear.cons.the headstock seems too small looks odd when your playing.likes every thing els

this guitar is set up perfect right from the factory.action is perfect lots of solo room no buzz.frets and bord polished plays with ease

verey durable will last a verey long time.this is a verey solid guitar.it came with strap locks.this guitar was made well.

n\a

been playing for 16 years and own gibsons, fenders, krammers,ect...and exp peaveys this is the first usa pv guitar i have own and i am pleased it is worth the money the best thing about this guitar is that it plays soooo well and looks realy good.

This is a 2005 Cherryburst HP Signature EXP model. Laminated
figured maple top (listed as .20mm on a Peavey forum post), with
a three piece mahogany back and solid mahogany neck. Grover
tuners. Two humbuckers with a dual compression bridge (strings
can go through the body or mount straight off the bride itself).
All gold plated hardware. Fairly wide neck with decent inlays.
The neck has a very comfortable feel to me and is substantial
in thickness. Case is not included and costs extra. Made in Korea.

The guitar sounds very good for this price range. I also own
PRS, Gibson, and Hamer guitars. This guitar is a real competetor
to these lines at a price that can not be beat. The stock pickups
are adequate for most rock. The guitar has a real punchy sound. I
may replace the bridge pickup eventually with a Seymour Duncan JB
just for a little more gain.

I bought the guitar sight unseen after seeing them on the Peavey
website. My favorite music store ordered it for me. The first one
was damaged (poorly packaged). The second one finally arrived and
the dealer called me. I pulled it out the box and it played perfectly.
Set-up was perfect. I took it home and really did not need to adjust
anything. Plays effortless and the neck is great. Finish is flawless.
It is a very attractive guitar as well. My hats off to the Koreans.

Everything seems to be pretty durable. I am sure the gold-plating
will wear out eventually. I have read that the volume pots may
be a little "iffy". No problem, as 10 bucks will cure that. I like
to tinker on cheap guitars anyway and customize them. I bought this
to use as a "scratch and dent" model for practice and save wear and
tear on my expensive guitars. The only thing is, I like the guitar
so much that I may buy a second one at this price point. Great value.

Well, Peavey immediately replaced the first damaged one. The shop
manager liked the guitar so much himself, he was trying to talk
Peavey into selling him the damaged one for next to nothing. He was
so impressed with it, that he said he was going to start selling them
in the store. That says a lot. I am very impressed myself. I hope
to acquire one in the black finish next. The price on the website
has already went up since I bought mine.

I have been playing for 30 years. These things are a real bargain
for what you get. Great looker and great player. Hard to beat the
combination. I have been eyeing the Jack Daniels EXP model they
offer too. I just do not see where you can go wrong with these kind
of deals on great guitars. The imports are catching up with
quality and value in a great playing instrument. At this price,
you can take it to a gig and not really worry if it is stolen. I
would buy another one and actually plan on doing so in the future.

It's a Korean made guitar.
24 freets.
2 pickups, separate volum knobs for each pickup, and one tone control.
Pickup configuration is H-H with passive electronics.
Body and neck made of mahogany.
Groover tuners, tune-o-matic bridge with strings thru-body.

It's very versatile guitar. I play rock/hardrock/heavemetal etc. and I can get any sound and tone I like.
Stock pickups seem to be very good, they not produce any artifical noice.
One thing I don't like is the electronics, after month of playing I hear cracks while using volume controls. I think I will replace them for better ones. I don't whink it's a big problem so I'll gieve 8 here.

Action was ok, but I always set-up any guitar to suit my style.
I haven't noticed any flaws on this one.

Guitar is OK for live playing, it's very comfortable, it lays great in hand and stays in tune. Just before live playing check the electronics like I have mentioned before ;)

Never dealed with customer support yet.

I play for about 7 years. I owned few mayones's, zak's (it's from the same polish company, just different trademarks).
I always played very fast guitars with thin necks ibanes RG's-like. When buing this guitar I thought I'll have some problems to get used to the neck which seems to be thicker than guitars I've played before. But at the first time I put my hands on it, I had no problem with playing it, it was even better. I didn't like gibson's neck profile that's way I thought It will be the same with peavey, but I've been wrong and I'm very happy about it. You can go very fast with this guitar up to 24 fret ! that's why it's so versatile.
While searching for guitar I wanted it to have a little vintage look but 24 frets, I was considering ibanez SZ but it has 22 frets, so I keept searching and I found this model already in a music store, without too much thinking I bought it, and here it is :) and I'm happy about it :)

Made in 2004, Handcrafted in Korea.
Mahogony back and neck (set) with quilted maple top.
Ebony Fretboard MOP trapazoid linlays.
Dual Humbuckers....passive.
PRSish body style with gold hardware.
Grover tuners, string through design stop tail w/ tun-o-matic bridge.
Jumbo frets.
Fit and finsih is superb.
Does not come with case or gig bag!

I like to play different kinds of music but mostly heavy rock and blues. This guitar can do it all. It has a very full sound with a lot of "chunck" ala PRS and Gibson LP. The guitar has a wonerfull clean tone much cleaner than Gibson IMO and can get right down RUDE if you want it too. The stock PU's are very adequate.....IMO they are better than Epi, santana SE, Duncan Designed. I cannot put it down once I start playing. I'm currently playing through a Marshall JCM 2000 DSL-401 112 combo and they are a match made in heaven. If you enjoy the sound of old PAF's or Classic '59's you will absolutely fall in love with the instrument. The only thing I didn't care for is the lack of a case of gig bag w/puchase. But, not much at this price point does.

I purchased the guitar from a local dealer so the set-up was right one. The action is great and the pickups are also adjusted properly. There are a lot of great guitars coming from asia and the fit-n-finish is excellent. I am as nick picky as they come and I have yet to find a flaw in the design or implentaion of this guitar. Body and neck binding is perfect, poly finish is smooth as glass. Neck joint is solid, bridge and tail piece look awsome. I swear if you didn't look at the name on the headstock you would swear it was something that cost 10 times as much. Peavey also has the American made model that has a retail of $2500.....I've compared the two side by side and played em both......there is no diffence as far as touch and feel. The American made model has better electionics and has a solid 1 piece mahogony body and thicker maple top.

I don't play out but I would have to say this guitar can probably withstand a lot of gigging. The gold plated hardware is top notch but will probably loose it's luster over time.....just like LP customs do. The Poly finish is durable and seems to be fairly thick. All the knobs and strap buttons are solid. If i was playing out on a regualar basis I would not think twice about using this as only guitar.

I have owned several Peavey products. Luckily I haven't had to contact customer support for anything. I think the warranty is limited lifetime.

I've been playing for several years off and on. I've recently decided to start playing again and bought this to help inspire me to play better and more often.........It has done just that. I've owned many great guitars in the past, Gibson LP's, SG's,Flying V, fender strats and a few asian made guitars. This guitar can hang with anything out on the market today and costs 5 times less than some that I mentioned earlier.
If it were stolen, cause I can damn sure guarantee I wouln't loose it, the SOB better pray that I never find him. I would definately buy another one.
I absolutely love the finsih on this guitar. The cherry sunburst is absolutely beautiful. There are 2 other finishes available but this one is my fav. I also love the detail and vintage look with the gold hardware. I haven't found any thing to hate about it yet.
Before buying this I looked at Epi, Ibanez and the PRS Santan SE. For the price, features and sound this is the way to go......my second pick would have been the Santana SE and it includes a gig bag but also has a street price of $499. I honestly feel the Peavey is a lot more guitar for the money.

"Handcrafted in Korea" with serialnumber
24-frets, mahogany body with maple veneer
2x humbucker (passive)
Set neck in mahogany with ebony fretboard
Peavey patented tune-o-matic type
Gotoh machineheads

Stock pup's had to be replaced right away, bareknuckles OF COURCE!
Stock was 4-conductor so i'll probably buy a cheapo stratlike and put them in there. Stock should be fine if you like old PAF sound....
See action below, the 8 is based on how it sounds were you actually CAN play it!

Here comes the bad stuff!!
Truss rod was not set right and when i was going to fix it either koreans OR Regent Guitars in UK had made the allen screw all round!
Neither Peavey or Regent Guitars have been willing in help me out with tips on what to do other than that Regent asked me to send it back to UK...wich would probably mean without guitar for a couple of weeks....not an option!
Guitar is so severely backbowed so it's not playable and i've tried everything possible i could think of...so PAY MORE and get them US.Made!! CRAP!!

Have no input here as it's quite useless without the ability to adjust the truss rod!

C R A P!!!!!

Been playing for 15 years give or take, never seen this shit in any other guitar i've owned

Peavey HP Signature EXP, made in 2004, purchased February 2005.
Made in Korea, as are all of the EXP models for the HP Signature.
24 frets, 24-3/4 inch scale, set neck.
Quilted maple veneer top on a three-piece mahogany body.
2 volume, 1 tone control, 1-3 way selector switch.
Two humbucking pickups, no coil-taps.
Tiger Eye Flamed maple top.
Similar to a PRS body, Tune-o-matic bridge with dual compression tailpiece with string-through tubes.
Grover die-cast machine heads.
Case not included, but I purchased a hardshell case at the same time.

I play mostly Rock/Classic Rock, hard rock type music. (AC DC, Judas Priest, Headstones, GnR, ZZ Top, etc)
I use it with a Line 6 Flextone III 1x12 75 watt amp, also purchased from Axe Music in Calgary.
I also have a Line 6 POD 2 that I use it with, but it mainly is played through the Flextone III.
Sound quality is very warm, and woody. Definitely has that ballsy, vintage Les Paul tone I love.
When using a clean channel, the tone is very crisp, but still meaty, whether using the bridge pickup, neck pickup or both.
When playing beefier stuff, it has all the tone required for Rock, or even heavier stuff. The tone from it can be very warm, and smooth, or you can get glass-cutting, howling rhythms out of it.

I asked for it to be shipped with the strings loose, to relieve tension on the neck.
The packing was very good. It was in a new hardshell case, and they had wrapped the neck in bubble-wrap, to stop it from bouncing around.
I let it warm-up to room temperature for a couple of hours before I tried it out. It was shipped via purolator, so it had been in the cold for some time.
I was surprised when I opened the case, as I was expecting the Tiger Eye finish to be medium-dark brown, as shown on the Peavey web site, and as I have seen it in person in the store. The finish was actually more of an orange-yellow colour. I asked Peavey customer support (Thanks AJ) about this, and apparently the shade of the finish can vary according to the grain of the wood. If the grain is lighter, the finish will be lighter...if the grain is darker, the finish will be darker. I think I like the lighter finish better anyway.
Also, the pics on the web site, and the ones I've seen in person in the store show no inlays on the neck, or a single "SIGNATURE SERIES" inlay at the 12th fret. Mine has the (imitation) Mother of Pearl inlays on the 3rd, 5th, 7th, 9th, 12th (split), 15th, 17th, 19th, 21st, and 23rd frets. More traditional than no inlays, and I prefer the look with inlays.
I have to admit, it wasn't what I was expecting, but I have since found out (again, from AJ at Peavey Customer Support) that all of the HP Signature EXP models have the full inlays on the neck now.

The action is very good, no buzzing on any of the frets, pickups seem very well adjusted...not too high, not too low....
The Bridge is actually partially set-in to the body.
I could not see any flaws in the finish, or the construction. The frets are all smooth on the edges, nothing jagged, nothing loose that shouldn't be. Peavey QC was doing their job.
I'm giving it a 9 instead of a 10 due to the unexpected lighter finish. If the shade of the finish is going to be affected by the grain of the wood, I feel that Peavey or the reseller should note this fact somewhere, to make the consumer aware. Perhaps I'm being picky, or ignorant to the properties of wood-finishing, but when I receive something that is not what I expected, it throws me a bit.

Having said all of that, I love this guitar. It looks great, it plays amazing, it makes me want to play more.
I would highly recommend this guitar to anyone considering a new electric.

I haven't had the opportunity (or the courage) to play live, but I can't imagine there being any problem with this guitar in a live situation.
All of the hardware is very good quality, and like anything, the better it's taken care of, the longer it will last.
The finish seems like it will last. I haven't heard of any problems with the finish on Peavey guitars, so I am not expecting any problems.
I will be replacing the strap buttoms with Schaller locks shortly.
If I were a gigging musician, I would always prefer to have a backup.

My dealings with Peavey customer support are limited to this experience, but I am very satisfied by the quick response I received on the web forums from AJ.
As for Axe Music in Calgary, where I purchased the guitar and my amp, I cannot say enough good things. Very friendly, and extremely helpful.

I have been playing for 23 years, recreationally. I'm a hobby player, not a professional.
I also have an old Les Paul copy that I've had for 20 years. I've had other copy guitars as well in the past.
When I first saw this guitar, I was doubtful, as I have always preferred Les Pauls, but Kieran showed me this one. He persuaded me to try it out, and once I did, I was taken with it. I couldn't believe the tone of it, and the feel. The neck was very smooth, and easy to move over. I like a medium to heavy neck, and the neck on this is right there.
It's also lighter than a LP, but none of the depth is lost.
The price is too good to be true as well. I have looked in many music stores over the years, and would expect this guitar to be at least $200-$300 more than it is.
Overall, great guitar, and even better value.