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I got this guitar a couple of months ago from zZounds..I really didn't feel like buying the Gibson version became I had heard bad things about the tremolo causing the guitars to go out of tune.This system is really cool! It's a simple design that works great. I really think that most guitarist don't know how to use it. It's for accents not dive bombing! Anyway, I keep reaching for this guitar more and more over my $2000 les paul or my beautiful telecaster...I thoroughly endorse this guitar to beginners and professionals.

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I had an SG special with a g tech tuning system...it wouldn't stay in tune as with the Epiphone 61 Maestra Vibrola its intonation was perfect out of the box! The neck action on the Gibson SG was really smooth but like I said wouldnt stay in tune. The Epiphone on the other hand stays i perfect tune even after using the vibrola whammy system! The price for the Gibson was 3 times the cost of the Epiphone and just for that was worth the purchase! Also the Gibson was neck heavy to the point of when I let go of the neck it would take an uncomfortable dive, the Epiphone on the other hand is perfectly balanced when let go of the neck stays put!

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This guitar is absolutely beautiful. Came with perfect intonation and set up out of the box. The craftsmanship and sound on this guitar definitely makes me feel like I'm playing a higher end guitar. Epiphone knocked it out of the park with the inspired by Gibson line of this year, I highly recommend buying this guitar at this amazing value before it sells out.

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First off the Looks... The fit and finish on my example was 1st rate. A true work of art.2nd the tuning stability... The tuning stability was far better than expected with this vibrola, and actually keeps tune way better than my Gibson SG with a vibrola.3rd the sound... Well lets just say it will compete with is big brother on any day of the week.And lastly the playability. This is simply an outstanding playing guitar. In my opinion the neck shape is slim and comfortable. Allowing for some faster playing than you would attempt on a Gibby. The fret work was perfect and the action was proper. Don't let this one get away. You will not be disappointed.By the way I ordered a "Blemished Model" turns out the blemish was just a missing high E string. Thanks zZounds! You Rock!

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This was my first time ordering from zZounds and I’m beyond impressed. I placed three orders (epiphone sg standard maestro, holy grail, luna 3/4 acoustic for my daughter) and received them in Indiana in basically 24 hrs. Couldn’t believe how fast they got here as well as how safe they were packaged. I read several mixed reviews before ordering but have nothing but positives to share. I’ll definitely be ordering from here for now on.

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I’ve always wanted to own an SG, but it was cost prohibitive. With Epiphones new line of guitars following Gibsons specs on the old classics it is possible to own a Legend. I purchased the Epiphone SG Standard 61’ Maestro and I couldn’t happier, it plays, feels & sounds like the real thing. I’ve been playing guitar professionally for over 50yrs and this one is a winner. You won’t go wrong buying it and it won’t break the bank.

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I've owned a few Epiphones over the years. My very first electric guitar was a late 70's/early 80's Epiphone Genesis deluxe. I currently own a 335 Pro, a Les Paul Standard Plus Top Pro and this SG. They have all been very high quality guitars and this one is no different. This year Epiphone seems to be pulling out all the stops with upgrades like US made CTS pots, Graph Tech nuts and a re/retro-designed head stock. Personally, I never had a problem with the old head stocks but the new head stocks look really nice. The guitar came set up with the action a little high on the low E side just like my Les Paul but the high E side was just about right for my playing style. (I like a medium/low action.) The hardware, including the tuners, are of good quality. I prefer Grovers but the retro aesthetics of this guitar call for vintage style tuners. The Maestro vibrato really sets this guitar apart from most of the Epi G400's I've seen and played in the past. It stays in tune pretty well as long as you don't go crazy with dive bombs and adds a nice fluttery "shimmer" to clean ballads with some reverb. The Probuckers sound pretty good in this guitar but I think they sound a bit better in my Les Paul though I haven't taken the time to adjust the pickup height or pole pieces yet. I am a fan of Seymour Duncans so I will probably eventually replace the Probuckers with a SD set but there is nothing wrong with the stock Probuckers IMO, just personal preference. I've heard some folks complaining about the veneer (ribboned Sapele?) they are using on these guitars but I think it looks very nice. I've seen similar types of wood used on high end drum kits and furniture. It gives it a sort of two tone look with the lighter non-veneered bevels contrasting with the veneered top and back. It sets it apart from its Gibson sibling (not a bad thing IMHO.) The fret work was good on mine with no sharp ends. There was some slight bleeding of the finish onto the neck binding but I had to look hard to see it. The Indian laurel fretboard is a little darker than the Pao Ferro fretboard on my Les Paul but a little lighter than the rosewood on my 335. About the only thing that detracts from the looks of this guitar is the thick, shiny poly coating they put on it but in time it will loose some of that mirror shine and should look very nice like my 335. I would describe the neck as feeling thin and wide compared to my Les Paul and 335 in that it's a little thinner than the neck on my 335 bit a little wider than the neck on my Les Paul. This works out well for me playing barre chords and the wider string spacing helps with hybrid and finger picking. I bought this Epiphone after returning another, way more expensive guitar, that arrived with shipping damage and QC issues. I asked the zZounds customer service rep to make sure the guitar I received was packed carefully. Upon receipt I opened the box to find that someone had inspected the guitar for damage before they shipped it. They also double boxed it and added some cardboard between the boxes for extra padding. They did this even though it was a far less expensive guitar than the one I had previously ordered. So kudos to zZounds for the excellent customer service. You guys rock!

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This was my first time ordering from zZounds and I’m beyond impressed. I placed three orders (epiphone sg standard maestro, holy grail, luna 3/4 acoustic for my daughter) and received them in Indiana in basically 24 hrs. Couldn’t believe how fast they got here as well as how safe they were packaged. I read several mixed reviews before ordering but have nothing but positives to share. I’ll definitely be ordering from here for now on.

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This is my favorite. Its so clean and clear. Build is perfect. The sway bar holds tune so nix on that rumor. Flawless finish. Nice strings. And best part of all, its fun. Micro Terror amp, orange 108 speaker. Vox wha, Boss pocket gt. Boom, theres my studio. Bottom line? Its an inexpensive blast.

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Worst condition guitar I've ever received over the Internet... By far. Never had to polish frets quite this much. Also the fretboard was dry as a bone and a medium brown upon delivery. But now it looks like rosewood after a little feed n wax treatment.The bottom of the nut had to be sanded down quite a bit to make an F chord achievable. After this setup it's a rock machine. It is simply the prettiest guitar I own and the tone (acoustic and through pickups) is just excellent. There's no hardware that demands replacement except of course for the strings. Now that frets don't scratch on bends I couldn't be happier. Feel free to purchase if you're quite comfortable with setting up your guitars...

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Well I have owned and have many Sg Guitars. Some Gibson and some Epiphone. Since Epiphone has sky rocketed I decided to grab one that is similar to the Angus Sg I owned. The biggest difference is that this Epi one is playable. I think I paid around $2,100 in 2001 or 02 for the Angus model. It came with the neck set wrong in the pocket. Our manager would not let us send that piece of crap back. And I had to play it with the action about half an inch off the Fret Board! And the nickel bridge pickup cover turned a gross silver and black and would not clean up.Okay this guitar plays Great! I used to hate the Sg 400`s with the veneer. They all looked identical with the ugly striped mahogany. So it was a toss up. Chance it or buy the olive drab Exclusive painted model. I decided on the Mahogany. To my Pleasent Surprise there is no veneer! Front or back! But I see why the use the veneer. It is a 4 piece body. But they matched this one perfectly. Gibson, they don`t give a crap. I have a Les Paul with a two piece back that is pretty bad. And the Les Paul I just bought from Gibson has a defective bridge pickup. Only reason I kept it is because it has a unique maple cap. Any way this Sg is a bargain. The neck profile is not like any Gibson I have owned but it is o.k. It is like an D profile and wide. My only complaint is an ugly neck scarf joint. The Guitar is Beautiful and Plays Beautiful! It`s an Awesome deal. Gibson never got back to me over the Les Paul. I expected that. I am going to put a Slash humbucker in it. These Epi pickups sound very good. I also bought an Epi Sg Custom, black with ebony fret board and gols hardware and it is excellant too! Actually to be honest. They Play better than the Gibson Sg`s except for my handwired 74 Sg they re-issued years back. Great deal for the money. Stays in tune too!

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I own close to 60 guitars and for some reason since buying this one the others have been getting dusty.The pickups are killer .Love the neck .One thing anyone buying one should understand is these vibrato’s were not made for Hendrix/ Vai type abuse but they are great for slight vibrato..The one I revived was well made with no issues.

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First the guitar is built perfectly strings aliened precisely. I hate it when like the high E string is hanging off the neck. The neck binding is rounded as is the fretboard ends, very comfortable. Ok the pickups measured 8.9 for the lead and rythum is 7.9ohm's both on 4.5ohms. Slightly stronger than the 7.5s of and early gibson humbucker. But they work for this guitar. When these pickups are 16ohms and more I hate em, too muddy no chime. The tailpiece does what I thought it would. The whole things resonates adding a metallic chime to the guitars sound. I find putting the bar back and up on an angle you can add quick vibrato effects and the bars out of the way. Plus bending it back raises the pitch up and more noticeable. Try this guitar out I think you'll like it.

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It arrived on time and it is in good condition. Was very close to being in tune when it arrived and it seems to play good and has lots of output from the pickups. Its a really nice color, and the wood is nice also. The vibrato seems to be very cool as well. My only complaint is the packaging. They put the Epiphone box inside of a larger box with a little bit of newsprint sheet to try to hold it in place but you could feel the guitar bouncing around inside of there up on arrival. The actual guitar is packaged good inside of the Epiphone box but they didn't wrap anything around the box to hold it closed such as bubble wrap which would have been nice because all of the bouncing around, I found the Epiphone box open about an inch. All they would have had to do was put some bubble wrap around it to hold it closed and it probably would have been better but they really could have used some of those large bubbles in there to keep it from moving around so much inside it's lucky it wasn't damaged.

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Well unfortunately this guitar has developed a problem with the three way switch. I was switching to the neck pickup for a solo during band rehearsal and..... nothing. I fiddled around with the switch and got it working again. It worked fine for the rest of the rehearsal. I took it home and didn't play it again for a couple of days. Took it out, played on the bridge pickup a while, switched to the neck pickup and, again, nothing. I don't mind doing maintenance on my guitars but this one was brand new so I sent it back. I'm sure that this was just a fluke as the quality of my other Epiphone guitars is very good. I actually ordered this guitar to replace a Gibson that had even more QC issues than this guitar so even Big Daddy G can turn out some dogs from time to time. I have to say I'm a little disappointed that this guitar didn't work out as I thought it was going to be a keeper but zZounds was cool about the return as usual.

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