It's really not a great reflection on a big retailer like this. Music and sound engineering are overlapping fields these days. Ironically, their stores sell gear that could produce excellent audio-for-video. :^/ They have stock room boys that wouldn't have made this mixing mistake.
I bought one of these yesterday and it is an absolute dream guitar. I've had Gibson Custom Shop, Martin, Takamine, Faith and others and this beats them all hands down. It is beautifully made, completely flawless, feels like a guitar 5 times the price and sounds amazing both acoustically and when plugged in. The Shadow electrics must be the best on the market. No piezo harsh tones and with the two pickups you can get a variety of tones never before possible without a really complicated effects setup. I have become a real fan of Epiphone. It's not hype...these really must be the best value guitars on the market. Others are raving about the J200 copy and I tried one against this. It too was a great guitar but for me, this was on the next level. You must check one out, Epiphone deserve to sell thousands!
I have owned mine now for over 2 years. There is a guitar shop the next town over from where I live - music emporium, check them out online. They are well known, not just locally, for having amazing acoustic guitar collection. No lie, the wall is covered with 5,6, and 7k guitars, not just a few a wall full. Martins, Collings, etc. Was in there over the weekend and played a handful of them - Honestly, the masterbuilt sounds better, plays better, feels better then every guitar I played. I played 4 or 5 Martins that were priced over 4k, and I know it sounds crazy when you look at the price but the masterbuilt was a better guitar. This guitar would win the Pepsi challenge any day of the week. In a weird way I was disappointing because I am looking to justify treating myself on a nice acoustic, spending a few thousand. But I cant bring myself to buy just a name , when the guitar I have at home is better.
I've owned a Martin D-28 and a Gibson Dove. This guitar plays and sounds every bit as well as a $2500 Martin or Gibson. Think about this. If the materials used are top quality and the craftsmanship is there who cares if the instrument is made in Nashville, Bethlehem or Indonesia? $600 for a guitar like this one is a no brainer.
Agreed completely Ray. I had finally purchased a Martin, and the knuckle-heads at GC sent me a scratched giitar!!! After I returned the Martin, and settled down, I ordered a AJ500RCE. AMAZING, and I had enough $$$ left over to take an xlnt vacation. So glad fate brought me this excellent sounding keeper!!
Oh, I forgot. As far as the electronics when plugged in I play this through the clean channel of a Marshall DSL2000 half stack. Sounds great and totally gig worthy.
Epiphone is BLOWING UP!! Who would have thought that Gibson would ever cut loose on Epi's quality? The new Inspired series and Masterbuilt series are just MINDBLOWING when you list all the specs that are just not found ANYWHERE for the price point. I have a few acoustics my crown jewel is a 09 Taylor GA8e as well as a GSmini-e, and recently added a Fender Newporter Classic mahogany being Fender is picking up their game but nowhere near as much as Epi! So.. l bought a Epi IBG Hummingbird, it's absolutely incredible, then l felt really good about an online purchase of the Masterbuilt Excellente and it was NO DISSAPOINTMENT! Such a variety of song coverage with just the two..the Hummingbird is a bit more versatile in tone to the songs l play, the Excellente is almost piano like in tone it is a heavy guitar and very sensitive to the pressure of plucking giving you a great finger picking tone and nice projection to a full on strum that your neighbors will hear without being plugged in! the craftsmanship of either is as good as it gets, not crazy for poly and wish they were nitro but that would be my only small issue of the two. Now.. this DR500 is nawing at me, has me checking videos, it seems to be yet another must have.. the Epi lBG J45-J200 just didn't do it for me even though they are great guitars the next purchase will be this Epi DR500MCE.. it seems to be the most versatile tone guitar of the bunch.. lm wishing now l had bought this instead of the Newporter for about the same money. Never was l an Epi fan but as of late they are simply THAT GOOD! You just can not go wrong with these Epi's!
I bought one in may 2018, last month I realized the high E string on the 7th fret through the 10th fret didn't ring out it just went dud sounding. I put my fret rocker on it found out the frets at the high end are off. Anybody have a suggestion out there? I thought I had a great guitar now I have get repairs.
It's not a "small" guitar, but it's indeed smaller than many other dreads. Compared to a Takamine EAN10C I owned (which was almost like a J200 in terms of size), my DR500M (no electronics) is noticeably smaller and easier to play.
How come on the top of the guitar, that is on the top of the body just behind the saddle, if the guitar is solid spruce top, that it looks like there is a split right down the middle of the guitar... one half at least looks like it is painted a different shade then the other and looks to split the guitar in half... which really then makes it look like the top is not one solid piece of spruce.. perhaps it is split in two, but is still a solid wood, just split in two?? Do you see what I mean by the different tone in the color??
+LivelysReport just in case you don't know until now, every electric and acoustic guitar in the world since ever has a top that's made out of two pieces of wood ! do the research ;)
+Flagxx87 Oh, I believe you.. LOL so its not just one piece of solid wood but two pieces of solid wood.. but the way it was explained, it sounded like the entire top was one piece of solid wood.. but clearly the color of the wood on top shows its not one solid piece of wood, but two pieces of wood which are both solid pieces of wood.. not plyboard.. don't get me wrong, I love the Masterbilt guitar.. will get one when I have the cash to do so.. I love the dual pick ups and the nano mag and how it sounds.. I wish this guitar had the USB connection to it so it can be used like the Ultra 3 with garage band and hook it up to a computer to record from.. something that I am holding out for and hoping that Epiphone will put on the Masterbilt... but I do love this guitar.. ;-)
LivelysReport You should check out the Gibson Custom Shop Les Pauls, they all have these beautiful two-pieces tops. ;) I think this is done because it looks nicer and more symmetrical. ^_^ Hmm I can't decide between a Masterbilt or Yamaha's A-Series..., maybe I just should test both.
Thanks Flag, I look at some on EBay from time to time.. I think there is a Martin which has the USB option on it, but its about 1k for the guitar.. where as the masterbilt is about 500..
Who is Sam Ash??? Is he a Rocker??? Woops, she could be Samantha possibly??? This is a lot of guitar for the price Bro. I just purchased the AJ500RCE. I mostly play unplugged is why I chose it, and the back and sides on mine are rosewood. This week I choose a proper case for it!!! Yah Sammy
Well - all the technical data can be read about on many websites - what I expect here is, how the thing sounds (different pickups, combination, acoustic sound, picked and strummed) ... that's what youtube is ideal for. Very disapointing!
I bought my DR nearly a month ago. I can tell being a combo standard/bass bluegrass player, this guitar will never be played using the pickups. Amplified Bluegrass? Don't think so!!!
I own one of these. Bought it 3 years ago. It's quite nice. It isn't a Gibson quality. It sounds very good but a bit of buzz. I hate this .. but... for the money you probably can't do better.
My left ear enjoyed this
It's really not a great reflection on a big retailer like this. Music and sound engineering are overlapping fields these days. Ironically, their stores sell gear that could produce excellent audio-for-video. :^/ They have stock room boys that wouldn't have made this mixing mistake.
I bought one of these yesterday and it is an absolute dream guitar. I've had Gibson Custom Shop, Martin, Takamine, Faith and others and this beats them all hands down. It is beautifully made, completely flawless, feels like a guitar 5 times the price and sounds amazing both acoustically and when plugged in. The Shadow electrics must be the best on the market. No piezo harsh tones and with the two pickups you can get a variety of tones never before possible without a really complicated effects setup. I have become a real fan of Epiphone. It's not hype...these really must be the best value guitars on the market. Others are raving about the J200 copy and I tried one against this. It too was a great guitar but for me, this was on the next level. You must check one out, Epiphone deserve to sell thousands!
I have owned mine now for over 2 years. There is a guitar shop the next town over from where I live - music emporium, check them out online. They are well known, not just locally, for having amazing acoustic guitar collection. No lie, the wall is covered with 5,6, and 7k guitars, not just a few a wall full. Martins, Collings, etc. Was in there over the weekend and played a handful of them - Honestly, the masterbuilt sounds better, plays better, feels better then every guitar I played. I played 4 or 5 Martins that were priced over 4k, and I know it sounds crazy when you look at the price but the masterbuilt was a better guitar. This guitar would win the Pepsi challenge any day of the week. In a weird way I was disappointing because I am looking to justify treating myself on a nice acoustic, spending a few thousand. But I cant bring myself to buy just a name , when the guitar I have at home is better.
I've owned a Martin D-28 and a Gibson Dove. This guitar plays and sounds every bit as well as a $2500 Martin or Gibson. Think about this. If the materials used are top quality and the craftsmanship is there who cares if the instrument is made in Nashville, Bethlehem or Indonesia? $600 for a guitar like this one is a no brainer.
They make guitars in Bethlehem? Who knew?
Totally agree with you....great post!
Agreed completely Ray. I had finally purchased a Martin, and the knuckle-heads at GC sent me a scratched giitar!!! After I returned the Martin, and settled down, I ordered a AJ500RCE. AMAZING, and I had enough $$$ left over to take an xlnt vacation. So glad fate brought me this excellent sounding keeper!!
The Guy Fieri of guitar experts.
Lol totally!
I bought one and love it this guitar far better than many high price guitars that I have tried, check it out guys.
Love this guitar, this guy scares me!
Oh, I forgot. As far as the electronics when plugged in I play this through the clean channel of a Marshall DSL2000 half stack. Sounds great and totally gig worthy.
Otis Driftwood Thats what she said!
Epiphone is BLOWING UP!! Who would have thought that Gibson would ever cut loose on Epi's quality? The new Inspired series and Masterbuilt series are just MINDBLOWING when you list all the specs that are just not found ANYWHERE for the price point. I have a few acoustics my crown jewel is a 09 Taylor GA8e as well as a GSmini-e, and recently added a Fender Newporter Classic mahogany being Fender is picking up their game but nowhere near as much as Epi! So.. l bought a Epi IBG Hummingbird, it's absolutely incredible, then l felt really good about an online purchase of the Masterbuilt Excellente and it was NO DISSAPOINTMENT! Such a variety of song coverage with just the two..the Hummingbird is a bit more versatile in tone to the songs l play, the Excellente is almost piano like in tone it is a heavy guitar and very sensitive to the pressure of plucking giving you a great finger picking tone and nice projection to a full on strum that your neighbors will hear without being plugged in! the craftsmanship of either is as good as it gets, not crazy for poly and wish they were nitro but that would be my only small issue of the two. Now.. this DR500 is nawing at me, has me checking videos, it seems to be yet another must have.. the Epi lBG J45-J200 just didn't do it for me even though they are great guitars the next purchase will be this Epi DR500MCE.. it seems to be the most versatile tone guitar of the bunch.. lm wishing now l had bought this instead of the Newporter for about the same money. Never was l an Epi fan but as of late they are simply THAT GOOD! You just can not go wrong with these Epi's!
That chord progression is the chorus of the song 30 Minute Boyfriend from Julian Casablancas
I love mine. Sounds great acoustic or plugged in. Awesome pre amp system. eSonic
That smock came free with the meat slicer he bought. :)
hahahaha. That was funny.
great review, im gettin one.
you play with some amp or mic or just simple ? And what strings you use ?
I bought one in may 2018, last month I realized the high E string on the 7th fret through the 10th fret didn't ring out it just went dud sounding. I put my fret rocker on it found out the frets at the high end are off. Anybody have a suggestion out there? I thought I had a great guitar now I have get repairs.
Can you play a solo on guitar?
"Mashterbilt!"
I can't believe the specs on these for the price.
Em,
Try Dawsons Music they do stock this acoustic guitar. I am looking to get one for myself.
Regards
where is this guitar made?
China, but doesn't effect it sounding good
mine was made in indonesia. it's a decent guitar for the price.
odd ligaments
Indonesia
It's not a "small" guitar, but it's indeed smaller than many other dreads. Compared to a Takamine EAN10C I owned (which was almost like a J200 in terms of size), my DR500M (no electronics) is noticeably smaller and easier to play.
Epiphone rocks :)
Very nice guitars for the money !!
How come on the top of the guitar, that is on the top of the body just behind the saddle, if the guitar is solid spruce top, that it looks like there is a split right down the middle of the guitar... one half at least looks like it is painted a different shade then the other and looks to split the guitar in half... which really then makes it look like the top is not one solid piece of spruce.. perhaps it is split in two, but is still a solid wood, just split in two?? Do you see what I mean by the different tone in the color??
+LivelysReport just in case you don't know until now, every electric and acoustic guitar in the world since ever has a top that's made out of two pieces of wood !
do the research ;)
+Flagxx87 Oh, I believe you.. LOL so its not just one piece of solid wood but two pieces of solid wood.. but the way it was explained, it sounded like the entire top was one piece of solid wood.. but clearly the color of the wood on top shows its not one solid piece of wood, but two pieces of wood which are both solid pieces of wood.. not plyboard.. don't get me wrong, I love the Masterbilt guitar.. will get one when I have the cash to do so.. I love the dual pick ups and the nano mag and how it sounds.. I wish this guitar had the USB connection to it so it can be used like the Ultra 3 with garage band and hook it up to a computer to record from.. something that I am holding out for and hoping that Epiphone will put on the Masterbilt... but I do love this guitar.. ;-)
LivelysReport
You should check out the Gibson Custom Shop Les Pauls, they all have these beautiful two-pieces tops. ;)
I think this is done because it looks nicer and more symmetrical. ^_^
Hmm I can't decide between a Masterbilt or Yamaha's A-Series..., maybe I just should test both.
Thanks Flag, I look at some on EBay from time to time.. I think there is a Martin which has the USB option on it, but its about 1k for the guitar.. where as the masterbilt is about 500..
Meaning it's not pressed wood .
Who is Sam Ash??? Is he a Rocker??? Woops, she could be Samantha possibly??? This is a lot of guitar for the price Bro. I just purchased the AJ500RCE. I mostly play unplugged is why I chose it, and the back and sides on mine are rosewood. This week I choose a proper case for it!!! Yah Sammy
Sweet cowboy chords ;)
What strings have you on her and what gauge ? And are you playng with some microphone or amplification or not ?
Well - all the technical data can be read about on many websites - what I expect here is, how the thing sounds (different pickups, combination, acoustic sound, picked and strummed) ... that's what youtube is ideal for. Very disapointing!
wow
The GAK online store has these under 'electro-acoustic, six-string,'
THe only reason I opted for the 400 over the 500? Cuz I didn't have the cash difference. Even with MAP prices!!!
This is a man who is dressed to go to outer space at any time.
Great guitar for the money! Don’t see how Epiphone making money of this guitar
Guy Fieri??
Oh my left ear
less talking and more playing
I bought my DR nearly a month ago. I can tell being a combo standard/bass bluegrass player, this guitar will never be played using the
pickups. Amplified Bluegrass? Don't think so!!!
Wasn’t a fan of this pickup. I have the Fishman
C, Am, Dm, G
Those are no matte finish...no longer gloss
doctor my eyes..
kidding yourself if you think this sounds anywhere close to even a $700 Bluerdige BR140...much less a Martin D18
this doctor epiphone cant play. thats why they changed dudes at the end for the sound demo.
And now, here's a random dude strumming shitty chords way to hard...
Dr. Epiphone talks exceedingly, yet doesn't play the instrument. Like buying a car from a Dr. Chevrolet who doesn't drive?
I own one of these. Bought it 3 years ago. It's quite nice. It isn't a Gibson quality. It sounds very good but a bit of buzz. I hate this .. but... for the money you probably can't do better.
m1oberon buy a Dowina, eastern Europe handcrafted guitars with premium wood for very affordable prices
You have to wonder how good an instrument is when the "expert" talks about it, but doesn't actually demonstrate what it sounds like.
Id have rather heard four minutes of playing ... and why does it sound so thin?
It’s called a review Sara - not a sound demo.