I just sold a Hofner Has-01CE acoustic...and the day after, i regret it......
My band decides////the day after i sell it.....that we will do "two of us" well......now Id like an acoustic electric again....anyone own a J-160E, or copy of they could tell me about
Ive lost my baby!
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roadrunners
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Ive lost my baby!
"This is my personal quote"
I just got an Epi EJ-160E "John Lennon Limited Edition" from Musician's Friend. It's got all the right sounds of the Gibson. I just did a recording of "This Boy" with it -- the opening strums blew me away when I listened to it, the sound was dead on. And the Epi was $550 compared to the Gibson at $1899.
The finish and construction are just great -- my only complaint is the action is a bit high for me. My other acoustic is an Ovation, and that has action that rivals my Ric 12. The Epi action is fine on the frets closer to the nut, but as you get higher up the neck, the action gets higher, and it's a little tougher to make barre chords. I've adjusted the truss rod as much as I can, and I'll probably just have to have it looked at by an expert to see if he can lower it a bit.
Unfortunately I looked high and low for one of these and you just can't find them in stores (same goes for the Gibson version). So, I didn't have a chance to play one first -- I just went ahead and ordered it. But I'm still VERY happy with it -- it's got the looks and the unique sound of the Beatles' acoustic recordings.
It also sounds great through an amp -- much more like an "electric" guitar than my Ovation does thru an amp.
There are two cosmetic things that make the Epi different from the Gibson: First, the headstock is Epi-style, not Gibson. Second, there is a "John Lennon" signature stenciled on the upper bout, just above the pickup (neck side of the sound hole).
The finish and construction are just great -- my only complaint is the action is a bit high for me. My other acoustic is an Ovation, and that has action that rivals my Ric 12. The Epi action is fine on the frets closer to the nut, but as you get higher up the neck, the action gets higher, and it's a little tougher to make barre chords. I've adjusted the truss rod as much as I can, and I'll probably just have to have it looked at by an expert to see if he can lower it a bit.
Unfortunately I looked high and low for one of these and you just can't find them in stores (same goes for the Gibson version). So, I didn't have a chance to play one first -- I just went ahead and ordered it. But I'm still VERY happy with it -- it's got the looks and the unique sound of the Beatles' acoustic recordings.
It also sounds great through an amp -- much more like an "electric" guitar than my Ovation does thru an amp.
There are two cosmetic things that make the Epi different from the Gibson: First, the headstock is Epi-style, not Gibson. Second, there is a "John Lennon" signature stenciled on the upper bout, just above the pickup (neck side of the sound hole).
Jerry: Congratulations on a great looking guitar. Would you consider putting a piezo such as a Fishman Matrix in this guitar at some point?
The Beatles miked their acoustics during recordings likely because the pickup does not pickup the sound of the strings as well as it could. What do you find in this regard?
I have a friend with one of these who finds the best strings to be the DR Zebra's. I love the look and you are right, a trip to the luthier will make it play better up the neck.
The Beatles miked their acoustics during recordings likely because the pickup does not pickup the sound of the strings as well as it could. What do you find in this regard?
I have a friend with one of these who finds the best strings to be the DR Zebra's. I love the look and you are right, a trip to the luthier will make it play better up the neck.
Life, as with music, often requires one to let go of the melody and listen to the rhythm
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roadrunners
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beatcomber
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I own a 2004 J-160E, strung with Thomastik Infield .012 flatwounds. It's a wonderful instrument whether played acousticly or plugged in. Gibson Montana are really making fine guitars.
Keep in mind that the modern production J-160Es - with the exception of the John Lennon models (NOT the Epiphone version!) - are not the same as the '60s models. The originals had laminated tops and ladder bracing (to reduce feedback) and a P-90, whereas the new ones have conventional x-bracing, all solid wood, and a P-100. The new ones offer superior acoustic tone, with comparable electric tone.
J-160Es require electric guitar strings if used electrically, as the magnetic pickup will not sufficiently respond to bronze acoustic strings. Flatwounds sound GREAT whether used electrically or acoustically, and will get you closer to the Beatle sound.
To the best of my knowledge, the standard J-160E is not a standard production model, and are made specially for Musician's Friend. This means that you non-USA folks are out of luck, aside from buying one used on eBay, etc.
Keep in mind that the modern production J-160Es - with the exception of the John Lennon models (NOT the Epiphone version!) - are not the same as the '60s models. The originals had laminated tops and ladder bracing (to reduce feedback) and a P-90, whereas the new ones have conventional x-bracing, all solid wood, and a P-100. The new ones offer superior acoustic tone, with comparable electric tone.
J-160Es require electric guitar strings if used electrically, as the magnetic pickup will not sufficiently respond to bronze acoustic strings. Flatwounds sound GREAT whether used electrically or acoustically, and will get you closer to the Beatle sound.
To the best of my knowledge, the standard J-160E is not a standard production model, and are made specially for Musician's Friend. This means that you non-USA folks are out of luck, aside from buying one used on eBay, etc.
Agree that you definitely need electric guitar strings for this one. I haven't tried flats on it yet, I just got it and right now, to me, it sounds perfect. I have switched to flats on my Gretschs and even my 325C58 JG, and I have become addicted to flats (again -- after 30 years!). I'll probably try the flats out on this one after I get it to the luthier.
Peter -- not sure I'd mess with the pickup at the moment. I have an Ovation with a piezo and I almost never play it electrically...it just sounds too strident and thin. But it's got a great acoustic sound. So I'll probably leave the Epi be for now.
According to Babiuk's book, George did mess with moving the pickup on the J-160 from the front of the soundhole (at the end of the fingerboard) to in back of the soundhole, on the bridge side. There's even a close-up picture of the top of his J-160 that shows the holes for the screws that held the pickup. But he evidently didn't care for the sound, since he moved the pickup back to it's original neck location.
Amplified, it has a real electric guitar sound to it, totally unlike any electified acoustic I've heard before. I was quite surprised to learn that Lennon used his plugged-in J-160 to do the intro and restart guitar riff for "I Feel Fine"....but darned if the amped Epi doesn't sound dead on! I can even get the feedback tone on the 'A' string just right!
That's really what I was looking for -- the sound and the look of the J-160E. I went with the Epi because -- well, I own an Epi Dot, and it's one of the most beautiful natural finishes I've ever seen on ANY piece of wood, and it's a dream to play. I've played Epi LPs and Gibson LPs, and didn't feel or hear a lot of difference. I'm not THAT much of a purist on the Gibson family (as I would be with Gretsch or Ric "clones").
And of course, a big reason is the cost....$550 for the Epi 160E compared to Gibson's $1899. The money I saved on the J-160E went to ordering my 360/12C63! Hey, it's all a matter of priorities ... why worry about an authentic "Gibson" when it's more important to go after a new Ric!
Peter -- not sure I'd mess with the pickup at the moment. I have an Ovation with a piezo and I almost never play it electrically...it just sounds too strident and thin. But it's got a great acoustic sound. So I'll probably leave the Epi be for now.
According to Babiuk's book, George did mess with moving the pickup on the J-160 from the front of the soundhole (at the end of the fingerboard) to in back of the soundhole, on the bridge side. There's even a close-up picture of the top of his J-160 that shows the holes for the screws that held the pickup. But he evidently didn't care for the sound, since he moved the pickup back to it's original neck location.
Amplified, it has a real electric guitar sound to it, totally unlike any electified acoustic I've heard before. I was quite surprised to learn that Lennon used his plugged-in J-160 to do the intro and restart guitar riff for "I Feel Fine"....but darned if the amped Epi doesn't sound dead on! I can even get the feedback tone on the 'A' string just right!
That's really what I was looking for -- the sound and the look of the J-160E. I went with the Epi because -- well, I own an Epi Dot, and it's one of the most beautiful natural finishes I've ever seen on ANY piece of wood, and it's a dream to play. I've played Epi LPs and Gibson LPs, and didn't feel or hear a lot of difference. I'm not THAT much of a purist on the Gibson family (as I would be with Gretsch or Ric "clones").
And of course, a big reason is the cost....$550 for the Epi 160E compared to Gibson's $1899. The money I saved on the J-160E went to ordering my 360/12C63! Hey, it's all a matter of priorities ... why worry about an authentic "Gibson" when it's more important to go after a new Ric!
Peter -- to your other point about the Beatles miking the guitars acoustically... As I said, it was something of a surprise when I learned that something like "I Feel Fine" was done with the J-160E. So now, whenever I listen to their early stuff, all my long-held preconceptions about what instrument(s) they played on a particular song go out the window. Sure, there are some songs where you just KNOW it's the Country Gentleman or the 325. But it sure has made me listen harder!
The other interesting thing -- to me -- is how much they really did use their acoustics. My earliest memories are of this "electric guitar" band on Ed Sullivan. Sure, I had their albums, wore out the grooves...but the pictures in my mind were CG, 325, Ric 12, Hofner. I mean, Harrison played "Till There Was You" on the CG on both Sullivan and the Royal Command performance... whaddya mean he used a classical guitar on the record?
Now I can hear the J-160 in everything -- "Hard Day's Night", "Eight Days A Week", just about EVERTHING on "Please Please Me". So, I'm not surprised to hear how often the acoustics were used in the studio AS traditionally miked acoustics. Now my latest "obsession" is to figure out which songs they used the AMPLIFIED J-160E!
The other interesting thing -- to me -- is how much they really did use their acoustics. My earliest memories are of this "electric guitar" band on Ed Sullivan. Sure, I had their albums, wore out the grooves...but the pictures in my mind were CG, 325, Ric 12, Hofner. I mean, Harrison played "Till There Was You" on the CG on both Sullivan and the Royal Command performance... whaddya mean he used a classical guitar on the record?
Now I can hear the J-160 in everything -- "Hard Day's Night", "Eight Days A Week", just about EVERTHING on "Please Please Me". So, I'm not surprised to hear how often the acoustics were used in the studio AS traditionally miked acoustics. Now my latest "obsession" is to figure out which songs they used the AMPLIFIED J-160E!
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billy
Ive got a epiphone ej160e im thinking about selling its not mint but id sell it kinda cheap.
My opinon is its a great guitar but when I bought it I dident notice the diffrences between epiphone and gibson at the time so im just unhappy with the none gibson look thats why I switched.Sounds great and plays great im just picky on the look of the guitar.
My opinon is its a great guitar but when I bought it I dident notice the diffrences between epiphone and gibson at the time so im just unhappy with the none gibson look thats why I switched.Sounds great and plays great im just picky on the look of the guitar.