Epiphone LES PAUL STUDIO CHAMELEON--quality??

judaskiss · December 2008

Would anybody happen to know the quality on Epiphone Les Paul studio Chameleon.

I've always liked guitars that are unique or flashy or both.

Its only $400 so I wondered about qulity.

Thanks

ednrg · December 2008

I don't know about the Chameleon, but I have a Gibson Les Paul Classic and an Epiphone Les Paul Classic, which I cant list the comparisons:

- The Epiphone is a real nice guitar for the money.
- It's slightly thinner and lighter than the Gibson.
- The comparison on the workmanship is really unfair, because the Gibson is second to none.
- The Epi pickups are a little weak. They were the first things that I swapped out. I replaced them with Gibson PAFs, which are basically the same PUs I have in my Gibson.
- The Epi holds its tuning as well as any other guitar I own. The Epi tuning peg holes are thinner than the Gibson. You should know this if you want to replace them.
- The Epi switch started acting up on me after a year or so. So, I swapped it out for a real Gibson switch. During the installation, I found that the schematics are completely different on the Gibson. Just follow the printed schematics and you'll be fine.

My first impression was that this guitar was worth every penny (and its still my impression). There are many times when I prefer playing the EPI when playing out. Since it has less weight than the Gibson, you won't have that extra weight bothering your shoulder after long periods of time.

If EPI has continued the quality on the Chameleon, you should love this guitar.

acolvard · December 2008

I have two Epi's. I have a 2001 LP - Extreme (kind of rare) paid $279 and a 2006 LP Standard Plus. Both are excellent guitars. They both have the slim taper nech which I found is my prefered neck design. I owned a Gibson LP Custom for a few years and sold it becuase I always preferred the action and playability on the LP extreme. The Gibson sound was amazing but it just didn't feel like it was worth $2-3000 more than the Epi LP Extreme. After selling the Gibson Custom I bought the Epi Standard to replace it and I am very happy with the sound, it has USA made Alnico Classic humbuckers (rare, elitist pickups) and sounds great. The non-USA made classic sound good too. The Extreme has an ultra hot pickup so they are very different. The Chameleon has the Alnico Classic pickups, but not made in USA. I thnk the Chameloeon has the slim-taper neck as well.

The main difference with the studio models is that they don't have the bindings or fancy inlays. It is mostly cosmetic. The Chameleon is a about $100 more then the normal Studio becuase of the color.

If you like the look, I would say buy it, you will not regret it!

By the way, what do you currently have?

judaskiss · December 2008

Thanks ednrg and alcovard, i do have a Epi Les Paul that was $699 and have always been impressed with the quality and sound. I was hopin, especially with my budget, that the chameleon would be as equal quality.

I also have an ESP M102 that I play alot. I love that it stays in tune after using th whammy bar. I bought that guitar in 2003 for $400 and has also been good for me.

Thanks again

RyltarSB · January 2009

I got a used Epiphone Elitist SG for $450 with case. The quality on the elitist line is amazing, as it is Japanese made from the Orville line of Gibson with the same quality tunomatic bridge, grover tuners, American electronics that you would find on a Gibson. The pickups are the same as on the Les Paul Standard I believe. Additionally, from the reviews people say that the fretting job on the elitist line is often better than most of the new Gibsons in the $1000-$1500 range.

Blade4130 · January 2009

I have a Epi Chameleon. I think it's a neat guitar and quality is good. However, I do wish it did have the trapezoid inlays as the other guitars do at that price range. The pickups are good, decent, but eventually they will get changed. If you like the guitar then by all means get it as it is worth the money

Epiphone LES PAUL STUDIO CHAMELEON--quality??

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