ESP KH-202 comments?

[stodge]

I played an ESP KH-202 today. I though the overall package was decent; neck felt good, the pickups sounded good even when clean. It has the FR Special, which I'm not sold on yet though. The price was good too - CAN$550 before tax. It's made in China so quality might be an issue. Any thoughts on this guitar?

[Magical Muffin]

I personally wouldn't want to get anything less than a 401 when it comes to ESP, because Korea > Indonesia/china, almost always. Not to mention you are paying quite a bit simply to the artist, and not the quality of the guitar.

Those are my general thoughts, and I'd much rather pay a few hundred extra to get something better, but if you like it and do buy it make complete sure that there isn't any dead spots on the fretboard or any places that is easy to fret out on bends beforehand. The neck is usually the biggest thing affected by quality control.

[corpraider69]

Not for nothing but I came in possesion of a esp/ltd m-103fm which is chinese made and was setup well,tuned to D, a whole step down and I have to say it kicked major ass!!
Bridge pickup is super hot has major crunch and I was really impressed the fit and finish on the guitar was really nice too.For a $329 I think thats what they go for not what I paid
The guitar was extremely impressive maybe China is getting better at making guitars or this one was a standout it was setup by someone who new what they were doing.But for this (one guitar) I was pleasantly surprised it definitely is a gig worthy guitar and could be used by everyone from a pro player to a newbie. Hope that helps I dunno

[Triggerman9]

If you're buying a KH be a baller and get a real ESP KH, Neck thru - made in japan model. If you don't you're only paying money for something that remotely resembles it. An LTD IS NOT an ESP in the sense of how it plays and sounds. I've got 4 neck thru KH guitars including the new white Ouija (its worth every penny!) and I'll tell you, once you play a real one there's no going back.

With Ibanez you may on occasion find an korean model that has a good neck and plays well, but with ESP if you want the best you have to pay for it.

[As Hell Broke Loose]

Originally Posted by Triggerman9

If you're buying a KH be a baller and get a real ESP KH, Neck thru - made in japan model. If you don't you're only paying money for something that remotely resembles it. An LTD IS NOT an ESP in the sense of how it plays and sounds. I've got 4 neck thru KH guitars including the new white Ouija (its worth every penny!) and I'll tell you, once you play a real one there's no going back.

With Ibanez you may on occasion find an korean model that has a good neck and plays well, but with ESP if you want the best you have to pay for it.

Tell that to my LTD H-1000.

[corpraider69]

Originally Posted by Triggerman9

If you're buying a KH be a baller and get a real ESP KH, Neck thru - made in japan model. If you don't you're only paying money for something that remotely resembles it. An LTD IS NOT an ESP in the sense of how it plays and sounds. I've got 4 neck thru KH guitars including the new white Ouija (its worth every penny!) and I'll tell you, once you play a real one there's no going back.

With Ibanez you may on occasion find an korean model that has a good neck and plays well, but with ESP if you want the best you have to pay for it.

I would say you dont have to pay thousands of dollars for a nice pro quality guitar.
A nice made in japan Ibanez or ESP or Jackson or whatever setup properly by a good guitar tech with nice pickups will sound about as good as its gonna get.So like a used Ibanez RG-550/570 with some nice dimarzios can be had for under $500. Satch uses his JS model you can get a used one for under a grand.ESP M-II,Mirages,Horizons all are really nice guitars.They can be found for under a grand sometimes way under.If you need a Les Paul kinda sound Epis,Agiles,Tokai,ESP/LTD all are options throw some Duncans in them and you can get like 95% the benefits of a Les Paul for 1/4 the price.You don't need expensive gear to sound good I have seen many great players playing other peoples gear and still sounding great,spend your money wisely on your whole rig Amps,Guitars,Effects.
A 3K Guitar isnt gonna change your sound that much especially if you dont play that well.

[Triggerman9]

Originally Posted by corpraider69

I would say you dont have to pay thousands of dollars for a nice pro quality guitar.
A nice made in japan Ibanez or ESP or Jackson or whatever setup properly by a good guitar tech with nice pickups will sound about as good as its gonna get.So like a used Ibanez RG-550/570 with some nice dimarzios can be had for under $500. Satch uses his JS model you can get a used one for under a grand.ESP M-II,Mirages,Horizons all are really nice guitars.They can be found for under a grand sometimes way under.If you need a Les Paul kinda sound Epis,Agiles,Tokai,ESP/LTD all are options throw some Duncans in them and you can get like 95% the benefits of a Les Paul for 1/4 the price.You don't need expensive gear to sound good I have seen many great players playing other peoples gear and still sounding great,spend your money wisely on your whole rig Amps,Guitars,Effects.
A 3K Guitar isnt gonna change your sound that much especially if you dont play that well.

I agree totally. Talent is Talent and can not be purchased. vai, satch, KH or a bunch of other guys could smoke me with a $99 montgomery ward turd. But we're talking about a signature series guitar here and a "real KH" the 202 is not. Its a profit generating, poorly constructed look alike that, at best, is only slightly better than the afforementioned department store guitar.

There are a ton of Superbly playing $350 guitars out there.. but rather than spending 3500 on 10 of 'em to MAYBE find a good one, I like to spend it on 1 excellent guitar in one whack.

For what its worth several, if not all of my $900 - $1400 CARVINs are every bit as good as the holy grail Ouija guitar.. but there a only a few of them, and having it makes me feel better, which is what extremely nice material things are all about.