“A stunning-looking guitar that covers pretty much any musical base”: Epiphone Joe Bonamassa 1963 SG Custom review

The very first good electrical guitar that this customer put his cents away weekly for was a white SG Custom, influenced by Alice Cooper’s initial guitar player Glen Buxton on the band’s performance of Under My Wheels on The Old Grey Whistle TestThe SG never ever materialised, however that’s another story.

While Buxton’s Custom was the later 1966 to ’71 design with the big scratchplate, Joe Bonamassa’s own Gibson SG originates from the middle of the 1961 to ’66 period, with the little pickguard and ‘lyre’ inscribed long Maestro Vibrola that appeared in ’63, simply as the twin-cutaway Les Paul design altered its name to SG.

A devoted leisure of its Gibson forbear, our Epiphone includes a two-piece mahogany body with chamfered edges and pincer-like horns, the lower a touch much shorter than the upper. Into this is glued a one-piece, slim-taper mahogany neck topped by a single-bound, block-inlaid ebony fingerboard with 22 medium-fine stresses.

Joe’s own ’63 Gibson has a reasonably uncommon neck sign up with, where it tapers efficiently into the body without the normal action. For many years, Gibson attempted different approaches to offer this infamously powerlessness higher structural stability, and while one does not see a lot of like this, it is an authentic Gibson visit.

The Custom’s headstock is the brief Epiphone style that matches it extremely well. The ‘split H’ pearl inlay is a vibrant declaration, however the five-ply headstock binding is dark orangey yellow instead of the velvety white of the neck binding. Obviously, this is to show Joe’s own ’63, however it does look a little odd.

Powering the Custom are 3 Epiphone ProBucker pickups– a somewhat higher-output 3 at the bridge and twin twos in the neck and middle positions. ProBuckers are wax potted and function nickel alloy covers and sand cast Alnico II magnets. Made in China, their specification is really close to that of Gibson’s own pickups.

A nylon-saddle LockTone tune-o-matic design bridge and Epiphone-engraved ‘lyre’ design Vibrola tailpiece finish the photo. It’s all gold-plated, too, making this one of the most luxurious guitars around (“Don’t even look!”).

Of the numerous changing alternatives readily available on a three-humbucker guitar, which clearly consist of neck and middle pickup integrated, or middle humbucker by itself, Epiphone rather went with bridge and middle together, wired in parallel. Due to their close distance, and the lighter tone that the SG’s building naturally brings, far from being an odd option this shows to be a masterstroke. More of which later on.

Ended up in common Eastern Asian polyester, here the Chinese factory has actually done a fantastic task of making it not look thick and plasticky. It’s smooth, shiny and, to be sincere, we didn’t reconsider it being nitro or not.

The mahogany grain shines through the dark Wine Red stain, truly matching the white pickguard and matching ‘Custom’ plate, sited in between neck pickup and fingerboard to conceal the otherwise noticeable neck tenon.

In general, we reckon Epiphone, with major input from Joe, has actually done a splitting task of putting this guitar together.

Feel & & Sounds

Some guitar players discover it problematic getting used to how an SG’s neck extends from the body the method it does. Others do not proceed with a middle pickup– for instance, Ritchie Blackmore decreases his Strat’s 2nd single coil pickup as he feels it obstructs.

Other gamers merely discover huge, large vibrato systems too invasive, specifically when they provide just a moderate wobble to chords or tunes. Put all 3 together and you can see how an SG Custom may be a little a difficulty to some guitar players.

A little time invested changing to all 3 and one rapidly discovers a guitar like this exceptionally fulfilling. In reality, unless you’re a genuine digger-inner, the centre humbucker should not be an issue.

Changing from, state, a Strat to a PRS, everybody understands that there’s some reconfiguring of how you choose and wobble. And by the time you’ve conquered these concerns you’ve most likely forgotten that your SG’s 15th fret is where the 12th typically is!

Mentioning stresses, on our Custom they’re medium bordering on fine, however with the guitar’s smooth ebony ‘board, 304mm (12-inch) radius and slinky neck, flexes and vibrato are not a problem. And with that absolutely complimentary stretch of pearl-inlaid ebony laid before you, the fretboard is a play area for expedition– even at its greatest reaches, particularly with this neck’s smooth shift into the body.

Plugging into our ever-faithful Laney Lionheart 20we are advised how pleasing the tidy clank of an SG can be. The body’s reasonably light mass and fragile construct provide it a vibrancy that you simply do not obtain from a Les PaulThe bridge pickup is strong and strident, while the neck is either Les Paul lite or fat Strat, depending upon how you see it. With the selector in the middle we discover some extremely fascinating tones.

Rather like a Strat‘s positions 2 and 4 on the blade switch, the distance of neck and bridge humbucker to each other produce a tone that’s happily vowelly, a bit Strat-ish, and you might discover an usage for it in a host of cool rhythm, chose arpeggio and straight strumming circumstances. While you might be forgiven for believing they run out stage, Joe informs us they are not.

Whack up the Laney’s wick and ‘both pickups on’ is Glen Buxton’s Under My Wheels tone. Turn to the bridge and it’s instantaneous Angus Young, or The Doors’ Robby Krieger if you withdraw somewhat. Go to the neck and it’s difficult not to hurry directly for the Sunlight Of Your Love riff– certainly, Clapton nicknamed his SG ‘Sunny’ after the tune.

And when you think about just how much you can do with twin volume and tone controls, you’ll see there’s a lots of fantastic noises here, definitely more than on the majority of Gibson-type guitars.

Decision

The elephant in the space is, obviously, the Custom’s cost. While $/ ₤ 1,499 appears a lot when compared with other Epiphones, and particularly when you can discover Gibson’s own SG Standard for a comparable cost online, there truly is a lot of guitar here.

Products are all great quality, consisting of the genuine ebony fingerboard with real mother-of-pearl inlays, superior parts such as Kluson ‘waffleback’ tuners, a correct Vibrola, and 3 of Epiphone’s outstanding ProBuckers with CTS pots and Mallory capacitors.

It is available in a sophisticated hardshell guitar case with ‘Bonamassa, Nerdville, CA’ stencilled on the top, and, naturally, we can’t forget the input from the guy himself, a gamer we understand is fastidious about how his guitars look, play and sound.

It’s real that SGs divide viewpoint, as do three-humbucker guitars in basic and huge, large vibrato systems. Whatever your view on it, and whether or not you believe the rate is on the high side, we have to yield that in between them Epiphone and Bonamassa have actually produced a stunning-looking guitar that not just makes an effective visual declaration however which likewise covers quite much any musical base you can believe of.

While you may not believe so at very first sight, this is an extremely flexible guitar. If you’re yet to be transformed to the happiness of the SG experience, we believe this might well do it.

Specifications

• RATE: $/ ₤ 1,499 (inc luxurious ‘goldenrod’ lined case with Epiphone and Joe Bonamassa graphics)
• ORIGIN: China
• TYPE: Double-cutaway, solidbody electrical
• BODY: 2-piece mahogany with chamfered edges
• NECK: 1-piece slim-taper mahogany with uncommon smooth neck to body joint, glued-in
• SCALE LENGTH: 629mm (24.75″)
• NUT/WIDTH: Chart Tech/43.022 mm
• FINGERBOARD: Single-bound ebony, mom of pearl block inlays, 305mm (12″) radius
• STRESSES: 22, medium jumbo
• HARDWARE: Epiphone LockTone tune-o-matic bridge and Maestro Vibrola vibrato/tailpiece, Kluson waffleback tuners w/ ‘tulip’ buttons– gold plated
• STRING SPACING, BRIDGE: 51.5 mm
• ELECTRICS: 2 covered Epiphone ProBuckers (neck and middle), covered Epiphone ProBucker 3 (bridge), 3-way toggle pickup selector switch, volume and tone for each pickup
• WEIGHT (kg/lb): 3.54/ 7.8
• CHOICES: None
• VARIETY OPTIONS: None
• LEFT-HANDERS: No
• SURFACES: Gloss dark Wine Red polyester
• CONTACT: Epiphone

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In the late ’70s and early ’80s Neville worked for Selmer/Norlin as one of Gibson’s UK guitar repairers, before signing up with CBS/Fender in the very same function. He then transferred to the new Guitarist publication as personnel author, increasing to editor in 1986. He stayed editor for 14 years before introducing and modifying Guitar Techniques publication. Now semi-retired he still works for both publications. Neville has actually belonged to Marty Wilde’s ‘Wildcats’ given that 1983, and tape-recorded his own album, The Blues Headlines, in 2019.