Epiphone EM-2 Prophecy FX Guitar Review

So, you are an accomplished guitarist who loves hard rock and metal. You've been plugging away at an entry level guitar for a couple of years now, an your ability has moved past the ability of your equipment. If anything, your equipment is holding you back while your skills are trying to push forward. Oh, and you don't really have a lot of money to spend. These days, who does? Well, you are the target audience for Epiphone's EM-2 Prophecy FX electric guitar. Let's take a look at what excactly this instrument has to offer.

Features: The body of the Epiphone Prophecy FX is a curved C shape made of maple, and has a carved maple quilted top with a slick looking midnight ebony finish. In my opinion, this is a pretty sexy looking guitar. The neck of the Prophecy FX is also made of maple, has a SpeedTaper design, and to round it out has a satin finish. There are 24 hugely wide jumbo frets, and the inlays are pearl blade shaped. The headstock of the guitar is in classic Jackson brand guitar style, and it is topped with Grover brand tuning heads. A special feature of the FX, and one that is hardly ever seen in Epiphone's guitars, is the Floyd Rose tremolo system. Electronically, the Prophecy FX features two Epiphone brand EpiActive pickups. They are unique in that they can be toggled on and off. Also, there are two pearl volume and one tone control knobs, with a three way pickup selector switch.

Playability: This is what the Epiphone EM-2 Prophecy FX was designed for. The thing is built for speed, plain and simple. The SpeedTaper design of the neck means that it gets skinnier as it moves away from the body of the guitar, making it easier for switching positions quickly. The jumbo frets also make it easier to bust out those ear piercing high solos. Also, you'll be able to take full advantage of the guitar's 24 frets because of the unique C cut design.

Sound: The Prophecy FX is designed to play one style of music. That style is heavy. The EpiActive pickups in active mode can really rip it up, and if necessary you can cut it down a bit by switching them into passive mode. As you could probably guess, it's pretty easy to tell that the EpiActive pickups don't handle clean tones very well. But, the Floyd Rose Tremolo system makes up for that. Especially if you are a fan of Mr. Eddie Van Halen.

Overall: For the relatively accomplished metal player, this guitar is excellent. Its playability is tough to beat among guitars in its price range, and it can kick out some genuinely vicious riffs. Just be sure you can handle the power. You can pick up an Epiphone EM-2 Prophecy FX for about $400.