Epiphone Les Paul Black Beauty 3 Guitar Review

The Black Beauty style Les Paul has always been a coveted item. It takes a classic and adds another touch, in this case a third pickup, to what is already considered an excellent instrument. Among collectors and musicians alike, its high demand usually equals astronomical prices. Epiphone, in an effort to make a genuine high quality Black Beauty, now offers the Epiphone Les Paul Black Beauty 3. Let's take a look to see if it measures up to the reputation of its more expensive counterparts.

Features: The body of the Black Beauty 3 is, well, a Black Beauty. It is made of solid mahogany, and features a deeply rich ebony finish. The neck of the guitar is set into the body, and is made of mahogany as well. The fretboard is made of rosewood, and has twenty two regular size frets in total. On the fretboard are pearloid block inlays. As an additional feature, the headstock of the Epiphone Black Beauty 3 has a split diamond pearl inlay, in a classic Gibson style. All of the hardware, including the tuning heads, the pickup covers, and the LockTone Tune-O-Matic bridge are gold. Also, there is cream binding laid on the body, fretboard, and headstock. Electronically, the Epiphone Black Beauty 3 has two volume and two control knobs with a three way selector switch. Also, it has three Alnico Classic brand humbucker pickups.

Playability: The main aspect of the this guitar's playability is getting used to the third pickup. It offers a dynamic that most musicians aren't used to with a Gibson style guitar, and really figuring it out will take some time. Other than this, however the Epiphone Black Beauty 3 plays like any other high quality Les Paul.

Sound: This aspect of the guitar is also greatly affected by the third pickup. Once you have the details of finding the exact tone you want down, the Black Beauty 3 really delivers. It offers a dynamic crunch comparable to guitars twice as expensive, and signs and sustains just like a Les Paul should. After, that's what made them legendary.

Overall: The Epiphone Les Paul Black Beauty is an excellent alternative to the vintage Black Beauties that literally cost a kidney. It has sharp looks, good playability, and a pure Gibson sound. If you're a musician looking for the real deal without the extravagant price, the Black Beauty 3 is probably for you. You can find this guitar in music stores for about $800.