Epiphone Les Paul Junior Special Electric Guitar Review

Back in the days when Gibson's Les Paul guitars were king in the music industry, the company decided to make a version of this iconic instrument that would be affordable for the average person. They did away with one pickup, made the assembly less flashy and detail oriented, and distributed it to retailers across the globe as the Les Paul Junior. Little did they know that thousands of professional musicians would pick it up as well. They loved the simplistic look and feel, and the quality of sound when they jammed on a Junior. Today, Epiphone is continuing the tradition of the old Les Paul Juniors by offering a single pickup, low priced guitar that packs, in many owners' opinions, a powerful punch. Let's take a closer look at what this Epiphone version has to offer.

Features: Epiphone's model of the Les Paul Junior really nailed the simplicity aspect. The body is made out of what they refer to as "tonewood", which is a basic polished alder. The bolted-on neck is made out of the same material, with a rosewood fretboard. The fret inlays are pearl dots, and there are twenty one frets total. The bolt-on neck gives limited access to these higher frets, unfortunately. It features a Tune-O-Matic bridge, which makes it easy to change the strings and adjust their height. On a side note, be careful with string height on this guitar, because if you adjust them too low you will get a mean fret buzz toward the lower end of the neck. Try to find that "sweet spot" and you will be satisfied. There are two plastic volume knobs on the base of the body, but there is no selector switch (which makes sense, considering you are working with one pickup anyway).

Playability: One thing generally agreed upon by most users of this guitar (including myself) is that the neck is very smooth and fast. It allows for a ton of mobility with the fretting hand, which is a big plus. The fact that this will make it easier to learn to play for beginners (who the guitar is designed for) is an additional positive aspect.

Sound: This is all in personal preference. If you're looking to do some highly technical work or perfect clarity with lower tones, this is probably not the guitar for you. But for that crunchy, rocky punk sound (think Green Day) this instrument will fit the purpose nicely.

Overall: The Epiphone Les Paul Junior purpose can be seen in the name. Junior. If you have a child looking to learn some power chords and rock out, it's tough to beat. (Especially since it's a name brand, pretty well made guitar at right around one hundred dollars.) Just make sure they keep it down after seven.