ESP LTD MH-400NT Guitar Review

The ESP brand is a favorite among many hard rock and metal guitarists. They have a distinct edge about them that permeates all aspects of look, feel, and sound. Their designs are very original, and they've gained a solid footing among the Fenders and Gibsons of the world. One of their more popular models is the ESP LTD MH-400NT. In this article, I'll take a closer look at it to see how it compares with other genre-oriented instruments.

Features: The body of the LTD MH-400NT is made of mahogany wood. This gives it a thicker tone and a little more sustain than, say, a guitar made of alder wood. The top, meanwhile is quilted maple. There is just one finish available with the LTD MH-400NT, and that is a clearcoat black. The neck is set into the body, is made of maple and has a very small joint. Its fretboard is made of rosewood, and it has twenty four jumbo frets with block inlays on the top part of the frets. The hardware is a bit unique among traditional guitars. It has an Earvana brand nut, which has a design made to keep the strings in place and in tune. Also, there is a Tune-O-Matic bridge, but instead of a stop-bar tailpiece to go with it (like you would find on a Gibson, for example) it has a string through body make. The rest of the hardware, including pickup covers and Grover tuning heads, is black. Electronically, the LTD MH-400NT has two EMG-81 humbucker pickups, one volume and one tone control knobs, and a three way selector switch.

Playability: The LTD MH-400NT was definitely designed with playability in the forefront of plans. The tiny neck joint combined with deep cutaways makes high fret access unbelievably good. Also, the neck itself has a thin design to improve speed up and down the frets. The body itself, too, is made light for long sessions of playing standing up. The LTD MH-400NT is clearly made as a shredder's dream.

Sound: EMG-81 active pickups, as you could probably guess from some aforementioned material in this article, are made for metal. The active part of the name means that a bunch of notes you play will have the same edge as a pinch harmonic. According to many users, though, they can also do rhythm and clean tones pretty well. The LTD MH-400NT is good at what it it's for, and has a surprising degree of versatility.

Overall: The ESP LTD MH-400NT lies directly in the middle of ESP's price range. For a serious hard rock or metal musician looking for a relatively affordable main axe, there are few out there of better quality. You can find the ESP LTD MH-400NT in music stores for about $500.