[ad_1]
Image: James Hetfield ESP Guitar from Instrumentguys.com
ESP guitars are legendary. While the legacy of these Japanese guitars doesn’t stretch back half as far as Gibson or Fender, this hardly stopped ESP from taking the worlds of rock and metal by storm during the late 20th century, inspiring guitarists of just about every musical genre ever since.
ESP’s most famous artists are more often than not American. The brand has almost become so synonymous with the sound of US rock and metal that many assume ESP guitars are all-American creations. But this is far from the case.
Join us in our deep dive into ESP guitars, where you’ll learn all you need to know about this Japanese guitar brand, its history, top guitar models and what really makes ESP guitars stand out from the rest.
A 3-Minute History of The ESP Guitar Company
Image: ESP Custom Shop Guitars
The ESP Guitar Company started out back in 1975. In the complex of Tokyo, Japan, a tiny store named “Electronic Sound Products” held the key to innovating the world of instruments. ESP’s founder, Hisatake Shibuya, may not have known it at the time, but his original ESP store, which stocked replacement parts for big-brand guitar models, would soon evolve to be an overseer of the entire guitar scene.
ESP’s roots as a maker of high-quality replacement and upgrade parts gave it an edge when it came to guitar building. The brand soon made use of its spare parts to build custom guitars, and it wasn’t going in blind – ESP knew guitars to a surgical degree and produced them with finesse. The ESP Custom Shop was a Japanese home-country hit, founded on ingenious experimentation and masterful craftsmanship.
ESP’s original, Japan-only models, the ESP Edwards and Navigator, were a perfect mirror of the Fender Stratocaster and Gibson Les Paul designs, so spot-on in design and quality that the instruments could not be legally imported into the USA. But ESP guitars have never truly been rip-offs; the brand’s astounding quality has earned it a strong title amongst the world’s top electric guitar companies, and its prices reflect the sincerity and faultless quality of its craft.
ESP’s inherent custom appeal is what shot this Japanese brand into the spotlight. As CEO, Matt Masciandaro told Reverb in 2020, “We were just starting to become the guitar company that people would go to if they wanted something beyond what was traditional […] Artists started to find out that if they had a vision or a concept or a dream for a guitar that wasn’t a stock Les Paul or Strat—if they wanted a graphic on it, they wanted a Floyd Rose, they wanted custom inlays—ESP was the place to go.”
Also Read: MOST POPULAR JAPANESE GUITAR BRANDS
Where are ESP Guitars made?
Image: ESP “Translucent Colors”
With its history split across two continents, ESP’s manufacturing process is also split between America and Asia. ESP’s range of models is expansive, and the origins of each line vary.
Some of the most affordable ESP guitars out there, such as the ESP LTD EC-1000 are assembled in Indonesia and Korea, cutting costs to allow ESP guitars to be accessible to every player’s budget. The ESP USA series is all-American, handcrafted in California yet said to possess the quality of the brand’s most authentic Japanese guitars. The ESP E-II models are factory-built in Japan, whilst the ESP Original Series guitars are handmade in Tokyo and include some of the most high-grade specimens produced by the brand.
After ESP debuted its budget-friendly, Korean-built LTD range in America during the mid-1990s, ESP soon paused the US exportation of their Japanese guitars, concentrating all focus and energy on mastering their US-centric ranges and releasing American artists from the burden of Japanese exportation costs.
But just under 10 years later, the brand resumed selling its Japanese models in America after a steep rise in demand. This means you’ll find both American and Japanese guitars for sale in most parts of the world, alongside ESP’s mass-produced Indonesian and Korean factory-line guitars.
Also Read: TOP VINTAGE JAPANESE GUITAR MODELS
Are ESP Guitars Good?
ESP produces top-of-the-line guitars comparable in quality to Gibson, Ibanez and other greats of the guitar scene. ESP guitars aren’t just good, they’re awesome, and here’s some reasons why:
Craftsmanship
Image: ESp “Army Guitar”
ESP’s Japanese models are astounding. Crafted by some of the world’s most masterful guitar luthiers, the craftspeople of ESP Japan are said to “border on the obsessive” when it comes to finessing each high-quality, handmade guitar. Their perfectionist level of attention to detail is matched by the brand’s deep-rooted sense of innovation; from its balance of old-school and modern woodworking techniques and technologies, to its choice of top-range tonewoods, captivating finishes, and seamless performance capabilities.
Professional, Affordable Guitars
Image: ESP “LTD Guitar”
If you’ve ever researched ESP guitars for sale, you’ll have noticed ESP’s price range is as vast as their range of models. You’d be lucky to snag a good Gibson guitar for under $1000. But ESP is founded on top-quality innovation whilst catering to the everyday player, producing models to match the budgets of beginners, intermediates and pro guitarists alike.
ESP LTD guitars offer the brand’s fine blend of traditional and cutting-edge guitar designs for a fraction of its usual cost. While stage performers and session musicians might favor authentic, custom Japan-built ESPs, its standard mass-produced models allow all players to explore and experiment with the brand’s luxury sound.
If you don’t trust us, trust the pros
Image: Alexi Laiho playing the ESP guitar
Since first setting up shop in the US, ESP has garnered a huge following of professional guitarists and famous rock musicians. There are tons of artists who endorse ESP guitars across a variety of genres, but this brand finds its main fanbase in rock and metal musicians seeking signature tones and striking aesthetics.
So if you don’t trust us when we say these guitars are great, you can certainly trust the insights and performances of world-famous ESP players, including Dave Murray of Iron Maiden, Stephen Carpenter of Deftones, Alexi Laiho of Children Of Bodom, and James Hetfield of Metallica, amongst many, many more.
ESP’s Guitar Range
The ESP Guitar range is extensive, so here’s a quick and easy guide to the brand’s best-selling series.
ESP Original Series
The crown-piece of ESP’s guitar range is undoubtedly the ESP Original Series. These are hand-crafted Japanese guitars, designed and exported for “serious musicians who accept zero compromise in the finest woods, components, and aesthetics.”
Image: ESP “Original Series”
ESP Custom Shop
ESP Custom Shop guitars are made in Japan, and are personalized to each buyer’s unique preferences. As ESP explains, “A custom ESP can be anything from a personalized version of an existing ESP model, or a completely new and totally unique instrument that represents the guitar or bass of your dreams.”
Image: ESP Custom Shop Customized Guitar Example
ESP USA Series
In 2014, the USA series saw the handcrafted allure of the ESP Originals cross the Pacific. The ESP USA Series guitars are handmade in California, bringing the prized quality of ESP’s finest instruments into new territory, whilst “continuing ESP’s highly-acclaimed tradition of excellence in guitar building.”
Image: ESP “USA Series”
ESP Standard Series / E-II Series
Originally titled the Standard Series, ESP’s E-II series guitars reproduce the sonic quality and aesthetics of the Original Series models to a T. These Japanese factory guitars were developed to bring ESP’s unique patchwork of great tones, playability and innovative design to the masses at much lower prices.
Images: ESP “E-II”
ESP LTD Series
The ESP Guitar Company is prized for its handcrafted edge, but times are tough, and not every musician can afford a hand-built guitar. That’s where LTD guitars steps in – a factory-built offshoot of ESP endorsed by countless pro guitarists. ESP LTDs don’t compromise on quality or aesthetics in the slightest; they’re the go-to guitars for first-time ESP buyers, beginners, intermediates and even pros sold on their flawless designs.
Image: ESP “LTD SERIES”
ESP Acoustic Guitars
Whilst renowned for its appeal to metal musicians and other guitarists seeking cut-throat sound, ESP’s extensive range also covers acoustic guitars and acoustic basses. These acoustics mostly appear in ESP’s LTD range, including the super-slim LTD TL transducer-electrics, amongst a host of other more traditional acoustic and electro-acoustic guitars.
Image: ESP “LTD TL Acoustic Guitar”
Closing Thoughts
ESP represents a new approach to how guitarists can manifest their true musical potential. From its Japanese beginnings, ESP affirmed itself as the mad scientist of the guitar scene, mix-and-matching guitar parts to build authentic instruments designed to put stock-standard guitar designs to shame. Even ESP’s own later ranges of stock-standard models such as the LTDs are noted to be exceptional for such mass-produced, low-cost guitars.
This brand only launched in the mid 70s, but its sonic legacy is already well-cemented in music history, growing greater with each decade of technological innovation.
Also Read: ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT IBANEZ GUITARS
Have you signed up for ZenMarket yet?
ZenMarket is the place to get your hands on goods directly from Japan!
[ad_2]
Source link