Dude you are awesome! I just got my dream guitar, a ESP LTD ec-1000, and I want to know everything about it. You are answering all of my questions! Thanks man!
Technically yes, the EIIs have a veneer, but they also have a maple cap that the veneer is glued to; I have heard it described as a veneer-cap. Pushhead over on the ESP forums is an Eclipse (and ESP in general) officiando, and has a lot of photos showing the body cavities where you can see the veneer/cap/mahogany construction. Anecdotally, I have an EII full thickness in black natural burst, and the veneer on mine is thick enough that it has that 3d/depth-of-field effect. I have a 2018 Les Paul Standard HP that Gibson advertised as having a AAA+ flame top, and the 3d effect on the EII I have is respectably comparable - a compliment to the EII, not a knock on the Gibo. My Les Paul is a frigging beast in appearance, tone, and playability but given that it was a $3700 guitar back in 2018 it SHOULD be. Impressively, the EII that sells for $2500 TODAY (in 2018, around $1700-$1800 iirc) is every bit it's equal in playability, has a different-but-equally good tone, and is still comparable visually.
Great in-depth comparison man! I'm trying to make my mind up whether to go for an E-II Eclipse Full Thickness or EC-1000T CTM and have done lots of research. Your comparison pretty much covered it all in one video, well done and keep up the good work. Look forward to seeing more.
@@AdamManley7 well, I decided I was trying to squeeze two guitars into one so instead I got myself an LP for a "true" single cut and now have my eyes on an ESP E-II M-II for a more modern metal kind of vibe.
Interesting that I watched the most recent Evenesance show live from Europe and the guitarist, recently promoted from Bass to guitar was playing a LTD 1000 viper series on stage. Sounded fantastic and is gorgeous. Seeing folks like that use the products on stage backs up that ltd 1000 series are certainly mature enough to use professionally on stage.
I want to add a few more info: - All E2 have maple veneer. - on esp group, someone points out E2 has graphite rod. - my E2 has EMG and it uses small non branded pots. Maybe only E2 with passive pickup uses esp branded pots. And thx for this comparison. It's nice to hear opinion from someone who owns all these thousands dollar guitars. I hope you can get Edwards EC and ESP original eclipse and compared it with the rest of the line.
quite frankly, LTD QC and attention for details is impossibly good for cash you pay for them :) You can't go wrong with LTD 1000 series (and even 200 -I have ltd alexi signature, are flawless if we talking bout neck, freest and surroundings, equipment (like tuners, bridge etc) are rather cheap but wood and fit'n'finish is awesome.
ESP/LTD are great guitars. I’ve had EC-100,401,and a couple of 1000’s and all were sweet. The 401 I wish I had kept. It was a full thickness, gold top with DiMarzio pups and natural back. Sweet video.
Really appreciate you sharing all of your knowledge! I have a Standard Series Eclipse II on the way and it's good to know all of the differences from the LTDs I've played.
Great info thank you!! Been interested in getting the EC-1000 Duncan. One Les Paul I tried was a newer Classic that crushed me in weight must have been close to 11lbs or different balancing considering my other is 9lbs and feels very comfortable. May go for the Ec-1000 soon seems like good bang for the buck!
Nice comparison. I've owned a LTD EC-401 and now I have 2 E-II guitars (E-II M-II and an E-II Horizon FR-II). The LTD guitars are excellent for their price points. The LTD 400 series are probably the best 'bang for your buck' guitars of them all. They have great build quality and nicer pickups than the lower series. The E-II guitars are definitely nicer than LTD but not in any way that would affect playing or tone. My next guitar will be a custom shop or artist model.
Thanks, this very very informative. As someone who has enough money to buy a little better guitar, it's good to hear what you really get what your money. Quite a few people, myself included, quite often wonder if it's really worth buying a 2500 E-II when you can get probably too LTD 1000's for the same money. And both guitars are really good anyway.
Even if the EII is only 10% better I'd personally rather have one guitar that's 90% 'perfect' than two which are only 80% 'perfect' for the same money.
Cheers Dave for a wonderfully comprehensive breakdown of these great guitars. On paper the EC1000 series should be all anyone needs. Unfortunately my experience trying to get one was only negative. No kidding, I tried 10 individual guitars from 4 online retailers and all of them had issues which were unacceptable. One was dead on arrival, another had rusty frets up and down the fretboard. This was, I believe, after they switched factories to Indo from Korea, and was during the pandemic, so perhaps things are better on that front now. I reluctantly gave up on ESP. About a month ago I noticed a good deal on an E2, the white one you have. I gave it a shot, and when it arrived I was absolutely blown away. It looks incredible, the fit and finish is absolutely flawless, I didn't even have to tune it! Tuning stability is almost perfect every time, it feels a million dollars, the neck, the tuners, the ebony fretboard, any down tuning is handled with ease, very low action and no string buzz at all. The only negative for me is that it's a bit heavier than yours. To me, it's a work of art. I have several Gibsons and US Fenders and this is without a doubt the best made guitar I've ever owned. The 57/66 pickups are beautiful, based on PAFs and you can really hear it, I can legitimately play anything on it. Long story short, I found the higher price of the E2 totally worth it, plus you get a nice case too. Thanks again Dave!
At a local guitar shop I had the opportunity to play the same white E-II you have. Astonishing guitar, with full sound, hq finish and it is really comfortable. My friend has a Gibson Explorer and LTD EC-1000 and I can say that this E-II is the same lvl as Gibson Explorer and feels much better that EC-1000. I just feel in love with this E-II so badly that week later I ordered my own but in Blue Natural Fade finish. Unfortunately I have to wait 2-3 months, but these guitars are worth money and time! Great video and review 💪🏻👌🏻
I just bought a brand new tiger striped ec 2 i probably over paid a bit at 2600 but it is a beautiful instrument it has fish man fluence active pick ups are those as good as the emg 81 60s?
Great video!! The EII eclipse fretboard is stained btw. A buddy of mine has a white one and mentioned this. His fingertips got black from the dye. Especially the first two weeks he owned it.
Something l like about the Les Paul style guitar with the Floyd Rose and I want to get one like that a quilted maple green with gold hardware and Floyd Rose...
I’ve owned an ESP for years (ESP Standard M2) and have been wondering whether the current ESP EII is either just a conventional renaming to re-establish the brand hierarchy or is it really creating a new line to introduce just slightly better than an LTD lineup and charge ESP Standard money. Well, after watching your vid, it 100% looks like the former. Just a basic name change on the headstock. Now I’m thinking on the lookout for an EII Eclipse to go with my Mirage. That was a very informative video, Dave. Thanks!
Owned an mh (strat) model in the 400 series and it was a beautiful instrument but I sold it cause the feel wasn’t right. That said the pick ups and hardware and paint job were superb. I own an lp studio now but I’m super interested in looking into these 1000 series ec’s.
@@P.B.R._S._n_C. May it all flow liquid gold smooth for ya. It would have been nice to have one, but I'm not too bummed out on having to pass on it. No matter what, dealing with tuning stability issues is always gonna be a $ thing. From the $400+ in extra parts just to keep my Gretsch in tune for more a song... to the much larger expense of purchases that face those problems from the opposite direction of the ET unit. EverTunes work by using spring tension to auto adjust for atmospheric changes (Altitude/Humidity/Temperature) to the rigidity of the wood guitar body. Other than a thin wood veneer on their tops, my Emerald X20 & Virtuo are all Carbon Fiber construction, so they basically ignore such influences, which results in *incredibly* stable tuning.
@@sc0repio662 I ended up returning it. The Evertune does indeed work, though it’s definitely a balancing act to get it set up exactly where you want it. If you stay in a single tuning, I believe it is worth it. For those that like to use alternate tunings and don’t have enough guitars to commit the Evertune as a set tuning, I don’t recommend it. The set up process isn’t bad at all once you get used to it, but the travel range on the bridge tuners isn’t too large and an adjustment on even a single string, say, for drop D, will set you well into zone 3, which ripples to the other strings having to be reset onto the verge of zone 2-3 again.
Hello, how do you compare the E-II Snow White with your Eclipse USA? In terms of weight, tone (do they have both EMG57?), playability, etc. I have E-II (and Standards) and they are so good, I don't know if making a USA Eclipse is worth it (except for the cool finish / cosmetic purpose). I recently got an Original Eclipse Andromeda II (Japan Custom Shop) and I can't say it's better than my E-II and Standards, I'd even say E-II / Standards are lighter and friendlier to play lol, also, the tone is very similar.
Comparing the USA eclipse to the E2 is a bit of apples and oranges. The USA eclipse is full thickness, and feels more like a traditional lespaul than the E2. They have the same neck, so the playability is very similar. The USA eclipse’s now come with stainless steel frets with may be a bonus, however, the fretwork on the E2 is so good that I can’t really tell much of a difference. the E2 is lighter and a little more comfortable to play, simply by having a thinner body. As far as sound is concerned, they each of their own characteristics due to the different electronics and bodies. The USA eclipse is a chambered, full thickness body, so it resonates a bit more, maybe a bit more sustain, but I couldn’t say one is better. All in all, my snow white E2 is probably my favorite guitar despite the fact that it’s half the price of the USA. That being said, I think they’re different enough to justify having at least one of each.
@@rockindavesguitar8699 Thanks a lot for these informations. That's basically what I thought. I didn't know USA Eclipse had full thickness option (or is it by default?) because I used the online ESP configuator several times and there was no "body option" except for top wood/finish/color. Resonance is interesting. I'm also hesitating because of the pickup choices, no Seymour Duncan JB :( But still, beautiful guitar, I'd really like to have one in my Eclipse "collection".
@@Anjer they are all full thickness. It is not a true custom shop like the Japan factory. You just get to pick colors, pick ups, etc. Easy enough to swap out the bridge pickup for a JB though
@@rockindavesguitar8699 Thanks a lot! I didn't know they were full thickness by default, and I find this very interesting. About the JB pickups, to be honest, I'm not sure wanting one of those, but I'd like to have the option to choose the most classical pickups (like JB and EMG 81) ; but I'm in my EMG 57 phase right now (because of the E-II Snow White xD). When I buy an expensive guitar, I'd like to have everything optimal with the stock configuration so I don't have to touch anything (accept for the pickup height and strings heights). Would you mind to tell me how long did you wait from ordering and receiving? Sorry for all the questions, but there are very few informations on Eclipse USA...
I wish the EIIs came with stainless frets too. I added a bone nut to my old EC1000 for $100 (w/installtion). I don't wanna think about how much it would cost to add stainless frets to my EII Eclipse...
@@Sammael757 you'd be happy to know that E-IIs this year (and from now on i hope) come with Stainless steel frets, even tho prices are pretty scary for some of the models.
Standard string swing guitar stands you can get from Amazon for about 20 bucks. I do use much larger screws than what comes with them along with large wall anchors.
Not a big fan of LTD guitars. Love the looks the colors the feel just not the sound. I Love my Gibson SG And my pro I Fender Telecaster. It's all I need.
