The Guitar That's Taking On Gibson and Epiphone! 

Oh man, I didn't expect to see myself! Thanks so much for the shout-out Max!! Also, those blues licks you ripped sounded killer on that AIO 🎸

I have American made les Paul's and strats. I took a Chance on aio wolf and bought an s1 based on one of your reviews. It is now my number 1. I plan to buy more of their guitars. You cannot beat them for price. They are ready to rock out of the box ! They even let you pick your setup specs for free, nobody else does that. I let them know you got me to buy it. Thanks guitar max.

its an awesome time when we get guitars that are just as good as the big names at the fraction of the cost.

Beautiful inlay design on the Headstock. Nice to see that AIO appreciates the visual value of that.

I have owned 3 and they all were great. Sold them to finance another more expensive guitar and regretted later. Planning on getting one of the les paul style models Aio makes. They look most excellent.

Love the binding and ebony fretboard and dark mahogany headstock .

Anything that gives the middle finger to Gibson is a win in my book. 👍

Hey, Max! It was posted on July 24, 2024. You might want to add it to your list of interviews. I have an abiding respect for A.I.O. ever since I caught your interview with the big boss at their store. It’s the kind of thing I will never forget. Serious dude. I remember he personally double checks every single guitar after his people have finished setting them up. All of them. That’s amazing; to be the one guy who says, “If you own an AIO, I saw it, I touched it, and it’s set up exactly my way. I approved THAT guitar myself.” Hell of a thing, Max. I don’t know of anybody else who can do and say that. That’s some serious culturally inherent, unrelenting pursuit of perfection and reputation. So if anybody has a complaint, they would talk to THAT guy. All In One. Now THAT’s cool!

Fantastic guitar. Still have my Wolf and it's amazing. And glad to see you giving some props to Lester. He certainly deserves it!

Wow Max your blues playing has improved immensely and I can only wish to play with your speed. Love the AIO and Wolf stuff but cannot afford to watch this video, let alone another axe

You don’t even get binding on the edges of the F holes on an Epiphone but definitely notice that this one you’ve got definitely does!

GM is awesome for shouting out and giving props to other guitar players and their vids. R E S P E C T is a 2 way street and it has to be EARNED. Thanks Max for another informative video.

I am still so in love with my AIO Wolf WLP750T... the sound, the feel, everything about it is sheer perfection. I bought it because of you, Guitar MAX, and I couldn't be happier. When my budget allows, I'll likely pursue another AIO guitar. They truly are an exceptional brand.

My epiphone has grover tuners, multiply binding, ebony fretboard, and cts pots

Hi Max..Nice guitar...love the way you pick...really good..Thanks Dave

It's pretty! Max, I gotta say I enjoyed the playing portion of the review. Nice!!

Great info. love your reviews!

I found your review as I have been looking at that very guitar. You video gave me the info I was needing to make the choice. Thank you.

Dude! You’re finally a blues player. Well done at the intro.

Nice riffing Max! Sounds excellent!

My AIO les Paul has microphonic pickups and feeds back like crazy with any gain at all

Awesome video! I have been waiting for a good reason to try AIO - looks like I just found it! (Debating on cancelling my DG Epiphone order…). Good stuff!

Great demonstration, I like the way that you covered the details about the guitar and how it would perform on different settings and also you describing the set up that you used for the demo. What type of camera and microphone set up did you use?

I like this guitar a lot, but the deal breaker is the little skinny 41mm nut width...

They're an OEM guitar ordered from a decent manufacturer to their specs and set up before being dispatched. The company is a couple of guys with low overheads and they sell direct. Pretty simple business formula. Of course it's a different scenario to Epiphone who employ hundreds or thousand of people and have massive overheads and by the way also has the history of actually designing these types of instruments not just copying them. It's like buying some fantastic food truck meal where the owner is the cook, cleaner, server, bookkeeper etc and keeps all the profit for himself or going to a nice restaurant and getting a similar meal where the owner has Chefs, kitchen staff, servers, accountants, rent, utilities, liability insurance and shitloads of other overheads.

I’ve been dying to get my hands on a good, inexpensive semi-hollow. Been leaning towards Gretsch, might have to try to track one of these down.

Your a great shredder but thankfully , your showing us and letting us hear you blues playing and other styles .My ears and heart thank you . ❤

NICE TONE LOVE IT. PLEASE KEEP UP YOUR EXCELLENT VIDEOS THERE EDUCATIONAL AND INSPIRING. GOD BLESS YOU.

Excellent video, and great playing as usual!! So is the P-38 your favorite fighter? 😎

Thanks again for an honest review of an affordable guitar. Being an acoustic fingerstyle player, i own a few high end guitars but do like to fiddle with electric guitars as well. Something of this quality and tone are fine for when i need to have an 8 track flashback and play 70s tunes for my friends and family. Tom in Maine.

Beautiful Guitar 🎸 Great Playing BTW.. Definitely interested in this AIO Guitar Company... Have An Awesome Weekend... Cheers 🍻 🥃🥃 🎸 🎵🎶🎶🎶

Good looking and sounding guitar!

Hey Maxx love your channel! I bought my es 339 in 2019. I freaking love that guitar. Make no mods except remove the pickguard. But my next purchase would likely be the AIO you're showing here. I love my Epiphone guitars ( I have six of them), but it may be time to switch teams.

I've several AIO guitars on my Christmas wish list . Thanks Max

This is so cool. I've got that exact same guitar. Bought it about 4 years ago based on your reviews of Wolf. Same color, everything and came set up to my specs. The only noticeable difference is the shape of the headstock. Probably the best guitar I've ever owned. Thanks

I love the way you play. So relaxed and skillful. Then there is the way you address the camera. I don't know exactly if you like what I like. None the less I am going to keep in the spirit.

Where these guitars excel is you could effortlessly get endless sustain, like a Sustainiac but without needing a battery or special electronics. You basically controlled the feedback/endless notes with the angle your held your guitar in relation to your proximity from your speaker. If done right, you really didn't need to crank up the volume or gain much on your amp, although turning up the volume on a distortion box could easily get you edge of breakup and feedback with unlimited sustain. Guitar tone heaven!

Dude!! Just checked out their website and the amount of ebony and rosewood fret boards is fantastic!! Icing on the cake,... *"Abalone inlays and bindings!!!"* ❤‍🔥 Fell in love with one of the LPs with gold hardware and Grover Tuners!! If these sound as good as the what you're demoing here,... Freaking Aye!!! 🤩 Yeah,... Christmas might come early this year!! 🤣👍

Nice piece....

I just bought the Blue copy of this one. Can't wait to play it. I own both a Gibson ES-335, and Epiphone ES-335, both red with inlays. So, I'm looking forward to doing a triple comparison with this new guitar.

Thanks for bringing this to my attention. Has an edgy sound that I like + an ebony fretboard + grovers. I will have to do some research. In comparison, I have an Epiphone Sheraton II Pro. Had to do a plek and setup out of the box but on the whole, the Epi platform is pretty nice for the price, Grovers, binding, slim profile D neck. Although it has a different vibe , I think the Epi is competitive with the AIO IMO

Your blues rift practices are really paying off. Just wanted you know we can tell how many hours you put in off screen.

Very cool!

Thanks Max for doing what you do & the way you do it, you do it the right way. You give an accurate representation to what the instruments are capable of and by using the affordable amps & systems you show what's possible for us 'less than fortunate' people out there that can't afford the Mesa Boogies, or Marshall Stacks, or Soldano SLO-100's, (no matter how much we wish we COULD!). YOU'RE doing an awesome job & if I ever have a question about if I should get a piece of gear 'YOU' are the FIRST reviewer I look for, if I know Max has used the gear, that's good enough endorsement for me to know to get it!! Be it whatever!! I rely on both you & Richard James & Jimmy Stewart too!! (Jimmy knows the 'cold weather' do's & don'ts like we have to deal with up here in Minnesota Brrrrrr!!! (I hate the bitter cold!!). Thanks again Brother!! Keep on Rockin' - Greg Leonard 🤘🤙👍 Don't let anybody tell you a different way.

That tone reminds me of Alvin Lee’s “10 Years After “ Gibson ES335 1960 model.

great job, as always! AIO? now i gotta check it out 👍 buddy can you spare a strat?

You should try a demonstration for IYV semi hollow body. I have one, and it's awesome! I had to work on it first, but it was worth it.

Thanks Max, You just answered a question I've been wondering about and asking for quite a while now. Which is Why and how are "full-size" Potentiometers, Better/superior to the "smaller/mini" Potentiometers? Which seems to be because of the larger radius you get a smoother or more even roll on and off of volume and or tone. (makes sense) Cool Stuff thanks Max

I have 3 Epi’s. 2 are fantastic, the 3rd may wind up under my nephews Christmas tree in December.

Looks great, really nice aesthetics on that model, though I'm not a fan of abalone inlay on the headstock. Abalone just looks cheesey to me, it's basically what "cheap" guitars do all the time to make it seem like they're more expensive. Great job on everything else, though.

agree. got and AIO gold top and is an amazing guitar! better then Gibson. body is slightly smaller, but amazing LP. pickups are great. the ebony fretboard is a winner. I would highly recommend AIO.

I shopped around and was going to get a Gibson 335 , there was a Bonamassa 335 Epiphone hanging there and the quality and sound are over the top, all Gibson electronics including pickups. The Epi Sheratons are high quality also.

Sounds pretty good, how is the upper fret access?

Max, are the pots Bourns brand with other Bourns electronics??? Sounds Super!!!!

impressive.

Geez, based on you demo, this is epic-quality

I love the shape & look of the headstock with the cool inlays. I have the Sire 335 model ( H7 ) in white with gold hardware and it is a good looking guitar as well. The Sire is very well built and I'm happy with it, but for a few hundred dollars less money I would have bought this AIO had I known about it. I think both AIO & Sire are a better choice than the Epiphone.

Max, How's the Westcreek 333 compared to the AIO?

"audio taper" potentiometers are made to the spec's of "Pink noise" & the human ear's perception of 3db = 2X louder. "Linear taper" potentiometers are made to the spec's of "White Noise" & handling electronics "actual" voltage 1 Volt = 0 db V.U. (previously .775 V = 0 VU). 500k ohm pot's sound better than 250k ohm pot's do for passive, low voltage signals. Summary: full size 500k Pot's with an 'Audio Taper' work best for all purposes. Original "Gibson" parts (3-way toggle switch, 2 vol, 2 tone pot's & output jack) were all made by "Switchcraft".

Guitar Max.. Are AIO’s stock pickups microphonic requiring upgrading for playing with frequent high gain?

Guitar sounded great!

If anything, this upload is making me feel extra thankful that my present traditional arch top guitar is a professional grade Yamaha model from 1980, my birth year. After having purchased four economy models, all Epiphone, I suppose I decided that I wanted something closer to the high end but I have a much greater value than the Gibson original. I’ve had enough of playing instruments identical to the ones I had owned as a teen.

You’re lying about Epiphone not using namebrand tuners. On the inspired by Gibson custom they have gold hardware, Ebony, fretboard, real mother of pearl and lace, and Grover tuners.

Nice guitar! Website has it having rosewood fretboard.

Wow Guitar MAX this is such an awesome Gibson/Epiphone guitar right here I love it. Shred on dude.😃👍❤️🔥⚡️🎶🎸

I'll keep an eye out for these, but my Epiphone LP Sp II is still the best I've ever played, if not the best built, or best looking. I'm cheating though. ;) Mine was setup new, by a family friend who once did a 20k custom guitar for EVH.

I have a Jackson King V, I have a Dean V, I have a Sterling, I have an Ibanez RG470, I have a Squire Mustang Vintage Modified and a few other guitars. My AIO Wolf LP is the one I grab the most to play.

Been looking for a 335-style guitar that's an Epiphone competitor for price and features. Thanks!!

WoW I didn't know Guitar MAX could play the blues...fantastic

Epiphone have lost their minds with these $1200-$1500 335 styles. I played one out of curiosity: same old scratchy frets and goopy poly finish.

I like my Wolf LP better than a standard Epiphone. People get stuck on these traditional brands, but they need to explore the alternatives. AIO over Epiphone. G&L over Fender. Heritage over Gibson.

Have you checked out the EVH standard or special?

AIO for the W

Yea it's out of control with these prices. I love seeing companies building the same thing for less, and they outdo them on quality of parts too. Great video Max.🤘🎸

I watch a RU-vid creator's review of a Firefly guitar. This thing was beautiful and sounded killer. I wonder how Firefy measures up to AIO? Firefly is another one of those guitar makers that put out quality guitars at an extremely affordable price.

My epiphone and my gibson tribute cost about the same. I wish these companies would come out with some 339s or blueshawk type things. I love the gib style but my back is ibto s type ibanez

would love to see one compared to an Agile.

Yep.

I like it alot

As another high value budget guitar, I'd be interested to see how this brand compares to Harley Benton. Any thoughts Max?

I own 3 cherry red semi hollow body guitars. I played less for all 3 combined than what I would have spent on a brand new Epiphone Sheraton Pro II.

I like it. And it's going against the aging dad rock big name guitar purist.

Nice guitar! Nice price!

Epiphone makes great guitars they are very comparable to Gibson so I disagree with you Max

Any other colors ? Smokey gunmetal green , blue maybe ?

Guitar OK but hair and make up absolutely fabulous Max.

does AIO do anything BCRICH-esk??? I'm kind of BORED with 1953 replicas

So max show us where the cheap tuners.. this is the specs of a 2021 Epiphone modern figured Sg in Transparent red recently discontinued and on sale what's left...see what happens when you lie max you get caught..Epiphone SG Modern Figured Electric Guitar Specifications Shape: 60's Kalamazoo Brand Logo: Modern Epiphone in MOP HS Center Logo: Gibson Pineapple Machine Heads: Grover Locking Rotomatic with Tulip Button HS Face Color: Black Gloss Truss Rod Cover: 2-Ply, (blank) Binding: None Neck Material: Mahogany Nut: 43mm Graphtech WHITE Neck Profile: Asymetrical Slim Taper Neck Joint: Set Neck Finish: Gloss Black Fingerboard Material: Ebony Inlay Style: Std. Trapezoid 12th Fret inlay: Std Trapezoid Side Dots: 2mm Black Binding: Single Ply WHITE (needs to be true White) Scale Length: 24.75, (628mm) Radius /Number of Frets: 12", 24 Body Style / Shape: SG - Body blends smoothly with side of neck Heel Sculpting: none, 3mm step Material: Mahogany with 3/4" Plain Maple Cap Veneer: Top: AAA Flame Maple Neck Pickup: Epiphone Probucker 2 PB2NHBN-4 Bridge Pickup: Epiphone Probucker 3 PB3NHBN-4 Pickup Mounting Rings: Black Switch Type: 3-Way Toggle / Black Cap Control Assembly: 2 Vol(coil splits via push/pull)/2 Tone(1 with Phase via push/pull)/ 3 Way V/T Knob Color / Type: Clear Top Hats with Ridge Output: Nickel plated metal plate Back Plates: Black Hardware Plating: Nickel Tail Piece Type: LockTone Stop Bar Bridge: LockTone ABR Strap Button: 2, Butt and Back of Heel

I think I would have plugged in my purple phaser in there somewhere

I believe you are referring to an es 335? Or 339? Never heard of a 338...

I've been playing the same Jackson for over 10 years now. This seems like a good excuse to chamge it up a bit 😅

I just bought an apple phone another one and I had a lot of prep problems with it back up. The phone was a halfway decent guitar. Guitar Center just is not paying attention and it seems like they really don’t care.

Same price as refretting my 25 year old SG.

AIO has been having a LOT of quality control issues, that gives me pause.

Nice guitar but, it needs a Bigsby and a Varitone switch.

my only problem with most AIO guitars when i go to check them out, at least the LP's is that they have this hideous mother of pearl like binding all over the place, its not my kind of thing, just give me plain white binding, there's this lovely purple one that id love if it weren't for the hideous binding.

This looks the business and sounded very nice. A good guitar (nothing high end) was never so affordable.

Is it just me but it seems as though that this guitar has one horn rounder than the other?

I have had so many finish and playability issues with my China Epiphones (Casino, Wildkat, LP Special) that I won’t buy another. My Agile LP style, made in Korea, stomps all offer the epis and it cost $375 a few years back. Of course it is as heavy as a boat anchor…

While I love brands like AIO and Sire, I don’t want to hype them up that much so their prices won’t go to Epiphone prices.