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FDP Forum / Non-Fender Gear Reviews / Epiphone Dot

Previous 20 Messages

Twangmeister
Contributing Member
***

livin in the middle

of the western edge of eastern NC
Jan 21st, 2011 01:43 PM Edit Profile
My 2009 MIC natural Dot has fairly decent sounding pickups. These are certainly an improvement over the dark pickups on my 2005 MIK Dot.

Setting the pickups low cuts down their middy/bassy tendancy

budg
Contributing Member
***

ohio

Home of the Goodyear blimp
Jan 22nd, 2011 06:39 AM Edit Profile
I just picked up a new Dot Deluxe for 350 because it had a slight imperfection at the first fret .Doesn't interfere with the playability at all.I have some high end strats (a SRV and a 59 thinskin).I was looking for a humbucker sound for a decent price.Really love this guitar.Beautiful finish and sounds pretty decent.I have a blues jr that has been sitting in a closet and it brought this amp to life.I changed the knobs to gold top hats and will be eventually be modding this guitar .The neck on this thing is amazing.Nice and beefy.Good fret work.I set up the guitar to lower the action as it was a tad high.I will be swapping out the pickups at some point .Mostly they sound good,but when arpeggiating chords they sound kind of muddy.Other than that, a real nice guitar for the money.

Bluesdoc1952

usa

workin' on a highline...baby
Feb 15th, 2011 03:02 PM Edit Profile
I was disappointed by the stock version of the Dot. The pickups were too muddy and the electronics needed upgrade. I sold mine rather than putting in the investment and time. With the upgrades, it could be a pretty neat guitar.I looked for soemthing better. Got a MIM Esquire.

Bluesdoc1952

usa

workin' on a highline...baby
Feb 16th, 2011 05:19 AM Edit Profile
Warning! Rain on the parade ahead! Turn back now! I was disappointed in my Dot. The pickups were muddy, the tuners unreliable, and the overall effect was of a "cheap" guitar. I don't know why I expected different. Instead of doing all the upgrades that it really needed, I sold it. I had hoped it would be better than it was, since I love that humbucker tone but cannot afford a Gibson anymore (who can?).

budg
Contributing Member
***

ohio

Home of the Goodyear blimp
Feb 17th, 2011 03:20 PM Edit Profile
Bluesdoc1952-we get your point that you are disappointed.Most people buy this with the intent of modding it.Yep the pickups arent great,the electronics could be better.The tuners are fine, its the plastic nut that is the problem.A new set of strings ,a setup and some lube at the nut does wonders.I put on a set of Daddarios and lubed the nut.Its been in tune ever since.Still planning on replacing the pickups.
(This message was last edited by budg at 05:07 PM, Feb 17th, 2011)

Twangmeister
Contributing Member
****

Rocky Mount, NC

A few rocks, no mountain
Feb 18th, 2011 02:07 PM Edit Profile
I'll probably put in a more articulate neck humbucker some day. Fortunately I can find amp settings with the stock pickups that sound great.

Tne neck on the MIC Dot is fuller than the MIKs but I've adjusted to it. I remember my former bandmate's '59 Gibson ES335 having a very chunky neck.

"The tuners are fine, its the plastic nut that is the problem."

I replaced the nut on the MIK Dot I once owned.
This one received a light filing and then I buffed out the string notches with some old string scraps. No binding now

bubbanutha
Contributing Member

there ain't no guru,

can see through your eyes.
Jul 15th, 2011 01:04 AM Edit Profile
My Epi Dot is a '96 or '98 (I forget) Samick made Tobacco Burst one. I changed the undependable tuners to Grovers, put in a new jack when the stock one fell out and tried some Classic '57s. They were too dark for me so I wax potted the stock, kinda bright, p'ups (that would howl at higher vols) and put them back in. Sounds fine now.

Took the Bad Fingers out of my '79 335 Pro and put the C '57s in it. They somehow sound better in this one. Bought a few other p'ups (JB, Blues Buckers, B.Lawrence) during that period but actually haven't taken the time/trouble of doing any more swaps.
(This message was last edited by bubbanutha at 01:09 AM, Jul 15th, 2011)

Peegoo
Contributing Member
**********
*********

That chicken

is WRONG, baby.
Aug 6th, 2011 08:36 AM Edit Profile
I played picnic's blonde Epi Dot at the NJ jam last week on a Skynyrd tune.

WHOA...he has that guitar dialed IN, and it sounds freaking amazing. As good as any 335 I've played. And I've played more than a few.

The pickup upgrade and setup tweaks are perfect.

VanGoghsEar

USA

Sep 27th, 2011 11:26 AM Edit Profile
I'm late to the party here, but I have a Jay Turser JT-133 335 style and I upgraded the electronics and replaced the stock pickups with DiMarzio PAF Anniversary in the neck and a DiMarzio PAF Joe in the bridge. Great combination of pickups for a semihollow. Very close to the Gibson 335 sound.

That said, I'm not surprized that Clark likes the stock pups. I had an newer model (Grover tuners model) Epi SG and the electronics were surprizingly nice; full sized Alpha pots (according to photos in their 2006 catalog and what was in my Epi SG), full metal switches, Alnico magnet pickups that had good clarity and fairly clear tone.

Stratokatsu
Contributing Member
*******

Miami, Florida

Dec 8th, 2012 07:33 PM Edit Profile
I recently bought a Dot Deluxe from another member of an Epi forum. Without having to jump through hoops realigning the settings on my amps, this thing is everything I could want. I would have to have an identical guitar with different pickups to convince myself there is anything I would prefer to what I hear coming out of this cheap Dot. I love it as is.

Steve Dallman
Contributing Member
******

Merrill, Wisconsin

Ain't turned 60, but I got my blinker on
Dec 10th, 2012 10:33 AM Edit Profile
I have a Cort Source, which was likely made in the same factory as many Korean Dots. I love it. It has Mighty Mite pickups.

I once bought a set of Epi pickups from an Epi Les Paul. I did think they were muddy, until I removed the pickup covers. The covers muted much of the pickups clarity and complexity.

I have a set of Gibson pickup from the mid 80's that I will be putting in the Cort. That guitar needs the look of covered pickups, and I liked those pickups in my Les Paul (which now has Gibson "zebra" uncovered pickups.) The Mighty Mites aren't bad but are a little "non-descript".

Steve Dallman
Contributing Member
******

Merrill, Wisconsin

Ain't turned 60, but I got my blinker on
Dec 16th, 2012 03:04 PM Edit Profile
Before you ditch the EPI pickups, try them with the covers off. You lose the look of the covers, but you gain clarity and complexity.

Steve Dallman
Contributing Member
******

Merrill, Wisconsin

Ain't turned 60, but I got my blinker on
Dec 20th, 2012 12:01 PM Edit Profile
The guitar player in my last band, had two Epi Studio Dots. A lifelong Strat player, he liked the thicker humbucker tones, so he dropped $3k on a Gibson ES335. It is darker than the Studio Dots, due to the pickup covers but it sounds great. He can't keep the thing in tune though, and didn't want anyone to work on it.

swampyankee
Contributing Member
******

olde New England

If you can't play good, play loud
Oct 2nd, 2013 01:27 PM Edit Profile
Another day late and a dollar short one here.

I'm surprised to hear how many have the older Korean tobacco-burst Dots. I had never seen one before I found my '96 vintage on eBay back in '06 or '07.
After a brief check-out, mine sat in its case for a year before I got around to tinkering with it. I ended up giving it to Becker Guitars to do a "whatever it needs to play like buttah" setup. It came back playing and sounding surprisingly well, and much better than I thought it would. I've had a few humbucker guitars and haven't really mastered the ins and outs of humbuckers yet, but I thought the stockers in my Dot were pretty smooth compared to any of the others I've played.

I don't have too much use for my Dot right now, but I really like the sounds I hear some of the 335 masters making, so I'll hang on to it and hopefully figure out how to make it sing some day.

But has anyone done anything to make that godawful looking headstock any nicer??

Twangmeister
Contributing Member
******

E NC

Hoarder of instruments
Oct 4th, 2013 10:42 AM Edit Profile
"But has anyone done anything to make that godawful looking headstock any nicer??"

Being a Casino owner I've gotten used to the Casino-style headstock on the Dot. I did replace the gibsonoid "Gibson" trussrod adjuster cover with a more Epiphone-like one and changed the pickguard.

Funny thing is I'm playing my old MIK that I bought back from my guitar repairman after he had leveled/recrowned the frets and tweaked the pickup heights.

His pickup tweaks made the stock ones sound way better--brighter and less murky. I'd still like to try some Alnico 2 'buckers, though

Steve Dallman
Contributing Member
*******

Merrill, Wisconsin

Age is just a number...mine is big
Oct 4th, 2013 11:43 AM Edit Profile
Actually I think the Epi headstock works better on a 335 type than an LP type guitar.

Hammond101
Contributing Member
***

So. Cal. USA

Oct 4th, 2013 05:36 PM Edit Profile
I agree Steve. Being a larger body guitar it seems to fit. My latest interest is in Orville guitars. MIJ Gibsons. I'm looking for a MIJ 335 to compliment my Dot Deluxe.

Stratokatsu
Contributing Member
********

Miami, Florida

Dec 25th, 2013 07:22 AM Edit Profile
I bought my Dot Deluxe from a friend. It's sunburst with the usual mildly flamey top and gold hardware. The finish on the tops of the pickups is a bit tarnished, but other wise, for a 5 year old guitar, it's held up really well.

The tuners hold, the neck remains fixed where I like it, (perfectly straight), and the controls all work better than I typically figure an Asian made pot would. They cut out around 2, not 4-5 like some I've seen.

Unlike some, I like the somewhat lower output of the humbuckers and I don't feel they are muddy. That might be because I only play at home, thus quieter volumes than might push these pickups beyond their best performance envelope. Or, I might be comparing them to another 335 guitar I have that was truly awful sounding. :-)

In general, if you can overlook the goofy extra length of the headstock, (Many people apparently can't), I think the Epi Dot is a very superiior guitar to the other brands selling for a similar amount of money.

For build quality and control quality, the only other inexpensive brand I could cite would be Noah James, another Asian import available over the web in limited quantities.

Coral Head

Sunshine State

Groupies needed
Dec 26th, 2013 05:34 AM Edit Profile
I have a Korean Dot and have been thinking about installing GFS Retrotron pups in it. Anyone tried that?

Previous 20 Messages

FDP Forum / Non-Fender Gear Reviews / Epiphone Dot

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