Basic knowledge:
First of all, you have to know that there are many kinds of epi: imported goods, smuggled goods, parallel imports, defective goods, domestic goods, assembled goods, and fake goods.
Tongli goods: epi from Hong Kong Tongli agent.
Smuggled goods: goods brought into the country by individuals and epis smuggled by a large number of groups (a small amount)
Defective goods: defective epis. This type of piano is genuine and also There are two types of defective goods, one is domestically produced, and the other is non-domestically produced, but it enters the country through illegal channels, so there is no warranty, and there are defects in some places. If it is minor, it does not matter, but if the defect is in the pickup On...
Parallel imports: smuggled goods are absolutely genuine, but parallel imports are not necessarily true. Don’t just think there are no counterfeit goods abroad
Domestic goods: goods from Qingdao Gibson Factory, genuine goods , goods sold domestically without authorization from the manufacturer should be classified as smuggled goods.
Assembled goods: It is not excluded that some of the parts in this type of epi guitar are original parts from the epi factory, but their origins are unknown, so people who buy the original epi pickups are getting a bargain (because the guitar itself is Very cheap), but there are not many such cases, it is like playing lottery.
Fake goods: This type of goods is the most common, with more than 30 varieties. The three funniest fakes I have ever seen were all encountered in a famous music store in Wuhan. Let me tell you about them. One is a custom imitation G400, very, very real, but it only has two pickups. The second one is an imitation of Standard, not one piece. The boss insists that it is Standard’s 50th anniversary commemorative model! The third most fake epi in history. I don’t know what model it is. It looks similar to the Firebird. There is only a big painted E on the headstock. The boss said it was epi. I didn’t believe it. After a closer look, it turned out that The words Epiphone were written on the steel cover, and when I looked at the pickup, it turned out to be a Fender-type pickup! I vomited wildly.
Some mentally handicapped questions that are not basic questions
If you have the following questions, it means that you know nothing about the piano you are about to buy.
1. How many pickups does so-and-so have? (All the photos cannot show the details, but you can always take photos of a few pickups. If you don’t even look at the website of a certain musical instrument, what are you doing if you are not weak?)
2. Even the musical instrument you want to buy People who can’t figure out the model number (people like this should not buy musical instruments)
3. People who don’t even know what to do when buying musical instruments? (I have seen many people asking whether the epi tone is strong enough. Such people are weak)
4. How does a certain instrument feel? Is it suitable for Asians?
5. What is the twist of a certain instrument? What's the headstock like? What does it look like?
There are so many weak questions like this that I can’t even remember many of them when I think about them.
Some notes
The lowest model of epi is lp100, but not only lp100 is a split piano, the neck is fixed with screws, other models are G-310, G-310 Junior, SG Special, Junior, Special II are also fixed with screws. The model and trademark are printed on the signboard on the back. The English characters on the fixed steel plate are very shallow and fake, so you must pay attention to this. If it is very deep, it is the reverse mold. The ones that go in and the shallow ones are hit by the stamping machine, which is different.
The CUSTOM models of les paul and SG series do not have sub-series, only the color difference. It is not necessarily a fake piano that is not on the epiphone website, such as les paul classic, les paul classic-7 (classic- 12 flametop) is not available on the website, and the color is not certain. For example, les paul custom has a red color, but it is not available online. les paul-100 comes in five colors, but I only got three in China. . I have never seen white or red ones. The packaging is of course the original box. The pickup size depends on the model you buy. The lower model is usually from epiphone company. As for whether it can be verified online, I only know gibson. Yes, the epiphone may be OK too!
Piano inspection steps
1. Paper box part
Don’t underestimate the paper box, the paper box is the key point The key point is that for epi produced by Tongli, in addition to the word "Epiphone" on the carton, there are three black and red strips with small letters and an "e" on the carton. The carton of non-Tongli epi has only the word "Epiphone". The most important thing is that Tongli's cartons have Tongli's barcode. The barcode differs for each model. For example, the standard barcode is: e58/enc5.
Anything different from this kind of piano case is fake! Those who are careful must pay attention! This is a genuine piano case
2. Front of the head:
< p>The Epiphone wording on the headstock of an authentic Epiphone is inlaid with shells, not spray-painted with white paint. Of course, fake pianos are also inlaid. The model in the words "les paul model" of a real piano is after "les paul", not in the middle. For many fake pianos, it is in the middle.3. The back of the headstock
The key is the serial number. Except for split guitars, the serial numbers of all other one-piece guitars are on the back of the headstock. Most of the serial numbers are baked on with paint. I have never seen the SN carved into the wood in Tongli. Of course, Gibson is carved into the wood. In the LP series, STANDARD, STANDARD PLUS, STUDIO, CLASSIC, CLASSIC PLUS, etc. are both made in China and Korea, just like the G400. Just note the serial number when you buy it. The domestic SN starts with two digits: MC. If it is not domestic, it is not accurate. There are many EPIPHONE manufacturers, I, U, N, MC... Different code names represent different manufacturers. The G400 I have seen starts with N. Some refurbished epi's are engraved with 2ND instead of serial number.
4. Pickups
The plastic film of EPIPHONE’s closed pickup is in red and blue, and the plastic film of the open pickup is in white. It is said that the pickup has the epi stamp, but I have not opened it to see it.
5. Ivory white edging
This is easier to confirm. What kind of piano you want to buy, just go to the EPIPHONE website to see whether it is full-body binding, body binding, or fingerboard binding. You can check the edges very clearly.
6. Fingerboard
You can also check this on the EPIPHONE website, but because the picture is small and unclear, you can only see which fret the overtone point of the inlay starts from. You must know that the overtone points are dot-shaped and square-shaped, but they are all inlaid with shells.
7. Gear shifter
The gear shifter is an excellent secret for piano inspection. No matter which model of epi it is, its gear shifter is stamped with the word EPIPHONE. I opened it myself and saw it. It is convenient and safe, and kills two birds with one stone.
8. String winder
This is more complicated. Standard has two types of tuners: plastic and metal. The plastic one has a big E-shaped steel seal. The metal ones are stamped with the word Grover. Of course, there are some metal tuners that don’t have Grover’s stamp on them, and others are just too messy.
Currently, there are many standard plastic piano twisters. Now I am posting the standard improved metal piano twisters. Pay attention to the Grover stamp engraved on them!
A genuine product absolutely meets the above conditions. At least so far, I have never seen a fake piano that is exactly the same as the one above! As long as you remember the above points, you will never buy a fake piano.
Some other marks vary depending on the channel
Super Vomiting Blood recommends several major piano inspection websites
, a personal collection website, this website is currently the most detailed The piano selling website has the most detailed picture information! As well as the self-feelings of various netizens, this website is a must-see when buying a piano. It is the ultimate way to compare against fake pianos
It is a very good website and a must-see before buying a piano. It has detailed information on various piano bodies. introduce!
, a website that I personally like very much
Epiphone’s tips for identifying authenticity
As far as EPIPHONE LESPAUL STD is concerned----
1. You can feel the weight of the entire piano with your hands. Because real pianos are made of solid mahogany and ALDER pianos, they are generally quite heavy, weighing around 8 kilograms. If it is a fake piano, it will generally be lighter - about 4 or 5 kilograms.
2. Pickup: You connect the speakers (better speakers). First turn down the volume of the piano and listen to see if there is any noise from the speakers. If you do not turn up the volume of the piano again, or if there is loud noise when playing the original piano tone - you will know that it is a fake piano! Because it is impossible for sealed HUMBUCKERS to produce large noise when playing the original piano tone (when there are no surrounding interference sources)
3. Pick the piano to the standard tune, and then play the overtones on the 12th fret. If it is very inaccurate, and you can't pick it well later, it means there is something wrong with the piano's strength! Such a condition shouldn't exist in such a relatively good piano! Moreover, LES PAUL’s piano is thicker than other pianos!
4. The sound of EPIPHONE LES PAUL is really warm! It’s quite thick too! If you play it with the neck pickup, the sound will be dry and sharp---the sound of the Korean-made Fender! ---- Fake!
5. EPIPHONE's trademark - the LOGO on the headstock of the genuine product looks like it is integrated with the headstock, while the fake one looks like it is painted on or has bumps. . .
6. Does the piano come with the original paper box? . . So I suggest you order from a more reputable music store! !
Reprinted from Guitar China/news/cs/cs04/20050206/092320.htm