| It's effortless to think that guitar makers like | | | | First things first. The Casino is very lightweight, |
| Fender and Gibson have always been the | | | | owing to its semi-hollow design. If you're used to |
| top-selling musical instruments they are now, but | | | | playing a Les Paul, the Casino feels like a feather |
| that's in reality not the case. Believe it or not, for | | | | by comparison. |
| many years Epiphone really dominated the electric | | | | The second thing you'll likely notice is the sound |
| guitar universe, thanks mainly to a group of | | | | itself. "Crisp" is probably the best adjective I can |
| young musicians from Liverpool (the Beatles, in | | | | use to describe it. It doesn't have the usual Gibson |
| case you don't know your music history really | | | | or Fender tone, but that's not a bad thing. It's |
| well). | | | | unique, its own animal. |
| George and John were not the only guitarists who | | | | We were really satisfied with the tones we got |
| could be seen playing Epiphone Casinos. The | | | | from the Epiphone Casino. It can get some |
| Casino's fresh, dynamic tones could be found in | | | | outstanding clean or classic rock tones, but don't |
| tons of concerts and recordings. Though it's | | | | anticipate any "Iron Maiden" licks to sound |
| improbable you'll be able to pick up a real 1960's | | | | authentic. The P90 pickups have some great |
| Casino, you can grab a current reissue model that | | | | tones, even if they're not hum-cancelling (but |
| is worth a look. Here are just a few of the details | | | | they're not really noisy anyway). |
| of the current model. | | | | When we first played the Casino, we discovered |
| One of the most distinguishing features of the | | | | it needed a fast setup. After we adjusted the |
| Epiphone Casino is its lightness. Regarding its | | | | bridge and neck, the Casino played very well. The |
| construction, the top, sides, and back are all made | | | | neck especially is really comfortable. |
| of a laminated maple. The neck is mahogany and | | | | If you're blessed enough to buy a new Epiphone |
| the fingerboard is rosewood and has 22 frets on | | | | Casino, don't be astounded if you start rattling off |
| a 24 3/4" scale. The nut is a comfortable 1.68." | | | | some of your favored Beatles' tunes. We played |
| The Casino boasts 2 Alnico V P-90 vintage-style | | | | our Epiphone through a new Vox AC-15 and were |
| pickups with a trademark tune-o-matic bridge and | | | | very encouraged with the warm, rich sounds we |
| trapeze tailpiece. Parallelogram inlays and | | | | got. |
| body-neck binding with chrome hardware | | | | Since the street cost is only around $599 (much |
| complete the cosmetic adornments. | | | | less if you can find it used), it's difficult to find |
| The Epiphone Casino is an apparent example of | | | | grounds not to pick up an Epiphone Casino today. |
| classy elegance. | | | | If you need a particular, versatile instrument for |
| As you test a new Epiphone Casino, you'll in all | | | | blues, rock, or jazz, the Epiphone Casino is a sure |
| probability observe at least a couple of things. | | | | thing. |