Epiphone Casino Elitist Review

5.0 out of 5 stars the best casino modelis the elitist Reviewed in the United States on February 2, 2015 The best guitar out there but way too pricy! There are plenty of videos on YouTube of this baby playing everything from rock to jazz, so in terms of versatility it plays on practically anything. 3 user reviews on Epiphone Elitist Casino. It is an 'elitist' model, made in Japan by experienced luthiers. It is a very close model of the Gibson ES 330. Have had both, the elitist is far superior in all areas, high quality workmanship, the guitar sounds good acoustically, p 90s were great, i really liked the guitar, had to send it back the 1 5/8 nut width was the deal breaker, otherwise a keeper musicofanatic5.

PROS: Great fit and finish; fantastic neck; highly responsive and articulate P90 pickups.
CONS: None.
PRICE: $599 w/out case

The Casino has been around for decades, first brought to worldwide fame by the Beatles. Since then, Epiphone's production has moved around the globe a few times, first from America to Japan, then to Korea and now China. While some aficionados maintain that the Korean-made Epis of the 1990s were better made than the contemporary models coming out of the brand's Chinese facilities, this reviewer begs to differ. The production-line Casinos being produced today, in 2014, are perhaps the finest in the brand's long history.

Fit and finish are immaculate – the binding, the fret edges, the neck contour, the pickup routing. We were incredibly impressed by the aesthetics, even more so since it came in our preferred 'natural' finish. What sets the Casino apart from other 335-style guitars is its completely hollow body (no sound block here like on the Dot) as well as its single-coil pickups (as opposed to Gibson/Epi's standard humbuckers).

Epiphone Elitist 1965 Casino Review

Those two factors alone give the Casino a lighter, more articulated tone. We greatly preferred the detail and clarity we heard when A/B'ing it against similar guitars with semi-hollow constructions and full humbuckers. Those sounded a bit muddier to us – and yes, while they had a louder output and will perhaps overdrive an amp quicker, the P90s (yes, the stock pickups) in the Casino are so incredibly versatile, we couldn't fine a genre they didn't fit into with ease.

The age-old problem of feedback was even a non-issue. We picked up a tiny bit of squealing just once, and never again; no need to stuff the sound holes. So all in all, if you're in the market for a mid-range guitar that can pretty much tackle any job you throw at it, test-drive the new Casinos and fall in love like we did.

FEATURES

Epiphone Casino Elitist Review Questions

• Body: 5-ply maple with basswood top bracing
• Neck: mahogany
• Neck Joint: 16th fret, Glued-in
• Fingerboard: rosewood with parallelogram inlays and 22 medium jumbo frets
• Fingerboard Radius: 12', 24.75' scale
• Nut Width: 1.68″
• Neck Profile: SlimTaper 'D'
• Pickups: Epiphone P-90T and P-90R

There's not much more classic than an Epiphone Casino Guitar. You'll probably immediately think of the Beatles. You'll love the light weight and comfortable neck of the Epiphone Elitist 1965 Casino. The Elite series are instruments that approach custom shop perfection. Crafted with premium woods, fitted with American pickups and circuitry—-even American-made toggle switches and Grover tuners-they're made at a special factory devoted to their manufacture where they receive a high degree of hands-on luthier attention. You'll find the Elite 1965 Casino true to the original made famous by The Beatles. A finely crafted, great-sounding, and easy-playing instrument that beautifully blurs the line between Epiphone and Gibson. Includes hardshell case.

Many young bucks might think of Epiphone as the cheap guitars at Guitar Center (which they are), now knowing about a time before Gibson owned them. Gibson acquired Epiphone in 1957 because they were their main rival (from the 30's up until that time). The 50's and 60's were a golden age for Epiphone because they weren't the cheap alternative that they are today – the quality rivaled that of any Gibson being sold at the time.

Epiphone Elitist Casino Review

When Gibson acquired the rights to Epiphone in 1957 the company had stopped producing bass guitars (because they just weren't making money with them). It was becoming harder and harder to compete. Gibson was smart when they acquired the rights to Epiphone, they decided to take some extra Gibson overstock, and just slap the Epiphone logo on it. They shipped many of these models to dealers that previously couldn't get Gibson stock. The Casino is a great example of a Gibson guitar with an Epiphone label. This model was first sold in 1961 as the ES-330. This model Casino is known as the Beatles model because all 3 members bought this guitar and used it extensively. This new Casino Elitist model has a few modern updates, like larger frets, grover tuners, and a second strap button. This is a light guitar that weighs about 6lbs, which comes with a tune-o-matic bridge and a bone nut.

Here's a video review of the Epiphone Elitist Casino:

The Casino has been around for decades, first brought to worldwide fame by the Beatles. Since then, Epiphone's production has moved around the globe a few times, first from America to Japan, then to Korea and now China. While some aficionados maintain that the Korean-made Epis of the 1990s were better made than the contemporary models coming out of the brand's Chinese facilities, this reviewer begs to differ. The production-line Casinos being produced today, in 2014, are perhaps the finest in the brand's long history.

Fit and finish are immaculate – the binding, the fret edges, the neck contour, the pickup routing. We were incredibly impressed by the aesthetics, even more so since it came in our preferred 'natural' finish. What sets the Casino apart from other 335-style guitars is its completely hollow body (no sound block here like on the Dot) as well as its single-coil pickups (as opposed to Gibson/Epi's standard humbuckers).

Epiphone Elitist 1965 Casino Review

Those two factors alone give the Casino a lighter, more articulated tone. We greatly preferred the detail and clarity we heard when A/B'ing it against similar guitars with semi-hollow constructions and full humbuckers. Those sounded a bit muddier to us – and yes, while they had a louder output and will perhaps overdrive an amp quicker, the P90s (yes, the stock pickups) in the Casino are so incredibly versatile, we couldn't fine a genre they didn't fit into with ease.

The age-old problem of feedback was even a non-issue. We picked up a tiny bit of squealing just once, and never again; no need to stuff the sound holes. So all in all, if you're in the market for a mid-range guitar that can pretty much tackle any job you throw at it, test-drive the new Casinos and fall in love like we did.

FEATURES

Epiphone Casino Elitist Review Questions

• Body: 5-ply maple with basswood top bracing
• Neck: mahogany
• Neck Joint: 16th fret, Glued-in
• Fingerboard: rosewood with parallelogram inlays and 22 medium jumbo frets
• Fingerboard Radius: 12', 24.75' scale
• Nut Width: 1.68″
• Neck Profile: SlimTaper 'D'
• Pickups: Epiphone P-90T and P-90R

There's not much more classic than an Epiphone Casino Guitar. You'll probably immediately think of the Beatles. You'll love the light weight and comfortable neck of the Epiphone Elitist 1965 Casino. The Elite series are instruments that approach custom shop perfection. Crafted with premium woods, fitted with American pickups and circuitry—-even American-made toggle switches and Grover tuners-they're made at a special factory devoted to their manufacture where they receive a high degree of hands-on luthier attention. You'll find the Elite 1965 Casino true to the original made famous by The Beatles. A finely crafted, great-sounding, and easy-playing instrument that beautifully blurs the line between Epiphone and Gibson. Includes hardshell case.

Many young bucks might think of Epiphone as the cheap guitars at Guitar Center (which they are), now knowing about a time before Gibson owned them. Gibson acquired Epiphone in 1957 because they were their main rival (from the 30's up until that time). The 50's and 60's were a golden age for Epiphone because they weren't the cheap alternative that they are today – the quality rivaled that of any Gibson being sold at the time.

Epiphone Elitist Casino Review

When Gibson acquired the rights to Epiphone in 1957 the company had stopped producing bass guitars (because they just weren't making money with them). It was becoming harder and harder to compete. Gibson was smart when they acquired the rights to Epiphone, they decided to take some extra Gibson overstock, and just slap the Epiphone logo on it. They shipped many of these models to dealers that previously couldn't get Gibson stock. The Casino is a great example of a Gibson guitar with an Epiphone label. This model was first sold in 1961 as the ES-330. This model Casino is known as the Beatles model because all 3 members bought this guitar and used it extensively. This new Casino Elitist model has a few modern updates, like larger frets, grover tuners, and a second strap button. This is a light guitar that weighs about 6lbs, which comes with a tune-o-matic bridge and a bone nut.

Here's a video review of the Epiphone Elitist Casino:

Epiphone Casino Elitist Review Definition

There are all kinds of Epiphone Casino's on eBay in both used mint and new reissue condition:

Epiphone Casino Elitist Review Top Ten