Epiphone ES-339 PRO Electric Guitar  

Split coils front and rear.  The Gibson model doesn't have this, and that gives this guitar a distinctive leg up.  The split coils give you 8 different pickup combinations.  Also to my surprize the pickups are great sounding.  They are so good that I found no need to have to change them.   Also this guitar is light so you can wear it all night.  Buy a pair of Straplocks with it so you don't run the risk of dropping it on its nose while on stage when your strap slips off during a fit of passionate performance.  Straplocks are inexpensive protection for all guitars. Every one of mine has them.

Mine was absolutely flawless.  The frets needed a little polishing but with a 5 minute rub down using 0000 steel wool they were slick and beautiful.  Plus no fret leveling was needed, which I fully expected to have to do in this price range but they were perfect.  I was able to set it up for very low and fast playing with no fret buzz.

I give this 10 thumbs up, and a best value.  For the price it's hard to beat this guitar.  Why spend 700% more for the Gibson model just to get a nametag?  When I bought mine I compared several of these to the GIbson ES339 and they were so close it was hard to tell the difference in tone quality and playability between them.  Of course the GIbson is finished in laquer and these are polyurethane but who cares?  Buy this one and you will not regret it.  Take the big money you saved and buy another guitar, or amp, or effects, or whatever.

A best buy.  I love mine and will probably buy another one.  I got the red one so it'll be a natural one for me the next time.

I've been interested in the Gibson ES 339 for some time now. Always loved the tone of the ES 335 but didn't like the bulk! I'd been waiting to save up the $$ to make the purches when the Epi version came out. I jumped on it and I'm glad I did. This is an amazingly great value. 

Build quality is exceptional given the price point. We'll see how she holds up but I'm pretty easy on my guitars so I'm not concerned. 

I had to give it a 10 on value. 

I've been playing it quite a bit since I got it about a month ago. I'm still really enjoying the playability and the tonal variety with the coil tap feature. With the toggle in middle position and the coil tap pulled on the neck pup, it's down right "strat-like". What a great feature! The bridge pup gets a nice PAF sound at full volume. All in all I would definitely recommend this guitar - even to someone who's a bit picky and old school about non-USA guitars. Give this one a try with an open mind and you'll probably be sold!

Features are as expected, it's a simple guitar.  The coil tap is a good idea, really expands the range of sounds on the guitar.  Each humbucker has it's own volume and tone control, and the volume control can be pulled to put that pickup into single coil.  This means that with the switch in the middle position, you can mix single coil on one pickup with humbucker on the other, making some nice combinations.

Quality is very good, near perfect.  Absolutely no issues with the finish on my cherry guitar, and the translucent paint job is deep and rich, with the wood coming through underneath nicely.  The stuck neck is joined well.  The tuners feel a little tacky but work perfectly well, no need to change.  Frets were pretty good but not polished - I always get a full level/crown/polish job done on a new guitar's frets anyway, as mass produced factory finished frets will never be great on any guitar.  Overall, build quality and finish quality is very high indeed.

For the money, this is an amazing guitar.  For a start, it looks so beautiful, it actually makes me grin just looking at it.  I think the 339 will be a design classic of the future, be it the Gibson or the Epiphone variant.  The pickups are bright and high signal, you can get real punch on chopped chords, and the sustain is excellent.  The coil tap gives the guitar a wide variety of tones.  Compared to anything else I looked at in this range (Squier Tele, Danelectro) this guitar wins hands down.

Sounds great, well built, looks stunningly beautiful, low cost, versatile.  The only thing you need to do is get it set up by a pro, and you have a guitar that is the equal of anything three or four times the price.  

I thought it came with the Ultra's pickups (which I'd played and liked), but the stock "339 Pro" ones are pretty cool, for now . .

.. a couple of minor finish things, barely worth mentioning as my multitudes of fans never get close enough to see them and for the value I can certainly live w/them (actually I had it for over a week before I even noticed them) - otherwise, perfect! I'd buy it again in a heartbeat...

as w/all the Epiphone stuff in the last ten years: really good to unbelievably good quality and the best buys in the industry, this is my 7th/8th epi in that period.. (after a long drought - hadn't been impressed w/them since the '60s)

I was looking for a ES type guitar. I had played the Epi ES 339 at the music shop. This guitar is an excellent value. I bought a used Level 2, at a great price. Musician's Friend always delivers!!! The guitar plays great, all electronics function very well. Coil-split push-pull is smooth. All pots are tight, with good response. Action is very good, neck adjustment is right on the money. Intonation is good. Frets are smooth and well dressed. Finish (cherry) is flawless. Grover tuners are solid. I am playing the guitar through a tube amp (I have several) and the pick-ups are powerful enough, very clear, they overdrive with ease, and the coil-split adds great versatility. If you can only buy one guitar, get this one!!! I have Gibsons, Fenders, Epiphones and a custom Tele clone. This is becoming my favorite guitar. Thanks Musician's Friend.

Robert Fiallo