Esp H-1000

[jgcable]

Does anybody have one? I am interested in the one with the Seymour Duncans. Its a trans red maple top H-1000. I am kind of leary regarding Korean guitars but the reviews on this top of the line LTD import are outstanding. I also like the thinner body, the carved top and all the fancy abalone. It also has a tones pro locking bridge, sperzels and 24 extra jumbo frets. Any reviews would be helpful.

[Dave L]

I checked one out pretty in-depth a couple of weeks ago, since a friend of mine bought one. He wanted some help with setting it up just right, so I got to spend some quality time with it. I don´t like all that abalone, and I´m not a fan of rosewood... but the guitar was by far the best I´ve seen come out of Korea. QC and craftmanship were good, it played great, kept in tune very well and sounded good. Of course it wasn´t cheap to begin with, but I´d say it´s worth the money.

[jgcable]

I have a chance to score one. The only problem I have is spending $750.00 for a Korean made guitar.

[markD]

i felt the same way dropping 1300 on my korean brian moore. that BM is just as well built as that jackson strat you got from me. korea has come A LONG way from where they were 10 years ago. modern korean quality is just about equal to mid-80's japan quality IMHO.

[Dave L]

I´m pretty much in the same mind-set that you are, not wanting to spend any serious amount of cash on something made in Korea... but the H-1000 I tried was a well-made guitar, no doubt about it. Of course it wasn´t really rivaling an american Jackson or anything else that´s truly high-end, but in my opinion it´s definitely sniffing pretty close behind some production-model japanese ESP´s I´ve tried out. Is it worth $750? I don´t know. We all know we can score some pretty sweet used pieces for that kind of money, and you could perceivably end up with a real Horizon instead, but the H-1000 definitely is a solid guitar in its own right with some impressive hardware. And a boatload of abalone!

EDIT: I´ve been dying to try out one of those korean Brian Moores! Haven´t been able to locate one here in Sweden, though.

[markD]

i have the one that looks like an M/C-1 with all the midi hooks ups and the piezo saddles. it is nice!!

[Dave L]

That´s a i2000 8.13, right? Looks great, even though I´d probably opt for something without the piezo and MIDI... like a i1f. Only thing stopping me is that the Floyd on those things look suspiciously cheap for a pretty pricey guitar.

[markD]

YEAH!!! 8.13P, i could not remember. yeah the floyd is pretty junky on those guitars.

[Dave L]

That´s what I feared... I guess I might be better off checking out the regular i1, with the two-point vintage trem and locking tuners.

[pro-fusion]

I don't have an H-1000, but I've played one. Although the aesthetics are much different, I think the Jackson SLSMG blows it away for around the same price. The SLSMG might not be all pimped out like the H-1000, but it sounds and plays much better, and that is ultimately more important, right?

The tonewoods in the LTDs aren't all that great, regardless of price, and they all need remedial fretwork.

[Dave L]

Maybe my friend got lucky, but his was pretty spot-on in the fret department. It might have been worked over a bit by the store, I guess. They take great care of their stuff, and won´t release anything they aren´t happy with. But all in all, that particular H-1000 on that particular day could go up against any SLSMG I´ve tried in playability. But the thing about the tonewoods used is a valid point, absolutely. I didn´t do any serious testing against my own guitars, but just on its own it sounded fine.

[jgcable]

I had a PRS Santana SE that I swapped Mcartey's and locking Sperzels into. I should have kept that darn guitar. Somebody on the JCF currently owns it. That one was a keeper.

[thelordconqueror]

I have a chance to score one. The only problem I have is spending $750.00 for a Korean made guitar.

i have the exact same guitar you're talking about, and i got mine off ebay for $600 shipped. they occasionally sell for even less than that, but if were in the position to buy another one, i wouldn't hesitate to spend $750 on it.

i have been selling/preparing to sell most of my guitars to use on my bass rig, and my h-1000 is one of the only guitars i'm keeping.

[thetroy]

I have to second the SLSMG comment. I like the higher end LTD's and also the Schecters that I think are made at the same place, but the SLSMG sounds and feels better to me.

[jgcable]

Well, with a multi-trade deal I scored the H-1000. Its a fairly light colored amber burst.
For pickups it has a zebra Seymour Duncan 59 in the neck and a custom zebra Dimarzio hybrid which is a Super Distortion/Evolution.
All the regular H-1000 appointments which include Tone Pros locking bridge, locking Sperzels, Earvana compensated nut, set neck, abaloni everywhere and 24 Super Jumbo frets. These are the tallest largest frets I have ever seen. Its almost like playing a scalloped neck. This guitar is made in Korea. Mohagony body, maple neck, flamed maple top. Neck is fully bound and edged in abaloni. So is the body. Its an archtop. Its very light. I would guess around 6lbs. 25.5 scale.
It came stock with a 59/JB configuration. The added Dimarzio hybrid is awesome. Very throaty, creamy with tons of midrange. The 59 sounds as good as all the 59's sound. Its a great neck pickup. Especially on a string thru mohagony bodied guitar.
I traded away that salmon color Jackson USA strat that I recently got with the bound neck for it because the strat had one thing that I couldn't deal with... weight. It was too heavy. I like light guitars. With the ESP I also got 2 Fender Noiseless single coils, a Pearly Gates hum, and a mint green hum/sing/sing pickguard. I think the trade was pretty fair. I'm not in it to make any money anyway.
I really like the way the ESP looks, sounds and plays. Its a great guitar for something coming out of Korea. IMHO, the only thing that hurts fairly expensive Korean guitars like this one is the resale value. They sell for around $550.00 used on Ebay and I assume they won't be going up in value as time goes on. I needed a good 24 fret hardtail and this one is good. The Dimarzio hybrid bridge pickup was actually scored by me from lhrocker sometime ago. I traded it to a guy I knew who needed it. It wound up never being used and eventually ended up on this guitar. Its the perfect pickup for this one. Anyway.... thats my story for today.
I still have 3 Charvels left (and a ton of other guitars) so I still feel ok!!