The Best Gibson Guitars for Beginners
A big part of choosing a guitar when you are in the market for a new axe depends on your skill range. Much of what we’ve talked about on Review: Gibson Guitars has given you strategies on how to buy Gibson guitars, but we haven’t yet outlined which Gibson guitars are best for you, the beginner. One fact you might not know is that Gibson has a number of different brands under its belt, including a great beginning guitar brand, Epiphone. Here are my recommendations for the best Epiphone guitars for beginners.
Epiphone Les Paul Special II
One of the most affordable Gibson guitars, the Epiphone Les Paul Special II is great for beginners for many reasons. For one, it is cheap. You can get the Les Paul Special II for under $200 easily, which is affordable by any means. Not only is this guitar affordable, but it super versatile as well. Whether you aspire to be a metal god or simply want to jam with some friends, this guitar will work for you. With a mahogany neck and a rosewood fretboard, this guitar not only sounds good, but is beautiful as well.
Epiphone SG-Special
Another guitar under $200, Gibson’s Epiphone SG-Special set of guitars is another perfect beginner guitar. This guitar is a replica of the original Gibson classic SG, so it is a classic. The SG-Special is a standard rock guitar, so there aren’t any special bells and whistles, but it does boast of two open-coil humbuckers, a rosewood fretboard like the Les Paul Special II, and a beautiful sound for such an affordable guitar. A great aspect of the Epiphone SG-Special is that it comes in a number of different colors, so whatever your personality there is a guitar for you.
Epiphone G-310 SG
The G-310 is a little more expensive than the previous 2 guitars, but not by much. Between $200 and $250, this guitar is still great for beginners but does not sacrifice as much in quality. What the G-310 does better than the previous 2 guitars is that is handles both harsh and warm distortion well, mainly because of the 4 tuning knobs it has versus the 2 knobs on the previous beginner guitars. Like the previous guitars, the G-310 has a mahogany neck and a rosewood neck, so you are still getting a quality Gibson guitar with any of the 3 choices.
I would be comfortable recommending any of these Gibson guitars to a beginner, though I would probably suggest spending a few extra dollars and getting the G-310 SG. Just starting out you may not notice the difference, but you will quickly grow out of the first 2 guitars and wish you had the versatility of the G-310.
