am i guilty of sniffin corks?

[TimSt.L]

I am not a rich man. I would like to think of myself as a (relatively) equal opportunity guitar player. Where whatever sounds and plays best, regardless of brand or pricetag, is what I will buy and play during recording and shows.

Well I have a beautiful ESP eclipse that I absolutely love and do not believe I will ever part with. It sounds mediocre and I have had problems in the past with action and intonation. I DID take everyone's advise here and brought it to a very well known tech here and had a full setup done. Still does not sound as good as alot of my mid level LTD'S that I own. Yet I still play it over my Ltd's.

I just traded one of my non players for an Ltd mh350. Beautiful guitar, I played it at practice and all the guys said my tone was better than ever. Yet I have a feeling I will go back to my ESP soon, and I believe that the only reason is because of the name on the headstock.

If a cheap guitar sounded and played the way my ESP does, I would have ditched it a very long time ago and never looked back. But since it has those three letters on it, I tend to give it alot more chances and breaks.
Im not complaining at all, Im just wondering if anyone feels this way and will actually admit it.

Is this a cork sniffing maneuver?
Is it an underlying disorder stemming from me not being able to afford expensive guitars in the past?
Am I overthinking this whole situation in an amazingly unhealthy way?
Your thoughts please...

[boogieplaya]

ESP and the LTD series have always baffled me..I have played many ESP'S, but not once have i thought they were any better than their LTD counterpart. I don't understand the price difference. Aren't they both made overseas? Japan vs. Korea?

[FuzzGazer]

That's not cork-sniffing, that's denial.

Crappy guitar is crappy.

[Wake911]

Yes it is cork sniffing....but the question comes to this. Do you feel that you play better on the ESP than the LTD's? That is really the most important thing. If the name on the headstock gives your confidence a boost, leading to better playing, then who cares if it is cork sniffing or not.

I think you are over thinking it as well. Who cares which guitar you play. Play what you like, and don't worry about the reason.

Any chance of changing the pickups, nut, bridge, or anything to increase the tonal qualities to match your feelings about the rest of the guitar? Just a thought.

[odd]

It's hard to de-attach to a guitar. However, if it truly doesn't sound anything but mediocre I would pass it on and forget those three letters. Instead buy something you bond with tonally. That should be the foremost criteria.

[TresGatos]

Put an LTD sticker on the ESP headstock and vice-versa. Problem solved.

[Ruraltom]

I think a lot of folks have had similar experiences. I know for sure I sold guitars that were fairly awesome, but my 'cork sniffery' made me sell them and I've regretted it ever since. ( A particularly sweet sounding Epi LP with a nice fat 50s neck and a nice honey quilted top comes to mind!)
A hard thing to come to terms with in regards to this forum is how much awesome stuff you get to see and how much more disposable income other folks seem to have. It really culminates in a 'keeping up with the Van Jones' kinda mentality if you let it.
I do think you're erring in the wrong direction though, no offense. Dump the Eclipse... trade it for something that plays and sounds more to your taste. I'll miss several guitars, like the Epi and other nice 'cheap' axes that played and sounded great, but I've never regretted selling any guitar with any name or style that didn't make the grade.

[TimSt.L]

Originally Posted by boogieplaya

ESP and the LTD series have always baffled me..I have played many ESP'S, but not once have i thought they were any better than their LTD counterpart. I don't understand the price difference. Aren't they both made overseas? Japan vs. Korea?

The main reason behind The price difference is that Ltd's are assembly line guitars,(Korea,China,Indonesia, and recently Vietnam.) ESPs are built by luthiers in they're Japanese factory.
But I feel the same as you. I cannot feel much of a difference. and when I DO feel a difference, it's usually Ltd that takes the upper hand. The Korean is they're top factory. That's where they're higher end Ltd's come from. And they're assembly line has it down to a science. I've played so many flawless guitars from that factory.

[TimSt.L]

Originally Posted by Wake911

Yes it is cork sniffing....but the question comes to this. Do you feel that you play better on the ESP than the LTD's? That is really the most important thing. If the name on the headstock gives your confidence a boost, leading to better playing, then who cares if it is cork sniffing or not.

I think you are over thinking it as well. Who cares which guitar you play. Play what you like, and don't worry about the reason.

Any chance of changing the pickups, nut, bridge, or anything to increase the tonal qualities to match your feelings about the rest of the guitar? Just a thought.

For the first question,.. I do tend to WRITE much better on the ESP.

[TimSt.L]

Originally Posted by FuzzGazer

That's not cork-sniffing, that's denial.

Crappy guitar is crappy.

I know it's denial, but it's a conscious denial,.. which baffles me.

[Nada]

i don't think you're guilty of being a "cork sniffer" because I don't think a "cork sniffer" would be playing an ESP or a LTD. not sure where that leaves you though...

[TimSt.L]

Originally Posted by Nada

i don't think you're guilty of being a "cork sniffer" because I don't think a "cork sniffer" would be playing an ESP or a LTD. not sure where that leaves you though...

My apologies, I should have stated my question in relative terms.
In my music scene, ESP is considered a fairly decent guitar manufacturer.

[Trebor Renkluaf]

I was going to say no until I saw a copy of this on your coffee table:

[TimSt.L]

Originally Posted by Trebor Renkluaf

I was going to say no until I saw a copy of this on your coffee table:

THAT'S ME! They did a premier for my amazing awesomeness in all aspects of my life!

[Nada]

Originally Posted by TimSt.L

My apologies, I should have stated my question in relative terms.
In my music scene, ESP is considered a fairly decent guitar manufacturer.

i think ESP makes great guitars, actually, so it wasn't a dig at ESP. i just hear the connotation of "cork sniffer" and i think of the more obnoxious "boo-teek" types chasing tone, rainbows and unicorns.