The ESP Guitar Company

155. That's the difference (lol math joke!)

Realistically, the 401 is likely to be a slightly nicer guitar all around. That being said, depending on the year of the 401, there may be some pretty significant differences between the two. An older 401 (pre-2014ish) would have had the old/traditional neck joint (like a Les Paul) instead of the set-through joint, of the modern EC-256.


Traditional neck joint


Set-through neck joint


Again, depending on the age of the 401, the fret board may be rosewood instead of jatoba. The 256 will likely have a flag inlay at the 12th fret, which is something LTD started doing in the fall of last year. And though you may not care, the hardware and pickups in the 401 are a step up from what's they used on the 401.

There is a lot of value on the used market. All things being the same, if I could find a used 401 in good shape for around the price of the 256, I'd pick the 401.

Good luck in your search! You probably can't go wrong with either of those guitars.

That's kinda what I was thinking.    155???  That never occurred to me!    Of course, I'm not the brightest bulb on the old Christmas tree anyway.    In this case the 401 was actually brand new.   I wasn't wild about the finish, but I think that would grow on me. Of course it might just need some brighter light shining on it.   Good idea on the used market.   It's also an option for me to get a used 1000 too.   I liked the used one I tried out at GC.   There are several of those available at different GCs in the Dallas area.    Thanks for the input Pushead!  

Oh sorry, I thought both the 1000 and 401 were used.

I always like, playing a few guitars to get an idea before I make a decision. You may consider playing a 250 level M or Horizon to get an idea of how the fret board feels. Not quite the same, but maybe it'll help.

Used is sometimes difficult, but in a big area like Dallas, there should be a few that pop up on Craigslist now and then.

Well I finally got my hands on a EC-256 today at SamAsh.   It played about as good as the others did, so I got my answer on that.   I didn't buy this one from SamAsh because I didn't care for the color.   Going to GC tomorrow to look at a used EC-1000 in Emerald Green.   If that plays good then that may be what I do.  Otherwise I may order a new EC-256 in the color I like.   

I am now the proud owner of an emerald green EC-1000 deluxe.   This guitar was used, but it was in phenomenal shape.   It's gorgeous, plays great, sounds great, and the tuning stability seems to be perfect.   I played it for 10 minutes and never had to touch the tuners.   Best of all I got a great deal on it.    They gave me a good bit more money for my trade in than I was expecting and got me within $70 of the price, so it was a no brainer at that point.   I made out like a bandit on that one for sure.  

Nice, congrats!