The ESP Guitar Company

Hi Ronn, Wow, that's great to hear! Glad that you like your new guitar and thanks for sharing this with us. And thank you for choosing ESP!!

HI Ross, We don't usually install the shims. They are not necessary with our radius. Those shims would typically be used for something like a Fender Strat with a 10" radius. I believe the FR tremolo radius is around 12-14", so it's flatter. I suggest checking your string height across the radius of the neck. If you see that you need to raise a string or lower a string, that might call for a shim under a specific string or set of strings. Ideally you want the strings to be similar to the radius of the neck but it doesn't have to match perfectly. Another thing I recommend checking is the radius at the nut. It's quite possible that a radius of a string may be affected at the nut and can be adjusted slightly by filing the plating in the nut slots. There are some tolerance issues caused by plating over metal parts that are a frequent issue when dealing with things like guitar nuts and saddles. If you can't figure out your string buzzing issues with or related to the FR parts, I suggest taking your guitar to a good guitar tech who can trouble shoot the issue for you.  There are a variety of things that can cause string buzz and sometimes it's hard to diagnose.

Hi Richard, thanks for pointing that out and for your suggestion.

Hi Kay, Thanks for that suggestion.

Hi Sutekh, We are currently manufacturing this model in both Korea and Indonesia. However,  we constantly monitor production standards at our various factories in Asia where we produce LTD models. Should we determine that a certain facility is capable of manufacturing an instrument to ESP's required standard or better, we may decide to shift production, or in some cases share production of a model, wherever that factory may be located. The guitar should be of excellent quality regardless of where it's made, and it will have passed our own quality assurance testing.

Graphtech Ratio are a direct drop in fit. They use the same 2-pin mounting setup.

Hi Kay, most all modern tuners will drop into the main hole, only the locating hole will be different. Our locking tuners have 2 pins under the body so you don't see any screw, so that means you can put just about any tuner on if you want. You will just have to drill holes for wherever the screw is. Another thing to note. If you don't like using the locking tuners, you can string them up like a normal tuner, meaning put lots of wraps on the post. This way you don't have to change the tuners. I also see Sutekh has a good suggestion to use Graphtech ratio tuners as a direct fit. Not a bad idea.

Hi Vincent, thanks for your question. These will be available for the rest of the year. There is no plan to discontinue them. In fact these Black Metal series guitars just came out last year so we'll probably be adding models as needed. Hope you can save up and get one and good luck with the move!

Hi Logan, we now include cases with our higher end LTD signature series, so the price went up to include case. For other models, if price increased it is because the cost of manufacturing these models has also increased.

Hi Joe, Yes it can be adjusted. There is some sponge cushion material under the pickup that gives support and a little bit of adjustment range.

Thanks

Hi Rob, Thanks for that suggestion. We'll keep it in mind.

Another thing I might suggest is making a version with a thicker and wider neck. I got long fingers and the thin u is almost a little too thin.

Hi Kenpachi, we could all use a few more guitars and extra $$ to buy them! Hope you get your hands on one soon.....

Hi luckyguitar, thanks for your suggestion.

Arrow or ESP V is good idea for this series they could make them too. All ''metal" shapes in black metal are suitable.

Hi Driver, thanks for your question/suggestion. We will be releasing some new models at the beginning of next year. you might get a preview of some new models before end of the year.

Hey Emporer, Yes you will see some new ones. Let us know what you're looking for. A lot of people have commented on what they want. Although we can't make every configuration we are planning to at least offer something more to choose from.

Thanks for the reply Todd. I think a seven string variant for the EC or M would be pretty cool. I also love the EX shape, and think it would be a great addition to the series. I'm looking forward to when the new models are revealed. 

Hello Ka, please contact our customer service team and they can help you. Just note that the locking keys on this instrument use pins to mount to the headstock so you will need to drill a new hole for the standard mounting tab which a Grover or similar key uses.

Hi Raphael, Yes this model is available in LH. It has only come available recently. Please contact your local dealer to inquire about this model.

Hi Sammy, The idea behind these models are all blacked out hardware, single pickups and no frills, yet high quality build and parts. So at this time we are only making 1 pickup versions.

Thank you Todd! Btw. This guitar is awesome. Sounds great and plays like a dream. 

Hi Luke, Our nuts are pretty decent but if you want to upgrade with an Earvana you should be able to do it, but be very careful. Some Earvana nuts require that you cut the fingerboard slightly so it may not be something you want to do without a really experienced tech.

Hi Michael, Thanks for your comments! Yes this is a unique design, simple but very useful for many players.

Hi Miasmal, We consider this build closer to our 1000 series because of the options. When you compare our 400 and 1000 series, they have really similar builds, however the 1000 series have higher end parts and options. Regarding the neck for our EC Black Metal, it should have our standard Thin U neck shape. It is not wider than our traditional EC series neck.