Elitist Series

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Epiphone Elite Logo Epiphone Elitist Logo
Epiphone Elite Logo
Epiphone Elitist Logo
Hand selected and kiln-dried woods Custom-wound Made In The USA Pickups
Hand Selected and Kiln-dried Woods
Custom-wound Made In The USA Pickups
Precision Grover Machine Heads Real Abalone and Mother of Pearl Inlays
Precision Grover Machine Heads
Real Abalone and Mother of Pearl Inlays
Epihone Elitist Les Paul Studo, Standard & Standard Plus Headstock Front Epihone Elitist Les Paul Studo, Standard & Standard Plus Headstock Back
Epihone Elitist Les Paul Studo, Standard & Standard Plus Headstock Front
Epihone Elitist Les Paul Studo, Standard & Standard Plus Headstock Back

http://www2.epiphone.com/elitist

The Elitist Series was made at the Terada and Fuji-gen factories in Japan. Originally called the Elite Series, Epiphone was forced to change the name because of a conflict with an Ovation line of guitars already bearing the Elite moniker.

The same Terada and Fuji-Gen guitar factories that made all of the Orville by Gibson and Orville guitars were used to make the Gibson/Yamano Gakki Epiphone Elite and Epiphone Elitist series with the Terada guitar factory mostly making the semi acoustic models and the Fuji-Gen guitar factory mostly making the solid body models

The Elitist guitars were made to very high specifications. Most of the parts were made in Japan but some parts were made in other countries, including the USA and Germany. These guitars cost more than twice as much as a standard Epiphone guitar. The Elitist series was discontinued in 2008, with the exception of the Casino model.

The Epiphone Elitist Series includes features such as real Abalone and Pearl inlays, bone nuts and saddles, hand-rubbed finishes, USA strings and meticulous adjustment and set-up. Japanese Domestic Market Elitists use the Gibson-style open-book headstock instead of the Tombstone-shaped headstock.

The Epiphone Elitist guitars are not related to the Epiphone Les Paul Elite, which is a Korean-made semi-hollow guitar similar to the Les Paul-ES.

See Also:


Contents

Elitist SG


Elitist '61 SG

Epiphone Elitist '61 SG
Epiphone Elitist '61 SG
Epiphone Elitist '61 SG
Epiphone Elitist '61 SG
Epiphone Elitist '61 SG
Epiphone Elitist '61 SG Faded
  • 2002-2008

Body:

  • Book-matched African Mahogany body
  • Book-matched mahogany top

Neck:

  • 1-piece set mahogany neck with dovetail neckjoint
  • Rosewood fingerboard with real Mother of Pearl trapezoid inlays
  • Tombstone headstock with pearl holly inlay
  • 2-screw, 2-ply truss rod cover with "Gibson" or "Elitist" engraving
  • Bone nut
  • 24.75" scale
  • 1.68" nut width

Binding:

  • Single-ply neck

Electronics:

  • USA 50SR & 60ST pickups
  • 2 Vol. 2 Tone controls
  • 3-way selector switch

Hardware:

  • Nickel hardware
  • Die-cast Grover tuners
  • Tune-o-matic bridge with stopbar tailpiece
  • 4-ply black/white pickguard
  • Black reflector knobs

Colors:

  • Cherry (CH)
  • Ebony (EB)
  • Worn Cherry (WC)



Elitist Les Paul


Elitist Les Paul Studio

Epiphone Elitist LP Studio
Epiphone Elitist LP Studio
  • 2003-2006

Body:

  • Book-matched African Mahogany body
  • Book-matched maple top

Neck:

  • 1-piece set mahogany neck with dovetail neckjoint
  • Rosewood fingerboard with dot inlays
  • Tombstone headstock with gold "Les Paul" script
  • 2-ply truss rod cover with "Elitist" or "Gibson" engraving
  • Bone nut
  • 24.75" scale
  • 1.68" nut width

Electronics:

  • USA 50SR & 60ST pickups
  • 2 Vol. 2 Tone controls
  • 3-way selector switch

Hardware:

  • Nickel hardware
  • Die-cast Grover tuners
  • Tune-o-matic bridge with stopbar tailpiece
  • Raised black pickguard
  • Black speed knobs

Colors:

  • Wine Red (WR)
  • Alpine White (AW)
  • Ebony (EB)
  • Vintage Sunburst (VS)



Elitist Les Paul Standard

Epiphone Elitist LP Standard
Epiphone Elitist LP Standard
  • 2002-2008

Body:

  • Book-matched African Mahogany body
  • Book-matched maple top

Neck:

  • 1-piece set mahogany neck with dovetail neckjoint
  • Rosewood fingerboard with trapezoid inlays
  • Tombstone headstock with gold "Les Paul" script
  • 2-ply truss rod cover with "Elitist" or "Gibson" engraving
  • Bone nut
  • 24.75" scale
  • 1.68" nut width

Binding:

  • Single-ply body & neck

Electronics:

  • USA 50SR & 60ST pickups
  • 2 Vol. 2 Tone controls
  • 3-way selector switch

Hardware:

  • Nickel hardware
  • Die-cast Grover tuners
  • Tune-o-matic bridge with stopbar tailpiece
  • Raised white pickguard
  • Gold speed knobs

Colors:

  • Ebony (EB)
  • Faded Cherryburst (FC)
  • Vintage Sunburst (VS)
  • Honeyburst (HB)



Elitist Les Paul Standard Plus

Epiphone Elitist LP Standard Plus
Epiphone Elitist LP Standard Plus
Epiphone Elitist LP Standard Plus
Epiphone Elitist LP Standard Plus
  • 2002-2008

Body:

  • Book-matched African Mahogany body
  • Book-matched flame maple top

Neck:

  • 1-piece set mahogany neck with dovetail neckjoint
  • Rosewood fingerboard with trapezoid inlays
  • Tombstone headstock with gold "Les Paul" script
  • 2-ply truss rod cover with "Elitist" or "Gibson" engraving
  • Bone nut
  • 24.75" scale
  • 1.68" nut width

Binding:

  • Single-ply body & neck

Electronics:

  • USA 50SR & 60ST pickups
  • 2 Vol. 2 Tone controls
  • 3-way selector switch

Hardware:

  • Nickel hardware
  • Die-cast Grover tuners
  • Tune-o-matic bridge with stopbar tailpiece
  • Raised white pickguard
  • Gold speed knobs

Colors:

  • Faded Cherryburst (FC)
  • Vintage Sunburst (VS)



Elitist Les Paul Custom

Epiphone Elitist LP Custom
Epiphone Elitist LP Custom
Epiphone Elitist LP Custom Epiphone Elitist LP Custom
Epiphone Elitist LP Custom
Epiphone Elitist LP Custom
Epiphone Elitist Headstock
Epiphone Elitist Les Paul Custom Headstock
  • 2002-2008

Body:

  • Book-matched African Mahogany body
  • Book-matched maple top

Neck:

  • 1-piece set mahogany neck with dovetail neckjoint
  • Rosewood fingerboard with block inlays
  • Tombstone headstock with split-diamond inlay
  • 2-ply truss rod cover with "Elitist" or "Gibson" engraving
  • Bone nut
  • 24.75" scale
  • 1.68" nut width

Binding:

  • 7-ply body binding
  • 5-ply headstock binding
  • 1-ply neck binding

Electronics:

  • USA 50SR & 60ST pickups
  • 2 Vol. 2 Tone controls
  • 3-way selector switch

Hardware:

  • 24K Gold Hardware
  • Die-cast Grover tuners
  • Tune-o-matic bridge with stopbar tailpiece
  • 3-ply raised black pickguard
  • Gold speed knobs

Colors:

  • Ebony (EB)
  • Alpine White (AW)
  • Wine Red (WR)



Elitist Les Paul '57 Gold Top

Epiphone Elitist LP Goldtop
Epiphone Elitist LP '57 Goldtop
Epiphone Elitist LP Goldtop
Epiphone Elitist LP '57 Goldtop Headstock
  • 2002-2008

Body:

  • Book-matched African Mahogany body
  • Book-matched flame maple top

Neck:

  • 1-piece set mahogany neck with dovetail neckjoint
  • Rosewood fingerboard with trapezoid inlays
  • Tombstone headstock with gold "Les Paul" script
  • 2-ply truss rod cover with "Elitist" or "Gibson" engraving
  • Bone nut
  • 24.75" scale
  • 1.68" nut width

Binding:

  • Single-ply body & neck

Electronics:

  • USA 50SR & 60ST pickups
  • 2 Vol. 2 Tone controls
  • 3-way selector switch

Hardware:

  • Nickel hardware
  • Die-cast Grover tuners
  • Tune-o-matic bridge with stopbar tailpiece
  • Raised white pickguard
  • Gold speed knobs

Colors:



Jay Jay French Elitist Les Paul Standard

Epiphone Elitist Twisted Sister Les Paul Standard
Epiphone Elitist Twisted Sister Les Paul Standard
Epiphone Elitist Twisted Sister Les Paul Standard
Epiphone Elitist Twisted Sister Les Paul Standard Headstock
Epiphone Elitist Twisted Sister Les Paul Standard
Epiphone Elitist Twisted Sister Les Paul Standard
  • 2004-2005

Body:

  • Book-matched African Mahogany body
  • Book-matched maple top

Binding:

  • Single-ply body & neck

Neck:

  • 1-piece set mahogany neck with SlimTaper profile
  • Dovetail neckjoint
  • Rosewood fingerboard with real Mother of Pearl dot inlays
  • Tombstone headstock with "TS" screenprinted logo
  • 2-screw, 2-ply truss rod cover with "Jay Jay French Les Paul Standard" engraving
  • Bone nut
  • 22 frets
  • 24.75" scale
  • 1.68" nut width

Electronics:

  • Gibson Burstbucker 2&3 pickups
  • 2 Vol. 2 Tone controls
  • 3-way selector switch

Hardware:

  • Nickel hardware
  • Tune-o-matic bridge with stopbar tailpiece
  • Cream pickup & selector rings
  • Die-cast Grover tuners
  • Amber bell knobs
  • No pickguard

Colors:

  • Twisted Pinkburst

See Also:



Elitist Tak Matsumoto Les Paul

Epiphone Elitist Tak Matsumoto Les Paul
Epiphone Elitist Tak Matsumoto Les Paul
Epiphone Elitist Tak Matsumoto Les Paul
Epiphone Elitist Tak Matsumoto Les Paul Headstock
Epiphone Elitist Tak Matsumoto Les Paul
Epiphone Elitist Tak Matsumoto Les Paul Hardcase

Body:

  • Book-matched African Mahogany body
  • Book-matched AAA quilt maple top
  • Faded Cherry back & neck

Neck:

  • 1-piece set mahogany neck with SlimTaper profile
  • Dovetail neckjoint
  • Rosewood fingerboard with real Abalone trapezoid inlays
  • Tombstone headstock with gold "Les Paul" script
  • 2-screw, 2-ply truss rod cover with "Tak Matsumoto" engraving
  • Bone nut
  • 22 frets
  • 24.75" scale
  • 1.68" nut width

Binding:

  • Black binding
  • Single-ply body & neck

Electronics:

  • Gibson Burstbucker 2 & 3 zebra pickups
  • 2 Vol. 2 Tone controls
  • 3-way selector switch

Hardware:

  • Nickel hardware
  • Die-cast Gotoh green-key tuners
  • ABR-1 with stopbar tailpiece
  • Gold bell knobs

Colors:

  • Takburst (TK)

Includes:

  • Epiphone hardcase with Tak Matsumoto signature silkscreen

See Also:



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