re: Guitar recommendations needed

So here's where I'm at.

Originally started off looking at the LTD EC 256. I loved the satin black, and it runs around $450 new at Sweetwater. I was thinking along the lines of adding a Tonepros bridge and tail piece and either upgrading the pickups or the tuners. Also came across a pretty stunning Lemon Drop version on Reverb for around the same price. Upon further deliberation, starting cheap and adding hardware upgrades just puts me in the next LTD price tier anyway.



I did some more looking and found this fantastic looking EC 1000 with all the hardware and pickups I wanted for $1000, but I just can't get past the abalone binding. To me it's overkill.


Finally, that brings me to the EC 1000T. It's about 100 bucks more than the EC 1000, has a beautiful flamed maple top with a satin finish. Also comes with Fishman Fluence Open Core Classic Humbuckers and not the Seymour Duncans I want. I'd be open on making this tradeoff, but there are multiple comments on the ESP website complaining about these pickups dying within days or weeks of the guitar purchase. So if I went this direction I might as well plan on spending a couple hundred bucks more for some Duncans. The toggle switch apparently craps out as well.


Just noticed the headstocks. The EC 1000's maple tops have a matching headstock, but the EC 1000 T's don't. That's actually kind of a bummer.