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Epiphone Explorer "Inspired By Gibson" Electric Guitar - Ebony

Solidbody Electric Guitar with Mahogany Body, Mahogany Neck, Indian Laurel Fingerboard, and 2 Humbucking Pickups - Ebony
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Epiphone Explorer "Inspired By Gibson" Electric Guitar - Ebony
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A Futuristic Classic

When it was originally released in 1958, the Explorer offered a radical, futuristic style — one that the world wasn’t quite ready for. But by the 1970s, every hard-rocking guitarist wanted one. The Epiphone Explorer boasts the same angular styling as its predecessor, with the full-throttle tone to match. This solidbody electric guitar packs amazing sustain and punch, thanks to its mahogany body. And that’s before you even plug it in! But the real magic happens when you park it in front of a British-style stack — its rafter-shaking, arena-ready tones are guaranteed to impress. The Explorer’s comfortable SlimTaper neck and easy-playing Indian laurel fingerboard yield effortless playability, while Grover Mini 18:1-ratio tuners and a LockTone Tune-o-matic bridge and stopbar tailpiece ensure maximum sustain. The Epiphone Explorer — it’s ready to rock.

A classic Explorer through and through

The Epiphone Explorer is a classic Explorer through and through. Fans of this iconic design will love the rich midrange character and sustain gotten from its mahogany body. Its set mahogany neck feels great in your hand, thanks to its comfortable SlimTaper profile, with cutaways on both sides for unfettered fret access. It comes topped with an easy-playing Indian laurel fingerboard that’s sure to inspire. Its “hockey-stick” headstock makes a perfect platform for a set of Grover Mini 18:1-ratio tuners. A LockTone Tune-o-matic bridge and stopbar tailpiece complete the package.

ProBucker pickups deliver PAF-era clean and crunch tones

Bridge and neck ProBucker humbuckers equip the Epiphone Explorer for sweet cleans and decidedly classic lead and crunch tones. These pickups are made using Alnico II magnets — the same found in sought-after vintage PAF humbuckers — for rich, warm tone with crystalline highs and a tight bottom. The guitarists here at Sweetwater have discovered that with two volume knobs, a master tone, and a toggle switch, the Explorer enables you to dial in a diverse range of tone and attack as you hone your own style.

1958: a year of innovation

Like sleek, space-aged probes sent from a galaxy far, far away to test the tonal waters of planet earth, the Flying V and Explorer landed to reactions that ranged from total awe to out-and-out bafflement. While the Les Paul at least represented a post-modern interpretation of a recognizable blueprint, these two radical members of the Modernistic line were barely perceivable as guitars at all. Their bodies and necks were carved into super-angular shapes with no discernible bouts, wastes, or traditional cutaways of any sort. The Flying V was even verging on impossible to play sitting down — but who could sit for long while playing an instrument like this? These guitars were made for strutting, swaggering, wailing rock — it just seems no one quite realized it at the time. Even more than the groundbreaking Les Paul, the Flying V and Explorer were guitars aimed at a music that had yet to be born. In the late 1960s and '70s when heavy rock would rule stadium stages the world over, these bold guitars became the ultimate incarnations of the music.

Epiphone Explorer Features:

  • Solidbody electric guitar inspired by the 1958 classic
  • Resonant mahogany body packs sustain and midrange punch
  • Set mahogany SlimTaper neck with dual cutaways for boundless fret access
  • Easy-playing 22-fret Indian laurel fingerboard
  • ProBucker Alnico II pickups deliver sweet cleans to classic crunch
  • Grover Mini 18:1-ratio tuners yield rock-solid tuning
  • LockTone Tune-o-matic bridge and stopbar tailpiece ensure maximum sustain

Why Buy Your Guitar from Sweetwater?

See how Sweetwater goes to great lengths to give you the very best online guitar buying experience. From our online Guitar Gallery that allows you to see and select the exact instrument you want to our 55-point Inspection process and our in-house guitar techs, we take the guesswork out of buying your next guitar online.

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Tech Specs

  • General
  • Number of Strings 6
  • Left-/Right-handed Right-handed
  • Body
  • Body Type Solidbody
  • Body Shape Explorer
  • Body Material Mahogany
  • Body Finish Gloss
  • Color Ebony
  • Neck
  • Neck Material Mahogany
  • Neck Shape SlimTaper
  • Neck Joint Set Neck
  • Radius 12"
  • Fingerboard Material Indian Laurel
  • Fingerboard Inlay White Dots
  • Number of Frets 22, Medium Jumbo
  • Scale Length 24.75"
  • Nut Width 1.693"
  • Nut Material GraphTech
  • Hardware
  • Bridge/Tailpiece LockTone Tune-O-Matic Bridge with Stopbar Tailpiece
  • Tuners Kidney-style Tuners
  • Electronics
  • Neck Pickup ProBucker-2 Humbucker
  • Bridge Pickup ProBucker-3 Humbucker
  • Controls 2 x volume, 1 x master tone
  • Switching 3-way toggle pickup switch
  • Miscellaneous
  • Strings Gibson, .010-.046
  • Case/Gig Bag Sold Separately
  • Manufacturer Part Number: EIXPEBNH1

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Customer Reviews

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Rated 5/5

EXCELLENT

Epiphone Explorer is absolutely amazing and the sound is incredible! Don't let the shape fool you by the sustain and the tone I get from the buckers! Just a great comfortable guitar !
Music background: Christian Musician
Rated 5/5

Fell in love with it right out of the box

I was a little hesitant about buying a guitar online, let alone with this shape, just because I wasn't too sure how comfortable it would be to play and or how long I would enjoy playing the guitar. Every negative thought I had about the guitar was put to rest the moment I opened the box and played it for the first time. Surprisingly comfortable to play sitting or standing, sounds very nice and I am able to get a pretty wide range with it. The pick guard was slightly scuffed but not too noticeable if you aren't aware of it. The finish of the black looks fantastic and overall I am very pleased with the guitar, and ordering through Sweetwater was very pleasant as well. Will definitely buy through Sweetwater again.
Rated 5/5

Wow.

It's amazing that they made it look so classy and nice, but when you plug the thing into a high gain amp, holy crap. It's sounds so nice for cleans but it sounds like there are EMG's in it they are so high output. Absolutely nails Randy Rhoads' tone, sounds amazing for the ...And Justice for All tone, and can pull off Angel of Death very nicely. When you hear Ibanez or Jackson say that their necks are for speed, they are dead wrong. This neck is perfect for speed and shred. Now the guitar does fall flat and sharp a lot, but that might be from it being brand new. I love it!
Music background: 4 years of saxophone, 5 years of recorder, 1 year of guitar
Rated 5/5

SOLID SOUNDING GUITAR

Had this guitar almost two years. I'm a simple player. Classic rock, blues heavy rythem. This is a fun guitar to play and sounds pretty amazing with the correct setup. Looks amazing as well. Highly recommend.
Rated 5/5

Amazing Guitar

Let me start by thanking Andy at Sweetwater on his help in making this happen. I've wanted an Explorer shaped guitar for years and now that I've finally pulled the trigger I couldn't be happier. This is a beautiful instrument at a very reasonable price point. The neck is very comfortable, frets are well done and no fret sprout. Pickups sound great as well. It obviously handles distortion well and is a great rock and metal guitar but sounds amazing clean as too. It arrived from Sweetwater nicely set-up and only needs slight tuning. The only flaw on this instrument is a slight paint imperfection at the end of the fret board just above the neck pick-up but this is a very small thing and doesn't detract from the overall impressiveness of this guitar. Thanks Andy and thanks Sweetwater.
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