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Pros:
- Affordable
- Smooth and easy to play
- Powerful sound
Cons:
- Sharp, edgy endings on the frets
During the troubling times in our lives, we often turn to music. Some of us listen to our favorite songs, while others submerge themselves in creativity and start writing. Regardless of the category you belong to, one thing is clear – music can be a soothing cure for the challenges we encounter throughout our lives. And as someone who has always played guitar, I can tell you that instead of shopping for pointless stuff when you’re feeling down, it’s better to remember your dreams and splurge for that electric guitar you always desired.
It doesn’t have to be something expensive or fancy – you’ll need a simple model that will do its job decently. One of the options you can go for is ESP LTD Viper-10 – perhaps the best cheap electric guitar in this category that can truly make the magic happen. I’m sure it has what it takes to intrigue and interest you, so let me give you all the details about it. After all, it’s always better to do some research than waste your money and time. Keep on reading as I help you in that process!
Build
Before we explore all the specifications of Viper-10, I think it will be useful to get one thing out of the way – this model isn’t the one you should expect a lot of bells and whistles with. It’s a simple guitar with straightforward features that you will hugely benefit from along the way. So let’s get down to business!
Just like the majority of electric guitars out there, Viper-10 has a basswood body with a scale length of 24.75”. It has a black finish and a double-cutaway – those are simple touches to the design that make it look extremely edgy and badass. It’s lightweight due to the basswood, which means it will be easy to hold, even for hours on end. The thin, U-shape neck is made from maple, while the fretboard features engineered hardwood. The fingerboard radius is 350 millimeters, turning it into a pleasure to play.
This bad boy has 24 extra-jumbo frets that leave extra space for bending the strings and mastering various techniques. That double-cutaway I mentioned earlier will enable you to do whatever you desire with all 24 of those frets. The only thing is that some of the models might have sharp fret edges, which can easily be taken care of, but it’s something I had to warn you about. Regardless, I won’t be exaggerating if I tell you that the build quality is surprising for the price – the construction is superb!
Hardware
ESP LTD Viper-10 excels at providing us with wonderful hardware, as well. What we’re looking at is a TOM & Tailpiece bridge and a molded nut. The latter measures 42 millimeters, which is perfect for the length of the neck. The space between the strings is more than enough for anything you might attempt to do. The color of the hardware is chrome, including LTD tuning machines.
Electronics
Viper-10 has amazing electronics, especially considering its price. It’s quite common to see cheaper electric guitars with crappy pickups, but that’s definitely not the case here. We have an ESP Designed LH-100N on the neck position, as well as an ESP-designed LH-100B on the bridge. These passive pickups define its sonic qualities and turn it into the beast it is. Let’s not forget that it has Volume and Tone controls, as well as a toggle that enables you to choose the desired pickup.
LTD Viper 10 Sound
ESP LTD Viper-10 is quite versatile in terms of sound. It can be utilized with any genre, be it blues, rock, metal or anything your heart desires. It can tailor itself to the music you play easily – all you have to do is play your pieces and its sound will follow. As mentioned, it has three controls that put you in charge of your sound. You can choose between the pickups or select the one that you like better for the music you’re playing. Both pickups are surprisingly expressive: they are punchy, powerful, and clean. Viper-10 can be played clean or dirty – it comes down to your taste and preferences.
Conclusion
All in all, ESP LTD Viper-10 is an amazing electric guitar for everyone who is on a budget. It won’t be fair to say that it’s the only good option in its price range as it has a lot of competitors. Yet it’s definitely one of the best models you can get. Go for it! Good luck!
