Epiphone launched the Prophecy Series back in 2008 in a bid to reimagine some of the best-selling Gibson designs for the new millennium with modern appointments such as higher-output pickups and added tonal options. In that regard, this latest addition, one of two Dave Mustaine Epiphone signature guitars released this year, delivers on its promise.
The most noticeable upgrades are the AAA flame maple veneer glued on top of its mahogany body, locking tuners and the inclusion of two Fishman Fluence humbuckers in place of the passive Seymour Duncans.
The active pickups were custom-voiced, boasting three modes: a warm PAF-style humbucker, a more scooped modern option and a shimmering single-coil sound, as well as coil-splits – making this the most versatile Dave Mustaine signature ever made by quite some margin.
Aged Dark Red Burst is also a new finish designed just for the metal legend, so there’s a lot to like here. Interestingly, this model features no string-through tailpiece; instead, it’s fitted with the same kind of bridge and stopbar setup found on Les Pauls and SGs.
There are benefits to both – some say there’s increased opportunity for the strings to ‘excite’ the wood and therefore sustain when resonating from within, while others might argue a stopbar allows for more control over tension and tone.
And speaking of tone, you’re almost spoiled for choice with all the voicing and splitting options – which are every bit as impressive as the Fluence units we’ve tested in the past. All in all, the Prophecy is a versatile beast that can handle just about any musical situation.
The Prophecy can certainly cover a lot more tonal ground than the Epiphone Flying V Custom and Kramer Mustaine signature range, but it’s also close enough in price to a Gibson USA Flying V for players to spend a little more and upgrade the pickups themselves – which, provided the original humbuckers are kept, will hold its value better from an investment perspective. That said, it’s the only guitar you’ll ever find in Aged Dark Red Burst…
Specs
- PRICE: $1,499 / £1,599
- BODY: Mahogany with a AAA Flame Maple Veneer
- SCALE: 628mm (24.75”)
- PICKUPS: Custom-voiced Fishman Fluence
- HARDWARE: LockTone Tune-O-Matic bridge and stopbar, Grover Locking Mini Rotomatic tuners, Graph Tech nut
- FINISH: Aged Dark Red Burst
- CONTACT: Epiphone
