To preface this immediately, yes, the guitar itself is absolutely worth the steep price point, now to get into the details of it.
Scale Length:
The 27'' scale length does not feel like a big baritone guitar. When comparing this to my Schecter Banshee MACH 7 (similar price-points), staying down low on the neck does not make my hand cramp up. If you're playing old Sepultura or certain Korn songs, you barely move past the 5th fret. The frets do not feel "as big" as they are on my MACH 7 (even though, MACH is 26.5'').
Playing up high is a breeze and feels... natural, the access is superb, even when going up to the 24th fret.
The ESP "thin U" neck really does wonders, and if you have ever played one, they have somehow made it work on a 7 string as well.
Evertune:
Immediately, the Evertune was NOT set up. Some strings were in zone 77 or something, because when I tried to wind them down to zone 2, two of them broke, which is fine, as replacing the initial strings is a common practice. But if you're planning to purchase this guitar, you NEED to get know how Evertune works.
In reality, it is really simple (I recommend Ola's videos on youtube), but the initial setup and figuring it out CAN take a bit of time.
Does the Evertune work as it should? Yep! Especially for that low B string, which is infamous for going out of tune on pretty much most 7 strings. While I'd have to re-tune my Schecter every couple of songs if I'm (ab)using that 7th string, my ESP is still in tune. It's not magic, it is mechanical, but it sure as hell feels like magic.
Weight:
You might expect this to be heavy, but... it is actually quite the opposite. The guitar is very light, there is no neck-dive and it does not feel like an anchor when you stand up with it. I have no idea what magic they did to make it so.
Fishmans:
Not much to say about the pickups as there are 15 million reviews on these. Do they eat batteries compared to EMGs? Yes. Do they sound a bit "wahy" or "honky" at times? Yes. Are they versatile? Yes.
Now to get to the "negatives" of this guitar.
At this price point, you kinda expect perfection on all fronts. A small dink in a weird spot is always forgivable, it is a mass-produced product after all.
- The guitar was not set up. This may be big to some people, I found it fun to figure it out from the get-go.
- The Volume pots are "scratchy", when turning them, you can feel they have been... overtightened? Not to ANY extreme extent, but they are not as "fluid" as the Tone pot
- Evertune came with a slight dink. I did not notice it at first, but it is actually quite substantial as is, and I have contacted Thomann about this (doubt that the guitar needs replacement or anything, more of an FYI)
- The BIGGEST flaw of it all is that... the guitar does not come with a case or a good gigbag. I know ESP overcharges for their cases (I had one), but the Baritone Eclipse model is not readily available to most (even Thomann does not have it). Regular "Les Paul" cases do not fit (I have one for my Epiphone), as it is a Baritone guitar.
At this price point, providing a nicely padded gig-bag or a case should be a given and hence the "features" 4 stars.
- Evertune SHOULD come with its own Hex Tuning key (just a regular 2.5mm Hex key), but the guitar did not come with this. If you are planning to purchase this guitar, make sure you have that Hex key, otherwise you won't be able to interact with the Evertune.
- Small forgivable imperfect binding ends at the edges and the famous "Eclipse wing", I honestly never mind these because I almost see them as a cool unique thing.
TL;DR A perfect guitar, with some minor factory issues. Evertune is a godsend, the playability is <chef's kiss>, but I wish it came with a padded gigbag or a case.
