Review of the ESP LTD EC-401 Black Electric guitar. Where to buy it?

I’ll tell you how this post is built. First I list the features of the ESP LTD EC-401 Black guitar. Then you have a video or two, purchase links and useful comments from other users and then you have one of the most useful parts; comparison tables with similar items so you can compare.

  • Mahogany body
  • Glued mahogany neck
  • Pau Ferro fretboard
  • 24 XJ Frets
  • Scale: 628 mm
  • Pickups: 1 EMG 81 and 1 EMG 60 humbucker
  • 2 Volume controls and 1 tone control
  • 3-Way switch
  • Black Nickel hardware
  • Grover machine heads
  • Tune-O-Matic bridge with stop tailpiece
  • Colour: Black
  • Matching case: Artticle number 172299 (not included)

review esp-ltd-ec-401-black

This guitar usually has a price around 688.00 €

Now that we’ve seen the features of this guitar ESP LTD EC-401 Black watch these related videos to learn more.

Tone Demo: ESP LTD EC-401 with EMG 60/81 [Almost no talking!]

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Some comments from people who come to the forum about this model:

Comment:

I purchased this guitar two weeks ago at Thomann. This is the first guitar in this price range that I ever bought. I have some old guitars and I also purchased a Harley Benton beginners guitar at Thomann six weeks ago.
To make a long story short: the guitar sounds flawless. Together with the new amplifier, it is just beautiful. But unfortunately I felt like something was wrong when I received the package. The Harely Benton Guitar that I received six weeks ago was simply beautifully wrapped and unboxing it was very cool. My son was more than happy. Unboxing this guitar felt like unboxing something that was already returned to the seller and now was re-sold. This was not the original packaging and there were fingerprints all over the guitar body. It almost looked like B-Stock. Although this is kind of ok and won’t effect the sound of the guitar (there are not scratches), it messed the "unboxing feeling" totally up. Having to clean a product first before you can use it is difficult. However, after cleaning it I deceided not to send it back because it is still a great guitar and it works fine. It doesn’t have any scratches so it looks good now. Other than the poor packaging, I can only highly recommend this instrument.
// let me give you a quick update here: after about three weeks, I experienced technical problems with the guitar. There was no sound anymore although cable and amp were ok. I contacted the Thomann support and their help was concerning friendliness, competency, speed and, at the end, customer happiness absolutely flawless. To be honest I never experienced a customer service at the hight quality level. This is why I changed my rating of the overall quality from two stars to five. Thank you Thomann-Team for this exceptional service. You guys rock! 🙂

Comment:

Great guitar!
I play mostly metal, sometimes punk rock. This guitar handles the styles very well, active pickups provide high gain sounds with great fidelity. I owned several guitars with EMG pickups, I always used to replace EMG 81 in bridge position with EMG 85 due to EMG 81 sounding too harsh and brittle to me. With LTD EC-401 i did not do it for the first time, as EMG 81 sounds just great in bridge position, sound is full a and very harmonic, not harsh in any way. I think this is related to wood of the body (mahogany with no top). I always modify the pickups connection to work in 18 volt mode (two 9 V batteries), which makes the sound more natural and harmonic. This guitar has absolutely best sustain I have ever experienced with any guitar!
The only small complaint about this guitar is instability while playing sitting, guitar body is not very well balanced for that and tends to slip off to the right side, you definitelly need a strap to stabilize the instrument while sitting. However, this is really minor issue and playing while standing is absolutelly comfortable.

ESP LTD EC-401 Black vs ESP LTD MH 1000 NT QM STP

The guitar ESP LTD EC-401 Blackis usually 175 € cheaper than ESP LTD MH 1000 NT QM STP.

Below have a look to the video of this guitar

ESP LTD EC-401 Black

ESP LTD MH 1000 NT QM STP
  • Mahogany body
  • Glued mahogany neck
  • Pau Ferro fretboard
  • 24 XJ Frets
  • Scale: 628 mm
  • Pickups: 1 EMG 81 and 1 EMG 60 humbucker
  • 2 Volume controls and 1 tone control
  • 3-Way switch
  • Black Nickel hardware
  • Grover machine heads
  • Tune-O-Matic bridge with stop tailpiece
  • Colour: Black
  • Matching case: Artticle number 172299 (not included)
  • Mahogany body
  • Quilted maple top
  • 3 Stripe maple neck
  • Makassar Ebony fretboard
  • Neck profile: Thin U
  • 24 XJ frets
  • Scale: 648 mm
  • Nut width: 42 mm
  • Pickups: Seymour Duncan Pegasus (bridge) and Seymour Duncan Sentient (neck)
  • 1 Volume controller
  • 1 Tone control with push pull function
  • 3-Way switch
  • LTD Locking Machine Heads
  • Tonepros Locking TOM with string guide through the body
  • Black hardware
  • Strings from factory: Daddario XL110 .010 – .046
  • Colour: Sea Thru Purple

Below have a look to the video of this guitar ESP LTD MH 1000 NT QM STP

ESP LTD MH1000NT 2018 Unboxing

If you want to know more about this option, click on the following link to see the ESP LTD MH 1000 NT QM STP review

ESP LTD EC-401 Black vs ESP LTD EC-256 Black Satin

The guitar ESP LTD EC-401 Black is usually 319 € more expensive than ESP LTD EC-256 Black Satin.

Below have a look to the video of this guitar

ESP LTD EC-401 Black

ESP LTD EC-256 Black Satin
  • Mahogany body
  • Glued mahogany neck
  • Pau Ferro fretboard
  • 24 XJ Frets
  • Scale: 628 mm
  • Pickups: 1 EMG 81 and 1 EMG 60 humbucker
  • 2 Volume controls and 1 tone control
  • 3-Way switch
  • Black Nickel hardware
  • Grover machine heads
  • Tune-O-Matic bridge with stop tailpiece
  • Colour: Black
  • Matching case: Artticle number 172299 (not included)
  • Body: Mahogany
  • 3-Piece set-in neck: Mahogany
  • Fretboard: Jatoba
  • Radius: 350 mm
  • Neck profile: Thin U
  • Scale: 629 mm (24.75″)
  • Nut width: 42 mm
  • 22 XJ Frets
  • Pickups: ESP Designed LH-150N (neck) – ESP Designed LH-150B (bridge) humbuckers
  • 2 Volume and 1 tone controls
  • Toggle switch
  • LTD machine heads
  • TOM & Tailpiece bridge
  • Chrome hardware
  • Colour: Matt black

Below have a look to the video of this guitar ESP LTD EC-256 Black Satin

ESP LTD EC 256 - Demo

If you want to know more about this option, click on the following link to see the ESP LTD EC-256 Black Satin review

ESP LTD EC-401 Black vs ESP LTD EC-1000VB/Duncan

The guitar ESP LTD EC-401 Blackis usually 131 € cheaper than ESP LTD EC-1000VB/Duncan.

Below have a look to the video of this guitar

ESP LTD EC-401 Black

ESP LTD EC-1000VB/Duncan
  • Mahogany body
  • Glued mahogany neck
  • Pau Ferro fretboard
  • 24 XJ Frets
  • Scale: 628 mm
  • Pickups: 1 EMG 81 and 1 EMG 60 humbucker
  • 2 Volume controls and 1 tone control
  • 3-Way switch
  • Black Nickel hardware
  • Grover machine heads
  • Tune-O-Matic bridge with stop tailpiece
  • Colour: Black
  • Matching case: Artticle number 172299 (not included)
  • Body: Mahogany
  • Neck: Mahogany
  • Makassar ebony fretboard
  • “Thin U” neck profile
  • Scale: 628 mm
  • Nut width: 42.0 mm
  • 24 XJ frets
  • Pickup: 1 Seymour Duncan JB (bridge) and 1 Seymour Duncan ’59 (neck) humbucker
  • 3-Way toggle
  • 2 Volume controls and 1 tone control
  • ESP Locking machine heads
  • Tonepros Locking TOM bridge and tailpiece
  • Gold-plated hardware
  • Colour: Vintage Black

Below have a look to the video of this guitar ESP LTD EC-1000VB/Duncan

ESP LTD EC 1000 Duncan Review

If you want to know more about this option, click on the following link to see the ESP LTD EC-1000VB/Duncan review

ESP LTD EC-401 Black vs ESP LTD EC-401 Olympic White

The guitar ESP LTD EC-401 Blackis usually 0 € cheaper than ESP LTD EC-401 Olympic White, but the difference is so small that this can vary..

Below have a look to the video of this guitar

ESP LTD EC-401 Black

ESP LTD EC-401 Olympic White
  • Mahogany body
  • Glued mahogany neck
  • Pau Ferro fretboard
  • 24 XJ Frets
  • Scale: 628 mm
  • Pickups: 1 EMG 81 and 1 EMG 60 humbucker
  • 2 Volume controls and 1 tone control
  • 3-Way switch
  • Black Nickel hardware
  • Grover machine heads
  • Tune-O-Matic bridge with stop tailpiece
  • Colour: Black
  • Matching case: Artticle number 172299 (not included)
  • Mahogany body
  • Glued mahogany neck
  • Pau Ferro fretboard
  • 24 XJ Frets
  • Scale: 24.75″
  • Pickups: 2 Active EMG 81/60 humbuckers
  • Black Nickel hardware
  • Grover machine heads
  • Tune-O-Matic bridge with stop tailpiece
  • Colour: Olympic White
  • Matching case: Article number 172299 (not included)

Below have a look to the video of this guitar ESP LTD EC-401 Olympic White

LTD EC401 Review and Demo ESP

If you want to know more about this option, click on the following link to see the ESP LTD EC-401 Olympic White review

Where to buy the guitar ESP LTD EC-401 Black

Thomann

  • Free Shipping.
  • Full warranty. If you have any problems, they take care of everything.
  • 100% reliable payment.
  • Leader in trouble-free shipping.
  • Usually Best price.
  • Best Reputation: They are the leading online store in Europe and have the best catalogue and information.

Amazon

  • Free Shipping and possibility of shipping in one day with Amazon Premium.
  • Full Guarantee but they are no experts in music equipment.
  • Sometimes better price.
  • He’s got worse stock than Thomann.

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Jaime Echagüe

Hi! I'm Jaime Echagüe, a musician and an authentic fan of musical instruments. With this blog I want to give general information about musical instruments in an easy, direct and honest way. I hope you enjoy my website and that you find it very useful.

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