The ESP E-II line of guitars are some of the highest quality MIJ guitars in existence. We’ve done reviews on them in the past, such as the flagship Horizon III model. Today, I thought we’d look at quite a unique guitar, the E-II Mystique.

Let’s see what it’s all about!

Features:

  • Mahogany Body
  •  Quilted Maple Top
  •  1Pc Mahogany Set Neck
  •  Rosewood Fretboard
  •  25.5″ Scale Length
  •  Marine Blue Finish
  •  12″ Radius
  • Bone Nut
  •  Thin ‘U’ Neck Profile
  •  24 Jumbo Frets
  •  Gold Hardware
  •  Schaller Straplocks
  •  Gotoh Locking Tuners
  •  Tonepros Locking TOM with Gotoh Tailpiece
  •  Seymour Duncan JB/Alnico II Pro Pickups
  •  Vol/Tone/Toggle Switch

The Mystique NT is quite a unique guitar. The body style is a bit curvy and exotic looking, and it features a gorgeously finished Quilted Maple top. The ‘Marine Blue’ finish is further accentuated by a classy selection of gold hardware.

The ‘NT’ on this one stands for ‘No Tremolo’ and there is an ‘FR’ model available that is equipped with a Floyd Rose.

The hardware on this guitar got me really excited. ESP opted to put a bunch of really great stuff on the Mystique such as a Bone Nut, Gotoh Locking Tuners, Gotoh Tailpiece, and a set of Schaller Straplocks (Which made it on our Top 5 Strap Locks article).

The ESP signature thin “U” neck shape is a bit thicker than an Ibanez Wizard style neck (found on the illustrious RGA) and offer a bit more weight in your left hand, which I enjoy for rhythm playing.

ESP E-II Mystique NT

 

Tone:

The Mystique features the famous Mahogany body/Maple top combination. The tonal characteristics offered by these woods have a really fat low end with a sweet bump in the mids. The Mahogany body and set-neck build design offer a ton of sustain on this guitar as well!

Enough about wood, I have some great news…

This guitar features one of my all time favorite pickups, the Seymour Duncan JB Bridge.

Made with the go-to Alnico-V magnet, the JB pickup uses a hot wind to help achieve it’s amazing balance of clarity, sustain, and punch. The low end is huge, and the highs are crisp and clean.

In the neck position is the Seymour Duncan Alnico II Pro. This pickup brings a really buttery, warm sound to the neck. The highs are some of the smoothest of any neck pickup I’ve ever used, and clean/mid gainy tones are very sweet.

Overall, this guitar really honestly does everything  well. The JB Bridge Pickup slays for metal, rock, and country sounds, while the Alnico II Pro offers up smooth and fat clean sounds.

Build Quality:

This is a Japenese ESP E-II guitar. Need I say more?

I really don’t need to, but I will.

This guitar is really comfortable to play, of course, you have to get past the odd shape of it. It doesn’t look like anything that would be particularly comfortable, but it really is. The neck is amazing, as was the fretboard. It’s free of sharp, jutting frets and truthfully plays like butter.

ESP always does really clean electronic work on the inside and everything was set up extremely well from the factory.

Final Verdict:

The ESP E-II Mystique NT is a unique guitar with gorgeous look and a plethora of tonal variety. I was initially put off by it’s shapely body style, but was immediately attached when I felt it in my hands.

Even though the guitar costs around $1799, I’d still consider it to be a well-priced instrument, based on it’s build quality and high-end hardware.

It might not be for everyone, but with everything this guitar offers, it’s one of my favorites that I’ve reviewed this year!

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This article was written by Zac Buras, our editor located in Louisiana.

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