Epiphone Les Paul PlusTop PRO/FX Review

Posted by Gary • May 8, 2011 • Printer-friendly

The Les Paul PlusTop PRO/FX is a one of the most recent guitars from Epiphone and is basically the budget version of the Gibson Les Paul Axcess. This will be a welcome sight for many budget conscious guitarists considering the price tag of the Gibson Les Paul Axcess (currently around $2500 / $5000 USD according to the Gibson website). The Epiphone comes in at a fifth of the price looks every bit as impressive on stage.

The Epiphone Les Paul Plustop PRO/FX combines a lot of the great features of a Les Paul and adds a double-locking Floyd Rose Special™ vibrato system and coil-tapping with gives it a really nice combination of crunch tones and versatility. You could probably get away with playing any style of music on this guitar other than country where some double string bends might be tricky with a Floyd Rose.

The Floyd Rose Special™ vibrato system allows you to pitch bend up to 2.5-3 semitones due to the cuteaway beneath the trem unit which is really impressive. It's basically the same as the licensed Floyd Rose tremelo system just with slightly cheaper parts. Interestingly since the guitars' debut at Musicmesse there has been some bad press online regarding the Floyd Rose tremelo and how it doesn't stay in tune however this is most likely a result of some of the guitars being badly setup at the factory.

Our advice is to support your local Epiphone dealer and actually get out there and try the guitar before you buy. Any local dealer worth his salt will have set the guitar up properly and you can easily review the guitar for your self. If your not convinced then check out this video from Andertons Music in the UK. They just couldn't get the Les Paul PlusTop PRO/FX out of tune despite some monsterous whammy bar abuse!

The guitar is available in some classic finishes including Desertburst, Honeyburst, Heritage Cherry Sunburst, or Vintage Sunburst finish. The neck is also highly playable and features a superfast SlimTaper™ "D" profile. The back of the neck is finished in satin making it even faster.

In terms of pickups, you have an Epiphone Alnico Classic™ Humbucker in the neck position and an Epiphone Alnico Classic Plus™ Humbucker in the bridge position. This is perhaps one area that could be improved on as the bridge pickup in particular is a little muddy. Of course given the price of the guitar, a couple of Seymour Duncans or EMG's wouldn't be out of the question for most guitarists and would make the guitar really sing.

Having said that the coil tapping feature is a great addition and allows you to get some great twang like sounds out of the guitar. This adds plenty of flexibility and means the guitar has much more potential outside of playing classic rock and metal.

Specification:

• Body Material: Mahogany
• Top Material: Flame Maple
• Neck Material: Mahogany
• Neck Shape: Options 1960's SlimTaper™; D profile
• Neck Joint: Glued-In
• Truss Rod: Adjustable
• Scale Length: 24.75"
• Fingerboard Material: Rosewood with mother-of-pearl Trapezoid inlays
• Neck Pickup: Epiphone Alnico Classic™ Humbucker (4-wire)
• Bridge Pickup: Epiphone Alnico Classic Plus™ Humbucker (4-wire)
• Controls:
  • 3-way Pickup Selector
  • Neck Pickup Volume with push/pull coil-tapping
  • Bridge Pickup Volume with push/pull coil-tapping
  • Neck Pickup Tone
  • Bridge Pickup Tone
• Binding:
  • Fingerboard - 1 ply (cream)
  • Body - 1 ply (cream)
• Fingerboard: Radius 14"
• Frets: 22; medium-jumbo
• Bridge: Floyd Rose Special™ Tremolo with locking R4 nut
• Nut Width: 1-11/16" (R4 nut)
• Hardware: Nickel
• Machine Heads: Grover™; 14:1 ratio
• Finish: Gloss

Guideline Price: £499 UK / $1100 USD

Fretpoint Verdict

At this price it's hard to say anything bad about the PlusTop PRO/FX. Our advice would be to make sure you try the guitar out at a local dealer, make sure the guitar is setup correctly (otherwise you may have tuning issues) and if you are serious about tone think about installing some quality pickups.

China Orders TV Stations To Hang Spy And Crime Dramas

By MALILA Harris

CHINA NEWS - In its latest imposition, China has regulated all TV Stations across the nation to stop telecasting detective shows, spy thriller, crime dramas and even time-travel series for the next three months. The ordered come from the Chinese head command, commanding to stop all TV shows with immediate effect.

Next month China’s Communist Party will commemorate its 90 years of its founding and the government asked TV stations to program shows that extols the party image and history of red wagon instead entertainment baloney.

In an order Beijing asked TV stations to show the program praising the party, and expect one billion television viewers to glue to TV watching a predisposed patriotic propaganda that will lionize the party image on July 1.

It is not everyone obeys with the order calmly but uproar over the dictatorship is quite dominant in different intellectual and artistic sectors. In an interview Wang Weiping, the deputy chief of the drama department called this a "propaganda period".

There are already dozens of dramas glorifying the party’s founding have been made and could be broadcast by stations.

Many private TV stations have already postponed their regular drama and serials, such as Oriental TV in Shanghai said it had postponed popular spy drama Qing Mang. Instead of spy series, a comedy about mothers and their daughters-in-law has been decided to be shown.

An official in Oriental TV said that the government has time to time instructed them to show what they want people to see. He said they were quite habitual to rearrange things at short intervals.

The next three months people of China will be shown the development of Marxism-Leninism in China, and different success stories of the Communist Party, glorifying the culture, military rules, economics and international diplomacy.

Link Between Harry Potter And Osama Bin Laden

By ONE Liners Agency
MONDAY, May 02, 2011

The U.S. war against terrorism has achieved a milestone, the most important milestone with the controversial death of 9/11 mastermind Osama bin Laden. Over the years his death was a suspense as several times rumor spread that Laden has been killed in the mountains and caves of Afghanistan. Parallel to it, connection of Harry Potter series with Laden is also much talked about.

It is learned from reliable websites that the first movie of the Harry Potter series, Sorcerer’s Stone, released in November 2001, just months after 9/11, had similarities with Laden and his terror network. The movie brings to light the ongoing conflict between the little wizard and the evil Voldemort who is bent on killing him.

Earlier known as “He Who Must Not Be Named,” Voldermort was completely an unknown entity. He was much like Al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden that has been seen in the last volume of the Potter series in a seismic one-on-one combat.

The final series of the movie, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2, will be on multiplexes this July and it is surly going to profit off the death of Laden. The movie contains complete epic of evil villain and his network of loyal terrorists. Moreover, the Voldemort dies on May 2 in the movie, and Laden's death news was confirmed on May 1st. So, basically it seems a similar story.

The big question - Will moviegoers recognize the similarity of the plot with bin Laden?

Well, one thing to take note here that the book series of "Harry Potter" predates the 9/11 events of 2001.

'Game of Thrones' review: Well-acted, beautifully shot fantasy for grownups

HBO did not go small in making "Game of Thrones," its first series in the fantasy genre.

For starters, there's the source material: "A Game of Thrones," a 700-plus-page novel by George R.R. Martin that's the shortest in his "A Song of Ice and Fire" series. Production on the show's 10 episodes ran for seven months in Northern Ireland and Malta. There are 17 actors listed in the opening credits, and at least that many more have good-sized roles in the series. The marketing has been nearly ubiquitous in recent weeks.


So does it all add up to something you'll want to watch when it premieres at 9 p.m. ET Sunday (April 17)? In two words: Hell yes. "Game of Thrones" is a grown-up fantasy tale that is less about magic and mysticism than it is about power, political gamesmanship and the consequences of both. It's stunningly rendered and very well-acted, and though the first few episodes have a tendency toward telling rather than showing, the pace rarely feels slack.

Caveat time: I wasn't familiar with Martin's work prior to the series. I started reading "A Game of Thrones" before watching, then stopped after I saw the first two episodes -- not out of lack of interest (quite the contrary), but because I found myself tracking how faithful the TV series was to the novel (quite faithful, for as far as I read) rather than really paying attention to what was on screen. I wanted to evaluate the series as its own work.

As adapted by executive producers David Benioff and D.B. Weiss, "Game of Thrones" follows the numerous power-hungry and amoral figures (along with a few decent ones) surrounding the Iron Throne, the seat of power in Westeros. It's currently occupied by King Robert Baratheon (a lusty Mark Addy), who took power in a rebellion some years before in which the previous king was killed by Jaime Lannister (Nikolaj Coster-Waldau), who happens to be the twin brother of Robert's wife, Queen Cersei (Lena Headey).

As the series opens, Robert travels to the remote northern citadel of Winterfell to ask his hold friend Eddard "Ned" Stark (Sean Bean) to be the Hand of the King -- his closest adviser. Robert doesn't really trust anyone else at the court, and with good reason; his wife is already looking forward to the day when their son Joffrey (Jack Gleeson) takes the throne, others around him -- notably Petyr Baelish, also known as Littlefinger ("The Wire's" Aidan Gillen) -- have their own agendas, and, well, Jaime killed the last king.

Ned is more than a little reluctant to leave his home; he fought alongside Robert in the rebellion but would rather leave the power struggles to others. Duty-bound, though, he accepts and travels to the capital city, King's Landing, with daughters Sansa (Sophie Turner) and Arya (Maisie Williams, who's wonderfully feisty) while his wife, Catelyn (Michelle Fairley) and sons Robb (Richard Madden) and Bran (Isaac Hempstead-Wright) stay at Winterfell.

That's the primary story, but the show also spends significant time in two other locales. Ned's illegitimate son, Jon Snow (Kit Harrington) leaves to join the forsaken men who guard the Wall, a massive, miles-long barrier separating the north of Westeros from a frozen wilderness beyond that's home to "wildlings" (barbaric men) and, as seen in the opening scenes of the premiere, maybe something more sinister. He's accompanied on the early part of his journey by Tyrion Lannister (Peter Dinklage), the dwarf brother of Cersei and Jaime, who's an outcast in his own way but also possibly the smartest (and definitely the funniest) character in the series.

game-of-thrones-review2.jpgAcross the sea, Viserys Targaryen (Harry Lloyd), the exiled son of the murdered previous king, is scheming to reclaim the throne via his sister Daenerys (Emilia Clarke), whom he marries off to a warlord, Khal Drogo (Jason Momoa), in exchange for the promise of an army to take back to Westeros. Clarke, in her first major role, creates one of the most compelling arcs in "Game of Thrones" as Daenerys grows from a scared and lonely girl to a young woman who's becoming increasingly aware of and confident in her own strength.

Got all that?

It's a lot to absorb, and people who come to the show without knowledge of Martin's books will probably feel a bit lost in the first couple episodes. (In this aspect, "Game of Thrones" has a lot in common with previous HBO shows "The Wire" and "Deadwood.") The first couple episodes also have the characters delivering a lot of expository dialogue, which is a necessary evil in almost any show but here sometimes tips the talk-vs.-action scale in the wrong direction.

As the characters' motives and allegiances become clearer, though, "Game of Thrones" develops into what's often gripping television. Bean's "reluctant gunslinger" (as exec producer Weiss describes him), Dinklage's charming schemer, Clarke's growing force and several more performances -- including almost uniformly good work from the child actors in the cast -- ground the show's story firmly in reality. The show's production team also does a fantastic job at creating the world of Westeros, with location shooting enhanced greatly by excellent visual effects work.

"Game of Thrones" drops you into a fully realized world, and once you get your bearings, you'll want to stay there.

Here's a clip from Sunday's premiere, in which Daenerys meets Khal Drogo for the first time.

Source : http://blog.zap2it.com/frominsidethebox/2011/04/game-of-thrones-review-well-acted-beautifully-shot-fantasy-for-grownups.html

Coachella Live YouTube 2011

COACHELLA Live Knights of Cydonia

War Of the Worlds - The Eve Of The War

War Of the Worlds - The Eve Of The War
A pictorial science fiction presentation of Jeff Wayne's musical adaptation of HG Wells original story of the War of the Worlds. Story narration by the late Richard Burton who introduces 'the Eve Of War

Source : http://www.theyack.com/2011/04/09/war-of-the-worlds-the-eve-of-the-war/

Helen Mirren Gets On All Fours For Fallon

Helen Mirren continued her comedy-crazy week with a hilarious interview on Late Night Thursday that climaxed with the unexpected, host-embarrassing moment pictured above. The Queen star explained to Jimmy Fallon that, while her recent Hollywood Walk Of Fame ceremony was one of the “greatest honors” of her life (“[I almost] pulled a ‘Gwynnie’…which is sobbing…crying while giving an acceptance speech”), it was a little different from earlier triumphs. “I win the Oscar. I’m standing on the stage in front of all these Hollywood stars holding my Oscar in my hand and they’re all applauding and it’s this incredible dream come true,” she said. “And now I have my hands and feet down on Hollywood Boulevard and it’ll be there forever and this is what you have to do….” Boom! Dame Mirren on all fours, Jimmy left blushing. Between this, the When Harry Met Sally 2 trailer and her dancing promos with Fred Armisen, there’s no doubt she’ll kick ass hosting SNL tomorrow night.

See photos of Helen on all fours for Fallen—and Grauman’s Chinese Theatre—in the gallery below. And just to confirm, “pulling a Gwynnie” is a reference to Gwyneth Paltrow’s bawling Oscar speech. Catty!

Source : http://www.thefablife.com/2011-04-08/helen-mirren-gets-on-all-fours-for-fallon/

Actress Cameron Diaz has boldly declared she 'loves Hots'

Upfront actress Cameron Diaz has boldly declared she 'loves porn' - as she proves she is schooled in the art of seduction herself in her upcoming film, Bad Teacher.

In a new trailer for the upcoming comedy, which she describes as 'filthy', the star is seen flashing her incredible figure in tight Daisy Duke denim shorts as she gets lathered up in soap suds at a car wash.

But the 38-year-old has revealed she may just have had a bit of help in preparing for the role in an unusual interview on the Jimmy Kimmel show last night. When asked if she liked watching adult films, she boldly said: 'I love porn!'

She then followed up her outspoken comment with: 'You know what I love about hotels? How discreet they are. They always give you that little thing at the bottom - "Your room will be charged the same as any other room. Titles will be used".'

For her appearance on the show, Diaz was dressed like she was going to be a part of a circus. Her black trousers, braces and white vest top - which showed her black bra underneath - looked more suited to an acrobat than a movie star.

The Charlie's Angel's star also showed off her very toned arm muscles, which have drawn comparisons with Madonna's sculpted physique in recent weeks. The trailer for her latest movie shows her pictured smoking marijuana in a scene from the film in which she plays a raunchy educator looking for a man to take care of her.

Diaz also pairs up with her former boyfriend Justin Timberlake who plays another member of staff in the film due to be released in June this year. The actress described the flick as 'filthy' but 'fun' and said she had given her seal of approval to Timberlake's role.

'We wanted Justin because he's such a brilliant comedian. He's so funny. He's very, very talented,' she said.

'And Jason Segel is the heart of the film, which is weird. It's sort of a love triangle between the three of us.'

But despite Diaz's muscular appearance, the actress revealed she was mocked for being skinny in school.

'I've had a lot of nicknames,' she said. 'When I was a kid it was "Skeletor", which really did a lot for my confidence.

'And "skinny bone Jones" - that was most of my childhood. And there was a time when I was just "dirtbag nosebag". Then there was a time when I was "C-Diesel" and then "Diesel".'

Diaz also made reference to the moment TV cameras caught her feeding popcorn to beau Alex Rodriguez during the Super Bowl.

'You should see what I normally feed people when I'm not on television,' she joked.

Everything Robotic In Epical Sci-fi Adventure Of Rajni-Ash

Robot: An Epical Sci-fi Adventure for Bollywood


By ASHISH Saket

BOLLYWOOD NEWS - A league different from sci-fi movies of Bollywood, Robot is a masterpiece with laudable storyline. The adventure is beautifully woven with scintillating screen show of special effects. Nothing is excess, yet everything is stunning. Rajnikant, as usual deserves special appreciation for his act. The versatility he owns is clearly depicted in his charterers. He (Vaseegaran) is the man who has programmed Robot, The Chitti. Mere, machine with no emotion. And this was the cause for rejection of the next-level warrior machine in Indian Army. Its only the feeling that can help the warrior to take a human decision – when to Kill and when to Save.

The dream of Vaseegaran was shattered, but it was'nt The End. Experiment continued and emotion were dictated to the machine. Now Robot could hate and Love, and who knew love could become a reason for hate. Chitti fell in love with Vaseegaran's girlfriend Sana (Aishwarya Ray). The emotions were misguided by Prof. (Danny Denzongpa). This time man played with the emotions of machine and programmed a destructive technology by introducing a chip, Chitti Version – II was enough to create hysteria. Climactic scene is all about how Vaseegaran emerged as a hero fighting with an intuitive mind to destroy his own intelligent system. The rechristened Chitti Version – II was destroyed and Chitti, the Robo was reinstated. Vaseegaran was taken to the court, where Chitti saved his master with logical arguments. Finally the Robot was dismantled, but only to get assembled again...at least hope so.

Songs might not be much interesting for the hindi audience, still choreography is amazing, One of the songs capture the serene beauty of Mount Kilamanjaro with its amazing fauna and colorful tribe. Story is interestingly executed by Shankar with a vehement promise to keep audience glued to their seat. So, if you love spectacle in silver screen Robot is waiting for you!

Sci-fi Epic "Avatar" Revisits Theaters Worldwide

By BOB Goswami

LOS ANGELES - The record breaking sci-fi epic "Avatar" will rerun in the multiplexes all over the world with eight and half minute of extra footage featuring more action and 3D effect. The movie has already earned record $2.74 billion worldwide box office. And also the much awaited DVD and Blue-ray Disc special editions. The 2D DVD and Blue-ray disc is expected to available at the stores in November. There will be additional 16 minutes of footage. However, the 3D version is still take much time to be released and it is expected to hit the stores next year.

The producer Jon Landau told reporters that new footage includes action sequences and narrative deepening extensions of key scenes.

"We tried to look at what people have responded to in the film and give them more of that," Landau said. "There's a whole new scene that takes place in the (Na'vi) school, there's more night bioluminescence, there's new creatures, and there is a new action scene. The scenes don't just feel like added scenes -- they are very organic to the story and embellish it." Landau said.

Fox domestic distribution chief Bruce Snyder said that the additional scenes will make the audience a new feel and fans are obviously want to go back to Pandora.

The movie will rerun on 800 U.S and Canadian theaters, including almost 125 Imax venues, though they will play the movie not more than 2 weeks. Director James Cameron shot most of the scenes using Imax cameras and Imax venues alone fetched $236 million worldwide.

The new improved "Avatar" will also released worldwide on more than 1,000 locations in 14 countries including the U.K, Russia and Taiwan. The movie theatrical version will be shown in other countries as well such as Japan who set to show super-sized "Avatar" in October.

UPA Government, Price Rise, 64th Independence Day = Peepli Live

Peepli Live

INDIA - Omkar Das Manikpuri a.k.a Natha is a poor farmer from the village Peepli who honed his skills as a singer, dancer, mimic and stand-up comic. An unfortunate unpaid government loan leaves him in a despair when he is about to lose his small plot of land. Only one solution can take him out from the problem that is the very same government policy, stating to support farmer’s families who have committed suicide. As the only solution left, Natha wish to die!

“Peepli Live”, the satiric comedy drama is all about India’s troubled village life, which is hardly focused in media. The movie juggles rural morality tale, which encounters the same forces (globalization, inflation, corruption, easy money etc.) facing by urban, though in a different taste. Directed by journalist turned director Anusha Rizvi, says the movie is inspired by real-life hapless situation of farmers and current price rise, mismanagement of government, fragile Indian agrarian society and horrible cases of farmer suicides. According to government statistics, from 1991 to 2001 182,000 farmers committed suicide and 8 million Indians quit farming altogether.

"It's alarming. And it's something that took a while for the government to take notice of," said Aamir Khan, producer of "Peepli Live" with Kiran Rao, during an L.A. stopover last week to promote the film.

The bizarre reality of Indian agrarian sector is well highlighted in the movie. However, it is doubtful that farmer’s suicides are all linked to financial turmoil but undoubtedly rural population is struggling. The rural populations, who constitute the majority in the country, pressurize to compete against international agricultural trade and subsidized farm interest. The film revolves around nearly all aspects of villagers who are continuously fooled by government twisted policies and corruption.

“Peepli Live” showcases the spider web of Indian political tirade when political stalwarts, high ranking bureaucrats, local henchmen and extra precocious media falls upon a small village called Peepli and stake their claims. The big question is “Will Natha suicide or Won’t he?” Nevertheless, nobody care about the poor Natha whose life’s flow suddenly runs reverse.

The best part of the movie is, irrespective of sarcastic filches, and it never seems preachy or overbearing. The subtle emotions by the common rural people and incorruptibility of the protagonist will attract audiences.

"I'm a little hesitant in calling it a satire because there is a very strong emotional thread to the film," said Rizvi. "I like the theater that comes out of reality, the drama that comes out of reality."

The director may have dithered to call the movie a satire but the thoughtful and down to earth flick releasing just before Indian 64th Independence Day is nothing short of sarcasm.
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Nattha Ban Gaya Star, Peepli A Hotspot
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“Friendly Neighborhood” Spiderman Sets To Crawl In Broadway

Introvert Peter Parker a.k.a Spiderman, the arachnoid superhero is all set to crawl into the stage with his leading lady Mary Jane. The stage show “Spiderman” is finally scheduled to spin its web on stage December. The long awaited stage show was delayed because of series of financial problems and cast changes. Now, the audience will see the musical superhero magic in December.

The show is named as "Spider-Man Turn Off the Dark," showcasing musical extravaganza by U2 stars The Edge and Bono. The play is reported to be made in the duration of six years. The show has been reported to begin preview February but due to several problems it gets delayed.

The show suffered a series of problems such as cast changing when the villain Green Goblin supposed to play by actor Alan Cumming and Peter Parker childhood sweetheart Mary Jane played by Evan Rachel Wood quit the production due to scheduling problems.

The lead role of Spiderman plays by Reeve Carney and the Wood is replaced by Jennifer Damiano and Cumming’s role swapped by actor Patrick Page.

Lead producer Michael Cohl assured that Spiderman’s fans will see their superhero November 14 and the officially show will open December 21. The official date of opening will be Tuesday.

The musical is one of the most expensive productions in Broadway history, costing investors an estimated $50 million.