ESP Viper
Encyclopedia
The ESP Viper is an electric guitar
manufactured by ESP Guitars
. The ESP Viper has a shape similar to that of a Gibson SG
, with slight variations; Vipers have a slight diagonal slope at the bottom and an asymmetrical front profile. The body is mahogany
or alder
. The neck is three pieces, with a rosewood
fingerboard
. As standard, it comes fitted with an EMG
81
/85
pickup
set. It has a scale length of 24.75".
The LTD Vipers that are made by ESP's sister line are more affordable and of different quality in comparison to the ESP Viper. LTD Vipers are made of less expensive materials and do not possess the same specifications as ESP Vipers.
Viper
Standard features:
Set-through neck,
24.75" Scale,
Mahogany Body,
Mahogany Neck,
Ebony
Fingerboard
,
42mm Bone Nut,
Thin U Neck Contour,
24 XJ Frets,
Black Nickel
Hardware,
Gotoh Magnum Lock Tuners,
Gotoh TOM Bridge & Tailpiece,
EMG 81
(B) / 85 (N) Active p.u.,
Finish: BLKS
Viper-7
Set-Neck Construction,
25.5" Scale,
Mahogany Body,
Mahogany Neck,
Ebony Fingerboard,
45mm Bone Nut,
Thin U Neck Contour,
24 XJ Frets,
Black Nickel Hardware,
Gotoh Magnum Lock Tuners,
Gotoh TOM Bridge & Tailpiece,
EMG 707 (B & N) Active p.u.,
Finish: BLKS
Electric guitar
An electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker...
manufactured by ESP Guitars
ESP Guitars
, located in North Hollywood, California, is an American-based, Japanese-owned manufacturer of electric guitars and basses.- History :In 1975, Hisatake Shibuya opened a shop called Electric Sound Products in Tokyo. It provided custom replacement parts for guitars. In 1976, ESP gained a reputation...
. The ESP Viper has a shape similar to that of a Gibson SG
Gibson SG
At the launch of the SG in 1961, Gibson offered four variants of the SG; the SG Junior , the SG Special, the SG Standard, and the top-of-the-line SG Custom. However, Gibson's current core variants as of 2010 are the SG Standard and the SG Special...
, with slight variations; Vipers have a slight diagonal slope at the bottom and an asymmetrical front profile. The body is mahogany
Mahogany
The name mahogany is used when referring to numerous varieties of dark-colored hardwood. It is a native American word originally used for the wood of the species Swietenia mahagoni, known as West Indian or Cuban mahogany....
or alder
Alder
Alder is the common name of a genus of flowering plants belonging to the birch family . The genus comprises about 30 species of monoecious trees and shrubs, few reaching large size, distributed throughout the North Temperate Zone and in the Americas along the Andes southwards to...
. The neck is three pieces, with a rosewood
Rosewood
Rosewood refers to any of a number of richly hued timbers, often brownish with darker veining, but found in many different hues. All rosewoods are strong and heavy, taking an excellent polish, being suitable for guitars, marimbas, turnery , handles, furniture, luxury flooring, etc.In general,...
fingerboard
Fingerboard
The fingerboard is a part of most stringed instruments. It is a thin, long strip of material, usually wood, that is laminated to the front of the neck of an instrument and above which the strings run...
. As standard, it comes fitted with an EMG
EMG, Inc.
EMG, Inc. is the current legal name of a company based in Santa Rosa, California which manufactures guitar pickups and EQ accessories. Founded in 1976, the company was originally called Dirtywork Studios. The name was changed to "Overlend" in 1978 and then to the current name in 1983...
81
EMG 81
The EMG 81 is a popular active humbucker guitar pickup manufactured by EMG, Inc.. It is usually considered a lead pickup for use in bridge position, paired with EMG 85 as a rhythm pickup in neck position...
/85
EMG 85
The EMG 85 is a popular active humbucker guitar pickup manufactured by EMG, Inc.. It is usually installed in a guitar's neck position and often paired with the EMG 81 in the bridge position, but can be used in the bridge position for a different result....
pickup
Pickup (music)
A pickup device is a transducer that captures mechanical vibrations, usually from suitably equipped stringed instruments such as the electric guitar, electric bass guitar, Chapman Stick, or electric violin, and converts them to an electrical signal that is amplified, recorded, or broadcast.-...
set. It has a scale length of 24.75".
The LTD Vipers that are made by ESP's sister line are more affordable and of different quality in comparison to the ESP Viper. LTD Vipers are made of less expensive materials and do not possess the same specifications as ESP Vipers.
Viper
Standard features:
Set-through neck,
24.75" Scale,
Mahogany Body,
Mahogany Neck,
Ebony
Ebony
Ebony is a dense black wood, most commonly yielded by several species in the genus Diospyros, but ebony may also refer to other heavy, black woods from unrelated species. Ebony is dense enough to sink in water. Its fine texture, and very smooth finish when polished, make it valuable as an...
Fingerboard
Fingerboard
The fingerboard is a part of most stringed instruments. It is a thin, long strip of material, usually wood, that is laminated to the front of the neck of an instrument and above which the strings run...
,
42mm Bone Nut,
Thin U Neck Contour,
24 XJ Frets,
Black Nickel
Nickel
Nickel is a chemical element with the chemical symbol Ni and atomic number 28. It is a silvery-white lustrous metal with a slight golden tinge. Nickel belongs to the transition metals and is hard and ductile...
Hardware,
Gotoh Magnum Lock Tuners,
Gotoh TOM Bridge & Tailpiece,
EMG 81
EMG 81
The EMG 81 is a popular active humbucker guitar pickup manufactured by EMG, Inc.. It is usually considered a lead pickup for use in bridge position, paired with EMG 85 as a rhythm pickup in neck position...
(B) / 85 (N) Active p.u.,
Finish: BLKS
Viper-7
Set-Neck Construction,
25.5" Scale,
Mahogany Body,
Mahogany Neck,
Ebony Fingerboard,
45mm Bone Nut,
Thin U Neck Contour,
24 XJ Frets,
Black Nickel Hardware,
Gotoh Magnum Lock Tuners,
Gotoh TOM Bridge & Tailpiece,
EMG 707 (B & N) Active p.u.,
Finish: BLKS
Artists or bands who at one point used ESP Vipers
- James HetfieldJames HetfieldJames Alan Hetfield is the rhythm guitarist, co-founder, main songwriter, and lead vocalist for the American heavy metal band Metallica. Hetfield co-founded Metallica in October 1981 after answering a classified advertisement by drummer Lars Ulrich in the Los Angeles newspaper The Recycler,...
of MetallicaMetallicaMetallica is an American heavy metal band from Los Angeles, California. Formed in 1981 when James Hetfield responded to an advertisement that drummer Lars Ulrich had posted in a local newspaper. The current line-up features long-time lead guitarist Kirk Hammett and bassist Robert Trujillo ... - Pepper KeenanPepper KeenanPepper J. Keenan , is an American vocalist and guitarist, best known for his work with heavy metal bands Corrosion of Conformity and Down. He joined Corrosion of Conformity in 1989, but did not become the lead singer until the recording of Deliverance in 1994...
of DownDown (band)Down is an American heavy metal supergroup that formed in 1991 in New Orleans, Louisiana. The band's current lineup consists of vocalist Phil Anselmo, guitarist Pepper Keenan, guitarist Kirk Windstein, bassist Pat Bruders and drummer Jimmy Bower. Since their formation, Down has gone on hiatus twice...
and Corrosion of ConformityCorrosion of ConformityCorrosion of Conformity is an American heavy metal band from Raleigh, North Carolina formed in 1982. For almost the majority of its existence, the band has consisted of guitarist Woody Weatherman, bassist Mike Dean , drummer Reed Mullin and vocalist and rhythm... - Kirk WindsteinKirk WindsteinKirk Windstein is an English-American sludge metal singer and guitarist for the New Orleans bands Crowbar, Down, and Kingdom of Sorrow....
of DownDown (band)Down is an American heavy metal supergroup that formed in 1991 in New Orleans, Louisiana. The band's current lineup consists of vocalist Phil Anselmo, guitarist Pepper Keenan, guitarist Kirk Windstein, bassist Pat Bruders and drummer Jimmy Bower. Since their formation, Down has gone on hiatus twice...
and Crowbar - Woody WeathermanWoody WeathermanWoodroe "Woody" Weatherman is lead guitarist for the heavy metal band Corrosion of Conformity.Woody was born on July 29, 1965 in Raleigh, North Carolina, and now lives in Virginia....
of Corrosion of ConformityCorrosion of ConformityCorrosion of Conformity is an American heavy metal band from Raleigh, North Carolina formed in 1982. For almost the majority of its existence, the band has consisted of guitarist Woody Weatherman, bassist Mike Dean , drummer Reed Mullin and vocalist and rhythm... - Jules HodgsonJules HodgsonJules Hodgson, also credited as Joolz or J. Hogstorm, is the guitarist for KMFDM, an industrial band, and The Spittin' Cobras . He is a former member of PIG and Lodestar. In 2006, Hodgson married pin-up model Go-go Amy and divorced in 2008. Jules now resides in Seattle, Washington...
of KMFDMKMFDMKMFDM is an industrial band led by German multi-instrumentalist Sascha Konietzko, who founded the group in 1984 as a performance art project... - Max CavaleraMax CavaleraMassimiliano Antonio "Max" Cavalera is a Brazilian singer, guitarist, and songwriter. He was the lead singer and rhythm guitarist for the heavy metal band Sepultura, before forming Soulfly in the late 1990s...
of SoulflySoulflySoulfly is a heavy metal band formed in 1997 based in Phoenix, Arizona. The original lyrical content revolved around spirituality and religious themes, with later albums encompassing other themes including war, violence, aggression, hatred and anger. Soulfly is led by former Sepultura frontman Max...
and SepulturaSepulturaSepultura is a Brazilian heavy metal band from Belo Horizonte, formed in 1984. The band was a major force in the death metal, thrash metal and ultimately groove metal realms during the late 1980s and early 1990s, with their later experiments melding nu metal, hardcore punk and industrial.Sepultura... - Fallon BowmanFallon BowmanFallon Bowman is a musician from Ontario, Canada, best known for her involvement with Kittie, Pigface, Amphibious Assault and most recently, a solo career. She is of Dutch and Indonesian descent.-Kittie:...
of Amphibious Assault and KittieKittieKittie is a Canadian heavy metal band formed in London, Ontario in 1996. A quartet of women, the group rose to success in 1999 when the track "Brackish" from their debut album Spit became a hit single... - Sonny MooreFrom First to LastFrom First to Last was an American rock band based out of Los Angeles, originally hailing from Valdosta, Georgia and Tampa, Florida. The band released their first EP titled Aesthetic in 2003 with vocalist Phillip Reardon, followed by Dear Diary, My Teen Angst Has a Body Count in 2004 and Heroine in...
of From First to LastFrom First to LastFrom First to Last was an American rock band based out of Los Angeles, originally hailing from Valdosta, Georgia and Tampa, Florida. The band released their first EP titled Aesthetic in 2003 with vocalist Phillip Reardon, followed by Dear Diary, My Teen Angst Has a Body Count in 2004 and Heroine in... - Thomas ErakThomas ErakThomas Joseph Erak , is the former lead guitarist and lead vocalist from Mukilteo, Washington based progressive rock band The Fall of Troy. His new project, Just Like Vinyl, was officially announced on July 8, 2010. Thomas is currently endorsed by Gibson USA, Orange Amplification, Ernie Ball and...
of The Fall of TroyThe Fall of TroyThe Fall of Troy was an American progressive math rock trio from Mukilteo, Washington. The trio consisted of Thomas Erak , Andrew Forsman and Frank Ene... - Damon JohnsonDamon JohnsonDamon Rogers Johnson is an American born guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter, best known for his work with the hard rock band Brother Cane, and as a guitarist for Alice Cooper. He is the lead guitarist and backup vocalist for country music group Whiskey Falls. He had been the guitarist of the...
of Alice CooperAlice CooperAlice Cooper is an American rock singer, songwriter and musician whose career spans more than four decades... - Travis Miguel of AtreyuAtreyu (band)Atreyu is an American rock band from Orange County, California, formed in 1998. The band consists of vocalist/lyricist Alex Varkatzas, guitarists Dan Jacobs and Travis Miguel, bassist Marc McKnight and drummer/vocalist Brandon Saller...
- Chino MorenoChino MorenoChino Moreno is an American musician. He is best known as the lead singer and contributing guitarist of Deftones. He is also a member of the side-project bands Team Sleep and Crosses....
of the Deftones - Ahrue LusterAhrue LusterAhrue Luster is the current lead guitarist for the Latin metal band Ill Niño. He is also the former guitarist for Machine Head as well as Manmade God and a Bay Area Thrash Metal act called The Horde of Torment who were originally called "Pestilence" but had to change their name because another...
of Ill NiñoIll NiñoIll Niño is an American six-piece metal band from New Jersey founded in 1998. The band has sold over 3.3 million units worldwide; they have 5 studio albums and 10 music videos.-History:...
and formerly Machine HeadMachine Head (band)Machine Head is an American heavy metal band from Oakland, California. Formed on October 12, 1991, the group was founded by Robb Flynn and Adam Duce. There have been 4 member changes since their inception. The current lineup of the band comprises Flynn , Duce , ex-Vio-Lence guitarist Phil Demmel ,... - Kaoru of Dir En GreyDir en greyDir En Grey is a Japanese metal band formed in 1997 and currently signed to Firewall Div., a sub-division of Free-Will. As of 2011, they have recorded eight full-length records...
(Note: Actually uses ESP DKV, his new custom guitar series) - Matt DeVriesMatt DeVriesMatthew DeVries is the rhythm guitarist in the heavy metal band Chimaira. He, along with Rob Arnold and Mark Hunter writes a large number of the band's songs...
of ChimairaChimairaChimaira is an American heavy metal band from Cleveland, Ohio. Formed in 1998, the group is a notable member of the New Wave of American Heavy Metal scene. The band's name is derived from the word Chimera, a monstrous creature in Greek mythology... - Myk Russell of LoveHateHeroLoveHateHeroLoveHateHero is a post-hardcore band from Burbank, California. They are signed to Ferret Records and have released three albums, Just Breathe in May 2005, White Lies in February 2007 and America Underwater in November 2009....
- Timoteo Rosales III of I Am GhostI Am GhostI Am Ghost was an American band from Long Beach, California, conceived of and founded by Steven Juliano in 2004. They were signed to Epitaph Records from 2005 to 2010, before splitting up in July 2010.- History :...
- Tim Millar of Protest the HeroProtest the HeroProtest the Hero is a Canadian progressive metal band from Whitby, Ontario. Originally named Happy Go Lucky, the band line-up has remained the same since their formation in 1999. The band changed their name to Protest the Hero shortly before releasing their debut EP, Search for the Truth, in 2002...
- Nikolay Kiselev of Bratsk-city
- Manabu of ScrewScrew (band)Screw is a Japanese visual kei rock band signed to Indie PSC after leaving their previous label, Speed-Disk.-Members: – vocals – lead guitar – rhythm guitar – bass – drums -Albums:* Fusion of the Core * X-Rays * Duality...
- Members of Whitechapel (band)Whitechapel (band)Whitechapel is an American deathcore band from Knoxville, Tennessee. The group comprises vocalist Phil Bozeman, guitarists Ben Savage, Alex Wade, Zach Householder; bassist Gabe Crisp and drummer Ben Harclerode. Their band name is derived from a district in the built-up inner city of London, known...
- VorphVorphMichael Locher is a Swiss musician who provides vocals and plays guitar for Swiss industrial/black metal band Samael. He co-founded the band in 1987 with his brother Alexandre Locher on drums. Michael's musical influences include Slayer, Iron Maiden, Motorhead, Venom, Bathory, and early Possessed...
of S A M A E LSamael (band)Samael is a industrial black metal band formed in 1987 in Sion, Switzerland.-Biography:Although much of their music from the mid-1990s onwards has incorporated electronic sounds which would best define their genre as industrial metal, they are an early 2nd Wave black metal band and an innovator for... - Louise PostLouise PostLouise Lightner Post is the lead vocalist and guitarist for alternative rock group Veruca Salt. She is a graduate of Barnard College, holding a Bachelor of Arts degree in English.-Musical career:...
of Veruca Salt (band)Veruca Salt (band)Veruca Salt is an alternative rock band founded in 1993 in Chicago, Illinois. Since its inception, the band's line-up has included vocalist-guitarist Louise Post. Guitarist Stephen Fitzpatrick has been with the band since 1999 and drummer Kellii Scott has worked with the group on and off since 1999... - Phil XPhil XPhilip Xenidis, better known as Phil X , is a Greek-born guitarist and co-founder of the Los Angeles-based turbo pop band Powder. He also has a second band, the Drills. He is best known as the guitarist who replaced Rik Emmett in the Canadian rock band Triumph, for the Edge of Excess album and tour...
of The Drills and Powder¨ - Ville Kyrönniemi of BloodDrop
- Lindsay McdougallLindsay McDougallLindsay "The Doctor" McDougall is an Australian radio presenter for national youth network Triple J and guitarist in Australian punk rock band Frenzal Rhomb.- Frenzal Rhomb :...
of Frenzal RhombFrenzal RhombFrenzal Rhomb are an Australian punk rock band which formed in 1992 with mainstay Jason Whalley on lead vocals and rhythm guitar. In 1996, Lindsay McDougall joined the line-up on lead guitar and backing vocals. Two of the group's albums have peaked into the top 20 on the ARIA Albums Chart, A...