{"product_id":"1981-epiphone-riviera-vintage-guitar-antique-sunburst-w-case-japan-matsumoku","title":"1981 Epiphone Riviera Vintage Guitar Antique Sunburst w\/ Case, Japan Matsumoku","description":"Up for sale, a 1981 Epiphone Riviera in exceptional condition and in perfect working order. The first iteration of the Riviera to boast full-size humbuckers, this vintage semi-hollowbody instrument was crafted in Japan, when Gibson\/Epiphone first shifted their USA production outside the States and awarded the contract to Aria. Made at the Matsumoku factory, these \"blue label\" Epis have a cult following for their excellent build quality and expressive tonal range. Finished in an Antique Sunburst gloss with chrome hardware, this Riviera is visually stunning with a tone to match, offering a range of sweet, detailed humbucker sounds. The bridge pickup has a touch of bite and growl, not overly aggressive yet present, with good midrange character. The neck pickup is inherently fuller, capturing the airy quality of the hollow body wings and offering a singing sound that's plenty meaty and a great choice for overdriven lead work. Weighing 8lbs 8oz, this Riviera has been professionally setup here at Mike \u0026amp; Mike's Guitar Bar with fresh 10-46 strings, low action, and accurate intonation.The three-piece maple neck has a chunky ‘50s-style C profile carve with ample shoulder, measuring a hearty .875\" deep at the 1st fret and .970\" at the 12th. The bound rosewood fretboard is inlaid with pearloid split parallelograms and features the original frets with fret-edge binding. The vintage-spec fretwire has its full factory height, showing only light wear beneath the plain strings on frets 1-10. The truss rod is responsive, the neck is straight, and the guitar plays easily in every register. The scale length is 24 3\/4\", and the nut measures a full 1 11\/16\", hand-carved from bone for optimal clarity and sustain and representing a reversion to Epiphone's traditional wider nut, a feature favored by a majority of players. The headstock features an upgraded set of vintage nickel-plated Grover Rotomatic tuning machines.The electronics function as intended, and the original humbucker pair features Epiphone-embossed baseplates with a three-way pickup selector toggle and individual Volume and Tone knobs for each pickup, capped with black witch hat knobs. The stock Nashville-style bridge is paired with a Frequensator tailpiece, and the original single-ply black pickguard with small pearloid \"E\" epsilon is intact. Visible through the F hole, the original blue Epiphone label is present too. The gloss Antique Sunburst gloss finish highlights a light speckling of birdseye figuring in the maple on the back, and cosmetic wear is limited to pick wear across the guard, just a few light finish scuffs (mostly central to the back), and a couple minor ancillary nicks on the body as a whole. The neck profile gloss is extremely smooth and clean.The original black tolex hardshell case with gold interior is included.","brand":"Epiphone","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":40131927965882,"sku":"117020","price":1999.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0550\/4437\/4714\/products\/medium_bdff7e37-40dc-4a00-b529-4c4553d2b406.jpg?v=1751517476","url":"https:\/\/mmguitarbar.com\/products\/1981-epiphone-riviera-vintage-guitar-antique-sunburst-w-case-japan-matsumoku","provider":"Mike \u0026 Mike's Guitar Bar","version":"1.0","type":"link"}