Cort G290 FAT II vs LTD MH-1000
Reasons to Get
Cort G290 FAT II over LTD MH-1000
Reasons to Get
ESP LTD MH-1000 over Cort G290 FAT II
Other Key Differences
Cort G290 FAT II vs LTD MH-1000
Shared Features
Cort G290 FAT II vs LTD MH-1000
Common Strengths
- High-Quality Nut
- High-Quality Frets
- Compound Radius Fretboard
Common Weaknesses
- Weight Relief
- Stays in Tune (Evertune)
- From a High-Quality-Standards Country
- Strap Lock
- 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- Active/Passive Preamp
Table of Contents
Price History Comparison
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Which One is Better Overall?
After going through our comparison algorithm, the results show that the ESP LTD MH-1000 is probably the better product overall with its final score of 80 compared to the Cort G290 FAT II's 69 score, which is a significant difference.
The ESP LTD MH-1000 wins when it comes to sound, playability, build quality, value for the money. This means that it wins over the Cort G290 FAT II in every aspect.
If you got small hands, none of these instruments will make a big difference when it comes to comfortability.
Which One is Better for Beginners?
If you're looking for your first guitar to learn how to play, the Cort G290 FAT II is the better choice.
The Cort G290 FAT II meets 7 out of our 8 criteria items for beginner friendliness, while the ESP LTD MH-1000 meets only 5. This takes into account the type of frets, scale length, nut width, bridge type, fretboard radius, and neck profile to determine the easiest combination for new players.
New Player Friendliness
Cort G290 FAT II- Comfortable shape
- Easy-to-use bridge
- Locking tuners
- Comfortable fretboard
- Tall frets
- Narrow nut
- Comfortable neck
- Short scale
New Player Friendliness
ESP LTD MH-1000- Comfortable shape
- Comfortable fretboard
- Tall frets
- Narrow nut
- Comfortable neck
- Short scale
- Locking tuners
- Easy-to-use bridge
Nevertheless, when it comes to choosing an instrument, you should pick the one more compatible with your personal style. Still, below we'll try you to give you our results as objectively as it's possible to help you decide.
Cort G290 FAT II Overview
- From Cort's 2022 G series
- Made in Indonesia
- 6 strings
- 25.5"'' scale
- 12" to 15.75" Fretboard Radius
- Flamed Maple top
- Alder body
- Roasted Maple neck
- Roasted Maple fretboard
- Bridge pickup: Cort Voiced Tone VTH77 Humbucker (Humbucker/Passive)
- Neck pickup: Cort Voiced Tone VTH77 Humbucker (Humbucker/Passive)
- 1 volume and 1 tone Dome knobs
- 5-way Switch
- Cort CFA-III Tremolo bridge
- Ergo-V Bolt-On neck
- 22 Medium frets
- Cort Staggered Locking tuners
- Compare Specs >
ESP LTD MH-1000 Overview
- From ESP LTD's 2022 MH series
- Made in Indonesia
- 6 strings
- 25.5"'' scale
- 12" to 16" Fretboard Radius
- Quilted Maple top
- Mahogany body
- 3pc Maple neck
- Macassar Ebony fretboard
- Bridge pickup: Fishman Fluence Modern Ceramic (Humbucker/Active)
- Neck pickup: Fishman Fluence Modern Alnico (Humbucker/Active)
- 1 volume and 1 tone Dome knobs
- 3-way Switch
- Floyd Rose 1000SE bridge
- Extra Thin U Neck-Through neck
- 24 XL Jumbo Stainless Steel frets
- Grover tuners
- Compare Specs >
Sound Quality Comparison
The wood used in an electric guitar or bass is not as important to determine the final tone. However, some people prefer specific wood types, so we'll take a look at those first. Then, we'll take a look at the electronics to determine the versatility and sound quality of each instrument.
Woods Used in the Cort G290 FAT II
Roasted Maple is just maple without a finish. It's technically cheaper than regular maple, but it doesn't have any extra disadvantages because of this. The color is darker, and it's lighter weight and very stable even when there's a lot of humidity.
Alder is the most popular wood that Fender uses in most of their guitars nowadays. Even though they say it's because of its balanced tone with an emphasis in the upper midrange, it probably is because it isn't too expensive, and it's also pretty lightweight—more than Mahogany. Find out more about Alder.
Woods Used in the ESP LTD MH-1000
Maple is one of the most popular necks for good reasons. It is a strong wood that is relatively cheap to make and looks beautiful. The highest quality maple is the hardest that comes from North America. Find out more about Maple.
Ebony is a high-end wood, so it is not cheap. It's only used for fretboards because it's also very heavy. It does an excellent job as a durable material while looking elegant. Find out more about Ebony.
Mahogany is a fairly rare wood nowadays. It's used mostly for bodies due to its relatively lightweight. Gibson popularized it with their Les Paul guitars during their golden years, so this wood has a lot of good reputation behind it. The most expensive type comes from South America and it's still used by Gibson even today. Find out more about Mahogany.
Winner: ESP LTD MH-1000.
Pickup Configuration
Both pickup configurations are HH. Double Humbucker (HH) is the choice for people who want a fuller, more round sound with tons of mids and lows. Humbuckers also get rid of the hum noise that plague single-coil pickups. They can work out for almost any genre going from Djent to even Jazz.
Pickups Quality
The ESP LTD MH-1000 pickups from a more specialized brand than the Cort G290 FAT II. Its pickups should give you a fuller, richer sound, although it all depends on what type of music you're going to play. We recommend these pickups for Heavy Metal and similar genres.
We found the same or similar pickups to the ESP LTD MH-1000's online:
The Cort G290 FAT II's pickups are Passive while the ESP LTD MH-1000's are Active.
Passive pickups are what most guitars use. These have a normal output that works well for most genres. However, Active pickups are the preferred choice of heavy metal players because they offer extra output thanks to their 9v battery, which results in a heavier, more distorted sound. Bear in mind that achieving a completely clean tone with them won't be easy. So if you want to also use clean tones, you might want to avoid Active pickups.
Winner: ESP LTD MH-1000.
Versatility Comparison
Some instruments offer you more ways to explore your creativity than others. Below you'll find how both compare when it comes to versatility.
Switch Options
The Cort G290 FAT II gives you 5 switch options while the ESP LTD MH-1000 gives you 3. This means that the Cort G290 FAT II gives you more options to find the right pickup combination for the type of sound you want to achieve
Only the ESP LTD MH-1000 comes with some kind of pickup modification: Multi-Voicing.
Multi-Voicing means the pickups come with multiple ''voices'', which means they can change the tone and gain by a simple switch or knob. Piezo, Fishman and similar are considered multi-voicing pickups.
When evaluating versatility, we also take into consideration bridge and neck joint type, number of frets, switch options, amount of pickups and more.
Winner: ESP LTD MH-1000.
Final Sound Quality Scores
Build Quality Comparison
When it comes to build quality, we like to take into account everything used to build the instrument. This includes materials, hardware and the quality control expected depending on the country where it was built. Let's see how the Cort G290 FAT II compares to the ESP LTD MH-1000.
Country of Origin
The manufacturing country can tell a lot about the build quality of an instrument. Both in this comparison where made in Indonesia.
Indonesia is becoming the most popular country for guitar building because they can make good instruments for a low price. Some people think that they're 'the new China' when it comes to build quality. But the truth is that Indonesian guitars are more consistent, although Chinese quality has improved a lot in the last few years.
Winner: Tie
Nut Material
If you want your guitar to stay in tune and sound good, you need a well cut nut. Nut quality can be inconsistent even when comparing two copies of the same model. The best way to make sure you're nut will be well done is by getting a nut made by an expert company like TUSQ or Micarta.
The Cort G290 FAT II has a Black Tusq XL nut. TUSQ nuts are usually the highest quality you can get. Black TUSQs are made from a special slippery material that helps the strings get back to its original position (one of the keys to tune stability).
On the other hand, the ESP LTD MH-1000 comes with a Locking nut. Instead of a regular nut, this guitar has a locking system that will lock down the strings at the nut, preventing it from getting out of tune. It removes one of the disadvantages of tremolo bridges, tune stability.
Winner: Tie.
Fret Material
Most fret wire is made of nickel silver. This material eventually wears down after a lot of use and most instruments end up needing a complete fret replacement. However, some expensive models come with stainless steel frets. This is what you should aim for if you can afford it.
In this comparison, the ESP LTD MH-1000 is the only one that has stainless steel frets. These frets will basically last for the entire life of the guitar. They will never need polishing nor replacement. And not only that, but some people also notice that bending and vibratos are much easier to perform when they upgrade to stainless steel.
Winner: ESP LTD MH-1000.
Bridge
The perfect bridge for you will depend on your playstyle because they all have advantages and disadvantages. However, some bridges are more expensive—like Floyd Roses and Evertunes—and thus add more value to a guitar.
The Cort G290 FAT II's brige is a Tremolo. Tremolo bridges give you more versatility than fixed bridges. They let you perform the intense vibrato effects that would be impossible with a fixed bridge. However, since the bridge floats and there's less contact with the body, the strings lose sustain slightly faster. They can also be a bit harder to restring and set up correctly than fixed bridges.
On the other hand, the ESP LTD MH-1000's is a Floyd Rose. This is a double-locking bridge system that allows you to perform techniques like dive bombs and pinch harmonics. The locking nut allows your guitar to stay in tune even after the most intense tremolo usage. The disadvantage is that it takes more work to change the strings and set up everything correctly.
Since we need to be objective, the most expensive type of bridge will be the winner of this section. In the end, this doesn't matter if you're not going to use the bridge for its original purpose, so choose the bridge that fits your playing style better.
Winner: ESP LTD MH-1000.
Tuners
The Cort G290 FAT II has the best tuners of the two because they are locking tuners. They'll help to keep your guitar in tune because they allow you to tune it without wrapping the strings around the posts. This avoids variations in the tuning due to the strings changing position at the post after a bend. They come at the disadvantage of being slightly heavier than regular tuners. Also, it makes it a lot easier to restring.
Nevertheless, the ESP LTD MH-1000 has a locking nut, so it should have even better tune stability and doesn't need locking tuners.
Winner: Cort G290 FAT II.
Neck Joint
Contrary to popular belief, the difference in sustain and tone that some neck joints give to a guitar is simply unperceivable—if they're all well built. However, some of them do have advantages over the others.
The Cort G290 FAT II has a Bolt-On neck joint. This neck is joined to the body by 4 bolts that you can simply unscrew. This allows you to replace the neck or take it off for travel. It's the most common and cheapest way to build a guitar.
On the other hand, the ESP LTD MH-1000 comes with Neck-Through neck joint. This neck is a lot more resistant and lets builders give the neck joint a more comfortable shape for soloing at the upper frets. The disadvantage is that they're more expensive and that if you damage your neck, you can't simply replace it like with bolt-on necks.
Winner: ESP LTD MH-1000.
Here is the list of features that were considered when choosing the winner in the Features subcategory:
Cort G290 FAT II
- Locking Tuners
- Black Tusq XL Nut
- Luminescent Inlay
- Tremolo
- Compound Radius Fretboard
- Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
- Made in Indonesia
- No Expensive Woods
- No Top Brand Pickups
- No Neck-Through Build
- No Push Knob or Extra Switch Option
- No Weight Relief
- No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- No Strap Lock
ESP LTD MH-1000
- Stainless Steel Frets
- Expensive Wood
- Locking Nut
- Top Brand Pickups
- Neck-Through Build
- Multi-Voicing Pickups
- Tremolo
- Compound Radius Fretboard
- Retainer Bar
- No Locking Tuners
- Made in Indonesia
- No Weight Relief
- No Luminescent Inlay
- No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- No Strap Lock
Final Build Quality Scores
Playability Comparison
Let's now compare their playability. Bear in mind that the instrument will feel different depending on your hand size and play style. That's why you should always test before buying. But if you can't or want a second opinion on it, we can still take a look at each of the important measurements of the instrument for you. This way, we can predict how easy a guitar might be to play, or how different it will feel compared to the other.
Remember that, even though the difference might seem small, every inch counts when it comes to feeling of the instrument in your hands. Any variation can completely change how comfortable a guitar feels in your hands.
Nut Width
The nut width will affect the separation between strings at the nut. In this comparison, the Cort G290 FAT II has the wider nut with 42.1mm (1.656'') vs 42mm (1.654''). This is a 0.1mm (0.002'') difference
This means that it will be more difficult to do bar chords on the Cort G290 FAT II, especially closer to the nut. However, it's also easier to play without muting strings accidently. This favors people with big hands.
Scale Length
The scale length is one of the things that influences playability the most. This is the distance between the nut and the bridge and will affect everything from low action allowance, difficulty to perform bends, fret separation, and even tone.
In this case, both have a scale length of 25.5".
This is the scale used in most Stratocasters. It's slightly longer than the typical 24.75'' size found in Les Pauls, and it's one of the main reasons why Stratocasters have such a bright sound in general. A longer scale also means that the strings will have higher tension. This will help you get lower action without suffering fret buzz, which will also be helpful when playing in lower tunings without having to increase your string gauge.
However, this also means that there will be more separation between frets, which can make it more difficult to play. Also, bending the strings will require more strengths due to the increased tension, but remember that a tremolo guitar will offset this difficulty.
Lastly, remember that you can also affect the tension of the strings by changing your string gauge. You can use a thicker gauge for more tension and a lighter one for less tension.
Neck Profile
No single neck shape is better than others. However, most people tend to prefer a thinner necks because it doesn't get in their way when playing fast and most hand sizes can adapt to it pretty well. However, some people still prefer thicker necks for a better grip, especially if they have big hands.
In this case, both have different neck shapes:
The Cort G290 FAT II has a V type of neck. This neck shape was more common during Fender's early years. Some people like it because they use their thumb over the edge of the fretboard to press the lower strings. It's rather thicker than most modern necks, so it's not usually used for playing fast solos.
The ESP LTD MH-1000, on the other hand, has a U neck. This is also referred to as ''baseball neck'' because of its shape. It's usually thick, which is why some people with big hands like it. However, they can also be thin, similar to a C shape, but with more shoulders for a better grip.
Fretboard Radius
Most guitar fretboards are not flat; they usually have a curve or arc across their width. A curved fretboard will make it easier to perform chords without muting strings, while a flatter one will make it easier to play single notes, which is good for bending and soloing in general. The best fretboards have a compound radius that varies across the fingerboard, but they're not common since they take a lot more work to build.
Both have a compound radius. This means both offer you the best craftsmanship when it comes to fretboard design. You'll have an arc to help you play chords close to the nut, while also having a flat design at the higher frets for faster soloing and easier bends.
Hand Size Comfortability
Everyone has a different hand size, and that's why it's recommended to try a guitar before buying, even if others tell you that it's comfortable to play. However, we can know whether a guitar favors small or large hands just by knowing its exact measurements.
After taking into account the scale length, nut width, neck profile and fretboard radius, we can conclude that both in this comparison favor small hands .
Cort G290 FAT II:
ESP LTD MH-1000:
Fret Size
The ESP LTD MH-1000 has XL Jumbo frets, which should be taller than the Cort G290 FAT II's Medium frets.
Some people prefer taller frets because they result in more sustain since the strings get pressed cleanly without interference from the fretboard. However, if they're too tall—like Jumbo frets—, you might change the pitch of the strings accidentally if you press too hard because you won't be touching the fretboard with your fingers. This is also why some guitarists with a heavy grip prefer smaller frets. They like to feel the fingerboard to avoid pressing down too hard and getting out of pitch.
