Cort KX507 Multi Scale vs LTD SC-20
Reasons to Get
Cort KX507 Multi Scale over LTD SC-20
Reasons to Get
ESP LTD SC-20 over Cort KX507 Multi Scale
Other Key Differences
Cort KX507 Multi Scale vs LTD SC-20
Shared Features
Cort KX507 Multi Scale vs LTD SC-20
Common Strengths
- Locking Tuners
- Top Pickup Brand
- Expensive Wood
Common Weaknesses
- Weight Relief
- Stays in Tune (Evertune)
- High-Quality Nut
- High-Quality Frets
- Compound Radius Fretboard
- 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 SC-20 is probably the better product overall with its final score of 74 compared to the Cort KX507 Multi Scale's 72 score, although not by a lot.
The ESP LTD SC-20 wins when it comes to playability, build quality. On the other hand, the Cort KX507 Multi Scale has the upper hand when it comes to sound, value for the money.
If you got small hands, you'll probably feel that the Cort KX507 Multi Scale is easier to play.
Which One is Better for Beginners?
Both meet 6 out of our 8 criteria items for beginner friendliness. 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. If you're looking for your first guitar to learn how to play, you can't go wrong with either of them.
New Player Friendliness
Cort KX507 Multi Scale- Comfortable shape
- Easy-to-use bridge
- Locking tuners
- Tall frets
- Narrow nut
- Comfortable neck
- Comfortable fretboard
- Short scale
New Player Friendliness
ESP LTD SC-20- Comfortable shape
- Easy-to-use bridge
- Locking tuners
- Tall frets
- Narrow nut
- Comfortable neck
- Comfortable fretboard
- Short scale
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 KX507 Multi Scale Overview
- From Cort's 2021 KX series
- Made in Indonesia
- 7 strings
- 27" to 25.5"'' scale
- 15.75" Fretboard Radius
- Poplar Burl top
- Mahogany body
- 5pcs Maple & Purple Heart neck
- Macassar Ebony fretboard
- Bridge pickup: Fishman Fluence Modern (Humbucker/Active)
- Neck pickup: Fishman Fluence Modern (Humbucker/Active)
- 1 volume and 1 tone Dome knobs
- 3-way Switch
- Individual w/ String Thru Body bridge
- D Bolt-On neck
- 24 Medium frets
- Cort Staggered Locking tuners
- Compare Specs >
ESP LTD SC-20 Overview
- From ESP LTD's 2021 Signature series
- Stephen Carpenter Signature
- Made in Indonesia
- 6 strings
- 25.5"'' scale
- 13.78" Fretboard Radius
- Alder body
- 3pc Maple neck
- Macassar Ebony fretboard
- Bridge pickup: Seymour Duncan JB SH-4 (Humbucker/Passive)
- Middle pickup: ESP Designed LH-150N (Humbucker/Passive)
- Neck pickup: ESP Designed LS-120 (Single Coil/Passive)
- 1 volume and 1 tone Dome knobs
- 5-way Switch
- Tonepros Locking TOM w/ String Thru bridge
- Thin U Neck-Through neck
- 24 XL Jumbo frets
- LTD Locking tuners
- Weight between 7.45lbs (3.4kgs) and 7.75lbs (3.5kgs)
- 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 Both
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.
Woods Used in the Cort KX507 Multi Scale
Purpleheart (also known as Amaranth) is a hard, dense wood with a brilliant tone. As its name suggests, the purple color makes this wood look exotic.
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.
Woods Used in the ESP LTD SC-20
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.
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.
Winner: Cort KX507 Multi Scale.
Pickup Configuration
The Cort KX507 Multi Scale has an HH configuration while the ESP LTD SC-20 has HHS pickups.
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.
On the other hand, HHS is a rare pickup combination that will give you the full power of humbucking pickups for playing rhythm, but with the cleanliness and crispiness of single coils on the neck position. Moreover, the middle H combined with the neck S gives a truly round sound. The disadvantage of a middle humbucking pickup is that it can get in the way of your picking if it's set too high.
Pickups Quality
Both come with very good pickups from at least one of the specialized brands in the market. With pickups like these, you probably won't need an upgrade anytime soon.
You can purchase similar pickups to the Cort KX507 Multi Scale's and use them on any guitar:
We found the same or similar pickups to the ESP LTD SC-20's online:
The Cort KX507 Multi Scale's pickups are Active while the ESP LTD SC-20's are Passive.
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: Tie.
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 ESP LTD SC-20 gives you 5 switch options while the Cort KX507 Multi Scale gives you 3. This means that the ESP LTD SC-20 gives you more options to find the right pickup combination for the type of sound you want to achieve
Only the Cort KX507 Multi Scale comes with some kind of pickup modification: Coil Split, Multi-Voicing.
Coil Split lets you disconnect one of the pickup coils. When used with humbuckers, it turns them into single-coil with lower output and cleaner tone.
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: Cort KX507 Multi Scale.
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 KX507 Multi Scale compares to the ESP LTD SC-20.
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.
In this case, both have Plastic nuts. This is a low-quality nut that you might want to consider upgrading soon. Bone and TUSQ nuts are the best for guitars with a fixed or simple tremolo bridge.
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.
Unfortunately, none of them come with stainless steel frets.
Winner: Tie.
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.
Both come with a similar bridge: Fixed. It's a simple bridge that is very beginner-friendly since it doesn't require any set-up. You can swap strings easily. It might also give more sustain since it doesn't have complex moving parts that make the strings lose vibration. However, it doesn't have the same versatility as a tremolo bridge.
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: Tie.
Tuners
They both have 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.
Winner: Tie.
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 KX507 Multi Scale 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 SC-20 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 SC-20.
Here is the list of features that were considered when choosing the winner in the Features subcategory:
Cort KX507 Multi Scale
- Locking Tuners
- Expensive Wood
- Top Brand Pickups
- Coil Split, Multi-Voicing Pickups
- Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
- Made in Indonesia
- No High-Quality Nut
- No Neck-Through Build
- No Weight Relief
- No Luminescent Inlay
- No Tremolo
- No Compound Radius Fretboard
- No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- No Strap Lock
ESP LTD SC-20
- Locking Tuners
- Expensive Wood
- Top Brand Pickups
- Neck-Through Build
- Luminescent Inlay
- Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
- Made in Indonesia
- No High-Quality Nut
- No Push Knob or Extra Switch Option
- No Weight Relief
- No Tremolo
- No Compound Radius Fretboard
- 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 KX507 Multi Scale has the wider nut with 47.4mm (1.866'') vs 42mm (1.654''). This is a 5.4mm (0.212'') difference
This means that it will be more difficult to do bar chords on the Cort KX507 Multi Scale, 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, the Cort KX507 Multi Scale features a multi-scale of 27" to 25.5" while the ESP LTD SC-20 has a regular scale of 25.5".
A multi-scale fingerboard incorporates two scale lengths at the same time. This is present in some instruments with long scale to give a different tension to the lower strings than the higher strings. The thickest strings need more tension to avoid fret buzz (especially when tuned low), so the scale is longer for these strings, while the thinnest strings will need less tension (because they have a lower gauge), so they have a shorter scale to reduce stiffness for bends.
It can feel awkward if you've never played a multi-scale because the frets will have more separation for the higher strings, but a lot of people love their versatility.
On the other hand, the ESP LTD SC-20's 25.5" regular scale means it has a fixed scale for all the strings.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 KX507 Multi Scale has a D type of neck. This is a thin and flat neck that is made for playing fast. If you prefer a neck that doesn't get in your way when soloing, this is the shape you should use. Guitarists that prefer to have a bit more grip won't like this type of neck.
The ESP LTD SC-20, 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.
In this case, the ESP LTD SC-20's fingerboard radius is smaller, which means it's more curved than the Cort KX507 Multi Scale's. This extra arc will make playing chords easier in this model. You won't be as likely to mute the strings, especially if you have big hands. However, playing single notes and bending will be easier on the Cort KX507 Multi Scale.
Still, both tend to favor soloing over chords, so if you're looking for a guitar for playing rhythm, you might want something else with a radius closer to a Stratocaster's 9.5''.
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.
And after taking into account the scale length, nut width, neck profile and fretboard radius, we can conclude that the ESP LTD SC-20 favors large hands more than the Cort KX507 Multi Scale. But it's still more comfortable for people with small hands, as you can see in the score meter below.
Cort KX507 Multi Scale:
ESP LTD SC-20:
Fret Size
The ESP LTD SC-20 has XL Jumbo frets, which should be taller than the Cort KX507 Multi Scale'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.
