Epiphone PRO-1 vs Masterbilt Frontier
Reasons to Get
Epiphone PRO-1 over Masterbilt Frontier
Reasons to Get
Epiphone Masterbilt Frontier over PRO-1
Other Key Differences
Epiphone PRO-1 vs Masterbilt Frontier
Shared Features
Epiphone PRO-1 vs Masterbilt Frontier
Common Strengths
- High-Quality Nut
- Expensive Wood
Common Weaknesses
- Pickup Alter Switch/Knob
- Locking Tuners
- High-Quality Frets
- Compound Radius Fretboard
- From a High-Quality-Standards Country
- Luminescent Sidedots
- 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 Epiphone Masterbilt Frontier is probably the better product overall with its final score of 81 compared to the Epiphone PRO-1's 78 score, although not by a lot.
The Epiphone Masterbilt Frontier wins when it comes to sound, build quality. On the other hand, the Epiphone PRO-1 has the upper hand when it comes to playability, value for the money.
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 Epiphone PRO-1 is the better choice.
The Epiphone PRO-1 meets 5 out of our 8 criteria items for beginner friendliness, while the Epiphone Masterbilt Frontier meets only 4. 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
Epiphone PRO-1- Easy-to-use bridge
- Tall frets
- Narrow nut
- Short scale
- Comfortable neck
- Comfortable shape
- Comfortable fretboard
- Soft Strings
- Locking tuners
New Player Friendliness
Epiphone Masterbilt Frontier- Easy-to-use bridge
- Tall frets
- Narrow nut
- Comfortable neck
- Comfortable shape
- Comfortable fretboard
- Short scale
- Soft Strings
- Locking tuners
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.
Epiphone PRO-1 Overview
- From Epiphone's 2014 Original Acoustic series
- Made in China
- 6 strings
- 24.72"'' scale
- 12" Fretboard Radius
- Select Spruce top
- Select Mahogany back
- Select Mahogany sides
- Mahogany neck
- Granadillo fretboard
- Bridge pickup: (/)
- Granadillo bridge
- Acoustic EZ-Profile “C” Shape Set neck
- 20 Jumbo frets
- 18:1 ratio Epiphone Deluxe tuners
- Compare Specs >
Epiphone Masterbilt Frontier Overview
- From Epiphone's 2020 Masterbilt series
- Made in China
- 6 strings
- 25.5"'' scale
- 12" Fretboard Radius
- Solid Sitka Spruce top
- Solid Maple back
- Solid Maple sides
- Mahogany neck
- Indian Laurel fretboard
- Bridge pickup: Fishman Sonicore (Preamp/Active)
- Indian Laurel bridge
- Acoustic C Set neck
- 20 Medium Jumbo frets
- Gold, Keystone Buttons tuners
- Compare Specs >
Sound Quality Comparison
The most important thing that will determine the tone of an acoustic guitar is the wood. Let's take a look at the differences between both .
Woods Used in Both
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.
Spruce has a light color with tight grain patterns. It's very stiff but relatively light. It's known for producing a well-rounded tone with a broad dynamic range. Find out more about Spruce.
Woods Used in the Epiphone PRO-1
Granadillo is often used as a replacement for rosewood, but it's not widely available. It is harder and denser, so the tone is said to be more chimey than rosewood.
Woods Used in the Epiphone Masterbilt Frontier
There are many types of Laurel, but East Indian is the most common for guitar building. Its color can vary from dark to light brown with black lines. Many people find its tonality similar to Rosewood, which favors the warmer frequencies. Find out more about Laurel.
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.
Winner: Tie.
Electronics
The Epiphone Masterbilt Frontier comes with a preamp that allows you to connect it to an amp, unlike its competitor. This allows it to have more versatility and sound quality if you want to record with it or play live.
Winner:Epiphone Masterbilt Frontier.
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 Epiphone PRO-1 compares to the Epiphone Masterbilt Frontier.
Country of Origin
The manufacturing country can tell a lot about the build quality of an instrument. Both in this comparison where made in China.
China has a bad reputation when it comes to building quality. However, times have changed and now respectable brands use China's cheap labor to build good instruments for a lower price. Don't discount a guitar only because it was built in China, but also expect more quality from countries like Korea.
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 NuBone nuts. It's made by the same company that makes TUSQ nuts. It's slightly softer but hard enough to give you a brighter sound when playing open strings. It's also self-lubricating, so it's good for tuning stability.
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.
Tuners
Both come with regular tuners. The Epiphone PRO-1's are 18:1 ratio Epiphone Deluxe while the Epiphone Masterbilt Frontier's are Gold, Keystone Buttons
Winner: Tie.
Here is the list of features that were considered when choosing the winner in the Features subcategory:
Epiphone PRO-1
- Expensive Wood
- NuBone Nut
- NuBone Saddle
- Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
- No Locking Tuners
- Made in China
- No Top Brand Pickups
- No Electronics
- Laminated Top Wood
- Laminated Side Wood
- Laminated Back Wood
- No Compound Radius Fretboard
- No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- No Strap Lock
Epiphone Masterbilt Frontier
- Expensive Wood
- NuBone Nut
- Top Brand Pickups
- Electronics
- Bone Saddle
- Solid Top Wood
- Solid Side Wood
- Solid Back Wood
- Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
- No Locking Tuners
- Made in China
- 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, both have a nut width of 42.7mm (1.68'').
This is considered a narrow width for a 6-string guitar. This means that this guitar will have a narrower string separation at the nut, which will affect your fretting hand.
If you are a player with big hands, you might find it difficult to play chords without muting strings. However, this is good for players who have smaller hands, as it will allow them to reach each string more easily at the nut.
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.
The Epiphone Masterbilt Frontier has the longest scale: 25.5". The Epiphone PRO-1 is only 24.72" long. This is a 0.78'' (19.8mm) scale length difference.
This longer scale means that the strings need more tension to get in tune. This is good if you want to avoid fret buzz, which can happen when the strings are too loose and touch the frets while vibrating. This is especially important when playing in lower tunings. This will also let you reduce the gap between fretboard and strings (low action) to make them easier to press down. However, this higher tension will also make it harder to perform bends and vibratos as the strings will feel stiffer.
This also means that the frets have a longer separation between each other, so this will make it harder for people with smaller hands when playing some chord positions.
Another characteristic of a longer scale is that it makes the guitar sound 'snappier' or brighter. This is due to the extra separation between harmonics and overtones produced by the tension. This influences tone more than any other factor (except the pickups).
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.
Both the Epiphone PRO-1 and the Epiphone Masterbilt Frontier have a C-shaped neck. This is what you'll find in most modern guitars. Most people feel like the thickness of a C neck is simply the less intrusive one for playing fast, while at the same time allowing you to grab the neck easily for resting if you want to.
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 the Epiphone PRO-1 and the Epiphone Masterbilt Frontier have the same fretboard radius of 12". This is the radius used in most Gibson guitars. It gives you a good balance for playing chords without muting, but also good comfortability for playing single notes and bending.
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 .
Epiphone PRO-1:
Epiphone Masterbilt Frontier:
Fret Size
The Epiphone PRO-1 has Jumbo frets, which should be taller than the Epiphone Masterbilt Frontier's Medium Jumbo 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.
