Epiphone is one of the widely known guitar manufacturers. Originally an independent brand, Epiphone was bought by Gibson Guitar in 1957. As opposed to a brand such as Fender, whose guitars are either made in America or Mexico, Epiphone's guitars can come from a number of different factories in a variety of countries. For this reason, it is not as easy to know where each guitar comes from or when it was made. Epiphone stamps each guitar with a serial number, however, which when deciphered can tell a guitarist all he needs to know about the guitar.

1. T he easiest way to find the year of manufacture of a particular Gibson guitar is to reference the instrument’s serial number of factory order number. In the 1970s, Gibson standardized the serial number system that is still in use today. The typically eight-digit serial numbers on Gibson guitars are stamped on the backside of the headstock.
2. This is a 1962 Epiphone Coronet. Gibson-made Serial Number, 1961 to 1969, all instruments (non 'A' series). Beginning in 1961, Epiphone serial numbers follow Gibson's serial number series. All models, stamped in back top of peghead. No 'MADE IN USA' stamp below serial number! Note many serial numbers are duplicated from 1963-1969.
3. Epiphone stamps a serial number on each guitar, after decoding it can tell you where and when it was built. Where to find the serial number Locate the serial number on the back of the guitar head. With Semi-Hollow models on the label inside the top f-hole and with acoustic guitars on.
4. The Epiphone serial number decoder currently supports 12 serial number formats from 25 factories. Vintage numbers from 1932 to 1970 are supported. Serial numbers from 70' and 80's era Epiphone guitars made in Japan are not supported.

Locate the serial number on the back of the guitar's headstock (the top of the neck where the strings are attached). The serial number will generally be nine to 10 digits long, with the first being a letter.

A Japanese-made Epiphone can also have no letter, in which case the serial number would just start with numbers. If the guitar was made in Indonesia, it will have a 'SI,' which stands for Samick's Indoesian factory. Analyze the first two numbers in the serial. These two numbers represent the year the guitar was made. To read the serial numbers on Epiphone guitars, you must follow and understand the 'YDDDYRRR' pattern that they use. In these eight-digit numbers, 'Y' represents the production year, 'D' represents the day of the year, and 'R' represents the factory ranking or plant designation number.

Identify the first letter in the serial number. This letter represents in which country the guitar comes from, as well as the company who manufactured it. If the guitar was made in Korea, it will either have an 'I,' which stands for Saein; a 'U,' which stands for Unsung; an 'S,' which stands for Samick; or a 'P,' which stands for Peerless.

If the guitar was made in China, it will be denoted with a 'DW,' which stands for DaeWon; an 'EA' or 'EE,' which stand for Gibson's Qingdao factory; an 'MC,' which stands for Muse; a 'SJ' for SaeJung; a 'Z,' which represents Zaozhuang Saehan; or a 'BW,' which just stands for China itself.

If the guitar was made in Japan, the letters printed to represent it are either a 'F' for FujiGen or a 'J' or 'T,' which stand for Terada. A Japanese-made Epiphone can also have no letter, in which case the serial number would just start with numbers.

Epiphone Serial Numbers

If the guitar was made in Indonesia, it will have a 'SI,' which stands for Samick's Indoesian factory.

Epiphone Serial Numbers Search By Year

Analyze the first two numbers in the serial. These two numbers represent the year the guitar was made. Simply, if the first two numbers are '08,' the guitar was made in the year 2008. Similarly, the next two numbers in the serial represent the month in which the guitar was made. Windows 64 bit download. If these two numbers are '05,' they denote that the guitar was made in the month of May.

Locate the last four or five numbers in the code. These numbers represent the ranking of that guitar in the production process. If the serial number were to end with the digits '5473,' it means the guitar was the 5,473rd guitar of that model manufactured.

Tip

Putting all of the information together, an example of a Epiphone serial number could be F0508384. Breaking it down, this serial number would mean the guitar was made in FujiGen, Japan in August of 2005, and it was the 384th guitar made in that model.