Intresting interview from the CEO of Gibson
http://www.usatoday.com/money/companies/management/2006-02-20-forum-gibson_x.htm
Intresting..
Did the guy walk in and jack up prices before fixing the quality issues...?
Also shows that todays gibsons are not made any different than other high end guitar (like Carvin), yet they demand rediculous prices. Hand made my
.
Sure they make a great guitar. But really, all your paying for is this guys EGO....
Intresting..
Did the guy walk in and jack up prices before fixing the quality issues...?
Also shows that todays gibsons are not made any different than other high end guitar (like Carvin), yet they demand rediculous prices. Hand made my
.
Sure they make a great guitar. But really, all your paying for is this guys EGO....
Comments
This guy took over from the NORLIN folks who just about ran the company into the ground..
Any Gibson from the 70's the late 80's was made by these price gougers. Quality was unheard of between about 70 to about 85. And vintage guitar prices from this era for Gibsons suffer as well.
If you seen the purple Norlin label inside a hollowbody beware.
Henry Juszkiewicz is one of the true heros of the guitar industry. He bought the Gibson Guitar company, which was on the throes of bankruptcy, and turned the company around with one standard...
QUALITY....
IMHO they make the best production line guitars on the planet. And their custom shop is pretty damn good as well. You'd have to go to Benedetto or someone of that caliber to beat their top end arch top models..
I recently purchased one of their low end models (The Blueshawk).. Street Price $849.. And the P90's kick ass. Plays like a dream as well. Have played some of their other low end models (Under a Grand) Les Paul Special, Les Paul Studio and they are kick ass as well.
Not to mention their higher end models.
I personally own an ES175 and a Les Paul. The Paul is Pre-Norlin (68 model) and the ES175 is post Norlin 2004.. Both axes are ungodly in the playability and their tone...
I'd put the any current Gibson model against anything out there with their whole product line and I would guarantee you Gibson will blow it away..
While Fender sits around and tries to decide Mexico?, Japan?, Korea?, USA? and dilutes their name and their product. Other manufacturers have given it up and just decided to let the Seoul Man make their axes..
If you want a Korean made Gibson, you can get an EPI, but nowhere near the tone or playability of a made in the USA Gibson Guitar.. (I know, I own an EPI Joe Pass model.)
This is one of those threads where I'm sure everyone is going to agree to disagree but from my own personal experience, From 85 to the present Gibson is the best and anything from 70 on back is truly a vintage piece..
Signed:
A 40 year Gibson player....
Hi, I beg to differ Tal, I bought my kid an Epi LP Custom and done a side by side comparison between the Epi and my mates Gibson LP Custom (bought about a year ago) clean, with a bit of crunch through a tube amp and via some modelling. The upshot of it all was that yes although there were differences in the tone and the Gibson did had a very slight, yes you read it correctly, very slight edge over the epi on finish, the differences were so minimal that we all thought it was insane!!! The very slight difference in tone may be due to the Gibsons ebony fretboard and slight weight difference. However, when heard side by side I think anyone would go for the £400 Epi over the £2k Gibson given such slight differences. Who knows, maybe we were just extremely lucky when we bought my kids epi and got one of those ones where everything has come together at just the right time producing a great guitar but these are all facts. The funniest thing was at the end end though when we looked at the Epi in astonishment and someone said \"Aye, but it's still not a Gibson\". Oh how we all laughed. Also, the other excellent thing is that I could replace the parts in the Epi for Gibson parts and it would still work out a heck of a lot cheaper than buying a \"real one\". But then, I supose in the factories they more or less use the same tools/machines/techniques etc to produce these guitars. I would imagine that the only difference is the wage they pay their staff as an employee in Korea on a pittance of a wage may not put the same amount of effort or concentration into their work as say an employee in the Gibson factory! I just find it incredible that they (Gibson) can charge those prices especially now that I've heard just how good an Epi can sound and feel.
Just my shillings worth mate.
TY
shando
Boy that's some quality.
I own a Fender Korean made Dobro as well. Nice sound but nothing like a Gibson Hound Dog. The Fender looks nice at first glance but it you really look at the material it constructed of it's appears to be some sort of particle board with a foto finiish put on it.
Like I said, nice sounding but it sure aint no Gibson..
A lot of the lower end stuff from the Seoul man has fretboards made of Micarta (plastic) Gorgeous tone.. NOT...
You get what you pay for and you're getting quality with Gibson. If you're talking high end archtops, like I said before, only Bennedetto and a few other custom luthiers surpass them...
Tone is the biggest issue I see. If this debate is about dif vs cost what price do you place on tone. If you listen to Tals blueshawk at $850 for a
true Gibson why would you not spend a couple hundred dollars more than
the cost of an EPI. Now back to sight
Ahhhh i'm done now
Dons :shock:
Recordings have some hiss but the different tones you can get out of this guitar for $849 is awesome..
http://www.gibson.com/products/gibson/Hawk/BluesHawk/BluesSounds.html
I also have two EPI Pauls, they are nice but not even close.
Many companies have been formed and succeeded because of the KRAP Gibson has been building for decades. Why buy a gibson? You're way better off going with Heritage, PRS, HamerUSA, DeanUSA, McInturf, Baker, Huber and all the others. You don't start getting the good stuff at Gibson until your at budget busting levels.
Fender is another story
As far as workmanship, the Gibson wins HANDS DOWN!!! There really is NO comparison at all.
Man there a lot of nice Metric V-twins out there, and with the right set of pipes they sound similar to the American V-twin, and the price tag comes in about half of the American V-twin.
Some things I have discovered is there seems to be valve clatter and gear whine, and the home driveway oil change can be difficult with the Yamaha. Suzuki seems to want to fall off their kick stands. So far the Kawasaki Vulcan Nomad seems to be ok. I kind of like the idea of a water cooled engine, especially here in Texas, where it had been know to heat up in July and August. Although that means a water pump could fail.
The American company in Wisconsin has done very much to improve the quality of their machines. The new engines don't leak oil like screen doors, engines are mounted with rubber motor mounts to reduce vibration, some other engines seem to have a counter balance to reduce vibration. They have started going to six speed gear boxes to reduce high gear RPM's. I really like the looks of a Heritage Soft Tail, but an $18,000
price tag is hard to swallow.
So there we have it Gibson vs the others and Harley Davidson vs the others.
Good hearing from you...
I know what you mean..
All my buds are driving those 20K Harleys..
I went the opposite direction and just decided to but about 20K worth of guitars...
Safer and they tend to appreciate...
Our kids are growing up, one is now facing the prospect of graduating high school next year, reality check! The other is starting high school. So I thought mother and I should have another bike. It's not a mid-life crisis, I went through that with a 93 Mustang GT, 5 speed, headers, off road h-pipe and, 3.63 rear end. It was fun.
Tal, I fell in love with my Strat again last night. I have kept it at church for a long time, but brought it home last Sunay. Monday night I plugged in to my 1980 Peavey Classic, 50 watt dual speaker amp, just played all by myself for three hours. From 9 PM til midnight. It's just amazing how time seems to stop when something like that happens.
I played stuff I had not thought of in a long time. Wheels, Never on Sunday, Alley Cat, Rose of San Antone, some old Johnny Cash tunes, songs I remember hearing on mom and dad's stereo when I was just a kid. Geesh, Tal, sorry for rambling, it's the morning coffee.
Well take care, as always, I look forward to your songs.
All those old tunes you mention bring back a lot of memories...
That Peavey Classic rocks...
I've got the predecessor called the Peavey Vintage, with 120 watts and 6 10's..
The classics are identical and are just kick but amps...
I hear you 0DB...
After my 25 year lay off, which ended when I got the bug last year, I decided I had always wanted a nice archtop..
Had a Howard Roberts in the early 70's and it was just so sweet and I wanted another archtop..
Went out and bought and EPI Joe Pass..Epi's version of a Gibson L5.. Nice axe.... Played it a couple of months and could never really replicat that tone or ease of play I remember from the Howard Roberts..
Solution:
Went out and bought myself a Gibson ES175. Love it.... No comparison..
I have since given the Joe Pass to my 13 year old, but it mostly just sits and collects dust because I can't get him off of my 68 LP Gold Top. Jazz is the furthest thing from his mind. AC/DC, Iorn Maiden, etc...
But he's having fun..
Meantime that Joe Pass just sits in the case...
As for the motorcycle. Spend the extra dough and get the HD. The imports can sound pretty good but nothing sounds like an HD. I have a 05 softail classic and don't regret spending the extra cash. Rides great too.
Schaf
Right now we are in the research stage, but I am beginning to look at parts availabilty. I plan on keeping the bike at least 10 years, and I like to do my own maintenance as much as possible. So having immediate parts availability is a big consideration.
Here is my list of wants
1. V-twin big enough carry two people easily.
2. Classic look
3. Touring set-up with comfortable seats, floorboards all around, decent sound system. Plenty of storage.
4. Tubless tires
5. Quick access to repair parts
Beginning to look like a HD Classic or Ultra Classic
When I bought mine, I was looking at the Road King. I liked the way it looked but when I road it I wasn't comfortable on the bike. Even the custom, which has been lowered 2 inches, I wasn't able to touch the ground easily. I have a 30\" inseam. I was actually leaving the dealership and I saw the bike I bought. When I walked by I said to my girlfriend \"that looks pretty cool\". A salesman heard me say that and said \"want to ride it\". Well, that was my first mistake. My second mistake was letting my girlfriend get on it. I got on it and rode it. We both fell in love with it and had to buy it. The Heritage Softail Classic sits lower than the Road King and to me is much better balanced. It is very easy to ride and for a big bike, it doesn't feel that big. It has a removable wind shield and soft bags. I thought that I would actually take the windshield off but the only time I take it off is to clean it. Getting the wind from hitting you directly in the face makes it more comfortable and you don't get fatigued nearly as fast from hanging on. They actually make a sound system for the RK and softail but it looks kind of funny the way it is mounted on the handlebars. The classsic or ultraclassic has a much better sound system.
Later,
Schaf
Hello! There are other guitar luthiers out there that will match or surpass the tone, playability and quality of Gibson.
As for HD.... I've ridden many. Let me repeat... ridden. Gibson Les Pauls are beautiful guitars. Harley Davidson's are nice looking, nice sounding bikes. That's it! That's all!
Of course you feel real cool sitting on a HD but don't expect anything more. If you want to \"DRIVE\" a motorcycle don't get a Harley. If you want to feel cool and go for a nice short, stressful ride you are getting the right machine. BUT... if you want to go down a nice winding stretch of road scraping the footpegs on every turn as fast as you can to see how much adrenilyn your body can handle don't get it. And as far as touring for long distances... forget it. I don't care how much rubber they put between the engine and the frame. Yes.. they are much better than they were.
I know of a guitar company in Canada that learned to build guitars by fulfilling contracts building necks and bodies for huge guitar companies such as Gibson, Fender etc. to be totally honest I would like to spend a Zillion dollars on a vintage Les Paul or, if you say they're that good now, a newer model but I must keep things in perspective. What am I getting it for? To look kool or to play? I'd much rather take the same amount of cash and buy a couple of Robert Godin-made guitars.
Having said all that it comes down to personal choice doesn't it? I love Harley Davidson motorcycles. They are so cool! But I ain't buying one. I know what I like to do with a bike and it can't be done on one of those. Of course, getting older myself, it might be a good choice so I don't hurt myself.
Come on guys! This is a guitar effects forum. And I've heard a lot of the music prduced by a lot of you guys. After you get finished adding the effects to hide the sloppy playing it ain't gonna matter what guitar you play.
JUST KIDDING!!
Give me a crotch rocket and a Godin Exit 22 with the GNX 3000 and let's go \"TEAR IT UP\"!!
I'll put that guitar up against any Les Paul, any Fender, any Carvin any day, any time and for $400 you ain't gonna touch it! I've heard some pretty expensive guitars that don't sound that great to me. But you might like it. My Pastor loves his guitar. I think it sucks. He also loves his Ovation. I think there are better choices out there. Sound-wise.
Personal preferrence. I tried a lot of guitars. I even tried every Godin electric guitar made and I still chose that one. Even the ones 3x the money didn't have the sound I was looking for.
Im sure some of my comments are going to ruffle some feathers but it's all done in love, brother. Some people don't know there are other choices out there.
Lastly... Comparing a Ephi to a vintage LP just ain't fair.
Later,
Mum