OP
The 1974 Gibson Les Paul Custom had witch hats....I have a beautiful set on hand.
2016 Gibson Goldtop Dark Back Les Paul
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OP
Keep in mind the Bourne pots are 6mm x 18 spline coarse and only a few places make knobs that fit correctly.
I know where to get them.
I also use a 3/8" angle washer on Les Pauls that allows me to adjust the knob to align with the body contour. (OCD)
I cannot stand long pots and the knobs 1/4" off the body just so one side doesn't drag...
OP
OP
Roll the dice and find out...Fixed all the problems Gibson's are known for...No more Gibson parts on it except the tuners, so it's a GREAT guitar....
The only people who will miss it will be my students....
ivan H
Ambassador of Tubes & Grooves
One of the main reasons people go with the custom made replica's is the use of very old choice pieces of recycled timbers. Like timber for one of slash's came from a hundred plus year old barn door (& it was old growth to start with). Gibson just cant realistically be out searching for timbers like this. Its not that the guitars are made any differently than what the custom shop makes for artists like them. I'm really not into this Gibson bashing at all. In slash's own words, he has a huge collection of Les Paul's, his favorite guitar type & it contains a couple (couple is 2) of replica's, & that he uses the guitars Gibson supply him with live. . Why would he lie when its well known that he has used replica's. Cheers
Edit; though I know of Taylor guitars sending a timber selector to Tasmania to source timbers for two custom ordered guitars. He was working with the company Tasmanian Tonewoods who search forest for old fallen timber types that are protected & not allowed to be felled. I imagine the final cost to the artist's that ordered these custom's would not be small. Cheers
Edit; though I know of Taylor guitars sending a timber selector to Tasmania to source timbers for two custom ordered guitars. He was working with the company Tasmanian Tonewoods who search forest for old fallen timber types that are protected & not allowed to be felled. I imagine the final cost to the artist's that ordered these custom's would not be small. Cheers
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OP
It's not bashing at all. It's point a repetitive classification of faults they continue to ignore.
Even Slash said in an interview the reason he keeps the Derrig is thst nothing else comes close to its tone...
OP
Poor 'ol ESEGe.....
Might have to watch that Silverburst get painted black...
Might have to watch that Silverburst get painted black...
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OP
Wood ages nicely!
ivan H
Ambassador of Tubes & Grooves
Yes, but the timber came from a 100 plus year old barn door that was sought out specifically as a really choice piece with the qualities the luthier was after. Gibson simply cannot realistically be searching for timber in this manner, nor can they be expected to. That is what sets these replicas apart. Cheers
OP
Well, Ivan...in my community of studio musicians, I play a lot of genuine Gibson's. Some studios have rental Gibsons. They are ok. Nothing that really makes your jaw drop. Same with 59 Les Pauls. They are not magical.
Probably see more guys plsying Luke's and PRS than anything else...
Probably see more guys plsying Luke's and PRS than anything else...
OP
I agree. Gibson would be taxed heavily just to set one up correctly.
OP
Here's the thing, Ivan...some guys will tolerate anything because it says "Gibson." Same way some dudes tolerate a cheating girlfriend because she is hot.
That's cool, but its not for me.
That's cool, but its not for me.
gball
Ambassador of Boogie
Some of us don't "tolerate" anything. We choose to play Gibsons because we feel they are the best tool for the job. Honestly, at this point in my life I am lucky, and I can thankfully afford to play whatever guitar I choose...and I choose to play Gibsons (at least the vast majority of the time - I do own other makes as well).
If they don't work for you, that's cool. But please don't keep perpetuating the myths about them being inferior or the company not caring about its customers. You can't make generalizations about a company based on a handful of individual bad stpries, and in my experience there are far more people that have had exceptional experiences, both with the products and the company/customer service, than negative. For some reason it's just become fashionable to bash Gibson on the internet, on this site and many others.
Let me put it another way: I've owned a ton of Fenders in my life and I have come to the conclusion that they are junk for the money they charge. I have a lot of reasons for believing this, but at the end of the day it manifests itself in me not buying Fenders. I don't spend my time bashing the company over it, I just don't buy them and leave them to those who like them. I don't want to be part of a internet-know-it-all negative influence that might stop someone from buying the guitar that will change their life.
I'm going to weigh in just to put another point of view out there in the interest of showing different strokes/taste for different folks. I've yet to play or hear a GFS pickup I like. And, even when I was given one for free I sold it. People will pay money for GFS pickups and I won't use them if they are given to me. I like the new epiphone pro pickups, but think the stock epiphone pickups are simply loud and muddy. Yet, I know people who prefer epiphone pickups over Gibson pickups. Not me, I luvs me a good Gibby pup. And, I think epiphone guitars are way over priced and of poor quality (both build and woods). In my experience SX and Agile are better made/sounding guitars for less money. However, again, I know people who totally disagree with me. With that said I really don't think there is a right or wrong brand/priced guitar. It's what you like personally and enjoy playing, whether expensive, inexpensive, name brand, off brand, etc...
OP
Way more than a handful of stories...I am sad to say. Why do people try to make this sound like its two guitars out of 10,000???
I too am blessed to be able to play what I want...drive what I want...live where I want.
When I bought my brand new 2003 Gibson SG Standard in 2004, it buzzed and squealed so bad I could not perform with it. READ: I could not earn money with it. I returned it and bought a brand new Hamer Standard and began performing with it immediately.
No issues.
But, I wanted a Gibson. I grew up playing them and BACK THEN they could be purchased and deployed immediately.
From 2005 until 2016, I played an EMG equipped Schecter C1 Hellraiser. Never modified, it earned me a good living. That guitar has been played on more professional recordings than I can count...but I wanted a Gibson to serve me in like fashion.
In 2016, again I wanted a big Gibson tone for a recording project. I bought a 2016 Gibson SG Traditional. Same problems. In fact, if you cared enough to pay attention, I posted my 2004 email to Gibson's Nicholas Chemsak and it addressed the EXACT SAME issues I had with my 2016 Gibson SG.
So, I decided to buy a Gibson Les Paul. Started playing them. Saw high tailpieces, strings grooving the bridge, humps in the fretboard and binding, buzzing pickups scratchy pots and uneven frets.
So...with these experiences in mind, I find the same complaints hundreds of times online.
So, I figure buying a $4,799 Les Paul Custom will be a good option. Played three at three different locations....same issues I mentioned above.
So, it came to me that it would be foolish to buy a $4,799 Gibson and immediately embark on restoring it...although Gibson fans seem to accept this as normal...I do not.
So, I went to a fellow studio musician that i know, who is known for a particularly sweet sounding '59 Les Paul. I asked him how you get a good Gibson. He literally laughed and said, "Well, you spend a fortune on a relic that needs a complete rebuild, or you have a good one ghostbuilt that doesn't have all the problems associated with a 60 year old guitar."
It was then that I discovered that his legendary 59 Gibson Les Paul was a ghostbuild.
This conversation led me to Alex who built my Les Paul Custom Replica. The best part, for me, is I got a hand-built replica, with grease pencil under the pickups and a truss rod nut, but with features I couldn't get on a Gibson.
I've played Norlin-era Gibson's and I recorded with them. I grew up playing my Mom's 1979. They were good guitars, but you cannot buy that kind of quality today and I really see no reason to pay $8,000 to $15,000 for a relic that needs a total rebuild.
In talking with my colleague, he told me something interesting. Only a handful of Gibson's were good guitars. They are expensive. Rare. Highly sought after....and all Gibson's are judged by thid antiquated minority.
Charlie Daniels, Slash, Dickey Betts and several others play exact Gibson replicas. Why???
The design and tone of the Les Paul is remarkable. It is highly sought after. The tone is not necessarily a Gibson thing, but a Les Paul thing.
I couldn't buy a decent Gibson SG. My 1968 was a wreck. My 2003 and 2016 both had problems that would have required re-setting the necks to repair.
I played every new and used Les Paul I could find...then I had my replica produced...and it has everything I cannot get from a Gibson...plus I have been able to make it uniquely my own.
My colleague remarked..."its funny, you walk in with a $14,000 PRS and clients bitch about your hourly rate. Walk in with a 59 Gibson Les Paul copy and they treat you differently because they bought into the Gibson hype from the past and they really believe a 59 has some sort of mahical quality..."
I'm glad I discovered this anomaly before buying Gibson #4.
Now if...snd that's a huge if...a really nice Gibson crosses my path and it speaks to me, I would buy it. But, for now, all I care about is having the tone and getting paid to play.
We'll see what the future holds...
OP
I bought three sets of Gibson pickups. Very disappointed. But, fortunately, the Gibson Faithful will buy anything if it has Gibson stamped on it. Thankfully, I actually made a small profit on the Gibson pickups and the circuit boards.
I'm a shameless GFS pickup whore. They work. They are quiet. They are paid for in less than 1 hour of studio time...
I once used Carvin...but I think GFS has surpassed them for varsity and quiet operation.
It's not that I won't spend money...I routinely spend plenty on my projects.n..but I won't buy poop for the sake of the name.
Having said that, I'm happy that so many of you never had significant problems with you Gibson products.
May all you do be blessed...
I'm sorry for your misfortunes Robert. Truly.
I have read enough of your posts to deduce that you have had some bad experiences buying guitars that you don't like.
Please stop buying guitars that you don't like. Please stop complaining that you paid money for a guitar(or part of a guitar) that you don't like. Please learn from your mistakes. Please do let others enjoy their passion for what is, in their eyes, a perfectly good tool for expressing their joy/sorrow/whatever.
If you don't like a guitar that you did buy, please, make it so that you do like it...and feel free to share what you did to make it "yours"(please do include pictures, of course). I'm sure some of us would enjoy a happy ending.
I'm thankful that my experiences have differed dramatically from yours.
Best of luck sir.
If it's not perfect for you, and you can't see how to make it perfect for you...please don't buy it...someone else might appreciate it thoroughly.
Cheers.
I'm going back in to my corner...gonna shut up, and play one of my guitars....
I have read enough of your posts to deduce that you have had some bad experiences buying guitars that you don't like.
Please stop buying guitars that you don't like. Please stop complaining that you paid money for a guitar(or part of a guitar) that you don't like. Please learn from your mistakes. Please do let others enjoy their passion for what is, in their eyes, a perfectly good tool for expressing their joy/sorrow/whatever.
If you don't like a guitar that you did buy, please, make it so that you do like it...and feel free to share what you did to make it "yours"(please do include pictures, of course). I'm sure some of us would enjoy a happy ending.
I'm thankful that my experiences have differed dramatically from yours.
Best of luck sir.
If it's not perfect for you, and you can't see how to make it perfect for you...please don't buy it...someone else might appreciate it thoroughly.
Cheers.
I'm going back in to my corner...gonna shut up, and play one of my guitars....