2015 Gibsons: Some Thoughts

[DrumBob]

I had a chance to sit and actually play acoustically, five or six 2015 Gibsons today. The wide, flat neck profile felt weird at first, but it was something I could probably adjust to. It felt pretty good actually, on one of the SGs I played, but this neck profile is not something I could play all night.

The G-Force tuning system is still something I am lukewarm about. Of all the guitars I played, the system worked flawlessly on all but two. On both of those guitars, the high E strings refused to tune automatically, but one of them finally did after a lot of attempts. On the other, it never tuned, and I was unable to tune the string manually, although I should have been able to, according to Gibson's propaganda.

It should be mentioned that I noticed some really poor workmanship on the fretboard of an SG. There was a pretty sizeable gouge at the end of the neck by the pickup. Not good at all. The brass nut seemed to function well, although I should mention that none of the guitars I played stayed in tune after heavy strumming and string bending. They all had to be retuned almost immediately.

According to what I was told, not one of these 2015 models has sold yet, so they are in the process of bringing in other more eclectic brands instead. That works for me.

So, I feel perhaps a bit better about new Gibson guitars, but still not enough to drop coin on one.

 

[Uncle Daddy]

I've not owned a Gibson, but I'd never drop that amount of cash on something that doesn't work right. In fact, I'm fast moving away from high end gear altogether, and right now I'm having a lot of fun making cheap guitars play well.

 

[thunder58]

Aggghhh....this is what I missed today , and what did Phil have to say need I ask ????

 

[birdofprey]

The upgrades they made to the Thunderbird are nice, but I don't know that they justify the $600-$700 price increase! Yeesh!

 

[Synchro]

That G-Force tuning system is pretty much the last nail in the coffin for my relationship to Gibson. The last thing I want is some flaky, overly-complex tuning system on my guitar. I've been tempted to buy a Les Paul Special on occasion, but I assure you I will never own a guitar with an auto-tune system.

 

[DrumBob]

Aggghhh....this is what I missed today , and what did Phil have to say need I ask ????

The man was very quiet today. Business was crazy yesterday, but slow today. I got into a conversation with a metal player who loves the G-Force tuning system. You didn't miss much.

 

[nickurso]

I was a gibson guy for years but I'll never buy another one again

 

[somebodyelseuk]

Gibson needs to sack their marketing and R&D departments.

I'd be willing to bet that, like Fender, Gretsch, Rickenbacker and the rest of the historical brands, their best selling models are the ones closest to their original designs... and with the obvious exception of Rickenbacker, I'd be willing to bet their 'offshore' budget end repros of them are keeping their brands affloat.

 

[somebodyelseuk]

That G-Force tuning system is pretty much the last nail in the coffin for my relationship to Gibson. The last thing I want is some flaky, overly-complex tuning system on my guitar. I've been tempted to buy a Les Paul Special on occasion, but I assure you I will never own a guitar with an auto-tune system.

Amen to that.

 

[houndman55]

It's like Gibson's taking 90 % of their history and legacy and just dumping it in the trash and coming up with something completely ridiculos. The brass nut makes no sense at all, how are you suppose so able file the nut if it's made out of metal? I also feel lukewarm about that G-Force garbage.

 

[musicman100]

I had a chance to sit and actually play acoustically, five or six 2015 Gibsons today. The wide, flat neck profile felt weird at first, but it was something I could probably adjust to. It felt pretty good actually, on one of the SGs I played, but this neck profile is not something I could play all night. The G-Force tuning system is still something I am lukewarm about. Of all the guitars I played, the system worked flawlessly on all but two. On both of those guitars, the high E strings refused to tune automatically, but one of them finally did after a lot of attempts. On the other, it never tuned, and I was unable to tune the string manually, although I should have been able to, according to Gibson's propaganda. It should be mentioned that I noticed some really poor workmanship on the fretboard of an SG. There was a pretty sizeable gouge at the end of the neck by the pickup. Not good at all. The brass nut seemed to function well, although I should mention that none of the guitars I played stayed in tune after heavy strumming and string bending. They all had to be retuned almost immediately. According to what I was told, not one of these 2015 models has sold yet, so they are in the process of bringing in other more eclectic brands instead. That works for me. So, I feel perhaps a bit better about new Gibson guitars, but still not enough to drop coin on one.

I own 4
Gibson country gent 1990
Chet Atkins cec 1991
Chet Atkins sst 1991
Gibson gk55 1978
I do love them all

 

[Martin82]

I love the three Gibsons I own - es335, es339 and a Les Paul Tribute (although i do have the 339 for trade here). None of these have the Gforce tuners. I can't see the need for that bit of silly technology. How hard is it to tune a guitar?

 

[jim dandy]

I've had more than my fair share of Gibsons through the years, but have moved away from them over the last decade. None of these new changes make me want to buy a new one.

 

[Admiral Ballsy]

The brass nut makes no sense at all, how are you suppose so able file the nut if it's made out of metal?

It's a zero fret/nut combo. You would never need to file it (although obviously brass can be filed - brass nuts are not uncommon, even on Gretsches).

I think it's a neat idea, possibly not terribly well-executed (I've not seen one in person).

I don't think I want an auto-tuning guitar either, although I suppose I'm open to being convinced. But I give Gibson credit for trying new things.

 

[englishman]

I don't think I want an auto-tuning guitar either, although I suppose I'm open to being convinced. But I give Gibson credit for trying new things.

It's one thing to offer new inventions and innovations, it's another to make it mandatory on every instrument.

 

[TC6119]

To us old foggies these new "improvements" must be kinda like the Flying V or Explorer back in '50s, or the Firebird in the '60s.
You never know where this stuff is going to go.
Not the first time Gibson raised some eyebrows, thats for sure.
To a kid coming up now, raised on computers, smartphones, iPads, Facebook and Google etc, it may look different.
I'm with you guys on the automatic tuners etc, but how does this stuff look to the new breed of techno-savy kids coming up nowdays?
If I were 10 yrs old again looking at this stuff it might be the coolest Christmas present ever

 

[DrumBob]

According to a sales guy at Sam Ash, guitarists looking for a Gibson who have no previous history with the brand, think the G-Force tuning, brass nut and so forth are just fine. Guys like most of us who have been playing Gibsons for years, don't like it, which reinforces my opinion that most of us don't want radical change in the guitars we play.

 

[speedicut]

My 1978 Les Paul Deluxe has a brass nut...I assumed it was standard for the model.

 

[lukez8513]

The brass nut is adjustable via some Allen head bolts. I played one and loved the p90 but didn't know what to think about the tuners. The wide neck was actually kinda cool. There weren't any cosmetic flaws in the one I played. It was a les Paul jr

 

[DrumBob]

I played a new Junior at GC a few weeks ago and liked the way it sounded. The P90 is different, with slugs, instead of adjustable screws, but it sounded quite good.