Late 90's Gibson's - what do you think?

Chiliwailer

I have a '97 SG Special as a knock around guitar (I'm a Bassist). I like the feel and resonance of it more than the modern ones I've played, and a couple of mates have said that the late 90's is a great period for Gibson. I've nothing bad to say about the new ones, just preferred my one even though it's relatively new to me.

I guess a lot of that is 'each to their own' and I know that you can get good ones / bad ones from any period, but I'm still wondering what you folks make of the late 90's ones compared to later ones, in your experience?

Thanks.

Teyeplayer

I'd say they are generally good solid guitars -I've a 97 les Paul special and it's a fantastic workhorse. I've had more recent Gibsons that I've flipped and ones I've tried that I wouldn't have touched with a barge pole. However, I think that means I just haven't found one I gel with, as with all brands and eras there are no hard and fast rules. Each guitar is after all unique and you can be sure that in every batch there will be a couple of amazing guitars, a few dogs and the vast majority will be ok and entirely dependent on who picks them up and how they are played. It comes down to that old rule that is so difficult in an internet led age -try before you buy.

guitars4you

an issue with Gibson over many eras, including the 50's and 60's golden era, is a level of variation between good and bad guitars - granted certain periods like the 70's probably produced more mediocre models, but that doesn't mean you won't find a corker amongst them - For the vintage purists then only old or modern Custom Shop replicas will suffice - But if you have a good 90's model then keep it and enjoy it - Simple case of some are better than others

I've seen, sold and played some good 90's models - some are still stock and some have been customised with various changes including a refret

Deijavoo

I have a '98 Les Paul.  It's a 57RI custom and it's a total beast. 

Funkfingers

Every example on its own merits. Therefore, it is vital to try before buying.

Sassafras

Before the internet came along I was happy to narrow down a guitar's date of manufacture to the decade. Now people seem to want to know what time of the afternoon their guitar came off the production line. The annoying thing is that it's subconsciously made me think that the date is somehow important.
I just don't get the obsession with dates.
I've played old guitars that are crap and modern guitars that are excellent, and vice-versa.

webrthomson

Funkfingers said:

Every example on its own merits. Therefore, it is vital to try before buying.

I think this sentiment pretty much sums Gibson up - the level of inconsistency at all price points is shocking!

I had a 98 LP that was awful, but I've got two from 77 that are great - the LP custom is a little on the heavy side - other than that they great guitars from a period where conventional wisdom is that Gibson were not so good.

goldtop

My daily is a '98 DC Standard. After 19 years, it fits me like comfy slippers, but it's not a great guitar. (Until I come to write the Ebay description, obvs.)

Chiliwailer

Cheers for the responses, its been good to read about your experiences. Like I said, I get that all periods have good and bad examples etc etc etc. However I can think of periods in basses, like Fender, where some periods were more consistent in their quality than others. The mid 2000's basses compared to recent ones spring to mind. Differences in pickups, feel, hardware, attention to detail etc. Sure a 2005 bass can be amazing, but I mean period consistency / quality. I suppose I was looking for a similar answer, which may not exist for this example....

sawyer

Every guitar is individual. Especially Gibson guitars in my experience.

guitars4you

Chiliwailer said:

Cheers for the responses, its been good to read about your experiences. Like I said, I get that all periods have good and bad examples etc etc etc. However I can think of periods in basses, like Fender, where some periods were more consistent in their quality than others. The mid 2000's basses compared to recent ones spring to mind. Differences in pickups, feel, hardware, attention to detail etc. Sure a 2005 bass can be amazing, but I mean period consistency / quality. I suppose I was looking for a similar answer, which may not exist for this example....

there is always something on any guitar from any era that some will like or dislike - Taking out of the equation the vintage replica models like R7/R8/R9 etc the best production era, IMO, for Gibson LP's is the 2002-2008 era - If you had to sit down with a blank sheet and spec'd your LP Std based on models from the past then I think this 2002/2008 will cover many requests

Yet regarding the 335 for example, after the 70's era with a trapeze tailpiece and block inlays, then after the success of Tokai ES120/130 models, then Gibson responded with a 335 Dot inlay and again this is a sort after period

For various reasons any Gibson from any era needs to be evaluated on a one to one basis - good and bad guitars are plentiful - Some GIbson models have had more changes than others since the 1970's - ie Since 1980, or so, the SG Standard has probably gone through less changes regarding spec and features than say a LP Standard

Chiliwailer

guitars4you said:

Chiliwailer said:

Cheers for the responses, its been good to read about your experiences. Like I said, I get that all periods have good and bad examples etc etc etc. However I can think of periods in basses, like Fender, where some periods were more consistent in their quality than others. The mid 2000's basses compared to recent ones spring to mind. Differences in pickups, feel, hardware, attention to detail etc. Sure a 2005 bass can be amazing, but I mean period consistency / quality. I suppose I was looking for a similar answer, which may not exist for this example....

there is always something on any guitar from any era that some will like or dislike - Taking out of the equation the vintage replica models like R7/R8/R9 etc the best production era, IMO, for Gibson LP's is the 2002-2008 era - If you had to sit down with a blank sheet and spec'd your LP Std based on models from the past then I think this 2002/2008 will cover many requests

Yet regarding the 335 for example, after the 70's era with a trapeze tailpiece and block inlays, then after the success of Tokai ES120/130 models, then Gibson responded with a 335 Dot inlay and again this is a sort after period

For various reasons any Gibson from any era needs to be evaluated on a one to one basis - good and bad guitars are plentiful - Some GIbson models have had more changes than others since the 1970's - ie Since 1980, or so, the SG Standard has probably gone through less changes regarding spec and features than say a LP Standard

That was a great read, really interesting to know about the LP spec too.