Gibson Acoustics - Any Good ?

pmg

I started out on an ej200 so one day I’d like a j-200 to complete my collection.  And a Gibson parlour.

Rabs

Gibson have a whole new line now too.. They do look nice

CMW335

I had a 1968 J200 (the one in my Avatar) which was a great guitar but I decided to trade upto a 1964 Martin D28 which I don’t regret however I do miss the J200. Cant have them all I guess. Owned and played a few other Gibson acoustics including a 1954 J160e, modern J200, modern J45, the advanced Jumbo and one of the best was a Gibson Super 200 basically a J200 with cutaway and Super 400 appointments. Loved them all but have tried a couple of J200s in Guitar Guitar that didn’t sound as good, perhaps they need the time and use to need to open up

CloudNine

Here is mine. The last guitar I would part with, totally love it. Top grade Honduras Mahogany B/S, Adirondack Top, Madagascar RW Fretboard & Bridge, Full Hide Glue construction. It's such a warm sounding guitar, definitely not true about Adi always being bright, tight etc etc.

TINMAN82

Rabs said:

Gibson have a whole new line now too.. They do look nice

They do, and I’m looking at more modern incarnations that I might not have a couple of years ago, like the slimmer bodied AG j45s with walnut etc.

That said, it is surprising how montana seem to have gone in a different direction from the “slimmed down” US range. Around 20 versions of the J45 alone! Richlite fingerboards on £3k acoustics might not prove popular but mabye were all a bit more environment aware these days.

Rabs

TINMAN82 said:

Rabs said:

Gibson have a whole new line now too.. They do look nice

They do, and I’m looking at more modern incarnations that I might not have a couple of years ago, like the slimmer bodied AG j45s with walnut etc.

That said, it is surprising how montana seem to have gone in a different direction from the “slimmed down” US range. Around 20 versions of the J45 alone! Richlite fingerboards on £3k acoustics might not prove popular but mabye were all a bit more environment aware these days.

I also think its about time Gibson stopped using Nitro...  Horrid nasty stuff that is..  Id rather a nice Oil finish any day. It just seems like another one of those things they do just based on tradition like not reinforcing the volute area.. 

As far as richlite goes....  everyone I have spoken to who has a guitar with one has no issues with it at all. If you want a jet black fretboard these days its probably the best solution or they will start dying boards black or people just have to get used to streaky ebony or some other alternative.

pmg

CMW335 said:

I had a 1968 J200 (the one in my Avatar) which was a great guitar but I decided to trade upto a 1964 Martin D28 which I don’t regret however I do miss the J200. Cant have them all I guess. Owned and played a few other Gibson acoustics including a 1954 J160e, modern J200, modern J45, the advanced Jumbo and one of the best was a Gibson Super 200 basically a J200 with cutaway and Super 400 appointments. Loved them all but have tried a couple of J200s in Guitar Guitar that didn’t sound as good, perhaps they need the time and use to need to open up

Yes I’ve not found a good j 200 yet but have been lucky enough to find other good acoustics

Adamski

I’ve got a J45 Rosewood and a Taylor 414 Limited and I would say whilst the Taylor is a little slinkier under the hand, the Gibson just sounds old and very well rounded, it really makes me smile and suits my voice better too. It’s getting better too and sounds sweeter than it did when I first bought it. 

Can highly recommend if tou can go and sit and sit with a few for a while. Wouldn’t buy sight unseen though as they vary quite a bit. 

Wazmeister

Adamski said:

I’ve got a J45 Rosewood and a Taylor 414 Limited and I would say whilst the Taylor is a little slinkier under the hand, the Gibson just sounds old and very well rounded, it really makes me smile and suits my voice better too. It’s getting better too and sounds sweeter than it did when I first bought it. 

Can highly recommend if tou can go and sit and sit with a few for a while. Wouldn’t buy sight unseen though as they vary quite a bit. 

I love the looks of the Hummingbird but I may be leaning towards a J45....

With all the model types, anyone got any recommendations in the new J45 range ?

The Vintage model, whilst pricey, does sound good on the old YT vids

ICBM

Rabs said:

I also think its about time Gibson stopped using Nitro...  Horrid nasty stuff that is..  Id rather a nice Oil finish any day.

I'd much rather a nice thin polyurethane.

I'm not a big fan of finishes which soften and absorb dye when left in contact with things, although I've learned to live with it on the nitro-finished guitars I have.

pmg

Wazmeister said:

Adamski said:

I’ve got a J45 Rosewood and a Taylor 414 Limited and I would say whilst the Taylor is a little slinkier under the hand, the Gibson just sounds old and very well rounded, it really makes me smile and suits my voice better too. It’s getting better too and sounds sweeter than it did when I first bought it. 

Can highly recommend if tou can go and sit and sit with a few for a while. Wouldn’t buy sight unseen though as they vary quite a bit. 

I love the looks of the Hummingbird but I may be leaning towards a J45....

With all the model types, anyone got any recommendations in the new J45 range ?

The Vintage model, whilst pricey, does sound good on the old YT vids

J45 vintage

terada

Personally I just played as many as I could get my hands on.

Ended up with a J45 Standard that sounded and felt the best to me. Tried some more expensive variants with the intention of buying in that range but they didn't resonate with me as much.

pmg

Horses for courses.  The learning is if you find a good one, snap it up. For me there’s a higher chance of this with the vintage line and I prefer the aesthetics 

Adamski

Wazmeister said:

Adamski said:

I’ve got a J45 Rosewood and a Taylor 414 Limited and I would say whilst the Taylor is a little slinkier under the hand, the Gibson just sounds old and very well rounded, it really makes me smile and suits my voice better too. It’s getting better too and sounds sweeter than it did when I first bought it. 

Can highly recommend if tou can go and sit and sit with a few for a while. Wouldn’t buy sight unseen though as they vary quite a bit. 

I love the looks of the Hummingbird but I may be leaning towards a J45....

With all the model types, anyone got any recommendations in the new J45 range ?

The Vintage model, whilst pricey, does sound good on the old YT vids

The vintage one with the Adirondack Spruce top sounds unbelievable! I had the choice of that, the J45 Rosewood Limited or a standard J45. I would have totally got the Vintage but it was about £800 over budget and at the time I couldn’t budge on that. 

Happy with my choice of the Rosewood but if I had the cash on the day I would have totally got the Vintage. It sounded so old, like it had already had 50 hrs of playing and drying out. 

Adamski

John @peachguitarsdotcom will tell you how nice that thing sounded! Don’t know if it’s still there. 

stickyfiddle

I did play a walnut J45 once, which was a spectacular sounding guitar. But a seriously awful brown poo-burst finish. 

stratntele

I have a 1966 J50 which is a great strummer n picker. Never could understand why anyone liked these 'cheaper' models in the Gibson range compared to J200s, hummingbirds, doves etc until I picked up this guitar and strummed one chord. I was instantly converted!!

TeleMaster

I got a HP 415. I was looking at a load of Martins and some of the more expensive Hummingbirds but that one was just the best sounding of maybe all the acoustics in the shop ranging from £1000-2000. 

I actually really like the Richlite too, which may well be blasphemy. 

Wazmeister

I’ve always been a fan of Airondek (spelling ?!) tops 

Schnozz

I like the J45 but I would always look around to see who is making them better than Gibson (for cheaper would be a bonus).