I'm interested in smaller bodied Semi Hollow electrics and the usual 339s and Casino Coupes have popped up on my radar but then the Midtown came to mind.
I've had a quick look and there seems a fair few variations for over the years; Standards, Customs, 2 knob versions, 4 knob version, Bigsby versions, Richlite fingerboards, Rosewood fingerboards, odd shaped head stocks, P90 versions, '57 Classic versions, Burtsbucker versions, G-Force tuners etc....
Can anyone enlighten me or point me in the right direction of the variants and how they differed over the years of their release?
Comments
This type, rosewood fingerboard, chrome hardware
And for about £550 second hand they've got to be one of the best value Gibson purchases out there.
The construction isn't a true semi though. As I understand it, a midtown is chambered solid wood. An ES330/casino is fully hollow, an ES335/9 has a centre block. I see some upsides to this - a midtown should be less prone to feedback. Main downside is that the top is completely flat, rather than arched which looks a little unconventional. but that is more of a personal taste thing.
When I tried one I noticed that the neck joint seemed pretty ' flexible'. Didn't appear to be an issue, but it was pretty easy to bend the strings out of tune by applying some pressure on the neck and that made me worry about how strong the neck joint was.
If I was buying I would avoid robotuners like the plague, would prefer :
4 knobs vs 2 (the right number for a gibson)
Humbuckers vs P90s (get a casino if you want P90s)
Fixed tailpiece vs bigsby (less hassle)
rosewood vs richlite (although not a deal breaker)
I would be indifferent over std vs custom and 57s vs burstbuckers
ES335
Midtown
2009 Standards - '57 Classics, Richlite Fingerboard, Funny Shaped Headstock, 2 knobs (plus a version with Bigsby)
2009 Customs - Burst Buckers, Richlite Fingerboard, 4 knobs, Normal Custom Headstock
2012 Standard P90 - P90's, Rosewood Fingerboard, 2 knobs, Funny Shaped Headstock
2015 Standard - Burst Buckers, Rosewood Fingerboard, 4 knobs, G-Force Tuners, Normal Shaped Headstock
2016 Custom Deluxe - Burst Buckers, Bakelite Fingerboard, 4 knobs, Grover Tuners, Normal Shaped Headstock
rossi said: Ha ha, fair point. But pontificating is what forums are all about aren't they ;-)
I like mine, I prefer it to 335 style guitars. If I want something with more acoustic properties thinline hollow would be my choice (I love 330’s). The Midtown is like a slightly lighter sounding Les Paul, still has a little more air in the sound but great sustain. Mine is a 2015 Standard.
You see midtowns referred to as somewhere between a LP and 335, but being so slab like I find mine more like an oversized DC junior or an SG.
Seriously: If you value it, take/fetch it yourself
The only time i’ve had issues with the robots is when the battery needed charging other than that theyre fine, although i had it restung and setup properly by salop music centre not long after i got it.
It does feel slightly different to play due to the slim taper neck but nice though.
The rosewood fretboard is “medium” but would look much better if it was a darker rosewood.
The burstbuckers really sound great especially with fuzz/distortion, sustains great.
Quality wise, mine has two small hairline cracks in the paint where the neck joins the body and now and again the pots work a tad loose but you can access the electrics from the back so thats no real biggie.
Don't gete wrong I love the other guitars but there is something about the midtown which just looks and feels great to play to me.
I had a Hagstrom Viking which I found too big to play live.
I did end up selling mine once I got into Reverends, but only because something had to go due to limited space in my flat! It's place has been taken by a Spacehawk, which fills that 'not quite a solid body' slot. Midtowns are a massively under-rated Gibson model, and thus can be quite a bargain. Although it's hard to beat the crazy price DV247 were selling them at - I did actually sell both the Viking and Midtown for a profit, about £100 each IIRC.
I'd find the Standard with Bigsby in red hard to turn down too.