Let me start by saying ive always wanted a gibson. the first electric guitar i got was a les paul replica by epiphone. I say this to ensure folks know that i am not just giving out about gibson for the sake of it and this is not a flame thread. its a thread written out of genuine disappointment at the quality standards, or lack thereof in the Gibson factory.

so, lately ive found the strat ( awesome as it may be) lacking for some extreeme crunch. My music teacher has an Edwards LP which has that crunch so ive decided i need something with humbuckers.

I always liked SG's so decided to try one to see how it fit.
I went to the local guitar superstore (not so super in recessionary times ) and picked up a gibson sg special.

Before even plugging it in i knew it was not right. the neck is very very very fat. fatter that any acoustic i have ever played. i put this down to style and design, more than a guitar flaw. lots of folks must like this neck or it wouldnt be on a guitar for 1200 euros, right?

Next the frets. uneven is being quite generous to this guitar. they were awful. sticking out at the edges also.

Next the finish. i know many dont like the poly finish on fenders, but at least its smooth and usually flattering to the guitar. This guitar was blotchy, almost as if it was painted in sections or painted with a brush. real uneven feel on the finish on the back of the neck when i ran my hand up and down the neck.


Finally, as i had it down off the wall i was as well try it out so i plugged it into my rig, which is a pod x3 live. Quick note, my tele and strat deluxe sound awesome through the x3 live. i can get almost any sound i need out of that pedal, its an absolute godsend to someone who cant afford 6 different amps, a slew of pedals, or is in an apartment and cant turn up to 11 to ensure the tubes are giving a nice crunch.

The gibson was awful through my rig. simply awful. muddy, undefined, dog rough. not in a good way like some super hot pickups are, just downright cheap sounding.

I then plugged in a 200 euro SG by a company called "vintage". this guitar was no delight to play either, but it still played better than the gibson, and was 1000 quid cheaper.

Im just wondering, how can Gibson call this a high end guitar and how can anyone ask over 200 quid for this,let alone 1000 euros?

I was so disapointed as it means i will now never own a gibson, at least if their standards stay this low.

Anyone else find this problem with Gibsons, that the quality is very variable, and when its bad, its terrible? Are the chances that it was just a dodgy Gibson SG i was handed?

No, I don't think you had a dodgy one as my experiences with them are identical. Reinforcing your points and taking them a step further, the neck is VERY slow and the fingerboard is VERY dry. Yet, for those who HAVE to have a Gibson come hell or high water, they still sell like crazy because they are 1/3 the price of their flagship stuff. Ironically, one could buy a REALLY nice Fender Strat, Tele or whatever for the same price as these bottom feeders.

_________________
You dig?

I know that the SG Special has the "50s neck" as a particular feature. Me being not fond of baseball bats for for guitars either, I always steer well clear of that feature, too. I believe the SG Standard has a much thinner neck. However, the new Standards have a noticably fatter neck than my '79 SG Std. My '79 is actually very similar to Fender's "modern C" shape.


I love Fender's poly finish. It looks great and wears like armor.


I am also no fan of Gibson's lower end "satin" finishes. I think they look almost unfinished.


Yeah, if you were dead set on Gibson, your entry point is likely an SG Std that addresses about all of your issues. Also -- and much cheaper -- there are nice mid-range Ibanez's worth looking at (with nice neck binding and EMG pickups).

_________________
Laughing out loud with fear and hope, I have a desperate plan ...

I've played a good amount of gibson dogs, never ever saw uneven fretjobs though. I thought their plek machine would make that nigh on impossible to accomplish. I'm really not a fan of their neck binding methods and think the new worn looks were devised by a blindman with a grudge.

The Vintage brand do produce a decent guitar for the money, never seen one sub £200 though. I have the PGM100 lemondrop lespaul by them. Not a great guitar when I bought it. After a good deal of work it now plays well, it's always sounded good. The pots on it are a real pain 8 is really 0. Even now with its great setup it lacks character. It plays great, as good as my strats do. It sounds great, nice lowpowered buckers and plenty of sustain. It just doesnt have that indefinable quantity that differentiates a decent guitar from a great one.

_________________
No no and no

So do i! Im not a road worn fan at all! i love the near indestructible poly finish!



It was a gloss finish though! thats what troubled me. gloss finishes should be perfect, no running in the laquer, but this was god awful.



Il see if i can get a hold of a gibson sg standard to try but honestly, im not sure i want to anymore, as any company that would charge 1200 smackers for that plank i played today dont deserve my money.

i know its a completely different guitar, but for 300 or so quid you can get a squier classic vibe that is 100 times the quality of the gibson i played!

I had an ibanez up until recently. It was an RGT42, thru neck, upgraded to schaller floyd rose, and installed two seymour duncan humbuckers, but for some reason i never just took to that guitar. i really tried, and its an awesome guitar, great neck, sounded good with new pickups, held tuning perfectly with the schaller, but it lacked the charachter and soul of my fender.

Maby soul is a bad description, but it just lacked something to me, and the fender fills this void perfectly.


maby a HSS fender strat is the way to go...

Interesting and please accept sympathies on your negative SG experience.

About 2 years ago the SG faded type was around at good price in metro Chicago. 'Tried several and bought a faded red, which has since received chrome pup covers and better knobs...and a hotshot setup by Third Coast Guitars.

It is a lovely, eminently playable and great-sounding instrument which did not do fret sprout this winter, unlike 2 very good Fenders.

And personally, 'like the "faded" unfinished-oid look on an SG. 'Strikes one as a very intimate, "naked" guitar.

edit: Ooops. I now see you are talking about the Special, not the Faded Special, correct? When you talk about the "uneven finish" I assumed you were speaking of the faded SG. All my comments are regarding the faded, but still applies to the topic since the faded and the special have exactly the same specs except the finish is clear coated and buffed out on the special.



Many times it is neccesary to EQ the amp differently when switching between single coils and humbuckers. The 490 pickups that this SG uses are also used in many other Gibsons and many people think they sound OK.



I beg to differ. Gibson does not consider this a "high end guitar" in the least. The Special Faded models are the lowest of the low in Gibson's lineup and given equally low attention to finishing details. There are a few diamonds in the rough though if you look hard enough.

And a note about the faded finish, after a few sweaty gigs the rough finish (especially on the back of the neck) will become smooth feel well broken in.



Lack of Gibson quality has been discussed to death here and on other forums. Do a google search: http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&sour ... q&gs_rfai=
I bought my SG Faded Special over 3 years ago when they were cheaper and I had three to choose from in the shop. The one I got was perfect. The other two were dogs. You have to weed through the bad ones and any one you choose WILL need a setup. This SG is my first and probably last Gibson I buy because they are just too expensive and I only got it for the few songs when I want a humbucker sound.

Sounds like a Gibson just isn't for you though if you are not comfortable with the un-Fender neck profile.

_________________
Obligatory gear list: Fender, Rickenbacker, Gibson, Gretsch, Vox, Martin, and more Fender.

i know you want a gibson but try the epi sg400 ,same neck as the gibby but you get plenty of bang for your money , the one i've got plays like a dream (done a good setup on it ) and sounds excellent through the jcm 800 . just my tupence worth

_________________

+1
Epiphone is a great option for us Fender folk that can't justify Gibson's high prices. If I hadn't got such a good deal on my Gisbson SG I would have got an Epiphone no questions asked.

_________________
Obligatory gear list: Fender, Rickenbacker, Gibson, Gretsch, Vox, Martin, and more Fender.

I would take a high end Epi over a lower end Gibson any day of the week. The lower end Epi's are pretty bad though. The only low end Gibby I ever liked was the Melody Maker or LP Jr. P90's are really nice.

I take all my instruments for what they are. Tools for what I do. I never play just one type or style guitar. It makes no difference to me unless the action is so high or the string gauge is so heavy it bothers me.

I find it tonally limiting to stick to one brand or style guitar. I could never understand why someone would own 5 Strats, Teles, LP,s etc. In the end it's still a Strat and the minor tonal differences don't make it worth it to me. A humbucker on a Strat or Tele makes no sense to me either. I own a a lot of goofy guitars. Supro, Dano, my Strat, an Ibanez Artcore, even an old cheap Stinger guitar that I modified for slide. Plus I have access to a lot of other instruments through friends. They're fun to play and each guitar because of the way it sounds or plays will change your style slightly. A friend of mine loans me his 64 LP Goldtop and I'll tell you it's an amazing instrument and I play some of the best stuff I think I can play when I borrow it.

Don't sell yourself short. Sometimes people may go into something with a closed mind. I've found many Fenders where I didn't like the neck but adjusted to them very quickly and eventually liked them.

i don't know if it's new guitar syndrome or not but since i got the epi lp about a month or so ago then the epi sg400 last week i have not touched my strat much at all in fact when i do plug it in you can appreciate it for what it is , a single coil mofo but i'll tell you those epi's sound like the gibby version through the 800 , with the sg playing sahb , santana and some of the old cream songs i know thats what eric was using on them , the sound is uncanny , as for the lp it's an older mik std but what a sound you get from it playing zz top old tunes again you would thing it was the real thing . in fact i tested it soundwise next to snowy's gibby lp studio and if anything the epi sounded a wee bit better (probably new strings ). if you can find a good un you will not be disapointed . on the subject of epi's , my girls just waiting on an epi viola bass being delivered pics to follow

_________________

The Epi's are seriously nice and the Master Built Epi's are off the hook. I think you'll go back and forth. That's what happens to me. If you really want to get blown away try a Reverand guitar. The tone circuit in that is great.

can only find epiphone masterbuilt acoustics, no solid body electrics.

My mistake, it's the Elitist series I'm talking about.
Check this out.
http://www.gibson.com/en-us/Divisions/E ... 20Goldtop/

I was real close to buying one till the HRDlx took a dump for the final time and I sold it to get low wattage amp as a replacement. Now they have a 1959 Tribute LP that's really sweet and has Gibson electronics and pups.