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Posted: Wed May 21, 2008 11:00 am
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Aspiring Musician
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IMHO:
Gibsons are fine instruments; last forever, well made, and play easily. We all know they sound fantastic!
They are over priced. The name is what you pay for nowadays. There are many, many manufacturers out there building excellent guitars for way less than a Gibson; but it's like buying a Rolls Royce; a huge status symbol but a Chevy does the same job; gets you from "A" to "B" You just have to decides how much gas money you want to spend.
I think Fenders are all of the above and have their own tone as well;but I can afford Fenders. I believe Fenders are a little high in price too but the value/$$ ratio is much closer than the guitars our friends build at Gibson; but you can get plenty of valid argument on the other side of the issue as well because it's all subjective.
It just depends on what the buyer wants and feels is a good value for the money. I would buy more Gibsons if they were affordable to me so I buy Epiphones; to me the value/$$ ratio is fantastic.
My Epiphones are designed by Gibson; built under their supervision, are finished in polyurethane, have bodies that are at least 2 pieces (most guitars I have seen are) play just as nice as the Gibson Les Paul I used to own and are affordable.
The down side is mostly political; they are made in China (according to their website) and that takes away from American Jobs and takes money out of the country, (but I also know if I price myself out of the market I will be looking for work too) and I suppose there are some small nuances in feel and sound that I am not sophisticated enough to hear or feel.
So for me it's a win-win. I get to hear that "Gibson purr" through my DSL Marshall as well as my Fenders.


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Posted: Wed May 21, 2008 12:54 pm
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If you can afford them, then they are not a rip off. If you can't afford them, like me, then they are a rip-off, but then again, even if I could afford it, I don't know if I would buy a guitar from the company that issued a Kiefer Sutherland Signature guitar....Pretty much once they did that, I stopped considering Gibsons entirely....

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Posted: Wed May 21, 2008 2:45 pm
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I think Gibsons a great guitars but I am not much for the Sg models
but I do like Les Pauls but have found that if you get a Epiphone custom
or Elitist they sound and play just as good for a better price. Any
dealer who says he would not sell them because he don't want to rip
people off I would not believe. He most likely can not move enough or
has another dealer near who is a big customer to Gibson so they would
not sell him the line. That kind of stuff a owner is not just going
to tell his customers.


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Posted: Wed May 21, 2008 3:00 pm
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Well, the main issues I see with Gibson (les pauls) are the standard of quality control, I've heard some real bad stories that don't seem to happen with other manufacturers (..Fender), and also since they started chambering all their LPs . If I bought a Les Paul I'd want the full weight, which afaik you can only get from the vintage reissues nowadays.

Saying that they are gorgeous instruments. I'd love to have one in my collection, but at heart I'm always going to be a fender man :)


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Posted: Wed May 21, 2008 3:03 pm
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Im just conflicted right now

i dunno if i wanna buy a jaguar, another toronado, or a SG

right now im leaning towards jaguar

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Posted: Wed May 21, 2008 3:06 pm
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YES! I am a proud owner of an SG and i do not think they are a rip-off. the only that could make mine better would be a whammy, but it is great. It is tied with the Mustang for my favorite guitars. I do not know why your friend thinks of them as a rip-off, but some Gibson's are a rip-off for the price they are.


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Posted: Tue Jun 03, 2008 2:19 pm
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My best friend had a Strat Plus (ca '87 bought new in '87) and brand new(at the time 1989) '87 Les Paul. He sold his Strat Plus, and still owns the LP today. He got it appraised for $2700 now, bought it new for $1489 +tax in '89. He keeps it in great condition. It's been on tour in Europe 3x, Japan 2x, North East countless time. The gold plating has since faded a little, but it is a Les Paul Custom, and he likes the way it sounds through his 5150 1/2 stack (home) or his Marshall (tour). When we used to play in a band together, that's all he would play live with. He didn't like the way the Strat Plus sounded (Lace Sensor Silver), to vintage Rock N' Roll for our sound - NYHC. I think it's worth it, then again, when you can afford things, it's worth it. Someone had said it tho, it's not a rip off. Just like Strats, the LP has a loyal following.

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Posted: Wed Jun 04, 2008 10:15 am
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Here's an interesting thought after a just over a half dozen owners were consulted on this topic.

Gibson and Taylor and Martin owners do not consider their instruments either a ripoff or overpriced.

Hmm.


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Posted: Wed Jun 04, 2008 1:24 pm
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The "rough" or whatever it's called SG is under $1000. That looks like the one to get. Better yet though, check out the Mahagony American Special Stratocaster. That's an amazing guitar. It's at Guitar Center for 999 or so, about the same as the "rough" Gibson but it's no "rough" stepchild to Fender. It's got the LSR roller nut, the S-1 switching, it's HSS. Awesome product. I'd like one but have no budget for it, and my Highway One with CS TX Specials and five springs in the tremolo is awesome.

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Post subject: are gibsons a rip off
Posted: Wed Jun 04, 2008 2:26 pm
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no, i love gibsons.


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Post subject:
Posted: Thu Jun 05, 2008 5:21 pm
Gibsons are rip offs and if u think about is so are fenders

I love fender guitars but they are overpriced,My theorey is that if you buy any squire guitar and strip the thick plastic paint of them then they will sound as good as any fender (im curious about this if anyone else agrees with this then tell me)


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Posted: Thu Jun 05, 2008 5:27 pm
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Jack.guitar wrote:
Gibsons are rip offs and if u think about is so are fenders

I love fender guitars but they are overpriced,My theorey is that if you buy any squire guitar and strip the thick plastic paint of them then they will sound as good as any fender (im curious about this if anyone else agrees with this then tell me)


I'd have to disagree. If you have to strip the paint, change the pups, tuners, bridge, pots, wiriing to make a guitar good...then it wasn't much of a bargain in the first place. You'd have to do all that to come close to making a Squire as good as an American strat.

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Posted: Thu Jun 05, 2008 5:29 pm
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Jack.guitar wrote:
Gibsons are rip offs and if u think about is so are fenders

I love fender guitars but they are overpriced,My theorey is that if you buy any squire guitar and strip the thick plastic paint of them then they will sound as good as any fender (im curious about this if anyone else agrees with this then tell me)


I disagree. Squires may sound good, but they are no Fender. The wood, electronics and hardware are far better on Fenders and Gibsons than Squires and Epiphones.

Trust me, I know. I have a $160.00 Squire and a $1600.00 Fender. There is an absolute difference in playability, tone and overall quality. It's like that old saying, "You get what you pay for". It's true.

I'm not knocking Squires at all. I think they are fantastic guitars for the money. But a Fender? No way!


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Post subject:
Posted: Thu Jun 05, 2008 5:35 pm
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They are excellent guitars but they are extremely expensive
I think there are some that aren't but as a whole think so.

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Post subject:
Posted: Fri Jun 06, 2008 6:34 am
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I don't believe it is a rip off although I can't afford them. Several guitar brands are cultural icons that have earned the status. More and more baby boomers are aquiring those icons we missed out on when were younger. Harley Davidson is a prime example. They were close to closing the doors when all of a sudden every old fart over forty had to have one. The same thing is now happening to Fender and Gibson although not as drastic as HD. A lot of us who missed out on the experience of owning electric guitars in our youth are purchasing them now. Fender and Gibson are the Iconic brand names from those days and people want to have them.


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