Which would you choose, Gretsch or Gibson?

If you were looking for a better Les Paul style guitar, which do you think you'd choose? What if you were looking for a hollow body? I know this might be comparing red and green apples, but which brand do you think does a better job at making playable, good sounding guitars?

And I do mean guitars that both companies make, like pitting a Les Paul vs a Duo Jet or the Dot or Casino up against one of Gretsch's double cutaways.

Where do you feel that each company excels? Does a Gibson make a good country guitar? Can a Duo Jet match a Les Paul in rock?

I'm really curious to hear opinions on this. I mean, these are both long-standing companies that, to the uninformed, seem to be producing the same products.

In a Casino Vs Country Gentleman battle, Casino. LP vs Duo Jet, DJ

It's all about tones. LP, Casino, Dot, Duo Jet and Gent are all good playable guitars. The difference is the tones you get.

LP with humbuckers gives thick, heavy tone.

Casino has P90s and gives a nice strong single coil tone with a nice woody hollow body sweetness.

Dot needs pickup upgrades but after that has a great thick tone as well with more wood tone than a LP.

Duo Jet is semi hollow and has either single coils (Dynasonic) or humbuckers (Filtertrons). It offers a similar feel to LP but being semi hollow has more open tone. Also, Filtertrons sound very different than PAF style humbuckers. More chime and less output. More Twang! The Dynasonics are even brighter!

Lastly, the (vintage) Gent 6122 is a different beast altogether. Hollow, but no F holes to reduce feedback (they're painted on). Filtertron pickups. Very large body. BIGSBY! I find that it has a very unique tone, somewhere in the vicinity of a 335/Dot but different. More twang. Less growl.

I am lucky enough (very lucky) to have one of each of these and I couldn't pick one as the best all around. Maybe the Duo Jet with Trons but with a mod to split the coils? I just use the one I feel like playing or for the tone I need. Lately I have been playing a Gretsch 6120 Nashville as my #1. Love that guitar. Love them all!

For solidbody tones, I would go with the Les Paul. For a full hollowbody, if it's rock or rockabilly, Gretsch wins the day with 6120 or White Falcon being the one to get. I would like a Gibson ES-175 for traditional jazz over a hollowbody Gretsch.

I need to explore Gretsch guitars one day, have 0 experience, love that tone though. Is there a typical Gretsch neck contour? Fat or slim etc?

I just bought a Les Paul with P-90s and I think it's the perfect amalgamation of this breed of guitars (for me)

Does a Gibson make a good country guitar? Can a Duo Jet match a Les Paul in rock?


:confused::shock::confused::shock: My head is spinning...
They are very different guitars and companies, they are good for different things. If you like the Brian Setzer/ Scotty Moore stuff, go with Gretsch, if you're into Jimmy Page/ Slash/ any other classic rock stuff, then a Paul... I'm being very stereotypical here, but that's the gist of it. It really is comparing apples and oranges.
I'd get a Grestch before I got a Gibson, but that's just me. I'm more into the Rockabilly side of your question...

I'm not looking into getting either one, right now. My price range is more in the squire/epiphone level, on the occasions I do have money. Unemployed college kid and all that. Like I said, though, at a glance their guitars just look similar and I've never really sat down and played with any.

I've only got two guitars worth mentioning, a thinline Tele and an Encore copy of the Gibson L6-S. Third one's a little kids guitar with built in speaker that you can't get intonated because you can't back the saddles off far enough on half the strings.


Really, it more came down to these two guitars which look basically the same and how different they would be.

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_svSrxCCe2hM/SNbLE6bs9XI/AAAAAAAAAfQ/FuTI1H73b80/s320/1955+GRETSCH+6128+DUO+JET.jpg

http://www.guitartipsweekly.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/gibson-les-paul-classic.jpg





I know that judging a guitar on looks alone is a dumb idea. Just wondering about how versatile they are and which would be more popular.

For solidbody tones, I would go with the Les Paul. For a full hollowbody, if it's rock or rockabilly, Gretsch wins the day with 6120 or White Falcon being the one to get. I would like a Gibson ES-175 for traditional jazz over a hollowbody Gretsch.

I've got the 6120 TM and love the simplicity of it's Tone Control.
For a real 50's Gibson Tone the Emperor Regent with 13 Flatwounds the Floating Pickup and that gorgeous 17" Sunburst Body through a Cube 60...:cool:

got 4 gibson's and zero gretsch so... gibson! I don't care for ceramic pickups be it single coils or dyna sonics, I hope this changes one day but for now I'm not hip to them yet

I'm not looking into getting either one, right now. My price range is more in the squire/epiphone level, on the occasions I do have money. Unemployed college kid and all that. Like I said, though, at a glance their guitars just look similar and I've never really sat down and played with any.

I've only got two guitars worth mentioning, a thinline Tele and an Encore copy of the Gibson L6-S. Third one's a little kids guitar with built in speaker that you can't get intonated because you can't back the saddles off far enough on half the strings.


Really, it more came down to these two guitars which look basically the same and how different they would be.

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_svSrxCCe2hM/SNbLE6bs9XI/AAAAAAAAAfQ/FuTI1H73b80/s320/1955+GRETSCH+6128+DUO+JET.jpg

http://www.guitartipsweekly.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/gibson-les-paul-classic.jpg





I know that judging a guitar on looks alone is a dumb idea. Just wondering about how versatile they are and which would be more popular.

THose are wildly different guitars. The Dynasonics in the Gretsch are bright, chimey, twangy pickups that sound awesome. Sure, they do rockabilly, but they can do rock, country, or anything else you wanna do.

LPs, in the right hands, can do just about all of that as well.

In short, it's not the middle ground that matters, it's the sonic edges. If you want the THICKEST, most distorted sounds possible, the LP is your friend. If you want the cleanest, clearest, twangiest sounds possible, the Gretsch is your friend. In the middle? Either can do it, so it's all about which one feels and sounds better to you.

got 4 gibson's and zero gretsch so... gibson! I don't care for ceramic pickups be it single coils or dyna sonics, I hope this changes one day but for now I'm not hip to them yet

More Gibsons use Ceramic pickups than Gretsches, so I'm not sure how that's the basis for your comparison.

Some mid-90's Gretsches (under Baldwin ownership) used ceramic magnets, but they're all AlNiCo now. FilterTrons, Dynasonics, etc. All AlNiCo.

I'm with you on the ceramics though. My bro has a LP Classic with ceramic pickups: worst pickups I've ever heard. Guitar is fine. Pickups are HORRIBLE!

From an aesthetic point of view, the Gretsch wins hands down.

More Gibsons use Ceramic pickups than Gretsches, so I'm not sure how that's the basis for your comparison.

Some mid-90's Gretsches (under Baldwin ownership) used ceramic magnets, but they're all AlNiCo now. FilterTrons, Dynasonics, etc. All AlNiCo.

I'm with you on the ceramics though. My bro has a LP Classic with ceramic pickups: worst pickups I've ever heard. Guitar is fine. Pickups are HORRIBLE!

Ceramic and alnicos both have many examples of each and it's the individual pickup. The only way to really know what sounds good to you is to plug the guitar into your amp.

From what I have found, in general but not always, a ceramic pickup as used by a lot of hard rockers, or a general all purpose high gain pickup like the DiMarzio Super Distortion for almost any type of music, and the ceramic is pretty good for lead guitar and cutting through. Sometimes the ceramics could be too hot and thus somewhat harsh when played clean but adjusting pole pieces and pickup height goes a long way into getting a great sound. But sometimes the best option is to get a lower output, brighter alnico.

Alnicos tend to be more forgiving and can get suitable sounds without much fussing about with pole pieces and pickup heights. Most lead guitar work can be done and any deficiencies in midrange boost can be handled with pedals and settings on amps. For rhythm guitar, I tend to like the more laid back alnicos.

The main reason for the popularity of ceramic aftermarket pickups is to get that midrange to cut through and really shine with distortion. It's really hard to say that one type sounds good and the other sounds bad. I tend to like alnicos for surf stuff on Fender amps with reverb but ceramics with no reverb with an in your face Marshall. They are both sounds I like in my arsenal.

Using the process of elimination, I would probably end up with Gibson. My problem is that I see much higher build quality in the Gretsch, but I prefer the sound of the Gibson P-90 loaded Les Paul. And when choosing guitars, sound trumps looks, IMO

I always wanted a Gretsch Country Gent.
Then I got a Casino...and I don't want a Country Gent any more.

However I would buy a Duo Jet over a Les Paul. Gretsch wins there.

Every guitar player should own a Les Paul. The Gretsch Duo Jet is a added colour after you buy a Paul and a Tele. IMO!

As said already, but bears repeating....Duo Jets and Les Pauls are completely different.

Every guitar player should own a Les Paul. The Gretsch Duo Jet is a added colour after you buy a Paul and a Tele. IMO!

What he said.

And then a Tele. And then whatever else you need to play what you want. But everyone should have a Les Paul. :grin:

I'd go Gretsch.

I like Gretsch and Gibson.

Before I owned a Gretsch I had idealized them as the coolest guitars out there. Then I owned one and realized why Gibsons are considered classics.

The idea of owning a Gretsch is cooler than actually owning one in my opinion.

When push comes to shove I'd pick Gibson.

By the way, my P90 equipped Historic 54 goldtop definitely sounded better for old music and rockabilly licks than my White Falcon did. So does my ES-225.

see, I've had about three les pauls over the years, plus a nice 335 and a killer 1967 Epi Riviera, and I don't have any of them anymore. maybe someday I'll try an LP with a fat 50s neck and p-90s and that might do the trick. But the classic Gibson sound just doesn't do it for me.

the Gretsch sound, though -- can't get enough of it lately. Playing a Tennessee Rose with Hilotrons. Amazing sound, plays great, has a bigsby. perfect compliment to a tele. I'd put the les paul down as an extra flavor after you have your tele, strat, gretsch and National bases covered. But that's just me.

Before I owned a Gretsch I had idealized them as the coolest guitars out there. Then I owned one and realized ..the idea of owning a Gretsch is cooler than actually owning one in my opinion.

By the way, my P90 equipped Historic 54 goldtop definitely sounded better for old music and rockabilly licks than my White Falcon did. So does my ES-225.

Ah, a man of truth.

I have a White Falcon and my Casino does rockabilly better than my big, hollow body Gretsch.

My Falcon is a rock guitar. I bought it because of Billy Duffy of The Cult - a solid hard rock band. When I tried some rockabilly licks on my Falcon, it disappointed me. It does it well, but no way as good as my Casino.

Word of advice to this guy looking for Gretsch or Gibson. Don't rely on a guitar manufacturer's reputation. Everyone thinks Gretsch equals rockabilly. You may find there are other manufacturers that can do it just as well or even better.

If you like fat necks, as I do, you pretty much aren't going to find one on a Gretsch. Their neck profiles across the board are more or less similar to the Gibson "60's slim profile". You may like that, I can't stand it.

I have owned a bunch of Gretsches, and a bunch of Gibsons. I still own Gibsons, no Gretsches.

I do like Filtertrons, a lot, so I bought a set of TV Jones filtertrons in a P-90 shape and put them in my SG classic, and put a bigsby on it. It doesn't sound like a Duo Jet, but it sounds great, and it has the fat neck I like.

More Gibsons use Ceramic pickups than Gretsches, so I'm not sure how that's the basis for your comparison.

I agree with you, more Gibsons use ceramic pickups.

Seems like it's pretty split down the middle. Pretty interesting.

And as for everyone needs an LP, I like to think my Encore is a nice close choice. It's as thick or thicker than an SG, unless I'm remembering wrong with the gibson SG I played, and it's all mahogany. 4 pieces, interestingly. 2 for body, one for neck and one for fingerboard.

So, not the classic p90 LP sound, but I like to think it'll at least match a $500 LP. And if I bothered to tear apart the pots and pot them, I think they'd probably be a little better. Not saying that it's overly microphonic, though, since I have to crank my gain all the way to max on my little amp before you can hear me whistling across the strings/pups.

Anyway, surprised at the sudden burst of posts. Always interesting to get a bunch of opinions together on a subject.

wow .... I can't pick between the two...

I own a 1983 Gibson ES 335 and a Gretsch Black Falcon.

Two totally different sounding guitars... I've own my Gibson since 1983 and the Gretsch for 2 years now.

Everyone should have at least one Gibson and Gretsch in their collection.

I will get a White Falcon some day.

If I were looking for Les Paul style, definitely Gibson. Guys like Neil Young and Mike Ness really influence me. For a hollow body, kind of leaning to the Gretsch - Neil again, I suppose.

Faced with the same decision between a Pro Jet or a Les Paul I just went with the Gretsch & love it! I thought that I wanted a Les Paul until I tried the Gretsch & knew I had to have one. I love the sound of those filtertrons.:grin:

Just my 2 cents...

Gibson all day everyday..

Say what you want but atleast Gibson is still made in the U.S.A.

Gibson SG with 57' classics. I'm all set.

I own Gibson's, PRS, Fender CS,......and my true love is my CS Strat....and my next guitar will be a Gretsch Black Falcon played through a Fender Vibro-King or my original non hot rodded Deville. That Gretsch will sing till the cows come home! :)

My Gretsch 6119 Tennessee Rose gets played a LOT more than my 69 Gibson Les Paul. Love the Bigsby on the Gretsch.

I got bad GAS for a Billy Bo Jupitar Thunderbird at te mo so got to say Gretsch.

If you want the THICKEST, most distorted sounds possible, the LP is your friend. If you want the cleanest, clearest, twangiest sounds possible, the Gretsch is your friend.

Point of clarification, Gretsch can get great naturally overdriven sounds, as well.

To OP - I see you are from San Diego: You live in a mecca for great guitar shops (I moved away 2 years ago). Aside from San Diego, you have Truetone Music and Wild West all within a 2 hour driving distance. Get out there and try them out for yourself!

Gibson all day everyday..

Say what you want but atleast Gibson is still made in the U.S.A.

Really doesn't matter one bit where the guitar is made, unless one is focused on buying US only. For me, you get what sets the heart a-beatin' and fingers a-flyin', and if you limit those choices to one country or brand, well, in my book, you are probably missin' a treat.

That said, I own 2 Gretsches, and will be selling some Tele's so I can have a third.

http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e217/tb05/5422red.jpg

I am not a big fan of Les Pauls because they are so mid-range thick. I prefer a lot of twang so of the two, I prefer Gretsch for the twang. However, the Les Paul is brilliant for that thick heavy rock sound if that is what you want. If I ever get another Les Paul it would be a Deluxe with the smaller humbuckers because they do bright and twangy a lot better and still have the sweetness of tone that Les Pauls produce, in my opinion.

Gretsch hands down! Les Pauls are classic guitars for good reason, but EVERYONE and their mother has one, except me, I have a vintage Hagstrom Swede, which in my opinion is THE REAL LES PAUL KILLER. While the body shape of Gretsch Duojets and Gibson Les Pauls are similar sonically they are completely different. The reason I like the Hagstrom Swede, is that while it is more Les Paul like, it has Fender 25 & 1/2" scale and a very unique and stylish headstock not to mention the fact that they sound great. The reissues are very close to the originals and they are reasonably priced.

They'll both sound killer in most situations, and maybe not so much so in others.
Plug either into a cool amp and they are both capable of great tones.
Filtertones are not known for growl, but growl they will when cranked.
I'm pretty sure it boils down to which guitar, when you look down, will make you think, "Now THAT is a cool guitar!"

Point of clarification, Gretsch can get great naturally overdriven sounds, as well.

To OP - I see you are from San Diego: You live in a mecca for great guitar shops (I moved away 2 years ago). Aside from San Diego, you have Truetone Music and Wild West all within a 2 hour driving distance. Get out there and try them out for yourself!

I can hardly manage to get what I already have to sound good, let alone trying to compare a Les Paul and a Gretsch through amps I've never even seen before. I only started playing back last August on a little throwaway kid's guitar and the only song that I can play in any way impressively is House of the Rising Sun.

Also, kinda stuck at home for a bit. Chain jumped the sprocket on my motorcycle and now I'm waiting to get a new one in the mail and a new set of adjusting bolts to replace the 20 year old ones that were just bent to hell. One of them actually sheared off while we were trying to tighten up the chain. Fun times.

One of them actually sheared off while we were trying to tighten up the chain. Fun times.

Did you loosen the axle and whack it with a hammer first?

It didn't occur to my dad until we had already sheared the bolt and I've never actually had to do any work on my motorcycle before so I didn't know what you were supposed to do.

Motorcycles are very unforgiving.
If you screw one up it's much easier to die than with a car.
Put down the vise grips and take it to a qualified mechanic.

Many years ago, I had a '60's Gretsch Tennessean, with painted F holes. In interesting guitar, Bigsby, great fast neck, but it would NOT stay in tune because of the terrible bridge. I could not find parts for it, even from a local Gretsch dealer...they said it was "too old", so the company had no more parts...

Older Gretsch's have a bad rep for literally falling apart-the electronics and bindings disintegrate over time.
I have NO Gretsch guitars now, but I own 3 Gibsons of various kinds, and 2 Epi Dots, which I really love, "cheap guitar" or not.

Also, look for old MIK Samick Artist Series guitars made in the 1990's...they are all over eBay for little money, and are EXTREMELY well made high quality copies of various Fender and Gibson guitars. Samick is teh largest musical instrument maker in the world-they made Epiphones and other "brand" name guitars for other big name companies for many years. These are guitars with their own name on them, and they are excellent instruments, and real bargains. I have 3 of them now.

Mark

I have 4 Les Pauls and 2 SG's. Les Paul is buried 15 miles from my home.

I owned one Gretsch in my life and I couldn't keep it in tune to save my soul. My Gretsch silver sparkle Duo Jet was one of the coolest looking guitars that I ever owned and I couldn't keep it in tune. I like listening to Chet Atkins very much; he is one of my all time favorite guitar players.

I would go Gibson.

I'll keep admiring Gretsch's from afar and I'll play Gibsons.

I'd be willing to bet there are far more Gibson owners on this site than Gretsch. Gretsch's are great but people always seem to underestimate the versatility of a good les paul. Despite what others tell you a les paul can twang.

I bought my Gibson ES137 Custom in 06 and my T-Rose a few months ago. They both play and sound great. But, for build quality and attention to detail the Gretsch wins hands down. I wouldn't want to have to sell either but if push came to shove the Gretsch would be the keeper.

http://i1081.photobucket.com/albums/j356/beachbum47/GRETCH/FMT128.jpg

http://i1081.photobucket.com/albums/j356/beachbum47/GIBSON%20ES137/LP072.jpg

I brought a Jet with DynaSonics to band practice today, first time. After about an hour, I kept thinking, "I should switch it up and play something else." But that guitar just sounded good on EVERYTHING. (Also, despite the moveable bridge and Bigsby, the guitar simply refused to go out of tune.)

A similar thing happened to me at our last show, but it was a 6120 with FilterTrons (TV Jones, to be precise). Kept thinking I should switch it up, but the Gretsch just nailed everything. And my band only plays originals, and the styles are all over the map.

So for me, if I need versatility (who doesn't?), the Gretsch has what it takes.