Are Gibsons worth their price point?

I may indeed be one of those. My '68 Telecaster hasn't been played in years; but my 80's Hohner imitation Telecaser with a misaligned neck and GFS pickups gets played all the time. Maybe if I was recording, it would be different.

 

I've had a Gibson Les Paul, SG, EB (Bass), J-45 and an ES 125.

They were all OK.

I've also had Epiphone 335, Joe Pass, Casino and Century.

They were all OK.

Personally, what I really wonder and question: is anything worth the big $$$$ these daze?

I guess I'm getting old, but so many things seem to be really expensive!

 

I saw that!

 

The day you play a proper Standard/Custom you will never be the same. It's the same guitar all your hero's played ...well my hero's.
If you have played one by now...you already know.

Yes and No.

My Gibby's possess some of the must have tone I crave, but their over-inflated prices today turn me off.
Solution, be diligent and patient...buy used and you will be rewarded by finding one for the right price and your doubts will be history.

 

For me it's hard to find a Les Paul I really like. A former bandmate has a nice Studio from the early 90s, which sounds and plays great. In the last few years I tried severall new Les Pauls of different price ranges, but there was always something wrong with them (muffled sound, crackling hardware, sharp fret edges). I personally prefer the sound and feel of my 1978 Ibanez Musician (which I got very cheap) over the modern Les Pauls I tried (even though I am not a big fan of the Ibanez brand).

 

No thanks needed, happy to straighten things out for you!

Now get off my lawn...

 

I'm not surprised you prefer the Musician Twang...outright a spectacular guitar,. I've owned a few...but in no way a Les Paul tone.

 

That sums up the futility of a question like, "Is X worth Y?". I've never found something I liked, among stuff I don't like. I've never paid too much for something I didn't buy. I've never paid less than I paid. All these questions are just slap happy funny to me.

 

Yes you're right. It's not exactly a Les Paul sound . But with my EQ Pedal a get some nice fake Les Paul sounds, which prevents me from buying an expensive Gibson

 

Twang...in order to not buy a Gibson, try not to play one.
There is a saying, "once bitten"

I have a MC400 that is a work of art and a sonic masterpiece. She's a case queen because she can't make the Gibson sound I want...pedals or not.
Those super 88 pickups are great for other things.

I can't imagine what a Les Paul Standard/Custom costs in Germany.

 

I'm not even sure you need a Fender. My go to guitar is a Thinline tele like with a Warmoth compound radius neck. I like it so much I sold my real Tele. I haven't found much of anything that plays as well as it.

Likewise, when I wanted a semi-hollow I went out and played a bunch of 335s thinking that's what you need. It seemed I liked the way the Ibanez played and sounded better and ended up taking home a 1990's artstar as120. What a great instrument.

Having said that, I did have a mid 70 LP Custom "fretless wonder" that played itself! It weighed a couple of tons too. It was a great heavy rock guitar, the sustain, growl, and very forgiving, but beyond that I didn't get on with it. It didn't seem to matter how hard or soft you hit the sting(s), it sounded the same. Just no attack (compared to a tele/strat).

I think the bottom line is to go with whatever calls to you. It all depends on the sound you want or if you want it for collection. But as far as playability, don't discount some of the copies.

How does the saying go? You play a strat, a LP plays itself, and a tele play you!

 

SG standard may be the best value in guitars. Les Paul standards not so much.

 

Very interesting long thread. I am fighting my way through it. My question is in which era did Gibson make the best guitars in terms of quality (70s or later, the 60s guitars are now way too expensive). What would be the best buy in terms of quality/price ratio?
I know that recent Gibsons are said to be bad. So are there good Gibsons? Which decade is the best?

 

it depends on the individual guitar. Yes there maybe some really bad 70’s ones, but ive played a few Les Pauls from that year that are really good. Played a couple ES-175 and 335 from 80’s and those are great too. ive seen some with minor and major flaws, ive also seen some that are perfect. From consistency standpoint, i have never came across with a bad Gibson from mid 90’s to early 2000’s. But ive only seen like 6 LP’s from that era, mostly LP studios. And they’re well built.

my ES-330 was made Jan 2018 and its a great guitar. Watch videos of the Gibson factory to give you an idea of how they build guitars as well. My Gibson is my very first Gibson, and I actually became a fan of their ES line, but definitely, try before you buy, if you cant, make sure the store has a good return policy.

But if you are itching for one, nothing can scratch that itch like a Gibson.

 

If you have the money! Are they worth it? Your hands will only tell! Keep on pickin!!

 

So generally speaking, 80s and 90s was a good period? 70s not so much? I completely understand, that in every year of production you find some 'meah' ones and some 'perfect' ones.

 

It's not the period, it's the model.

The models changed quite a bit in the 70's. A 70's SG is nothing like a big guard SG which is nothing like a small guard SG. Doesn't mean it's "Low Quality," it's just different and certainly not as easy on the eyes.

You have to decide what guitar you like before you consider what decade of build.

 

Lets say LP standard.

 

Want one like a 50's?(the original Les Paul Standard) You need to go 80's reissue or later depending on how detailed you want to get. Closest in spec being modern custom shops while a 90's Les Paul classic is nothing to scoff at either.


Just the regular "Standard" model since the 80's? That's a grab bag, no better or worse era there IMO, though late 80's Standards tend to be fairly nice while 00's standards have nifty little features like lots of switching options and funky neck carves.


70's Standards are different altogether and you either love'em or don't, different animal.