Gibson acoustics - I’m addicted..

[Stax1]

So I own a 2014 Bozeman made 1941 J-100. Mahogany jumbo beauty, sunburst without the bling bling of the J200, and a nice banner style logo for reissue cred. I love playing it. And now I want more goodness…

So I recently played a handful of new and used Gibson acoustics to see what I liked, the list:
1 - Mid 1970’s J50 and a late 70’s J50
Both a bit dead sounding to me, was a quick pass.

2 - early 2000’s J160 1964 reissue
My heart wanted to love the J160, and it sounded quite good, but the setup was quite bad so it was a no..

3 - c2013 J45
This was really nice and felt great. It had seen some use and was missing its case though so I didn’t throw any money at it. Definitely a contender.

4 - late 2000’s Advanced jumbo (J45 style)
This was quite nice but it felt quite heavy and the finish felt quite thick. Sustained well but lacked some warmth in its tone.

5 - mid 2000’s J200 natural
This was a really nice J200. The top didn’t look as lustrous as some other J200’s I’ve seen or played. Nice balanced tone with just the right amount of mid-scoop. A definite contender.

6 - 2012 75th anniversary J200
Another beautiful guitar. Everything about this was beautiful to look at. Playing it was quite good and it had that ‘tight’ feeling I love about J200’s strung with 13’s, which makes strumming a very rewarding and dynamic experience. It was a tad on the heavy side though.

7 - 2022 J200 original
Another really nice J200. This one felt good in the hands and had a beautiful light maple top (the nicest looking of them all). It’s tone felt a little thin and subdued though. I’m thinking this is because its brand new and the wood likely has some ageing (drying) to do.

8 - G45
Actually surprisingly good, particularly for the price point. It lacked refinement in its tone but it made me feel like playing it harder, which is a good quality in my eyes. The ‘player port’ doesn’t do much for me. its just distracting if anything..

9 - G-Bird
Similar to the G45, but with a bigger, rounder tone. Richer bass response and longer sustain. Didn’t have the same ‘energy’ that I liked in the G45 though. Again the player port was just weird..

10 - Hummingbird 1960 fixed bridge reissue
This was the standout. I was surprised how good this felt straight off the wall. It felt like I’d picked up a guitar I’d owned for years and always got along with. Super light weight and just a gorgeous tone all up the neck. Almost too easy to play! I didn’t ‘dig in’ much and in hindsight I should have coz I fear it may lack some punch/power when strummed hard.. I think the ‘thermally aged’ top has a lot to do with what I like about this guitar. If not for the ridiculous price tag this would’ve come home with me.

11 - Sigma J200, J100, Hummingbird, J45, and Dove styles
Capturing all these in one line as I only tried them quickly. Overall the Sigma Gibson flavours are amazing for the money. Some are better than the G series Gibson in my opinion. Standout was the J200 and the Dove style, but the J100 style with its thinner finish probably would’ve been the purchase if I’d been wanting a cheaper guitar on the day. It just felt nice and had a great, even tone.



So has anyone here had similar/differing experiences with these Gibson? Keen to hear others’ opinions of the Fixed bridge Hummingbirds!

 

[brookdalebill]

Play a few more Advanced Jumbo Reissues.
They vary a lot.
The eatlier ones with the long saddle sound better, IMO.

 

[Stax1]

I love the look of the new 1960’s J45 with the black finish and white scratch plate. Would be keen to try some of those!

 

[Boreas]

Unfortunately, no one around my area stocks more than a couple at a time. The retailers aren't very happy about dealing with Gibson's distribution network.

But I can't say I ever played a Gibson that didn't play/sound well. Fit & finish has been erratic. I have a mid-50s LG-1, a Bozeman J-45, and have owned a 1960 ES-125T and an L-1 reissue built by Ren Ferguson. All stellar players, except the pickup in the ES was kinda wimpy.

 

[loudboy]

I have a Nashville J-100 w/the maple back and side. A real sleeper, in the world of acoustic guitars.

Looks like this one:

 

[Stax1]

I posted this pic in a thread I started when searching for a J200, and landed on the J100.

 

[Esquire Jones]

A few years ago I went looking for my "perfect" acoustic guitar and ended up with some cool Martins.

Authentic 37 and Golden Era 1934 D18's and old D28's. Go figure.

But there was one oddball Gibson that still haunts me today. I loved it.

It was Gibson Songwriter with the super ugly (IMO) cutaway. I hate cutaways. Hate them.

Anyway, the thing just sang and really spoke to me. I wish I had bought it.

 

[Stax1]

I’m also not a fan of cutaways on acoustics.. I just don’t need one for what I play and I’d prefer more ‘guitar’ to resonate.. Probably doesn’t make much difference…

I love that you went looking for a perfect guitar and ended up with several.

 

[Esquire Jones]

The acoustic guitar black hole can be much worse than the electric black hole.

I really geeked out on it. In fact, I pretty much stopped playing electric guitar during that time. Years, actually.

But I'm back playing electrics and loving it. Mostly Tele and Les Paul.

I'd still love to find a keeper Gibson acoustic. Maybe a J45, Jumbo, not sure...I generally love the Gibson necks.

It's hard to beat a good D18 or D28, though. They fill a lot of "space".

 

[knavel]

The guitar my brother and I learned on was our older brother's J-50. It had to have been something 60s. The practice back then was eldest brother would sell one guitar to get his next one. So off the J-50 went in favor of a 60s Telecaster. I wish I knew the year. But the die was cast.

A decade later, circa 1991 the same brother showed up with a Gibson that instantly I knew was awesome but I could never understand why the neck was so wide. It said "Roy Smeck Stage Deluxe" on the headstock. It was only partially converted from Hawaiian and he lives too far from me now to be able to push finishing the conversion. Too bad because it would be the one to rule them all if so.

Moving along, I have found it easier to get the right Martin soundwise, but I never have liked Martin so much to hold and for recording not at all. The upshot of federal government's targeting of Gibson for partisan purposes a decade ago put me on a march to Gibson.

I haven't gone "wow" with any current J-45 I've played. I got a black one for the head of my company a couple of years ago but I discovered an inside crack at the base from poor shipping packaging so back it went. I felt it was fortunate that he had this option since the sound was "meh".

The objective became the SJ-200 VOS with rosewood back and sides rather than maple. My brother actually got one on "worst condition" open box and with MF 10% off. It is mint and he got the deal of the century. It's the one...for him.

I don't think I'll ever be able to top my own favorite Gibson, which doesn't even say "Gibson" although the neck profile to the standards of in its day (1961) is somewhat thin and likely not to everyone's taste. It is so loud my children have complained about it (!) and it records great. Since the time of this photo I've restored classic plastic button Kluson type inline tuners. The heir of my brother's J-50 that I first struggled with the opening chords to "Lola" on:

1961 Epiphone Texan.

 

[Geoff738]

J185s are worthy of consideration too. I’ve never played a 50s one, but I don’t have that budget either. They seem to come and go from the lineup. Not sure if they’re currently making them.

Cheers,
Geoff

 

[Gsweng]

So I own a 2014 Bozeman made 1941 J-100. Mahogany jumbo beauty, sunburst without the bling bling of the J200, and a nice banner style logo for reissue cred. I love playing it. And now I want more goodness…

So I recently played a handful of new and used Gibson acoustics to see what I liked, the list:
1 - Mid 1970’s J50 and a late 70’s J50
Both a bit dead sounding to me, was a quick pass.

2 - early 2000’s J160 1964 reissue
My heart wanted to love the J160, and it sounded quite good, but the setup was quite bad so it was a no..

3 - c2013 J45
This was really nice and felt great. It had seen some use and was missing its case though so I didn’t throw any money at it. Definitely a contender.

4 - late 2000’s Advanced jumbo (J45 style)
This was quite nice but it felt quite heavy and the finish felt quite thick. Sustained well but lacked some warmth in its tone.

5 - mid 2000’s J200 natural
This was a really nice J200. The top didn’t look as lustrous as some other J200’s I’ve seen or played. Nice balanced tone with just the right amount of mid-scoop. A definite contender.

6 - 2012 75th anniversary J200
Another beautiful guitar. Everything about this was beautiful to look at. Playing it was quite good and it had that ‘tight’ feeling I love about J200’s strung with 13’s, which makes strumming a very rewarding and dynamic experience. It was a tad on the heavy side though.

7 - 2022 J200 original
Another really nice J200. This one felt good in the hands and had a beautiful light maple top (the nicest looking of them all). It’s tone felt a little thin and subdued though. I’m thinking this is because its brand new and the wood likely has some ageing (drying) to do.

8 - G45
Actually surprisingly good, particularly for the price point. It lacked refinement in its tone but it made me feel like playing it harder, which is a good quality in my eyes. The ‘player port’ doesn’t do much for me. its just distracting if anything..

9 - G-Bird
Similar to the G45, but with a bigger, rounder tone. Richer bass response and longer sustain. Didn’t have the same ‘energy’ that I liked in the G45 though. Again the player port was just weird..

10 - Hummingbird 1960 fixed bridge reissue
This was the standout. I was surprised how good this felt straight off the wall. It felt like I’d picked up a guitar I’d owned for years and always got along with. Super light weight and just a gorgeous tone all up the neck. Almost too easy to play! I didn’t ‘dig in’ much and in hindsight I should have coz I fear it may lack some punch/power when strummed hard.. I think the ‘thermally aged’ top has a lot to do with what I like about this guitar. If not for the ridiculous price tag this would’ve come home with me.

11 - Sigma J200, J100, Hummingbird, J45, and Dove styles
Capturing all these in one line as I only tried them quickly. Overall the Sigma Gibson flavours are amazing for the money. Some are better than the G series Gibson in my opinion. Standout was the J200 and the Dove style, but the J100 style with its thinner finish probably would’ve been the purchase if I’d been wanting a cheaper guitar on the day. It just felt nice and had a great, even tone.



So has anyone here had similar/differing experiences with these Gibson? Keen to hear others’ opinions of the Fixed bridge Hummingbirds!

Nice list. Some other Gibsons you might try for excellent sound, good volume and good playability. The Songwriter in spruce and rosewood. Plays so smooth, even across the strings, good bass and a chimer to the treble. The newer Hummingbird Studio in spruce and walnut. Again, very nice. Also, the older Songbird. Kind of a predessor to the Songwriter. Mine is spruce and mahogany I believe. Very nice sounding and playing. I’ve also got the 70s MK-35. This gets a bad rap but I like it a lot. It does sound different than a regular Gibson but I think in a good way.

 

[Gsweng]

The guitar my brother and I learned on was our older brother's J-50. It had to have been something 60s. The practice back then was eldest brother would sell one guitar to get his next one. So off the J-50 went in favor of a 60s Telecaster. I wish I knew the year. But the die was cast.

A decade later, circa 1991 the same brother showed up with a Gibson that instantly I knew was awesome but I could never understand why the neck was so wide. It said "Roy Smeck Stage Deluxe" on the headstock. It was only partially converted from Hawaiian and he lives too far from me now to be able to push finishing the conversion. Too bad because it would be the one to rule them all if so.
View attachment 1090259

Moving along, I have found it easier to get the right Martin soundwise, but I never have liked Martin so much to hold and for recording not at all. The upshot of federal government's targeting of Gibson for partisan purposes a decade ago put me on a march to Gibson.

I haven't gone "wow" with any current J-45 I've played. I got a black one for the head of my company a couple of years ago but I discovered an inside crack at the base from poor shipping packaging so back it went. I felt it was fortunate that he had this option since the sound was "meh".

The objective became the SJ-200 VOS with rosewood back and sides rather than maple. My brother actually got one on "worst condition" open box and with MF 10% off. It is mint and he got the deal of the century. It's the one...for him.

I don't think I'll ever be able to top my own favorite Gibson, which doesn't even say "Gibson" although the neck profile to the standards of in its day (1961) is somewhat thin and likely not to everyone's taste. It is so loud my children have complained about it (!) and it records great. Since the time of this photo I've restored classic plastic button Kluson type inline tuners. The heir of my brother's J-50 that I first struggled with the opening chords to "Lola" on:
View attachment 1090256

1961 Epiphone Texan.

Hey, the Texans were awesome guitars in their own right. Very nice. I’ve got the Frampton Reissue one. It’s not bad and sounds good but it just feels a little heavy and over built. I do have a 1966 ft-45 Cortez that’s really nice but has the plastic bridge. It’s still in good shape so I’m just leaving it stock. Also have a 1965 ft-30 Caballero. Here I’m converting the plastic bridge to fixed rosewood, and some other work. Hopefully, it will be a good player when I’m done.

 

[USian Pie]

I just bought a J-45 Studio Rosewood.

It's the only acoustic I ever played that I could play better on than my Taylor 414CE. The neck dimensions and overall feel are like it was made just for me. When I use different right hand attacks, it knows what I'm trying to do and brings it out. I swear it feels like I'm cheating when I play it -- like somebody put the guitar in "easy" mode.

I really didn't want to get it. I have enough guitars to make the sounds I want and then some. I get anxious at the thought of spending the kind of money nice acoustic guitars command these days.

I tried several other guitars trying to convince myself the Gibson wasn't anything special. But, in the end, it was.

 

[Chud]

Yep, just updated my NGD thread from 5 years ago. Still does it for me. Next is a Southern Jumbo.

NGJ100D - A bit windy inside...

Long windy, that is. ;-) About 15 years ago I bought a gorgeous Gibson J-100 Xtra super jumbo body acoustic guitar. Completely blond maple/sitka front, back and sides. Beautiful flame everywhere. It was pretty simply ornamented, dot inlays and plain rosette, but it was gorgeous and played like...

www.tdpri.com

 

[Unionjack515]

I only own one, a J200 with koa back and sides. I have owned Gibson and Collings SJs in standard maple back/sides fare and continue to be surprised every day by how much nicer sounding the koa seems to make this body shape. The maple is really really really bright. Sure that huge shape “compensates” with the big bottom end but to my ears those two ends of the spectrum don’t really complement each other. The warmth and roundness the koa brings is just perfect. Instead of being this thing with two big balls of frequency on the ends of spectrum, it’s more blended from one end to the other, but if you dig in you get plenty of definition out of both the top and bottom ends.

 

[Stax1]

EPI Texan looks tasty, nice story re the J50 there too!

J185 is something I’ve never tried - heard good things though.

I have played some Songwriters a few years ago. There was one that I really liked, but there was just something a bit ‘plain Jane’ about them all.. The J100 I ended up with was where I landed.

The J45 RW looks nice too. Do these have the slimmer body like the G45’s?

 

[Stax1]

J200 Koa would be interesting! Koa seems to get a good wrap on guitars in general. It’s Hawaiian - what could be bad about that!?

I hear you on the tonal ‘balls’ that maple jumbos have. On the right guitar, in the right hands, this can sound superb though. To me it comes down to how it sits with my vocals.. Does it compete or stay out of the way etc..

The maple J100 Xtras are very nice. I’ve not played one but have seen a couple in the past. They’re not common here in Australia..

 

[sloppychops]

I love the look of the new 1960’s J45 with the black finish and white scratch plate. Would be keen to try some of those!

Same here!

 

[USian Pie]

The J45 RW looks nice too. Do these have the slimmer body like the G45’s?

Yes and I think that's one of the reasons it feels so good and why the sound appeals to me. I have a Martin HD35 that sounds like a beautiful velvet hammer but it swallows me up when I put it on.

The traditional J45s in the store had more low-mid. I think that's something a lot of people like about that body shape. For me, though, the slim rosewood body is more responsive and projects really well. I fingerpick using the flesh on my fingertips and it just works with this guitar.