Mickthemiller Posted May 10, 2016 Share Posted May 10, 2016 I still play mine almost daily. It's the guitar I keep by my side to pick up when there's nothing much on TV or during ad breaks. It's still sounding warm and mellow - on the quiet side compared to some of my other guitars, but I would say the same about my J15 so it must be a slope shoulder thing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spectrum Posted May 10, 2016 Share Posted May 10, 2016 Unbelievable to me you post this today because I thought of the very same question driving to work this morning. It is just about a year now these things started appearing in the world, right? I've had mine about eight months now. I bought it used while shopping for a J-45, and the J-45 I played on that particular day clearly wasn't Gibson's best effort. The original owner had my AJ45ME for one month, and I can't imagine why he or she gave it up. Since acquiring this instrument, I removed the pickguard, the under saddle pickup because I damaged it, and I replaced the nut and saddle with TUSQ XL. The one thing I did to this guitar that seemed to make a significant improvement in sound was slotting the bridge. This guitar's sound was already great most of the time, but it would occasionally sound just a little off. After slotting the bridge this thing sounds loud and shiny every day - over seven months now. Every now and then I go play a J-45, but I haven't found one yet that out-sings this AJ45ME. Since it has no pickup at the moment, I've been thinking what do about it, but this thing is so acoustically magnificent, I don't want to risk messing it up, so I'm considering buying another one just to play out with. Here is some truth. I own sixteen other guitars, and I have seen none of them since September 2015, other than an AJ220s I bought on a whim at Christmas time. The AJ220s is good in its own realm, but its sound is not in the same league as the AJ45ME. I am beyond happy with my AJ45ME, and it is "The One" for me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Irish_Rover Posted May 11, 2016 Share Posted May 11, 2016 I alternate between the AJ-45 and the DR-500MCE on a weekly basis and I always get a small pang of disappointment as I put away whichever guitar I've been playing in in any given week that I won't get to play that particular guitar for seven whole days. To date that's the best system I've come up with to ensure that neither of these excellent guitars gets neglected. They are totally different animals (which is the point of having more than one guitar) and you're right the AJ is a lot quieter. I also find it a lot less forgiving, in that it responds much better to a light touch but seems to lose something when strummed heavily, unlike the dread which I reckon could be strummed with a tennis racket and still sound good. I was convinced that the AJ had a slightly narrower nut width and was amazed to find, according to the spec, that it's actually a fraction wider. I've actually come to like the satin finish, it's much more practical and easy to keep clean, although now, in a certain light, I'm starting to see a bit of a shine develop where my right arm brushes against the body. I'm happy with my AJ-45, which certainly has a mellow, slightly dry tone all of it's own and now I'm going to play it for an hour before it's time to cook dinner. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Irish_Rover Posted May 11, 2016 Share Posted May 11, 2016 Forgot to mention that Epiphone are giving an AJ-45ME away this month, just in case anyone wasn't aware. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AzariahJames Posted May 12, 2016 Share Posted May 12, 2016 I have had it now for almost a year and I am still impressed with its quality and tone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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