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J45 Questions.

Victory Pete

By Victory Pete
in Gibson Acoustic

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MorrisrownSal

MorrisrownSal

Posted
Posted

Your question is a mouthful!!!!!!!

 

You gotsts to play them to understand these vast generalizations that you may or may not feel when you do.... but here goes. In the interest of brevity:

 

 

Most Martins Long scale Most Gibsons (including J45) short scale... 25.4" vs 24.75"

 

1 11/16 nut vs 1 23/32 nut.

 

 

Gibsons crisper - more balanced. More jangly.

 

Martins lush and warm... more bass and boom.

 

Mahogany zing rosewood warm.

 

Martin Bluegrass. Gibson Singer-songwriter.

 

Martin overtoney and pretty and lush. Gibson J45 3 packs a day Marlboro Red throaty and growly.

 

Really good to have both! The J45 is an excellent and possibly essential complement to a Martin rosewood dread.

 

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Pittgibson45

Pittgibson45

Posted
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Pete,

What Sal said was right on. The thing I would add is: that short scale he mentioned means reduced string tension. This plays a big role in shaping the difference in the tone of Martin vs Gibson. Not the only thing of course, but a big part of it. I'm not sure if round shoulder vs square shoulder is more or less of a difference maker than scale length. I think scale would be the bigger of the two.

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mking

mking

Posted
Posted

Your question is a mouthful!!!!!!!

 

You gotsts to play them to understand these vast generalizations that you may or may not feel when you do.... but here goes. In the interest of brevity:

 

 

Most Martins Long scale Most Gibsons (including J45) short scale... 25.4" vs 24.75"

 

1 11/16 nut vs 1 23/32 nut.

 

 

Gibsons crisper - more balanced. More jangly.

 

Martins lush and warm... more bass and boom.

 

Mahogany zing rosewood warm.

 

Martin Bluegrass. Gibson Singer-songwriter.

 

Martin overtoney and pretty and lush. Gibson J45 3 packs a day Marlboro Red throaty and growly.

 

Really good to have both! The J45 is an excellent and possibly essential complement to a Martin rosewood dread.

 

 

The bottom line up front is that this fellow hit the nail on the head for you all in one great post!

 

I have a 1999 Martin HD-28V, I have had it for a number of years. Then I started getting into Americana folk/singer songwriter type stuff and saw all the J-45 guitars being used. I bought a mint 2007 J-45TV (Sitka top) on eBay and what a wonderful thing it is!! I still have the Martin, it gets played but not nearly as much as my J-45. It is my main, go to guitar. You will be surprised at how light they are and the tone separation of the mahogany. Get one, and I recommend the J-45TV

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  • 2 weeks later...
Victory Pete

Victory Pete

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I had no idea I had gotten these replies. I never got an e-mail notification despite being set up to get them. Thanks for all the help. I bought this J-45: http://www.musiciansfriend.com/guitars/gibson-2016-j-45-custom-slope-shoulder-dreadnought-acoustic-electric-guitar#productDetail I love it. It compliments my HD-28 very nicely. The Martin is loud and chunky, perfect for Neil Young style strumming, and the J-45 is more balanced and refined, perfect for fingerstyle and strumming. I was surprised to see the J-45 is actually bigger at the bottom waist and taller at the neck joint. I can see how the lower string tension produces a more rounded and gentle strumming experience. Visually it is simply stunning without being too fancy. I am glad I went with rosewood as I don't like the midrange of the standard, I went to the local Guitar Center to try them. They didn't have a rosewood one though to try so I had hoped it would be to my linking when I ordered it online. It has exceeded my expectations.

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Bozz

Bozz

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Congratulations, Pete. The J-45 Custom is a wonderful guitar. It has just the right amount of bling and yours looks like a beauty. I have one and enjoy its volume and warm tone. I also have a hog version, which is much lighter and a total different beast in both feel and tone. Enjoy!

 

Bozz

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dhanners623

dhanners623

Posted
Posted

Glad you like the guitar. And while I am late to the party, Sal was right on, but....

 

A Gibson can be used for bluegrass just fine. It's just that over the years, Martins became identified with the genre. But when Bill and Charlie Monroe were starting out, Charlie played Gibsons. There were plenty of the original bluegrass players playing them, and there are plenty using them today, like David Peterson & 1946:

 

Russ Barenburg's bluegrass doesn't seem to suffer from being played on a Gibson, either:

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MissouriPicker

MissouriPicker

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Posted

Congrats on your j45. Not only a "mandatory guitar" if you're truly living-and-breathing acoustics, but the J45 might be about the best around for folk music. It's simply a warm and sweet-sounding instrument. You made an excellent choice. Nothing wrong with your Martin either. ...Incidentally, saw a pretty little gal playing a J45 last night at an Applebee's in Wisconsin Dells (we're on vacation). KInd of a not-too-warm evening and she was out on the patio. There were only about a dozen people there (including 6 of us) and she did not plug-in, yet there was still plenty of volume from the guitar. She played just with her fingers. Soft and easy-going Eagles tunes mostly. The guitar was a good advertisement for Gibson.

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SmokeyGhost

SmokeyGhost

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I have to agree the J-45 is a wonderful instrument. I own a 2011 J-45TV as well as a Martin GPCPA4 and I delight in playing either of them. My worthless opinion is either of them are suitable for whichever genre one cares to play. Then again, I could say that about my Cole Clarke FL3AC, Matons, Seagull S6 Original, Tanglewood TW47E and numerous other acoustics. In fact, I did just say that!

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OldCowboy

OldCowboy

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Speaking of genre, I agree fully that bluegrass could be/has been/is being very effectively played on Gibson guitars. There's a stereotyped preference for Martins within the bluegrass community that deters a lot of players who want to fit in and be accepted from using anything else. I went through a Martin interval during the 1980's and came to the conclusion that both Martins and Gibsons are a lot more versatile than either is credited for being. The player can make as much difference as the guitar.

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dickie

dickie

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I have had a similar J45 custom for a couple of years or more now. It plays, sounds and records beautifully. I have never for a moment regretted getting it. As you say, stunning to look at without being over the top, a joy to own :)

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gfa

gfa

Posted
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Congrats! I also have a J-45 (2016 Vintage) and a Martin (HD-28VS). It's great to have the variety/choice. I do find the Martin to be better suited for bluegrass(ish) rhythm guitar, but the differences are not huge. A good enough player (not me, at least not yet) will make either guitar sound great in any genre. Enjoy yourself!

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fortyearspickn

fortyearspickn

Posted
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I think you can declare "Victory", Pete ! Congrats - a real beauty. Of course, I'm biased - since I have the same guitar in Koa. I predict your Martin will become jealous as you'll be grabbing your Gibson twice as often. Another 'home run' by Gibson - the J45Custom takes an icon, dresses it up a little, but not too much, makes it more comfortable to play, and adds the zing of a new tone wood. I love mine to death. Thinking of having it buried with me if I die. G'Luck !

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  • 2 weeks later...
Victory Pete

Victory Pete

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Thanks for all the responses. Once again I never got any e-mail notifications to these replies. I cant believe it has been almost 3 weeks since I have been here, time sure does fly. I have been obsessing about something. I have noticed the bridge pins are quite a bit further away from the saddles compared to some Gibson guitars. My Martin's pins are very close to the saddle. I looked at J-45s from many different years and they don’t seem to be as far away as mine. This reduces the strings angle over the saddle and reduces the overall volume of a guitar. I am very curious as to why they have started to make bridges this way. Although this guitar has a very nice tone, I can’t help but think the pins should have been closer to the saddle for more volume.

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Victory Pete

Victory Pete

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Gibson.

 

There's method to the madness...

 

I hope so. I have a theory: Because this J-45 Custom has scalloped braces I wonder if they have intentionally moved the pins back to reduce the twisting effect that is imparted on the top of the guitar from the string tension pulling on the saddle and the bridge. My HD-28 has very close pins and about 10 years ago my bridge started to separate at the back from the top bellying up. Martin fixed it under warranty. The local Martin Service Luthier lifted it and re-glued it. He also shaved it at an angle in such a way that it now sits flat to the plane of the neck, very good job indeed. So I suppose Gibson has reduced this effect as a trade off with the scalloped braces. If I look at my guitar's top in certain light angles I can already see a lot of deflection in the sound board, a characteristic of a lively top. It seems J-45's didn't typically have scalloped braces so this may be a modern design. I have noticed the oldest J-45 bridge like this seems to be 1996. I have noticed that if a new Gibson acoustic has scalloped braces it also has this strange new bridge geometry. Just a thought.

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58 Relic

58 Relic

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Posted

Congratulations, This last year almost to the day since I bought my J45 Standard has been without doubt my best " guitar year " the tone and playability of the guitar never ceases to amaze . Have a great time enjoying a true icon

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