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J35 Review


drathbun

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A good friend of mine came to me for help in purchasing a new guitar. He's been taking lessons and has been playing an old asian Hummingbird knock off.

 

I gave him the usual run down about solid woods vs laminates and "stepping stone" guitars. We went to L&M together yesterday and narrowed his choices down to three guitars;

 

(Canadian dollars)

Martin GPCRSGT $1299

Taylor 214ce $1399

Gibson J35 $1749 (special price.. regularly $1849)

 

The Martin is all solid woods (sapele b/s, spruce top). The Taylor has laminate back and sides and solid spruce top. The Gibson is, of course, all solid.

 

I had not paid much attention to the J35 when it reappeared in 2013. I always considered it a "poor man's" J45. After having played a rented J45 all summer while I was in Ontario, I picked up the J35 yesterday in the store. I was stunned by its increbile tone and lightness. A former sales colleague of mine (I retired from L&M last spring), and I A/B'd the J45 and the J35 and tried to figure out why the $1000 price difference. There was NOTHING we could point to for the difference. They are the same woods, shape and construction. The tuners are slightly different and the bridge on the J35 is an old style rectangular bridge as compared to the J45's belly up bridge. Everything else is the same... nut and saddle materials etc.

 

Once home, I looked through various reviews and found this comparison of the J45 and the J35 by Tony Policastro of Acoustic Letter. He obviously walked down the road to the Bozeman factory (the Acoustic Letter are in Bozeman too) and borrowed a couple of J45/J35 tops and the comparison shows what I think is the major tone difference in the two guitars. The J35 has the advance jumbo bracing pattern. Nowhere does Gibson tell you this. I'm sure this has been discussed in this forum before, but, as I say, I had not paid much attention to this guitar. Well I do now! What a great guitar for a great price!!

 

My friend thought about it overnight and is going down to make his selection between the three this afternoon. Needless to say I'm pushing him towards the Gibson as I think it is an incredible deal for an outstanding guitar.

 

Here is the comparison YouTube video:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ePmR2WMUMk

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A good friend of mine came to me for help in purchasing a new guitar. He's been taking lessons and has been playing an old asian Hummingbird knock off.

 

I gave him the usual run down about solid woods vs laminates and "stepping stone" guitars. We went to L&M together yesterday and narrowed his choices down to three guitars;

 

(Canadian dollars)

Martin GPCRSGT $1299

Taylor 214ce $1399

Gibson J35 $1749 (special price.. regularly $1849)

 

The Martin is all solid woods (sapele b/s, spruce top). The Taylor has laminate back and sides and solid spruce top. The Gibson is, of course, all solid.

 

I had not paid much attention to the J35 when it reappeared in 2013. I always considered it a "poor man's" J45. After having played a rented J45 all summer while I was in Ontario, I picked up the J35 yesterday in the store. I was stunned by its increbile tone and lightness. A former sales colleague of mine (I retired from L&M last spring), and I A/B'd the J45 and the J35 and tried to figure out why the $1000 price difference. There was NOTHING we could point to for the difference. They are the same woods, shape and construction. The tuners are slightly different and the bridge on the J35 is an old style rectangular bridge as compared to the J45's belly up bridge. Everything else is the same... nut and saddle materials etc.

 

Once home, I looked through various reviews and found this comparison of the J45 and the J35 by Tony Policastro of Acoustic Letter. He obviously walked down the road to the Bozeman factory (the Acoustic Letter are in Bozeman too) and borrowed a couple of J45/J35 tops and the comparison shows what I think is the major tone difference in the two guitars. The J35 has the advance jumbo bracing pattern. Nowhere does Gibson tell you this. I'm sure this has been discussed in this forum before, but, as I say, I had not paid much attention to this guitar. Well I do now! What a great guitar for a great price!!

 

My friend thought about it overnight and is going down to make his selection between the three this afternoon. Needless to say I'm pushing him towards the Gibson as I think it is an incredible deal for an outstanding guitar.

 

Here is the comparison YouTube video:

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ePmR2WMUMk

There's one big difference for me in that the J-35 has a rounded neck profile and the J-45 has a slim taper.

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The J35 is a great guitar and certainly different from a J45. I have a Southern Jumbo and a J15 (also a great guitar..get him to try one of those if possible), so I wasn't really looking for another slope shoulder Gibson. However I got the J35 for a great price so could not resist.

 

Gibson do actually state on their website it has 1930's advanced X bracing. I guess that maybe a bit vague. My understanding however it's the same bracing as the Advance Jumbo forward shifted to allow the bridge to be positioned for the shorter scale length.

 

The neck profile is a little thicker than both my other slopes but nothing thats uncomfortable.

 

I have a feeling it will really sound great once it opens out a bit. The J15 has improved so much since I purchased it.

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Well he went to the store today and went back and forth between the Gibson and the Martin and chose the Martin. He felt it fit his hand better and was more comfortable playing it. The good news is that he has a fine new guitar and he is learning, playing and enjoying himself. I suspect he will have further guitars in his future as I have introduced him to the world of GAS! [biggrin]

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I'm really not sure you can compare a J-35 to a Martin and a Taylor. They all have distinctive sounds, and those sounds are dissimilar.

 

That said, the J-35 I bought this summer is a stunning guitar. I've really been happy with it, and it does many things well. Gigged with it a couple of times this summer and it was a fine companion. I've been a happy Gibson owner in the past, but I've also had my concerns about the company and some of its choices. But I really think Gibson has a winner with the J-35.

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I'm really not sure you can compare a J-35 to a Martin and a Taylor. They all have distinctive sounds, and those sounds are dissimilar.

 

That said, the J-35 I bought this summer is a stunning guitar. I've really been happy with it, and it does many things well. Gigged with it a couple of times this summer and it was a fine companion. I've been a happy Gibson owner in the past, but I've also had my concerns about the company and some of its choices. But I really think Gibson has a winner with the J-35.

 

That's the whole point of comparing dhanners! [biggrin] Unless you are comparing one Gibson to another (J45 to J35) where you are grading two slightly different apples, you will always be comparing apples to oranges. That's what people do when they shop for guitars; in their price range, compare a Gibson to a Taylor to a Martin to a Yamaha to a Seagull etc etc.

 

Of course, if I were making the comparison, I would have come away with the Gibson hands down over both the the other guitars. That J35 was sweeeeet!

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That's the whole point of comparing dhanners! [biggrin] Unless you are comparing one Gibson to another (J45 to J35) where you are grading two slightly different apples, you will always be comparing apples to oranges. That's what people do when they shop for guitars; in their price range, compare a Gibson to a Taylor to a Martin to a Yamaha to a Seagull etc etc.

 

Of course, if I were making the comparison, I would have come away with the Gibson hands down over both the the other guitars. That J35 was sweeeeet!

 

I was assuming your friend knew what kind of "sound" he/she wanted because there's a Gibson sound, there's a Martin sound and there's a Taylor sound. Although a manufacturer may make guitars with different body styles, their instruments will tend to have a distinctive voice. There's a reason (aside from aesthetics and tradition) you don't find many bluegrass players playing a Taylor. There's a reason Americana singer-songwriters gravitate towards Gibsons. If someone can tell me a good reason people play Taylors, I'm all ears. They have never done anything for me.

 

While comparing guitars is never a bad thing, I would hope your friend knows the sound he/she wants. That's why a comparison between three distinct manufacturers seemed peculiar to me.

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...That's what people do when they shop for guitars; in their price range, compare a Gibson to a Taylor to a Martin to a Yamaha to a Seagull etc etc.

 

Yeah but your friend was up close to two grand on the Gibson and down by 1200 on the Martin, and getting Sapelle. Up at the Gibson retail for that J-35 CFMartin has some pretty schwanky real wood guitars, just like Gibson. That was what I found wrong with the whole exercise. For J35 comparisons I would have definitely had at least the MMV Dread and Sustainable Wood dread against it. Few others, different sizes too. Lots to be had up there at 2k.

 

rct

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Well he went to the store today and went back and forth between the Gibson and the Martin and chose the Martin. He felt it fit his hand better and was more comfortable playing it. The good news is that he has a fine new guitar and he is learning, playing and enjoying himself. I suspect he will have further guitars in his future as I have introduced him to the world of GAS! [biggrin]

Hey, tell him congrats !!!!! As one posted " a step up "!

I know he will start hearing things, he has never heard, and will stay with it and continue on !

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My friend is an absolute beginner. He has been taking lessons only for a few months and has been playing a "Mansfield" Hummingbird copy. He doesn't know what "sound" he is looking for. He just narrowed it down to three guitars and picked the one that was the most comfortable and fit his budget. He'll be well served by the Martin I have no doubt. The best part is, he's playing!! There will be other guitars in his future I'm sure.

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  • 3 months later...

The J-35 will start to gravitate towards the higher end of the spectrum soon enough as with the J-45 that took off like a rocket right from the start. You have to remember that it was the J-35 that really started the model range. Long running for the J-45, all the more reason why it commanded the price it is now. The J-35 will catch up soon enough.

 

I luv the sexiness of the au' naturel of the J-35....I was torn at one time which Gibby acoustic I will end up, although I did have an old Hummingbird that got nicked in the late 70's. That was the last I had played a Gibson acoustic.

 

My 2013 has opened up quite responsively with a shimmer of the overtones that we all look and wait for, I can only imagine how this baby will sound in 5-10-15-20 years from now.

 

Proud Owner here! Gibson has a winner here....

 

Peace!

Trans

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I'm really not sure you can compare a J-35 to a Martin and a Taylor. They all have distinctive sounds, and those sounds are dissimilar.

 

That said, the J-35 I bought this summer is a stunning guitar. I've really been happy with it, and it does many things well. Gigged with it a couple of times this summer and it was a fine companion. I've been a happy Gibson owner in the past, but I've also had my concerns about the company and some of its choices. But I really think Gibson has a winner with the J-35.

 

Of course you can compare a Gibson to a Martin to a Taylor. It's exactly what the OP's buddy did, and took home the guitar that he thought was the best for him. People compare these three brands side by side every day. You may like J35's, and others don't. I have played a couple J35's and never could get into them all that much. I prefer an AJ over either a J45 or J35.

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I have a Ren's J-35 1930's reissue which has a MONSTER top bracing: three unscalloped tone bars ! ](*,)

 

I'm finding that the best sounding "newer" Gibsons are from the Ren era. I have a 2012 AJ that is my favorite guitar hands down. Had a 2012 SJ200 that I should have never sold, and most current Gibsons I pick up just aren't on the same level. Most new J45's I pick up feel like boat anchors compared to my AJ.

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If I were to buy my first "real" guitar, the J-35 would be my first choice. It has the great and classic Gibson tone, athough a somewhat brighter version of it compared to a J-45. The 35 is a little snappier and janglier than the 45, at least that is how I hear it. A very nice tone, indeed.

 

I also like the vintage styling of the 35, with the Banner logo (although no original J-35s from the 30's had Banner logos), the firestripe guard, the rectangular bridge etc

 

A very good value, I believe.

 

Lars

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Lighter guitars from Electric to acoustic seems to be the better tone resonating sustaining sound.

 

The J35 is light enough to when you hold it feels really fragile and can crack to any sudden accidental movement, although they very solid player.

 

The bloomed opened sound on this 2013 just kills me over the other acoustic I have tried within the price and model range.

 

String type and gauges will play a role besides the other parts you can either replace or leave be ( nut-saddle-bridge pin )

 

I have only replaced the bridge pins with TusQ so far and will leave the rest be. String gauge will be standard size 12-53.

 

Will this acoustic surpass the J45? maybe ? maybe not! Who knows! but since the Re-Issue of this model in 2013? I have a feeling it will stick around for quite sometime.

 

Peace!

 

Trans

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Lighter guitars from Electric to acoustic seems to be the better tone resonating sustaining sound.

 

The J35 is light enough to when you hold it feels really fragile and can crack to any sudden accidental movement, although they very solid player.

 

The bloomed opened sound on this 2013 just kills me over the other acoustic I have tried within the price and model range.

 

String type and gauges will play a role besides the other parts you can either replace or leave be ( nut-saddle-bridge pin )

 

I have only replaced the bridge pins with TusQ so far and will leave the rest be. String gauge will be standard size 12-53.

 

Will this acoustic surpass the J45? maybe ? maybe not! Who knows! but since the Re-Issue of this model in 2013? I have a feeling it will stick around for quite sometime.

 

Peace!

 

Trans

This is kind of a digression, but I'm not much of a Tusq fan - all I've experienced with Tusq, nuts and saddles and pins and adjustable saddle replacements, has been a disappointing muting effect. The thing I've come to really appreciate, courtesy of input from members here on the forum, is ebony bridge pins. Some years ago, a friend was having a slow beginning to his career as a luthier, and one of his projects to generate a little cash flow was making ebony bridge pins. I bought a few sets to help him out and put them aside where I eventually forgot about them. So after reading about the virtues of ebony here, I managed to find and try them. All I can say is - oops - these have been a well-kept secret since the early 1970s😨 They haven't, for example, changed my 1955 J-45, but it's more of all things a J-45 should be since I installed the ebony pins. Funny how stuff like that eventually catches up with us, or maybe how long it takes us to catch up with it😒

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