Gibson Has Serious Quality Control Issues AGAIN !

[Megafrog]

 

I was sooo turned off, like everyone else, by the 2014-2015 Quality disasters.

 

I kind of agree with you that the 2014 models had some quality issues having owned 5 of them but the 2015 models were substantially higher quality than most Gibson years from my experience owning 13 models from 2015. What are you basing your opinion on? Just because you didn’t like the tuners doesn’t mean the quality is bad.

Edited June 16, 2018 by Megafrog

[merciful-evans]

This a LATE reply but one that will point out what you ask: Play a GIBSON Les Paul Studio FADED model, UNPLUGGED, and then play a Les Paul STANDARD, UNPLUGGED (or an 'SG' , EXPLORER, FLYIN' V, FIREBIRD )....You will hear a GREAT differerence in the sound of the two guitars, so much of a difference that you will begin to despise the POS 'FADED'. It may very well be GIBSON USA's greatest feat is getting a $900 Guitar, made from grade 'C' or worse woods, to sound ALMOST as good as a $3,000 Guitar when they are both plugged into the same AMP.......AHHH, BUT when un-plugged, it does become obviously apparent that the SIGNIFICANT difference's in the quality of the WOOD are severe....and that the difference is staggerring. Moving into the Semi-Hollow and CUSTOM series offerrings the difference gets even bigger....QUALITY DOES NOT COME CHEAPLY or from cheap woods.

 

Woods are always sourced in terms of what is available. It was like that 70 years ago and its like that now. In that sense 'cheap' just reflects what was easier to source at the time. It need not have any special relevance to the sound of the guitar. Mahogany, alder, basswood, maple; all these woods can sound wonderful. The important thing is the the woods are properly seasoned. Even that is only important in terms of stability rather than sound.

 

Playing solidbodies unplugged is something I do a lot, but only for practice. It bears no resemblance to the amplified sound found in performance.

 

I have no doubt that quality can come cheaply. I was going to use my Reclaimed Wood PRS (100-150 year old woods) to gig last night, but the Squire Esprit is handling better of late, so I took that instead. Its worth only a fraction of the PRS but the sound is articulate, complex and subtle. As different from the PRS and other higher end models (Gibson / Ric etc)as they are from each other, but no less beautiful and certainly not inferior.

 

Of course, taste is subjective. If your taste always tends to high price guitars, then enjoy them in good health and good luck.

[Wild Bill 212]

I kind of agree with you that the 2014 models had some quality issues having owned 5 of them but the 2015 models were substantially higher quality than most Gibson years from my experience owning 13 models from 2015. What are you basing your opinion on? Just because you didn’t like the tuners doesn’t mean the quality is bad.

 

IDK what your asking, I made a few statements about GIBSON. Their forcing poeople to buy MIN-E Tuner's, LOL, the backlash got so bad that the local G.C. was giving replacement tuner's away and installing them for free for anyone who wanted to buy a 2014 or 2015 GIBSON. I believe it was 2016 when GIBSON USA went to the G-FARCE tuner's and started putting them on the 'HP' Models, instead of forcing people to buy the Robo-Tuner's.

IDK, BUT MAYBE this was Henry J trying to "...lead the way into the futre...." but it was a disaster.

 

I was looking to up-grade my Older 1970's Guitars in late 2013 and I just could NOT buy any of the GIBSON Guitars that were offerred in 2014 at the local retailer's.I did not go searching far away cities looking either, just a local search of the G.C.'s and Sam Ash stores and one or two other's.. This carried on into 2015 and I finally found a couple of FADED's in 2016 that I decided were decent enough, priced right and I was willing to give GIBSON USA a shot, they were gettting a lot of negative feedback and I heard a lot and saw a lot of what people were outraged about.

 

The 2017 GIBSON USA offerrings that I have seen are actually better than my 2 1970's Guitars I never thought I would sell, and I gladly sold them for the 2017's that replaced them.I was encouraged to start buying GIBSON's NEW again by an interview I saw with Don Felder, he was right, IMO, and that is why I resumed my search in May 2016.

 

So I base my opinion on my considerable personal experience.I'm not a newbie and have played an axe since I was 8 years old. I do my own set-ups and basic fret-work and I am pretty good at it. It was my opinion that GIBSON USA's Guitars from late 2013 to late 2015 were not one's I was willing to plunk my money down on, simple as that ! GIBSON USA has really turned it around, IMO, in 2016-2017-2018, AGAIN, from what I have seen.

[Wild Bill 212]

Woods are always sourced in terms of what is available. It was like that 70 years ago and its like that now. In that sense 'cheap' just reflects what was easier to source at the time. It need not have any special relevance to the sound of the guitar. Mahogany, alder, basswood, maple; all these woods can sound wonderful. The important thing is the the woods are properly seasoned. Even that is only important in terms of stability rather than sound.

 

Playing solidbodies unplugged is something I do a lot, but only for practice. It bears no resemblance to the amplified sound found in performance.

 

I have no doubt that quality can come cheaply. I was going to use my Reclaimed Wood PRS (100-150 year old woods) to gig last night, but the Squire Esprit is handling better of late, so I took that instead. Its worth only a fraction of the PRS but the sound is articulate, complex and subtle. As different from the PRS and other higher end models (Gibson / Ric etc)as they are from each other, but no less beautiful and certainly not inferior.

 

Of course, taste is subjective. If your taste always tends to high price guitars, then enjoy them in good health and good luck.

 

OK, if ifd if YOU play a GIBSON FADED, and then play a GIBSON STANDARD/SEMI-HOLLOW/CUSTOM UN-PLUGGED side-by-side, and then tell me WOOD doesn't make a difference. I am sorry, but if you do not realize a difference in the quality of the woods contributing to the sound of the Guitar's you have just played, UN-PLUGGED...........you need to go see an EAR DOCTOR.

 

I was amazed at how good the 2016 Les Paul STUDIO FADED I had sounded PLUGGED-IN, but unplugged is where the proof of the inferior woods used made a HUGE difference in the way the Guitar sounded UN-PLUGGED, same with the Faded '16 'SG' Special ......I am actually sorry I sold the 'SG' Special Faded....it had 'IT' AND WOULD HAVE BEEN GOOD TO BEAT ON, I really liked that Guitar, but that did not change the fact that UNPLUGGED and NEXT to the 2017 'SG' STANDARD that replaced it, it sounded like a POS UN-PLUGGED, and THIS was definitely due to the quality of the wood. NO DOUBT ABOUDITT, as it wasn't the pick-ups.

[Jungel]

Why would anyone care how their electric guitar sounds unplugged? Genuine question.

[mihcmac]

Unplugged it's about how well your guitar resonates, which is effected by everything connected to it. The better your guitar sounds unplugged, your pickups will have more to work with. When I got a brand new Faded LP Special DC, my first reaction was the high notes sound dead and the fingerboard almost feels sticky, very hard to push the strings around. This was with everything being adjusted for optimum performance. I took it apart and polished the fingerboard and frets with very fine steel wool, then taped off the fingerboard with the frets exposed and polished the frets cross grained to finger board. I applied a very small amount of linseed oil to fingerboard. Day 2 after receiving my LP it was playing great with incredible sustain above the 12th fret. As time went on gradually polishing out the faded finish it started sounding even better. My LP DC is about 12 years old now and I think its sound has improved due to the aging finish as it hardens and seals, the finger board was my first hurtle to get over. So if you can get good sustain unplugged it will be really excellent plugged in. In my opinion the Faded Finish is not bad just unfinished.......

Edited June 17, 2018 by mihcmac

[Megafrog]

IDK what your asking, I made a few statements about GIBSON. Their forcing poeople to buy MIN-E Tuner's, LOL, the backlash got so bad that the local G.C. was giving replacement tuner's away and installing them for free for anyone who wanted to buy a 2014 or 2015 GIBSON. I believe it was 2016 when GIBSON USA went to the G-FARCE tuner's and started putting them on the 'HP' Models, instead of forcing people to buy the Robo-Tuner's.

IDK, BUT MAYBE this was Henry J trying to "...lead the way into the futre...." but it was a disaster.

 

I was looking to up-grade my Older 1970's Guitars in late 2013 and I just could NOT buy any of the GIBSON Guitars that were offerred in 2014 at the local retailer's.I did not go searching far away cities looking either, just a local search of the G.C.'s and Sam Ash stores and one or two other's.. This carried on into 2015 and I finally found a couple of FADED's in 2016 that I decided were decent enough, priced right and I was willing to give GIBSON USA a shot, they were gettting a lot of negative feedback and I heard a lot and saw a lot of what people were outraged about.

 

The 2017 GIBSON USA offerrings that I have seen are actually better than my 2 1970's Guitars I never thought I would sell, and I gladly sold them for the 2017's that replaced them.I was encouraged to start buying GIBSON's NEW again by an interview I saw with Don Felder, he was right, IMO, and that is why I resumed my search in May 2016.

 

So I base my opinion on my considerable personal experience.I'm not a newbie and have played an axe since I was 8 years old. I do my own set-ups and basic fret-work and I am pretty good at it. It was my opinion that GIBSON USA's Guitars from late 2013 to late 2015 were not one's I was willing to plunk my money down on, simple as that ! GIBSON USA has really turned it around, IMO, in 2016-2017-2018, AGAIN, from what I have seen.

 

You have still stated nothing to justify your point on 2015 models. You have listed no personal experience. Just because you don’t like something doesn’t mean the quality is bad.

[Wild Bill 212]

Why would anyone care how their electric guitar sounds unplugged? Genuine question.

 

No one, especially ME, said you HAVE to care what your Guitar sounds like UN-PLUGGED....BUT it is a sure way to find out if the wood used to make the guitar is made Good Quality wood. If you do as I stated, and I will not repeat myself, you will surely see what I mean. That is my one and only singular point as to that part of my comment, it is a fact and I stand by it as such.

[Wild Bill 212]

You have still stated nothing to justify your point on 2015 models. You have listed no personal experience. Just because you don't like something doesn't mean the quality is bad.

 

OH yes I did, and I'll certainly not repeat myself..... and do not care if you read that particular comment I made again.

[Wild Bill 212]

Unplugged it's about how well your guitar resonates, which is effected by everything connected to it. The better your guitar sounds unplugged, your pickups will have more to work with. When I got a brand new Faded LP Special DC, my first reaction was the high notes sound dead and the fingerboard almost feels sticky, very hard to push the strings around. This was with everything being adjusted for optimum performance. I took it apart and polished the fingerboard and frets with very fine steel wool, then taped off the fingerboard with the frets exposed and polished the frets cross grained to finger board. I applied a very small amount of linseed oil to fingerboard. Day 2 after receiving my LP it was playing great with incredible sustain above the 12th fret. As time went on gradually polishing out the faded finish it started sounding even better. My LP DC is about 12 years old now and I think its sound has improved due to the aging finish as it hardens and seals, the finger board was my first hurtle to get over. So if you can get good sustain unplugged it will be really excellent plugged in. In my opinion the Faded Finish is not bad just unfinished.......

 

Thank you for the detailed explanation.The efforts you made to get the guitar to go where you wanted to sonically are admirable & fairly clever, NICE ONE !!! I'd go a step further and mention a one or two other things but simply dont have the time, at the moment.....it needs to be articulated in an exactly correct manner, maybe a bit later....FOR ME, fact is that for these and other reason's, and definitely NOT to be snobbish either, as I am a Man of average means, I'll not purchase anything less than a STANDARD from here on out.

[Jungel]

How well your guitar resonates? Aren't electric guitars designed not to resonate? I thought that was the point of the solid body. Only there to hold the important parts. i e. neck, bridge, strings and pickups?

[LP Trad Pro II]

How well your guitar resonates? Aren't electric guitars designed not to resonate? I thought that was the point of the solid body. Only there to hold the important parts. i e. neck, bridge, strings and pickups?

What about Hollow and Semi Hollow bodies?

[Big Bill]

[Jungel]

What about them? Clearly they're made to resonate more than electric and less than acoustic.

[merciful-evans]

OK, if ifd if YOU play a GIBSON FADED, and then play a GIBSON STANDARD/SEMI-HOLLOW/CUSTOM UN-PLUGGED side-by-side, and then tell me WOOD doesn't make a difference. I am sorry, but if you do not realize a difference in the quality of the woods contributing to the sound of the Guitar's you have just played, UN-PLUGGED...........you need to go see an EAR DOCTOR.

 

I was amazed at how good the 2016 Les Paul STUDIO FADED I had sounded PLUGGED-IN, but unplugged is where the proof of the inferior woods used made a HUGE difference in the way the Guitar sounded UN-PLUGGED, same with the Faded '16 'SG' Special ......I am actually sorry I sold the 'SG' Special Faded....it had 'IT' AND WOULD HAVE BEEN GOOD TO BEAT ON, I really liked that Guitar, but that did not change the fact that UNPLUGGED and NEXT to the 2017 'SG' STANDARD that replaced it, it sounded like a POS UN-PLUGGED, and THIS was definitely due to the quality of the wood. NO DOUBT ABOUDITT, as it wasn't the pick-ups.

 

No need to shout. Also no need to repeat yourself.

You might try reading what others are saying though. Because it seems clear enough that you just dont get it.

 

Let me put it another way. When was the last gig you played with an unplugged solid electric guitar?

 

I'm not trying to change your mind about wood. I'm unconcerned about that. OTOH, your assertion of "NO DOUBT ABOUDITT" is unconvincing and futile.

[mihcmac]

All electric guitars resonate. The types of wood that are selected resonate differently effected by the density, if they didn't you wouldn't get very much sustain and your notes would be dead sounding. When amplification started to evolve and stage DB increased 335 types had a big problem with too much sustain and the feedback was almost impossible to control. BB's Lucille was designed without "F holes" specifically to reduce harmonic or sympathetic feedback at high volume. Every material sustains differently and effects the tone like acrylic or aluminum guitars. Les Paul carefully selected the woods for his experiment guitar, that preceded his LP design, the body looked almost like a 2x4. Because of the density of the wood mahogany tends to produce thick warm tones where maple can produce thinner more distinct tones. If you don't believe the wood on your guitar resonates, unplug it strum it and place your hand on the body and feel it vibrate..

Edited June 18, 2018 by mihcmac

[rct]

Les Paul carefully selected the woods for his experiment guitar, that preceded his LP design, the body looked almost like a 2x4...

 

He carefully selected a piece of crap pine he took out of the trash. Leo tried pine and gave up on it, Gibson has not ever used pine that I remember. So no, there was no "design" to his first attempts at stringing and pick upping. In fact, he used a piece of train track rail the first time, the steel part.

 

History usually defies fanboyness, so try to get some perspective on what actually happened once in a while.

 

rct

Edited June 18, 2018 by rct

[mihcmac]

He carefully selected a piece of crap pine he took out of the trash. Leo tried pine and gave up on it, Gibson has not ever used pine that I remember. So no, there was no "design" to his first attempts at stringing and pick upping. In fact, he used a piece of train track rail the first time, the steel part.

 

History usually defies fanboyness, so try to get some perspective on what actually happened once in a while.

 

rct

 

That is correct, I did not say he selected a good piece of wood for his experiment guitar, a more accurate description would be "he carefully selected a piece of crap to prove it would work". Even pine resonates, but I would not build a production guitar from it.

Edited June 18, 2018 by mihcmac

[Jungel]

I know that there will be some residual vibration in the solid body of an electric guitar but the magnetic pickups don't amplify that vibration. Even in an acoustic a Piezo under saddle picks up resonance from the top, a soundhole pickup from pressure waves inside the body and mag pickups from the vibration of the strings which disturb the magnetic field. So I can't get my head round the way magnetic coils pick up and amplify slight vibration in the body of an electric guitar. It’s from the strings.

Edited June 18, 2018 by Jungel

[mihcmac]

The string vibrates causing sympathetic resonation in the in the body which in turn which enhances the string vibration making it last longer. This is also enhanced by the amp sound waves re-activating the strings and creating a loop. A sympathetic feedback loop at high volume.

 

A pickup, depending on how micro-phonic it is, picks up everything, but mostly the string. You can hold the pickups next to your throat or mouth and hear yourself talking over your amp.

 

I apologize that my last few posts went off topic......

Edited June 18, 2018 by mihcmac

[rct]

The string vibrates causing sympathetic resonation in the in the body which in turn which enhances the string vibration making it last longer. This is also enhanced by the amp sound waves re-activating the strings and creating a loop. A sympathetic feedback loop at high volume.

 

A pickup, depending on how micro-phonic it is, picks up everything, but mostly the string. You can hold the pickups next to your throat or mouth and hear yourself talking over your amp.

 

I apologize that my last few posts went off topic......

 

A well made pickup should not be microphonic at all. You should not be able to talk through it.

 

This stuff can't be off topic!

 

rct

[mihcmac]

A well made pickup should not be microphonic at all. You should not be able to talk through it.

 

This stuff can't be off topic!

 

rct

 

All true bad pickups are more microphonic. But even with good pickups if you place your throat on your strings an crank up your amp you can hear yourself talk.

Edited June 19, 2018 by mihcmac

[rct]

All true bad pickups are more microphonic.

 

I had Lindy Fralin make me a pair for my #1 Tele. Don't pot them I said. Microfonik as fuk. Put them in another Tele and traded it.

 

rct

[mihcmac]

I had Lindy Fralin make me a pair for my #1 Tele. Don't pot them I said. Microfonik as fuk. Put them in another Tele and traded it.

 

rct

 

When you get stuck with microphonic pickups you could try potting them, its not that hard.

[Wild Bill 212]

No need to shout. Also no need to repeat yourself.

You might try reading what others are saying though. Because it seems clear enough that you just dont get it.

 

Let me put it another way. When was the last gig you played with an unplugged solid electric guitar?

 

I'm not trying to change your mind about wood. I'm unconcerned about that. OTOH, your assertion of "NO DOUBT ABOUDITT" is unconvincing and futile.

 

You should take your own advice as far as reading others comments, yes? No one I have ever met likes a smart-***, and your 'When was the last time....?' question, IMO, well...... My comment about 'No doubt...', uh, what? MAYBE YOU THINK IT WAS DUE TO THE PICKUPS ? ID particularly GAS if you are convinced or not, it is not why I am here. What I stated is a FACT....and I know, I did not, and will not, repeat it.You had no come back for that though, I noticed, just a couple of stupid questions.

 

As if this were the streets, I'll be steering clear of you.......