Not another Super Jumbo thread....

[J-200 Koa]

I have owned several Gibson acoustics over the past 5 or 6 years.

All have been Super Jumbos in a variety of flavors: koa, quilted

maple, flamed maple, rosewood.....even on Madagascar rosewood

for a few days. Each was different with a unique sound. Only two

have stayed.....a koa and a quilted maple.

 

Every time I go into a music store I try out the slope shoulders and

square shoulders....none seem to "grab" me like a Super Jumbo.

It may because my ear is simply trained for volume rather than the

nuances of a great smaller-bodied guitar.

 

Should I park the big boys for a little while ang give a nice AJ or

J45 a shot? I know a lot of you own large and small body Gibsons

so I would appreciate your input.

[guitarstrummer]

I have owned several Gibson acoustics over the past 5 or 6 years.

All have been Super Jumbos in a variety of flavors: koa' date=' quilted

maple, flamed maple, rosewood.....even on Madagascar rosewood

for a few days. Each was different with a unique sound. Only two

have stayed.....a koa and a quilted maple.

 

Every time I go into a music store I try out the slope shoulders and

square shoulders....none seem to "grab" me like a Super Jumbo.

It may because my ear is simply trained for volume rather than the

nuances of a great smaller-bodied guitar.

 

Should I park the big boys for a little while ang give a nice AJ or

J45 a shot? I know a lot of you own large and small body Gibsons

so I would appreciate your input.

[/quote']

 

I think you owe it to yourself to try both an AJ and a J-45 and decide for yourself. I think you'll settle on the AJ.

[ballcorner]

Hey - when you say you have owned several Gibsons over the last 5 or 6 years it gives me the impression that you are looking in the wrong bin with the SJs.

 

Usually, if the SJ sound is what a person really likes, they might not go through so many in such a short time. If your wood types and your timeline roughly match up - you have had each guitar for only a year, maybe a bit more?

 

In my own experience trying to match people to guitars, I have found that certain features of a guitar will appeal to a person but the overall experience doesn't work. In your case, it sounds like the SJ works for you from the perspective of tonality, but I suspect you find them uncomfortable to play - and perhaps this is why you ask about smaller bodies.

 

On that note, I would suggest you not tie yourself to a single brand. The tone you like in an SJ can be had in an OM or 000 body guitar (Martin, Santa Cruz, Collings etc.) but with less depth. In exchange for the strength and presence of the SJ, a 000 or OM guitar will give you amazing playing comfort with unbelievably clear tone, surprizing bass presence and enough midrange appeal to keep you happy. The increased comfort in playing position will keep you on the guitar for more hours every day which will open the guitar up and take it from factory to satisfactory.

 

I own a large group of exceptional instruments - one of which is a Gibson AJ - but my daily player is a Martin OM-21. Give it a try and let me know what you think.

[wonderful remark]

I think you would really enjoy a J45.

 

I never used to enjoy mahogany.... I thought rosewood was the best thing in the world.

 

But this mahogany.. really is amazing.. it really is not fancy sounding at all.. yet it is very comforting(this is the only descriptive word I can think up of)....

[John Lee Walker]

I owned a J-45 for many a year, as well as a J-160E, which I still have, but the first time I picked up a Super Jumbo I was a changed man. Onstage it seemed to fill the room like no other acoustic guitar. During a jam session-open mic night at a club I asked a fellow strummer if I could play his J200 Western Classic and I fell in love on the spot. I loved my J-45 (actually it was stolen in Spokane, WA) but when it came time, recently, for another acoustic, there was no other choice for me. After researching the SJ200 Modern Classic, and reading many a customer review, and picking up several in different music stores, I was sold. Had to have it, and I haven't had one single regret. Whether it's onstage or in a room, or pickin on the bus, the Super Jumbo does it for me. No other guitar like it.

 

PS: I do not work for Gibson:)

 

It's a bigger sound for me, nice booming bass, full and rich, and it just commands attention.

[wonderful remark]

^^^^^

 

I know what you mean,

 

When I went to pick up my J45(my first gibson)... I went up to the counter and some reason it took a long time for them to bringing it to the frontdesk..

 

So i chilled playing some acoustics.. and I made a mistake of playing the SJ200..

 

It was truly fantastic.. and thought to myself that SJ200 would be my next guitar!..

 

I would have gotten the SJ200 if it wasnt $1000 more than J45..

[guitarstrummer]

The problem that I had was that my SJ200 was the first Gibson acoustic I bought. It took me quite a while to buy another model after that. You really get spoiled on the sound of the SJ, almost to the point where, once you've had the best, it's hard to switch. Now I've come to realize that there are several "best" models of Gibson acoustics and I enjoy them all, each for different reasons.

[J-200 Koa]

The problem that I had was that my SJ200 was the first Gibson acoustic I bought. It took me quite a while to buy another model after that. You really get spoiled on the sound of the SJ' date=' almost to the point where, once you've had the best, it's hard to switch. Now I've come to realize that there are several "best" models of Gibson acoustics and I enjoy them all, each for different reasons.[/quote']

 

I think Mike has hit the nail on the head: after you are used to the sound of a

Super Jumbo Gibson, smaller-bodied guitars seem a bit weak in comparison.

[John Lee Walker]

Yep, I concur with Mike. My next acquisition is going to be a pre-war Western. That was the first jumbo I ever played and it just grabbed me by the boo-boo. To me, that guitar is like the dream girl you had a date with and never saw again.

 

No one can say that I aint tried

I keep on searching far and wide

And I know shes out there somewhere now

Im gonna track her down somehow