Randy99CL

That is not an expensive guitar, the satin finish and bolt-on neck make it one of the least expensive models. The bolt-on neck is the important feature, the necks on all but the lowest models are set, IOW glued into the body (like all Gibsons). The label on the back of the headstock is meaningless, they paint that on many of them. I see one that looks exactly like yours (except for the zebra pickups) at US Guitar Center for $200 new (186 euro today): Epiphone SG Special Satin E1 Electric Guitar Cherry | Guitar Center I have no idea what it is worth in Europe.

I just googled "alder wood" and "mahogany" and looked closely at the pictures. The grain looks quite different. Another idea is to take the pickups out to see what the rough wood looks like.

It has been over 2.5 years since I wrote (above) about buying my 2019 Studio Tribute and it is still one of my favorite guitars. I really like the dot inlays and uncovered pickups, I don't care for fancy or gaudy extras (like gold plating) that add cost but don't improve performance. I am too old to care about impressing anyone. It is great that Gibson went back to the trap inlays the next year, mine is now rare and unusual. Mine is perfect, flawless build and plays and sounds great. I have had to adjust the neck and file the fret ends (there is really low humidity here in the desert) but no problems. There have been a few times I've considered buying a higher model but mine is so good that spending a lot to upgrade really wouldn't get me a lot better guitar. All my opinion, of course. I bought a high-end Epi LP in 2018 that came with US-made Gibson Classic 57 and Super 57 pickups, both 4 wire with P/P pots for coil splitting and out of phase wiring. I am going to transfer those (zebra) pickups to the Gibson, bought 4 P/P CTS pots and orange drop caps and will wire them with Jimmy Page wiring. With those pickups this LP will be all that I need.

Since you can't replace the pot yourself just call around to techs and talk with them. See what they think it might be and ask what brand and taper pots they use.

I have four Gretsch guitars in my collection and they are fantastic. My first thought is why kill yourself (and your wallet) to find some crazy-rare 335? Will it be the best sounding 12-string centerblock guitar ever made?? Not likely. He could be a collector and hopes that he can make a profit when he sells.... Anyway, for a player I love the Gretsch G5422-12. Fantastic sound, great neck, beautiful fit and finish and not expensive. 1.77" nut width. Hollow Body :: G5422G-12 Electromatic® Classic Hollow Body Double-Cut 12-String with Gold Hardware, Laurel Fingerboard, Walnut Stain (gretschguitars.com)

I guess you have to ask for it, the first time in the store I asked and now my account is flagged so it's automatic. I carry my VA ID card and my driver's license has the Veteran label. I showed them and didn't need anything else. It's 10% off everything...but not sale prices or used gear. One phone rep told me the minimum purchase had to be $200 but I've gotten it on $10 items so he was FOS. Good at both MF and GC, so at MF I get 10% off and their 8% reward points. Usually their sale prices are better than the Vet discount but some things never go on sale (like Fender amps) so 10% off is better than no discount. I'm tired of the BS they keep trying to pull so would shop elsewhere but I've called around and no other company gives any discount.

Fantastic!! That Ibanez looks perfect for her, is way cool and I know they are good quality, she'll play it for years!

It's been two months but if you haven't bought her a guitar yet I'd consider the size, weight and neck profile. Everyone is hung up on the LP but for a youngster it is too heavy and too big. Why not an SG, that is the one I bought first and it is light and comfortable and not thick with sharp corners like a LP. The Epi SGs also have fairly thin necks, possibly easier for small hands. That Mustang is actually a good choice too, 24" scale, light and comfortable to hold. Lots of kids start with a Squier because they are good quality and they come in more colors than Epis do. Some pinks that many girls like. The Squier Affinity series has Teles and Strats that are lighter than the norm because the body is thinner. The biggest thing is to take her to the shop to pick out her own.

If you liked the guitar except for that one problem...I'd change the capacitor on the tone pot. About a $10 fix. But is there anything wrong with running the tone on 5? Seems OK to me.

I ordered one of the SG Ravens last Thanksgiving when GC had a sale. My guitar is perfect and one of my favorites. I own two tributes: a 2019 LP and now the 2021 SG and both are flawless, I'm just lucky I guess. But I've had trouble with GC. I phone ordered the Raven and waited for the "shipped" email but a couple days after I ordered got an email that said the guitar was returned and instructions on how to ship it back! WTF? So I called and the guy said that my guitar was sent to the wrong address and they caught it and stopped the sale. I told him to ship me a new one and he couldn't do that until the other was returned plus up to 15 days to process the return?? I was afraid they'd run out so I gave my CC number again, reordered and received a perfect one a few days later. I called them at least once a week for my refund and after a month they said I could get it...but it was turned into a store credit and I had to go into the local store to get it, WTF again? I went in and got the refund put on my CC but I shouldn't have had to go in for that. I'm getting tired of the BS MF and GC keep pulling on me. I get the veteran's discount or I would not buy from them again.

To add more mud to this subject, I own two Tributes. First is a 2019 LP Studio Tribute, only made in 2019 then dropped, with S/N 19001xxxx. Last December I bought a new 2021 SG Tribute with S/N 22441xxxx. So the 2019 has the year first and the 2021 is the YxxxY system.

Late to the thread but they make two SE models for Guitar Center with 496R and 500T pickups. LP and SG Tribute "Raven" models, both are only $1099. Blacked out, I bought the SG and love it. "gibson raven" Results | Guitar Center

I agree that sucks, that plate is too crooked and never should have happened. There should be a guide to keep it straight during assembly but the installer was probably in a hurry. It is your decision whether to let it bother you or not. I've worked with my hands all my life and wouldn't be afraid to see if I could straighten it. Take out the four screws and see if you can rotate and move it around to line up without the holes showing at the edges of the plate. Then fill the holes with toothpicks or small dowels and redrill, but I use a tapered diamond bit in my moto-tool instead of a drill. A small drill bit can sometimes be pulled off center in situations like that. I actually feel better about an object after I fix small problems like that, you have fine-tuned it to your specs.

Just before xmas, GC had their SG Tribute Raven SE with a 15% off coupon and I grabbed one. I love it! I've been watching for an SG I could afford but am bored with the Tributes, this one is different and I love the total blackness! And for some reason it is $100 less than the regular Tributes. I don't love the hot pickups (496R and 500T) but I have a set of 490R and T I will swap in. Gibson SG Tribute Raven Limited-Edition Electric Guitar Satin Ebony | Guitar Center

I wonder if players are resisting maple necks, I have no idea. Is it still an "old way" thing, resisting change? I own two Tribute models that have maple necks and I prefer them to mahogany. The first is a 2019 Les Paul Studio Tribute and the second I just bought new a few weeks ago: an SG Tribute Raven (GC limited edition). Both necks are satin finish maple and feel and play great but the higher models all go back to mahogany necks. I know from woodworking experience that mahogany is not a very dense or strong wood and I'm convinced that maple will not split as easily as the other. I'm still very careful with all my guitars but I believe that maple will not break as easily.

Just bought a new SG Tribute Raven from GC that has the maple neck and Grover cast body tuners. Neck dive is pretty bad, I can tolerate it but have replaced those Grover tuners on other guitars and know that they are surprisingly heavy. I'm wondering if anyone has compared the weight of different sets of tuning machines? For example, I would guess that the vintage Gibson/Klusons (with plastic buttons) would be much lighter than the all-metal designs. And then whether it would be worth swapping them to save a little weight? This isn't life or death, just wondering.

You can go to Reverb.com, type in the guitar and see if any are for sale and what sellers are asking. There is some way you can see what they have sold for too but I've not done that.

Any electrical experience? Easy! Put an ohmmeter on the output cable and split the coils on that pickup. Should read around 7-8K ohm and about half that when split. That'll show you if the split is working. Then touch one lead on the metal case of that pickup with the other on the tailpiece, should read 0 and show the pickup is grounded. I got my cheap multimeter at Harbor Freight (in the US) on sale for less than $10, worth every penny.

Touch a wire from the tailpiece to the outside of the metal output jack (grounded part) or the input jack on the amp. Just checking to see if the internal ground wire is good.

From what I can see in your pic the wrench socket on the truss rod looks fine. I can see the bottom flats that look perfect with no damage. Unfortunately, I've learned to have a very low opinion of GC techs, I don't trust them at all and they don't touch my guitars. It is possible the tech himself used the wrong sized wrench or maybe a worn wrench that slipped. It is likely that the tech doesn't know what he's doing and the guitar is fine. If the neck plays OK now he must have adjusted it correctly. I would take it to a small local shop and have a good tech look at it. I saw on their website recently that GC gives a 2 year warranty on the guitars they sell. You could take it back to them and scream until they take it back. What I did was watched a few videos on YT and learned how to adjust the truss rod myself. Watch a few different videos to really understand it, I just checked and found about a dozen good videos. It is very simple and really easy once you figure it out and I've adjusted a couple of my guitars with perfect results. The first I had to adjust was my Gibson LP and I was nervous and very careful to only make tiny adjustments but it is now better than new. Changes in the weather (temp and humidity) can cause the neck to move. Totally normal to have to adjust them once in a while.

If it is a lower-end model and the refinish is factory quality it might not affect the value much at all, at least not in a negative way. I don't think originality makes as much difference at the lower end as it does at the higher levels. There are so many Tributes and Studios out there that a nicely-done refinish might be popular. Those models are bought to be played, not collected. I've got a 2019 Tribute LP with Iced Tea nitro finish. I've been considering adding some red and brown to the sunburst then a few coats of clear and hand polish to a gloss on the front face only, leaving the back and sides in satin. In this case I'd be doing it for me, to have something different and I don't plan to ever sell it so don't care about the value.

The Plus models have the transparent quilted maple tops in one of 4 colors. The sides and backs are satin painted. The Plus has a booster amp built in so there is a 9-volt battery box inset into the back. Others had no amp and no battery. All four pots are P-P, two coil split, one phase reversal and one turns on the booster amp. The most important difference is that the Plus models have the US-made Gibson '57 pickups and sound fantastic. Unfortunately they are not marked. Gibson sells those pickups separately for over $300 for the pair and I got the guitar on sale for $600. AFAIK they were a special run, only made in 2018 and have that date and Limited Edition on the back of the headstock. Guitar Center still shows one in stock, a light blue color that I don't care for. But this shows pics and specs: Epiphone Les Paul Traditional PRO-III Plus Limited Edition Electric Guitar | Guitar Center

GC/MF have a 10% Veteran's discount everyday. All brands so often the only price break on Fender and Gibson and others that are rarely marked down. Not on sale items but good on price drops, even temporary. MF gives 8% in reward points, if you look at it like money that is 18% off everything I buy there. MF also price matches GC (same parent company), they don't always have the same items on sale at the same time.

I'm living on SS so thought that I'd never be able to afford a real Gibson unless used. Saw many advertised but don't really know enough to buy a used guitar in the price range most were listed for. Guitar Center showed the Les Paul Studio Tribute 2019 and I watched it for months. The price got down to $929 (from $1200) and on a whim in June I called and talked with a sales rep. He said yes I would get the 10% Veteran discount and they probably didn't have any new ones but a few stores showed more than one and a couple might still be new-in-the-box. I ordered one and he attached a note to the order stating that I wanted a new one if possible. They only had the Satin Iced Tea Burst left in stock but I like that finish. The virus slowed things down as many stores were closed while I anxiously awaited word of what guitar I'd be getting. I called to check the order about a week later and was told that there were no new ones left and I could cancel if I wanted. The rep told me that many open-box guitars are like new, especially those hanging on the top rows where it takes a tall ladder to reach. I decided to wait and see what I got, I could always return it if not happy. I prepared myself for the worst when I drove to the store to pick up the guitar I had shipped in. A generic box with no Gibson logo told me it wasn't new but I was speechless to find that my guitar was flawless and beautiful. Not a scratch or mark on it, not even a pick mark on the plastic protecting the pickguard. Came in the soft case with all the goodies including the bench pic, wow it is nicer than I'd dreamed! I've had it a couple of weeks now and it is fantastic. I have a dozen guitars to compare it to (no Gibson but Fender, Gretsch, G&L, Epi and Squier) and the build quality and fit and finish and fretwork are as good as the best I own, it is perfect. It is a joy just to hold it in my hands and I love just looking at it. But it also plays great and sounds fantastic! Some here wouldn't like the dot inlays or satin finish or 490 pickups but I love it and it is still a real US made Les Paul with mahogany body and carved maple top. The satin finish neck feels smooth and fast and I like the maple, it is likely stronger than mahogany and the headstock may not break so easily. The body has been weight relieved and it hangs more like a Strat or Tele than my full-body Epi LP. And it still rings forever, the sustain is amazing. To sum it up this is a fantastic guitar for not much money and I recommend it highly. I got mine for a great price ($831!!) and feel lucky to have found it. Performance has always mattered more than looks or style so this model is perfect for me. It's not got the expensive bells and whistles that add cost but the basics and heart are there and I can upgrade the pickups and electronics and tuners if I want. These are still shown on the GC website today if someone wants one. Hard to tell the condition you might get but maybe it's worth a shot.