Brucebubs
-
Posts
1,054 -
Joined
-
Last visited
-
Days Won
3
Posts posted by Brucebubs
-
-
I bought one several years ago - my very first Reverb purchase - sent it back - neck cracked - frets worn and tuners were shot to pieces - disappointing, never got to play it.
-
Here in Australia on the far south coast of New South Wales I keep my guitars on stands spread around my living room - not in their cases.
Picked up my SJ-200 this morning, out of tune, flat.
Tuned up and it sounded particularly sweet today, even my wife commented.
Took a look at the temperature & humidity gauge I keep inside - perfect conditions maybe?
-
1 hour ago, Leonard McCoy said:
I would assume not many players here are in the market for an Epiphone EJ-200. I certainly am not.
The gap between my 2012 laminate Epiphone EJ-200 and 2020 Custom Historic 1957 SJ-200 is enormous .. but so was the price difference.
The newer all solid wood Epiphone 'Inspired by Gibson' range goes some way to closing that gap.
The Epiphone IBG Hummingbird I have is a nice guitar ... it's not a Gibson but it's still a great guitar for the money.
-
1
-
-
14 minutes ago, Larsongs said:
Maybe…. But, cost to ship is probably $200.00 now…
I love all of my High end & vintage Guitars.. Anymore, I’m picky about letting anyone play them.. Some of them I won’t Gig with anymore..
I also have some budget Guitars that I love too.. They’re great looking, playing, sounding & xlnt quality built Guitars.. Those I’ll pretty much let others play.. No problems Gigging with them either…
$5000-$7000 for a new Gibson J200 is fine & I know they’re awesome Guitars & I’d like one someday… I wouldn’t let anyone play it though.. I wouldn’t Gig with it either… An Epi EJ200 would make an xlnt back up, if it’s a great Guitar.. I’d let others play it & I’d Gig with it..
I have the Epiphone 'Inspired by Gibson' Hummingbird - bought it with hard case - I think it's a really good sounding guitar and fantastic value for money ... but it's not a Gibson.
-
Back to the Epiphone EJ-200 - just like they are today, these are sold without hard cases. I know that I would pay extra if it comes with a factory Epiphone hard case.
-
14 minutes ago, kidblast said:
while an EJ200 looks a lot like an SJ200, it aint!
$250/$300 is probably the right landing zone. The question on a good buy from there would hinge on whether the deal included the OHSC
I can confirm that ... however if you look at the newer solid wood IBG Epiphones as guitars and not Gibsons, they are very good and outstanding value for money ... but they're not Gibsons.
-
The Epiphone EJ-200 went through a few changes over the years - I believe they were made in Korea at one point then shifted to Indonesia where they are still being made today along with the new solid wood 'Inspired by Gibson' Epiphones.
I have a full body straight acoustic made in Indonesia in 2012 - this version was dropped that year and all EJ-200's were cutaways with built in pick-up.
So how much a EJ-200 is worth depends on model and condition.
Here's my blonde EJ-200 with my IBG Hummingbird and Gibson SJ-200
-
1 hour ago, John Joseph said:
I was going to remove the pickup. But I read on another forum you just tape the ribbon inside. I wonder if I got the idea from you. I have a 2012 Bird and removed the pickup this is easier and if I ever sold it the pickup is intact. I've been thinking of getting the Epi Bird just to compare the two everything I hear about them is good. I think they come closest to a Gibson of all the IBG models. My Epi J200 sounds just like a Eastman AC630 jumbo. I know I have one. There so close I'm thinking they could be made in the same factory.
Those Eastman AC630 are beautiful looking guitars, every one I've seen looks stunning.
My IBG lives with these guitars.
-
1
-
-
Well I have the IBG Hummingbird and did some very similar mods myself - like above I changed the pins from plastic to bone pins I 'aged' in coffee and also like above I removed the UST ribbon and taped it inside the guitar and made my own saddle from a bone blank I also 'aged' in a cup with tea-bags - plays beautifully and I'm using Martin Titanium strings which are very lush and rich.
I treated the bridge with Music Nomad F-One fretboard conditioner to give it a darker, slightly more finished look - before and after pictures below of my replacement 'aged' saddle and the bridge treatment.
-
2
-
-
Any update?
-
-
1
-
1
-
1
-
-
1 minute ago, Sgt. Pepper said:
Is it RW?
Yes, rosewood back and sides - came out in 2009 and produced for 3 years.
The late Mike Nesmith played one in concert.
-
1 minute ago, Sgt. Pepper said:
Hey one is a Martin.
Here is mine.
Yep - Martin Grand J12-40E Special - their very first super jumbo with 17" lower bout - one of only 231 ever made - I'm guessing they were aiming to catch Guild F-512 buyers but they were just too expensive - they even copied the Guild 12-string bridge pattern with the primary strings closest to the saddle and octaves at the back which is unusual with Martin 12's.
-
30 minutes ago, Sgt. Pepper said:
If I said that the masses would be outside my door with pitchforks and lit torches.
Just so you know where I was coming from when I made my comment about how it sounds to me.
-
Looks much nicer than it sounds.
-
7 minutes ago, Salfromchatham said:
True Vintage did not have an original pickup. This still might be one, but with an aftermarket installed. Or it could be a modern classic? Not much detail in the ad. The serial number says it was made on the 267th day of 2008. So… a 2008.
I think it’s legit, but I would have expected the brown case. I think in 2008 there were Standard (modern classic) and maybe TVs? Look at your saddle. Is it compensated or non compensated? Non points to Tv.
moderns would have had a pickup. TVs no. Modern black case. TV Cali brown case.
orange label.. TV? Also early TVs had a red Pickguard like yours without the pinstripe going around…
Good points - the saddle looks like it's straight and not compensated.
The 4-bar insert bridge, keystone tuners and truss rod cover with wide white border are all correct too.
The back and sides look fantastic too - nice one!
-
I think that's a Sweetwater special.
Body is laminate maple - not solid woods.
I think they sold a little cheaper than the solid wood IBG J-200's - $499.00 when the all solid wood IBG J-200's were $799.00.
https://www.acousticguitarforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=620394
-
I tried so hard to buy a new Gibson SJ-200 Historic 1957 last year - but Gibson has a policy preventing US dealers selling new guitars to customers outside the USA in countries with dealers! Martin and Guild have adopted the same policy.
Karl at CME reached out to me and really went out of his way to help but we just couldn't pull it off and I had to order the guitar from a Gibson dealer here in Australia.
-
I was evacuated for approaching bush fires here in Australia in 2020 - I packed 2 guitars in the car back then - Huss & Dalton MJ Custom and Martin Grand J12-40E Special - I sold both of them earlier this year.
Now I'd grab my 2020 Gibson Custom Shop Historic 1957 SJ-200.
-
My stringing method has evolved from putting the entire string on the post - I kid you not (blissfully ignorant) - to discovering YouTube tutorials - tried them all including pre-cutting and winding over then under - discovered a lot of that was unnecessary - cutting strings should be the LAST thing you do when you're happy with the job, not first - I aim for 3 or 4 wraps with the unwound 1E and 2B strings and yes, they hold fine without the need for one over then under. Also a dream to take off too on a string change.
So yes, this is my method for all strings - just happens to be perfect for round-cores.
The Titaniums are a very warm sounding string, great for a bright guitar - maybe a little too warm on this one - incredibly stable tuning - I got 10 months out of the first set I tried - some reports of string breakages if you change tuning a lot - I kept same tuning and had no problem.
Camera is a Lumix FZ-80 with a macro setting for close-up shots.
-
1
-
-
My 2020 Custom Shop Historic 1957 SJ-200 came with a period correct case and,
- Leather framed COA
- Truss rod tool
- Wipe cloth
- Leather key-ring/pick holder
- Full D'Addario 2-way humidification system.
-
1 hour ago, 62burst said:
You've just illustrated a major disadvantage of using round core strings. The advantage of extending the string one tuner post further from the post where the string will be installed, and cutting there, is that you don't end up with mess of excess string windings that resemble a honey dripper. The string ends also don't whip around the headstock while tuning up. And if you tear the pack apart instead of opening the pack on the edge (who does that?) and removing the strings, you'd never see their secret hidden warnings, err... instructions. DR Strings really needs to put that info in a place where you can't miss it. The photo on the pack shows you can put a 90° kink on the wound string, but you still end up with the string whipping around as it goes up to tune. And as BoSoxBiker mentioned, the longevity of Sunbeams is not exactly their strong suit. Only Martin SP's go away quicker, in my experience.
You've just illustrated one of the pitfalls of cutting strings before installing them - an absolutely unnecessarily step - install them long - in the tuner hole - pull back some - wind all down (no over/under needed) - trim off excess when string has tension.
These pictures are $39.99 Martin Titanium round-cores I put on my IBG Hummingbird last week.
-
56 minutes ago, j45nick said:
It warns you on the package not to cut the string ends until you tune them.
These are round core strings. The ends of the wound strings are compressed so the windings can't separate while you tune the guitar. If you cut them before you wind them on the stringpost, nine time out of 10 you will destroy that string.
Unlike a hex core string the windings do not bite into the core string. That is the reason the strings are so flexible.
-
1
-
-
17 minutes ago, dhanners623 said:
Finally got a set of Sunbeam mediums and strung up the J-35 today. So far, so good, although I want to give them some time to see what I think of them and whether they are worth a switch from the Martin Retros I've been using.
One odd thing, though, and in all my years of playing guitar, I've never had this happen. When I string a guitar, I have taken to cutting the excess off the strings before putting them on the guitar. All went well until I cut the 6th string and put it on. Something must've happened to the winding when I cut the string because when I tried to tune the string to pitch, all I got was the sound of someone plucking a rubber band. Took the string off and tried again. Same deal. It sounded like a cheap bass. I've never had that experience.
I had an extra set of Sunbeams so I took the 6th string from that set. I strung it up and then cut it. Sounded just fine.
Didn't you open the pack up and read the instructions for installing round-core strings? Go open up the empty box.
NGD: Epiphone USA Frontier (pics included)
in Gibson Acoustic
Posted
Looks fantastic - that back is beautiful.