Purchasing a new SG

[Levism]

Hi all,

 

I'm am the proud owner of a cobalt blue ,2013 Gibson SG deluxe. She has the three 57 pups with the bigsby and is an absolute dream to play. (Even the bigsby is sweet once your comfortable with it ). I love the sound of the deluxe but it's very clean to me and I like to baby it. I am at a bit of a cross roads now. I am looking to purchase a new SG as a go to and was hoping some of you may have some feedback and would share some opinions on where I am looking to go with it.

 

First I am looking for a rock alternative guitar with a growl and good bite. p90 pups are very attractive to me however I have not been able to track any down over the last couple of years. (Bad luck)

Second - I would like to keep my price range around 1000 to 1250. Most of The 2013 standard don't really appeal to me. (As beautiful as they are)

Third - I have considered customizing. Buying a standard and throwing some pickups in.

 

I have been looking at the 2014 lineup and narrowing down what is coming available next month as well. The mini-Etune is not appealing to me, however I'm going to try it for myself when they stock up we the new models.

 

So here are my five SG's I'm at;

 

2012 SG les Paul tribute (not necessarily the particular sound I'm looking for but pretty cool - would have to spend more as I can't find any

2012 SG reissue - found one in Alberta for $1475, cherry , but has a ding near the bridge.

2014 SG special - has the 490R and 490 T pups - NO min-Etune

2014 SG futura - has the P-90H and bb3 pups - with mini-Etune , if you look past this it looks pretty cool. Both of these come just over 1000 once I buy a hard cover case.

2014 derek trucks SG - I contacted gibson through my dealer and they said that there are only two people in line to get one in canada. I could put 10% down now and get in line , but , they may not come out for another eight months.

 

I realize amps will do tons with high gain so please if you are able to throw some feedback at me or personal experience I would love to hear it.

[sgplayers]

Hi, I was reading your post and understand you situation. If it helps I now own seven Gibson's in which five are S-Gs and I play Sabbath, end van halen mostly. Oddly enough my go to guitar is an ebony S-G special with the 490s the second is another S-G 2011 classic white with coil taps an burst bucket 1 & 3. I don't like changing the pickups as I believe each one has it's special personality and I work towards getting to know them.they are all my babies. I know....i agree with you on amp voicing, correcting tones for the occasion, at least nobody complains. I really wanted to say that you will end up with the one that fits you, budget, weight cosmetics, and sound. It like asking somebody to pick my next girl friend for me. No disrespect, you know what I mean right? Congratulations on the three pickup model. I haven't held one yet,but I can imagine its pretty bright owned up on stage, can i borrow it on my next gig. LOL a little heavy with S-Gs and hey take u a lot of space. Rock on!

[charlie brown]

I agree...Try Out, as many as you possibly can! You'll (eventually) find

"the one," both in feel, and tone. Besides, checking them all out, is at

least 1/2 the fun, right?!

 

CB

[sgplayers]

Charlie has a good point there,I think I will head into the city this weekend,try to find one of those and see if we get along. If I'm really careful I might be able to get one before summer. Somebody stop me please. Is that three pup also coil tapped.

[Levism]

Charlie has a good point there,I think I will head into the city this weekend,try to find one of those and see if we get along. If I'm really careful I might be able to get one before summer. Somebody stop me please. Is that three pup also coil tapped.

 

I am totally with you on playing as many as you can to find your sound. As I build my collection I'm continuing to add pieces that I think I would want first. However i bought my '13 les Paul out of no where over the holidays simply because I loved the sound and feel of it. I'm sure I'm going to have that "problem" over and over again. I hope your search ends up with a new piece.

[Levism]

Hi, I was reading your post and understand you situation. If it helps I now own seven Gibson's in which five are S-Gs and I play Sabbath, end van halen mostly. Oddly enough my go to guitar is an ebony S-G special with the 490s the second is another S-G 2011 classic white with coil taps an burst bucket 1 & 3. I don't like changing the pickups as I believe each one has it's special personality and I work towards getting to know them.they are all my babies. I know....i agree with you on amp voicing, correcting tones for the occasion, at least nobody complains. I really wanted to say that you will end up with the one that fits you, budget, weight cosmetics, and sound. It like asking somebody to pick my next girl friend for me. No disrespect, you know what I mean right? Congratulations on the three pickup model. I haven't held one yet,but I can imagine its pretty bright owned up on stage, can i borrow it on my next gig. LOL a little heavy with S-Gs and hey take u a lot of space. Rock on!

 

Thanks for the post. I completely agree with you that you will need to play it to truly know it. What year is your ebony sg special?

[capmaster]

Hello Levism,

 

did you ever consider an SG Tribute model? They come without binding and case, but are real SGs on a budget featuring 24 frets and very playable if a satin finish is not a problem for you. My choice would be the 60s model with covered Burstbuckers 1 & 2, but for playing hard rock or metal I think the 70s Tribute SG with Dirty Fingers stock could match better without modifications:

 

http://www2.gibson.com/Products/Electric-Guitars/SG/Gibson-USA/SG-70s-Tribute.aspx

 

Furthermore, I totally am with CB's suggestion of checking out as many as possible. I also would take different models into account. Then it's best to make your decision when you feel having found the one with your name on it.

[Levism]

Hello Levism,

 

did you ever consider an SG Tribute model? They come without binding and case, but are real SGs on a budget featuring 24 frets and very playable if a satin finish is not a problem for you. My choice would be the 60s model with covered Burstbuckers 1 & 2, but for playing hard rock or metal I think the 70s Tribute SG with Dirty Fingers stock could match better without modifications:

 

http://www2.gibson.com/Products/Electric-Guitars/SG/Gibson-USA/SG-70s-Tribute.aspx

 

Furthermore, I totally am with CB's suggestion of checking out as many as possible. I also would take different models into account. Then it's best to make your decision when you feel having found the one with your name on it.

 

That's funny you should mention the 70's tribute because I've been reading some very positive reviews about it. To be honest I should have had it on my list. I didn't know that it came stock with the dirty fingers as well. Very glad you mentioned this as it caught me the first time I read it before. I will surely look to play this..... Just need to track one down now.

 

I just called long and Mcquade and had them search across canada. There where two left across the country. They'll ship out to them tomorrow. Might just end up in my house soon......

[bigtim]

Find a nice used standard that is 2012 year or earlier with the 490 & 498 pick ups in them. Those have a nice growl midrange bite in my opinion and are not too aggressive but by far a great sounding pair. Good luck, Tim

[JM2112]

IMHO, if you want to really rock there's nothing better than an SG Standard with the 490/498 pick up combination and a Marshall DSL amp. For me this just smokes unlike anything else!

 

Now, will it suit you? Maybe, then again maybe not. Play a bunch of them with as many different pick ups as you can find through as many amps. Places like Guitar Center typically have multiple models and amps you can test to find what you like.

 

Good luck in your search, and I hope you find what you're looking for!!!

[Levism]

We'll is have to thank you capmaster. I found a 70s tribute sg from 2013 and had it shipped from out east. I went into the store to try it out and loved the sound although the action was set pretty high for me so I had the Rep adjust the truss rod as the tech was at namm. It was enough that I was happy to take it home. The dirty fingers are just fantastic for what I wanted this sg for. After a night of playing it I was started having second thoughts as now there is some serious buzz from A to G and I can't take it in for another week. I logged another 20 hours in it and I have to say it's just amazing. I love this thing. So glad I joined the forum and was able to get some great feedback from you all.

[capmaster]

We'll is have to thank you capmaster. I found a 70s tribute sg from 2013 and had it shipped from out east. I went into the store to try it out and loved the sound although the action was set pretty high for me so I had the Rep adjust the truss rod as the tech was at namm. It was enough that I was happy to take it home. The dirty fingers are just fantastic for what I wanted this sg for. After a night of playing it I was started having second thoughts as now there is some serious buzz from A to G and I can't take it in for another week. I logged another 20 hours in it and I have to say it's just amazing. I love this thing. So glad I joined the forum and was able to get some great feedback from you all.

You're welcome, Levism, just was trying to give some advice. Last year I had checked out several Standard and Tribute SGs and was unsure which to buy. The Standards came including case, the Tributes featured 24 frets. While I was considering back and forth, the Supra appeared featuring 24 frets and an additional piezo bridge, and gave way for me to fall more and more for my hybrid guitar addiction. I already had been about ordering a one-shot Custom Shop guitar with just the same piezo TOM bridge. So I finally saved money with buying my Supra in the end.

 

I experienced that solidbody guitars also need a "break-in" and the required string action decreases with time and playing it. New strings or very worn strings also are a bit more prone to buzz than they are during most of their lifespan. So I guess your SG '70s Tribute will need less and less action during the next months or years, depending on how much you will play it. Checking the truss rod setting in short intervals and slight corrections if necessary also will help. Large corrections, e. g. when not having checked for a longer period or switching to a different string gauge, may temporarily increase buzz requiring higher action until the neck has stabilized again.

 

In case of my Les Paul and Stratocaster guitars, it was amazing to witness how the string action of the younger ones comes close to that of the older ones of practically same build with time and use. Due to the need of tuning gradually down while removing all the vibrato springs one by one in order not to damage the screws and edges, action adjustment is real work on Floyd Rose guitars, but when it's done it's just a breeze.