MorrisrownSal Posted January 7, 2020 Share Posted January 7, 2020 I didn't know what to title this thread... oh well. I was reading on the UMGF a thread on Martin's new NAMM guitars, which feature a whole mess of made in Mexico guitars - laminated... to meet demand at the lower price points. I get it. First off, the world is changing everwhere, where middle class folks are stretched. I am sure the guitars sound real nice. I have always felt they were not bad guitars at all, having played them often in NJ guitar stores - more often big box. And the Martin strategy... get the brand in front of the future now... how can one fault it? Martin makes money. That money helps them keep Nazareth hopping for the high end, and good folks employed. Now here is the point of the post really... These $799 guitars really make me appreciate Gibson's G-Series guitar. Made in America with solid woods. Of course stripped down... but for about a grand. That's a grand achievement, and they sound great. I love my higher end Gibson, but I hope young musicians appreciate these quality downstream guitars. A short step higher gets a J45-Studio or J15 - a middle ground... and then the standard Gibson line. Thank you Bozeman. I wish all of you luck, success, and prosperity. Downstream is a crowded place today - especially with all the PACRIM guitars. I have even owned an Eastman or two. But the G-series really is a compelling value in the space, made by our own friends at Bozeman. https://www.gibson.com/Guitars/Acoustic 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
j45nick Posted January 7, 2020 Share Posted January 7, 2020 I don't mind what Gibson is doing at all. An entry-level, made-in-America guitar made with solid woods is a great starter Gibson. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rev Roy Posted January 7, 2020 Share Posted January 7, 2020 Well said, Sal. I’m not a big fan of either company’s downstream guitars. But I am a fan of the companies...and of any effort to encourage more folks to make more music. For Gibson to accomplish that while sticking with Bozeman-made, solid wood guitars is impressive. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dhanners623 Posted January 7, 2020 Share Posted January 7, 2020 Part of me agrees wholeheartedly and part of me is hesitant. On the one hand, if anybody can make a decent "budget" guitar, it ought to be Gibson and Martin. And once you get entry-level players hooked on what a good guitar can sound like, they'll save up their money (or go into debt...) and buy something higher-end -- hopefully from Gibson and Martin. The hesitant part of me, though, worries about diluting the brand. You don't see Rolls Royce or Ferrari making entry-level, no-frills automobiles. Part of me says Gibson and Martin should leave the less-expensive guitars to others, and concentrate on their mid- to upper-end models. Then again, I've never been accused of being a businessman. Gibson (and Martin, to a lesser degree) has made missteps through the years, but they are both still in business and both still building some great guitars. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boyd Posted January 7, 2020 Share Posted January 7, 2020 I got my Martin D-15M new just about exactly 8 years ago, paid $1000 for it at Guitar Center in one of their sales, it was made in America. Gibson didn't have anything near that price point at the time (AFAIK). So, they were late to the party, but have finally caught up. 🙂 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kelly campbell Posted January 8, 2020 Share Posted January 8, 2020 Love My G studio. I play the thing a lot right now and I am thinking about getting rid of a couple others due to the play time of the last 4 Gibsons I have Bought. Love them all. Good on Gibson that is smart to go after first time buyers..it increases chance to have a customer for life. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murph Posted January 8, 2020 Share Posted January 8, 2020 I bought my J-15 about the same time as a friend/gigging partner bought a Martin GPC type cutaway. I think they were about the same money. We had a duo doing small coffee house/clubs original music, Americana stuff. I bought the J-15 because it was the same size and scale as my J-45 so everything was in it's place, and I wasn't banging up the J-45. Fell in love with it. I don't consider it an "entry level" at all, more of a "working level" guitar. Unsigned musicians don't make much money these days in proportion, and busking with a $ 3,000.00 guitar will get you knocked in the head. His thinner, cutaway Martin doesn't hold a candle to the J-15 in tone, projection, or class. It's like I said in another thread, Gibson has to make payroll, keep the lights on, and keep the tree huggers off their back and walnut fits the bill perfectly. And, there is a far smaller percentage of kids having interest in guitar, so the market is shrinking. That might be about to turn around though, thanks to Billy Strings and Molly Tuttle and Co. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blindboygrunt Posted January 8, 2020 Share Posted January 8, 2020 I know nothing about running a guitar manufacturers My guess is that the 'lower entry'guitars are a necessary by product from the quantity of materials needed to keep costs at a certain level ? And of course as sal says , gets the headstock seen around the place... A 5000 pound lowden , for an example ,isnt necessarily 5 times better than a 1000 guitar , hell theres a vapid argument that it's no better than a 100 pound one .. Theres a lot more price perception goes on in guitars than people are willing to admit also Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Murph Posted January 8, 2020 Share Posted January 8, 2020 1 hour ago, blindboygrunt said: Theres a lot more price perception goes on in guitars than people are willing to admit also Bingo... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cougar Posted January 8, 2020 Share Posted January 8, 2020 On 1/7/2020 at 5:23 AM, Salfromchatham said: ....made by our own friends at Bozeman. https://www.gibson.com/Guitars/Acoustic Gibson's lineup is certainly broad! I sure love my Songwriter12 (and CME for giving me a good deal on one): 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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