Gibson ES335 or ES 339 question thx!

[PlayerSTill]

Ill be purchasing one of these and love the sound of the ES 335, but its so big so I was thinking of getting an ES 339, and was wondering since i cant play them as no-one has them

Is the neck exact same as an ES 335? Love that neck , radius, nut width, neck shape etc on the es 335

The pickups I think are  different so sound would also be?

Is it very different in sound?

These are the 2 Im looking at:

https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/ES35F00SCNH--gibson-es-335-figured-sixties-cherry

https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/ES39F00SCNH--gibson-es-339-figured-sixties-cherry

 

Thanks in advance, really appreciate it!

 

 

 

[merciful-evans]

The ES 335 is generally considered to have the fuller (richer?) sound. I think its its simply down to the amount of air in the chamber. I have a ES 339 and remember being surprised at how much it still sounds like a hollowbody despite the small acoustic chamber. But there is a commonality to the sound. They both sound good. 

I also thought the ES 335 was too big, but that is for gigging. If I were to just use it at home or studio, I would be more attracted to the ES 335. TBH, if it were a housebound guitar I would more likely go full hollowbody than semi-hollow anyway. No feedback to worry about at home.

Pickups: Not familiar with the T-types. I have 57 Classics on both my Gibsons. Yes, likely to be a sound difference there.

Handling: If you spend much time at the upper part of the fretboard (I do) the 335 might suit better. The reason is that the ES 339 shape is a scaled down version of the larger bodied guitar. That means the cutaways are smaller so they are tighter & more restrictive  when reaching for the top frets (by comparison).

 

 

[PlayerSTill]

9 hours ago, merciful-evans said:

The ES 335 is generally considered to have the fuller (richer?) sound. I think its its simply down to the amount of air in the chamber. I have a ES 339 and remember being surprised at how much it still sounds like a hollowbody despite the small acoustic chamber. But there is a commonality to the sound. They both sound good. 

I also thought the ES 335 was too big, but that is for gigging. If I were to just use it at home or studio, I would be more attracted to the ES 335. TBH, if it were a housebound guitar I would more likely go full hollowbody than semi-hollow anyway. No feedback to worry about at home.

Pickups: Not familiar with the T-types. I have 57 Classics on both my Gibsons. Yes, likely to be a sound difference there.

Handling: If you spend much time at the upper part of the fretboard (I do) the 335 might suit better. The reason is that the ES 339 shape is a scaled down version of the larger bodied guitar. That means the cutaways are smaller so they are tighter & more restrictive  when reaching for the top frets (by comparison).

 

 

Thanks so much for this! 🙂