dvd5300 Posted November 24, 2010 Share Posted November 24, 2010 I'm interested in purchasing a Gibson archtop. I have been searching ebay and Gbase and found a couple contenders that fit my price range of around $5,000. One is a 2000 L5 CES Wes. Looks good but I thought I read somewhere that Gibson used a laminate back and sides. Is that the case? Is that good or bad?? Any quality issues with this model and production year? I'm also looking at a 1996 L5 CES. Any Gibson quality issues with this year? I'm definitely not an expert in this field, but I was told that Gibson went through some bad quality years, then made corrections. What years are in question, or is it a guitar by guitar sort of thing? Thanks in advance for expert opinions! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
L5Larry Posted November 24, 2010 Share Posted November 24, 2010 I'm not aware of any quality/era issues with the "top shelf" Gibson archtops. These are NOT "production model" guitars, each one is handmade, and not subject to what is perceived as "bad years" of Gibson's mass produced guitars. That said, since each one is hand built they are all different and individual, with a personality of their own. I would certainly not buy a $5000 guitar without an extensive test drive. As for the use of laminated woods, I'm not intimate with what Gibson is doing NOW, nor familiar with all the details of the Wes model (I'm a L-5CES guy), but historically the L-5 is built from solid woods, no plywood anywhere. I would like to add that laminated wood archtops are not a bad thing, just different. Many jazz players actually prefer laminated guitars, including a couple world renown players I know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dvd5300 Posted November 24, 2010 Author Share Posted November 24, 2010 I'm not aware of any quality/era issues with the "top shelf" Gibson archtops. These are NOT "production model" guitars, each one is handmade, and not subject to what is perceived as "bad years" of Gibson's mass produced guitars. That said, since each one is hand built they are all different and individual, with a personality of their own. I would certainly not buy a $5000 guitar without an extensive test drive. As for the use of laminated woods, I'm not intimate with what Gibson is doing NOW, nor familiar with all the details of the Wes model (I'm a L-5CES guy), but historically the L-5 is built from solid woods, no plywood anywhere. I would like to add that laminated wood archtops are not a bad thing, just different. Many jazz players actually prefer laminated guitars, including a couple world renown players I know. Thanks. I agree, a long test drive and a 2-3 day return period are required. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Danny W. Posted November 26, 2010 Share Posted November 26, 2010 Gibson used laminated backs on L-5 & Super 400 CES models during the '60's. Wes models will have all solid woods. Danny W. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JazzGtr Posted April 27, 2011 Share Posted April 27, 2011 The Gibson L5- Wes Montgomery uses solid maple and spruce for back and front. You're looking at a fake L5. Beware Jazz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stein Posted April 27, 2011 Share Posted April 27, 2011 Gibson used laminated backs on L-5 & Super 400 CES models during the '60's. Wes models will have all solid woods. Danny W. Truly? you sure? I'm shocked. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stein Posted April 27, 2011 Share Posted April 27, 2011 DEFINITELY, DEFINITELY Play before you buy. play as many as you can before you buy. Dropping that kind of dough on a guitar of that quality AND the fact that they can and do sound so different to each other. You can easily waste your money. Personally, I find them to vary quite a lot from one guitar to another. Not only do they all sound different, they can sound very different. I have heard some that sound brighter with flatwound strings than another with roundwound. Some don't appear to sound very loud, and some sound accoustically the sound coming from the body almost exactly like the sound of the strings, and some have a different sound coming from the box to the strings, creating interesting overtones. Kinda get the idea? This is just my opinion, but I feel strongly that this is where the value of having a dealer comes in and where it makes sense to buy it from a dealer rather than online to save money. In this case, whatever "extra" money you might spend is well worth it to match the guitar to you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Danny W. Posted April 27, 2011 Share Posted April 27, 2011 Danny W., on 26 November 2010 - 04:48 PM, said: Gibson used laminated backs on L-5 & Super 400 CES models during the '60's. Wes models will have all solid woods. Danny W. Truly? you sure? I'm shocked. Yes, I'm quite sure. Laminated backs were used on florentine cutaways--some even had one-piece backs, rather than bookmatched. Danny W. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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