CJ-165 Rosewood Fans

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Folks,

 

I am contemplating a CJ-165 Rosewood MC. I really like Gibson guitars, they have a reassuring (ie. industrial strength) feel to them that is missing in other makers. However, my experience with rosewoods guitars is limited to various Martins I have owned. How does this model sound compared to a rosewood Martin? When I think of rosewood guitars I think strummers - shimmering chords w/ much overtone. Does this model deliver like this or what?

 

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[ksdaddy]

I have a 2007 CJ165 rw and a 1981 Martin M38 (rosewood). No comparison whatsoever. None. The Martin booms like no guitar I have ever owned or played. It makes every Gibson I own sound sick. I know I will take a rash of s*** for saying that on this board but I call them as I see them. A luthier in TN told me he never heard any guitar, Martin or otherwise, sound like that, and he now plans to add an M size to his line as a result of having played mine.

 

The CJ is a great guitar if you would normally like to own something like an LG size but wanted to go to the next step, both in bling and tone. It is a very quick responding guitar; it's very loud and snappy. Sorry I can't describe it using the standard adjectives of the day.

 

Overall it feels and sounds like a really good small bodied guitar on steroids.

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ksdaddy,

 

Thanks for the insight. Deep down I thought that this was probably the case. I have a Martin DSR on hand at the moment and it really sounds good to my ear. Rosewood back/sides really produce a remarkable sound, especially for strumming. I am half time strummer/ half time claw hammer finger picker. I have a couple maple J/SJ Gibson's around the house and I dearly love 'em. But when I play stuff that requires mostly chord work - open or otherwise, the rosewood Dred really has a sound that the Gibsons aspire to but do not meet.

 

I appreciate the difficulty in describing guitar tone. Usually I do not even try but the difference between rosewood and maple guitars seemed worth the try in my mind. Nevertheless, I still say Gibson makes an industrial strength guitar compared to others...

 

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[Jerry K]

I have an OM21 and a CJ165. They are different guitars the Martin long scale and the Gibson short and have rather different sounds. The 165 holds its own against the Martin. Both are great. You have to try them and make up your own mind how the sound works for you. Gibson and Martin necks and fretboards are very different, too. Both are great brands.

 

Recently the battery pocket on the 165 - which is like a cloth bag stuck to the neck block with adhesive - fell off and is flopping around inside the guitar. How do you get those to stick?

 

Apropos of nothing, not long ago I was thinking of selling my Maple Nick Lucas reissue because I wasn't playing it much and it seemed less fun than my other guitars. Then recently I set it up with mediums at a better height. What a monster that guitar has become! Powerful, loud, shimmery, deep and cavernous with great sustain.

[Rick Garrett]

I own a Gibson CJ165 Rosewood and it's the only guitar that I've ever had that simply is not for sale. I've played several different Martins (My HD28 was a really great guitar) that were quite good. I've played several Taylors that I didn't care for at all and one Lowden. The CJ is without question the best of the lot. I played every high end Martin and Gibson they had in the lock up room of my local musice store. Then I noticed the CJ and took it off the wall. Before I knew it I had been there playing that guitar for over an hour and a half. She never went back on the wall again. I bought the guitar on the spot and several of the music store employees said they were saving to buy that particular guitar. The shop owner even said that everybody who had played it wanted it. Everytime I play out with it either plugged in or unplugged I get tons of compliments about it's tone. So for me, the CJ Rosewood is a keeper.

[guitarstrummer]

Recently the battery pocket on the 165 - which is like a cloth bag stuck to the neck block with adhesive - fell off and is flopping around inside the guitar. How do you get those to stick?

 

 

Jerry, I've also had that happen to several of mine. Gibson gets the bags with Velcro from their pickup manufacturer and can't control what they receive from them. Sometimes the Velcro is less than adaquate, but there's usually no way of knowing until after the guitar is in the customer's hands. Also, Gibson ships the guitars out from the factory with the battery in place. If the shipping box gets tossed a few times in shipping, the battery pouch can work itself loose pretty easily.

 

I've solved the problem by going to the hobby store and picking up a box of "Industrial Strength" Velcro. It's not that expensive and you get a lot of it in the box (lifetime supply).

 

I've used that to replace the Velcro on mine and it's worked fine so far. You could always return the guitar and Gibson would repair/replace the Velcro for you, but this is a much easier fix. The main thing to remember is to allow the Velcro to stay in place (without the battery) for 24 hours before you put the battery back in. It needs that amount of time to set up properly (according to the instructions on the box).

[Jerry K]

OK, thanks Mike, I will try that.

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Rick and Jerry,

 

Thanks for weighting in with additional opinions. I think I would like a CJ-165 Rosewood guitar very much. It's a tough nut to crack though. I'm not in a position to A/B/C desirable guitars firsthand unfortunately. Thus I must rely on others for expert opinions. Thanks everyone for your assistance!

 

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