pantarai Posted March 5, 2012 Share Posted March 5, 2012 Hi, I'm an Italian guy, and I'm looking for a J-45 in this moment. But I found this guitar: http://www.mercatinomusicale.com/mm/a_gibson-j-50_id2434417.html ( the language is Italian but you can see the photos... ). It was produced in 2011? What differences there are between J-50(not vintage) and J-45 ? Thanks, and sorry for my approximate English! --- Ray Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EuroAussie Posted March 5, 2012 Share Posted March 5, 2012 Just the colour, J-45 being having the burst, while J-50 is all natural. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mojorule Posted March 5, 2012 Share Posted March 5, 2012 That and the choice of scratchguard (bigger, late 1950s style on the 50, teardrop on the 45), and headstock decoration (gold block decal on 50, MOP block inlay on 45). Otherwise year-on-year the same internally, I believe. Some believe that the bigger guard can inhibit vibrations and alter tone somewhat, and it possibly makes the top more prone to cracking where the guard inhibits natural movement with humidity, heat and age. Others seem to find no difference, and not every Gibson slope of a certain age with a large guard has a cracked top. It looks a beauty. I prefer sunburst, but the J50 has the cudos of being Bob Dylan's choice and the original Mademoiselle Gibson of Egyptian-French-Greek-Italian legend Georges Moustaki. His had a large guard too. Very nice. The question is really how does it sound to you? I own a 2011 Woody Guthrie Southern Jumbo which is also essentially the same guitar in different colours. On the basis of my experience and that of many recent buyers who report here, I'd say 2011 is a pretty good vintage. Last year under Ren Ferguson's now legendary helm... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pantarai Posted March 5, 2012 Author Share Posted March 5, 2012 Thanks for speed replies... Then.. it's the same guitar in neck, scale lenght and everything to do the payability, or not? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blindboygrunt Posted March 5, 2012 Share Posted March 5, 2012 same thing , just natural wood colour for those who dont like sunburst Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pantarai Posted March 6, 2012 Author Share Posted March 6, 2012 I saw these videos: - - I think that there are differences on sound. The J-50 has more treble while J-45 more bass... Do you hear these differences, too? Ray Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blindboygrunt Posted March 6, 2012 Share Posted March 6, 2012 I saw these videos: - - I think that there are differences on sound. The J-50 has more treble while J-45 more bass... Do you hear these differences, too? Ray you could hear the same variations in two blondes or two sunbursts . also you could hear the guitars in person and your ears hear different things . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mojorule Posted March 6, 2012 Share Posted March 6, 2012 It's only a few days older than my Woody. Bound to be good! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guitar Fundi Posted January 10, 2015 Share Posted January 10, 2015 I thought the J-50 was more expensive than the J-45 when it first came out because it was marketed as having higher quality wood and was thus a grade above the J-45...? Is this wrong? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
retrorod Posted January 10, 2015 Share Posted January 10, 2015 Shade of the top.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
retrorod Posted January 10, 2015 Share Posted January 10, 2015 I thought the J-50 was more expensive than the J-45 when it first came out because it was marketed as having higher quality wood and was thus a grade above the J-45...? Is this wrong? I think you are correct 'in theory' Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boyd Posted January 10, 2015 Share Posted January 10, 2015 Gibson hasn't had a J-50 in its lineup for the past few years. What is the recent history of the J-50? I have a 2008 J-50 Modern Classic that I bought last year. I think they stopped selling this model a few years ago. The 3 year old OP in this thread suggests that they were still being offered in 2011. Here's an archived product page from AMS for the 2009 J-50, courtesy of the wayback machine at archive.org https://web.archive.org/web/20090107024437/http://www.americanmusical.com/Item--i-GIB-RS50AN-NH Have they offered a "true vintage" J-50 in recent years or other variations (like the different J-45 models)? I have seen references to some expensive custom shop models in the past. Not sure why, but I never cared for sunburst finishes. Maybe it's the fact that the J-50 was my first accoustic, back in 1974. :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
retrorod Posted January 11, 2015 Share Posted January 11, 2015 When it comes to Gibson guitars, I love sunburst...natural tops are for Martins. The whole J45/50 thing is convoluted in the modern Gibsons, I am afraid! Curious if your '74 ever developed "bracing shadow' as a lot of '74,s did because of the UV-cure 'glue experiment'..... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boyd Posted January 11, 2015 Share Posted January 11, 2015 Curious if your '74 ever developed "bracing shadow' as a lot of '74,s did because of the UV-cure 'glue experiment'..... No shadows on mine but the finish is completely degraded - the top is just as dark as the mahoganny on the sides. Don't think I've seen others turn this dark. It is probably the result of my storing it in the falling-apart original chip-board case and not playing it for many years. I had major work done two years ago, the luthier was able to avoid a neck reset by planing and re-fretting. Sounds and plays nice now. I know many people don't like Gibsons from this era, and mine isn't as bright or crisp as the new J-50, but it's a really BIG sound, much louder than the new guitar and the 40 years of memories make it special for me. :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slimt Posted January 11, 2015 Share Posted January 11, 2015 No shadows on mine but the finish is completely degraded - the top is just as dark as the mahoganny on the sides. Don't think I've seen others turn this dark. It is probably the result of my storing it in the falling-apart original chip-board case and not playing it for many years. I had major work done two years ago, the luthier was able to avoid a neck reset by planing and re-fretting. Sounds and plays nice now. I know many people don't like Gibsons from this era, and mine isn't as bright or crisp as the new J-50, but it's a really BIG sound, much louder than the new guitar and the 40 years of memories make it special for me. :) I remember these having a J45/50 on the label as well.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jesse_Dylan Posted January 11, 2015 Share Posted January 11, 2015 No shadows on mine but the finish is completely degraded - the top is just as dark as the mahoganny on the sides. Don't think I've seen others turn this dark. It is probably the result of my storing it in the falling-apart original chip-board case and not playing it for many years. I had major work done two years ago, the luthier was able to avoid a neck reset by planing and re-fretting. Sounds and plays nice now. I know many people don't like Gibsons from this era, and mine isn't as bright or crisp as the new J-50, but it's a really BIG sound, much louder than the new guitar and the 40 years of memories make it special for me. :) That looks just like the Gibson my dad used to have, and should have been from around the same time. That looks like a square-shoulder, though. J-45s are slope shoulder. Did the J-50 become slope-shoulder later or something? I wish I could figure out exactly what guitar my dad had. I remember it looking like that square-shoulder there, but I could be totally wrong. I seem to remember it having an arched laminated back, but I could be entirely wrong about that, too! All I remember is that it was a great guitar. It also had rosewood bridge pins, which I still have, but those might not have been original. Wish Dad remembered what it was and the date at least. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slimt Posted January 11, 2015 Share Posted January 11, 2015 if it was a arched back Flattop.. maybe a J25, J40 or Gospel back in the 70s.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jesse_Dylan Posted January 11, 2015 Share Posted January 11, 2015 if it was a arched back Flattop.. maybe a J25, J40 or Gospel back in the 70s.. Definitely not a Gospel. It was a J-something (why I know that, I can't say). Maybe it was a J-55? I could be wrong about the arched back, but I know it was mahogany/spruce for sure at least... I really remember it as being square-shouldered, too, but it's been years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boyd Posted January 11, 2015 Share Posted January 11, 2015 That looks just like the Gibson my dad used to have, and should have been from around the same time. That looks like a square-shoulder, though. J-45s are slope shoulder. Did the J-50 become slope-shoulder later or something? Plenty of people around here know more about this than me! But just from looking at pictures, the J-50s were round shouldered up until sometime around 1970 and then became square shouldered. Then at some later date, they became round shouldered again. I was under the impression that the J-45 followed the same pattern back in the 1970s. For example, here's a 1975 J-45 Deluxe that looks just like my J-50 with a burst finish: http://www.guitarcenter.com/Gibson-Vintage-1975-Gibson-J-45-Deluxe-Sunburst-Acoustic-Guitar-110413496-i3899588.gc Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slimt Posted January 11, 2015 Share Posted January 11, 2015 Definitely not a Gospel. It was a J-something (why I know that, I can't say). Maybe it was a J-55? I could be wrong about the arched back, but I know it was mahogany/spruce for sure at least... I really remember it as being square-shouldered, too, but it's been years. Pretty much all those I mentioned were all square shoulder guitars.. I dont even think Gibson had a slop shoulder in the 70s.. and yes.. I forgot about the J55.. but I do think that was a flat back like the J45/50 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jesse_Dylan Posted January 11, 2015 Share Posted January 11, 2015 How confusing! That square-shoulder J-45 Deluxe is pretty neat looking. Didn't know anything like that existed. So you're saying Gibson stopped selling slope-shoulders in the '70s and then put them back in the line later? The Hummingbird was their first square-shoulder, and that came out in 1960. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boyd Posted January 11, 2015 Share Posted January 11, 2015 Lots of examples here, maybe you will see one that looks familiar? http://www.guitarcenter.com/Gibson,Acoustic-Guitar-Guitar,Condition-Vintage.gc?ipp=25 This is nice reference for recent Gibson acoustics but it only goes back to 2009 and the older links don't work. http://www.gibson.com/press/acoustics/index2.asp#2009 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DenverSteve Posted January 11, 2015 Share Posted January 11, 2015 I saw these videos;........ Unfortunately, videos do not provide realistic audio comparisons as there are/can be/ too many variables with microphones/compression/EQ.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
retrorod Posted January 12, 2015 Share Posted January 12, 2015 Pretty much all those I mentioned were all square shoulder guitars.. I dont even think Gibson had a slop shoulder in the 70s.. and yes.. I forgot about the J55.. but I do think that was a flat back like the J45/50 The J55 had an arched back and tortoise binding that has deteriorated (mostly) by now! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
retrorod Posted January 12, 2015 Share Posted January 12, 2015 How confusing! That square-shoulder J-45 Deluxe is pretty neat looking. Didn't know anything like that existed. So you're saying Gibson stopped selling slope-shoulders in the '70s and then put them back in the line later? The Hummingbird was their first square-shoulder, and that came out in 1960. Essentially correct! 1969/1970 was the transitional time for many traditional "round-shouldered Gibsons to be converted to square-shoulder. Many other funky changes were made to many models at this time also (bracing ,bridges, volutes, pickguards ,tuners,etc.) ...the Norlin Era Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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