lefthandagenda Posted December 21, 2012 Share Posted December 21, 2012 Hey everyone, I'm new here, and I just recently got an amazing new-to-me Gibson Acoustic. I'll share more about me soon, but for now I'm curious about the in's and out's of my guitar. From what I know and can tell it's a 2008 Gibson Southern Jumbo True Vintage, but it has a few things about it that have thrown me off a bit. When I called Gibson they confirmed by serial number that it was a SJTV, but they didn't offer up any specifics about this particular one to help me out (I don't know if they can actually do that or not), but the guy I talked to seemed to just be rattling off specs by memory. This SJ has a pickup installed already (everything points to it being a Baggs, i.e. battery bag, volume wheel just inside the soundhole, the jack style), and it also has a strap button I assume someone installed themselves on the neck in a similar spot to where Taylor installs theirs. I also would like to believe that the previous owner wouldn't decide it was a great idea to drill into the neck of a $3000 guitar, but what can you do? It also didn't come with the case I expected. I thought the TVs generally came with the Tan/Pink case. Regardless, I am very happy with it and most of those smudge marks came up no problem without the use of any polish. At any rate, here are a few pictures, and if anyone has any other information to add I would appreciate it greatly, and I look forward to spending some more time on here posting. Also, if it helps at all, this came from Guitar Center in San Francisco. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
E-minor7 Posted December 21, 2012 Share Posted December 21, 2012 Hello lefthandagenda – Basically the Southern Jumbo is a slightly up-blinged J-45. Gibson did the trick in the first half of the 40's to appeal to certain (southern, it's said) customers and succeeded to a degree, that the model never really left the production. But, , , in the wake of the 1960 Hummingbird hit, the SJ and the Country and Western (an up-blinged J-50) both went square shouldered in '62 or '63. And stayed that way 10 – 15 years forward. To be honest I'm not sure if the Southern J. surrendered before the almost demise of acoustic Gibsons, but when it was time to re-launch the parade of classics in the late 80's, early 90's, the Southern Jumbo re-incarnated in the original shape – the one you are lucky to have, , , the slope shouldered. The True Vintage concept is used on several models – a positive thing you have to look into yourself – enjoy, , , and await other comments. . . . . Btw. don't worry 'bout the case. Guess it's the TV-style, , , or rather color for TV's. And that burgundy is so much cühler than the straight blue. The strap button is a part of life. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
J-1854Me Posted December 21, 2012 Share Posted December 21, 2012 I also have a 2007 TV series guitar, but mine is a J-185. These models take their design 'cues' from a variety of years of the particular model. Which makes it easy for Gibson to not be pinned down on details so much. For example, your SJTV has both the banner and script logo on the headstock, which is from the war era years, but also has the reverse belly bridge, which came in the later '40s through the '50s and into the '60s, and has the post-'54 larger pickguard. and you have the '60s tuners on it. So it represents a mish-mash of all kinds of years from the "classic period" of the SJ. The case you have looks a bit like the one they used to supply on the custom shop guitars, with the burgundy-coloured lining, but the stenciling on the exterior does not have the same custom design. Probably still a nice case though, better than the blue-lined cases which are standard. The brown-with-pink interior case is the correct one for the TV models though. This is my J-185TV in its case: A lot of the TV models do sound better than their non-TV cousins, in a lot of people's experience, but conversely, getting a TV model is no guarantee of greatness. <_< Hope that helps, Fred Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
j45nick Posted December 21, 2012 Share Posted December 21, 2012 Although that isn't a "Cali Girl" type case, it is definitely a step up from the standard Gibson Acoustic case. It's the same quality level as the Cali Girl, but a different color combination. Congratulations on joining the SJ club. There are a lot of us here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lefty Guy Posted December 21, 2012 Share Posted December 21, 2012 Congratulations on joining the SJ club. There are a lot of us here. +1! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
duluthdan Posted December 21, 2012 Share Posted December 21, 2012 Slendid looking instrument ! Same case as came with the Jackson Browne model and custom shop SJ. Lovely fit. I am not a big fan of the Cali- pink case. Maybe its just my tired eyes - but is the neck width a bit wider than the standard? Looks like a good player. Congrats ! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lars68 Posted December 21, 2012 Share Posted December 21, 2012 I'd like to comment on the differences between the three cases, as I happen to own one of each type. First the standard case with the blue interior is pretty much identical in build and quality to the one you got with your SJ, which is used normally with custom shop models. The only differences are the color of the lining and that the custom case has a leather handle, instead of the plastic on the standard. In my opinon these cases are decent, but not as good as the Geib-type case Martin uses for comparable models. The brown/pink TV case, on the other hand, is extremely well built but at the same time very, very heavy. As for protection, this is the superior case, but maybe too heavy for regular use. If I were you, I would be perfectly happy with the custom shop case. It is a good compromise between sturdiness and weight. Lars Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lefthandagenda Posted December 22, 2012 Author Share Posted December 22, 2012 Thanks for all the replies everyone. You guys certainly know your stuff! I've been extremely pleased with the SJTV. It's the nicest acoustic I've owned for sure. I can't really compare it to a regular SJ, because I haven't actually played an SJ other than this one. I'll admit, I was a bit bummed about it not having the tan/pink case, but I do like the case that I have, and it fits like a glove. As for the strap button, I've only used it once, and even though it's there, and it makes me feel a little foolish for saying this, but I don't think I'm going to use it. I suppose that might change, but for now, for whatever reason, I like not using that strap button when playing with a strap. I picked up a Planet Waves quick release guitar strap system, and I really enjoy it. I don't plan on removing the button because the hole would bother me far more than the button, but nonetheless I think it won't be utilized, at least for awhile. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dchristo Posted December 22, 2012 Share Posted December 22, 2012 congrats, you have a beautiful guitar Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lefthandagenda Posted December 22, 2012 Author Share Posted December 22, 2012 Thanks. I certainly enjoy it. I saw it on GC's used site for a few months, and had played a few J45s, as well as a few smaller bodied Gibson acoustics, and the J45s I had the privilege to play were great guitars, which eventually led me to the SJ. I went ahead and got the coin together and ordered it up in hopes that it wouldn't be a dud. From the handful of Gibson acoustics I had played I did find that it seemed like quality varied quite a bit from guitar to guitar, even if they were the same model. I understand that's just the nature of the way things are, but I took a chance on this one knowing I could get out of it minus the cost of shipping if it wasn't what I was looking for, and straight out of the case it was a little underwhelming sound wise. I was impressed with it's condition for sure, especially considering the price, but with a new set of strings on it the SJ really came alive! I was really happy that it worked out that way, because it was the cheapest I'd seen an SJ selling for out of the last few months of internet window shopping. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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