Gibson is nuts...

[SixStringGeek]

...seriously, this has to be the most brilliant move they've made since they bought out and destroyed Opcode.

http://blogs.guardian.co.uk/games/archi ... ibson.html

Keep in mind that Gibson has been officially licensing its products to be an integral part of the above for 3 years now.

If I were that company I'd be all over the game replacing every Paul and SG looking thing with an obvious Strat or Flying V or other non-Gibson shape.

That'd teach 'em.

[James Steele]

Well the Flying V is actually a Gibson shape. But I think a Dean ML or Razorback, Ibanez Iceman, BC Rich Mockingbird, etc. There would be numerous cool guitar shapes they could use, but yeah... I'd kill all the virtual Gibson models in GH4 just on principle.

[kassonica]

What the heck?!!!!

The arrogance is simply astounding and from a company who is still resting on there Les paul design from 1952.

And there gtrs are WAY over priced as well.

[MIDI Life Crisis]

Well, if Gibson had not trashed Opcode, I'd still be using SV Pro and never have moved to Performer (or DP) and then I wouldn't have UNation to visit and maybe I'd get a lot more done during the day. So I blame Gibson for my basic laziness and all the time I consume here at the nation (avoiding poo, at that!)

[Resonant Alien]

Now hold on a moment here from your biased diatribe.

Yes, I am biased. I have played and owned LPs in the past - when i got my first PRS in 1996, it blew them all away in quality and craftsmanship. When I later bought a McInturff, it blew the PRS away. I still have a PRS and two McInturffs. I will say that the LP I had was not a "custom shop", it was there standard fare. I will say that the custom shop guitars I have played have been very nice indeed.....but then you are spending upwards of $5000.

And THAT was my point - not that Gibsons inherently suck - I never said "Gibson guitars suck". My point was the the price/performance ratio of Gibson versus some other "boutique" makers was not as good - i.e. to get a Gibson that is of (IMO) comparable quality to a PRS or a McInturff, etc., you have to spend a lot more.

The PRS case was different in that PRS advertised the Singlecut originally as a superior version of the Les Paul........but PRS for some reason decided that rather than stick to their own product thought they would try and take Gibson's market.....but no-one seemed to question why on earth PRS would want to produce a copy of the Les Paul when they have their own niche market. Falling market share ? Lack of vintage credibility?

??? Except for only having one cutaway, the original SingleCut was not even close to a "Les Paul copy". It had different electronics (only one volume, one tone, split coil pickups, and the toggle was on the bottom) and the body shape was different. PRSs were already cutting into Gibson's market share due to the poor quality of some (not all) of the "standard" Gibson instruments in the late 90s. I remember looking at a LP Custom when I bought my first PRS - there were gaps in the binding, gaps around the inlays, tuners that felt crusty. The PRS (at that time) was a much better product and was about 2/3 the cost. And that is why Gibson sued them. If PRS wasn't cutting into their sales, Gibson would never have bothered - Gibson saw them as a real threat, unlike the zillions of other Les Paul copycats out there - probably because Gibson could see the quality was there, and many professional players (who had previously played Gibsons) were now playing and endorsing PRSs.

I don't remember what the original SingleCut ads said - but even if they were marketing it as a "better Les Paul", there is nothing illegal about that. Nothing says you can't market your product as being superior to someone else's. Gibson's case hinged on the guitar being a copy of theirs, which it clearly wasn't.

Of course tons of players still and always will play LPs. If you can spend the money (i.e. buy a Custom Shop model), the Gibson LP is one of the finest instruments around. But again, my point was not comparing a $6000 Gibson Custom Shop to a $2500 PRS.

I only brought up PRS because this kind of behavior is a pattern with Gibson. Having a little trouble competeting? Sue.

I don't mean to offend anyone personally who plays Gibson - again, they are fine guitars, but I just feel that you get a lot more guitar for less money with some other brands...

[mhschmieder]

I bought a PRS SE Custom last November and love it. It has stayed in tune ever since, which is always a good sign. IT feels right, and even though a low end model, the construction quality is good as is the overall workmanship and choice of parts, lugs, etc.

OTOH, I wanted to complete my "preferred guitar" collection this year with a semi-hollow (I used to own an ES335 many years ago but always felt awkward with it, so was looking more at a Casino, whose sound I also feel is better for what I want it for than the ES335 tone). I had picked one out at the local Guitar Centre and thought I'd made up my mind (same price as PRS SE Custom), then when I returned to confirm my choice a week later, that very same guitar was trashed! The knobs had all come loose and couldn't really be easily repaired, and every other aspect of the construction showed itself as being not up to snuff.

My guitar tech now has me in a holding pattern while he continues to refine his new side business of customising the canceled Ibanez semi-hollows in the Artist Series. These are the ones that have direct rear access to the electronics; the newer models don't and thus are as expensive to work on as an ES335. I had thought I had gotten past my bias against Gibson and that I had kept an open mind, but seeing what was inside that Epiphone Casino $600 guitar made me question bang for buck with that brand vs. other brands, and I'm holding out to see if my guitar tech can make additional improvements to the Ibanez through substituting pickups, etc.

I'm not sure I would boycott Gibson for their practices unless they really got out of hand, but certainly if a guitar is well made, one doesn't need the company to still be in business or still be the same company personality-wise post-sale, as your guitar tech will get most of your future business.

[Kind Of Loud]

Gibson, PRS, Ibanez, Dean...???
People...!!! People..!!!
It's time you stepped up to REAL guitar....Fender Stratocaster...!!!
Add a fuzz pedal, into a 100watt Marshall, and 4x12 cab, and you'll forget those other guitars even excist...!!!

[Guitar Gaz]

Except for only having one cutaway, the original SingleCut was not even close to a "Les Paul copy".

I think you'll find you are wrong there - you must be looking at later models. The original singlecut was pretty identical in layout - the headstock was the main difference. The switch and the knobs were in the same place. And it was marketed in this way - don't be taken in by the PRS rewritten version of events. They knew exactly what they were doing. Thats business - they got challenged but won. But its one thing to take market share with a different product - this was a direct challenge. PRS are no innocents - they wanted to move up from a boutique niche to bigger market share.

Gibson probably knew they would lose but it did highlight their gripe - which many criticised. But it probably made everyone think. PRS are still doing copies of some Gibsons but are more careful with the shape and the marketing.

Gibson responded to the competition by getting their quality back on track - that's what companies do isn't it ? Nothing wrong with that - big companies can lose sight of quality. They are not that stupid and realised they were slipping (even if it was sales falling or industry talk) - they have woken up in the last 8 or 9 years. Its difficult to criticise them for that - Fender have had to do the same. As for PRS - well maybe it worked maybe it didn't. Perhaps Gibson are over protective of their "brand" and see threats when they should see opportunities. And on that Business-Speak note I must sign off and do some re-stringing !

[rcannonp]

It's time you stepped up to REAL guitar....Fender Stratocaster...!!!

Strats are the minivans of guitars. They aren't even the first Fender I would go for.

[SixStringGeek]

Gibson, PRS, Ibanez, Dean...???
People...!!! People..!!!
It's time you stepped up to REAL guitar....Fender Stratocaster...!!!
Add a fuzz pedal, into a 100watt Marshall, and 4x12 cab, and you'll forget those other guitars even excist...!!!

Why do you need fuzz if you have a Marshall? They only get one tone - fuzzy. OK - two tones - fuzzy and loud, and soft and lame.

MESA Boogie for the win.

[James Steele]

MESA Boogie for the win.

Bwahahaha! Boy you know you're going to raise the hackles of a devout Marshall guy like myself. Hehe Seriously though, I'm not sold on some of their newer amps that user printed circuit boards to cut manufacturing expense. I own two 1979 JMP 100 watt heads, and really love that particular model.

[chucks]

And then there's the quote from the South Park Guitar Heros episode that speaks to the coming generations, "Real guitars are for old people". Gibson may not have a future.

http://southpark.comedycentral.com/vide ... eId=127947

[rcannonp]

I just noticed that the icon for Garageband is an ES-355. I wonder if Apple licensed that.

It seems that for a program called Garageband the icon ought to be a Mosrite or a Kay(or some other cheap guitar).

[Kind Of Loud]

Strats are the minivans of guitars.

Thanks for the laugh.


SixStringGeek wrote:

Why do you need fuzz if you have a Marshall? They only get one tone - fuzzy. OK - two tones - fuzzy and loud, and soft and lame.

MESA Boogie for the win.

I have the Marshall set for a mild breakup, and use the fuzz for the gain.
Not only do I use a fuzz, but also clean boost pedal right after it. Whoa, huh...!!!???

Fuzz pedals are not plug in and play. Also depends what type of fuzz...Silicon...?? Germanium..?? Makes a big difference depending on what you're going for.
And no my friend, they don't just get two tones. Using the volume knob on my Strats, I can get sustain for weeks, or get almost Fenderish clean, and everything in between.

But seeing as how you prefer Mesa Boogies, all this is moot anyway.

[James Steele]

I just noticed that the icon for Garageband is an ES-355. I wonder if Apple licensed that.

It seems that for a program called Garageband the icon ought to be a Mosrite or a Kay(or some other cheap guitar).

Maybe it's an Epiphone?

Many years ago when I first started playing guitar, I bought a guitar used out of the newspaper and got hoodwinked by some kid's MOM who did all the talking and sold me some Epiphone solid body that she said belonged to some guitarist once who was in a famous band. I later opened it up and looked at the electronics and "pickups" and they were total garbage and realized she took me for a ride. I did get a Standel solid state amp in the deal too, which might be cool today, but back when I bought it, it too was considered junk and I didn't know any better. I do wish I still had the Vox Tonebender Fuzz Box I bought of some hippie guy though.