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Are Gibson LP's way overpriced?


Jimbo513

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I'm in the market for a new guitar. I went to a few dealers today. I live in a smaller town and none of them carry Gibson, but one shop had a used Gibson LP standard double cut. I played the Gibson, a few Epiphone LP's, and two LP knockoffs, forgot which brands.

 

The Gibson was the worst of the bunch to me. The Epi's were good, even the knockoffs. Do I need to make a trip to a bigger store and try more Gibson models? I wouldn't mind paying a premium if that's what it takes to get a great Gibson.

 

I guess my question is, do the expensive Gibson LP's in the $2000+ range play better than the cheaper, $1000-$1500 ones? Are vintage Gibsons better than new ones as far as feel and playability? Should I forget about Gibson and go Epiphone or another brand?

 

I also played a Schecter C1-Elite and really like it.

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I've said this before

 

If you had to build one and sell it and make a living off of it and pay all your overhead, what would you have to charge? Sure there's some economies of scale in a factory environment, but working and living in the USA ain't cheap. OTH, Fender does quite a bit for less.

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I think you should play whatever makes you happiest at the best price, personally.

When I first played a Gibson it was a Les Paul Studio, and I remember being very underwhelmed by it, honestly. I felt like it was the most overpriced piece of junk on the planet, actually. That being said, I've played much nicer studios since then. But the difference between a Studio and a Standard are huge, in my opinion. To me a Standard is EXPENSIVE, but worth the money for the sound, feel, and mojo for an honest to goodness Les Paul. BUT that doesn't mean it has to matter to you. If the Schecter really speaks to you, go with it!

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I've said this before


If you had to build one and sell it and make a living off of it and pay all your overhead, what would you have to charge? Sure there's some economies of scale in a factory environment, but working and living in the USA ain't cheap. OTH, Fender does quite a bit for less.

 

 

are you kidding me?

they have no justification in selling guitars for over 3-4 grand. Im pretty sure they aren't looking through dumpsters for their next meal.

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Yeah, the LPs are incredibly overpriced, there's something worse though.


Their acoustics are the most {censored}ing {censored}ty-sounding guitars EVER and they still cost an arm and a leg when my sub-$750 Taylor sounds better than EVERY ONE OF THEM.


Rant over.

It's funny. When I think about taylor acoustics I think of bright and thin. But Gibson acoustics sound really good. And it's worse that you think every gibson acoustic sounds worse than your taylor, I doubt you've played them all.:rolleyes:

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Jimbo,

 

The way economics works is: if people want to pay a given price for something, and they are able, they will.

 

People who want the item but aren't willing to pay the listed price consider the item overpriced.

 

Which category do you fit into? Based on your story, I'd say the latter. Therefore, yes, to you they are overpriced.

 

However:

 

Gibson sells very high priced guitars because they can get away with it.

 

They haven't lasted as long as they have and impressed the quanity of people they have by producing shyte.

 

Does that mean that a $2000 Gibson has $1500 worth of "betterness" than the $500 Schecter? Likely not. Once you get beyond a certain cost (about $100 these days) the quality goes up in small increments, if at all. Often the extra price buys:

 

A) pretty colors and binding

 

B) a name-brand label

 

C) slightly more sophisticated electronics

 

If you're wondering if you should get the Epiphone over the Gibson just because the Epi sounds better: go for it. The best judge of a guitar's value is your ears paired with your fingers. Use the money you save on a phat amplifier and a disco ball.

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Jimbo,


The way economics works is: if people want to pay a given price for something, and they are able, they will.


People who want the item but aren't willing to pay the listed price consider the item overpriced.


Which category do you fit into? Based on your story, I'd say the latter. Therefore, yes, to you they are overpriced.


However:


Gibson sells very high priced guitars because they can get away with it.


They haven't lasted as long as they have and impressed the quanity of people they have by producing shyte.


Does that mean that a $2000 Gibson has $1500 worth of "betterness" than the $500 Schecter? Likely not. Once you get beyond a certain cost (about $100 these days) the quality goes up in small increments, if at all. Often the extra price buys:


A) pretty colors and binding


B) a name-brand label


C) slightly more sophisticated electronics


If you're wondering if you should get the Epiphone over the Gibson just because the Epi sounds better: go for it. The best judge of a guitar's value is your ears paired with your fingers. Use the money you save on a phat amplifier and a disco ball.

 

 

ftw.

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I dont think that they are overpriced. After all, price just reflects how scarce an item is and how much people are able and willing to pay for it. If people stopped buying gibsons, the demand would go down and in turn, so would the prices. So do your part and dont buy a gibson. Get a Fender!

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I'm in the market for a new guitar. I went to a few dealers today. I live in a smaller town and none of them carry Gibson, but one shop had a used Gibson LP standard double cut. I played the Gibson, a few Epiphone LP's, and two LP knockoffs, forgot which brands.


The Gibson was the worst of the bunch to me. The Epi's were good, even the knockoffs. Do I need to make a trip to a bigger store and try more Gibson models? I wouldn't mind paying a premium if that's what it takes to get a great Gibson.


I guess my question is, do the expensive Gibson LP's in the $2000+ range play better than the cheaper, $1000-$1500 ones? Are vintage Gibsons better than new ones as far as feel and playability? Should I forget about Gibson and go Epiphone or another brand?


I also played a Schecter C1-Elite and really like it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Overall quality of Gibsons is all over the place (imo). If you want a Gibson Les Paul then (imo) your best bet is to hunt down a used 1990's Les Paul standard.

 

 

Check your local Craigslist for used deals. Stay away from and or be carefull with any re-fins. Some sneaky bastards have their LP's re-finished after they break the headstock and have it repaired. Then they sell it off and don't mention that it was broken at one point.

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are you kidding me?

they have no justification in selling guitars for over 3-4 grand. Im pretty sure they aren't looking through dumpsters for their next meal.

 

 

As long as people are buying they can charge whatever they please. Oil comes out of the ground. In some countries the cost of retreaving a barrell of oil is less than $2.00. Oil is selling for close to $100.00 a barrel. People are getting rich while others actually are eating from dumpsters and in some parts of the world starving to death. Capitalism you gotta love it. The system where one man can own a 400 foot yacht, several jets, dozens of homes and have a net worth more than entire countries. Where a grown man has servents to tie his shoes and millions of people don't even own a pair.

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