Members V-Type Posted August 22, 2007 Members Share Posted August 22, 2007 Dont you know the Best Gibsons were the ones produced in Kalamazoo. They still make them there but under the name Heritage and for less $$$. Just sayin. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members wader2k Posted August 22, 2007 Members Share Posted August 22, 2007 an early 90's maybe?? my 92' Custom is a joy to play, smooooth ebony board, classy! Just got a wine red 92 custom myself...great guitar with no issues to speak of! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members ratkent Posted August 22, 2007 Members Share Posted August 22, 2007 I would never pretend to be an expert but of the 14? Gibson Les Pauls I have owned over the years, the ones that I have kept and played the most are a 92 Custom, two 96 Studios and a 94 Standard. Don't know if that is a coincidence or a testament to what Gibson was doing in the mid 90s so take it or leave it. I do know if I were to be in the market for a used Gibson I would not be afraid to get one from any of those years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members grayeyes777 Posted August 22, 2007 Members Share Posted August 22, 2007 I've had good luck with strats from 78 to 81 or so... but i guess that has nothing to do with this thread. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members wader2k Posted August 22, 2007 Members Share Posted August 22, 2007 I would never pretend to be an expert but of the 14? Gibson Les Pauls I have owned over the years, the ones that I have kept and played the most are a 92 Custom, two 96 Studios and a 94 Standard. Don't know if that is a coincidence or a testament to what Gibson was doing in the mid 90s so take it or leave it. I do know if I were to be in the market for a used Gibson I would not be afraid to get one from any of those years.' That's 3 votes for 92..I'm getting happier every minute with my 92! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members willy22 Posted August 22, 2007 Members Share Posted August 22, 2007 Every new Les Paul I've played at GC felt like a toy compared to my 75. I hate the burstbuckers too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members theGhost Posted August 22, 2007 Members Share Posted August 22, 2007 Dont you know the Best Gibsons were the ones produced in Kalamazoo. They still make them there but under the name Heritage and for less $$$.Just sayin. every once in a while I run across someone like you who has that same opinion. i've heard all the pros, but never really heard anybody bash heritage. it just seems to me though that if they were really that good, more people would talk about them. i'm not saying that as evidence against your claim, rather, it just makes me wonder about them. Though I've never played one, i've always been interested in their guitars as a whole. I wish I had the money to really buy a good one. seems like they're really hard to find new. and actually, to be absolutely honest, one of the main reasons i never pursued interest in them is because of the headstock. i just find it unappealing. when i was shopping for another guitar, i ended up getting a ravelle b/c it was just soooo sexy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Cränky Bästärd Posted August 22, 2007 Members Share Posted August 22, 2007 I've owned dozens of vintage Gibson electric guitars, acoustic guitars, mandolins, banjos, and lapsteels over the last thirty years or so, and one thing that's obvious is that Gibson's QC has always been inconsistent. Always. The Norlin years were the worst, but there are still good examples from that era too. I'd say that, if anything, Gibson's QC is better now than in the past, at least with its acoustic guitars and the Heritage series. Out of any ten Gibsons, three are dogs, three are Ok-to-good, three are outstanding, and the tenth one is a wildcard. But the outstanding Gibsons are unbeatable. Their new amps are excellent, although expensive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Weathered Posted August 22, 2007 Members Share Posted August 22, 2007 I've owned dozens of vintage Gibson electric guitars, acoustic guitars, mandolins, banjos, and lapsteels over the last thirty years or so, and one thing that's obvious is that Gibson's QC has always been inconsistent. Always. The Norlin years were the worst, but there are still good examples from that era too. I'd say that, if anything, Gibson's QC is better now than in the past, at least with its acoustic guitars and the Heritage series. Out of any ten Gibsons, three are dogs, three are Ok-to-good, three are outstanding, and the tenth one is a wildcard. But the outstanding Gibsons are unbeatable. Their new amps are excellent, although expensive. Very well said. I have an SG Classic that I bought a couple of years ago that I've played next to '60's era SG Specials, and it sounds as good if not better. I'll take the time and find a great Gibson before I'll buy something that's guaranteed to be "pretty good" but will never be "great." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Moshaholic Posted August 22, 2007 Members Share Posted August 22, 2007 How about from the 80s? Are they significantly better than now? or in the late 90's-2000's?-Joe I always heard the 80's were some sorry ass stuff from my guitar tech... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Duesentrieb Posted August 22, 2007 Members Share Posted August 22, 2007 If you go with a mid 70s Custom, you'll most probably get one with a maple neck. Not that its a bad thing - I loved mine ('76), modded her in a Sykes-way and it was my main axe for several years. Stayed in tune perfectly - I had to replace most of the hardware though (bridge, tailpiece, frets, nut, tuners). Did the same with a '78 ProDeluxe (also maple neck). Awesome guitars for the money and with more bite than the average custom (maple neck + ebony fretboard, you know . . .). Heritages are fine, no doubt. Had a Gary Moore model (vintage faded honey sunburst, with Duncans), which I had between 1992 (the Gibsons I tried around that time were crap) and 2000 as my main axe. The only problem was the neck, which after those years with 10s was like a bow, so I sold her . . .Heritage:ProDeluxe (modded)'76 CustomSo I'm LP-less since a while now (playing Schecters), but I'm heavily gassing for another one, which definitely has to be less than 4kg or 8pounds, cause my back is broken . . . I guess it will be an Edwards then . . . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members filthy6 Posted August 22, 2007 Members Share Posted August 22, 2007 My 1980 Les Paul Custom is the best LP i have ever played, i think Cranky Bastard is right - Gibson QC has always been inconsistent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Hamer95USA Posted August 22, 2007 Members Share Posted August 22, 2007 Hey people, A few of my guitars:My '96 Les Paul Custom w/EMG 85 pickups. My '95 Hamer Studio w/ Dimarzio PAF Pro & Air Zone pickups. Personally, I could really care less about what years of Les Pauls are best. I would prefer to go to a guitar shop and play each guitar unplugged & plugged in to my own amp. I don't care much for the '70s Norlin era Gibson Les Pauls since I don't like the way they're designed or built. My '96 Les Paul Custom plays really well, has a straight, undamaged neck, good fret work and sounds good to me. I didn't care for the stock Gibson pickups though. My Hamer Studio sounds great, plays really well and has very good build design & materials. I did change out the pickups & electronics since that guitar has changed hands over the years. For the money, Hamer & Heritage guitars offer a lot of bang for the buck for American made guitars. Guitar George Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members xbryanx Posted August 22, 2007 Members Share Posted August 22, 2007 I've owned dozens of vintage Gibson electric guitars, acoustic guitars, mandolins, banjos, and lapsteels over the last thirty years or so, and one thing that's obvious is that Gibson's QC has always been inconsistent. Always. The Norlin years were the worst, but there are still good examples from that era too. I'd say that, if anything, Gibson's QC is better now than in the past, at least with its acoustic guitars and the Heritage series. Out of any ten Gibsons, three are dogs, three are Ok-to-good, three are outstanding, and the tenth one is a wildcard. But the outstanding Gibsons are unbeatable. Their new amps are excellent, although expensive. you speak the truth, i had to cherry pick through a bunch of LP studios when i bought mine in 2004. the one i ended up with is just unbelieveable in sound and playability, where a lot of other ones in the store sounded like dog {censored}. as for customs go, i think the late 70's models are the way to go and they havnt gone up in cost so much like the 50s and 60s ones have. Les Pauls are the only guitars that feel right for me, so I'm deffinatly going to own a Custom at some point in my life and when I do Im going to buy an old one. Gibson has been doing alot to cut costs in recent years but you can still find good ones in stores if you look hard enough, so if im gonna spend the money I want a real nice one from the 70s. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Seano Porno Posted August 22, 2007 Members Share Posted August 22, 2007 If you go with a mid 70s Custom, you'll most probably get one with a maple neck. Not that its a bad thing - I loved mine ('76), modded her in a Sykes-way and it was my main axe for several years. Stayed in tune perfectly - I had to replace most of the hardware though (bridge, tailpiece, frets, nut, tuners). '76 Custom I'm loving the Sykes appreciation there sir!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bullhead Posted August 22, 2007 Members Share Posted August 22, 2007 I was told once that those Pauls from the '75-'81 era were the {censored}. I played a '77 once, it was nice at bedroom volumes but it was squealing like a gutted pig at stage volume. Too bad, that Paul was a mofo. i fall into this camp. the three best Pauls i've ever laid hands on were two '78s and an '81. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Sudds Posted August 22, 2007 Members Share Posted August 22, 2007 Got an '86 Standard that's great (see avatar). Dimarzio's in it as the ass hat I got it from (admittedly, very cheap), had swapped out the Gibsons for some {censored}e knock offs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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