Members mymindsok Posted October 30, 2009 Members Share Posted October 30, 2009 Lately, I've been buying old guitar magazines at my local resale shop instead of buying new ones, because the slick mags really only recycle the same faces and info over and over again and lets face it, a reads a read. Anyway, I've been checking out the guitar ads from the 90's and you know what? Gibson's stuff was priced sky high back then! In fact, after comparing Fender and Gibby prices, it's Fender and the also-rans that have boosted prices the most. Do you think that I'm wrong in thinking that the "Big G" has always been "overpriced" compared to the competition or is this another figment of my overactive imagination? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members dimmypage Posted October 30, 2009 Members Share Posted October 30, 2009 The original thought behind Gibson Les Paul prices was that a Les Paul Standard would be a working mans one month salary. Whats that about $2500 on average? Doesnt todays average factory worker make about $16 an hr minus benes? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bryvincent Posted October 30, 2009 Members Share Posted October 30, 2009 right from the start, gibson has always been a high-end(i.e. expensive) brand. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Acadiafall Posted October 30, 2009 Members Share Posted October 30, 2009 Expensive doesnt always mean high end. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Prages Posted October 30, 2009 Members Share Posted October 30, 2009 I don't know. I've got some Musician's Friend catalogs from the 90s and the MSRP for a LP Standard back then was about $1800. No idea what they were actually selling for because that was when you had to 'Call for price' on them. But the MSRP for a LP Traditional, which is the same as the mid 90s LP Standard is currently $3279 with an actual price of $2189 for the ebony and goldtop and $3449 with an actual price of $2299 for the 'Pro' version, which has the flamed maple top. So the MSRP has roughly doubled in the last 15 years or so. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members 's mel gibson Posted October 30, 2009 Members Share Posted October 30, 2009 Gibsons seem to have a bit more work done to get the product finished. Binding, fancier inlays, set neck or one piece (Firebird). Prettier wood because of natural, bookmatched or see through finishes. The only time I recall that they weren't really over priced was in the mid 60's when I was a poor teenager. At that time, used late 50's LP Jr.s were a steal at $200. In the mid 60's that was still a lot of money for a 13 year old but I managed.Of course I wound up with 2 of them which I don't own any more and I regret it selling them. My crystal ball wasn't working back then. Then about 68 I got an SG Special (original P. Townshend style with out the bull{censored}). I think that was around $500-$600. I don't have that one any more either. (damn). I traded it in for a 69 LP Deluxe goldtop. It's gone too. (whimper) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bsman Posted October 30, 2009 Members Share Posted October 30, 2009 Doesnt todays average factory worker make about $16 an hr minus benes? Today's average factory worker makes about 1800 yuan a month... :poke: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members tiltsta Posted October 30, 2009 Members Share Posted October 30, 2009 They were expensive when I first started playing guitar in the 70's, and they are still expensive today. I think Gibson takes a lot more crap than they probably should in this regard. Some of their custom shop stuff is crazy expensive, but the SG and LP standards don't seem particularly expensive compared to other American made instruments of similar construction style. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Elias Graves Posted October 30, 2009 Members Share Posted October 30, 2009 Now that we have the 347th reissue of this topic, shouldn't the price of admission be, like, $8000? EG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members jhorne Posted October 30, 2009 Members Share Posted October 30, 2009 About time we got a new topic around here. You almost never see a thread about the price of Gibsons at HC. Excellent work... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members WoodenDuckMaker Posted October 30, 2009 Members Share Posted October 30, 2009 Never understood all the whining about gibson prices. Nobodys forcing you to buy their guitars. Be patient and wait for a great deal on a used one if you need to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Goofball Jones Posted October 30, 2009 Members Share Posted October 30, 2009 Back in the late 70's an LP Standard was around $750 or so. And they were really crappy back then. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Dougie.Douglas Posted October 30, 2009 Members Share Posted October 30, 2009 Never understood all the whining about gibson prices. Nobodys forcing you to buy their guitars. Be patient and wait for a great deal on a used one if you need to.Me either... I mean, if the quality is there, and it sounds good to you, then why not spend several thousand $$$ on a guitar? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members klinefelter Posted October 30, 2009 Members Share Posted October 30, 2009 My dad and I bought a Goldtop LP Deluxe around 1981 from a guy who worked at the Gibson plant (we live in Nashville). It was $450 +$100 for the hardshell case. As it turned out, it was a Norlin-era POS, so it's been long gone from my collection. Traded it for a Rick 330-12 (which I also no longer own). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members larry50 Posted October 30, 2009 Members Share Posted October 30, 2009 You're "beginning" to wonder? What planet have you been living on? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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