high-priced Gibbies

famous beagle

famous beagle

Well-known member
Got the new Sweetwater catalog in the mail yesterday, and as usual, there's a new roundup of Gibsons in the $5K and above range. I was just wondering ... who buys these things? I have to believe it's worth Gibson's while, or they wouldn't keep releasing these instruments, but ... I mean, do y'all know anyone who's paying $5K for a new Les Paul? I sure don't.

Does anyone have any experience with any of these high-end models? Maybe I'm just broke-ass compared to the rest of the world, but for me $1K is expensive. $2K is like a dream guitar for me that will probably not happen. But $5K? Holy ballsack.
 
They're really nice. And overpriced. I don't know who buys them, but I play them at guitar stores all the time, and then put them right back on the wall where they collect dist forever.
 
There are people that could buy an entire Guitar Center, glue every Strat neck to every Les Paul in the store and then pay a hundred guys to repair the damage and still have a hundred million $ left over.

It's either those guys or somebody who really, really wants an expensive LP. 5k is a lot of money but it's not unheard of. What's a new car go for? 10-30k? You just have to have priorities if you want one.
 
There is an old trick where if you price something "pretty" above what it is worth then those that aspire to it will pay over the odds for second best. Gibson have made that an art form...;)

I charge good money... but you get what you asked for... and you get what you paid for...:)
 
Schwarzenyaeger said:
There are people that could buy an entire Guitar Center, glue every Strat neck to every Les Paul in the store and then pay a hundred guys to repair the damage and still have a hundred million $ left over.

It's either those guys or somebody who really, really wants an expensive LP. 5k is a lot of money but it's not unheard of. What's a new car go for? 10-30k? You just have to have priorities if you want one.
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If I had 5000 bucks to spend on a guitar I would buy a really nice used double neck pedal steel for $2500, a used Gibson les paul studio for $700, and the remaining $1300 I would try to score a nice used 100 way Marshall stack for $800 and a nice used fender tube combo amp for the steel.
 
Wow. I hear about these guitars all the time and wonder, honestly, "How much better can they be?" I mean, I realize there's a difference, but really. It's like buying a $10k+ Schoeps. Is it really that much better than the $2-3k versions?
Ever look at Music Zoo? I don't think I've ever seen anything priced reasonably there.

Guess I'll keep playing my $300-500 guitars...
 
muttley600 said:
There is an old trick where if you price something "pretty" above what it is worth then those that aspire to it will pay over the odds for second best. Gibson have made that an art form...;)

I charge good money... but you get what you asked for... and you get what you paid for...:)
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Dude, Mutt, you're exactly right about the Gibson scheme. They make good guitars but...if you wait for the sales when last year's models are still sitting on the shelves then you might actually get your money's worth.

Beagle, put that sweetwater catalog in the trash or recycle bin and save yourself the headaches. :)
 
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I ran into this when I was ensuring my LP. Most of my guitars are vintage or oddballs and finding an exact replacement is difficult or impossible, so I look for something equivalent and use that. It really sucks to have to pay this much for insurance* but there's no way I could otherwise afford to replace that guitar. I'd likely try to find a couple used early-90s Heritage H150s instead of one Gibson LP now.

Does anyone have a ballpark on what a luthier-built LP-style guitar runs these days? The factory units have to be getting into that range, right?

*Funny enough I was talking to a friend of a friend who sells insurance and she was telling me that I shouldn't need to list instruments since there should be a built-in allowance for personal property that's either a percentage of the assessed value of the house or a fixed number. I stopped her and told her the percentage of my house assessment that my guitars and PA gear would be and she got wide-eyed and said "okay yeah you're gonna have to list that stuff." Working at a guitar shop and live sound engineering company in high school and college and getting gear for cost had its benefits for sure!
 
How many cans do you use when you ensure an LP? :laughings:
Sorry, couldn't resist.

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I think ALL Les Pauls are overpriced - especially in the UK where they're usually over £1300! You spend that on a guitar from any other manufacturer (including Fender) and you'd get a lot more than you get from Gibson.
 
JDOD said:
I think ALL Les Pauls are overpriced - especially in the UK where they're usually over £1300! You spend that on a guitar from any other manufacturer (including Fender) and you'd get a lot more than you get from Gibson.
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Yeah? Like what?
 
Greg_L said:
Yeah? Like what?
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Its actually quite hard to find something comparible at that sort of money - you normally have to go cheaper. PRS are probably the closest in price and they do heaps of guitars which are well built, a similar layout and have a pair of quality humbuckers in them. But their basic models that fit the bill are normally £900 - £1000. Sure they do crazy expensive ones too, but their standard models of comparative spec to a Les Paul are cheaper.

But then there's loads of stuff from people like Shecter, Fernandes, Ibanez etc that make similar quality/spec guitars for under a grand. I know these brands do a lot of "shred" guitars but they also make a fair bit of classic looking stuff too.

Maybe its cos the fact that its a real "Les Paul" means nothing to me and I'm not that keen on the design.
 
JDOD said:
Go on then. Try and objectively explain why a 1300 quid Les Paul is better than a grand's worth of PRS
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Well, for one, Les Pauls don't have little birds on the fretboard. That alone is 100% win right there. And a PRS is built and looks an awful lot like a double-cut Les Paul, does it not? And correct me if I'm wrong because I really have no interest in PRS anything, but aren't the low level PRS guitars made in korea or something? I don't know. But if you don't like Les Pauls anyway, how is anyone supposed to convince you otherwise? Go play your Tele...which you ironically have set up to be just like a Les Paul. :laughings: You said so yourself. :thumbs up:

Now you explain to me how a cheap PRS is better than a cheap Les Paul. They're essentially the same guitar. One sans gay little birdies.

But whether one is better or worse, I don't know. The upper level PRS guitars are nice guitars. The upper level Les Pauls are nice guitars. It's all subjective. I like Les Pauls, and I don't like your Schecter Ibanez chinese shred shit, so I do get where you're coming from as far as simply being biased.
 
So, you agree then. There's no objective reason that Les Paul's are comparatively more expensive than other guitars.
 
JDOD said:
So, you agree then. There's no objective reason that Les Paul's are comparatively more expensive than other guitars.
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No, I don't agree. Being factory/handmade in the USA is a valid reason to be more expensive than an oriental bolt-together. Whether or not that matters to you is up to you, but USA guitars are typically better and/or more expensive than chinese bolt-together. It's nothing to be angry about though. No one is forcing you to buy one.

But other than that, no there's not many reasons that a Les Paul should be much more expensive than other similar style and construction guitars. Besides the simple fact that they can be. They have good resale value. A mid-level LP will probably re-sell for more than a mid-level Schecter or PRS jalopy simply because it is a Gibson. A Les Paul will probably never go out of style again.
 
I will say this:
Although I would buy several pieces of used equipment and a few used guitars if I had 5k to drop on guitars....I disagree about getting less from Gibson for the money. Gibson studio models are fine guitars and are toward the bottom of their line. When you get to the Gibson les Paul's that are at the high $5000 level, they are awesome guitars. But, them being awesome guitars isn't why I'm arguing that you're getting as much or more for your money with the high dollar les pauls. The reason you're getting a great bang for the buck is because high dollar les pauls hold their value extremely well. They have a proven track record of it.
 
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