Vintage Gibsons vs. New Gibsons

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fiveyearslater

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Hey I'm planning on buying a Gibson soon, but I doubt between a vintage or new one.. Two guys in an experienced band in our scene own Gibsons from '79 or something. I don't have a clue why they would buy such an old thing. Are they better? What's better or different about them? Why should I prefer a vintage Gibson over a new one? Thanx in advance, really would appreciate your help!
 
lpdeluxe said:
Let the games begin!
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YES! :D

Depends on the year..Really you can get a newer "Paul" that will do just as good a job..I've had a 50's,6o's,7o's and a 80 and I have a 2000ish..My favorite was a 74 Standard..but the 2000 is very nice and better than most of the other 7 or so I've had..Also these days you have a choice of options that you didn't have back then{neck type&P/U's ect.}..Also late 70's are not considered the best of Gibsons work,such as that is you could find one of that era that you dig..The eye and heart of the beholder..YMMV
 
I recieved a SG for my graduation in 1967.
It was stolen in 1996.
Now I have a 1998.

There is a difference. Same amp, same picks, same strings. Stock SGs, both.
 
I'll present my point of view, worth every bit of a virtual $.02: it don't mean squat whether it's new or old or vintage or trash. Unless you are into dealing instruments it all comes down to whether the guitar speaks with YOUR voice. Everything else is snobbery.
J
 
lpdeluxe said:
I'll present my point of view, worth every bit of a virtual $.02: it don't mean squat whether it's new or old or vintage or trash. Unless you are into dealing instruments it all comes down to whether the guitar speaks with YOUR voice. Everything else is snobbery.
J
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I'll second that with if you also collect- I've got a '66 SG only cause I was born in '66 and a couple vintage amps that rawk.

My faves? A reissue 1960 LP Classic that sings and a Japanese Tele that just has that sound I love.

Play a bunch and buy what you like!!!
 
I have a '99 les paul, a '76 explorer, and a '59 melody maker. The '99 les paul is the best. It could be because melody makers are crappy anyway, but the explorer was just as expensive as the paul (in '76 anyway) but still doesn't play as well as my '99 les paul.
 
I have 4 Gibsons, 2 vintage (1275 double neck and a 150DC), and 2 new ones (1999 SG Supreme and a 12 string SG custom). I love all of them. So here is the deal, first off you need to like the way it plays and sounds. Whether it's vintage or not, the playability is the most important criteria. After that, it is what can you afford. Next, if it is vintage, make sure it's in great shape. A 69 LP will cost the same whether it's in great shape or trashed.

Generally speaking, you won't loose money by buying vintage. If you keep it in good shape, you can usually get rid of it for more, if you keep it for a few years.

Also, keep in mind that the crowd really doesn't care whether it's vintage or not. In a crowd of 100 people, maybe 1 person will know what you are playing. Playing a vintage guitar won't get a bigger applause, it won't get you laid easier, and it won't get you any more money for a gig. It will give you, and only you, a higher degree of satasfaction when playing it. So, is it worth the extra bucks, well, that's your call!!
 
And a bigger headache when it's stolen out of the van.
 
lpdeluxe said:
I'll present my point of view, worth every bit of a virtual $.02: it don't mean squat whether it's new or old or vintage or trash. Unless you are into dealing instruments it all comes down to whether the guitar speaks with YOUR voice. Everything else is snobbery.
J
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Exactly! Guitar collecting and guitar playing are two different things.
A LP from 1954 is no better than a LP from today. All LPs are different, even the ones built by the same guy on the same day. Different builders will have their "signature" in things like setup (if any) and little things that they prefer in the hand operations. But, every guitar is different. That is why you have to find the one YOU like. Year makes no difference unless you are a collector.
BTW: 65% of "collector" guitars I have played all play like shit. I have played very few that I would consider great guitars. If you want to collect, and hang them on a wall, then year and condition are everything. If you are a player, then none of this matters. It matters how YOU like it.


Case in point: I wanted an SG Custom with Lyre tremolo. I played many new ones. At $3000 I came to the conclusion that the new ones are not worth the $$$ at all. So, I scoured the vintage shops and found a 1971 in %95 condition that I loved playing. I paid $2100. So, in the end I ended up with a great guitar that just happens to be vintage.
 
The key is usually to buy the one that sounds and feels best to you.

Gibson has made good guitars just about every year they've been in business. They have also made their share of less than good units as well, also in most years. Fortunately their bad percentage is small.

As someone else said, one rarely loses much $ if you buy a good condition Gibson, and then keep it that way over the years.

Ed
 
The latest fad (at least when I was still keeping track of such things) for collectors was that the guitar had to be LIKE NEW with "hang tags" [never mind that suddenly zillions of '50's guitars appeared overnight with their hang tags] and UNPLAYED. If you've ever had your hands on a "vintage", unplayed guitar (or amp, for that matter) you become immediately aware that there is a REASON that instrument is in such cherry condition: it was a poor performer, with a bad neck, or crappy pickups, or it wouldn't stay in tune or there was some other flaw that kept players away from it. I don't say I don't have some "collectibles" (including my beloved '63 Chet Atkins Country Gent) but they have to earn their keep. No trailer queens (as the hotrodders say) here, thank you very much.
 
What about re-issues

I just got a 61 SG re-issue and it rocks.. I had an 86 SG that was not as good. Just wondering if the re-issues would be a good choice for you...
 
As most of the others have said, play a bunch of guitars and find the one you love. Even the most staunch Gibson fans will tell you that you may have to play 20 new (or vintage) Gibsons (same model, options, etc.) before you find the one that stands out.

My one Gibson I have is a 1936 L-00 (I guess you'd call that vintage... ;) ), and when I bought it, it was only because it sounded unbelievable, and played very well, too.

Somebody in the thread said that you'll pay the same for a vintage guitar regardless of the condition. That's really not true. My guitar was $1400 - it doesn't have original tuners or an original bridge, and the shop I bought it from basically restored the thing from some water damage that had caused some of the glue to loosen. I didn't care about any of this, because the luthier does amazing work, and the guitar sounds as good or better than any other acoustic I've played - it made me appreciate what it means for a guitar to be "alive." (It does have a unique sound, which is perfect for blues, etc. It doesn't sound like a Martin, but that's cool.) When I asked others about it (Gibson guys lol), they said that the guitar was worth it based on the sound and my love for it alone - and the fact that it won't really depreciate.

If this guitar was in great, original condition, it would go for $2000 or more. The shop I bought it at is awesome, because they get great old guitars that are players - they often aren't original, etc., so because of that they are more affordable, and are still killer guitars.

I never believed there was anything "magical" about vintage guitars, and I guess I still don't. There IS something magical about this one though... :D Play a ton of them and find the one that calls you.
 
also keep in mind tht it doesn just go by year... ive played 4 different versions of my guitar (all 2003) and i only REALLY liked 3 of them. the one just sucked. it didnt feel right, it didnt sound right. same thing with drum stuff. im a drummer anbd ive learned to play cymbals before you buy... not to go buy a model of a cymbal because thats what your fav drummer uses. every cymbal sounds different. every guitar is going to be a little different too. even guitars of the same year
 
juststartingout said:
A 69 LP will cost the same whether it's in great shape or trashed.
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Not at all true. In the vintage guitar market, condition is EVERYTHING. It can, with some guitars, make a difference of thousands of dollars, and a guitar in very bad shape will be worth as little as half of one which is in good shape.


Light

"Cowards can never be moral."
M.K. Gandhi
 
i always thought it was common knowlege that vintage guitars almost always play, sound, and feel better than there newer counter parts, if it was taken care of that is, when it comes to insturments like guitars, age can be as good of a friend as an enemy
 
acorec said:
BTW: 65% of "collector" guitars I have played all play like shit. I have played very few that I would consider great guitars. If you want to collect, and hang them on a wall, then year and condition are everything. If you are a player, then none of this matters. It matters how YOU like it.
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You just have not been playing the right ones. What you have to do is find the ones the dealers keep. I have a friend who has an early to mid thirties Gibson Jumbo; al a the J 45, before there was such a thing; which is one of the greatest damn guitars you will ever hear. Norman Blake – who knows a thing or two about great guitars – has offered my friend $15,000 for that guitar, and been flatly rejected; because it is absolutely irreplaceable. When old guitars are great, they will beat any new guitar hands down. They just are not all great. You have to find the right ones, and they are usually in the hands of guys like my friend, who makes his living buying and selling (mostly) vintage guitars.

And believe me, I am no vintage snob. I am a custom snob; after all, that is what I do. I still have to acknowledge that when you find a great old guitar, it will blow you away. They are not all great, either. We had one of the most valuable guitars we have ever had in the shop recently, which was a 1932 Martin D-28. That was the first year they made such a beast, and they only made like 20 of them. On the market, that guitar would have easily brought in $35,000. And it sound decidedly unimpressive. It was not bad in any way, but it just did not knock your socks off. Nice, but not $35,000 nice. But then you get guitars like my friends Jumbo, and there is just no comparison. No new guitar can recreate that sound. It is just not possible.

The real trick, of course, is to find the instrument which speaks to you, and that is the one you buy (if you can afford it, of course). Myself, I am lucky. The first guitar I ever got (which my father made for me when I was eight) is, to this day, the best acoustic guitar I have ever played. It beats them all. At least, for me it does. And as for electrics, the one I like best is usually the last one I made. Life is funny that way.


Light

"Cowards can never be moral."
M.K. Gandhi

Edited for punctuation, because I really am that much of a geek.
 
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maybe vampires said:
i always thought it was common knowlege that vintage guitars almost always play, sound, and feel better than there newer counter parts, if it was taken care of that is, when it comes to insturments like guitars, age can be as good of a friend as an enemy
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Age certainly helps a well maintained, good quality, guitar. As guitars get older, the woods dry out, the lacquer continues to out-gas – therefore becoming harder – and the woods sort of get used to being together, and learn to vibrate together better. And yes I know how ridiculous the second half of that sentence sounds. None the less; it is true. As guitars get older, the sound changes. To most people, this is a good thing, though not everyone values the same things. To my ear, the sound gets dryer, more based in the fundamental, while at the same time, the overtones just open up. There is an absolute sound to age in a guitar, and it can not be replicated.

However, it does nothing for playability or feel. Now, a lot of people like the feel of, for instance, old Fenders more than the new ones. This is primarily because of the very tight radius they used on the fingerboards back then – 7.25 inches – which is much more comfortable for playing chords, particularly barre chords. They have not, however, gotten easier to play over the years. They have always been that way. And of course those tight radiuses have their own problems. They fret out much easier when you are bending notes.


Light

"Cowards can never be moral."
M.K. Gandhi
 
I have several vintage Gibson guitars - the latest from 1963.
Every one is an excellent instrument, plays and sounds great.

I have also played several great new Gibsons.
The moral of this story is that a guitar is a guitar. It doesn't know if it was made in 1959 or 1989.
1963? 1993? doesn't matter. What matters is how does it sound and how does it play IN YOUR OPINION.

It doesn't matter what I think, what Light thinks (although he does know his stuff [most of the time ;)]) what Jeff Beck, Pat Metheny or Brad Paisley thinks.

Go play a bunch of guitars. Try them acoustically first (no, I'm not kidding. A great guitar will absolutely ring and shimmer not plugged in).

What type of guitar are you looking for? If it's a Les Paul, try finding a 30th Anniversary re-issue goldtop. I've played several of them, and every one was great. If it's a 335, try and find an early 80's dot-neck reissue. I've played several of the early 80's guitars and they were all excellent.

Happy hunting.
 
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