Why do some players hate Gibson so much?

[chilipeppermaniac]

I'll eventually make a NGD. Still waiting on a tail piece to replace the Bigsby

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Jean, That top looks like one of your pieces of art under all that red stain. Pretty one, brother.

 

[sirpluckalot]

I watched the video and he was saying no such thing. He had specific issues and he provided the evidence for each of them. You may not share his conclusions but he certainly justified them.

ok the comments then, many were over the top basically just bashing Gibsons.

 

[donepearce]

ok the comments then, many were over the top basically just bashing Gibsons.

the comments? Who gives a f*ck about the comments?

 

[living room rocker]

What I found interesting on the black SG was how high the fat e-string rode on top of the nut. Almost looked like a whole step bend would pull it right out of the slot. Maybe that's not unusual, but my e-string certainly sits deeper in its slot.

 

[MR D]

Did you watch the video and read the comments? They're basicaly saying Gibsons are junk.

Actually no, I did not…. I figure I kno what I kno , and they think they kno what they kno, so no need….
All my GIBSON’s play EXCELLENTLY….and the only GIBSONs I’ve met that did not play excellently…that didn’t need repair…..just needed a good setup, usually the Neck Relief (followed a close 2nd by poorly cut NUT pullin everything Sharp) to be closed from some ridiculous setting, say .035” @ 9th fret and, once closed to say .005”@ 9th fret, completely different playability. Owner usually has no clue how to set his GIBSON up , so naturally, he is not an idiot… the Guitar is a POS . Uh-huh !

 

[An Abiding Dude]

It's all the fault of that geek from Lubbock, Texas.

Ever since he appeared on the Ed Sullivan show playing a [warning - sensitive readers look away now] Stratocaster...

Ah, but a hairdresser from St. Louis and a guy backing up a kid from Tupelo playing their hollowbodies came first!

 

[papagayo]

Bashing Gibson is a good way to get many views.

No more .

 

[donepearce]

What I found interesting on the black SG was how high the fat e-string rode on top of the nut. Almost looked like a whole step bend would pull it right out of the slot. Maybe that's not unusual, but my e-string certainly sits deeper in its slot.

I noticed that. And it had a lot too much first fret clearance. It looks like the strings he's using are too fat for the fret slots. It needs some adjustment to accommodate them.

 

[ChubbyFingers]

Bashing Gibson is a good way to get many views.

No more .

This.

The internerd has a lot to answer for.

 

[ChubbyFingers]

I wonder if Gibson will "sponsor" me to produce a lot of "why I won't buy Fenders/Gretsches/PRSs/Squiers...." videos on youtube ?

 

[Juan Tumani]

Bunch of rubbish video and if you read the comments they're unbelievable.

I didn't even finish watching the video. It's clear to me this guy doesn't know what's what.

These "issues" are the nature of the beast. It's just what happens to Nitro on wood over time.

 

[donepearce]

I didn't even finish watching the video. It's clear to me this guy doesn't know what's what.

These "issues" are the nature of the beast. It's just what happens to Nitro on wood over time.

So you are saying that Gibson have fundamental problems related to poor choice of build materials? Cracking and flaking should not be the nature of anything. If it is happening, do something about it.

 

[Juan Tumani]

So you are saying that Gibson have fundamental problems related to poor choice of build materials? Cracking and flaking should not be the nature of anything. If it is happening, do something about it.

I'm saying Nitro shrinks over time and when that happens it can crack. This is most often seen where two materials meet and often has nothing to do with movement of those materials other than the movement of materials (especially Nitro finishes) during seasonal changes.

The more instances you have different materials meeting, the more instances of Nitro cracks you'll see (over time).

Fenders in general have less of these finish cracks because they don't have set necks, they don't have inlays, they don't have binding or in other words don't have all the things I personally love about my Gibsons.

However, you'll still see Fenders (and any other brand) with finish checking on Nitro which is still basically the same thing.

Here is my 2017 Custom Shop SG.

Certainly the inlays can't be moving due to string pressure. It's just two different materials covered by Nitro.

 

[ChubbyFingers]

I didn't even finish watching the video. It's clear to me this guy doesn't know what's what.

These "issues" are the nature of the beast. It's just what happens to Nitro on wood over time.

Time has yet to tell what happens to poly-whatever-it-is over time.

And I thought the "cool" thing was to buy a new instrument that's been professionally beaten up anyway?

 

[Juan Tumani]

Time has yet to tell what happens to poly-whatever-it-is over time.

And I thought the "cool" thing was to buy a new instrument that's been professionally beaten up anyway?

Poly can/will crack in the exact same places for the exact same reasons but it is a lot tougher in general. I have older Epiphones that have finish cracks at the neck joint as well as around the nut and along the binding. It happens faster and more often with Nitro because in addition wood movement with seasonal changes the Nitro itself shrinks over time.

 

[smitty_p]

I watched the video and he was saying no such thing. He had specific issues and he provided the evidence for each of them. You may not share his conclusions but he certainly justified them.

I agree.

I saw no blanket "Gibson bashing". He merely expressed his disappointment with certain things and showed them. He even stated that the two guitars in the video are "two of my favorite Gibson guitars."

 

[Decadent Dan]

I agree.

I saw no blanket "Gibson bashing". He merely expressed his disappointment with certain things and showed them. He even stated that the two guitars in the video are "two of my favorite Gibson guitars."

OP was referring to the comments

 

[donepearce]

OP was referring to the comments

He wasn't until I pointed out what he was doing.

 

[Col Mustard]

the OP's original question was: Why do some players hate Gibson?

I'll admit that I don't know. Maybe it's because they are expensive, and players resent that. That's understandable. Maybe it's that musicians can be perfectionists. Anyone fool enough (or rich enough) to pay Gibson's top prices ought to demand and expect VERY high quality.
Aye... there's the rub... the concept of perfection is an illusion.

How many posts do we see on this forum where guys cry and moan about some easily fixed quality issue on their new Gibson guitar?
OMG, I paid so much and it isn't perfect... We see those all the time.
I don't know if Fender forums get those kinds of crybaby posts, or if Fender's QC is better. I'm a Fender player too, and count on Fender to be durable and practical. And mine are.

I grew up in Michigan, a couple hundred Kilometers from Kalamazoo. Gibson was always regarded as something to be desired, something to strive for... I delivered newspapers on a bicycle, and the newspapers covered events at Gibson, especially strikes when the workers got uppity. Gibson bosses hated organized labor so much that they shipped the plant to Nashville and threw all those great craftsmen and women out of work, and hired new workers with no union to protect them, in the name of profit.

That's a reason to hate Gibson, but nobody talks about it.
Seventies Gibsons weren't built the way the "golden age" craftsmen built them, and Gibson's reputation took a huge hit that lasted for decades. But they could pay the workers less. They probably cheated their old workers out of their pensions too... typical factory boss behavior. I don't know this, but it fits the profile.


I don't hate Gibson. I never have. My three beauties are what I would regard as guitars of a lifetime. Two are humble SG specials, free from the decorations that some players prefer. My three beauties are all "less expensive" versions of guitars that can get very pricey indeed.
But not mine.

I never paid top Gibson prices (and never could, or will) and I own three excellent and very elegant guitars that enhance my music in ways that can't be measured by money. Lucky me... If anything needed fixing or adjusting on my Gibsons, I simply took care of it. For me
it's all about the music that can be made with them.

I bought them because I wanted that guitar at that price... I have them just the way I want them now, and they give great service with very few problems. Yay Gibson...

 

[Decadent Dan]

He wasn't until I pointed out what he was doing.

“…if you read the comments they're unbelievable.”