Electric Guitars I have a bad itch.

Rancid Rumpboogie

Rancid Rumpboogie

Blues Mangler
I have a bad itch..
I don't have a Gibson.
I don't have an SG.
I don't have $2,000.00 either.
SG.jpg
https://www.sweetwater.com/store/de...sg-standard-61-maestro-vibrola-vintage-cherry

HOWEVER ... I have a VERY HARD TIME spending $1,500.00 just for the name on the headstock ... well, it has Bustbucker pickups and Plek'd frets that the Epi doesn't have ... but $1,500.00 more? My Epi 339 Pro has the same pickups as this Epi SG and they are EXCELLENT pickups.
https://www.sweetwater.com/store/de...sg-standard-61-maestro-vibrola-vintage-cherry

I am not ready to actually do this yet ... and may never be ready, but if I do ever get another new guitar it will be an SG with the Maestro trem. So I have plenty of time to ponder. And I may cave just so I can belong to the exclusive prestigious "I got ripped off by Gibson" club.
 
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Tayport

Tayport

Blues Newbie
Similar thoughts, I have always loved the look of a Gibson SG with the same configuration and colour. At my level as a player, it is hard to justify the price. I'm not ruling it out though somewhere down the road lol.
 
MikeR

MikeR

Guitar Challenged
Staff member
Any guitar manufacturer's lower line is going to be a better value. PRS' SE line is 1/4 to 1/3 the price of their Core series. Then there's their "Wood Library" series where you can twice again as much for fancier wood. It all depends on what you want and are willing and able to pay.
 
JohnHurley

JohnHurley

Rock and Roll
Hmmm I kind of thing Gibsons SG HP lineup in 2018 using titanium is the best ever SG. ( I might be biased since i have a cobalt fade ).

But that one is very sweet dang I think you need it!
 
Silicon Valley Tom

Silicon Valley Tom

It makes me happpy to play The Blues!
A few years ago I seriously thought about purchasing a Gibson SG. It somehow reminds me of the Devil, complete with horns. :eek: It is even red!

Well, I went to the store, picked up a SG, and began to play it. I know when I like an instrument and when I do not. Except for the red color, there was nothing I liked about the SG. The feel and the sound were not what I was looking for. So much for the SG. To each his/her own. You like something or you do not. :cool:

Tom
 
MikeS

MikeS

Student Of The Blues
Staff member
I bought an EPI SG from a friend and haven't bonded with it at all. I'm not sure why but every time I play it without looking at my hands while I'm up high on the neck, my fingers keep going to the wrong frets. Same song played on a strat, tele, 339 or LP I don't have that problem.
I may have to dust her off and have another go at it.
 
sdbrit68

sdbrit68

Student Of The Blues
MikeS said:
I bought an EPI SG from a friend and haven't bonded with it at all. I'm not sure why but every time I play it without looking at my hands while I'm up high on the neck, my fingers keep going to the wrong frets. Same song played on a strat, tele, 339 or LP I don't have that problem.
I may have to dust her off and have another go at it.
Click to expand...
dqamn, I actually miss my epi lp..............one I wish hadn't gone away
 
Rancid Rumpboogie

Rancid Rumpboogie

Blues Mangler
If / when I do it, I will most likely go with the Epi. But you never know.
People think I am so anti-Gibson. I played a 335 for a couple years in working bands back in the late 60's, then scored a like-new LP Custom in a local music store for a good price ... it was a rare bird, natural finish with a MAPLE neck. It got stolen in a burglary. The price to replace it was just too much, and has been ever since and I was forced financially to secure guitars in the $400.00 - $500.00 price range and upgrade them with better pickups / electronics. That has taught me that those guitars can be made to play and sound every bit as good as my old LP Custom did. Now I can actually afford two grand for the Gibby SG pictured above, but just have SUCH a STRUGGLE justifying it. I just can't find a valid reason WHY I should. But I might, mainly for the Plek'd frets ... just to see if all that is fact or hype.
 
sdbrit68

sdbrit68

Student Of The Blues
I had an epi , I think sg 400 pro, coil tapping.............I played the $1500 Gibson right after, with a few amp tweaks, I could find zero reason to buy the Gibson
 
Rancid Rumpboogie

Rancid Rumpboogie

Blues Mangler
After more research, I think this is the way I will go if I do it.
https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/SG61VENH--gibson-sg-standard-61-vintage-cherry
And then just put a Bigsby B5 on it. From what I glean, those Maestro trems have tuning issues. The Epi has a vernier top and the vernier is not over the body bevels, giving a bright orange border around the guitar with no wood grain (the body is basswood, not mahogany). The Gibby also has real abalone headstock inlays and the frets are Plek'd. The standard is about $100.00 less expensive than the Maestro version and that would offset the cost of the Bigsby, and using a Bigsby B5 / Vibromate I could put it back to stock in about 20 minutes if need be. So looks like it will be a Gibby.
 
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JohnHurley

JohnHurley

Rock and Roll
There are people that say not all Gibson SGs neck dive ... I am not one of those people.

They can be great guitars totally awesome if you are playing sitting down. ( Well I like never stand up unless I am singing hardly so thats not bad for me at all ). But they do tend to dive if you are playing standing up. ... some people do things like counter weight them I have seen some strange configurations and weights in body control cavities ...

The 10 pound LPs never neck dive thats one thing to consider maybe.
 
Rancid Rumpboogie

Rancid Rumpboogie

Blues Mangler
Neck dive is not even a consideration for me.
If I get an SG I will be putting a Bigsby B5 on it using a Vibromate adapter ... just like I did on my 339 Pro.
The weight of the Bigsby will take care of any tendency to neck-dive.
With a roller bridge, my 339 stays in tune like a rock ... I have read just too many reports of tuning issues with the Gibby Maestro trem even though it looks cool. I dunno, maybe I'm nuts, but I think a B5 adds a sort of "60's muscle car" vibe to the look of a guitar ... they remind me of the Hurst shifters from back in the day.
ahlq3q55so3ccoiezjxi.jpg
 
Rancid Rumpboogie

Rancid Rumpboogie

Blues Mangler
OK, I have gassed myself into it. I'M GONNA DO IT. I just have to start stashing cashola into a SG account until I have enough to buy the blasted thing.
Rancid is gonna own a damned GIBSON. :confused::eek:
And I swear to the guitar gods that I WILL NOT BOOGLARIZE IT with modifications other than a Bigsby! iyfyus.jpg.gif
No pickup swaps, no fancy dandy switches, none of that! I SWEAR!
 
PapaRaptor

PapaRaptor

Father Vyvian O'Blivion
Staff member
Rancid Rumpboogie said:
And I swear to the guitar gods that I WILL NOT BOOGLARIZE IT with modifications other than a Bigsby!
index.php

No pickup swaps, no fancy dandy switches, none of that! I SWEAR!
Click to expand...

Yeah, right.
Stoner.gif
 
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