Irradiation posted:

You laugh but https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PCgQiW2gLhk.

Valtaherra posted:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JqdVQ9VdoAg

this is ugly as gently caress but it owns bones

unlawfulsoup posted:

Better rush and get a John Mayer strat... said no one.

Dirt posted:

I played one at Elderly Instruments in Lansing, MI once. It was the nicest strat I have ever played. But I wasn't about to drop 1700 on it.

I don't think Stratocasters are worth that much money honestly. My 700 dollar MIM one is nice as gently caress. The Mayer one was better, but not a thousand dollars better. Plus mine has an Antigua finish. The best finish ever.

unlawfulsoup posted:

There are a hell of a lot nice strats for that money ($1700).

ThePutty posted:

is there a point where a guitar really isn't any better or worse despite it being priced 500 percent more? i've tried a $1700+ guitar and then tried the cheap squier version of it for like $400 and it sounded pretty much the same minus some tiny miniscule differences which don't matter at all

why do people give a poo poo about brand names honestly

ThePutty posted:

is there a point where a guitar really isn't any better or worse despite it being priced 500 percent more? i've tried a $1700+ guitar and then tried the cheap squier version of it for like $400 and it sounded pretty much the same minus some tiny miniscule differences which don't matter at all

why do people give a poo poo about brand names honestly

Sockington posted:

And there are four new Gibsons you could choose from for that.


*most affordable carved top* was $769 last year. Also, price isn't innovation.


edit2:

UltimateGuitar posted:

The article itself wasn't from Gibson, but was based on a look at what Amazon leaked on their site (most of what are theoretically the 2015 model lineup) and on the advertising copy that went with the individual guitars. I followed the links when they were first up, and the article is accurate *based on what was there*.

It caused quite a stir on MLP and other sites. If true, it represents an interesting business model moving forward, and it's consistent with Henry J.

The guitars that Gibson put out at the low end (the J series, the T series) were crap (IMHO). They were stripped-down junk that didn't compete on anything but logo, with quality that didn't measure up to far better chinese and Korean product in that price range.

Before the flame wars start, note that whatever popularity the guitars enjoyed was because "the common man could finally afford a real Gibson." More than one buyer stated, "I'm getting everything that Gibson has to offer except for the 'bling'." That was not music to Gibson's ears.

And what it did was NOT increase Gibson sales. It cannibalized potentially higher-end Gibson sales, substituting loss-leader sales at unsustainably low prices and zero profit. And it didn't do what Gibson intended. They have an issue with entry-level guitarists in that newbs have NO brand loyalty to Gibson. They're buying other brands. The cheap Gibsons didn't sway the newbs, who were bright enough to see that the Korean guitars were better quality. Instead, Gibson found it was selling to older customers who simply couldn't afford the prices before. Backfire.

Gibson is a premium brand, but the cheaper guitars were crapping it up. Increased volume of units moved didn't translate to increased profits. just the opposite. And Gibson was in serious danger of losing its identity.

A peripheral problem is that Guitar Center, Gibson's biggest outlet, is floundering. It's not paying its bills, and it can't support large inventories of high-dollar guitars. You probably haven't seen a PRS at your local GC in a while. For the most part, they've bailed. The guitar walls have more of the guitars flat on the walls than at an angle. It still looks like there are a lot of guitars, but those flat-on-the-wall guitars simply take up more space. There are 100-300 fewer guitars on display on average, and what IS there is mostly low end these days. You won't find much backup stock, either on the shelves or "in the back." The keyboard section will have more Used gear on display and less New stuff. I went in looking for a Korg PA3X the other day. They didn't have one and didn't have one in the system, but they did have a used (and fairly battered, with parts that didn't work) PA2X (discontinued version) sitting there. In every department, Guitar Center is filling more space with used gear. Far cheaper. Vendors who once challenged for shelf space on over 200 stores are now being parsimonious with inventory on credit, fearing its loss in a bankruptcy.

Gibson produced those low-end guitars partly to fill space on GC walls and maintain the appearance of a Gibson presence. That pretense is over. Gibson now figures to sell more guitars online and eliminate pilferage, damage, shop wear, etc.

In short, Gibson is at once tightening its belt and attempting to move back to its favorite spot at the high end. They're looking at the Harley Davidson business model and planning to rely on the retiring baby boomer money for the next ten years. They've missed that Harley is losing headway on the same business model of late and that Harley desperately needs to find new customers as well.

After years of keeping its thumb on Epiphone, it may be forced to allow Epiphone to produce the quality it's capable of. To Gibson's very deep corporate chagrin, it may be Epiphone that saves the company. Gibson has painted itself (literally) into a corner of traditionalism with nitrocellulose lacquer on US-made guitars. Epiphone has no such restrictions. Its finishing department allows its entire production facility to move far faster than Gibsons, with dry-to-dry finishing in under 24 hours. Gibson's greatest quantity of customer complaints and returns comes from nitrocellulose lacquer. They need to convert, but until they talk the Tennessee legislature into "making it their fault" so that Gibson can blame "big gummint," they can't convert to the much faster finishing methods yet. The satin finishes on the cheap guitars moved faster through the system and averted quality concerns. Flat finishes on guitars and cars are already beginning to fade as a fashion statement. But Gibson knows it can't produce large volumes of guitars with quality finishes using nitro. It really needs to change.

Epiphone can produce FAR higher quality guitars than it's been allowed to. Gibson didn't want the in-store competition for its low end and Studio guitars. By ceding the lower end pricepoints to Epiphone and allowing them to move upscale, Gibson can concentrate on producing fewer guitars at higher prices and attempt to retrieve its lost reputation for high quality. Epi still produces profit for Gibson. And you can bet that within 10 years, the Epiphone factory will be producing a Gibson-branded product "for China Only" that will be equal to (or exceed) the quality of USA-made Gibsons. The long-term plan is to develop demand for those guitars as a grey-market "sneak-in" product for the US, and then to appear to throw up its hands and produce the same guitars in the US (with modern finishes), moving nitro to a "Historic Only" niche.

Watch and see.

Ultimate Guitar posted:

In short, Gibson is at once tightening its belt and attempting to move back to its favorite spot at the high end. They're looking at the Harley Davidson business model and planning to rely on the retiring baby boomer money for the next ten years. They've missed that Harley is losing headway on the same business model of late and that Harley desperately needs to find new customers as well.

Oscar Romeo Romeo posted:

I've sent them an e-mail asking if Mayer doesn't want his endorsement deal anymore, can I have it? Will update if/when I get the inevitable notice to kindly gently caress off.

Chrpno posted:

Someone mentioned Richie Kotzen, so I had to look him up. Is this the most clichéd wiki page for a guitarist? Especially this section:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richie_Kotzen#Guitar_playing_style

gently caress Your Website posted:

The only interesting thing about Richie Kotzen is that he's so dumb he got kicked out of Poison for loving the drummer's fiancee.

Declan MacManus posted:

Also he doesn't use a pick

Snowy posted:

I seriously want this red acrylic Warlock, $275 seems like nothing for something this objectively beautiful.




and put some of those Seymore Duncan Slugs in there somewhere please

Snowy posted:

W424 posted:

Ahh, the BC Rich "testes" headstock.

Snowy posted:

Fumble posted:

Wow, now that's something I will never unsee.

W424 posted:

Ahh, the BC Rich "testes" headstock.

Melchior posted:

Man, I went to my usual open mic/jam night last night and it was just a nonstop parade of guitarists playing neil young and the ilk. Kind of depressing when the one other horn player besides me has to bring accompaniment CDs to a jam night when he plays.

Not that these people aren't talented, it's just very boring for anyone who doesn't play guitar, bass, or drums.

Snowy posted:

I seriously want this red acrylic Warlock, $275 seems like nothing for something this objectively beautiful.




and put some of those Seymore Duncan Slugs in there somewhere please

Carnaticum posted:

I played one of these in a music shop over 5 years ago. Weighed a ton, sounded and played like absolute poo poo.

ThePutty posted:

is there a point where a guitar really isn't any better or worse despite it being priced 500 percent more? i've tried a $1700+ guitar and then tried the cheap squier version of it for like $400 and it sounded pretty much the same minus some tiny miniscule differences which don't matter at all

why do people give a poo poo about brand names honestly

Stux posted:

yeah there is, a higher (or sometimes even any) midrange guitar from anyone with a good setup and possibly some electronics/hardware replacement (dependent on brand) is going to sound and play 99-100% as well as a ridiculously priced gibson or fender for like half the price even after paying for new hardware etc

or go used and either get a high end guitar for midranged prices or get a midranged guitar for loving nothing and pimp it out

Snowy posted:

Oh well time to find an even cheaper donor to put a Slug in.

El Golden Goose posted:

A lot of people I know (myself included) have been buying ultra-cheap guitars from https://www.rondomusic.com and replacing hardware/getting them professionally set up, and they don't sound or play half bad at all. They also make decent extended range instruments.