2016 Gibson

[JeffB]

Re: 2016 Gibson

Exactly.

They put all their new "improvements" on the usa lineup and upped the prices. If you don't want those improvements you are directed to the Historic lineup. Which now have some weirdness of their own like a different/non historic neck tenon (csX models) and have increased in price $1500-2500 plus each from last year...$6k for a CS8,and a "true historic" is now in the $9k plus range.

 

[blueman335]

Re: 2016 Gibson

The problem isn't that the collector/purist crowd has cried. It's that Gibson doesn't offer choice when it's obvious that there's a market for multiple options. They need a vintage line, a vintage/modern line, and a balls-to-the-wall modern line. They could manufacture the same total number of instruments and be good.

+1. Very simple solution. The approach of blending traditional and modern in the same guitar doesn't please a lot of players, as has been shown over the decades. Two distinct lines solves the problem. This isn't a hard problem to fix.

 

[PFDarkside]

Re: 2016 Gibson

You can already get a late 2015 without the auto tuners.

 

[JeffB]

Re: 2016 Gibson

You can already get a late 2015 without the auto tuners.

But you still have the brass nut/zero fret (which are showing to be a big wear item) and Les' deathbed scribble. For alot those are deal breakers, and you are still paying the 30 percent price hike.

In addition, some of these are coming through with black opaque necks, which suggests they are working down previously finished 2015 aircraft carrier necks.

Historically I have been a Gibson supporter, even through the bad qc years of Norlins, and late 90s through mid 2ks, but at this point, I just shake my head.

 

[Snake Aces]

Re: 2016 Gibson

The problem isn't that the collector/purist crowd has cried. It's that Gibson doesn't offer choice when it's obvious that there's a market for multiple options. They need a vintage line, a vintage/modern line, and a balls-to-the-wall modern line. They could manufacture the same total number of instruments and be good.

Absolutely

 

[GilmourD]

Re: 2016 Gibson

+1. Very simple solution. The approach of blending traditional and modern in the same guitar doesn't please a lot of players, as has been shown over the decades. Two distinct lines solves the problem. This isn't a hard problem to fix.

Maybe that's a personal thing for me. I like vintage ideas with modern twists, like Teles with ashtray bridges and neck humbuckers, or Les Pauls with coil cuts and baked maple compound radius boards.

 

[PFDarkside]

Re: 2016 Gibson

But you still have the brass nut/zero fret (which are showing to be a big wear item) and Les' deathbed scribble. For alot those are deal breakers, and you are still paying the 30 percent price hike.

In addition, some of these are coming through with black opaque necks, which suggests they are working down previously finished 2015 aircraft carrier necks.

Historically I have been a Gibson supporter, even through the bad qc years of Norlins, and late 90s through mid 2ks, but at this point, I just shake my head.

I know, I meant it's not even model year changeover yet and that change has already been applied.

 

[BloodRose]

Re: 2016 Gibson

Every model's neck now has a pure abalone fretboard so it looks like one giant inlay. Although the neck is screwed on for convenience in repair and stability, they also glue it into the pocket to preserve the set neck tone.

Their frets are made of adamantium and their bridges are made of vibranium now, shooting the prices of each instrument up $15,000 as the hardware will never have to be repaired or maintained ever again and the guitar will sustain for longer than your grand children will live.

Gibson has also tracked down some of their most beloved vintage guitars and extracted samples from each of them so that the wood can be cloned for true vintage accuracy.

The G-Force tuning system has also been updated to auto-tune your individual notes, even when fretted, to perfection while you are playing, and is now also on every traditional and custom shop model as well as the main line up.

A 2016 one p90 pickup SG student model starts at $25,000 street.

How did you get such insider info??? My sources gave me one tidbit that you didn't mention from the dealer literature: Every guitar will have one "Special DNA Characteristic " tm. The "Special DNA Characteristic" tm, Be it a bubble in the finish, to a rough fret edge, ding or faulty pickup. This is our way of making every single guitar we produce a genuine collectible! It will be almost impossible that any two "SDNAC" tm will be the same, but you can be assured, your guitar will have it's own character making "SDNAC" tm! The "SDNAC" tm feature is not an upcharge option, but a standard that's already been considered in the price increases for the 2016 model year..

 

[JeffB]

Re: 2016 Gibson

I know, I meant it's not even model year changeover yet and that change has already been applied.

No worries, I was just expanding it further to be devils advocate

 

[Christopher Caruana]

Re: 2016 Gibson

Fender has the right idea with their lineup. They have a ton of different guitars with a ton of different price ranges and a ton of different specs

 

[blueman335]

Re: 2016 Gibson

Maybe that's a personal thing for me. I like vintage ideas with modern twists, like Teles with ashtray bridges and neck humbuckers, or Les Pauls with coil cuts and baked maple compound radius boards.

Which some guys definitely do. But those also turn off vintage-spec guys, and at the same time aren't modern enough for players who want more changes, hence the current state-of-affairs. By trying to straddle the fence, they're not pleasing as many people as they'd like to. A modern line could encompass a few newer 'twists' all the way up to more radical changes. If the traditional guys still get unmolested designs, they'll stop complaining. The flaw seems to be Gibson approaching this as a one-size-fits-all kind of thing. They've been tinkering with this with LP's off and on since 1968.

 

[allbutromeo]

Re: 2016 Gibson

They've been tinkering with this with LP's off and on since 1968.

they've been tinkering with it since 1952. Two changes in neck angle, three different bridges, and the switch from P90s to PAFs all within the 52-60 span, plus the change from gold top to bursts

 

[Falloffthebonetone]

Re: 2016 Gibson

Fender has the right idea with their lineup. They have a ton of different guitars with a ton of different price ranges and a ton of different specs

And when they try new and more radical things, they put them in select lower-mid budget instruments rather than ALL THE MID-HIGH END ONES.

 

[blueman335]

Re: 2016 Gibson

And when they try new and more radical things, they put them in select lower-mid budget instruments rather than ALL THE MID-HIGH END ONES.

Maybe Gibson could learn something from this?

 

[Christopher Caruana]

Re: 2016 Gibson

Maybe Gibson could learn something from this?

They could lol but they won't

 

[Christopher Caruana]

Re: 2016 Gibson

And when they try new and more radical things, they put them in select lower-mid budget instruments rather than ALL THE MID-HIGH END ONES.

And they also don't hike their prices up $1500 on said models as a result

 

[Gearjoneser]

Re: 2016 Gibson

Les' deathbed scribble.

:chairfall

That's now my official name for 2015 Gibsons. "Les Paul Deathbed Scribble models"

Add it to the others.

Lawsuit era (Ibanez and PRS LP's)
Norlin era
Flat fret years
70's pancake bodies
CBS era (Fender)
2012 Richlite/baked maple fretboards
Gibson Robot years.

 

[Myaccount876]

Re: 2016 Gibson

I just want a player SG. I'm starting to consider waiting until one of the old faded SG specials go up for sale for less than $400, buy it, gut it, sell the parts, widen the pickup routes under the pickguard to fit P90s, new bridge, new electronics, new pickguard, P90s, and possibly a refinish. I'll see how the 2016 lineup looks first though.

 

[Aasinsilta]

Re: 2016 Gibson

Zzounds has the 2016 models listed. Low on detailed specs, but looks like the brass nut is gone and the fadeds are back.

http://www.zzounds.com/lp/gibson-2016-models/255

 

[Jeffrec]

Re: 2016 Gibson

Prices look to be lower than last year, unless I'm mistaken. They also have the SG Special with P-90s back. Always loved that one. I got a 2014 Firebird last year and love the crap out of it. They jacked the price up for 2015, then lowered it for 2016 on the Firebird according to today's Zzounds and AMS emails.