Pulled the Trigger!!!

5

54stratlover

New member
Well,....... Today was the day.

My wife and I went to Kennewick WA. to Music Machine. I have been watching there website a lot lately. After the whole Gibson internet thing, there website stopped posting pics, then they started showing them again. When they started showing the pics again, they also advertised that they were having a clearance sale. (more on this later). I had one guitar in mind, but I tried out like 7 different L.P.s. I tried out 2 cloud 9's, a couple Les Paul elegants (chambered also), and a custom shop L.P. Standard. Some points to note. The chambered LPs (elegants, and cloud 9s) were pretty cool. they had a pretty darn good tone, but it was different than what my notion of what a L.P. should sound. It is hard to explain. They have more bite in the mid and upper range. It is sharper (not harsh though) than say a really hard maple topped L.P. I am probably not describing it well though

(SIDE NOTE: I am terrible at describing tone, I have all the respect in the world for you guys that ellequently describe tone like Lew, GJ, StratDeluxer, Jeremy, etc, etc I just suck at describing tone, thats why I don't post in the pup lounge describing tone to me is like trying to describe a color I just suck at it, so bare with me.)

next----->
 
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Re: Pulled the Trigger!!!

the Cloud 9's are pretty much a vintage reissue. The Elegants have some modern appointments mainly the Nashville bridge, and grovers. I could definatly hear a difference between the nashville and the vintage bridges. the vintage bridges had a little better string to string definition, and the upper range was a little more clear in my opinion.

Now come the pups. To be honest, I am not sure exactly what each guitar had. I think they were either '57s or burstbuckers. Not sure which had which. But but anyway I will post links to the guitars that I weeded out

Cloud 9's
http://www.guitarsale.com/frontend/Product.aspx?ProductID=645
http://www.guitarsale.com/frontend/Product.aspx?ProductID=710

Les Paul Elegants
http://www.guitarsale.com/frontend/Product.aspx?ProductID=782
http://www.guitarsale.com/frontend/Product.aspx?ProductID=800

Custon Shop L.P. Standard
http://www.guitarsale.com/frontend/Product.aspx?ProductID=103

these are the ones I weeded out, (with my wifes help, she has a really good ear for tone, my ears are a little abused)

None of these guitars sounded bad by any means, It is just that these last two spoke to me.
Next--->
 
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Re: Pulled the Trigger!!!

here are the last 2 that the choice came down to.

58L.jpg


transplackL.jpg
 
Re: Pulled the Trigger!!!

wow, $4k for an LP...this is insane. You can go to any custom maker and get *exactly* what you want for that.

That much $ could really be a lot more useful to a private luthier than an giant corporation.
 
Re: Pulled the Trigger!!!

The choice was hard. I went back and forth, and back and forth. I tried all the guitars out through a Super Reverb with my HAO Rust Driver, and one of Stratdeluxers SD-1. I played them clean, mildly overdriven, and Full Tilt. Man, the tone between these two were really hard to choose between. They were different though. The first thing my wife noticed is that the '58 (the Lemon burst Aged authentic) in her words had a Bell like, or chimey tone when played clean. I warmed up to this guitar real quick. When the SD-1 was switched on the guitar was always on the verge of feeding back. Think "Ted Nugent" double live gonzo stormtroopin' leadbreak. I think the pups kind of had that vintage wind thing (offset, or uneven, I am not sure what they call it).

Next I obviously tried the Transblack '59. (one point these are both new guitars that are 2001s so they are before the CTS and bumblebee' caps). when i picked up the '59 i thought that it would have a hard time keeping up with the '58. In retrospect, I think i warmed up to it slower because I was still thinking of the '58's sound, kind of taking it in and analyzing it. I should have gotten up and taken a walk, then sat down and tried it out. Anyway I fiddled with it until i consciously got the '58 out of my head and focused on the '59. It had a smoothness to its tone. I would say the biggest difference was in the upper register of each of the guitars tone range. The '58 deffinately had a "Rock Top". After much deliberation, playing the same lick on each guitar, back and forth, back and forth I chose
 
Re: Pulled the Trigger!!!

Mincer said:
wow, $4k for an LP...this is insane. You can go to any custom maker and get *exactly* what you want for that.

That much $ could really be a lot more useful to a private luthier than an giant corporation.
Click to expand...


Ahh, but that's the key.......they were on a clearance sale. Music machine is basically a big guitar shop in a small town. 2+2 = if they don't push some of there inventory, and gibson cracks down on the internet thing, they may sit on the guitars for quite a while, you know the saying, they may "eat" them. From the impression I got they are not sure to what extent there relationship with gibson will be in the future. If you surf the internet, MM is the only gibson internet dealer that is still showing individual pictures. Anyway, another word of advice, NEVER pay the posted price on any piece of equipment, new or used. If you do, you are foolish. One can usually get almost any piece of music equipment for around 70% of the asking price. Always take a calculator to the guitar stores with you!!! Asking price x 0.7 = what you should offer! For comparison sake, many of these guitars at Music Machine www.guitarsale.com are selling for cheaper than used ones are going for on E-bay, or mark's guitar loft www.marksguitarloft.com.

anyway the one I chose was------>
 
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Re: Pulled the Trigger!!!

Well that is the one I chose. If they still have the '58 the next time I am ready to buy a guitar, I will be all over it. they weren't easy to choose between. I liked the tone and feel of this guitar. It is my first historic gibson. It will get played also, I am not a person that buys guitars and then won't play them. The pickguard and pup rings are a little creamier than they appear in these photos.
 
Re: Pulled the Trigger!!!

Mincer said:
wow, $4k for an LP...this is insane. You can go to any custom maker and get *exactly* what you want for that.

That much $ could really be a lot more useful to a private luthier than an giant corporation.
Click to expand...

Another thing to think about is that gibson already got there money out of the guitars, the money I spent went to the dealer, and the guys in that shop that sat down with me, made sure I had everything i needed, gave me guitars that were actually in tune, (rare these days) Let me CRANK guitars in there shop and cut me a deal (that means they cut their profit margin.) No reason to punish a dealer near me for the owner of gibsons attitude. Gibson isn't a corporation, It is a privately owned company (owner is an a-hole). No stock sales there. And they are all american made.

One of these days I will post some of the things I learned and the impressions I got when talked to the guy at Music Machine. Sounds like there have been a few changes at Gibson. May not be a good time to post these things on the internet.
 
Re: Pulled the Trigger!!!

That is beautiful, congradulations! Where is MM's store located at from Columbia Center?
 
Re: Pulled the Trigger!!!

great choice.... the trans black is awesome looking

the local mom&pop shop around me are clearancing their gibsons too.... i am looking at a '58RI similar to the pic u posted and a '68RI custom in the tri burst....i'm holding out to get a better deal
 
Re: Pulled the Trigger!!!

JumpMarine said:
That is beautiful, congradulations! Where is MM's store located at from Columbia Center?
Click to expand...

it is to the east, you would take clearwater avenue down till it dead ends, or turns into some other street, then go north til you hit kennewick ave then east and it will be on the left hand side (if you are going east). it is in the old downtown area. You know where the blue bridge is? It is south of there. If you get to the fairgrounds you went to far east. how do you like my directions :smack:
 
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Re: Pulled the Trigger!!!

Cool story. I was starting to have an panic attack waiting for the punch line :laugh2: The trans black is very cool!!
I have been lusting over a 59 LP in a local shop for some time but it's dreaming for me. It does sound better than the other LPs they have even better than the Supreme they have in stock.

So how much!!!?
 
Re: Pulled the Trigger!!!

sweet, sweet, sweet...

but what's this gibson internet thing you're talking about?!
 
Re: Pulled the Trigger!!!

the guy who invented said:
Look killer bro...are you gonna leave the stock pups in it :laugh2: , and when do we get clips? Enjoy that puppy...I would!
Click to expand...

For that much $ the pickups better be worth keeping..
 
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