Gibson Price Increase

Those outrageous prices are the main reasons why ive been becoming buddies with the guys at my local guitar center. I get them to hook me up on pricing. I got my les paul traditional pro for $1350 brand new. My Lifeson axcess model for $3100. and my Firebird V for $1150. All brand new for a great deal.. They have huge markups fyi.
 
I have an Edwards 130 LTS with a pair of WCR pickups, and it plays and sounds as good as only Gibson I have picked up - including a R9. And it only weighs just under 8 pounds.

I paid about $850 used and out the door.


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toolfanem said:
I literally cringe every time I have someone bring in their SG for studio tracking. Break out the tuner...
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I got a brand new 2013 Les Paul Standard in ebony a few years ago for $1400 out the door. It's pretty, but tuning stability is horrible and playability is not great compared to my Suhr Modern and Fender American Deluxe Strat. Been to a couple of shops and tried a number of lubes (graphite is next) but it still very unstable. Pretty lame for what I paid for it. Glad I didn't pay retail or I would be really pissed.
 
AZG said:
I got a brand new 2013 Les Paul Standard in ebony a few years ago for $1400 out the door.
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Do you own a time machine?

If so, you should have went back a little further and bought a 59 brand new.... ;)
 
AZG said:
I got a brand new 2013 Les Paul Standard in ebony a few years ago for $1400 out the door. It's pretty, but tuning stability is horrible and playability is not great compared to my Suhr Modern and Fender American Deluxe Strat. Been to a couple of shops and tried a number of lubes (graphite is next) but it still very unstable. Pretty lame for what I paid for it. Glad I didn't pay retail or I would be really pissed.
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Locking tuners and a properly cut nut should fix you up. A properly setup fixed bridge guitar should never have tuning stability issues. Don't forget to stretch your strings too.
 
I recently considered getting a 2013 Standard but didn't like the way the single pole PU settings stayed fat sounding, rather than like basic single pole PUs.
That was enough for me to hesitate.
Now that i have the Axe, i would love to try that 2013 LP out for a day.
I ended up getting a LTD EC1000 instead, to save money for good things like AxeFX.
One day maybe...
There are times when an auto-tuner would be great. A lot of times, now that i think of it. :numbness:
 
Maybe this is a positive step toward Gibson regaining there name again. Their going to be making less guitars so maybe their quality is going to be better? I, for one, would like to see Gibson be known as a great guitar company again. They really lost there way the last 20 or 30 years. I'm afraid that if this plan doesn't work, we might not be seeing Gibson on the shelves anymore.
 
mr_fender said:
Locking tuners and a properly cut nut should fix you up. A properly setup fixed bridge guitar should never have tuning stability issues. Don't forget to stretch your strings too.
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Tuning stability problems are very common with Gibson's from what I have seen and heard because of the poorly designed laid back headstock and bad string to nut angles. My Les Paul has locking tuners and the nut has been worked on by two different shops with only small improvements. Paying to have a new nut installed i guess is my next option. But that is something that should never need to be done on a new guitar of this price range. My Suhr, Fender plus a few guitars I sold (Carvin, ESP) never had any tuning stability issues. And only the Suhr was more expensive.
 
I too had tuning issues my 2014 Les Paul Traditional, until I went back to my tried and true way of locking the strings on the tuner...see here. I also use a little "nut sauce" on the bridge and nut. Now the guitar stays in tune for weeks, even with aggressive playing.
 
AZG said:
Tuning stability problems are very common with Gibson's from what I have seen and heard because of the poorly designed laid back headstock and bad string to nut angles. My Les Paul has locking tuners and the nut has been worked on by two different shops with only small improvements. Paying to have a new nut installed i guess is my next option. But that is something that should never need to be done on a new guitar of this price range. My Suhr, Fender plus a few guitars I sold (Carvin, ESP) never had any tuning stability issues. And only the Suhr was more expensive.
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Curse of the Gibsons.....but I still love them.
Definitely try a new nut.
Some Gibby's seem to not be curable though. My luthier tells me it's more common on the thin necks. They just not super stable.

I have a Les Paul Deluxe that I LOVE the playability and tone....but it always goes a hair out of tune after playing one or two songs. During a 16 song set, that means I need to tune 8 times. Not acceptable.
I have a Parts-caster that I put together, and it sounds and plays amazing....and NEVER goes out of tune. I take it out of the case at a gig....still in tune from the last gig.
You just never know.....
 
I just bought a 2014 Les Paul Traditional to go with my 2008 Standard. Both had unstable tuning issues till I used Big Bends Nut Sauce. Works great but a guitar at Gibson prices shouldn't need special lubes or setups to make it playable. None of my other guitars were like that.
 
BBN said:
Bummer....I've been a Gibson guy for years.
The price vs. quality is just really far off IMO.

I'm with @GuitarDojo
I've got a bunch of old Gibsons....so I'm happy.
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I've got a 2010 R9 which I really love - nice and light at 8.2lbs. I bought it used at a price that's about right for the quality - but I'd never have paid the full UK retail price for it! Compared to the UK, the USA gets a great deal. Sounds pretty great through the Axe II Plexi 50w model too...



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I've gone through around 25 guitars in my day. Never a Gibson.
Every couple of years I try to get into it. Go into the store pull a few down.
They're usually too heavy, don't feel comfortable against my body, widely variable in how they play, and don't seem to stay in tune very well and I'm good for the next few years.

They do look cool, and if people are willing to pay that, why not? But figure $3300 street price? I don't get it.

Oh and there's no freaking trem.
 
It's still easy to find a japanese Orville Gibson LP from the 80'ties for around 1.000 dollars. In mint condition.
 
I think most of us can agree that a good Gibson guitar is a think of beauty. When you find the right one, keep it and never sell it. Be buried with it.
 
I'll probably anger a lot of people with this response but...i think Gibson Les Pauls are like Harley Davidson's. People are more in love with the idea than the actual product.
 
exleper said:
I'll probably anger a lot of people with this response but...i think Gibson Les Pauls are like Harley Davidson's. People are more in love with the idea than the actual product.
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I completely agree. I've always wanted a Gibson, but never in my life have I taken one off the wall and thought "this is the one". They're very inconsistent, and in my opinion, not worth the money at all. My ESP Eclipse II Standard blows away any Custom LP I've ever played. With that said, maybe the higher prices will be the result of seriously upped quality control! I guess we'll see.
 
exleper said:
I'll probably anger a lot of people with this response but...i think Gibson Les Pauls are like Harley Davidson's. People are more in love with the idea than the actual product.
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I dunno. They have a place in rock history for a reason, and it's not just because they look cool. Nothing quite sounds like a Les Paul, but the real thing.

I've owned a few in my time, some better than others. The R9 I bought used via the internet and got lucky maybe. It's definitely more of a fight than my Tyler strat, mostly in terms of tiny frets and sticky laquer (I'd love it to be satin), but it's still a great guitar. Up there with the very best of the many different guitars I have owned over the years.
 
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