I bought one of these Chibson and I was extremely surprised by how nice it is. Finish is beautiful. The frets are really good. It setup perfectly. I have zero complaints about it. Maybe I just got lucky but I love it.
I saw several and tried them and I must admit they were too good. As for longevity if played daily that is hard to say unless you actually have one so that I can not comment on. 👍to you for pointing out these what to look for and how to spot a fake.
I was curious about purchasing a chibson, so before I purchased one, I bought a strat from them. I have had my most recent Fender Strat for over22 yrs. And I can honestly say, that aside from the nut, the Chinese Strat, neck was superior to the mexican strat, it's body was mahogany, and just as good as the Fender product. I have now ordered a real Chibson Les Paul, in hope of getting a good quality instrument, without paying such a high price.
@@jimkirby1799 Thx for the input, in my country it is unthinkable to even consider buying an original gibson or another brand like harley benton, to make a paralallel it is as if cost 10x more in dollars. And to be brutally honest the local brands who have their guitars made in China have chibson written all over them, but still cost double the price, so for a bedroom player chibsons are the only reasonable way to go.
I Have two Chibsons One Les Paul Custom In Alpine White And One Les Paul Custom(Ace Freyley )Budakan Red With The Picture On The Headstock And They Both Were Setup Right Out Of The Box And THey Both Play like Butter .The Chinese Have Gotten Better At Making Guitars In 2023
They’ve been putting fret binding on some of these for some time. I bought one 10 years ago that had fret nibs. I’ve actually purchased 10 of these over the years, & only 2 of them were dogs. Most of mine were all well built, good fit & finish, decent frets. Also, it is NOT illegal to buy or own these. You just can’t sell them. Read the federal statute. My last 3 I had custom built with my own custom logo on the front & “Made in China” on the back of the headstock. Also, you have to realize that sometimes the pics the sellers use on these sites are of actual Gibsons, so they do a bait & switch. But you’re right, they are getting so much better at faking these, & it’s a shame that some people will try to sell these as real, which is actually a felony. Maybe if we didn’t live in such a brand driven society & if Gibson didn’t price gouge so much there wouldn’t be such a demand for these. As for me, I really don’t care what name is on the headstock. A good guitar is a good guitar. There’s also a huge selection of LP style guitars from legitimate companies that are affordable & quite good. The newer Epiphones are great
That Gary Moore Greeny pic was an actual picture of the Gibson guitar. Beware… sometimes these sellers use actual Gibson pictures to reel you in then send a garbage knock off.
the fret boards are pre fab so the binding-nibs is actually faster than dressing each individual fret end. rosa string works explains it better than i can.
Purchased an LP Custom Copy and it is an amazing guitar! Changed the pickups and the tuners and it’s become my go-to! Either I got really lucky or they are getting better.
Bought a LP Custom Chibson last year because there were no guitars available that looked as cool in that price range. I was planning on modding it but it surprisingly didn't needed any works. Perfect setups, no issues whatsoever. Though, I plan on replacing it cheaps pots, pickups are OK (P90).
I bought one 5 yrs ago to see how shitty it was . It had the bat wings, wood finish, stained back. the frets were not bad. I replaced the bridge. I wax dipped the pickups and gave the guitar a nice setup.Out of the box it still wasn't bad compared to an epiphone that hasn't been setup.I have played it at many gigs, I paid $200.00 for the guitar and $75.00 for the case. Better it get stolen at a gig rather then a $2000.00 gibson. I will say many of those guitars are pure shit. I guess I got lucky.
Who are Gibson or Fender. Big nameless organisations with no concept of their own brand history or tradition, with total memory wipes each time the ownership changes. We've exported our skillets and manufacturing to China so of course, at some point the skills start to permeate into smaller workshops selling copies
I bought one of these a while back out of curiosity. I don't honestly care if anyone buys these as long as they didn't get duped. However, it's Gibson's job to deal with fakes. I get nothing from doing that. Gibson did not employ me. However, with that said the one that I got was a more expensive model and the neck was twisted. It wasn't even a good mod platform because I couldn't get it to be halfway decent. I got buzzing unless the action was a mile off the fretboard and no matter what truss rod adjustment or any adjustment I did it wasn't going to be playable. It's a beautiful wall hanger and that's it. I don't regret buying it because I don't have to wonder about it anymore but if I want a cheap Les Paul to mod there are plenty of more reputable brands selling their own takes on the Les Paul with beautiful finishes and they can be shipped to your door the same week.
I have a real Gibson Les Paul Studio and I bought one Chibson Les Paul recently (I live in China, so I only spend 110$ and had free shipping). I love playing both, both look great, both play great. If this is the quality of nowadays Chibsons, I wouldn't suggest anybody who's starting to pl;ay guitar to buy a fender squier, ibanez gio, epiphone or any other famous brand beginner or intermediate level player guitars when you can get such a good looking guitar that plays great for almost no money at all. Here if you have directo contact with the manufacturer they can do ANY guitar you ask them to do, and they'll do it stupidly SAME as the original.. Even electronics are okay, and in any case you can change them and will have a great guitar. You can even tell them "I want this" and show them a random picture of whatever you like and shape and they'll do the guitar for you.. I know it's bad, but its great also.
i have 3 guitars that are copies and i love them i have a gibson standard i only have one complaint it’s not heavy enough it came with Seymour duncans i don’t remember off hand but they sound awesome the other 2 are a gibson les paul copy called “guitar” lol love that guitar sounds amazing the other is a prs private stock i like that one too it was built well it has the widest fat neck i’ve ever seen lol feels like a 7 string but it’s a 6 string of course i have grecos (4) of them and 1 burny which i love thank you for the video very informitive
They are not illegal. If they were they wouldnt allow them to be imported by the thousands. Gibson doesnt sue them because its too expensive to sue someone over seas. They dont have the same laws we do on copyrights. Besides, I have several and they are identical in every way to my real les Paul's. And other models as well. Oh yea, they can do the same for less because their egos arent bloated and they want to earn.
In some US states it is actually illegal to own a counterfeit. If customs inspects your box and sees a name brand that is obviously fake they will size your item and bill you for destroying it. So you are out the price of the guitar and whatever customs extorts from you. Customs can't check every package so many do make it through.
I remember going to a legit Gibson dealer around 2010 to 2015 or so and the Les Pauls they had there had horrible finishes and workmanship. So it's not far off.
I realize your post is 2yrs old, so maybe it's out of date. I recently purchased a chibson SG. Stunningly beautiful, and with minor setup, and upgraded tuners, plays and sounds fantastic!!!! It is SCARY!!!! Especially for less than 200 dollars delivered to my door.
You can ask for fret nibs on your guitar since last 3 or 4 years. I got a Chibson with full flame maple top that looks nice wide flames. Ebony board. fret nibs. abr bridge everything you'd get on a real standard. only thing iis it has two way trussrod like an Epiphone unlike Gibsons one way trussrod. So actually its better than the gibson in that aspect. Oh yeah its finished in nitro with real beautiful burst. Had it since last 3 years and nothings fell off or broken. no cracks or weird stuff. Actually after I set it up etc I took it to a local guitar shop and even the owner said it was as good as the new 1000euro Tokai LS85 he had in the shop. Only better because of the high spec of the Chibson. Its even got the headstock wings. It plays like butter and sounds great with the A2 alnico buckers I swapped out as they were Epiphone branded from the factory. Even has the long neck tenon ! And sorry for long one but even the routing is perfect. And yes I know what makes a great guitar as I have a whole bunch of Tokais Greco etc had few Gibsons in my time but my Greco super real les paul blew em out the door !
@@flamedmahoganytable9749 Musoo parts store. They dont advertise Gibson copies now but I think you can ask them to build one similar to mine. Now they make the truss rod same as Gibson !
These Chibsons are like playing the lottery. The thrill of finding that one diamond in the rough is what makes these things kinda fun to try out. The biggest problem is when people try to sell these as real Gibsons on eBay or Reverb. In my personal experience, the biggest pet peeves of mine with these Chibsons is they tend to get nasty fret sprout in a couple months, the PUPs sound tinny/microphonic, and the neck needs constant adjustment as bad as my actual Gibson SG '61 Reissue (including getting knocked out of tune so easily).
I have a number of Gibsons all came straight from the Gibson demo shop and several don’t have fret nib’s. All are les Paul, modern, standard anniversary and even a traditional.
Chibsons are getting scary... Yeah it scares Gibson themselves because chibsons are getting increasing in demand and highly sought after as a more affordable option. Guess what? Coz not everyone can afford real Gibsons which is well known for its price tag.
People that buy chibsons are losers, no way around it. You're buying a counterfeit guitar when you can easily buy an Epiphone or a Prestige that's not a Chinese pos.
These guitar's are replica's, China has been producing replica's for a long time now each time refining their skill improving the replica to get closer to resembling the original. I agree if someone resell one of these as the real mccoy they should locked for a few years. But if people listed them as "replica's" there should be a problem.
@@dingusfuzzklonnkt2755 Why spend 2500 on a standard LP and not knowing if you're getting a well built one or not, with Gibson you never know till you get it. W/ Chibsons you know you're getting a good looking guitar that is built really well, you just need to know you need to upgrade the hardware and electronics so you're getting a really great guitar for about 600 vs. 2500
That control cover on the back is completely upside down, as is the routed recess. They’re still getting basic things wrong after all of the years of cloning Gibsons.
They’ve been building replicas with everything you pointed out for years. I last bought one in 2015 and it had everything, even the Gibson style truss rod nut. The giveaway is the font on the serial number and “made in USA” stamp. It’s still off. Sometimes the shape of the horn is also off but a lot of them have been looking pretty accurate lately.
The electronics are crap. They need to be gutted , new wirering and new pickups. The pickups they come with are cheap and very microphonic .Don't support China and stop buying their crappy products. Oh also stop calling them replicas ....they are counterfeits
All that, and Gibson chooses to sue reputable guitar makers for making a guitar that looks similar to a Gibson. Yet these Chibsons can be purchased everyday and Gibson can't stop it.
Actually, if you buy from a reputable seller, you're going to get a very good guitar. I've had customers bring me some of these things that actually outperform the guitar they're modeled after, after a few mods and a good setup. It pisses alot of people off, but it is what it is. I'm actually planning on buying one from a seller I heard about from a customer. His fake custom is a better guitar than my legit 60's tribute. 🤣 People usually look at this the wrong way. Nobody is trying to convince anyone they have a Gibson, or screw anyone over IN MOST CASES. 99% of the time this is just someone wanting a Les Paul, but can't afford it, so they buy a knock off of a zakk Wylde, or a greenie, or whatever for much less money.
The pictures they show online are not of the guitar you will receive. You will receive a much much worse guitar than what is pictured, regardless of what the seller tells you. Never waste your time on these. There's a very high probability that you will get a bad one.
@@elymolloy8333 Salty? lmao. How many have you purchased and from how many unique sellers? If it's in the hundreds then you've got a good sample to go by. Good to hear you had a good experience but the problem with these is massive inconsistencies and sellers just straight up lying about what you're getting a lot of the time. Just not worth the risk imo. I worked in a music store for 11 years and saw so many of these come in for setups and repairs and the vast majority were very poorly made.
@@neverenoughguitars8276 My local guitar tech got one recently and it was surprisingly good. Of course it's not on par with a real one but I was shocked at how playable it was (he tinkered with it a bit). Ultimately, the three things you want in an instrument as a performer are playability, sound, and how it stays in tune. If a chibby manages to do that, then who cares where it came from.
Sorry for the dumb question....so is a " Chibson " technically, any LP style guitar that is marketed as real, so basically a fake chinese made Gibson LP. ? ...VS, an LP "knockoff" like a Firefly, Vintage, Mitchell, All-In-One, etc. .. basically any copy that doesn't try to pretend its the real thing....?
I’ll tell you this right now, you can see the pictures all you want they can look amazing and they probably do. A lot of times they will even show pictures of an actual genuine Gibson to make you excited into thinking you’re getting an exact copy that’s done very well. The reality of the situation is once you receive your actual guitar it will be in no way like the one pictured. it will be pretty far off actually. I have two friends that trusted these photos and got a guitar that was very different once it hit their doorstep. And then you have to go through a huge process of trying to get your money back even if you’re actually successful, it’s not even worth it. because they require you to send the guitar back which will cost you upwards of $200 just to get back to China then you have to wait weeks or even months to see your money back at all. Not worth it!
Ive noticed that the Gary Moore replica pics you order from sometimes are the real one and not w the ones they make..then they say what you get may vary from picture and if your not satisfied send it back at your cost...sending back to China will cost you 3 times what the guitar cost you so its not feasible.
The horn doesn't look right..to me the real one's have a distinguishing shape..Original 59's horns looks also different from todays production..I think they didn't master the body shape yet..
I just finished moding and setting up a new one of these and wow. It is pretty scary to me, i posted a few videos on youtube of my new one, def take a look. I own real ones and this fake is damn close and it plays ridiculously well after I did the work needed. Hardest thing to do was the frets. But it was just leveling, dress, polish (like ive had to do on guitars cost 6x the price ($230 shipped and at my door in 6 days from someone on ebay who has these in the US already). Then I replaced the nut, tuners and bridge. Im pretty content, even these Epi pickups sound pretty damn good. Good stuff. But if you buy one of these, buy it for yourself and not to use to deceive someone. Many players out there who will never be able to afford a real one. Get one of these or a Epi, or some of the other LP copies out there. But i think the days of having to spend $2600+ to get a nice LP guitar have long sailed. If Gibson was smart they would stop having Epiphone LP, SG, 335 etc models. Build the same guitars in the same place but have Gibson on the headstock and call it the Gibson Epi Import series. THat will save this company but until they start producing a guitar your average musician can afford that says GIBSON on the headstock, they have no chance. They have out priced almost every musician out there imho. PRS has an import series, Fender, Martin, G&L etc the list goes on, you have to innovate how your building and selling your guitars or your not gonna survive.
Buying a Chibson fake will never be close to the real thing. I only ever bought 1 Gibson new a junior. Cheaper back then still more than 500 bucks. If I buy another new one like a Les Paul it will be closer to 1000s. Truss rod tip is a good one. I have owned and worked on many used real Gibsons. That is an instant proof of a China fake. Thanks.
I've learned alot over the years! All major brands do this. I was clueless! I bought a Martin. I thought they ALL were AMERICAN MADE. NOPE! I see a stamp inside that says " made in Mexico "😢. I had a "Martine". Made the same mistake with My Guild. It's a Chuild!!😢
The guitar that Slash used on the Destruction was a not made by Gibson Les Paul. Yes it was made on California but it still was not a Gibson. I have two Gibson LP's and one Chibson. Also have a J200 from a Chinese builder. Looks great except the Grover tuners are kind of shitty. Buy what you want. It is mostly a free county.
I recently got a chance to check one out. At a glance the Inexperienced could believe it's a real US Guitar. Truss Rod incorrect, Poor frets, electronics, Hardware, and overall work Gibson would reject. Gibson would not be very threatened because of aforementioned. Made in an es style Gibson Never made a single one of. With the money in additional work and parts to make it play good. You would be better off with a cheap beat up USA Gibson. They're Bottom of the Line Kalamazoo guitars and basses of the 1960s . Can sometimes be found less than 500.00
Talvez aí nos Estados Unidos seja vergonhoso comprar uma chibson, até porque a diferença de uma chibson com upgrades e uma Gibson tribute 50 ou 60 não é tão grande... Nós Brasileiros, que gostamos de fender e de Gibson, temos de dispor de muito dinheiro para termos versões mais básicas de uma Gibson ou de uma Fender por exemplo, aqui no Brasil, você tem que optar, ou você tem um carro, ou você tem uma guitarra, a vida aqui no Brasil, não é para amadores, uma Gibson standard por exemplo, custa o mesmo preço de um carro, acreditem, e com o dinheiro de um carro aqui no Brasil, se compram 8 ou 9 carros por aí nos u.s.a O governo nos explora de tal forma, que nós não nos importamos com falsificações!! Aqui, isso é até uma forma de protesto!! E não acontece só com instrumentos musicais, também acontece com games, e todas as outras áreas
Agreed. I have a chibby and an epi. The chibby body wise and neck wise is exactly the gibby standard I had. It's just with the chibby, all the hardware and electronics including the pickups are garbage. The setup I got was also garbage and unplayable. So yeah. You need to invest about 500 more to it. And then it is an amazing guitar close to gibson
About 30 years ago I bought a guitar and it was considered a cheap POS. Now its worth $8000. Dont think things like the chibsons will be around forever. I guarantee they will not. I bought a les paul standard new years ago for $1200. It tripled in value because they were no longer being made.
Oh my god i have an illegal guitar im shtn myself…if you have 300 and want a nice looking copy do it. I have 1 and with a little work there pretty nice playing guitars. Or jus hang it on the wall
sometimes they use real gibson guitar photo, and make fake customer review, they took other people photo, then post there give 5 star, i saw one they post a photo, was a man playing les paul in guitar shop, and said his guitar store owner friend playing his new les paul ,and like it a lot, but that photo was mark agnesi playing guitar at norman's guitar store, just a screenshot from norman's rare guitar youtube video.
The greenie you are looking at , those are pics stolen from the internet ....this is the real Grenny.....I did order one....came with fret nibs, had the relicing but not the nitro finish stress
If Gibson or Fender ain't doing it for you, there's tions of other great brands out there. Yamaha. Dusenberg. Ibanez. Older Guild electrics. You can buy a Fender neck and get a beautiful body from MJT or Warmoth and do your own build. Just save up the money. MJT is an especially nice guitar brand!
Nobody is falling for these. The binding is not correct despite what you claim, the nibs are to thin, crap pick ups, soft fret wire, pot metal hardware, green wood. Take a Chibson into a mom and pop guitar shop and see how it works out. Reputable luthiers will not touch them either, we can't be associated with counterfeit items. They are wall hangers that can lead you to trouble.
What? Sorry man They are nitro finished and made very very…….very well. And quite frankly All 5 gibsons that I have came to me with major flaws and my 3 Chibs all sound a hell of a lot better than my real gibsons.
@@graysguitars5113 Your reviewing these guitars off the Aliexpress website images and using the Gary Moore lemon drop replica as an example. The photos on the Aliexpress website are of the actual GM lemon drop, but what you receive after paying your money is a totally different guitar of which looks nothing like the actual photos on the website🤦🏻
"The quality of these things are pretty terrible..." *proceeds to spend the rest of the video talking about how they're becoming indistinguishable from a real Gibson* 🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔🤔
I have a "one pc. body / one pc. neck" version with the right bridge and "nibs" (and I luv it) The thing that makes it 300 instead of 1500 is the lack of a real maple cap
Someday, someones going to buy one of these counterfeits and get scammed $2000+ for believing that its a REAL Gibson. Thats whats wrong with supporting this Chinese crap.
@@graysguitars5113 Right, for a couple hundred more they could buy ANY number of legit china guitars. I dont know why they have to steal a trademark. If their that good, they could say Chibson on the headstock.
Chibsons are not even slightly close to the quality of Epiphone or Gibson.. chibsons are not made by any epiphone employees the epiphone Quindoa facility is completely American owned and operated Scott Lewis is the facility manager along with American and Asian luthiers.. Scott Lewis would never give his luthiers permission to build a chibson..save your money and buy the real deals Epiphone or Gibson
@@graysguitars5113 see your wrong. 100 percent wrong. Your looking at it from the perspective of your country. Your country's laws don't mean a dam thing in China. That's why in the US and UK you can't get Chinese phones. China does not have these law's they actually encourage stealing intellectual property.
This is confusing. What am I supposed to be scared of? Les Paul copies are actually good guitars, so is that the scary part? People pay for overpriced Gibson's, so is that what's scary?
I just bought one and NOBODY knows the difference.... it came out of the box ready to go and cost 140 dollars..... you are WAY off...... and I know a good guitar from a bad one.... I've been playing guitar since 1977.
Actually. Go buy a new les paul. The tuners are trash. The snot green shit sticks are the first thing everyone ditches. And pups. I change out every gibson pup on every les paul I owned without hesitation. My point is,if you change out the tuners and the pups, why not buy a guitar with that in mind? Gibson isnt known for the best pups either. Their burstbucker pro 5 is the best Gibson has ever made. Everyone on the planet swaps the pups and the snot green tuners. Its a no brainer.
@@graysguitars5113 Thats a good set. But try the seymour Duncan sh4. It does all the metal and droptune stuff. Turn the vol knob down and it does classic rock perfectly. Its sd'S GREATEST PUP. When you buy a Les Paul from differing years, you will get that sound. And that guitar quality. Theres no mistaking that. But they are one trick ponies. If you were to buy a Chibson, swap the bridge pup for a sd sh4 and sh2n for the neck. I guarantee you will play that guitar exclusively and not touch anything else. I promise you. Im actually shocked by the balls it takes to not only copy the LP as close as they do, but they name and logo. Hahaha even the custom logo and truss rod decals.
You should not be on RU-vid misimforming your viewers ! It Absolutely is NOT illegal to buy a Chibson ! Its illegal for you to sell it to someone else! BUT you CAN legally buy it from China !
@@graysguitars5113 They cease them because they suspect the reciever is going to sell it as a real Gibson. But NO where in Any Law will you find that its illegal for YOU to buy one as a replica !
I didn't delete anything, youtube sometimes does, and the guitar in the picture is a chibson right off the aliexpress website, unless they are using a real image of one.
@@graysguitars5113 No, you won't. And in fact, that exact picture is up on a site about bursts under the section where it talks about the importance of that particular guitar.
