Absolutely. The only time I paid more than 2000 for a guitar was a balaguer semi custom that was built to my exact specifications. Can't imagine why someone would pay that much for a stock guitar.
Only time I think that's not the one and only rule is when it's going to hang on a wall or something. I don't know how Gibson gets away with such bad QC on their flagship and custom gear.
@@ShidavTheVedmak Blues lawyer fanboys with money to burn and by hiring famous musicians like Mustaine or Hammett to entice their fans to buy the signature models?
Yeah those flaws are unacceptable at that price point, especially with the paint cracking. Maybe if it was $900 new you could be like "meh" but for $2800 that thing better be absolute perfection.
you are goddamn right! I've seen a lot of gibsons that have really shitty paintjob around the binding too. they just can't get that binding show cleanly. Meanwhile some trash import brand can do that perfectly. The price tag for their products is just insane. (not to mention the tooling marks in the fretboard and binding due to those dumb nib things on the frets) Totally unacceptable
my harley benton got better finish than this thought, that neck joint is unacceptable and so are the paint drips which is just pure lazy and unprofessional
You buy a Gibson for the sound and this guy’s knit picking flaws are stupid considering guitar’s are meant to have wear and tear unless your a collector who cant play a lick and just hangs it up for house decoration like a grandma
As someone that used to work for Rickenbacker and also Heritage Guitars, I can confirm, guitar paint booths are extremely close to automotive ones (some companies actually use converted automotive spray booths.) you’re also very correct, the fact that a paint job like that was passed by QC and released from the factory is a tad bit embarrassing.
@@Masterfighterx also a possibility, which is why most of the time several layers of shader are sprayed over the wood first, and if the shader is a light color not intended to be transparent or translucent, a layer of primer over the sealer to hide wood patterns from showing through the overall finish. Even a flaw in the wood shouldn’t be showing through. One reason is because of the sealer, and even grain filler is used. Another is because the wood being used should be checked/inspected for imperfections, knots etc. before being cut, sanded and prepped. Sure, a common, and maybe forgivable oversight on a cheap, or budget guitar. But on a $2,800 guitar? They should be taking the time to make sure every piece is up to snuff. Especially when metal flake/sparkle finishes cannot be repaired. Silvertop, goldtop, pelham blue, etc. are finishes that cannot be touched up or repaired. If it gets damaged or messed up, the guitar has to be stripped and sanded back down to bare wood, and the process starts over from square 1. Sure, it’s a time consuming process, and it costs money, but again, that guitar is nearly $3000. It can be done.
@@f3uibeghardt522 precisely! They aren’t the only ones who use car paint either. A lot of em actually do. But hell, if it looks good, it’s good! I dig the look when done right!
Heya Glenn, any chance of a "recording non-metal instruments for metal" type of video? Mandolins, strings, horns etc? Be interested to see your approach to that
I honestly feel like Glenn is describing my Dave Mustaine Signature (Dean VMNT Peace Sells) for the most part; except the fact that I paid 500 dollars for it (well, my parents did, it was a Christmas gift) and it’s the most used piece of gear in my studio.
I picked up a VMNT Peace Sells on Amazon a couple years ago and it's a really cool guitar! Totally worth the $500 US and I like the way it looks way better than the Gibson. I really wanted to like this guitar and buy one. After hear this and other reviews I think 3 Solar V's (6, 7, 8) are a better value. Wish they were a bit easier to get in the states
My Dean 5-String bass I bought in '92 is literally the best bass I've ever bought (including Ibanez, Rickenbacker, Fender Precision, and a Peavey I could have used to crack granite in a quarry it was so heavy, etc). In fact, I've had guitarists pick it up when it was in Open C tuning (GCGCG) and say it was as easy to fret as a guitar - though they still couldn't get their hands to stretch enough to chord stuff like I did because their little spindly fingers couldn't stretch 6 frets my the bass. LMAOOooooo
Deans are a lot of bang for the buck. Hell, I bought a Schecter C-6 Platinum series on a whim (about $600) and I couldn't possibly be happier with it. Some minor wiring issues (input could have been soldered a little better) but it's just such a complete guitar at a fraction of the cost.
I love that they still use nitro finishes, and I love all of their shapes, but you're spot on here man. If the fit and finish aren't mint, you can't be charging people over $1200 or so for crap like that.
@@tylersmith7534But they wear with your playing. All three of my guitars are poly finishes. I ended up selling both of the Gibson LPs I've purchased but still, there's a thing to those finishes. They smell delightful too
For me personally, $1,000 is my max. There are some exceptions, there are a few $1,500 guitars out there that I’d seriously consider buying. But thanks to Glen opening my eyes to the myths about guitars that people foolishly believe, I see no reason to spend more then $1,000 on a guitar.
My 2 cents, Dear Glenn, first off yes for 2800 bucks you should have gotten locking grover tuners, and the good nut and a stellar picture perfect paint job... Totally agree. And the action should have been nice and playable out of the box, maybe need a tiny bit adjustment for personal preferences. But it shouldn't have been high as a kite. Now then, most of the money you are paying for is Wood from Africa, ebony fretboard, doesn't get more rare and expensive, same with the mahogany if im not mistaken. You genuinely get a different smoother distortion from mahogany than something like Ash which is much harder wood and gives off more volume and harsh distorted sound. I've tested it out and watched others test the different woods out, it is a substantial real difference. Now then, I don't think you hit those pinch harmonics anywhere near Zakk Wylde on No More Tears because, it didn't sound like it, and the pickups are very different. Zakk used Emg 81 in the bridge position and an Emg 85 in the neck position. He used hot-rodded Marshal JCM 800 heads to get that sound. I don't know the eq settings for that album, but he uses bass 10 or 9, mid at -3, and treble at 7 or 6.5, then tone maxxed volume nearly maxxed on guitar using bridge pickup, set of tens for the high strings and super thick for the lows, don't think they make them anymore because they were my go to strings for years and I couldn't find them anymore, now I use the Jazz 11s chromed, ultra smooth and I usually jam in drop b or c or c#. And I hit them Zakk Wylde pinch harmonics pretty tight. It's one of my favorite sounds. Something where you can't just push a pedal, no you gotta make it happen with your hands. You do need a fat amount of gain. Feel it out, max it and dial it back slowly to find your sweet spot. From painting cars with my Dad, I'm pretty sure the wrinkles in the paint on the side of the pickups is because they hung it vertically and then turned it on its side before the paint was dry. Seen people do it with fenders, doors, accidentally happens on bumpers if you lay the paint too thick. In my heart, the paint problems alone warrant returning it and demanding excellence for a $2800 guitar. If money were no object, Id call up the custom department, get the dual emg 81's in a mahogany SG symmetrical headstock, grover locking tuners, rickenbacker whammy bar, dark red finish so you can still see the wood grain. No pick guard. A comfy metal monster that is very able to make very diverse sounds with the rickenbacker whammy bar. 24 frets. I have a floyd rose and didn't know very much about how it worked before I spent a grand on it when I was 15. Im 38 and ended up blocking the bridge off simply because I love those Ibanez pickups...
I’ve played a few of the new “inspired by Gibson” Epiphone Les Paul’s and the modern V and explorer at my local long and mcquade and they were setup properly. They also did not have any cosmetic flaws. Epiphone has sure stepped up there game with these new line of guitars. Then picked up a Gibson double cutaway modern that had a neck so bowed I could have used it for archery.
and I`ve never played any epiphone`s that didnt have to had some work done to them , some more than others . now , the new epiphones are very good , but they are not better than whatever "expensive " brand you put them up against . some of the flaws in gibsons isnt even flaws
Long and mcqade sets them up I've talked to a few of the employees and they say they're good but not great out of box but that being said most of the new epiphones looks killer and sounds great too
@@vainestlamb5917 ah ok. My understanding was if you bought a guitar from L&M they send it for a free setup that’s included in your purchase. At least that’s how the location in Surrey British Columbia explained it to me.
Thank you for telling it like it is! In my opinion, even a single flaw is unacceptable on a "premium" instrument. Especially from a major brand like Gibson. It's a shame.
When it comes to QC, a very large US retailer has 9 Slash Anaconda Burst guitars that didn't meet this retailers standard and are now being sold on Reverb as demo. That's insane for a $3000 MSRP guitar. Then again, as long as people keep the resale values high, I doubt Gibson even cares.
No joke, I came across a used low end Dean VMNT at a Sam Ash for $200 in that same Metallic silver finish and it had a better paint job and neck joint than the $2,800 Gibson one.
I have one of those low end deans. And I love it, it has a decently slim and wide d shaped neck, which suits me way more than those chunky as hell Gibson necks. It sounds great, and is a way better deal than this
Bro Fr I have a Dean VX ($400 new) that I’ve modded and the only reason it has a paint defect is cause my drummer was tryna bounce his drum stick off the floor and hit it straight onto my guitar lmao
Being a Dave Mustaine fan and a Gibson fan, I feel very dissapointed with the quality of the guitars. When I noticed that DM and Gibson were colaborating for a signature V, I was very excited. Now I don't know what to think. Thanks a lot for telling the truth and show what real things are done today.
Same. Here's the kicker: I went to Megadeth show yesterday in Montreal (May 17, 2022) and saw up-close the Gibson that Mustaine played must be a 5,000$ guitar. It has a flamed Maple top with a white binding. It is a completely different animal. A true Signature guitar.
Bro. You need to go and check one out for yourself. Who knows if this is a one off subpar finish or if Glenn is playing attention to stuff you wouldn't. Setup... you first need to check if that action that was too high was typical Gibson spec. Meaning... he likes a lower action, but many people are fine with it.
As a former Gibson authorized service technician, and a guy with 3 Gibsons, I watched this with amusement. Yeah, they're selling a name. They're not offering a value. It's almost unfair to ever ask if any new Gibson is worth the price. They rarely are. But, we keep buying them, lol. And after we're done setting them up and modifying them to play decently, we then have the right name on the headstock to impress the kiddies. And we know the real guitarists are more interested in how we got it to play well than the guitar itself, lol!
Ive never own a Gibson, but Im shocked to see so many QC issues, specially with painting, all those cracks over the finish, and the finferboard and binding always with tooling marks. I see Troglys reviews and he thinks its ok, its part of Gibson aura, Im just shocked.
@@papasmamas1 What they have is a roster of heroes. We hear great playing and great tone, and we want the tools they used. I've seen Gibson corporate make the worst decisions in this industry. But, since there is always some plucky fan with a couple grand ready to buy into the dream, Gibson keeps making sales. They say they care about QC, but lets be real. QC costs money. Gibson would rather keep that money than increase their quality. It's been this way for decades. I don't imagine they'll ever change. Why should they?
This sounds a lot like me trying out Gibsons in general. I go in with low expectations, get surprised by the minimal requirements like staying in tune or being reasonably playable, and at the end of the day realize it would be perfectly passable if the price was halved or less.
I agree. I used to own a Les Paul. It was great for rhythm playing, but as soon as I joined a band where I had to play leads, I could not keep the G string in tune. I ended up selling it, and replacing it with MIJ Ibanez guitars, and I haven't looked back. In the same spirit as this video, I think people pay way too much for Solar and Chapman guitars, as well. I have never had a guitar built in the FujiGen factory come back with flaws like I see with Gibson, Solar, and Chapman guitars.
Big agree. I actually really like a lot of Gibsons I've played, they're just not worth $2.5k or whatever they fuck they're getting for them. That's why I tell people go find a used Studio that plays well for around $1k or less. Same feel and feature set, with a MUCH more appropriate price tag.
@@jimherleva4541 If by user you mean luthier, then I agree. When the only guitar I've ever owned in the last 20 years that has a tuning issue is a Gibson, then the issue was the guitar. If a guitar that costs over $1000 needs modification to stay in tune, then that is a design flaw. I'm not shitting on Gibson either, I love Gibsons. I like the way they feel and the way they sound. However, I chose to sell mine because my Ibanez guitars required far less modification out of the box.
At 6:30 your cover for symphony for destruction made me absolutely bust out laughing 😂 “you take a mortal man, you give him a Flying V, watch him turn into a snob.🤣 dude your personality is killer 🤘🏽
Two things Glenn, One you're playing has come a long way practice is paying off keep it up! Two thanks for this fearless gear review Gibson has just fallen off so profoundly its crazy. Keep up the good work, cheers from Milwaukee.
Do you know this from first hand experience or are you simply trusting "influencers" for this information? I've played several new Gibsons over the past few years that were fantastic. A friend of mine bought a Les Paul traditional a few years back. That guitar is lovely, stays in tune, sounds awesome, and did NOT require an additional set-up. It was great from day 1 straight out of the factory. The paint was also perfect (not that I care).
@@davidreynolds6718 bro, it is hilarious. You are calling him out for trusting the review from multiple people, yet you are saying that the opposite is the case and you know because of your own (single and maybe two person) experience...
@@davidreynolds6718 all the Gibsons I've been fortunate enough to play have always been poorly potted just alot of feedback, also alot of tuning issues(5 ish i know its a small sample size). But that could be the setups at the store. Other brands present at the same store seemed to not have that problem(at a lower price point mind you).I dont have alot money so i try to be little quicker to rule of expensive guitars and Gibson at the end of the day are just beyond my price point.They have alot of QC issues and this much variance between all their guitars makes them a risky investment at best and that is simply unacceptable for guitars at this price point. In my opinion. Granted take it with a grain of salt I'm no one and have had limited experience with Gibson as a whole.
@@linnickschlanter4712 I just think it's odd that RU-vid influencers associated with Glenn all turned on Gibson at he same time. Something seems off to me.
Works out to about £2,250 over here in the UK. Got to say if I had that much to drop on a guitar, it'd be custom made from a decent luthier every time!
Yep, that's what I have been saying for years...until my last luthier passed away. Finding a new one (with the bandwidth to make one for your) is so difficult now.
Hi Glenn, I really enjoy watching your videos. I have severe chronic lower back and neck pain. Most nights I can't sleep because of my chronic pain. I binge watch your videos when I can't sleep. Watching your videos helps me forget about my chronic pain. Thank you for making your videos.
Hate to admit it but that's true. Ive got a Gibson Les Paul and it makes me regret selling my 1999 Epiphone Les Paul Quilt Top and Epiphone "1984" Explorer. My Gibson does not play like those 2 Epiphones and I wish I could reverse those decisions quite badly.
@@visionop8 Bummer. Gibson USA definitely had some shitty years. They looked and seemed like they were getting way better again but this video makes me wonder. He could have gotten that one out of 1000 really bad one or maybe the vast majority of them suck, lol
@@PatPosse Gibson really did have some better years. I bought my Les Paul from memories of playing a friend's dad's Les Paul Custom and I couldn't put it down. What I got wasn't that. I think maybe we missed the good years.
Loved the honest review. I tried so many V's before being satisfied with a Solar V. Got a Solar Explorer soon after because of how much fun it was to play.
"who is this guitar for?!" my thoughts exactly when you mentioned the price. also props to you for supporting unions! Workers aren't gonna give a crap about quality if they aren't paid a living wage. let's be real now. I support big companies existing if they pay and treat their employees well. sadly this is happening less and less.
union workers don't give a crap about anything except for their benefits and their ability to have the worst workers and keep their jobs. Automotive unions are some of the worst demanding the most pay and yet have vehicles get recalled for poor quality all the time. The company pays for the recall but the lazy union fat cats keep their pay. Get real dude.
What is attractive to you about the vintage guitar? Honestly I'm curious, not trolling at all. I admit I like them as collectors items and investments..... but I haven't played my Gibson explorer in decades. Yet it is probably the most valuable guitar I own (out of waaay too many) lol
@@mad7stringer Other than the finish? Nothing. I'm not even going to play it. It's going to sit in its case, just like my 1954 Rolls Royce sits in the garage, never to be driven.
To get a low pinch right; make sure to apply a bit of vibrato at the same time and put a bit more pressure on to fretting finger (aggressively apply the vibrato). I find it to be also much easier with the middle or ring finger. I think that wiggling the string with the fretting finger helps sustain the pinch a little better and produce that deep wallop you're after lol. Then again I could be completely wrong, but I do LOVE my low pinchies 🤟!
@@SpectreSoundStudios Glen if I send you some Resistance Bands, Will you Use Them? You can Use them Seated as Well and they are Great for Stress Relief ; ) You are practically using them Right Now , They are just not in your Hands 😁
I’m really glad someone else is addressing quality control issues. I had to go through 3 50s Goldtops until one was “right”. There were even strings the wrong way round and not even in the bridge. After all my issues I contacted Gibson, they just didn’t care.
Thank you for saying this man. If you’re referring to the 2021 models, I was actually looking at those a few weeks ago and really liked the sound of the 50s version. Interesting to know that there are still quality control issues going on. A lot of the press has been saying Gibson is coming back! Seems like they’ve still got a ways to go.
It's only $2800 because it has 3 titles: Gibson, Flying V, and Mustaine. It's really a $300 guitar... and I feel like that's a fucking stretch, because nowadays $300 will get you a really good guitar that doesn't have fucked up paint.
2:17 Your wish has been already granted in the 80's! Aldo Nova had a signature Les Paul that had the Explorer headstock (in fact there was an entire series of different shaped guitars with the Explorer headstock back then). These guitars are really collectable nowadays and I wish someone made a modern equivalent
I'd reckon that the Epiphone stuff and the endless onslaught of '59 LP remakes, remixes, and reissues are the only things keeping Gibson alive at this point. To put out such a bad guitar at such a high price point is beyond pathetic; as if someone is deliberately trying to destroy the Gibson brand and legacy.
Remember the time when buying a Gibson meant something. I have an old Epiphone SG that I got for pocket change. It was new but the neck had seperated from the body during shipping. Got it glued and changed the kind of dull pickups for some old Dimarzios I had. Super guitar, I could say that it's as good as a real Gibson from the same time!
Gibson is just cashing in as hard as they possibly can before the Boomers and Gen X dad-rockers finally all die off and nobody gives a crap about their "lifestyle brand" at all anymore. From what I see players under 40 mostly just don't care about the Gibson name, and I don't blame them. They have no reason to cling to a brand out of nostalgia, which is really all Gibson has going for it now.
You know, the fact that I haven’t spent over $500 on a guitar once in my life (and the only time I ever bought a piece of gear that was more than that was a Hiwatt DR 103 from 1971 for the same exact price you got for that guitar) makes me realize I make consciously good decisions with my gear spending for the most part.
I've bought all of my guitars online with mixed results. So the other day I tried something unusual - I went down to my local guitar store and started trying out instruments. I left 45 minutes later with a great guitar. It's from a virtually unknown brand, there are no youtube demos of the model I got, but it looks great, sounds great, and is setup by a guy who spent the last 30 years fixing guitars. Guys, stop buying unseen, unheard. The only reason the companies can get away with selling junk is because we keep buying from warehouses 800 km away from us, based on a youtube review and a 30 dollar price difference. Doing that is literaly begging to get ripped off.
We do a shop setup on every guitar we ship, and any shop-sold guitar if the customer wants it. If the setup is crap from the factory, we'll fix it before we hang the guitar. And, oh yeah - If it's a lefty, we'll hang it in "Lefty Alley" with the other dozen
@@millardbrown4769 I guess you’re in the us though, there’s barely anywhere near me that you can go in and try a lefty and they’re usually either cheap squiers or the odd overpriced Gibson, I just get mine built from a local luthier now.
Baseball bat neck and an ebony fretboard is probably the reason it stays in tune better than most other Gibson's. I had a 76' Les Paul that was exceptionally stable...but it had a thicker maple neck. Compare that to a friend of mine that used to do dive bombs by bending the mahogany neck of his 64' SG.
Should i say some thing blasphemous? I just got a cheap chinese lespaul shaped guitar without locking tuners and its exceptionally stable. Hours of trash type riffing wont effect it. It was one year old guitar the guy sold me for what he got it for. I bought it for 18000 rs. Roughly equals to 100$
I'm glad Gibson is finally getting called out on this stuff. For years all I would ever hear anybody say about their gear was about how great it was and every time I picked one up I just didn't understand why anybody would spend that kind of cash on a guitar brand that felt okay at best. Soooooooooo many gear snobs. lol
All ive heard is how shit they are. Reality is, all brands except maybe a few boutique ones make duds. I've seen some absolutely terrible asian made ones despite the overall quality hike the past decades.
Their previous effort to ripoff people resulted in bankruptcy, this new revival has not changed anything... "Made in USA" is a joke these days when Korean and even Indonesian made guitars beat the crap out of these overpriced "US made" pieces of wood.
@@fredriksvard2603 for me it was revolutionary! My entire youth i had NO access to instruments and didn't know anyone who owned one.....and I always dreamt of having Gibsons and Fenders someday. BUT WHEN I FINALLY TRIED THEM IN MY LATE TEENS........ ...they felt wrong in EVERY way!!! (GIBSON AND FENDER = DEMOCRATS AND REPUBLICANS. BOTH a bunch of assholes and crooks and fraudsters!) Then, I tried brands i HATED (Peavey!) (Ibanez!).....and their shit played like BUTTER and I was stunned. I can find you a million $180 Ibanez MIKROS that are better than ANY GIBSON OR FENDER OF ANY PRICE.
Great review. Gibson is the Harley Davidson of guitars. A clothing company that also sells products to layers and dentists that haven't improved since the 60s and expects the good reputation earned by people who are long gone to carry them forever. Really brought it home at the end with your correct statements about labor and unions. Hell yes.
When a headstock straight up cracked and nearly separated on a Les Paul I was preparing to purchase, as I was playing it - that was the last Gibson I ever played and have no desire to pick up one again. Every time I’ve been tempted, all the problems you have detailed in this video are consistently present on gibsons.
i always thought I'd own Fenders & Gibsons. But when I played either at a guitar shop.....both felt....WRONG. Then I played IBANEZ guitars and it was night vs day! I never pay more than $200 for a guitar, and they're all better than Fenders or Gibsons!
your story hurts. ex: I once bought a $1200 MACBOOK "PRO"......and BEFORE I LEFT THE APPLE STORE...it had COMPLETELY CRASHED when I tried their email program!! "JUST A FLUKE!" the lying liars said. I've owned FIVE expensive Apples. ALL FIVE WERE GARBAGE OUT OF THE BOX, but only in literally EVERY CATEGORY. Bc POLICE WILL NOT ENFORCE LAWS against Consumer Fraud.
OH WOW. Edit: I recently bought an Epiphone Alex Lifeson LP Axcess - and the QC and finish is astonishing for a sub-£1000 guitar. The fretwork is some of the best I've ever come across irrespective of price - and for a mass produced instrument I had very little ground to improve on in terms of setup. Which, should make big brother Gibson very embarrassed indeed.
Wow! A lot of comments here. I’m sure this will get buried but here goes. A HUGE thank you for talking about Unionization at the end of the video. I’m a 15 year union pipe insulator by trade and spent the first three years of my career nonunion and I can tell you that you are 100% correct. Love the channel, great videos, keep up the awesome work. Can you do a video about soundproofing and room treatment soon? I’m building a studio in my basement and this topic is still somewhat confusing to me. Thanks brother!
I use to think that a Gibson would make me a better guitar player but then I found the world or RU-vid and then I found you glen. Thank you for taking away that stupid mentality I had an convinced me to practice more on a cheap guitar like a squire. Keep up the good work.
@@ratatatuff yeah low cost guitars are great. I have some expensive guitars myself and just picked up a purple Schecter C6 Elite for $270 (on sale but it's a $400 guitar) and the quality is great.
As someone who works at a music store, pretty much every Gibson and Epiphone always needs a setup right out of the box. Usually they just need the action dropped at the bridge but sometimes it gets a little harrier. I find Fender is usually a lot better on the setup side of things but for whatever reason is usually way worse when it comes to fret sprout issues.
This is a good review. It's not "Gibson I hate you" and it's not "Gibson I love you", it's just honest criticism of things that weren't right that absolutely SHOULD be right, especially for the asking price.
A few years back I bought a Harley Benton LP clone for around $120 that played like a dream out of the box. Slapped on some Grover tuners and Seymour Duncan pickups I had laying around, and I have a guitar that I practice on and gig with over any of my Gibsons or higher-end Ibanezes that cost 10x+ more. Paint job is a mediocre tobacco sunburst, but it is good enough for me.
I got two cheap Harley Bentons, one of them being a snow white LP clone. Swapped the pickups, left everything else as it is. Plays absolutely fine! The other one is an Explorer that already came with Grover locking tuners and a Graph Tech nut and I once again only changed the pickups. Absolutely nothing wrong with that thing.
@@honigdachs. I think the tuners on mine were lemons, I basically had to tune them every song or two. Granted I do some pretty aggressive string bends, but it holds up much better now after the upgrade.
Just discovered this video and I must say I spilled my coffee all over the place watching it 🤣 I laughed out loud so hard!!!! Glenn, you’re the best 🤣🤣🤣
Damn, Glenn pulling a Lucretia. Wasn't expecting that. Probably the best Friedman solo often outplayed by tornado of souls (which is great too don't get me wrong).
I can't help wondering: why not buy a Schecter, Ibanez or Jackson for under half the price and seemingly equal quality? I recently got a Jackson Mick Thomson Soloist and it's SO much fun to play, feels awesome and sounds amazing.
@@CroneRaven1810 y'all need to UP YOUR GAME! My RULE is no guitar over $200.......and the $180 IBANEZ MIKROS are FLAWLESS as were my $190 BABY DEAN guitars! WHO would want a pricey guitar??? You have to be SCARED to scratch it!!!
GLENN. Thank you. THIS is why I watch your videos... Truly comprehensive..full of spot on information and riddled with excellent brevity and absolutely relatable hilariousness... dont change a thing! Fan forever! Oh and by the way - Jezuz, you goddam SHRED. Mike Leporati- Los Angeles based musician and artist
I've actually worked for Gibson, and have been a QC. There's a lot of factors in play here. Namely, staffing: on a good day, we have 4-5 QC's for the entire factory, and a lot of them are experienced builders that had to be taken from their other departments and positions to fill the void. This is less than half of the amount of QC's we actually need to push good quality out the door. Another staffing problem is that the pandemic destroyed our pool of experienced builders and painters, via layoffs, quitting, or retirement. Gibson tries to make up for this, by lowering their requirements for employment, and hires people with little to no experience with guitar playing, let alone guitar building. I literally had to try to train someone that neither knew how to play nor speak english in full sentences. These factor into what ends up making it to the final assembly room, and then QC's are forced to make impossible decisions to satisfy the corporate need for numbers (sacrificing quality). Trust me, we see the flaws. We hate it just as much as you do. If you want a Gibson that was built/setup properly, get it from the Demo Shop. Everyone there has years of experience and spends the extra time to get it right the first time. Also, a few other things: 1) Grovers don't do anything that Kluson's can't. If you wind the string around the post properly, and stretch the strings, it'll stay in tune. Easy. 2) The "streaks" in the finish on the Dave M is actually the grain of the wood. Mahogany has notoriously big open grain, that likes to soak up color that's painted on, depending on the grain filler. 3) The crack in the finish on the neck pocket is called an "open seam" where the lacquer was sinking into the glue joint as it was curing. Nitro isn't like Polyurethane that they paint on cars, it thins out as it cures, exposing flaws that you can't see as you apply the paint. 4) Not sure what you were referring to about the neck joint being done poorly, but unless it fell off, it was probably glued in properly. lol
2,3 and 4 - people won’t even care about the technicalities. It’ll be “at $3k it should be up at 5am making me pancakes and coffee”. As for 1 - yes. Tuning stability is always user error, but try telling that to the RU-vid beatniks. Nothing is ever their fault as that requires them taking responsibility. I have 9 Gibson Les Pauls and a Firebird spanning from the 70s to present day - including 2 Custom Shops - and all of them are amazing guitars. Thanks to you and your colleagues for bringing me endless enjoyment.
Still doesn't excuse the price for the quality. Gibson keeps pumping out dog shit, the prices should be slashed by 3/4. I have seen so many snapped headstocks and wiring failures in 3k Gibson shittars. I've only owned a single Gibson in my life and sold that shit within a month, never going back again.
@@musicmanxii cool story. I already said why the quality is down and I could care less if you own a Gibson. Prices are the way they are because they're made in the US, where the cost of labor is way higher than most, experienced builders or not.
Recently bought a Gibson Tribute Les Paul and couldn't be happier. Plek'd and set up low and fast, plays fucking beautiful and sounds killer! Why all the whining haters? Go play your favorite copy brand and enjoy. For every Gibson hater there are 3 people who absolutely love their Gibsons. 🤘
I worked for a Gibson dealer a while back- when the pickups are noisy like that, check the pots- I came to find that often the ins and outs on the pots were reversed- what Gibson refers to as ‘50s wiring’. The pickup should come in on the left lug and output in the middle. It takes just a few mins to switch them if they’re reversed and it makes a big difference in noise. Edit: I never switched the 50s wiring on guitars that were spec’d for it, just the modern models for customers upon request.
a hair crack and a bad paint job you wouldn't expact for a 2800 dollar guitar. For that money QA shouldn't be an issue. Wtf is Gibson doing over there?
Setup is a pretty personal thing, but there still needs to be some kind of standard where a guitar shows up in playable condition. I've done less setup on Harley Benton and Firefly guitars than I've seen a lot people do on their brand new Gibsons. I'll take a Solar V over a Gibson any damn day. Looks better, sounds at least as good, costs 1/3 the price...
@@bikeman1x11 Totally agree. Solar makes much better guitars for money than Gibson. Of course Solar guitars are not made in China, they're made in Indonesia.
@@jamiebriggs8277 if you think an asian name guitar compares to the legend of gibson you are bonkers- the greatest musice played was played with les pauls the solars appeal to those who think guitar is a bass
@@bikeman1x11 I don't care about "legends" I care about quality instruments at reasonable prices without the long running problems of overpriced Gibsons to feed a CEO's bloated salary ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Other than that who knows wtf you're even saying
The quality of this set up is something I would expect from a 600-900 dollar guitar, not a 2800 dollar one. If the price were more reasonable, I'd call it a killer guitar.
So, I'm a big Epiphone fan. I have wanted to take the leap and maybe dive into a Gibson SG Standard or something, but I have always had concerns about the QC. Seeing this makes me glad I'm gravitating towards Paul Reed Smith lately. GOURGEOUS guitars, from the fit and finish to the playability to the sound. I've never played a PRS that I have disliked at any price range. I have played numerous Gibsons that were fucking trash. I'm disappointed, but not surprised, to see that Gibson couldn't get this right either.
If you can find a used Gibson Studio used for a good price that plays well, I would highly encourage you to jump on that. But beyond that yeah, a brand like PRS or Schecter (or hell if you like Epiphone, just get one of the new Inspired by Gibson Epiphones) is probably going to yield better return on your money. No reason to go throw down $2k on a new Gibson Standard when both they and other companies make guitars you can find that play just as well if not better for half the price.
I can see a problem for Gibson in the future. Younger players have grown up with a wider range of quality brands, and one result has been that they are less tolerant of the design flaws and erratic quality control that older players had to take for granted. They are absolutely going to ask why an instrument won't stay in tune, why its finish is not almost perfect, why its setup is poor, and so on. They are certainly going to question $2800 for what appears to be a basic, low-spec instrument. Arguably, this guitar isn't really a Gibson anyway. Gibson have no real track record in modern or technical metal, and the Vs used in classic metal, with their relatively low-gain pickups and 24.75" scale, were very different beasts. What Gibson have produced is, ironically, a clone: it's a Dean or Jackson, given an Explorer headstock in a gesture at 'heritage'. That's fine: but then, reasonably enough, people will expect Dean or Jackson (or ESP or Schecter) prices and standards of quality control.
Great to see someone call out Gibson. They really do get by on their name and I feel the quality is way below the price range. I feel my Indo made guitars destroy my old USA Gibson SG.
Just looked at my Dean that I bought for $400, fit and finish is perfect, stays in tune even with that headstock, and still has its headstock attached. Got a better instrument than a Gibson for 1/6 the price.
??? I only buy 3/4 guitars (they are superior in EVERY SINGLE WAY)......so what do you need a $400 guitar for? UMPTEEN $200 Ibanezes and Baby Deans are PERFECT.
I'm a Fender guy, always have been. About 10 years ago my friend sold me a Les Paul style guitar made by one of Gibsons competitors. I love that guitar and became intrigued with Gibsons. So I went out and bought a Les Paul studio. After playing it for about a week and joining the Les Paul group on Facebook, I realized I like the Les Paul copy better for a number of reasons. I posted a picture of my Les Paul next to my Les Paul copy on the Les Paul group and said I like the copy better. People reacted to my post like I pissed on their God, then I was removed and blocked from the group.
Loved the review. Huge Megadeth fan here, but wouldn't touch this with a 9 foot pole! I've had plenty of the Dean guitars over the years and looks like they beat this pile out. Recently saved for years and forked my cash towards a Ernie Ball Music Man and its by far one of the nicest guitars man could ever play. Being a US production for their models, you *may* find some flaws but its not common. Setup out of the box was superb, haven't had to make any adjustments almost half a year later! Would appreciate seeing the channel check them out.
I bought a left handed Gibson explorer 70s model and while I love it just because it’s different and dream guitar, it was $2700 and I know there is so many other guitars in that price that would be at least 3x better such as schecter, esp, Ibanez, prs, etc
Glen, This is some of your best playing on camera. You seem much more comfortable on camera with a guitar in your hands! Must have been that Gibson guitar.
It's like the guitar version of hate sex with someone who looks good but you have no respect for. Electric at the time but not something you're proud of.
My old Gibson explorer used to sometimes have issues with tuning stability, of course it was only later when I learned how to tune unwound strings. (bottom to top, the opposite way to normally) This changes the break angle at the nut and results in fewer mishaps)
The Gibson headstock angle is 15°. That was a useful angle in 1890 when the G was always a wound string. Today however, it's not necessary to place that much downforce on the strings leaving the nut to the tuner posts. Gibson will never evolve. No one else making guitars in that price range uses 15°, and their guitars stay in tune (PRS, Kiesel, Rickenbacker etc).
@@diegovidar I haven't watched that video since 2 years ago or something but wasn't that guitar just a prehistoric Les Paul reissue with an Explorer headstock that got associated with Aldo and Rick because Aldo came up with the idea and he sold his second prototype to Rick?
@@Mr.Goldbar Exactly, Aldo has always said that combination was his own design. And is considered the "Aldo Nova Signature". Clearly saying "there's also the Aldo Nova" does not make it justice. However, it wasn't a diss, is just that Rick is more well known and his "Signature" perhaps more easily found.
I saw a video of Aldo talking about using the Explorer headstock. He said with the standard headstock the G string went out of tune every time he bent it. He thought this wouldn’t be an issue with the Explorer headstock.
I got myself my first electric guitar recently, An Ibanez Gio (worth 293€) for which i paid 209€ and it was set up perfectly out of the box, stays in tune really well, plays great and the finish is also flawless. It's ridiculous how a guitar that costs roughly 10 times as much has so many flaws while my cheap guitar doesn't have any flaws.
Good to know that Gibson has finally upgraded their tuning to “pretty solid.” It sucks that it costs almost 3 thousand of my finest United States Dollars, because it’s an absolutely beautiful guitar. (If it was built properly!)
TOP SECRET: when you buy HEADLESS guitars.......they almost never GO OUT OF TUNE, bc you've eliminated the TOP FLAW! ANY TIME you bump your tuning pegs (or put it in a gig bag or case!) it goes OUT OF TUNE. HEADLESS guitars totally eliminated this lifelong HEADACHE, see? MY $150 HEADLESS FLYING V......will go SIX MONTHS without needing to be tuned even ONCE!!! (I saved ENDLESS HOURS TUNING in the past 20 years!) AND it has a cheap whammy bar....yetNEVER goes out of tune if I torture the whammy bar!!! HOW can it go out of tune with a whammy....if you REMOVE the problem that causes whammys to go out of tune?? (That fucking headstock and nut!) (IDIOTS have LOCKING NUTS. SMART musicians GOT RID OF THE ENTIRE NUT so it no longer is a problem!)
The one major thing that I think keeps everyone coming back to Glenn is the fact that even if he's predisposed to hating a brand or manufacturer, he's willing to give them credit for certain aspects. E.g. Line 6, Gibson, etc. Oh yeah and the beautiful hair. I keep forgetting the hair.
I just bought a '76 Explorer and it's the best sounding guitar I've ever played. Stays in tune and pretty good playability. I haven't touched my Les Paul's since. Gibson is always hit and miss. I played a 61 es-335 that honestly sounded and played bad. It had real PAFs and they were really tame. Even though some people in the vintage guitar community consider 59-64½ 335's the greatest guitar ever made.
I love my Gibsons, but I bought them used. No fucking way on this planet am I paying that much for what those dicklords at Gibson are charging nowadays.
Great review, Glenn! We always appreciate the honesty. Also your guitar playing is pretty insane. You’re a testament to “practice, practice, practice” keep it up!
insanely bad. For a guy that constantly cries that musicians suck at playing and the fact that he's been playing guitar since the 1980's and power chords/poor riffs are all he can manage is insane. The review is good though of the guitar itself. I hope he sends that guitar back because the finish damage on an instrument that expensive is inexcusable. That may have happened in shipping though and may not be gibson/sweetwaters fault.
@@pgon9097 defending someone else’s playing was not something I thought I was going to be doing today. Glenn plays guitar as a side passion and it’s apparent he’s progressed over time on his channel. You can’t really shit on someone for progressing even if it’s not where you think it should be. As far as the riffs go, I mean that’s kind of a matter of opinion and musical taste. I don’t like participation awards but if I can see someone has put in time and effort into improving into something competent that just isn’t my thing or the way I’d do it, I’m not going to say it sucks because I can recognize and respect it for what it is which is someone else’s art.
@@pgon9097As a producer, it's not his job to be great at guitar. If someone is sucking in the studio and wasting time and money he has every right to bitch. This is him on his own channel. He's not obligated to be good.
If most of the action problem was due to the truss rod, perhaps the luthier listened to your setup advice ;) More seriously, weather can fuck up a neck, and I think that's where good wood can be the most important. Wood being improperly dried might explain a lot.
I’m a local luthier in Orlando and this is the best review I have ever seen on a Gibson you’ve said everything I’ve ever wanted to say publicly but couldn’t.
4:21 You have a grounding issue there, as in, there is no ground connection. It's probably not the guitar but you can try two different scenarios to diagnose the issue: 1 - Use a real amp amp connected to a grounded socket and then plug the guitar to it. 2 - Connect a real amp to an ungrounded socket and plug the guitar to it. Touch any metal part, like the bridge or the strings and see if it still happens. If it does that noise in both scenarios the guitar is missing a ground connection from the bridge to the back of one of the potentiometers. If it only does it in scenario 2 then it's not the guitar and it might be a lot of things (audio interface, usb cable, ground lift along the chain, etc). Also, given that the guitar came with fret sprout, and you had to adjust the truss rod, you're probably in place with less humidity than the one where the guitar was manufactured. Unfortunately it can happen with all price ranges, with less humidity the wood contracts. Edit 12:37 Save that for your OnlyFans
Shirtless Glenn, eeeeep xD was not ready for that. That being said, I've had huge paint issues on both Les Pauls I have. I had to send one back twice, and the other three times, and that's from the custom shop. My Epiphone Elitists from the Japanese custom shop came in perfect. Thanks for the honesty
Japanese custom shops have to be at least 2 levels above US shops. They turn it up to 11 with their craftsmanship and attention to detail. I have a custom Snapper-7 from ESP and I've never seen such a flawless handbuilt instrument, not once have I thought it wasn't worth the price tag. It's really sad that there's people actually paying $3k for these shitty Gibsons when if they turned to a different brand their money would go much further.
Okay, I work for a major American acoustic guitar manufacturer and I’m not at all defending Gibson for delivering a guitar with poor action but this isn’t an issue that’s just plaguing Gibson. With delays at ports at an all time high, many guitars are sitting in shipping containers for months at a time. These containers are not humidity or temperature controlled. This can really cause issues especially if the dealers who get them can’t be bothered to check and adjust them when they do show up.
Great review Glen I really appreciate the honesty here, highlighting both the positives and the negatives and giving a very real overview. I'm a huge Ibanez fan and have 7 of them, even the cheaper ones in my collection are still pretty amazing to be honest. I couldn't imagine paying $2800 for a guitar! I have 3 archtop flamed finish RGs that were around $600 and $800 and I bet they would put that V to shame. I don't know what Gibson is thinking, even as far as legacy brands go Fender wipes the floor with them, my MIM Tele is pretty damn great, and American made Fenders that are only around 1200-1500 are amazing right out of the box. As a side note, when you worked for Chrysler did you work in the plant making Challengers? I know they were made in Canada, just not sure if that's your city or not. If so I bought mine new in 2009 and still love it just as much as the day I bought it. That car and my guitars are 2 of the things in my life that consistently bring me joy, and if you had a hand in making it I just wanted to say thank you very much sir! Cheers from western Canada!
Damn it, Glenn! I've been missing Fearless Gear Reviews, good to have them back! This one was quite a bit longer than the previous ones, but the fact that you paid attention to the little details (as opposed to Gibson) made it really interesting. Good job, man! Also, do you think you could do a Fearless Gear Review on the Orange Super Crush 100 head? Most of the RU-vidrs said it sound great and really close to a tube head, but I wanna hear THE TRUTH.
I appreciate the honest review. My brother and I are huge megadeth fans and we’re both are in our 40’s and are more of collectors than live performers these days (wife and kids etc) but we like high end guitars. We both planned on getting these but will not until these issues are fixed.
Yeah the Jacksons were better! I had Rhodes custom. It will cost if u find a used one. Wish i still had mine. It was like 1800. Now it wld cost 5000. U can get them made in Indonesia or Mexico. 1500. That is the joint or the Deans were going for 1200 back when I met Dave doing an in store signing
We just sold a USA king V we had for years and never played. I mostly play Les Pauls and my brother is a PRS nerd. But I’ve played so many Gibson that have just been shit. I have 6 Les Paul’s But I’ve probably played a couple hundred to find these. Most of my other guitars are “over seas” guitars and play just as good. (My warmoth parts guitars are my favorite)
@@lespaulnutz cool. Part of it is the name. Mahogany has gone up SO MUCH! The woods, etc. I got a LTD Viper( SG). Good gtr. Emg' s. I had the custom Rhoads best gtr I had. My brother had a Epiphone SG. It had problems but for the price, u know. Like he said there is a lot of competition
I bought the Fender Final Fantasy XIV guitar and it’s amazing! Definitely over priced, but the quality control is amazing and extremely well done! I’ve always liked Fender better.
I recently bought a Les Paul UKELELE!!! My local Guitar Center had FENDER ukes and EPIPHONE ukes......and the Fenders were like 80% better construction (!!!!)......but the Les Paul was like $140 vs the $190 Fenders and I went for price and have zero regrets after a year.
Hi Glenn, I've been messing about with guitars for a while now rewiring different combinations of pickups phase switches etc, what I found regarding the noise from pickups which stopped when you touch the strings is if you run a earth wire from the tail piece this will solve the issue ✌️ from the UK Dave 🤘🍻
My new Les Paul came with the "Plek" certificate and it was perfect. It was also slack tuned and when I brought it up to standard, it has stayed there. Yeah, I was just as stunned as you are reading this. I don't know how much it cost to do this on a factory produced guitar, but it's worth every penny. I honestly had all my tools out because I expected a full blown set up. Like an old coach used to say "one attaboy does not erase 20 'ah shits'. But it's a start.
I've been so curious about Plek! The technology is really cool, it's a shame that it's somewhat hard to access. For anyone into tremolos check out the Tremmory. I have 2... on a 7 string and a 6 string with floyds and they stay perfectly in tune all the time. It's like this great weight is lifted!. Sadly, due to how many floyd guitars I have it'll take me the cost of a Mustaine V to outfit all my trems with one hehehe
10:29 "that means someone wasn't paid enough to give a fuck" thats absolutley the reason a majority of folks in the retail/service industry would assume it passed QC and it felt like justice to hear it said on such a large platform. Gratefully, Vincent
Although the guitar isn't the best thx to poor QC, I love the aesthetic of the guitar overall, but mostly your playing. I was blown up right from the get go and I'm so impressed that I want to get better myself. Congrats on that and Gibson really needs to step up their game.
I respectfully disagree with your aesthetics point. This is supposed to be a metal guitar, but the rounded corners on the body and the hockey stick headstock with no point kind of ruin the whole vibe. Especially considering that this is a Dave Mustaine signature, it just doesn't match him. I think they designed it in such a way to make it more neutral in order to widen the pool of possible buyers, but ended up sacrificing the whole vibe of Dave's guitars. At this point it isn't a Dave Mustaine signature, it's just a slightly customized Gibson V with Dave's name attached to it.
@@MrBX5 GREAT points. (No pun intended, ha ha.) (Maybe HETFIELD could get away with CLASSIC GIBSON FLYING V rounded corners, but you're spot on: It AIN'T "MUSTAINE"!)
It’s so easy to solve the Gibson headstock tuning issue. I wind the G string going up the tuning peg rather than down and never have problems, undwound string and all. No tight break angle. I do it on all 3x3 headstocks and works every time.
There are a couple of Les Pauls with Explorer headstocks, one of which being the Aldo Nova. Not sure if it stays in tune better. And now I see that this channel has been missing something for a very long time. Shirtless Glen. It's what the people need. It's what the people deserve.
