The Acoustic Guitar Forum

The Acoustic Guitar Forum (https://www.acousticguitarforum.com/forums/index.php)
-   General Acoustic Guitar Discussion (https://www.acousticguitarforum.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=24)
-   -   Gibson new j-45 vs vintage j-45 (https://www.acousticguitarforum.com/forums/showthread.php?t=216267)

Moonlander 05-10-2011 05:11 PM

Gibson new j-45 vs vintage j-45
 
Hi, i'm interested in a j-45/j-50 acoustic guitar and i have a question about the sound differences between a new one and a vintage one.
check out this james taylor video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JOIo4lEpsPY

as you can hear, the bass is very dry and low sustained, thats exactly what i'm looking for. now, do you think a new j-45/j-50 moden classic or even one from 2000-2005 whould have that? or that i can get that dry tone only from a vintage one?

leeasam 05-10-2011 05:31 PM

the past few j45s I have played have full sustaining bass. in the past I had played some Gibsons that were dry thuddy with not much sustain. That was one reason I hated Gibsn acoustics as I loath that type of low end. But different tastes. Not sure about any other models but the J45s and Advanced Jumbos I played lately would give Taylors a run for sustian and such.

Guth 05-10-2011 05:54 PM

I've played a number of older J-45s that had the tonal quality that you are seeking, and I've played a number of older ones that did not (they exhibited the thuddy character without much sustain mentioned above). The same can be said for newer J-45s that I played.

I skipped over a number of newer examples because I just don't care for the thud-like bass with no edge on the note and no sustain, just personal preference. I ended up with a 2008 J-45 TV and love the low end on this guitar. Here's a sound clip of the guitar:

Walking Nick

SalFromChatham 05-10-2011 06:09 PM

I love how my SC sounds. By the way Guth, that MP3 is beautiful man.

Moonlander 05-10-2011 11:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Guth (Post 2612253)
I've played a number of older J-45s that had the tonal quality that you are seeking, and I've played a number of older ones that did not (they exhibited the thuddy character without much sustain mentioned above). The same can be said for newer J-45s that I played.

I skipped over a number of newer examples because I just don't care for the thud-like bass with no edge on the note and no sustain, just personal preference. I ended up with a 2008 J-45 TV and love the low end on this guitar. Here's a sound clip of the guitar:

Walking Nick

man.. your sound is just amazing! is the TV so much different then regular?
cuz the TV is a bit too expensive for me, i'm thinking of going for a used j-45 or j-50 modern classic.
btw, what strings are you using there?

Toby Walker 05-11-2011 05:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Guth (Post 2612253)
I've played a number of older J-45s that had the tonal quality that you are seeking, and I've played a number of older ones that did not (they exhibited the thuddy character without much sustain mentioned above). The same can be said for newer J-45s that I played.

I skipped over a number of newer examples because I just don't care for the thud-like bass with no edge on the note and no sustain, just personal preference. I ended up with a 2008 J-45 TV and love the low end on this guitar. Here's a sound clip of the guitar:

Walking Nick

Nice sounding guitar and real nice playing there.

Moonlander 05-11-2011 08:04 AM

is it true that the TV has a different less glossy finish then the regular j-45?

sfden1 05-11-2011 08:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Moonlander (Post 2612761)
is it true that the TV has a different less glossy finish then the regular j-45?

Yes. Gibson tries to make them look old. Personally, I'd rather put the wear on it myself. My understanding is that the finish can be polished up to look new, but I have no personal experience with that so don't know how well it works.

D.

GibbyPrague 05-11-2011 09:11 AM

Gibson is making some great guitars right now in Bozeman, but to my ears you just cant replicate that honky tonk, woody tone of a 50 year old Gibson with a new specimen. The TVs' give it a really good shot, but no cigar IMO.

Case in point below:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zQlCZ...layer_embedded

zumaboy 05-11-2011 09:20 AM

I once owned a 1942 J-45 and a 1992 J-45, 50 year difference in age. Although the '42 had all the vintage mojo required to put a smile on your face, it really couldn't keep up with the '92 tone-wise. It was very similar to what others have described here, lots of dry thuddy bass without enough sustain. The '92, OTOH, had it all - the woody, thuddy bass with great sustain and overtones. I've played a lot of J-45s, and it just depends...

Guth 05-11-2011 10:07 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Moonlander (Post 2612512)
man.. your sound is just amazing! is the TV so much different then regular?
cuz the TV is a bit too expensive for me, i'm thinking of going for a used j-45 or j-50 modern classic.
btw, what strings are you using there?

I have a 5-star Gibson dealer in my town and they stock a lot of Gibsons. Based on my experiences over the years, you just have to play all of the guitars to determine which one sounds the best. On some visits, it's been a TV model that caught my ear, other times a standard model put the rest to shame. In other words, there are no guarantees just because of the model designation.

I'm using D'Addario EJ17s (PB mediums).

Quote:

Originally Posted by Moonlander (Post 2612761)
is it true that the TV has a different less glossy finish then the regular j-45?

The newer TVs have the "relic'd" finish. The older ones like mine had a glossy finish.

Quote:

Originally Posted by TaylorPrague (Post 2612854)
Gibson is making some great guitars right now in Bozeman, but to my ears you just cant replicate that honky tonk, woody tone of a 50 year old Gibson with a new specimen. The TVs' give it a really good shot, but no cigar IMO.

Case in point below:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zQlCZ...layer_embedded

In general that is true, but I've found quite a few older Gibsons that did nothing for me (and I love Gibsons) - they sound rubber-like instead of woody (just like some of the newer ones). As is typical with Gibson, nothing is guaranteed, except perhaps that they consistently do a great sunburst. It all comes down to the individual guitar and our individual preferences. The example you shared is lacking that real dry, woody articulation in the low end for my preferences, but I'm sure others dig it.

As zumaboy says "I've played a lot of J-45s, and it just depends..." — took the words right out of my mouth.

GibbyPrague 05-11-2011 10:12 AM

I agree with you, they do vary but when you get a good one that old school vintage Gibson tone is hard to beat. I have to say your J-45-TV does sound soutstanding though. Always loved the two tunes you posted here in the past, magical tone.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Guth (Post 2612926)

In general that is true, but I've found quite a few older Gibsons that did nothing for me (and I love Gibsons) - they sound rubber-like instead of woody (just like some of the newer ones). As is typical with Gibson, nothing is guaranteed, except perhaps that they consistently do a great sunburst. It all comes down to the individual guitar and our individual preferences. The example you shared is lacking that real dry, woody articulation in the low end for my preferences, but I'm sure others dig it.

As zumaboy says "I've played a lot of J-45s, and it just depends..." — took the words right out of my mouth.


Guth 05-11-2011 10:19 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TaylorPrague (Post 2612933)
I agree with you, they do vary but when you get a good one that old school vintage Gibson tone is hard to beat. I have to say your J-45-TV does sound soutstanding though. Always loved the two tunes you posted here in the past, magical tone.

Thanks. I think the key phrase here is "when you get a good one". Granted that means something different to each of us, but I think this is the case with guitars in general. No doubt that the ultimate Gibson for me would be of a much much older vintage, but those are both too much money and too hard to come by for me to consider. I ended up playing as many newish ones as I could get my hands on, over an extended period of time, until I found one that I couldn't put down. Worked out okay for me.

Moonlander 05-11-2011 10:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Guth (Post 2612926)
In general that is true, but I've found quite a few older Gibsons that did nothing for me (and I love Gibsons) - they sound rubber-like instead of woody (just like some of the newer ones). As is typical with Gibson, nothing is guaranteed, except perhaps that they consistently do a great sunburst. It all comes down to the individual guitar and our individual preferences. The example you shared is lacking that real dry, woody articulation in the low end for my preferences, but I'm sure others dig it.

As zumaboy says "I've played a lot of J-45s, and it just depends..." — took the words right out of my mouth.

its almost like you say what i'm thinking, i absolutely understand the term rubber like instead of woody, in fact, i also call it rubber like..
its such a shame that i'm forced to get mine "blind" from the web, because i don't have access to more then just one j-45 standard here.
i wish i had your privileges to try the TV and even a variety of TV's and standards that i could choose from.. i surly am concerned about getting this guitar from the net..

rlouie 05-11-2011 10:27 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Guth (Post 2612253)
I've played a number of older J-45s that had the tonal quality that you are seeking, and I've played a number of older ones that did not (they exhibited the thuddy character without much sustain mentioned above). The same can be said for newer J-45s that I played.

I skipped over a number of newer examples because I just don't care for the thud-like bass with no edge on the note and no sustain, just personal preference. I ended up with a 2008 J-45 TV and love the low end on this guitar. Here's a sound clip of the guitar:

Walking Nick

this guitar sounds amazing as does your playing and I am not a Gibson man.......the bass response in this guitar is epic unlike most Gibsons which for me usually sound thuddy and muddy ...........

Quote:

Originally Posted by TaylorPrague (Post 2612854)
Gibson is making some great guitars right now in Bozeman, but to my ears you just cant replicate that honky tonk, woody tone of a 50 year old Gibson with a new specimen. The TVs' give it a really good shot, but no cigar IMO.

Case in point below:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zQlCZ...layer_embedded

like this Gibson............the bass response is thuddy and muddy..........


All times are GMT -6. The time now is 01:46 AM.

Powered by vBulletin® Version 3.8.11
Copyright ©2000 - 2024, vBulletin Solutions Inc.
Copyright ©2000 - 2022, The Acoustic Guitar Forum

vB Ad Management by =RedTyger=