Gibson Robo-tuners are here to stay...or not at all.

[RustyZombie]

Originally Posted by fishstick_kitty

WOW I did not know that!! Adjustable truss rods are at least not visible. Now, other things that Gibson has tried that ARE visible are adjustable bridges in the late '50s (FAIL) and changing the J45 into a square shoulder dread in the '60s (FAIL). I'm sure there are many other examples...but I appreciate that they are not afraid to try new things.

They certainly have had a number of failures during the years, but their successes easily overshadow those. Even half the complaints about the failures were just because they were something new. Most of the people I know that hate the robot tuners have never even actually tried them. I wonder why so many of us guitarists seem to have such a fear of change.

But at least history has shown that most of these "innovations" (because lets face it, some weren't ) ultimately succeed or fail based on their own merits.

[Paultergeist]

Originally Posted by RustyZombie

...Most of the people I know that hate the robot tuners have never even actually tried them. I wonder why so many of us guitarists seem to have such a fear of change.....

I cannot speak for the other players, but I simply want to feel more in control of the instrument. I want to tune it myself, I want to make minor adjustments myself, and I want to play it with a degree of intuitive familiarity. The simplicity reflects a sense of purity for me; such is my preference.

We are probably not far from having "robo-chord" devices or "robo-strummer" devices available on the market either (these things probably already exist) but such robotic aids would undermine the very reason I make music.

[fazool]

Originally Posted by RustyZombie

Most of the complaints and arguments I've heard about the robot tuners are the same ones people had when Gibson "forced" adjustable truss rods on everyone back in the twenties. ....

I didn't know that caused complaints or backlash.

Originally Posted by fishstick_kitty

... I appreciate that they are not afraid to try new things.

I don't. In fact, I feel the opposite. I get the sense they are desperately trying new things just for the sake of trying to find something new. You know, part of Martin's 6-generations of success is relative stability and consistency....slow steady and small changes over time. They don't get drawn away by the lure of something new every year.

Gibson management acts like a squirrel with A.D.D.

[RustyZombie]

Originally Posted by fazool

I didn't know that caused complaints or backlash.

A lot of us weren't around back then to hear the moaning, not to mention they didn't have the outlet known as the internet. This helped limit the spread of their discontent.

Originally Posted by fazool

I don't. In fact, I feel the opposite. I get the sense they are desperately trying new things just for the sake of trying to find something new. You know, part of Martin's 6-generations of success is relative stability and consistency....slow steady and small changes over time. They don't get drawn away by the lure of something new every year.

Gibson management acts like a squirrel with A.D.D.

A lot of bad things have been said about Gibson's CEO. But one thing I have never heard him be accused of is not caring about money. So I doubt he just doing it for the hell of it. I think its more likely there is a financial motivation behind his decisions.

Not being privy to Gibson's management decisions, I can only make an educated guess. But my guess is that Gibson is trying to capture more of the younger market with their recent outings. And trying to get a larger market share of a younger demographic is a very smart business decision. The boomers are currently the primary driver of the market, but they aren't going to be around forever. The question simply is whether Gibson is going about that in the best way.

[aknow]

Originally Posted by Paultergeist

I cannot speak for the other players, but I simply want to feel more in control of the instrument. I want to tune it myself, I want to make minor adjustments myself, and I want to play it with a degree of intuitive familiarity. The simplicity reflects a sense of purity for me; such is my preference.

We are probably not far from having "robo-chord" devices or "robo-strummer" devices available on the market either (these things probably already exist) but such robotic aids would undermine the very reason I make music.

You can use them manually too. In fact, that's the only way they really work, headstock tuner and manual fine tuning after the 'almost' tuning w/ robo.