Been shopping all over for an SG

[Jerry D]

Can anybody convince me that this Gibson SG
https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/SGF18WFNH

is really worth $640.00 more than this Epiphone SG?
https://www.sweetwater.com/store/det...H/sn1707200095

I mean, I know there's a prestige factor involved here, and I'm sure the pups are some better on the Gibson, but $640.00? And the Epi even has a nicer looking headstock, better fretboard inlays, and a bound fret board.

Tell me what YOU think.

[BT55]

To compare the two you need to look at the wood that the bodies are constructed from. The Gibson probably has a better quality wood body and neck. You can always upgrade the Epiphone’s pickups and wiring and have a close copy of the Gibson. The resale value of the Gibson will be higher than an upgraded Epiphone.

I would recommend that you look for a pre-owned Gibson SG that probably will cost the same as a new Epiphone. Almost all of my guitars are pre-owned and were purchased in mint condition at a large discount off retail.

Whether you buy a new or pre-owned the guitar it will need a good setup to get the most from it.

[Jerry D]

Originally Posted by BT55

I would recommend that you look for a pre-owned Gibson SG that probably will cost the same as a new Epiphone.

Definitely NOT true. I DEFY you to find a used Gibson SG, in decent shape, for $349.00. If you can, please post the link. I would be delighted to buy it.

[clintj]

You can occasionally find one of the Gibson Faded model SGs for under 500 used, sometimes less.

[Swamp Yankee]

Sam Ash has black Gibson SG Special 2016 Ts listed at $599 right.

[Dru Edwards]

It's not just better pickups, it's better pots, wiring, tuners, bridge, tailpiece, etc. The Gibson will also be PLEKed. You are correct that you are also paying extra for the Gibson name and the US cost of labour.

When it comes to those two guitars my opinion is dependent upon what can you afford and how much will you be playing. Nothing wrong with getting the Epiphone - it fills an important part of the market. I actually think that the Gibson is worth the extra $600 in this case.

[Bob Womack]

Does anyone know what frets Epis are currently shipped with? In my prior experience they were always mediums, which were too short for me. Gibson USA guitars have been shipping with jumbos, which I love. That is another potential difference. YMMV.

Bob

[Dru Edwards]

Originally Posted by Bob Womack

Does anyone know what frets Epis are currently shipped with? In my prior experience they were always mediums, which were too short for me. Gibson USA guitars have been shipping with jumbos, which I love. That is another potential difference. YMMV.

Bob

Hey Bob, the Epi SG that the OP is requesting has Medium Jumbo frets.

[Wozer]

what I see as a major difference is that the Epi has a one piece (at least it surely appears as such) body of what I'm thinking is Sapele...the Gibson has a 3 piece body of what I consider to be Khaya...I wonder about the glued up body aspect as Khaya is still commonly available in wide slabs (though it certainly is wise use of woods to use all of it up as opposed to trashing it)

I have found Sapele (in general, certainly not all cases) to be heavier than Khaya and find Khaya to be more likely to go wacky because of internal stresses when being milled up.

both ads refer to the materials as being "mahogany" which at this point in history is a very convoluted term as only Swietenia macrophylla can "properly" be called mahogany in my eyes. the others are only substitutes that have similar looks and that is about it.

[BT55]

Originally Posted by Jerry D

Definitely NOT true. I DEFY you to find a used Gibson SG, in decent shape, for $349.00. If you can, please post the link. I would be delighted to buy it.

Here’s a Gibson SG listed for $550 so it will sell for about $450. You wanted to see one for an Epiphone price - here it is !

https://newjersey.craigslist.org/msg...408125348.html

[Jerry D]

Originally Posted by BT55

Here’s a Gibson SG listed for $550 so it will sell for about $450. You wanted to see one for an Epiphone price - here it is !

https://newjersey.craigslist.org/msg...408125348.html

Thanks for finding that. However, I don't think you've proved your point by comparing a 10 year old Gibson with a new Epiphone where the price is still 63% (349/550) higher. I could probably find a 10 year old Epi for a couple of hundred bucks.

[Hotspur]

Not exactly what you're looking for, I know, but I think this video gets at the challenge here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CsL6X8uG9-U

They're looking at Les Pauls, not SGs, but they keep comparing specs and having the Epiphone come out ahead, and then they play it and they're like, "Oh, yeah. Gibson. Easy."

If you can play them, and don't notice ... okay, then. But you've got to accept that there's something which doesn't show up on the spec sheet that makes a huge difference.

[FrankHudson]

The wood differences in a solid body electric guitar have only a small impact on the sound.

Ditto the hardware. Is there some timbral difference. Yeah, maybe, but it's tiny. Modern import tuners work just fine.

A lot of what I read online (even here) still seems to reflect differences as they were in the early 90s, when the differences were larger between the lower end or "standard" lines of Gibson and the run of the mill Epiphone. For the purposes of this message I'm going to exclude the absolutely cheapest Epiphones (sub $300) and I have no experience with the upper end of Gibson's line (roughly, above $3000)

Neck carve and frets on current Epiphones seem to be good design-wise (medium jumbo on the ones I have seen). There may more guitar to guitar variation in the Epiphones as far as out of the box action and setup. If you plan to do your own setup or have one done, this is a moot point. Gibson offers a few neck carve options from model to model, Epiphone rarely even specifies the profile, but they tend to be similar to a 60s Gibson carve that many like.

The pickup switches used to fail more often on imports, but this seems to have been noted and I've had less problem with cheaper guitar in the 21st Century. Import guitar pots have are less likely to fail nowadays too. An SG is a very easy guitar to fix or upgrade these parts on BTW.

Pickups. This used to be a massive difference, but in the last couple of years the sonic qualities of Epiphone pickups have improved considerably. Back in the 90s everyone planned to buy the Epiphone and replace the pickups right off.

Resale? This argument is almost always stated as percentage of new price. I can tell you when I was living on a low income that arguments that a $1500 Gibson will get you $1100 if you have to sell it used while a $500 Epiphone will only get you $200 (plug in your own figures, this is just an example) didn't convince me. If this is important, the logical answer is to buy used.

I'm not sure how much has changed, but it's probably still easier to get an offer (however low-ball) on a Gibson than a modified Epiphone if you have to sell.

Another thing that has also changed is that Gibson in the last few years either from a marketing decision or from consequences of marketing misjudgment, offers more guitars new or NOS for under $1000. These often are not pretty (rough matt finishes, iffy cosmetic QC, no bling whatsoever) that actually sound and play just fine.

I bought one of those Gibson SG Specials at that sub $600 price. I love it. There's no eye candy, and who knows what the long-term resale will be. An Epi SG might have pleased me too. Last year I went nuts and bought not one but two Epi semi-hollow body guitars, just because they were irresistibly priced. The two Epis cost about what the SG cost. And they sound good too.

In the final summary: there's no bad choice. What you get for your dollar these days in guitars is staggeringly good compared to what you got even 20 years ago. Yes, that sub $400 Epi SG is a valid instrument. Yes the sub $1000 Gibson doesn't have the same visual appeal. Yes, they will sound a bit different, but less unlike than you might think. Both will work and have a decent service life. There's no objective value that can be put on the likely smallish differences between two guitars such as these, so the $600 question can't be answered factually.

Assuming an earnest question from the OP and not just a desire for discussion, I'd say play the Epi if possible, see if you like the pickups, and if the money is dear or solid body electrics aren't your main interest, go with the Epi as you already seem to like the cosmetics. If you've always dreamed of an SG, if solid body electrics are big part of your playing time, then you should probably shop some more and if at all possible, play some different examples to hone in on what is important to you in the differences.

[Dru Edwards]

Originally Posted by Hotspur

Not exactly what you're looking for, I know, but I think this video gets at the challenge here:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CsL6X8uG9-U

They're looking at Les Pauls, not SGs, but they keep comparing specs and having the Epiphone come out ahead, and then they play it and they're like, "Oh, yeah. Gibson. Easy."

If you can play them, and don't notice ... okay, then. But you've got to accept that there's something which doesn't show up on the spec sheet that makes a huge difference.

Just to point out that the Epiphone they used for the comparison is the "Most Expensive Epiphone" (their words). The OP is pointing to one of the most inexpensive Epiphones.

[Dru Edwards]

Here's an Open Box 2013 Gibson SG Tribute Future from MusiciansFriend. $394. It has the '57 Classic pickups and the Min-ETune (not sure if that's a deal breaker).

http://www.musiciansfriend.com/guita...%20SG&index=14

Here's the Gibson website specs:
http://www.gibson.com/Products/Elect...e-Tribute.aspx

Stock Gibson Pic - Not sure if the Open Box is the same color.