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Old 05-10-2011, 05:11 PM
Moonlander Moonlander is offline
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Default 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?
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Old 05-10-2011, 05:31 PM
leeasam leeasam is offline
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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.
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Old 05-10-2011, 05:54 PM
Guth Guth is offline
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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
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Old 05-10-2011, 06:09 PM
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SalFromChatham SalFromChatham is offline
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I love how my SC sounds. By the way Guth, that MP3 is beautiful man.
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Old 05-10-2011, 11:35 PM
Moonlander Moonlander is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Guth View Post
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?

Last edited by Moonlander; 05-10-2011 at 11:41 PM.
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Old 05-11-2011, 05:55 AM
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Toby Walker Toby Walker is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Guth View Post
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.
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Old 05-11-2011, 08:04 AM
Moonlander Moonlander is offline
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is it true that the TV has a different less glossy finish then the regular j-45?
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Old 05-11-2011, 08:54 AM
sfden1 sfden1 is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Moonlander View Post
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.
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Old 05-11-2011, 09:11 AM
GibbyPrague GibbyPrague is offline
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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
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Old 05-11-2011, 09:20 AM
zumaboy zumaboy is offline
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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...
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Old 05-11-2011, 10:07 AM
Guth Guth is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Moonlander View Post
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 View Post
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 View Post
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.
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Old 05-11-2011, 10:12 AM
GibbyPrague GibbyPrague is offline
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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 View Post

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.
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Old 05-11-2011, 10:19 AM
Guth Guth is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by TaylorPrague View Post
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.
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Old 05-11-2011, 10:21 AM
Moonlander Moonlander is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Guth View Post
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..
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Old 05-11-2011, 10:27 AM
rlouie rlouie is offline
 
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Guth View Post
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 View Post
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..........
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