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Gibson Modern Archtop
I saw yesterday on the Gibson website that they have a Gibson Custom "Modern Archtop" with carved solid top spruce and laminated maple sides and back. $5k list price. Two "57" pickups.
Is this a new item, or one that has been available via custom shop for a while? Anyone here have experience with it? |
#2
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Here's the Gibson product page:
http://www.gibson.com/Products/Elect...n-Archtop.aspx Actually, the Modern Archtop has both a carved spruce top and carved mahogany body (not laminate). Of course its still intended as as electric guitar, not acoustic. Good to see Gibson trying something new. |
#3
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Quote:
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ƃuoɹʍ llɐ ʇno əɯɐɔ ʇɐɥʇ |
#4
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Is the Modern Archtop made in the USA?
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#5
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Thumbnail markers, small Florentine cutaway hollow body, "eggplant" pickguard - reminds me of a '57 Gretsch Rambler with cat's-eye soundholes (another "borrowed" Gretsch feature); FYI the Rambler died within about a year, this one's not going to do any better - and the Gretsch was cheaper to boot, relative to the market...
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"Mistaking silence for weakness and contempt for fear is the final, fatal error of a fool" - Sicilian proverb (paraphrased) |
#6
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You make me wonder if a whole lot of Gibson’s market are existing customers and people who want one of the traditional Gibson designs. I sure give them credit for doing something new or different. In the market for something different or variations on a theme they’re up against a Collings in the same price neighborhood. To compete there it will have to have the WOW, how did humans do something so perfect aspect. When you get outside of all the work they do reproducing classics you see a whole lot of serious competition. I say good luck to them. Recent news shows they’ve got business problems to overcome and guitars are probably their only salvation if they solve the debt problems. At least I don’t have much interest in the other businesses they’ve bought.
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ƃuoɹʍ llɐ ʇno əɯɐɔ ʇɐɥʇ |
#7
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As far as I know, all Gibson-branded guitars are currently made in the US.
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#8
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Here's a Gretsch Rambler:
Maybe its me, but I don't see a lot of similarity to the Gibson Modern Archtop. |
#9
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5,000.00, too much for that thing!
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#10
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Interesting guitar...jazz players are a pretty small market, but this definitely seems aimed at the young jazz player market--a lot of those guys are playing Victor Baker's instruments and similar, going smaller and thinner than the "jazzboxes" of old...
Seeing that VB can make a fully customized instrument for 1-2k less than this, it smells of another Gibson fail. |
#11
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I like the idea of the carved mahogany back, 15" lower bout, and shallow body depth. Not sure how modern (as in cutting edge) this is (as others have already pointed out) but perhaps modern for Gibson.
I do think the cutaway while not earth-shattering has a very contemporary shape. Perhaps same comment on the updated f-holes. I wonder if there was an opportunity to update the pick guard with a more modern shape and perhaps the same material used in the fretboard (Richlite?). I wish more makers "updating" or "modernizing" their guitars would use an endpin jack instead of a jack plate cover mounted in the side of the lower bout of the guitar. The former seems like such an elegant solution to the latter, which in contrast seems so archaic and impractical. I also wish someone would try 1 volume + 1 tone + a "blend" pot and 3 way switch instead of 2 volume + 2 tone pots and 3 way switch. I think these mods would certainly modernize archtops in a very positive way. I would have favored a shorter scale neck with a 1-3/4" nut width, but arguably perhaps a 25.5" scale is more modern than 24.75". Lastly, it seems like finish, tailpiece, potentiometer knobs, pick-up switches and tuners would have been a very visible way of modernizing the guitar. Would love to hear and play this guitar. I think the carved spruce top and carved mahogany back combined with shallow body could be a winning combination. Hat's off to Gibson for taking a whack at a new guitar.
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“Sometimes you have to play a long time to be able to play like yourself” — Miles Davis. |
#12
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#13
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I am an archtop builder and made a carved Mahogany/Sitka 15” model a couple of years ago. Floating Kent Armstrong pickup. Top was made from 20 year old billets from the Bellanca Aircraft wing factory which used to be in my home town.
It has a very warm acoustic sound and is very easy to play ergonomically compared to a 17” model. Big drawback? The carved Mahogany body feeds back a lot more than Maple or a laminate back. For me F hole plugs are mandatory even on a fairly quite stage. I still love the guitar. |
#14
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Who ever designed the Gibson "Modern" line should be fired immediately, along with Henry.
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1993 Santa Cruz OM / 2010 Gibson Hummingbird / 2012 Gibson B-25 ¾ RI / 2014 Taylor GS Mini 1996 Gibson Howard Roberts Fusion III / 2015 Gibson Les Paul Standard 2015 Egnater Renegade 112 / 2018 Blackstar ID:Core BEAM |
#15
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That is beautiful. I love how the sharp cutaway looks on that guitar while still maintaining the Gretsch look.
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