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#1
08-23-2019, 10:52 PM
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Acoustic tonal difference between a Gibson J-45 and the J-160E?
Anyone have experience with both? Sonic differences? They look similar, but I wonder if the J-160E tone is negatively affected acoustically with the installed pickup and volume and tone electronics.
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#2
08-23-2019, 11:39 PM
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I can't say anything about the modern versions but I had a '67 J160E and acoustically it was just about the least resonant instrument I've played. The plywood and the bracing work together to deaden the tone, which is apparently what they were going for to keep feedback down in a plugged in live environment.
I'm quite sure a similar era J45 would be a completely different animal. But like I said that may not be applicable now since the j165e is all solid woods nowadays...
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1966 Epiphone FT79N Texan 1970 Yamaha FG-180 1976 Guild D55 1986 Martin D16m 1996 Guild JF30-12 2009 Guild D40 Bluegrass Jubilee 2020 Epiphone FT79 Texan and a couple others...
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#3
08-24-2019, 02:46 AM
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Mike, the two are very different guitars. The J-160E’s that the Beatles played and recorded with were made with laminated tops, backs and sides. That was done deliberately by Gibson to minimize feedback and make the guitars function better when plugged in.
Now, since the 1990’s Gibson has sporadically featured the J-160E in its product lineup, and most of those latter day reissues have been built with solid spruce tops. Even so, none that I’ve ever had a chance to play have been very impressive from a tonal standpoint. If they hadn’t been used so prominently by the Beatles in the earlier years of their career, I honestly doubt there’d be much interest in J-160E’s today. The J-45 is an entirely different story: good examples are some of the richest, lushest-sounding acoustic guitars on the market. If you want a good-sounding acoustic guitar that you can also plug into an amp or PA system, in my opinion you’re better off getting a J-45. Many of them come with electronic pickups already installed these days, but if they don’t have one installed it’s easy enough to get one put in. Make up your own mind about this, of course, but if you ever get a chance to play a J-45 and a J-160E side by side it’s fairly unlikely that you’d favor the sound of the J-160E over the J-45. The J-45 is just that much more enticing, in my opinion. Hope that makes sense. Wade Hampton Miller
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