Gibson Hummingbirds not as Popular as other Mahogany Guitars

[rokdog49]

Originally Posted by SalFromChatham

The arguments I hear sometimes are borderline absurd. Martin sells more D18s alone than Gibson sells acoustics in general. Which one is more popular? What's more popular on the road... Honda Accord or Volvo T60?

And with regard to cost, Martin is a much higher volume machined and efficient factory. Bozemon is completely hand-built. Does it surprise you that a new D18 is $2,000 and a new Bird is $2,500?

I forgot to read the part about guitar ownership that says a guitar should cost the sum of its parts +10% profit...

Play them both. They play and sound so differently. I owned two D18s, and I hope to own a Bird one day... They are both awesome guitars. Play them and buy the one you want to. Musical instruments are very personal.

But please enough with the how dare Gibson charge X for their guitars.

While we are at it, how dare Collings charge more than Martin? How Dare Santa Cruz charge more than Gibson? How dare Taylor charge more than Gibson?

Thanks for saying that. Sheesh, what is it with this pricing vs. worth thing?
Worth to whom?

[Audie]

Who put the bridge on backwards on that Gibson?

[Mr. Paul]

I think part of it is availability. While D18s are everywhere, I'd probably logged 4 dozen visits to various GCs before I ever saw a Hummingbird.

Originally Posted by flaggerphil

I just don't like the way they look.

Well they certainly don't look like Taylors

[Wade Hampton]

My perspective on this is that the Gibson Hummingbird is like the Martin D-35 in that both have devoted fans who love them for their warmth of tone and their player-encompassing “SurroundSound” presentation that puts the player in the center of a fat nimbus of sound. When you play good examples of either, it can be very satisfying for the person playing.

But that same enveloping presentation makes both the Hummingbird and the D-35 less practical for use in an ensemble setting, where a more projective presentation cuts through better. This is why you only rarely see D-35’s being used in bluegrass bands.

There are exceptions, naturally, but not as many as you might guess.

To those who reply “All you need to be heard anymore is an electric pickup,” that’s true, of course, but with all the rich harmonics that D-35’s and Hummingbirds can generate, those make it more difficult for the ear to pick out what the guitar is doing when a bunch of other instruments are being played at the same time.

Short version: a good-sounding Hummingbird can be wonderfully warm-sounding, but it’s not especially projective or as practical for use in an ensemble than many of the other Gibson acoustic guitar designs.

Hope that makes sense.


Wade Hampton Miller

[Dbone]

Very tacky guitar overall....just one man's opinion, but you know what they say about those...

[Photojeep]

Originally Posted by Wade Hampton

... a fat nimbus of sound...

Hey Wade,
Can I use the quote?

Best,
PJ

[BluesBelly]

Even though the OP initiated this thread EXACTLY Five years ago the subject matter Is always one of possible contention.

Guitars will come and go but my sweet sounding Montana Gibson J-30 Banner Tobacco Burst Will always be with me. The J-30 is a Hummingbird with NO birds.

Blues.

[Le Chef]

Funny how tastes change. I used to think the Hummingbird was the guitar to end all guitars. Now I don't think the sound is anything special, and am agree to bling. I do like the necks.

There is a home health care company with an ad on TV featuring an elderly woman strumming what is either a Hummingbird knockoff or a Hummingbird with the Gibson logo covered up. You can see the little Gibson crown logo but not the name "Gibson." I don't imagine Gibson would have any objection to featuring their guitars in a TV ad, but now I am thinking of another TV ad with no name guitars, the father - son in the junk/pawnshop. Maybe there's a reason they can't do that.These companies can afford a real Hummingbird if they want a pretty guitar. But my guess is it's a production company that keeps various cheap instruments in stock as visual props.

[Le Chef]

Funny how tastes change. I used to think -- [deleted ... this is a duplicate post]

[Wade Hampton]

After I described the enveloping presentation of the Hummingbird as creating a “fat nimbus of sound,” PJ asked:

Originally Posted by Photojeep

Hey Wade,
Can I use the quote?

Of course. I’m flattered that you’d want to.


whm

[Dogma]

I looked at/played one recently at GC. I couldn't get past its painfully bright orange outer burst color. My friend and I joked that it was a "safety guitar" for construction site use. The older ones (and maybe other models?) do not have the same tone. Even the one in the original post looks way better than the one I saw. Anyway, that would put me off esp at the $$$.

[gibpicker]

Originally Posted by StevenFord0

I would say you don't see that many due to the price tag.
I remember when used ones were all over the place for $400.
Yes, I've been around for a while!

I bought a new one in 1974 at the Buena Park mall, ca. for $400.00 out the door. I couldn't believe it was so expensive.

[rwmct]

If I could sing even a little bit, I would love to have one. I can't.

As to the bling, it is funny. In general, I don't care for bling on guitars. But if I am used to a model having bling, it stops bothering me. The Hummingbird, the Guild D-55, if these were new models I would not care for their looks. But after seeing them over such a long time, it seems they look just as they should.

[jjracer]

Love my Hummingbird. Best thing that happened is I was playing it and the ornate pickguard just fell off. No tan lines, no glue residue.

Now it looks great AND plays great.

[RILEY31]

I personally love the bling of the Hummingbird.I have a friend who has a 2017 Hummingbird that sound great, We play a lot of gigs together as a duo every gig we play at least once usually several times someone tells him what a beautiful guitar he has, not once has anyone ever complimented my J-45 or another friend of ours Martin D-18 when sits in.
Another thing that I find funny is that the D-18 which is a 2013 is not as loud as either the Hummingbird or my J-45.