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#1
06-17-2009, 09:35 PM
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Gibson ES 175 design builders?
Anybody know of custom builders/other builders building a Gibson ES 175 "clone"??
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"Use what talents you possess; the woods would be very silent if no birds sang except those that sang best." Henry Van Dyke "It is in the world of slow time that truth and art are found as one" Norman Maclean, 
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#2
06-17-2009, 09:59 PM
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I've heard good things about Eastman Guitars, their 800/Uptown series are supposedly superior to Gibsons, although not exactly a ES175 clone.
Bong.
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GSRC 354ceL30 Baby Mahogany Fender American Deluxe Ash Stratocaster
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#3
06-17-2009, 10:43 PM
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Great question. You would think just as the Martin dread is probably the most common platform for many acoustic guitar builders, the ES175 should be the base design for many custom archtop builders. After all, the ES175 is the quintessential guitar in the history of jazz. Practically all of the legends have owned and played.
Interestingly, it seems builders like D'Aquisto, Benedetto and D'Angelico are more often copied than Gibson...although having said that, I guess you could say there are many builders who have used the Gibson L5 as the basis for their own designs. I remember reading a thread on another forum a while back about a builder (Tom Painter) in Maine who is building an ES175 style guitar with his own laminated plates. Here is a link to his website: http://www.painterarchtops.com/ They seem reasonably priced. Here is a link to someone demo'ing the guitar on You Tube (Jack Zucker who has posted on this forum before): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B7W_NkxYOCo Seems like an interesting builder. I purchased a laminated archtop from a builder who also pressed his own plates. His name is Steve Holst. While he doesn't necessarily make an ES175 clone, I'm sure he could. He seems to know a lot about Gibsons as well as other classic guitars. Here is a link to Steve's website: http://www.pacinfo.com/~sholst/index.htm Good luck searching for a builder and please post your results. I for one would be interested to read about your findings. Darryl
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“Sometimes you have to play a long time to be able to play like yourself” — Miles Davis.
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#4
06-17-2009, 10:51 PM
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By the way, Ibanez actually made some decent and affordable ES175's in the 70's. Problem is, they are considered vintage now and sell for almost as much as the real thing. I owned one back in the mid 80's and while it was a decent guitar for the money, it wasn't an ES175 in my opinion.
Darryl
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“Sometimes you have to play a long time to be able to play like yourself” — Miles Davis.
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#5
06-18-2009, 12:54 AM
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Take a look at Heritage, too. They make some Gibson-esque models. The founders are former Gibson employees and everything I've heard says their quality is better than Gibson.
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Chris Official site That which is good or great makes itself known, no matter how loud the clamor of denial. -- Theodore F. MacManus I've got a fever and the only prescription is more cowbell -- Christopher Walken
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#6
06-18-2009, 03:49 AM
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Thanks for the suggestions and links.
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"Use what talents you possess; the woods would be very silent if no birds sang except those that sang best." Henry Van Dyke "It is in the world of slow time that truth and art are found as one" Norman Maclean, Last edited by Jeff M; 06-18-2009 at 05:00 AM.
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#7
03-28-2011, 04:05 PM
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The Sadowsky Jim Hall Model is pretty popular for being a 175 clone style guitar. You can read up on it here:
http://www.jazzguitar.be/forum/guitar-amps-gizmos/12099-sadowsky-jim-hall-vs-gibson-es-175-a.html
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#8
03-28-2011, 05:34 PM
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Cool guitars but you know what? I owned a late 50's model for a time and the body is entirely made of plywood. Mahogany neck. They first hit the market in 1949 and from the get go they've been made out of plywood - probably the same material an ES-335 is made from: maple/poplar/maple. Joe Pass used to play the daylights out of a ES-175.
Last edited by Gypsyblue; 03-31-2011 at 11:28 PM.
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#9
03-29-2011, 07:55 PM
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Quote:
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Best regards, Matt
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#12
03-31-2011, 10:48 AM
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Epiphone makes a low-cost ES175 model....
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#13
04-01-2011, 09:56 AM
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Heritage 575
While the solid top yields a little different response and tone it's close enough for me. I have Fralin Unbuckers in this one for a VERY versatile package. I've played jazz trio gigs through my Henriksen JazzAmp 110 and rock gigs with a full pedalboard into a Hot Rod Deluxe. Sounded stellar on both accounts with no feedback problems.  
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#14
04-01-2011, 04:42 PM
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175
Have the Epi 175. Surprisingly good quality. Tone is great too after a pickup swap to Seymour Duncans Seth Lover SH-55's.
Nice H-575, Jazzrat! Always wondered how my solid-top L4 would do through a pedalboard. Didn't think it would behave well and haven't really been using pedals, but have wanted to try.
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