NGD - Gibson ES-339 Studio

[Livingston]

Purchased a used 2016 Gibson ES-339 Studio. I've been wanting one since they came out in 2007 but never pulled the trigger. I believe they stopped making these recently and I've been keeping an eye peeled for a deal on a used one.

It's in beautiful condition; appears to be unplayed. It has the soft C neck shape (30/60), maple neck, and Gibson '57 Classic PAF's.

Can't wait to plug it in and get to know this guitar a little better.

[CASD57]

Originally Posted by Livingston

Purchased a used 2016 Gibson ES-339 Studio. I've been wanting one since they came out in 2007 but never pulled the trigger. I believe they stopped making these recently and I've been keeping an eye peeled for a deal on a used one.



It's in beautiful condition; appears to be unplayed. It has the soft C neck shape (30/60), maple neck, and Gibson '57 Classic PAF's.



Can't wait to plug it in and get to know this guitar a little better.

I've got the P-90 model, great guitar but needs a setup

[Bob Womack]

Congrats!!! I think you are going to like the '57 Classics.


Bob

[ChrisN]

A lot of those studios, including yours, look better than many of the more upscale finishes, with the same electronics and playability. Assuming the form factor meets your expectations (mine meets mine), I expect you'll like yours for a long time.

[FrankHudson]

Looks nice, and those 339-sized bodies are a little easier to manage than a 335, much less a full-sized hollow-body.

I agree with Bob you'll probably like the 57 Classic pickups.

Let us know how it sounds!

[Dru Edwards]

Fantastic! Congrats on the 339. Let us know how it plays, feels, and sounds.

[Steve DeRosa]

Use it well, often, and LOUD...

[Livingston]

Thanks everyone for the kind words.

I purchased off of Reverb from a seller in San Diego, last week. Coincidentally, I was in San Diego yesterday to bring my daughter home from college (she's done!). Was able to pickup the guitar from the seller and drive the guitar (and my daughter) home today.

Can't wait to change strings, adjust the action and intonation and plug it in.

I've already played it through a Deluxe Reverb at the shop that sold it to me. Very warm tone from both neck and bridge pickups. Love the growl when you lay into with a pick. And, so comfortable to hold.

My first Gibson! Not sure why I've waited so long to get one!

[The Growler]

Originally Posted by FrankHudson

Looks nice, and those 339-sized bodies are a little easier to manage than a 335, much less a full-sized hollow-body.

I agree with Bob you'll probably like the 57 Classic pickups.

Let us know how it sounds!

I agree with Frank on the size and both guys on the '57s. I have those in my 359 and love it.

Congratulations on a nice guitar.

[raysachs]

Congratulations! Enjoy.

I just last week picked up an Epiphine version of the 339 with P90s. I was looking for a P90 axe more than a 339 or even necessarily a semi-hollow. I played a couple of Les Pauls and a Firebird, all Gibson’s in the $1000-1500 range, but I liked the $500 Epi 339 more than any of them. One of the LPs sounded as good but the Epi played better and was more comfortable for me to play in my typical seated position. I’d love to have checked out a Gibson model of the 339, but I don’t know if they did it do make one with P90s...

-Ray

[PTony]

Congrats! Beautiful finish. I hope it brings you many hours of inspiration! Play in good health.

[pieterh]

Congratulations, that’s a beauty! The ES studios are great value guitars and I agree with the poster who says the finishes are sometimes better than more expensive models.

I love my 335 studio which is also my first Gibson. I’m sure you will enjoy yours for years to come!

[Psyclone]

I've been playing a Gibson 339 Traditional Pro as my main for several years now. It's loaded with the stock 57s. I can always get a great sound from that guitar. I've found a real sweetness to the pickups with the tone rolled back and the treble goosed up a bit higher on the amp.
Congrats on the new gear. I really treasure my 339. I hope that you enjoy yours as much as I do mine.

[Livingston]

I purchased this guitar a little over a month ago now, and have had some time to play and get-to-know it a little better. Here are some subsequent if not random thoughts about the Gibson ES-339 Studio guitar.

My guitar was built in late 2016. I'll call this Gibson's "budget" version; made in the USA but at an affordable price with some nice, functional features. As best I can tell, this guitar was NOS but could have been (very slightly) used and therefore may negate some of my less positive criticisms.

Here (by the way) is a link to Gibson's archived spec page: 2016 Gibson ES-339 Studio

What I like:

1. Neck is slimmer, soft C shape. Nice if you like a slim neck; not nice if you like the classic Gibson baseball bat neck (I think that is what "they" call it). I like the slim neck.

2. 57 Classic (neck) and Super 57 Humbucker (bridge) Pickups! Tone-wise, they do not disappoint (as many of you mentioned). Neck and bridge are nicely balanced. Neck p/u has a warm clarity giving the guitar a beautiful, full, but articulate single note (dare I say jazz) tone. Sounds great when you add a touch of overdrive from a pedal. Bridge pickup is bright but controlled (not chimey or shrill); sounds great for all kinds of rhythm styles, from straight-ahead rock chords to funky ninths and most things in between. Very versatile range of tones.

3. Torrified Maple Fretboard - So I guess I should have read the specs carefully before buying this (or any) guitar. From appearances in photos as well as my own assumption, I thought this guitar had a rosewood fretboard. When I first played it, the tone seemed brighter and with more sustain then other 335-style guitars that I've played. While my ears aren't the best at hearing the nuances of various fretboard materials, I became curious why this guitar sounded a little different. Upon closer inspection, I noticed the fretboard appeared to be maple but with a dark finish. Spec's call out Torrified Maple which I guess is the same as roasted, baked or caramelized maple. Sounds more like cooking technique than a type of fretboard. Anyway, love the effect this fretboard has on the tone and sustain.

4. Finish - I love the nitrocellulose lacquer finish. While not as durable as a lesser expensive polyurethane finish, I like the look and feel of lacquer. I also like the color scheme which is a dark orange to very dark cherry to black finish. Gibson calls this color scheme, Ginger Burst.

What I Don't Like (or what could have been better):

1. Someone said "needs a setup". I guess all guitars do, but for sure my ES-339 badly needed a setup. In fact, after replacing the strings with the brand and gauge I prefer and then adjusting the neck relief, string height and intonation, it is apparent that this guitar will need a (minor) fret level...which I will do when time permits.

2. Finish - While l love the Ginger Burst color scheme and nitrocellulose lacquer finish, the overall quality of the finish seems a little lacking; I'll call it rough. Not a deal breaker but upon close inspection you'll see small spots where the base color faintly shows through what should be solid black. Very subtle, but some finish flaws are apparent. Also, it looks like they applied the finish over some very minor flaws in the woodwork. Nothing major...but definitely a C+ or B- grade compared to other manufacturers.

3. Grover Rotomatic Tuners - Usually Grover Rotomatics are I would consider a very tried and true brand and model, but a couple of my tuners had severe tight spots. Even after adjusting the tuner screws and hex nuts, there was some serious binding. I ordered a new set of Grover Rotomatics (14:1) with Keystone tuners and replaced the originals. Now, no issues...just initially disappointed with the original Grover tuners.

4. Nut - There was significant binding (string ping) with the stock nut. Admittedly, I replaced old strings with a heavier gauge string. So, realizing that the nut was probably cut for lighter gauge strings, I used nut files to enlarge the string slots appropriately. Big improvement on all strings except the unwound G. I think the nut material that is used on this guitar seems too soft. I've ordered a new nut from StewMac and plan to replace as soon as the new nut arrives.

5. Pickup Rings - Pickup ring for the neck pickup is a slanted style pickup ring; the type usually used to offset (i.e. level) the pickup angle on archtop style guitars. In this case, the slanted pickup ring is not needed and it basically acutely cants the neck pickup in a non-parallel plane with the strings. I've ordered a new set of pickup rings and expect that this will correct the problem.

6. Hardshell Case - The included hardshell case is not great. Honestly, I think the Epiphone ES-339 hardshell case is much, much better although not included in the price of the Epi 339. I guess the price of the Gibson ES-339 Studio is pretty affordable and one of the ways they probably kept costs low was with a lower quality case. I guess the included case is functional...and I'm probably being nitpicky.

In Summary:

Love the guitar, love the tone, love the playability, love the fit. Love the color and the nitrocellulose finish, just wish Gibson did a little better job with the woodwork and applying the color coats. Love the pickups, but some room for improvement on the rest of the hardware/setup including the nut, fret leveling, pickup rings, and tuners. Wish the quality of the included case was at least as nice as the Epi version but then the price probably would have been higher.

Overall, this is a definite keeper and I'm very happy with this guitar.

[Bob Womack]

Congrats on a keeper!


Bob