Gibson Quality Issues?

[HuntinDoug]

So...I've been doing more repair & setup work recently for some reason. A friend dropped off his Les Paul Traditional Pro he just purchased for $1899.00 about 2 months ago from MF. He complained of intonation problems, and the annoying "sharpening" of notes in chording a first position G, and a few other minor issues. He told me the MF rep claimed all of the Gibson's they sell are Plekked.

Now I've played a few LP's, but I've never owned one. I was semi horrified to find that not only was the intonation not even set, but the frets were barely touched, the edges of the binding were sharp and unfinished looking, and the nut was cracked. And, much to my amazement, the inlays were plastic. Not to mention a rosewood board that has so many grain holes it looks like it should have been grain filled.

I put it on the bench when he was here, and I was trying to bite my tongue and not to tell him I've seen better quality on Korean imports. We set the intonation which only helped part of the problem. He decided to leave it for a full setup including fret level with a fret height reduction from .064" to about .048" to help keep the lower string notes from sharpening.

After taping it up and doing the fret level/reduction, I removed the low tac painters tape, and it dimpled the finish. Fortunately, it is a "satin" finish. Which looks more like an un buffed nitro finish with free orange peel.

I feel I have to mention, there is nothing wrong with the electronics or the signature Gibson tone. But, I was really shocked at the lack of quality. Has anyone else experienced quality issues with Gibsons?

[Prostheta]

Wow. I would have thrown this one straight back at MF or Gibson before doing anything invasive that would void any warranty. Sounds like unacceptable quality and work. To answer your last question, "yes". Although that isn't me speaking from personal experience (though still a yes) it is a generalistion.

[westhemann]

Not all Gibson's are plek'ed.And if that one has a satin finish then it is most likely the super low end of the American line.Funny thing is that everyone wants the cheapest Gibson they can get,and then they are unhappy the quality is not like the high end.

That being said,cracked nut and bad intonation sounds like it may have been dropped or a MF "tech" tried to do a setup on it and failed...or both.

Yes,the low end Gibsons are not too great.Still nicer than Epiphone,but not by much.If you want a great Gibson,you must play it first...the quality is hit or miss,but a great one is a thing of beauty.It is our own fault as musicians for buying up mass quantities of low priced crap and forcing more expensive brands to lower their quality to compete.

If I wanted super high quality on a Gibson style guitar at a good price,I would buy an Edwards off Ebay.

[Prostheta]

Agreed on the Edwards, Wes. Better than the ESPs I would say. I've seen some shocking errors in QC from top end ESP and as you say, Gibson are not immune to problems up the line also. I'd love an old Matsumoku factory Aria Pro II PE. A nice alternative to an LP.

[Linny]

This is what Gibson are like in General. Often dry horrible fingerboards, bad fret polishing and often sharp binding edge or a noticeable step between the binding and the neck wood.

[Prostheta]

Mm. You know, I wish that they would be better. They have a fantastic heritage and the pride seems to have disappeared from everything but their advertising and public image.

[westhemann]

I agree.I think they should do away with the cheapo crap and focus on producing great instruments.if you can't afford $1300 for an explorer or an LP studio then you just can't afford a Gibson.

[Prostheta]

True. Prestige is part and parcel of that kind of "legend". Watering it down to make it available to the average human is why Jason Statham exists to fulfil the Bruce Willis market. It is why modern Metallica still exist also.

[westhemann]

All valid points,but I think Statham was good in Crank...

[Prostheta]

Bruce Willis would have been better. I am sure all of this helps Doug of course.

[demonx]

I've never liked gibson's necks so I don't bother to pick them up, but at a recent trip to the guitar store I saw a white LP which was around four or five grand, (guitars are way more expensive in Australia) and the paint on it was terrible. It made me feel better about my paint jobs. I didn't even touch the guitar so I can't comment on the other issues.

[Linny]

Its not just the cheap one that have those faults, its the more expensive models also. The "custom shop" logo didn't in anyway make it a better made guitar.

[westhemann]

Well look,if you just want to bash Gibson,i can't agree with you.I have owned more guitars than most,and more than a few Gibsons...almost every Gibson owner i have met has asked me what i thought of his guitar,and to be quite honest they were all very nice and played very well.The only exceptions were a $400 MF special Melody Maker and one of those BFG travesties they put out to appeal to guitarists who can't afford the full price.Only once have I seen a real full fledged Gibson with a bad fret job,and even it still played well.

Cracked nuts can happen during packing or shipping...intonation can be jacked with by a dipshit in a music store changing strings and putting the bridge back on backwards.Finishing mistakes do happen more than they should with Gibsons..but you will never convince me that a custom shop Gibson would leave the factory with issues.

Talk all you want about the weak headstocks,nitro finishes,or neck joints...those are just the way Gibson has always built the guitars...but some of the best guitars in the world and the most valuable guitars in the world say Gibson right on the headstock.

I bought an Ibanez once with a cracked body at the strap button...I bought a USA Jackson with a misplaced bridge stud....I bought a Dean Mustaine V with a crack in the finish at the neck/body join and microphonic pickups.I bought a Schecter 7 string with the 3 way switch wired backwards and the control cavity was a rat's nest of wiring so bad I could barely read the "inspected by" tag.

And I bought them all at GC and MF...the Wal Mart of music stores.

"I want X number of Gibsons at X price and I want them in a week" does not promote QC...the best advice is to play everything before you buy and if you do mail order then either you better be a pretty good tech or get used to sending them back.

[HuntinDoug]

My customer picked up his guitar tonight...He was more than happy with the overall playability after the setup. I had given him one of the Oktober (parable designed) Korean imports as a loaner. He admitted it played better than the LP, and with the right pups, it would sound just as good.

I agree that the LP customs are the way to go if you want a LP. But, I'm still astonished that any guitar from the Gibson factory would leave in that condition. The QC tag had all the departments checked off, so either someone at the plant is blowing off their duties, or the standards have been lowered.

[Tim37]

i dont own a gibson but i will say that every one of them i have ever picked up seemed to feel diffent. its like every one of them is waiting for the right hands to be laid on them same with fenders. i would never order a gibson or a fender, i would have to hold it in my undeserving hands first. its sounds sdtrange but the consistancy just doesnt seem to be there im not sure if thats a bad thing or not.

[WezV]

i would never order a gibson or a fender, i would have to hold it in my undeserving hands first. its sounds sdtrange but the consistancy just doesnt seem to be there im not sure if thats a bad thing or not.

fender are getting pretty damn good - i would be happy buying one unseen. they pretty much do exactly what they say on the tin - even the squiers are really consistently good for the price, at least on anything above the cheapo affinity level (the new squier offsets are very tempting)

but gibson's do vary a lot - there are very nice ones out there but a lot have issues that need sorting. I would never buy a gibson without trying it first and doing some shopping around

PRS put them all to shame

[Linny]

My opinions are not Gibson bashing. You might not grasp how much filtering distributors and retailers do to keep the "Brand" looking better than it maybe is. I have worked in a guitar shop and at a distributor and i can tell you. So often you would order something from Gibson and it might take months to arrive only to find its a total dog and really unsellable. Fender on the other had were very different, much better uniformity and almost guaranteed merchantable without checking. They phrase "you got a good one" applies to Gibson more than many other brands. I would not buy one unseen.

[pauliemc]

So...I've been doing more repair & setup work recently for some reason. A friend dropped off his Les Paul Traditional Pro he just purchased for $1899.00 about 2 months ago from MF. He complained of intonation problems, and the annoying "sharpening" of notes in chording a first position G, and a few other minor issues. He told me the MF rep claimed all of the Gibson's they sell are Plekked.

Now I've played a few LP's, but I've never owned one. I was semi horrified to find that not only was the intonation not even set, but the frets were barely touched, the edges of the binding were sharp and unfinished looking, and the nut was cracked. And, much to my amazement, the inlays were plastic. Not to mention a rosewood board that has so many grain holes it looks like it should have been grain filled.

I put it on the bench when he was here, and I was trying to bite my tongue and not to tell him I've seen better quality on Korean imports. We set the intonation which only helped part of the problem. He decided to leave it for a full setup including fret level with a fret height reduction from .064" to about .048" to help keep the lower string notes from sharpening.

After taping it up and doing the fret level/reduction, I removed the low tac painters tape, and it dimpled the finish. Fortunately, it is a "satin" finish. Which looks more like an un buffed nitro finish with free orange peel.

I feel I have to mention, there is nothing wrong with the electronics or the signature Gibson tone. But, I was really shocked at the lack of quality. Has anyone else experienced quality issues with Gibsons?

My cousin bought a Les Paul a while ago that was awfull. But he's always wanted a Les Paul ever since he got to play mine & so just bought one thinking it would compare favourably. It did not.

His needed a partial fret job, a new nut, a replacement bridge & in my opinion a new fretboard. Some of the chunks taken out of it were disgracefull. I would not have allowed one of my own guitars out of the shop like that if you put a gun to my head.

The problem was that it was the only one he liked to look of in the shop. There were others there that were excellent, Including a blue burst thing with p90's that was an animal. He bought the wrong one against my advice. He was lucky he had a family member that could sort all his problems for free.

But I have to say, Gibson get a hammering for their guitars from a lot of people. I see (hear) a lot of crap about them & thats exactly what most of it is, Crap. The majority of their guitars are good quality, Once you set them up to your own personal playing style they are a thing of beauty. I have noticed over the years that most of the guys bashing them are Fender players who have never even touched a Gibson, & vice versa. Kinda like the whole "my car's faster than your car" thing

Personaly. I love Les Pauls, Best guitars Iv ever played from a factory. Its an awful shame when one comes along & ruins that view, but it does occasionaly happen. At least this one got to a decent guitar guy who could salvage it & make it live up to its reputation.

[Tim37]

i would never order a gibson or a fender, i would have to hold it in my undeserving hands first. its sounds sdtrange but the consistancy just doesnt seem to be there im not sure if thats a bad thing or not.

fender are getting pretty damn good - i would be happy buying one unseen. they pretty much do exactly what they say on the tin - even the squiers are really consistently good for the price, at least on anything above the cheapo affinity level (the new squier offsets are very tempting)

but gibson's do vary a lot - there are very nice ones out there but a lot have issues that need sorting. I would never buy a gibson without trying it first and doing some shopping around

PRS put them all to shame

i wasnt bashing there quality like i said i dont have that much experience with them i have just noticed that each one feels diffent where some of the imports you if you have played one you have played them all.

[YetzerHarah]

I find that Gibson has been pretty much hit & miss since the '70s (not to say that there haven't been periods of more hits, or misses). The newest Gibbo that I've had the chance to play extensively was a 2010 SG, it wasn't bad, but had a few issues. Obviously, full set up, had to clean the edge on one of the frets (but the overall level, crown, & polish was fine), the nut had sharp edges that needed to be rounded, the knobs where cheap flimsy plastic (I guess they don't make them like they used to), & one pot was set too low so the knob rubbed against the top.

[Prostheta]

Gibson are very troubled right now. Being able to sustain business whilst paying to defend themselves in the woodgate will not raise quality.

[rhoads56]

I was the austhorised warranty repairer for Gibson for a period of six weeks. In that time I did 47 guitars, and billed them $2800. I figured I'd see a couple guitars a week, max. They sent so many guitars to me, I asked them to stop. About half the issues were simple electronic problems in Epiphones (jacks and the bridge tone controls earthing on the semi shielded cavity) worth $10-20 to fix up. The other half were USA built, and major issues... nuts cut so low that the strings fretted at the first constantly (two were $10,000+ customshop specials), horrendous 'plek'd' fretwork, a couple bridges located in the wrong spot, fretboards lifting, binding paint cracks, etc etc. There were also about 8-10 guitars which were rejected under warranty (one was a strap button thread stripped out, causing the guitar to fall and snap the neck).

As a comparison, I also (at the time) was doing all warrantys for ESP/LTD, Taylor, Martin, Maton, PRS, Warwick, Ernie Ball, Dean, Peavey, Ibanez, Roman, Schecter, Yamaha, and a bunch of others (pretty much everything except Fender). All those brands combined, amounted to 2-3 jobs a week. To compare Gibson to PRS... Ive been doing PRS since signing up in 2005. In the 7 years since then, Ive had ONE phone call for a warranty claim, and the guy never actually showed up.

EVERY USA Gibson that comes into the shop now for a setup, I recommend a fret level straight up. If it wasn't for Gibson, my income would be a fair bit lower than it is. I hope they don't change a thing! But, if they did, I might get more work done...

[Prostheta]

one was a strap button thread stripped out, causing the guitar to fall and snap the neck.

I presume that fixing the strap button was covered by the warranty.

[zyonsdream]

I'll take any Agile over any 2,000 gibson any day. The fit and finish beats Gibson and they sound evry bit as good. Many Agiles even come with Tone Pros and Graphtech bridges http://www.rondomusic.com/product5246.html

[rhoads56]

one was a strap button thread stripped out, causing the guitar to fall and snap the neck.

I presume that fixing the strap button was covered by the warranty.

No, they claimed it would never strip without misuse, and therefore denied. The owner plays jazz music, so Im sure he wouldnt be jumping around on stage...