NGD! Traded all of my Gibsons for 2 PRSi

[cjmwrx]

As the title states. I traded all of my Gibsons LP Standard, SG Reissue, ES335 for a new 2010 Cu24 25th, and a used 2004 Std 24 Gloss, and a Mesa DC-3 + all new tubes. May seem nuts, but there is a method to the madness.

I am just so sick of Gibson and their complete lack of quality control. Henry can keep riding the name and shipping garbage. I just tried to purchase a new 2012 LP Std, and after receiving and returning 5 due to unacceptable flaws, I have decided to dump Gibson all together. They have now joined my Apple/Sony list of companies whose products I will not purchase.

Only reason I waited so long to pull the trigger on the PRSi is the Cost. But, the price is MORE than worth it. I will never sweat another PRS purchase. EVERY one I played was flawless. Perfect.

Special thanks to Vic at Flores Music for dealing with my crap. 57/08 FTW!

Chris

 

[]-[@n$0Ma☩!©]

Well played, Sir. Well played.

And I am DIGGIN' that standard!

 

[mcbprs]

I totally understand your motivation, the only Gibson I have left is the last guitar my mother saw me play, it was a good one but the quality is so variable, as long as you know what you want from a PRS you can pretty well garentee what you will get hence it is just about the only guitar I will buy unplayed from the other side of the world with out worrying (apart from the postal services and customs charge lottery ;-) ) enjoy your 24s they look and I have no doubt play and sound great.

 

[swede71]

You had some cool Gibsons for sure.If they played good i dont understand the trade.All because a 2012 standard was crap?What i do agree with is that PRS comes with the best setup from the factory today.I would have at least kept the ES335 and settled for the cu24 anni.

 

[crgtr]

Congrats! Nice gear!!

 

[Taller]

There have been many a Gibson fan (Les Paul in particular) who have excitedly tried PRS, but are disappointed that the PRS doesn't sound like their old Les Paul. I hope your experience with PRS is a good one and you find that you love the versatility and tone of your new PRSs, but a 24 will not have the girth of a Les Paul. (I'm kind of surprised you got 2 24's. I'd have expected maybe a 24 and some other PRS flavor with 22 frets or a shorter scale length - but I look forward to any comparisons you may make between the Standard and the Custom 24.)

 

[RJLII]

Nice looking tone toys!

Many folks bemoan the hit or miss nature of Gibson USA QA. I've played a few turds in my day, but am fortunate to have some specimens that are exemplary in every way (All Gibson Custom). My first PRS ('09 Korina McSoapy) fits in the exemplary class as well. Fit, finish, playability are all top shelf. It won't be my last. I'm more of a "big tent" guitar junkie. I don't invest in brands per se, I invest in instruments.

 

[themike]

Welcome to the family, man! I love the standard - can't go with that all mahogany toneeeeeeee!

 

[cjmwrx]

If I keep doing business with companies that ship crap, I give them permission to keep shipping crap. I shouldn't have to go to a Custom shop instrument just for quality. I had the exact same problem with the last Les Paul I bought. Which made me scratch my head as to why I was buying another one. I wasn't really looking for "Gibson" tone, just a specific tone. And I am having no issues achieving that tone with the new guitars. My Mesa amps cover that tone to the tee.

The Standard is all mahogany with VB and an HFS, It sounds darker with more drive and growl. I like this one the most.

The Custom is a maple top with 57/08s. It sounds like a 57 classic equipped Gibson. Brighter with more bite. I specifically selected these for the differences in tone each one made.

Neither sounds anything like the other.

I can understand the reasoning behind wanting something other than a custom, but, the 24s have been my favorite ever since Paul came out with them. I could own a wall full of CU24s and never be unhappy.

 

[]-[@n$0Ma☩!©]

I hope your experience with PRS is a good one and you find that you love the versatility and tone of your new PRSs, but a 24 will not have the girth of a Les Paul.

There are a lot of Gibson guys that freely bash PRS guys whenever they can - for any reason they can - with no objectivity. I have never understood why so many people involved in rock-n-roll, something that used to foster individuality, demand such conformity.

I obviously prefer PRS over Gibson (after 2 R9's, an SG, and an ES-335) but I don't hate Gibson. I've never seen any quality issues myself - only heard about them through friends who are dealers. Obviously, there is little love between the 2 companies but I don't feel obligated to bash Gibson guys the way they bash us. I've never been much of a joiner so I suppose it makes sense.

Why am I saying this?

Because I'm glad my PRS guitars sound like PRS guitars and not Gibson guitars. If I want a Les Paul, I'll go buy another R9 or snag a 50's LP Junior while they're cheap.

That said, I don't necessarily agree that "a CU24 will not have the girth of a Les Paul." While there certainly are plenty of tonal examples that support that opinion, especially older and unmodified CU24's, it has the potential to lead others into believing they can't have deep, rich, notes and a CU24 at the same time -- which isn't the case at all.

The new series of pickups (57/08, 59/09, 53/10, 408), along with wiring changes since 2007, have brought PRS a long way in the "girth" department. I would suggest that a CU24 with 57/08's and the right strings can be just as deep and rich as a Les Paul without (hopefully) sounding like a Les Paul.

YMMV, IMO, etc, etc.

 

[Faded]

There are a lot of Gibson guys that freely bash PRS guys whenever they can - for any reason they can - with no objectivity. I have never understood why so many people involved in rock-n-roll, something that used to foster individuality, demand such conformity.

This is a very astute point. A lot of the bands we play with lately look like they just walked off the set of Almost Famous or from an early 70's Allman Bros tour and they all play Les Pauls and Telecasters. Every one of them, sounding all the same. At first i felt like an outsider bringing my quilt top Faded Blue Jean PRS out of the case among a sea of hipsters and plugging in to my Matchless, but ive never recieved more comments on my tone than when I started playing PRS live.

Nashville is a demanding place and youve got to look the part to 'fit in' but truthfully I enjoy not sounding or looking like every other rock band these days, instead letting the music and our live show do the talking for us and my choice in playing PRS is a big part of that.

 

[slev]

Definitely not crazy and the DC-3 is an awesome amp, had one for a while and loved it. I had a similar experience this past weekend. I wanted to buy a used PRS CE but thought I should give Gibson another chance, haven't had one for about 5 years. I went into the local GC and tried 4 different studios, none stayed in tune and the neck profiles all felt different to me. Left right after that and bought the used CE 24, very happy about it too. Congrats on what I view as a very good decision.

 

[AP515]

There are a lot of Gibson guys that freely bash PRS guys whenever they can - for any reason they can - with no objectivity. I have never understood why so many people involved in rock-n-roll, something that used to foster individuality, demand such conformity.

+1 I see no need to bash Gibson. I hope they make it through the current fretboard mess they are in. That being said, I have looked for a good LP and ended up finding a Heritage H150 that worked for me. It is harder to play than a PRS, and I sound the same (read "like crap") no matter which guitar I pick up so tone is, like we know, "in the fingers". I do think I can sound as Balls'y on my PRS SC as I can on the 10lb Heritage but I do change the EQ settings.

The Standard is all mahogany with VB and an HFS, It sounds darker with more drive and growl. I like this one the most.

+1 I was going to say while reading your first post that the Standard was the best of the trade. I love my CE22 Standard with Dragon 1's. Killer tone. Standards are the sleepers of the PRS lineup IMO.

 

[jignant]

My Gibbies are a 1963 L7c, a 1977 Explorer non LE and a 94 LP classic plus. Nothing very new. I am not in the market for any guitars but if I were, it would only be PRS. The L7 was my Dad's and the Explorer I purchased in 1978 and I love the LP. None of these are going anywhere.

Current PRS lineup, 1995 CE22, 2004 SE Soapy II, 2007 SCT and 2007 McCarty. I am not wanting or needing anything else but if I were, it would probably be a Stripper or a P22. I agree with the above post. CE22 with D1s is my main go-to and has been since '95.

I feel blessed with a great guitar collection. Now a great tube combo amp, that's another story...

 

[Audiowonderland]

So, you traded perfectly good Gibsons that presumably had no QC issues because Gibson is shipping guitars to other people that you will never have to own and will in no way cost Gibson a dime or punish them in any way.

Not following that logic

 

[cjmwrx]

Definitely not crazy and the DC-3 is an awesome amp, had one for a while and loved it. I had a similar experience this past weekend. I wanted to buy a used PRS CE but thought I should give Gibson another chance, haven't had one for about 5 years. I went into the local GC and tried 4 different studios, none stayed in tune and the neck profiles all felt different to me. Left right after that and bought the used CE 24, very happy about it too. Congrats on what I view as a very good decision.

I am really digging the DC-3. If I had any idea they sounded like this, I would've grabbed one a while ago.

So, you traded perfectly good Gibsons that presumably had no QC issues because Gibson is shipping guitars to other people that you will never have to own and will in no way cost Gibson a dime or punish them in any way.

Not following that logic

Don't need you to. Not your guitars, rig, or experience. But, thanks for sharing. Perhaps you missed the part where I recently (last 5 weeks) ordered and returned 5 new 2012 Les Paul Std's due to flaws?

 

[László]

I agree with Hans. As usual.

 

[Hopeful Sinner]

I agree with Les. How unusual...

I keed, I keed...

 

[cosmic_ape]

I totally get where the OP is coming from. This year Gibson has released more left handed guitars than ever, so I figured this would be the year I finally buy one. After trying so many (and encountering what I consider to be unacceptable building flaws for any instrument in this price range), I concluded I would much rather save up and buy another PRS. It is a matter of personal preference, yes. But it is also a matter of quality, versatility and ultimately sound, which for me is paramount.

I will say that I missed on a used R9 some time ago that was by far the best Gibson I have ever played. I have nothing against Gibson at all. But it took me so many LPs to finally find one I liked. PRS is a different boat, I got it right on the first try...

 

[RJLII]

Yet we think nothing of trying on many pairs of shoes to find some that fit just right. Just saying.........