NGD...Zhivago's adventures in ES-land... (more photos added page 3)

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Re: NGD...Zhivago's adventures in ES-land... (more photos added page 3)

Post by Despot » Mon Sep 17, 2018 3:09 am

I really like the reissues cases.

The '50s ES guitars come with a case that's like a slightly improved version of the old tan/cali cases - its' got the flat covering with colour variations (that make it look textured, though it's not). The '60s cases have the pebble covering and yellow lining, just like the old ones. They're not quite as thin ... but that's a good thing as it means more padding!

The '60s reissues cases don't quite look as close to the vintage as the '50s ones - but given that '60s vintage cases tend to be a bit dangerous in terms of porting guitars around (the fit is loose and the guitar tends to move around in it even when you're just shifting the case on the ground) I don't mind the much more form fitted reissue case.

Funnily enough my own '62 ES345 has always lived in a '90s ES case (the tan/Gibson logo cases). This is purely for safety reasons - I was offered a really clean '60s ES case recently as a favour from a friend, but given how much we have limited space in the apartment and given how the old cases really don't do the best job at actually protecting the guitar, I turned it down. I'll always go for safety over vintage-correct when it comes to cases. That ES345 was once in it's case when a friend's infant daughter pulled it down (it was standing on it's side) - the case slapped down onto the 'top' of the case with the guitar inside. I'd left the case alone and hadn't realised that my friends daughter was out and about - as much as the guitar I was worried she might have been hit by the falling case! Both child and guitar were fine. If it had been in a vintage case that would have been a headstock break...

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Re: NGD...Zhivago's adventures in ES-land... (more photos added page 3)

Post by zhivago » Mon Sep 17, 2018 9:51 am

Despot wrote:
Sun Sep 16, 2018 11:26 pm
Nice Yannis! Welcome to ES-Land ... it's nice ... maybe stick around. ;)

I've the same guitar - just in olive drab with a bigsby, so I know exactly what you're talking about with this one. The MHS humbuckers are really really great sounding pickups, the '64 reissue has a nice neck carve (not super slim, but not too chunky - a nice C shape) and they're getting better and better at making them look like the vintage models (apart from the pickup covers).

I was just thinking that your reissue probably looks like my old beater 345 when it was new in '62!

Re: back panel/working on electronics...
Yeah ... it's a pain. Thankfully Gibson started putting a cut-out in the centre block - initially to fit the varitone choke (a big hunk of metal!) and then they realised that if they made the cut out a little bigger they could fit the wiring harness through there instead of the f-holes. The reissues have replicated that (at least on mine the cut out and general 'internal layout' were the same on the reissue as on the '62). So at least it's not quite as bad if you ever need to work on it. If you do though Yannis ... just a heads up. For some reason the wiring harness length on modern varitone Gibsons seems to be quite short - it's basically 'just enough' to get it in. I know when I had the CS ES355 and I had the pickups changed, the technician working on it had a real pain trying to get it out because of how Gibson had put it together - and that's someone who's well able to do that sort of thing easily on vintage guitars.
Kev!

by the way you are describing yours they are pretty much the same thing...I really like the neck profile...real comfy.

I am surprised that the size of the guitar hasn't been an issue for me...I am almost '6 "4, but I play lots sitting down nowadays and I have no problems.

I may end up having the Varitone removed...I've been playing around with it and I just can't seem to bond with it...I will give it a bit more time, but at the moment it is not working out well.

Thankfully the rest of guitar is real nice, so it's not much of a bummer...thank you for the pots headsup...I don't envy the neck that will work on mine eventually!! :D
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Re: NGD...Zhivago's adventures in ES-land... (more photos added page 3)

Post by zhivago » Mon Sep 17, 2018 9:53 am

StevenO wrote:
Mon Sep 17, 2018 2:23 am
I have to say, this guitar even looks good in its case. I love the colours, the golden and orange hues. I want my apartment to look as good as that!
It really is seriously pretty...I know most people prefer Cherry on these, but I have always adored Sunburst on an ES-345. :-*
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Re: NGD...Zhivago's adventures in ES-land... (more photos added page 3)

Post by zhivago » Mon Sep 17, 2018 9:55 am

Despot wrote:
Mon Sep 17, 2018 3:09 am
I really like the reissues cases.

The '50s ES guitars come with a case that's like a slightly improved version of the old tan/cali cases - its' got the flat covering with colour variations (that make it look textured, though it's not). The '60s cases have the pebble covering and yellow lining, just like the old ones. They're not quite as thin ... but that's a good thing as it means more padding!

The '60s reissues cases don't quite look as close to the vintage as the '50s ones - but given that '60s vintage cases tend to be a bit dangerous in terms of porting guitars around (the fit is loose and the guitar tends to move around in it even when you're just shifting the case on the ground) I don't mind the much more form fitted reissue case.

Funnily enough my own '62 ES345 has always lived in a '90s ES case (the tan/Gibson logo cases). This is purely for safety reasons - I was offered a really clean '60s ES case recently as a favour from a friend, but given how much we have limited space in the apartment and given how the old cases really don't do the best job at actually protecting the guitar, I turned it down. I'll always go for safety over vintage-correct when it comes to cases. That ES345 was once in it's case when a friend's infant daughter pulled it down (it was standing on it's side) - the case slapped down onto the 'top' of the case with the guitar inside. I'd left the case alone and hadn't realised that my friends daughter was out and about - as much as the guitar I was worried she might have been hit by the falling case! Both child and guitar were fine. If it had been in a vintage case that would have been a headstock break...

Oh dear that sounds like it was a close call for both parties!

The case that it comes with is super cool...the colour inside is exactly like my '56 Custom's case...but with actual padding, as you say.

I was actually real happy that the case doesn't say "Gibson" or something like that on it...I prefer plain no logo cases :)
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Re: NGD...Zhivago's adventures in ES-land... (more photos added page 3)

Post by zhivago » Mon Sep 17, 2018 10:02 am

One more thing..I actually tried some steel saddles instead of the nylon and went back after 5 mins...I heard no real difference, so back to the nylon I go! 8)
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Re: NGD...Zhivago's adventures in ES-land... (more photos added page 3)

Post by StevenO » Mon Sep 17, 2018 10:41 am

zhivago wrote:
Mon Sep 17, 2018 9:53 am
StevenO wrote:
Mon Sep 17, 2018 2:23 am
I have to say, this guitar even looks good in its case. I love the colours, the golden and orange hues. I want my apartment to look as good as that!
It really is seriously pretty...I know most people prefer Cherry on these, but I have always adored Sunburst on an ES-345. :-*
Honestly, I find Cherry to be a bit played out on ES guitars (and SGs too, for that matter). You chose wisely. :)

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Re: NGD...Zhivago's adventures in ES-land... (more photos added page 3)

Post by Despot » Mon Sep 17, 2018 11:07 pm

zhivago wrote:
Mon Sep 17, 2018 9:51 am
I may end up having the Varitone removed...I've been playing around with it and I just can't seem to bond with it...I will give it a bit more time, but at the moment it is not working out well.

Thankfully the rest of guitar is real nice, so it's not much of a bummer...thank you for the pots headsup...I don't envy the neck that will work on mine eventually!! :D
For what it's worth these modern varitones are actually properly bypassed - you don't get the issue you have with old varitones where the values of the caps drift over time (and then that mostly happens on Norlin era iirc) - so the only thing that removing it would do would be reduce weight (the choke is fairly heavy after all). That being said ... I wouldn't - my vintage ES345 is around the same weight as the reissue - it's the choke that makes it feel heavy (parts weight, not wood weight), but that weight has no impact on how loud/resonant the guitar is unplugged so it's sort of not a problem in my head. I particularly like the 2nd setting in the neck pickup (which to my ear sounds sort of like a Jazzmaster).

Also - re: comfort of playing ... I'm not quite as tall as you (5' 11 - so average height) but I've never felt like an ES is too big or bulky to play, whether standing up or sitting down. It is different ... you'll certainly feel it a little more than your LP or JM ... but I personally find ES guitars a joy to play when sitting on the couch. They're great for playing unplugged when it's later at night to avoid waking anyone up - there's enough volume for it to be enjoyable, but not enough to be a pest.

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Re: NGD...Zhivago's adventures in ES-land... (more photos added page 3)

Post by UlricvonCatalyst » Tue Sep 18, 2018 12:38 am

I don't know if those split parallelogram inlays cause some sort of visual distortion, but the neck looks really wide at the bottom. Looking at my lawsuit 335 copy, which has recently usurped the Mustang as my living room guitar, I see that the neck does flare out quite a bit, but yours looks extra-broad to me.

Anyway, congratulations on another damn fine guitar which is making me wonder if I shouldn't look into joining the (real) ES club too.

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Re: NGD...Zhivago's adventures in ES-land... (more photos added page 3)

Post by Despot » Tue Sep 18, 2018 1:11 am

Those inlays are my personal favourite of any neck inlays - I used to love the Custom block inlay and split diamond headstock ... but more and more I've started to prefer the split inlays and the 'regular' crown headstock.

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Re: NGD...Zhivago's adventures in ES-land... (more photos added page 3)

Post by zhivago » Tue Sep 18, 2018 12:34 pm

Despot wrote:
Mon Sep 17, 2018 11:07 pm
zhivago wrote:
Mon Sep 17, 2018 9:51 am
I may end up having the Varitone removed...I've been playing around with it and I just can't seem to bond with it...I will give it a bit more time, but at the moment it is not working out well.

Thankfully the rest of guitar is real nice, so it's not much of a bummer...thank you for the pots headsup...I don't envy the neck that will work on mine eventually!! :D
For what it's worth these modern varitones are actually properly bypassed - you don't get the issue you have with old varitones where the values of the caps drift over time (and then that mostly happens on Norlin era iirc) - so the only thing that removing it would do would be reduce weight (the choke is fairly heavy after all). That being said ... I wouldn't - my vintage ES345 is around the same weight as the reissue - it's the choke that makes it feel heavy (parts weight, not wood weight), but that weight has no impact on how loud/resonant the guitar is unplugged so it's sort of not a problem in my head. I particularly like the 2nd setting in the neck pickup (which to my ear sounds sort of like a Jazzmaster).

Also - re: comfort of playing ... I'm not quite as tall as you (5' 11 - so average height) but I've never felt like an ES is too big or bulky to play, whether standing up or sitting down. It is different ... you'll certainly feel it a little more than your LP or JM ... but I personally find ES guitars a joy to play when sitting on the couch. They're great for playing unplugged when it's later at night to avoid waking anyone up - there's enough volume for it to be enjoyable, but not enough to be a pest.

Good to hear it is bypassed properly...I may just take it out when I have the pots taken out...we'll see...nothing pressing yet.

I spent tonight playing it unplugged...tons of fun! :-*
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Re: NGD...Zhivago's adventures in ES-land... (more photos added page 3)

Post by zhivago » Tue Sep 18, 2018 12:35 pm

UlricvonCatalyst wrote:
Tue Sep 18, 2018 12:38 am
I don't know if those split parallelogram inlays cause some sort of visual distortion, but the neck looks really wide at the bottom. Looking at my lawsuit 335 copy, which has recently usurped the Mustang as my living room guitar, I see that the neck does flare out quite a bit, but yours looks extra-broad to me.

Anyway, congratulations on another damn fine guitar which is making me wonder if I shouldn't look into joining the (real) ES club too.
Thank you sir!

Definitely do it..I wish I had gotten one earlier in my guitar playing life! :)
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Re: NGD...Zhivago's adventures in ES-land... (more photos added page 3)

Post by zhivago » Tue Sep 18, 2018 12:35 pm

Despot wrote:
Tue Sep 18, 2018 1:11 am
Those inlays are my personal favourite of any neck inlays - I used to love the Custom block inlay and split diamond headstock ... but more and more I've started to prefer the split inlays and the 'regular' crown headstock.
It is a real classy look! Just can't stop staring at it! :D
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Re: NGD...Zhivago's adventures in ES-land... (more photos added page 3)

Post by zhivago » Tue Sep 18, 2018 12:38 pm

Despot wrote:
Mon Sep 17, 2018 11:07 pm
the only thing that removing it would do would be reduce weight (the choke is fairly heavy after all).
I wonder how heavy the choke is...I've read that vintage ones are a whopping 1 pound!??

The guitar is 8.2 lbs or something at the moment :)
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Re: NGD...Zhivago's adventures in ES-land... (more photos added page 3)

Post by sookwinder » Tue Sep 18, 2018 3:16 pm

The two chokes and associated caps/switch in my 65 Casino that has a factory varitone is quite heavy (relatively speaking) but from what I have read is certainly a lot heavier than modern versions used by Gibson in the instruments they now build.

But then again, my LP is still a lot heavier than the Casino with the varitone.

You can get some good different sounds with the varitone, but you also must adjust one's amp to accommodate the new/different sounds. do not assume that you just plug in the 345 and on the single amp set up every sound in the varitone will sound awesome

For me, given that the modern varitone is true by pass, having it there is an opportunity to get something different, rather than taking it out and never having the option of even trying the alternates.
relaxing alternative to doing actual work ...

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Re: NGD...Zhivago's adventures in ES-land... (more photos added page 3)

Post by Larry Mal » Tue Sep 18, 2018 4:32 pm

Nice guitar, it's too bad Gibson's quality control is so terrible and you can't get a good guitar from them anymore. You probably just don't know any better just like all the other Gibson owners who say they are happy with their guitars... it's very sad to see.
Back in those days, everyone knew that if you were talking about Destiny's Child, you were talking about Beyonce, LaTavia, LeToya, and Larry.

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