OffsetGuitars.com

I've always had a thing for sunburst Gibson ES345s, and last week I managed to finally get one of my own.

The guitar was listed a few times on ebay with no buyers, I made an offer to the seller and we worked out a great deal. The guitar is in pretty much mint condition. Not a mark on her. The case is also in excellent condition.

It is a '64 Reissue Memphis-made ES345 VOS...I've never owned a semi-hollow guitar...so far I am liking it a lot

It is a beauty!. Never had a semihollow as well but I am gassing for one.

Yannis, welcome to the ES hollow/semi hollow club!

Very classy!

Wow, Yannis! That looks absolutely beautiful. Really wonderful burst on that one. Hope you enjoy it immensely! Hate to ask, but... Did you get rid of anything for it?

Gorgeous guitar! I've never seen a VOS Gibson in person, but in the photos I've seen the hardware and finish aging looks really tastefully done in comparison to a lot of what you see out there in the Relicsphere; looks right at home on your ES345. Really pretty burst too

Enjoy it!

Than you very much guys...it is definitely classy looking...I look forward to getting to know it better.

And no other guitars were harmed in order to get this one

My favourite one of my guitars is a VOS LP, the aging is just right, it feels like a guitar that has been used, but looked after.

Tobacco and other yellow/brown/black bursts are my favorite bursts. Supremely classy

Looks really, really nice for a modern one, well done you.

D

Thank you for all the kind words, gents!

How do you like the Varitone switch? Always wanted to check one of those out but haven't had the chance yet. I've got a 335 though and love it... I think the ES models are my faves of the Gibsons

popvulture wrote: ↑

Tue Sep 11, 2018 11:47 am

How do you like the Varitone switch? Always wanted to check one of those out but haven't had the chance yet. I've got a 335 though and love it... I think the ES models are my faves of the Gibsons

I haven't experimented too much with it to be honest, but my first impression after owning this guitar for almost a week is...well..."meh"

The pickup signal drops a bit when you leave the "standard position"...that, I don't like at all...I don't mind the tonal shift, but the small drop of signal is a bit of a bummer...

...while I am being critical, the other thing I am not too hot on is the travel of the volume knobs..I know these are meant to have the improved pots to give you the 50s wiring thing, but I just don't see/hear it (and I have a 50s Gibson to compare)...although gradual to a certain extent, the travel then is very abrupt between 3 and 0. It's not as easy to ride the volume as it is on my 50s Les Paul. 10-3 is very "slow" if that makes sense.


Lastly, on the curiosity front, I'd like to see if I like normal instead of nylon saddles on it.


Having said all this, I was playing it unplugged this evening on the sofa and man, it sings all over the neck...I'm actually very impressed with this guitar.

The workmanship on it is flawless, the rosewood board is beautiful, it stays in tune perfectly, and the neck, while not as full as a 50s neck, feels nice and comfy. Even the case looks beautiful with its yellow interior.

I can see myself upgrading couple of things eventually, but as it is, I am very happy I snagged this one.

If I have some time this weekend I'll post some more detailed photos.

Do we know how is the variatone circuit? I imagine it would simply be a different value capacitor to ground per position. Does it have an "open" position, that is without a capacitor to ground?. If so going from open to almost any capacitor to ground would have at least a small effect on the volume.

I am really gassing for a semi-hollow..., you are not helping

I really like the sound of nylon saddles—I've got em on an old ES-330, and I've thought about putting a Tonepros nylon saddle bridge on my 335... but it's always seemed like just-too-pricey and upgrade for me to bother. Still tempting, though.

Re: the Varitone, I was reading this Premier Guitar article recently—typically interesting/fun stuff from Joe Gore, who I love:

https://www.premierguitar.com/articles/ ... ods?page=6