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Ah... the guitar everyone loves to hate. The Gibson VOS1959 ES175D. Some say it's "too bright" or "too light." Others criticize the faux antiquing. Still others just wish they'd still make all ES175s like the old ones. Others quibble about it having hum buckers instead of P90s.
All I can say is every day I love this guitar more and more. That's not my usual pattern. Normally, if I don't fall in love out of the box, a guitar just gets on my nerves more and more. But this one... I liked it at first, then wasn't sure, but as I've played it, all I can say is it takes me places I hadn't planned on. It has a quality I can't define, but that I love.
I think likely it really doesn't sound like the old ES175s, but when I play it, it just feels and sounds right. Perfectly set up off-the-rack, I love it's plain-jane wood. No fancy flamed grains for this working man's guitar. I love its aged pickup covers and fake yellowed lacquer bindings... nobody says "Hey, new guitar, how much did that cost..." they just say "Hey, I like that!"
So go ahead, hate on it all you want. Or just disdain it. Or just dismiss it. We won't care. We'll be enjoying a kind of "new-old vintage vibe" while others fuss over things not being precisely accurate or whatever.
Plus... everyone dissing on the VOS models keep prices low. I got this brand new at "nice from Korean factory" guitar pricing.
What's not to love!
Last edited by lawson-stone; 05-05-2017 at 02:03 PM.
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05-05-2017 02:00 PM
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a 70s ES-175 was my 1st electric, but once I got an L-5 there was no going back [well, except for a short stint w/ an original '59]
It was like going from a Toyota to a Rolls, L-5's and Supers just feel so more solid to me [and they are] and I just can't deal w/ the short scale of a 175.
but those that love 'em, love 'em...
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I love mine!
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Lawson,
I couldn't have said it better myself. I put more time on my 175 than my L5s. Mine is a single pu blonde just like Eric's above. I could do without the faux aging, but you can polish it off if you want. I'm interested in seeing whether your new L5 becomes your main squeeze, or you end up more on your 175.
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i'm loving mine lawson
i've just sold an L5 - because my new style 175 seduced me away from it (the one for sale here and on reverb as i write this)
when i got this '59 replica it seduced me away from the new style one
less electric - more immediate and sensitive (lighter build etc. etc.) - but great heft to the sound. the neck is unlike any i've played before (fatter) - and it feels just great (as if it is probably responsible for the heft in the high registers)
i got an es 135 (1956 - posh es 125) with a p-90 which out performs it in important ways - but the 135 would need re-fretting and a great setup to come close to the playability of the '59 replica.
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Actually, I'm more fortunate that I've suggested... I have both an L5ces and a 90's ES165 and they are absolutely delicious as well. But the VOS1959 is such an oppressed and maligned member of the Gibson family, and my enjoyment of it is such a contrast with the conventional wisdom about this model, that I just felt compelled to speak up for the underdog!
Originally Posted by Ren
But sure... the ES165 is overall the best-built, best playing guitar I have ever held in my hands, and the L5ces is, well, in a class all by itself that one simply doesn't compare with others.
Fact is, I don't own a guitar that I don't love to play, from the cheap Epiphone up to the L5ces, like Solomon and his 1000 wives according to the Bible, "I love them with all my heart."
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Wintermoon: Originally Posted by wintermoon
That's an interesting perspective. I have L5's and ES-175's and I am kind of torn between the two models. I really like certain things about both. I actually think my original '59 ES-175 with paf's is the best sounding (amplified) guitar I have ever owned. On the other hand, I love the longer scale and sound of the solid wood of an L5. If I had to choose just one, it would be very difficult. Both are great designs that are perfectly suited to the type of music we all love.
Keith
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It actually is a complete non-issue to me about a guitar being made to look old. It can be over-done, and if that happens, I don't like it, but it's just that I don't like the look, not that I don't like the idea. I like jeans and leather jackets both new and pre-worn/distressed, and I like the look and feel of my VOS, right along side the glorious, pristine ES165 I bought from max405 here. Both guitars get played a ton, both guitars are loved, and of course the L5ces is wonderful.
Then again, sometimes I just pull down the 90's Epiphone MiK Broadway too... it just feels and plays lovely.
One of my rules in life is: have as few rules as possible. Like as many things as I possibly can. Only draw lines when it's a matter of moral integrity. Otherwise, love life, play music, find beauty and truth everywhere they appear, and believe the best about every single person or situation that I encounter unless I'm proven wrong.
Life's too short to be weighted down with pet peeves that don't matter.
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Is it me or the neck p'up is not parallel to the strings? If that's the case, the fix is very simple: next change of strings, just reverse the p'up ring. Chances are, it's going to fix the "issue" right away. Originally Posted by lawson-stone
What's not to love?
Also, it seems that the bridge p'up is set very close to the strings. Looks like it just went under the QC radar. It happens, unfortunately, more often than not, but fortunately, it's nothing that a screwdriver and a pair of ears won't be able to handle.
Last edited by LtKojak; 05-06-2017 at 09:25 AM.
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Lawson,
Ya know, this is a topic that needed to be posted. This a controversial guitar. And it seems that Gibson is committed to the concept because they make em and they sell em.
Personally, I think my love affair with shiny guitars is a little twisted. When I polish them up, which is after ever time I play them, I don't like touching them for days because I don't want to ruin the pristine essence.. Frankly, that is f'ing stupid. And I know that. But that's just me.
Whenever I go to a vintage guitar shop, most the guitars on the walls look there age. And the majority of people love them that way. I am definitely in the minority. My guitars have to shine, or else to me, something is wrong with them.
Condition and artificial patina aside, if the guitar plays and sounds like a 50's 175, I could enjoy that. I am glad you found a guitar that you love. Although Lawson, you are more like me than you think. If it's a nice guitar, you don't look for things that are wrong with it. You find everything that's good about it.. I think that's a good way to be.
Enjoy it.
Thanks, Joe D
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I followed someone's recommendation for the Virtuoso Premium polish. I've never seen anything like it! Makes every guitar look brand new, and took the VOS gunk right off. My VOS (just like Lawson's) looks new, save for the hardware. The gunk felt sticky to me, though looked authentic. If it was the real aging of a vintage instrument, I could live with it, otherwise, I'm one of those guys JZ would complain about, because to me, the only thing better about having something sound great is if it looks great, as well.
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I love mine also, Lawson. To my ears, the tone is exactly what a 175 should sound like - dark, woody, smoky, with rich treble notes. Definitely not overly bright, but right in the pocket of what the sound should be. And, the neck feels perfect.
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I don't think there is anything wrong with your love for keeping the instruments at the peak of their beauty. Nobody wants to have a guitar sound less that its best, and it's also the same with appearance. You have nothing to be ashamed of or hesitant about there. Anyone who has bought a guitar from you is grateful for your jealous care for your instruments. Originally Posted by Max405
I totally understand people's love also for "honest age"--my 1954 Gibson L50 is loaded with honest wear. But that doesn't make the "look" of the VOS any worse or better, just different. It signals something, namely, "I'm an ES175 made to be more like the old ones. The new ones are good too, but hey, I'm here if you like it."
And I really do hope I'm like you in many, many ways. Your care for your family, your devotion to the music, your good heart... all things a person would love to have said about them.
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I have had the same thing happen on some of my HB guitars. I wouldn't reverse the pick up ring. The slant is the result of having only one screw per side for the height adjustment. The springs are too weak or have crooked bases so the when the pickup is adjusted the top is not parallel with the top of the pick up ring. The pick up itself is also probably very loose fitting and can be rocked back and forth by just pushing on it lightly with your fingers. The best solution that I found is to ditch the springs and use silicone tubing. They should make for a straighter adjustment and firm up the mounting. My experience anyway. Originally Posted by LtKojak
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Mine was worse with regards to the pickup ring. I reversed it, after following Dan Erlewine's instructions on simply sanding and shaping the pickup ring on top of a flat piece of sand paper to change the angle. Now, mine is almost perfectly parallel to the strings. Easy to do, and hard to mess up. Tone change was probably neglible in the end, though, maybe slightly warmer (mine was tilted up towards the neck, not down.)
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