Choosing a Semi-hollow jazz guitar

[JMoto]

I know, there are too many of these posts already but I still need help!
I have a Martin OOO-18 and a PRS S2 Standard 22 but really, really want a semi-hollow body to add to the frey. It started by craving a Gibson ES-335 of course but they are pricy and I'm afraid to buy one not knowing how to pick out a good one online (and not trusting salesman in stores!). So lame, I know. I am in love with the idea of having a 1979 something (but only because that's when I was born and it sounds cool!). There is an ES-347 for sale but the price is closer to 3k which looks way too high for what they've been selling for on Reverb and EBay so I haven't contacted the guy. For my money, looking at all the options that might have even better fit/finish/quality control etc. I don't want to buy a Gibby just because it's a cool name, I genuinely want an ax I'll want to keep forever like my other two.

I'm leaning towards an Ibanez AS-200 maybe? The Yamaha SA2200 is a contender (used, for cheaper). I've also heard good about a Heritage 535/555 or even an Eastman T486 or T185mx (the solid top is appealing).

Must-haves: stop-tail piece
Prefer to have: wider nut, blocks (over dots), nitrocellulose, burst (over red or blonde)
Budget: $2500 (less is great, more can be saved if it's amazing)
Location: San Francisco

I'd love your thoughts!

[nick1994]

Not sure if you've tried those jap clones like Greco orville epiphone elitist and of course my favourite tokai. Their es 335 copies easily contend with Gibson. Just make sure they are jap made not the Chinese ones

[goldenwave77]

You need to try a bunch of these. I had a beautiful looking "Orville" 335. It was completely dead sounding, and I sold it in short order.

I had a Norlin-era 347. Good guitar....coil tap wasn't quite convincing for the single-coil sound, but I don't think these ever are. Dark-ish, rich sound. Probably should have kept it.

Auditioned an Ibanez Scofield guitar....very underwhelmed....just kind of middle of the road tone-wise. It wasn't cheap, either.

Have a 339 which is as good as any of these, if not better. It actually sounds airier than the 347 did, but they're pretty close.

Semis are a kind of halfway house...and I think some of them are better than others, to get away from the land of "meh".

135's, 137's, Howard Roberts Fusions, Hawk 77's, etc., Ibanezes, Eastmans, Epiphones....any one of these might sound great.

I think the consensus on 175's is that sound-wise, they can be all over the lot...I think the same is true with the semis.

IMO, it will come down to one instrument that speaks to you.

[drbhrb]

Put Comins on your list, seems like it checks all your boxes:

GCS-1 | Comins Guitars

[Meggy]

Don't discount the current range of Chinese-made Ibanez's - the AS153 looks to be a very nice instrument to me. I bought a used 2010 AS103 (also Chinese-made, same factory) not so long ago, and find it to be a very fine guitar.

[rio]

If you see any Ibanez semi hollows from the late 70s, check them out. I have a 77 Ibanez Artist 2630 which is the granddaddy of the scofield model - 335 style body with an out of phase switch and coil taps - and it is better than any 335 I played. Something like that would be way under your budget.


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[r_cc_c]

Check on SF bay area craigslist. There are a few 335 in reasonable price.

[morroben]

I voted Heritage. I've had 535 lust for a while and think you should get one and post pics so I can live vicariously through you.

[agentsmith]

The ibanez guitars are bright IMO and heavy (weight). Not good for smooth overdrive but they sound good for modern splatty/ratty stuff in the vein of rosenwinkel or scofield.

Heritage is nice but my hands bump into the cutaway in the upper register and they are a bit plinky sounding IMO.

The 335 is great but it's heavy and a little too thumpy in the low mids.

Eastman 185 sounds good but not in the same class is the gibson.

The 347 is very heavy and bright.

I like the sa2000, 2100 and 2200 very much. the 2000 is a great guitar and reasonably priced. not crazy about the quality of the push/push switches they use.

The 339 is my favorite semi under $2k (used)

[agentsmith]

Semi Hollow Review page

[rsclosson]

I had an Ibanez AS93 (the older model with cream pickup rings and no pickguard) Got a wild hair and traded it which, in retrospect, was a big mistake. Great guitar in every way!

[Ray175]

The early 1980s Ibanez AS100 is a great alternative to the AS200
The main differences are

• rosewood fretboard vs ebony
• dot vs block markers
• no trisound switch on neck pickup
• birch vs maple body

should be less than 1400 USD vs 2000+ for the AS200. Both have the early super58 pickups if you want a PAF sound

catalogue here
Ibanez Catalogs

Excellent value for money

[jazzbow]

I have a natural finish 1981 ES 335 and original case for salein the UK. PM me if you're interested.

[mad dog]

On the MIJ side, you might want to look out for the Epiphone Elitist ES-335 '63. I picked up one for a friend, swapped p/us and had it set up. A really good one, probably the closest in sound to my much love '66 es-335.

The Comins GSC-1 is intriguing. I've had one in my hands twice, haven't yet plugged in. A little on the heavy side, has a great feel. I might end up with one of these at some point.
MD

[ThatRhythmMan]

I had an Epi Elitist 335 and while the playability was truly exceptional, it was totally dead in a tonal sense. I tried switching pickups in it and it just never sounded very good. It seemed almost purely fundamental tonally, totally devoid of harmonic tones.

I can't say that they are all like that, as I've played only one, but that one was perhaps the most boring sounding guitar I've ever heard.

[agentsmith]

I had a similar experience.

I had an Epi Elitist 335 and while the playability was truly exceptional, it was totally dead in a tonal sense. I tried switching pickups in it and it just never sounded very good. It seemed almost purely fundamental tonally, totally devoid of harmonic tones.

I can't say that they are all like that, as I've played only one, but that one was perhaps the most boring sounding guitar I've ever heard.

[stringmaster]

Not on you list but what about a Guild Starfire? I think they are true bargains--great guitars.

[ThatRhythmMan]

Not on you list but what about a Guild Starfire? I think they are true bargains--great guitars.

I think this is a fantastic recommendation. They have a different character, as they are typically mahogany laminates, rather than maple (they do make a maple) They can be fantastic guitars. You could even get a nice vintage one in that price range.

[Stringswinger]

I have owned the following semis:

Gibson 335 (3 of them)
Gibson Pat Martino
Gibson 347
Gibson Howard Roberts Fusion
Guild Starfire (2 of them)
Heritage 535

The one I kept was a Gibson 335.

[John A.]

When I was semi-hollow shopping around 6 years ago I tried in one sitting a Heritage 535, a Starfire IV (mid 90s, IIRC), a 339, an ES 137 an Ibanez AS93, and an Ibanez AS 103. Within a short period surrounding that I tried a few 335's (and have played lots of others over the years), and a D'Angelico EX SS and EX DC. The only ones I actually didn't particularly like were the Heritage and the Ibbies. They all had a somewhat exaggerated treble that I wasn't able to dial down to my liking. The rest were all pretty much interchangeable tonewise with subtle differences in feel, playability etc. IMO. FWIW I wound up with a D'A EX DC (not the one I tried), which I got for way less $'s than the others, and which I've been very happy with. Overall, I think the differences among all these are pretty subtle, and as much a matter of individual guitar to guitar variance as they are differences between models per se. Some with once-upon-a-mattress ears may disagree, but I think pretty much any semi can do the job of a semi and it comes down whichever one happens to grab you.

John

[agentsmith]

Here are the ones I've owned:

• Gibson 335
• Heritage 535
• Gibson 137
• Gibson HR Fusion
• Guild Starfire
• Gibson 339
• Sadowsky Semihollow
• Godin Flat 5
• Ibanez AS200
• Ibanez AM205
• Ibanez AS50
• Yamaha SA2000
• Yamaha SA2100
• Yamaha SA2200
• Hamer Newport
• Gibson 336
• Gibson 446
• Eastman 184
• Eastman 185
• Eastman 186
• Eastman 386
• Eastman El Rey
• Hamer Monaco
• Gadow Custom Hollow
• PRS Archtop
• PRS Hollowbody
• Godin jazz
• Hofner Verythin
• Epiphone Elitist 335
• Epiphone Elitist sheraton
• Seventy Seven Albatross
• Seventy Seven Stork
• Soloway swan
• Carvin Fatboy
• Carvin HH2
• Carvin SH550

There are probably others that I am forgetting.

I don't currently own a semihollow unfortunately...Of all of these, several stand out.

The sadowsky, the albatross and the 339 are my favorites. There is no clear winner because they each excel at something very different. The sadowsky is in a class of its own in many ways but it's also very expensive. Here's a demo I did a few years ago.

Of the more affordable choices ($2k-ish) the Albatross was my favorite. Great jazz tones and great fusion tones as you can hear in these demos i did a few years back:

Unfortunately, it's neck heavy so I found it uncomfortable to play standing up and ultimately why I didn't keep it.

The 339 is a jack of all trades that gets great blues, fusion, rock and jazz tones (jazzy in the metheny/adam rogers vein). Here's a demo I did of it.

[John A.]

Here are the ones I've owned:

• Gibson 335
• Heritage 535
• Gibson 137
• Gibson HR Fusion
• Guild Starfire
• Gibson 339
• Sadowsky Semihollow
• Godin Flat 5
• Ibanez AS200
• Ibanez AM205
• Ibanez AS50
• Yamaha SA2000
• Yamaha SA2100
• Yamaha SA2200
• Hamer Newport
• Gibson 336
• Gibson 446
• Eastman 184
• Eastman 185
• Eastman 186
• Eastman 386
• Eastman El Rey
• Hamer Monaco
• Gadow Custom Hollow
• PRS Archtop
• PRS Hollowbody
• Godin jazz
• Hofner Verythin
• Epiphone Elitist 335
• Epiphone Elitist sheraton
• Seventy Seven Albatross
• Seventy Seven Stork
• Soloway swan

There are probably others that I am forgetting.

I don't currently own a semihollow unfortunately...Of all of these, several stand out.

The sadowsky, the albatross and the 339 are my favorites. There is no clear winner because they each excel at something very different. The sadowsky is in a class of its own in many ways but it's also very expensive. Here's a demo I did a few years ago.

Of the more affordable choices ($2k-ish) the Albatross was my favorite. Great jazz tones and great fusion tones as you can hear in these demos i did a few years back:

Unfortunately, it's neck heavy so I found it uncomfortable to play standing up and ultimately why I didn't keep it.

The 339 is a jack of all trades that gets great blues, fusion, rock and jazz tones (jazzy in the metheny/adam rogers vein). Here's a demo I did of it.

That might be more guitars than I've bought pairs of pants in my life time :-)

I think if you buy a guitar, keep it only briefly, and then return it or flip it, it might be more accurate to say you're renting it than owning it ... Kind of like beer ...

John

[jads57]

There are so many to choose from, and most are excellent guitars overall. It really comes down to playing a bunch in person, and see which one fits your criteria. Hopefully in the proccess you'll find one that really stands out!

For what it's worth here are some I've owned in the past.

Gibson: ES-335/345/355 ES339 Studio, Pat Martino Custom Shop, Johnny A Custom

Hamer: Monaco Std, Monaco Super Pro, Newport, Newport P90

PRS: Hollowbody 2, SC Hollowbody Std (Mahogany)

Others: Carvin: Alan Holdsworth Std, and Fatboy models, Eastman: El Rey 2, many Thinline Partscasters as well as G&L Asat Super,Jr, and Asat 3 thinlines (these are bolt on neck guitars w/ long 25&1/2" scale length)

[rio]

Not on you list but what about a Guild Starfire? I think they are true bargains--great guitars.

I had a Guild Starfire II, I think it was a '97. Had it for a year then I got separated and needed cash so it was the first guitar to go. I really wanted to like it - I played it out a lot and got compliments on the sound but I just couldn't bond with it. I didn't like the stock pickup so put a burstbucker in the neck since I had one laying around and it was an improvement. I wish I still had it to figure out why I couldn't click with it - it certainly wasn't a bad guitar. Not a semihollow though - it was a full hollow.


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[GNAPPI]

If you have played a 335, and wanted a 335 because you liked it, get a 335 because nothing else is likely to float your boat. If not any of the above will work, but Heritage gits are super.

At any rate, used a 335 can be had for under $2k. Color choices may be limited but you'd have to decide whether you would rather have a git you wanted in a so-so color or a lovely burst eye catcher as second or third choice.

I don't know what others have experienced about 335's but I found them to be one of the most consistent Gibson has made, well at least till Gibson started installing MHS pups as standard equipment.