Vlog - Thoughts on my Gibson 175

[jzucker]

About my 2012 Gibson 175


Just a demonstration of my 175 and a little discussion about whether you need to buy a vintage guitar to get the definitive 175 tone.


In the middle of this video, i make the "genius" move of playing some blues licks, followed by playing a little excerpt of "My one and only love" without re-tuning! DUH...


So, I stopped and retuned. I was going to edit it out but I thought i'd use it as a teaching opportunity (for myself, lol)


Much love to all of you,


Jaz

[ccroft]

Nice review Jack. I enjoyed that. You have a really good vibe speaking to the camera.

[xuoham]

Great insights and fantastic playing, Jack !!

Thank you for sharing this !

[grahambop]

Great playing and interesting information Jack.

I've had my 175 for 40 years and it's the only jazz guitar I've got. From the serial number I believe it was made about 1976, which is probably not seen as a great period for Gibsons (Norlin etc!). But mine plays and sounds fine, so I've never considered using anything else.

[Tal_175]

Great playing and interesting information Jack.

I've had my 175 for 40 years and it's the only jazz guitar I've got. From the serial number I believe it was made about 1976, which is probably not seen as a great period for Gibsons (Norlin etc!). But mine plays and sounds fine, so I've never considered using anything else.

40 years with the same guitar and never wondered about other guitars or examples of the same guitar! I admire this greatly and I know it's also the more rational attitude but it's as alien to me as the monks who can meditate inside a cave for decades.

[Max405]

Jaz,
That was a seriously excellent video.
You NEVER see videos done that way. An uncut video review of a well spoken guy, who knows what he is talking about and can flat out play the shit of a guitar.
I am glad to hear your stance on newer guitars vs older. Well maintained, straight neck, correct setup.. It almost doesnt matter. There is good and bad with both.
Man that was really good buddy. Most people dont realize just how difficult it is to do what you did.
You are a entertainer. A far cry from hobbiest. You have all the chops anyone could ever hope to achieve. Your musicality is so natural. You do Jack so well..
I sincerely hope that if you wish to expand to the pro level that you do so.
Awesome.
JD

[grahambop]

40 years with the same guitar and never wondered about other guitars or examples of the same guitar! I admire this greatly and I know it's also the more rational attitude but it's as alien to me as the monks who can meditate inside a cave for decades.

haha, well I would no doubt have been tempted to collect other guitars but couldn’t really justify the expense, when there were more important priorities over the years, i.e. house and family. Also I guess I just felt that since the 175 was supposed to be such a classic jazz guitar, I should just stick with it. Any issues were likely to be down to me rather than the guitar!

I’ve also got an acoustic guitar, a decent classical guitar, a solid-body, and even a banjo which a relative didn’t want, so that’s probably enough.

[jzucker]

Jaz,
That was a seriously excellent video.
You NEVER see videos done that way. An uncut video review of a well spoken guy, who knows what he is talking about and can flat out play the shit of a guitar.
I am glad to hear your stance on newer guitars vs older. Well maintained, straight neck, correct setup.. It almost doesnt matter. There is good and bad with both.
Man that was really good buddy. Most people dont realize just how difficult it is to do what you did.
You are a entertainer. A far cry from hobbiest. You have all the chops anyone could ever hope to achieve. Your musicality is so natural. You do Jack so well..
I sincerely hope that if you wish to expand to the pro level that you do so.
Awesome.
JD

Thanks my brother.

[GordonM]

40 years with the same guitar and never wondered about other guitars or examples of the same guitar! I admire this greatly and I know it's also the more rational attitude but it's as alien to me as the monks who can meditate inside a cave for decades.

Not at all. A guitar is an instrument and if you really like the one you have, there's no real need to go searching for something that probably doesn't exist.
My favourite guitar is also one I bought 40 years ago - my first electric, a 1978 Gibson RD Artist.
I have other guitars but they are different types such as a Hollow body, a 7-string, a Stratocaster and others, but my RD Artist sounds beautiful, has a slim neck, 2 Humbuckers, 25" scale solid body so I have no desire to try/buy countless other electrics of this configuration.

[lawson-stone]

Very intelligent, highly informed description that gently disposes of a few myths while offering some excellent advice. I have bought (I think) 5 ES175s and 1 ES165, as well as the Epiphone 175 and an Aria 175-ish (Herb Ellis model) and everything you said made sense. I have kept the 2015 1959 VOS model and just love it. It's got everything I want from an ES175 and I find it a well made and wonderfully playing guitar. I also have about a 2015 L5ces and while it plays well and sounds delicious it has some serious finish issues. They don't bother me for playing, but if I ever try to sell it I think that will hurt.

Thanks for the insight and enjoyment you provide the group!

[jzucker]

Nice review Jack. I enjoyed that. You have a really good vibe speaking to the camera.

Thanks, it's funny how we all have our own perceptions. When see the videos with me talking, I feel like i'm agent smith from the matrix movies (which is not a good thing)

[jzucker]

Very intelligent, highly informed description that gently disposes of a few myths while offering some excellent advice. I have bought (I think) 5 ES175s and 1 ES165, as well as the Epiphone 175 and an Aria 175-ish (Herb Ellis model) and everything you said made sense. I have kept the 2015 1959 VOS model and just love it. It's got everything I want from an ES175 and I find it a well made and wonderfully playing guitar. I also have about a 2015 L5ces and while it plays well and sounds delicious it has some serious finish issues. They don't bother me for playing, but if I ever try to sell it I think that will hurt.

Thanks for the insight and enjoyment you provide the group!

I appreciate the comments. Just to reiterate, yes, there are differences between an old 175 and a newer one but the ROI may have diminishing returns in terms of needed repairs, etc. And if you are not lucky enough to have a competent repairman who can do things like neck resets, planing a fingerboard, fret leveling under string tension, etc., it's probably best to stick with a newer guitar. Although, I will say that i've had issues with neck angle and tail rises even in '90s instruments so it's no guarantee...

I was very fortunate with the Kessel. I don't know if I mentioned in the video but it was supposed to be 100% original but it turned out the pickups were swapped and it wasn't clear if the replacements were legit. The wiring on the replacements was very amateurish and the bracing was loose. Fortunately, the seller backed up the sale and refunded a portion of my purchase price. Originally, he only wanted to repay me for the repair work but I pointed out that I purchased it under the assumption that it was all original with no loose bracing (I actually stipulate sellers check that on older guitars). And I told him that a '63 gibson with non original pickups is worth a lot less money so he ended up giving me a pretty nice refund. All in all, I still spent over $1k more than I wanted - even with the refund and the frets in the upper register are very low so I'll have to put another $500 into it at some point...

So, was it worth it? I dunno...Maybe. A kessel is a very unique instrument. Gibson has not made anything comparable. The closest guitar is perhaps the Tal Farlow but the spruce top on the kessel makes it very unique...

But my 175 sounds so good, i'm not sure I would buy this if I had to do it all over again.

[Max405]

Thanks, it's funny how we all have our own perceptions. When see the videos with me talking, I feel like i'm agent smith from the matrix movies (which is not a good thing)

We are our own worst critics. Why do you think I don't "tawk" in my videos?
I told you in my last post. Your speaking was GREAT! And your playing, well, that speaks for itself~!
JD

[Stringswinger]

JZ, my experience with 175's is very similar to yours.

I more or less gave up jazz guitar to chase other careers from about 1982 to 2002. In 1988, I sold my second ES-175, a decision I regret to this day. It was a 1982 model that played and sounded great. Prior to that I had owned a 1970 example that was also superb. In 2002, I obtained a 1977 model, but I did not like the maple neck or volute (or the brown sunburst), so away that went. I bought an amazing 1997 example that has been my main player since 2009 when I bought it. But I wanted an older one and bought two examples, a 1963 two pickup model and a 1967 one pickup model. Both had issues that I could not resolve so away they went. I tried a newer one, a 2008 model and it had a twisted neck that prevented me from getting the action where I liked it. Away that one went. But I wanted a backup 175. During the CME blowout, I bought two examples made in 2017, a 59 reissue and their "figured" model. I got lucky, both are superb (I know that many of the guitars sold in that blowout had issues). It was my intention to keep the better one, but I have kept both.

I spent a lot of time and money trying to get the 1963 175 dialed in. It always disappointed me. That experience has convinced me to stay away from old guitars. A good newer 175 is better than a poor older one.

[Archie]

Nice video Jaz; works well. I look forward to some more!

I agree with your thoughts re Gibson and the 175. I've had some great modern 'reissues', especially from the 90's.

I also have a 2008? ES165 that the neck is so bad, I refuse to sell it to anyone. I knew it was this way when I bought it but I needed the guitar for R&D. The owner still wouldn't reduce the price to one that reflected the guitars usability.

[jzucker]

Nice video Jaz; works well. I look forward to some more!

I agree with your thoughts re Gibson and the 175. I've had some great modern 'reissues', especially from the 90's.

I also have a 2008? ES165 that the neck is so bad, I refuse to sell it to anyone. I knew it was this way when I bought it but I needed the guitar for R&D. The owner still wouldn't reduce the price to one that reflected the guitars usability.

Sorry to hear about your 165. Some of them had really poor quality control. I had one where the slots in the tailpiece were too large for thomastik or daddario strings. I had to slip a thick wire through all the ball ends before I could string it up.

[GordonM]

,.... but I did not like the maple neck or volute...

Just wondering why you don't like maple neck or volute?
I'm a fan of both - Maple necks are generally a bit slimmer (which is much more comfortable for me) and the volute (in my mind perhaps) is just a bit of security if the worst should happen but it doesn't get in the way of playing.

[jzucker]

Just wondering why you don't like maple neck or volute?
I'm a fan of both - Maple necks are generally a bit slimmer (which is much more comfortable for me) and the volute (in my mind perhaps) is just a bit of security if the worst should happen but it doesn't get in the way of playing.

If I ever got a 2nd 175 I'd probably see if I could find a mid '70s model with the maple neck. The maple neck seems to impart a slight bensony tone with it's brighter attack and I do like the stiffness.

[Max405]

Jack,
SS had a dream one time that EL Kabong was beating him with an old Stradivarius and he never got over the whole volute thing.
JD

[Max405]

Sorry to hear about your 165. Some of them had really poor quality control. I had one where the slots in the tailpiece were too large for thomastik or daddario strings. I had to slip a thick wire through all the ball ends before I could string it up.

Really?? Oh my God.
Slipping the string through the ball ends is a good idea though. I never would have thought of that.
JD

[jzucker]

Really?? Oh my God.
Slipping the string through the ball ends is a good idea though. I never would have thought of that.
JD

It's pretty weird that it made it through quality control like that. I'm guessing that originally it was barely small enough to hold the ball ends but over time, just the teeniest bit of wear caused them to slip through...

[Stringswinger]

Jack,
SS had a dream one time that EL Kabong was beating him with an old Stradivarius and he never got over the whole volute thing.
JD

Ha! I don't mind the small volute that my 1975 Les Paul had, but IMO the big volute on my 1977 ES-175 was ugly. And the maple neck added a brightness to the tone that did not float my boat.

[Archie]

Sorry to hear about your 165. Some of them had really poor quality control. I had one where the slots in the tailpiece were too large for thomastik or daddario strings. I had to slip a thick wire through all the ball ends before I could string it up.

The fun we have. But to be fair and as you've said before many times. When they're good, they're great!

[jzucker]

The fun we have. But to be fair and as you've said before many times. When they're good, they're great!

Actually, that 165 sounded great even though quality control was iffy.

[lawson-stone]

Actually, that 165 sounded great even though quality control was iffy.

My 90's ES165 Herb Ellis is one of the overall best playing and best sounding instruments I own. Almost a desert-island guitar (assuming they have electricity on that island!).