Gibson SG '61 Reissue

I finally got my hands on one of these for an unbelievable price, ( even though I wish I could have got it many years ago when I first started looking) and I am completely satisfied. Before I picked this up, I was playing with an American Deluxe strat for everything but metal, which I used my Jackson Kelly for. That strat could pull out any tone imaginable, except that Gibson "honk" that comes from that solid, Mahogany body and Gibson pickups. I've always wanted a Les Paul, but didn't want to pay the ridiculous price for one, not too mention the chiropractor bills after a night on stage due to the LPs weight. You can get one of these for around 2 thousand online, or you can do your research and you may see one locally somewhere if you live in a decent sized city or a town that is big on music. But there are music lovers and collectors everywhere!

UTILIZATION

I decided to try an SG and fell completely in love with them. The '61 reissue covers that classic rock n roll sound perfectly. The pickups are, surprisingly, not muddy. The neck pickups has tons of clarity and brightness, unlike the often dark and undefined tones of most Les Pauls on the neck pickups. When playing both pickups, this guitar's "wood" sound stands out as a nice contrast to both pickups on their own, especially as you adjust volume on one of the pickups to pull one out in front of the other. The warmness of the 57 Classics is instantly noticeable. The double cutaway allows for immediate access to the upper registers. The guitar's intonation was also spot on, and the strings weren't sticking in the nut, surprisingly.

SOUNDS

I love how the distorted sounds are, they are amazing!

OVERALL OPINION

I would highly recommend this for anyone wanting a classic instrument that will be a lifelong companion and investment. Beats any Les Paul, in my opinion, and gives you more bang for the buck. No pun intended towards Les Paul.

One of my favorite guitars have to the Gibson SG. One of my all time favorite bands plays this guitar exclusively. Well at least the lead guitar player plays an SG and if you don't know who I'm talking about it's AC/DC.

Angus Young has played an SG guitar for the entire career of the band as far as I know. If you want to get that classic rock AC/DC tone then I would suggest getting a solid sounding Gibson SG.

The old ones or the first ones produced had Les Paul written on the truss rod cap and Les Paul got upset because he hated the look of the SG and then later Gibson removed it.

UTILIZATION

Gibson SG 61 Reissue Specifications:

Manufactured in: Nashville, TN

BODY
Species: Mahogany

NECK
Species: Mahogany
Profile: 1960 slim-taper
Peghead Pitch: 17°
Thickness at 1st fret: 0.800"
Thickness at 12th fret: 0.895"
Heel Length: 0.625"
Neck Joint Location: 22th fret
Headstock Inlay: Crest

FINGERBOARD
Species: Rosewood
Scale length: 24 3/4"
Total Length: 18.012"
Nut Width: 111/16"
Width at 12th fret: 2.062"
Frets: 22
Inlays: Trapezoid
Binding: single-ply

HARDWARE
Plating Finish: Nickel
Bridge: Tune-o-matic
Tailpiece: Stopbar
Knobs: Black Top Hat with silver inserts

ELECTRONICS
Neck Pickup: '57 Classic humbuckers
Bridge Pickup: '57 Classic humbuckers
Controls: Two volume, two tone, three-way switch

Gibson Hardshell Case
Exterior: Black
Interior: White
Silkscreen: Gibson USA logo

STRINGS
Brite Wires .010-.046



SOUNDS

The tone of the SG is a more subtle Les Paul sound. You get that tight thick crunch from the mahogany wood and the less wood involved thins out the tone a little bit but not in a good or bad way,...just different way.

Another great tonal feature in this guitar is that you don't have to reach as hard for the upper fret register as you would with a Gibson Les Paul. trying to climb your way up to the 20th fret can be a bit difficult on a Les Paul, but not on the SG. You have more control of the fret board and the upper frets. The fret board seems a little more flat on top too. Just a different feel than a standard Gibson Les Paul.

OVERALL OPINION

At new these guitars come in at around $1,999. That isn't bad compared to a new Gibson Les Paul. You can even find them all over the classifieds for about 40% of that cost.

I would recommend this to anyone who loves the tone of a Les Paul but wants to thin it out a bit and have it a little bit more focuses in tone. These are great guitars and will be an iconic guitar for years to come.

In the early 60s Gibson was looking to change up the Les Paul and lower their production costs. In 1961 Gibson came out with a new version of the Les Paul and it is what we call the SG today but back then for a few years this was the Gibson Les Paul. Gibson was looking to lower the production costs of making their guitars so they simplified the design a little bit. To do this they redesigned it to have a flat top and double cutaways. They got rid of the maple top so the body is just mahogany. The early small pickguard SG's are my favorites. This guitar has a 60s profile neck so it is nice and thin and fast. It has dual Gibson 57 classic pickups. Each pickup has its own volume and tone control and are switched with a 3 way switch. It has 22 frets on a rosewood fretboard with trapezoid inlays. The headstock has 6 Gibson Kluson tuners.

UTILIZATION

One of the big advantages of the SG had over the Les Paul it was intended to replace was playability. The SG was designed in such a way to give better fret access than the earlier Les Paul. The neck is not mounted as deep into the body as is with the Les Paul. The 60s profile neck also helps playability. The 50s Gibson neck profile is very big and some people find it hard to play. This design gives it a few problems. The early SG's like this one have weak neck joints. The neck joint on SG models is very weak compared to Les Pauls or even bolt on guitars. This weak neck joint makes some SG's prone to going out of tune. With the neck mounted so far out on the body and the body being so thin and light, SG's are prone to neck dive. When playing an SG standing up you may find yourself holding up the neck due to this awkward balance between the neck and the body. This can be solved by moving the strap peg to the upper horn like on Tony Iommi's SG guitar.

SOUNDS

Due to the thinner body than a Les Paul these guitars have a brighter more crispy tone. The Classic 57 pickups are modern day imitation of the classic PAF pickup that Gibson made famous. With the Classic 57 PAF style pickups this guitar is a blues and rock machine. The 57's have just the right amount of sag in the tone so you can really work the dynamics like you would with a set of real vintage pickups. The neck pickup is super smooth and when you throw in some tone knob you can get that sour tone like you have a parked wah on. The bridge pickup has a little more bite and spank to it. With some gain you can get good classic rock tones from the bridge pickup. These pickups can handle more gain than a set of PAF's could. Because of their modern design they retain their composure longer than a set of old pickups could. If you are looking for a metal sound a set of Seymour Duncans or EMG's can drop right in and completely change the dynamics of the guitar.

OVERALL OPINION

The 61 Les Paul is one of my favorite guitars. Many people do not know th ehistory of the model. I feel bad when people call real 61-63 Les Pauls SG's. Anyways, the 61 reissue is a great guitar and a faithful replication of the 1961 Les Paul. The guitar has all the beautiful cares and bevels that the old SG's had. This guitar is versatile and very easy to play. Everyone should have an SG in their collection.

Gibson SG 61 reissue made in USA heritage cherry, classic two microphones 57 and 57 + gibson neck slim type 60's 22 frets with the famous head Open Book, as the custom, 02 volumes, 02 tone ... tun o matic .. . etc. in short the SG tradition ..... the body is a little thinner than standard ... it is very light.

UTILIZATION

the handle is very nice, but very special, it is quite wide and flat on the back, a little "U" is a bit confusing at first when you just like me a les paul with a big round profile 50's, it really feels like to have nothing in hand ... by against access to acute, it really is .... we reached the Royal 22 nd box .. no difficulty in more than one handle highway ... it's really up to the soloists ... the sound is just good in all positions, even if the most effective position is the bridge pickup with the bite and the bump in the midrange so characteristic the sound of ... what little schoolboy ....

SOUNDS

To play hard rock, this is perfect ... the sound is sharp as a les paul, thinner too, so with a little less sustain, but it also makes sense .. the guitar is vraiement light .. I feel like a toy after going on my Les paul 4.3 Kg .. For blues, I prefer the thickness sustain the les paul ... I branch out marshall class 5 head home and a marshall vintage modern 2466 head in rehearsal and concert ... and I must say that the sound is very vraiement classic 70's Gibson ... The sound ideal for heavy rock and blues rock hard rock ... I'm less convinced on metal records .. but hey it's not made for it .... it is a vocation Vintage guitar.

OVERALL OPINION

I've had a week ... and I suddenly somewhat neglected my trusty Gibson les paul ... I love the sound of this SG microphones are perfect .. (I had the same on my The paul before mounting slash signature ..) I am still a Les paul Addict fan of Slash and Gary ... More oblige but I confess that SG 61 is a great guitar, especially when it comes to play AC / DC, then I have the perfect sound ... Well then it's logical too, SG plugged into a Marshall stack with a small Wampler Plexi-drive in the middle, it helps ...