All user reviews for the Gibson Flying V Faded 3-Pickup

Made in the USA! This axe is great but comes with some corners cut such as a solt shell bag and cheap tuners...It took several adjustments to get it up to par but now it's quite nice...

Classic Gibson body style, the Flying V has that comfortable, familiar feeling of a favorite guitar.


Features
Manufactured in: Nashville, TN

BODY
Body Species: Mahogany

NECK
Species: Mahogany
Profile: Flying V Rounded
Peghead Pitch: 17°

FINGERBOARD
Species: Rosewood
Scale Length: 24-3/4"
Number of Frets: 22
Nut Width: 1.695"
Inlays: Dot

HARDWARE
Plating Finish: Chrome
Tailpiece: Stopbar
Bridge: Tune-o-matic
Knobs: Black Numbered
Tuners: Vintage-style Tulip

ELECTRONICS
Neck Pickups: 490R humbucker
Middle Pickups: 490R humbucker
Bridge Pickups: 490T humbucker
Controls: One volume, one tone, six-position rotary selector

OTHER
Strings: Brite Wires .010-.046


UTILIZATION

All frets accessible and play nicely....Even though there are 3 pickups, you can never use more than two at a time...

The design is classic and cool...But you also have to factor in the fact that if you want to sit down and play, you can't hold it like a normal guitar...You must straddle the V over one leg and it's odd and uncomfortable...

I personally changed the tuning knobs and it stays in tune much better than when I first got it...

SOUNDS

This guitar sounds really good through every amp I own- an that's a lot of amps! It does a nice brutal crunch but can get surprisingly pretty cleans too...

Make no mistakes, this is a rock guitar...Designed to rock...Sure it can do more, but if you're buying one of these, it's safe to say you're a rocker...

OVERALL OPINION

I like the easy access to all frets and its lightweight style best...I don't like the cheap tuners that cane on it nor did I appreciate the lack of any setup or calbration

The sound is all Gibson given the 49X pickups and mahogany body...I have many guitars and this is a middle of the roader...I haver some friends that just love it though...Great axe for the money but a very low-level Gibson...

The Gibson Faded Flying V 3 is basically a standard version of the Flying V in the famous "faded" finish that has been very popular for a number of years, but it adds in a changed up electronics layout with a middle Gibson humbucker and slightly changed electronics, featuring just a single volume and tone with a rotary pickup selector. Otherwise, the core features of the Flying V are the same as stock... mahogany body and neck, rosewood fretboard, 22 frets, Kluson tuners, a tuneomatic bridge and stopbar tailpiece and the typical Gibson ceramic humbuckers. They're built in the USA just like the other Faded Gibsons... a great value for the money for sure.

UTILIZATION

The design of this guitar is pretty ergonomic. I like the Gibson V's more than an Explorer or similar Jackson V's just because I find them lighter and easier to hold. This is certainly helped by the slick and easy playing faded finish that doesn't inhibit my hands in the same way that the typical glossy nitro finish does. It's got good upper fret access as well, and balances well in both sitting and standing positions.

Getting a good tone out of this guitar is reasonable for sure. I'm not particularly a fan of that third pickup and don't feel it's needed or that it does much to aid the tone, but other than that, it has a pretty great raunchy rock or metal type of tone. It's meaty and clear, but less compressed than many modern ESP/Jackson type guitars with higher output pickups. Pretty cool for sure.


SOUNDS

This guitar, like many other faded Gibsons, seems to excel at higher gain type sounds through more modern amplifier rigs. The Flying V 3 pickup sounds pretty similar to the standard Flying V Faded due to the similarities in construction. I honestly didn't bother with that middle pickup a whole lot because it got in my way and a middle position pickup (especially a humbucker) is not something I normally use in my style anyway, and I find that the higher output model in this guitar doesn't really sound all that stellar for hard rock tones like the neck pickup or the bridge, so I'm not really sure why it's there. Oh well... I suppose for some players that third pickup might work well.

OVERALL OPINION

All in all I think the Gibson Faded 3 Pickup V is not a bad guitar for someone looking for a unique take on the Flying V. It plays well and sounds good, but the middle pickup really doesn't offer much of an improvement on the standard Flying V. They are harder to find but honestly I'd rather just get a standard Faded V and save the space for my picking hand. If you want that third pickup it might be worth looking into, but most players probably wouldn't, as it doesn't really improve the sound greatly in my honest opinion.

The Flying V faded is Gibsons budget version of the Flying V. Gibson noticed that people were starting to like worn in looking guitars. They decided to start a line of Faded guitars that do not have the final clear coat on them to give guitar players a line of new guitars that look old. The guitar is made from solid mahogany with a mahogany set neck. The neck is 22 frets with a rosewood fretboard. The neck is not bound. It has two volume knobs and one tone knob and a 6 way chicken head pickup selector. The tuners are non-locking as well as the bridge which is a tune-o-matic. On this version you get 3 Gibson 490s which are mellower than what you normally get in these guitars.

UTILIZATION

These guitars are pretty comfortable. They have a lightweight design that is a welcome change compared to many other Gibsons. Because of the V design the upper frets are easier to reach than on a Les Paul. The set neck design means there is a bit of a heel at the neck joint but on this model it is not bad. Because there is no clear coat on the final the guitar feels very smooth and it does not ever get sticky. Because of the shape you may have to play in a classical position when you play sitting down but this is not a problem for me because I always play in a classical position. Some models have a rubber grip on the bottom so you can play them in a normal position but this one does not.

SOUNDS

The 490 pickups in this guitar have a slightly mellower tone than what you would normally get in this guitar. The 3 pickup configuration gives you many tonal combinations. The pickup selecting is done with a 6 way chicken head knob that takes some getting use to. The first position is the bridge position. Which gives you your traditional trebley bridge tones. The next position is the bridge pickup and the middle much like a strat. The middle pickup gives more low end and thickness to the bridge tone but it can also get a bit muddy. The next position is just the middle position. I am not a fan of middle pickups by themselves. I prefer the middle pickup when it is mixed with something else. Like in the next position which is the middle and the neck. This mostly is your neck position tones with a bit more clarity and high end from the middle pickup. After that you get your neck position tones which are your traditional super smooth bluesy and jazzy tones. This is where I do most of my lead playing because I like the smooth sound. Finally you get your traditional middle position with your neck and bridge pickup. I like this sound for cleans because you can get the smoothness of the neck with some clarity from the bridge. It is similar to the neck and middle in sound on this particular guitar.

OVERALL OPINION

The Gibson Flying V faded is not a bad guitar. This model is just a way for Gibson to get more life out of the model. This model is not bad either. Some people may want the extra tonal capabilities of the middle pickup. Not many Gibson users care for a middle pickup because they have gotten by without it for so long. If you are dead set on having a middle pickup by all means get this guitar but if you are just looking for a decently priced Flying V the normal Faded version is plenty of guitar for the money.