Gibson Special '60s Tribute or Epi's Ltd Ed 50th Anniversary 1961 SG Special???

[Alex]

Well after the overwhelming comments for the Gibson over the Epi (well I may break down and get the Epi too) I ordered the Gibson Special '60s Tribute from our SPONSOR, Sweetwater. It should be shipped today or tomorrow. Thanks for all the comments and discussion.

 

[Kevy Nova]

What color did you order? The one thing that I prefer about the 60s Tribute over the Faded Classic is the color options. One of my students has a 60s Tribute in Natural and I just LOVE it!

 

[Alex]

I went with the Worn Cherry. I really considered the Natural but in the end I had to go with cherry.

 

[saxosim]

[quote author=Tom link=topic=21748.msg261603#msg261603 date=1315438785]
I went with the Worn Cherry. I really considered the Natural but in the end I had to go with cherry.
[/quote]

Hi Tom great choice lovely looking guitar in either colour and that video I saw hearing the sound was amazing, let us know how you get on, hopefully I have secured a deal on my first SG just waiting to hear back, fingers crossed :)

 

[Kevy Nova]

I know that I don't have to tell you, we want pics when you get it! ;D

 

[Alex]

It just arrived and my wife said it looks great. (I am out of town until tomorrow so I don't get to see it till then). I'll take pictures when I get back home.

 

[Alex]

Well the guitar arrived and although I haven't had much time to even look at it I wanted to take a couple of pictures. First of all let me say that ordering from Sweetwater is a breeze. I like the fact that you can see pictures of the actual guitar you are ordering. They had five in the color I wanted and three of them were really noticeable in the fact that it was a multi-part body. You could easily see the seam and in this faded finish believe me it is no ticable. The fourth one wasn't too bad but I picked the one that didn't appear to have any seam (upon closer in person inspection I can say that there is one but it's hard to see). Free shipping got it to me in three days (1 day to process and prepare the guitar for shipment and two actual days in a FedEx truck/plane.

While the gig-bag is okay, I don't like the fact that it doesn't unzip further making you slide your guitar in and out the side. I know that this might be a safety concern to prevent dropping the guitar out of it but it also makes it more prone to scratching. So I bought a hardshell case. I got one off eBay and it even had the black satin cover. So the guitar is safe and sound in a case now. Enough of me talking here is what you wanted to see.

 

[saxosim]

Wow Tom that is a gorgeous guitar, does it play as sweet as it looks? I bet you are well pleased with it?

Cheers :)

[quote author=Tom link=topic=21748.msg261751#msg261751 date=1315856760]
Well the guitar arrived and although I haven't had much time to even look at it I wanted to take a couple of pictures. First of all let me say that ordering from Sweetwater is a breeze. I like the fact that you can see pictures of the actual guitar you are ordering. They had five in the color I wanted and three of them were really noticable in the fact that it was a multi-part body. You could easily see the seam and in this faded finish believe me it is noticable. The fourth one wasn;t too bad but I picked the one that didn't appear to have any seam (upon closer in person inspection I can say that there is one but it's hard to see). Free shipping got it to me in three days (1 day to process and prepar the guitar for shipment and two actual days in a FedEx truck/plane.

While the gig-bag is okay, I don;t like the fact that it doesn't unzip further making you slide your guitar in and out the side. I know that this might be a safety concern to prevent dropping the guitar out of it but it also makes it more prone to scratching. So I bought a hardshell case. I got one off eBay and it even had the black satin cover. So the guitar is safe and sound in a case now. Enough of me talking here is what you wanted to see.
[/quote]

 

[Kevy Nova]

Beautiful!!!!

 

[Alex]

I have played it a little and it does sound nice but different than the humbuckers I am used to. Overall I am very pleased with it.

 

[Roscoe]

I played a cherry colored Epiphone '61 SG Special last week, and granted it was a nice guitar
it was like playing a toy....mainly because it was super polycoated.
I just didn't get the feeling of anything Special holding and playing it, and the tuners could do a better job...maybe a set-up would fix that
For $399 it's a steal, but I just seriously would want to see the other colors available
especially the TV yellow and arctic white versions.
Nice, yes.
Got me gassing for one without question? No

 

[dexfx69]

Old thread but adding my 2 cents.

I own both. Both great sounding instruments. The Epiphone is adorned with neck binding and multi-ply pickguard, and gloss body - the Gibson is not. The Epiphone sounds very vintage with the wraparound bridge, which the Gibson doesn't have. The Epi has the bridge pup a little higher toward the neck than a standard Gibson SG. The Epi is almost 1/4" thicker than a Gibson SG. The Gibson has slightly softer sanded edges in some places. For the price, the Gibson is a higher quality instrument in terms of quartersawn neck, plek, etc, just with very spartan decoration...and the Epi is a fairly high quality instrument, with binding/PG/gloss finish so it looks nicer.

The resale value of the Epi will be lower dollar for dollar, just because it's not a Gibson.

If I had to choose between the 2 - not being concerned with the status/name on the headstock or resale value, I'd take the Epiphone due to the sound and looks - but with the caveat that it might need a fret levelling job in order to match the Gibson.