50th Anniversary 24-fret SG question

[k-train]

So, I have been wanting a black 61RI with chrome/nickel hardware for a long, long time. This 24-fret Anniversary model seems perfect... almost.

They finally have the specs up on Gibson's site, and they are even taking pre-orderds at MF. I'm stoked to see that they are going for around $1300-$1400, but I am slightly confused about the neck profile. They are saying it has a "comfortable rounded profile", which makes me think it's got the chunkier neck of the current production standards. That would be a major deal breaker for me, so I'm hoping someone can clear that up. Thanks!!

[your idol]

Originally Posted by k-train

So, I have been wanting a black 61RI with chrome/nickel hardware for a long, long time. This 24-fret Anniversary model seems perfect... almost.

They finally have the specs up on Gibson's site, and they are even taking pre-orderds at MF. I'm stoked to see that they are going for around $1300-$1400, but I am slightly confused about the neck profile. They are saying it has a "comfortable rounded profile", which makes me think it's got the chunkier neck of the current production standards. That would be a major deal breaker for me, so I'm hoping someone can clear that up. Thanks!!

i dont know how that would work/feel at the heel and this would instantly make this a neckdive machine. as with all other 24 fret board SG id expect its gonna be an ebony board and an almost razor thin neck profile. every 24 fret SG ive ever played has had the thinnest neck profile ive ever felt and id assume this would be no different. we all know how awesome and accurate those descriptions can be but im sure Gibson is treating this no different than any other 24 fret SG

[Deftone]

It looks thin...

[benjammin420]

it does look thin

[Deftone]

Originally Posted by k-train

So, I have been wanting a black 61RI with chrome/nickel hardware for a long, long time. This 24-fret Anniversary model seems perfect... almost.

+1

I like it. I'd prefer gloss black finish and I don't need 24 frets, but I love the small pickguard in black. Price is right, too.

[b3john]

Originally Posted by Deftone

+1

I like it. I'd prefer gloss black finish and I don't need 24 frets, but I love the small pickguard in black. Price is right, too.

I've been waiting for this exact guitar for years, possibly with the exception of the "50th" logo on the headstock.

[OldBenKenobi]

This thing would be perfect if it had an ebony board.

[k-train]

Originally Posted by Deftone

It looks thin...

That looks very, very nice!

[b3john]

Originally Posted by OldBenKenobi

This thing would be perfect if it had an ebony board.

No kidding! It would be great to possibly find one with a nice dark tint to the rosewood, but you can almost guarantee the guy putting the boards on these will wind up picking only the reddest rosewood to go with black guitars. That probably pisses me off more than any single thing that Gibson does on a regular basis (Fender is even worse).

C'mon, Gibson, you put ebony boards on white guitars, so why not the black ones, too?

Oh, and an inlay at the 24th fret wouldn't suck either.

[Duane24]

and this is why guitars are one of a handful of items you shouldn't be buying online without touching first.

I own my guitar after shopping craigslist and playing a whole bunch of guitars, they were all gibson SG's, but when i played this one, it felt right.

and after that experience I would NEVER buy a guitar off the internet.

[b3john]

OK, the more I think about this, the more I'm just going to have to have one of these.

It may not be my exactly what I want in an SG, but it's probably as close as I'm ever going to get (ebony, 24 frets, small pickguard, trap inlays) from a production model.

Still, as I look at the size of that "50th Anniversary" silkscreen, I'm thinking that's about twice as large as it should be. They should have used the holly inlay common on SGs instead, and put that silkscreen on the back of the headstock. I'll wait to see what it looks like IRL, but I'm already thinking what it would take to refinish the front of the headstock to a basic black without affecting the Gibson mother-of-pearl inlay...

John (obsessed by the little details)

[dem00n]

You guys know its 2/13/11 right? You still have 10 more months for other "50th Anniversary SG's" to come out. I highly doubt this will be the only one.
Give it time, keep your anger it.

[b3john]

Originally Posted by dem00n

You guys know its 2/13/11 right? You still have 10 more months for other "50th Anniversary SG's" to come out. I highly doubt this will be the only one.
Give it time, keep your anger it.

Yeah, there will be others, but I'm pretty sure this will be the only 24 fret model...

[k-train]

Originally Posted by dem00n

You guys know its 2/13/11 right? You still have 10 more months for other "50th Anniversary SG's" to come out. I highly doubt this will be the only one.
Give it time, keep your anger it.

Yes, but as i said earlier, this one is pretty much spot on what I've wanted for a long time... so long as the neck isn't chunky.

[k-train]

Originally Posted by Duane24

and this is why guitars are one of a handful of items you shouldn't be buying online without touching first.

I own my guitar after shopping craigslist and playing a whole bunch of guitars, they were all gibson SG's, but when i played this one, it felt right.

and after that experience I would NEVER buy a guitar off the internet.

I dunno. I have never gotten a guitar from the net that has been a disappointment. That said, I've also been very, very selective about what I've bought in those instances. Obviously, the most ideal thing would be to play the guitar first, but that's not always possible. For example, this SG is a limited edition run, so the local guitar store would have to special order it for me... they are not gonna just happen to have one. If they order it, they are going to expect me to buy it, so it's not really that much different from ordering a guitar online. That is why I started the thread... to get an idea of the one question I had ( the size of the neck), before I have them order one.

[Deftone]

Originally Posted by k-train

I dunno. I have never gotten a guitar from the net that has been a disappointment.

Same.

[Duane24]

Originally Posted by k-train

I dunno. I have never gotten a guitar from the net that has been a disappointment. That said, I've also been very, very selective about what I've bought in those instances. Obviously, the most ideal thing would be to play the guitar first, but that's not always possible. For example, this SG is a limited edition run, so the local guitar store would have to special order it for me... they are not gonna just happen to have one. If they order it, they are going to expect me to buy it, so it's not really that much different from ordering a guitar online. That is why I started the thread... to get an idea of the one question I had ( the size of the neck), before I have them order one.

quite the expensive risk. a guitar is just one of those things id have to touch before i bought it, no exceptions for me. It needs to be just right, maybe you guys are ok with the guitar just feeling alright, for me it needs to be perfect.

[b3john]

Originally Posted by Duane24

quite the expensive risk. a guitar is just one of those things id have to touch before i bought it, no exceptions for me. It needs to be just right, maybe you guys are ok with the guitar just feeling alright, for me it needs to be perfect.

You just need to buy from a dealer with a no-questions-asked returns policy, in case you aren't happy for any reason.

Back on topic, does anyone know the expected ship dates for these?


Gratuitous "Beauty Shot"

[OldBenKenobi]

Originally Posted by b3john

No kidding! It would be great to possibly find one with a nice dark tint to the rosewood, but you can almost guarantee the guy putting the boards on these will wind up picking only the reddest rosewood to go with black guitars. That probably pisses me off more than any single thing that Gibson does on a regular basis (Fender is even worse).

C'mon, Gibson, you put ebony boards on white guitars, so why not the black ones, too?

Oh, and an inlay at the 24th fret wouldn't suck either.

The bolded is pure wisdom. I hate the look of a brown board juxtaposed with a black body.

[toppsseller]

Potential Stupid Question Alert

How do they get the extra frets in there. Do they move the pickup back or something else? Is it just the space where a pickguard would be.

[KRaZeE]

Looks to me like the extra frets just eat up the space where the extra little pickguard piece would be.

[Goldtop77]

I've often wondered why they didn't just put a couple frets there since that space isn't being used.

[benjammin420]

Originally Posted by toppsseller

Potential Stupid Question Alert

How do they get the extra frets in there. Do they move the pickup back or something else? Is it just the space where a pickguard would be.

the pickups are in the normal positions, the extra fret space is always there, why they dont put 24 frets on more models is beyond comprehension

[toppsseller]

I'm torn between this 50th anniversary model and the white SG that MF and GC offer for $1,299. I like the classic 57's that the anniv. model has but I like the ebony board that white SG has. The extra frets are nice, but I don't know how often I would use them

[H.E.L.Shane]

Originally Posted by benjammin420

the pickups are in the normal positions, the extra fret space is always there, why they dont put 24 frets on more models is beyond comprehension

This is my guess...

because the bottom of the fretboard (on most) sg's is flush with the top of the body....to keep everything else the same.. tooling, neck angle, mortise and tenon..ect.. you have to add a shim (albeit a small one) under the board and to the sides of the tennon where the extra frets are as the neck angle will carry them above the surface of the body = more labor = more money

[bryvincent]

i want one with a floyd

[k-train]

Originally Posted by toppsseller

I'm torn between this 50th anniversary model and the white SG that MF and GC offer for $1,299. I like the classic 57's that the anniv. model has but I like the ebony board that white SG has. The extra frets are nice, but I don't know how often I would use them

I have one of those in silverburst w/ ebony board. I went to the local GC to try them out and played 3 of them... the silverburst, a honeyburst w/ zebras, and the white one. I also played a 61RI.

The 61RI was obviously a better guitar, but not $800 better. The coil-tapped Burstbuckers in the others sound good, but the '57 Classics sound so much better in an SG.

The Silverburst and Honeyburst were both nicely built, great playing and sounding guitars.

The white one kinda blew. It didn't sound or feel anywhere as good as the others, and it was noticeably much heavier that the others.

[toppsseller]

Originally Posted by k-train

I have one of those in silverburst w/ ebony board. I went to the local GC to try them out and played 3 of them... the silverburst, a honeyburst w/ zebras, and the white one. I also played a 61RI.

The 61RI was obviously a better guitar, but not $800 better. The coil-tapped Burstbuckers in the others sound good, but the '57 Classics sound so much better in an SG.

The Silverburst and Honeyburst were both nicely built, great playing and sounding guitars.

The white one kinda blew. It didn't sound or feel anywhere as good as the others, and it was noticeably much heavier that the others.

Thanks for the input. I had a white one for a little bit and then sold it.
I like the silverburst color a lot but, I have a silverburst LP Studio and I just ordered the Dethklok Explorer in Silverburst. I found some decent pics of the the antique ebony finish and I don't really like that matte finish. Maybe a Black SG Standard will do although I kinda want a thin neck.

[k-train]

Ok, so now they have all the specs up for these new SGs on the Gibson site. One thing that really stood out to me is that they have the neck profile for the 50th Anniversary model AND the SG Standard listed as "SG Rounded" profile. I know for a fact that I HATE the chunky profile of modern standards, so I'm really starting to think I might need to pass on the 50th Ann. and either get another GC exclusive SG standard w/ 60's neck and coil taps (maybe the Honeyburst this time), a used 61RI, or a MIJ.

[Deftone]

That's a bummer. I do prefer the slim neck, but I actually don't mind the 50's neck at all.

Why not take it to a good luthier and have the neck shaved down?