Gibson J-45 Modern Classic

Brand new Gibson J45 Rosewood. Comes with a case and factory installed baggs pickup.

Sounds great except for the setup and pickup problems.
I also play a Martin D18 and a couple of Matons (EM 325c & MJ 707.
It is a great addition to my family of acoustics.
I've always wanted that classic Gibson acoustic sound.

This is the rosewood J45 and some of the finish around the neck joint is sloppy.
From day one I had to change the nut as it was too low. It had buzzing issues.
The BIG issue is that it seems to have a problem with the way the saddle sits on the pickup ribbon. The volume balance changes and at the moment the bottom E has no volume at all. I have had this back to the shop over 6 times. I emailed Baggs and they recommended I place a small strip of electrical tape under the bridge. No good. I've had the balance change mid song. I'm gigging 3 nights a week and I can't rely on it.
I'm going to pull it out and put a K & K fantastik in it. I have them in other instruments and they sound great are cheap in price and idiot proof.
Do yourself a favour and be sure change the pickup.

Great guitar. Pickup system not worth a cent. I've battled with this thing for 4 months and I've now given up on the pickup.
Spare yourself the frustration and time waste. Don't buy a J45 and rely on the pickup.
I can't gig with this guitar until I remedy the pickup problem.
The Gibson case is useless. It tears and scars up from day one. Get a hiscox.
It's a shame that a $4999 guitar has to have a new case and pickup from the get go.

I emailed Gibson and got no response.
I emailed Baggs and waited a week to be told "try some electrical tape under the saddle".
The local shop has been great. Seems to be the way of it these days. The manufacturer leaves it all up to the retailer.
This guitar was my second choice. It is a replacement for a J150 that was sent back because the neck twisted. That took 6 months of sending it away where it was heat treated and returned to me but it did it again.

The guitar is exactly what you expect from Gibson.
Beautiful sound. Nice to play. No customer service, problem with the finish and useless electronics and case.
If you want a great sound and frustration and heart break and you have money to throw away buy a Gibson J45 Rosewood.
Oh and did I mention that this was a replacement of a J150 that was sent back because the neck twisted.
I love my Martin D18, in fact even my cheap Matons seem very price relevant. Above all they're reliable and I didn't have to spend more money and time on them after I'd already paid a premium.
I don't like being screwed but at least kiss me !

2008 J-45 Modern Classic. Not many bells and whistles. New Modern Classic line is a nice mix of traditional design with a few modern features. The built-in pickup is nice, and the Grover tuners are great. Still just a simple mahogany dreadnaught. That's how i like it.

Beautiful, sweet tone that J-45's are famous for. Not as loud as a D-18 or an Advanced Jumbo, but sounds rich and complex. I might play my D-18 for country and bluegrass stuff, but a J-45 is unequalled when accompanying a voice. Great for fingerstyle stuff too.

Gorgeous sunburst finish gives just a little flash to a fairly plain guitar. Nobody does sunburst like Gibson. It's beautiful. Stock action seems good. Not too high, but not so low that it kills the tone. Frets are well dressed (i wish Gibson electrics were this good). Endpin jack is antique bronze color, while the tuners are chrome. Why is that? Stock bridge pins are cheesy, but authentic.

Nitro finish requires a little extra care, but that's expected. This guitar will last a lifetime.

Great warranty. Hard to reach them by email.

Montana Gibsons are some of the best ever, and equal to anything out there. Lots of newer and flashier models out there from Gibson and others, but a J-45 is hard to beat. They have a unique sound, look great, and the short scale makes them nice to play. It's not a cheap guitar, but still a great value for a premium acoustic.

The Guitar is from 1985 and is called J-45E because of its built in speaker and volumeknob on top of the side. The colour is in honeyburst which is quite rare for being a J-45, (actually the only J-45 i have ever seen in this colour) solid spruce top, solid mahogany back and sides. This one is built a couple of years before they started in Bozeman, its made in Nashville.

This one is from 1985 and it was the first year Gibson reintroduced the roundshoulder since 1969 i think. With the J-45 back to the roots model it feels like Gibson is being sober up after being drunk for years " We have been making these strange things with the J-45 for 16 years, let's make them like they should be." The guitar is very light and got a nice dry woody tone, it is also very loud. You barely have to touch the strings. I think this is the most versatile acoustic i have ever played. You can fingerpick it or strum, it responds real well to both. Strum a G chord on this one and you are sold forever. All other guitars i have played have sounded best with new strings played for a couple of days, after that the sound just get worse. This J-45 sounds just better and better after weeks of playing ! This guitar with its yellowed bindings and aged honeyburst looks and sounds like it's fifty years old

No gaps, nothing loose,no flaws other than normal dings after almost 23 years of use, solid as a rock. The guy who had it befor me had never adjusted the neck so it was to much of a bow on it, i adjusted the neck with some small adjustmnets everyday (Better safe than sorry)Now it plays like a dream ! It is made in Nashville before the climate-controlled place in Bozeman Montana, so unfortunately the top has two small repaired cracks, it just adds to the patina though.

Rock solid !

I have owned 17 acoustic guitars and played both Martins and Taylors and i own two Guilds. I have been playing since 1986. I play both fingerstyle and strum, blues, folk, bluegrass. My rosewood Guild rings better but the J-45 is louder, more versatile and has more quality in its tone, it beats all the other brands I've tried. If I lost it i would sure get another one, I don??t think I would get a hold af a honeyburst though.

It's a J-45. You know.... slope shouldered, spruce top, mahogany back sides and neck, beautiful sunburst. Classic understated looks.
Here's the specs-
http://www.gibson.com/en%2Dus/Divisions/Gibson%20Acoustic/Modern%20Classics/Round%20Shoulder%20Dreadnought/J%2D45/

I play lots of styles but with this... Americana and not radio, formulaic, over-produced, pop, poseur country. Rich and balanced sound. Clear, unboomy bottom end with sparkly highs.

I was really surprised by the sound of the pickup. "If it walks like a duck and talks like a duck, then it's a piezo." Except here! I plugged it straight into a Deluxe and man.... it sounds bloody acoustic. As I turned it up loud, real loud, the high end was a little brittle. Add a preamp like you are supposed to (Sansamp Acoustic DI) and it is back. This is the best sounding stock pickup ever.

One problem- the high E was a little anemic through the pickup. I found out the pickup is a LR Baggs Element and then I looked at the Baggs web site for the installation guide to figure out I needed to move the pickup a little south. Voila!

This was hand picked in Bozeman. The grain of the top is tight and flawless. The finish is high gloss and just plain, darn perfect.
The frets are polished and the ends are dressed. The setup was perfect.

It's a non-Norlin Gibson. Bozeman made guitars rock. This is the Golden Era for Gibson.

It's a Gibson. If you are the original owner, its covered forever.

I have been playing since 1969. This compares to my Martin HD-28V. I would take the 45 over the 28... if I really had to pick. If it was stolen, I would track the thief down and castrate him with a plastic fork.

There are lots of new J-45 models. This Modern Classic was suggested by a VERY reliable source as the 45 of choice. Gibson modeled the new 45's after a very special '51 which I have played. While not a 56 yr old, it has the same voice. I can't wait to see what it sounds like half a decade from now. I will probably be dead but I am taking this with me.