Gibson Alex Lifeson ES-355

2008...made in Nashville?
Standard series semi-hollow ES. Cool bypass switch for the varitone..a custom mod just like Lifeson's, but that's about it...THIS GUITAR IS NOT, NOT, I REPEAT, NOT VOS..which by Gibson's defintion means VINTAGE ORIGINAL SPEC...I have owned many early to late 70's ES-355's trying to get that perfect "Lifeson" guitar..and the 2008 Lifeson tribute guitar fails in just about everyway compared to a real 1970's Norlin era ES-355. I was very , very excited when I heard the news of this guitar..but I will eventually sell mine because it's a terrribly made new Gibson. 57 Classic humbuckers are ok. The problem with this guitar is that it's not like a 1970's ES-355, which is what Alex Lifeson has played through the many albums and eras of Rush. This is more like a Custom shop ES-355, with a white finish and a varitone bypass switch. What they should've done is made a 1970's ES-355 reissue and painted it white..

Finish is cool...not great, some really sloppy imperfections considering this is a $3800 guitar. Cool L-5 series bridge..which is correct for Lifeson's 1976 ES.

Sounds ok,, ..just ok compared to a real 1970's era 355.that's about it..nothing special. I've tried it with dozens of different setups. Full sound...good variety of sounds thanks to the varitone. I'm just disappointed becuase this is supposed to be like Lifeson's, and it's not. The body shape is all wrong..not a 70's shape..TERRIBLE volute..gets in the way of the first fret(behind).

..setup was actually ok form the factory...lots of finish flaws. If this is Gibson custom shops work...I'm going to always buy vintage Gibsons, becuase these guys are hackers @ Gibson's custom shop..at least for this guitar.

have no idea..has been in the case most of it's life...it's going to be for sale soon.

Gibson has been good with the one time I've dealt with them.

been playing a long time, own lots of gear, have lots of vintage Gibsons, have been a big Rush fan all of my life...this guitar is a big disappointment...Gibson really screwed up on this project..I feel bad for Mr. Lifeson..they have put his name on a guitar not worthy of it.

"VOS" 100% Maple Hollowbody body with maple center block, 3 piece maple neck with volute, Pleked (Only VOS instruments get the Plek job!) ebony fretboard with real mother of pearl (MOP) inlays, binding on front & rear of body & neck. Gold Maestro tremolo & bridge, Gold grovers with large tulip tuners, and two gold 57'pafs. Three way pickup selector, 6 position Varitone Circuitry and small by-pass toggle switch.
Turtoise shell pickguard with gold adjustable bracket. Custom Shop case with Alex's signature on the outside top, inner satin cover and certificate of authenticity (COA) inside. Case goodies also include the Gibson accessories kit which includes a nice cord, cleaning cloth, picks and various instruction pamphlets.

One of the best guitars I have ever played. Can do any genre of music. From Hard rock, punk, heavy metal, to new wave to country to blues. I have never played such a versatile instrument in my freakin' life.
I have had many fine instruments through out my life and have a really awesome selection to choose from at the moment so I have quite a bit of experience with sound, versatility and playability. At the moment I own 15 guitars which include Gibson, Fender, Ibanez, Jackson, and my cheapest one an Ace Frehley Epiphone. ALl my others are top notch, made in USA or Japan. My favs are my Custom Shop Ace Frehley and my 58' Les Paul VOS reissue in Bourbon Burst with a 77' Dimarzio Super Distortion in the bridge. However, now that I have the Alex, I must say that it is also one of my favs. It produces sounds which my Les Paul's just cannot do.

The are made by the Gisbon Custom shop which produces some of the worlds finest instruments. The wood selection is top notch and crafstmanship is a blend of old world with new.
I actually have Two Alex's at the moment and both are slightly different. For example, one has a lighter pickguard than the other. The pickguard positions are also slightly different. One has a pronounced volute on the back of the neck and the other is less noticable (I personally prefer the more pronounced volute). One has a bridge that has very gold saddles and the other has saddles which actually look more "VOS" than the really shinny gold color. For those of you who don't know what "VOS" means, it is a special line of Gibson's which are made exactly like the same guitars of the period with slightly aged hardware and finish and most importantly, THEY HAVE BEEN PLEKED! This is a machine that Gibson owns (made in Germany and it cost more than 1 million to buy) which they put the guitar on it and the Robot Machine does the fret work on it that is so accurate, you will get a guitar that is the most awesome playing you have ever tried!
So, gettin' back to the total fit and finish, they are very well made but they do have slight differences here and there.

It's a Gibson Custom Shop made in USA, enough said!!!

Again, It's Gibson. I have always had the most awesome customer service when I called or emailed with some questions. Fast responses and excellent service. The best in the industry in my opinion.

My two favorite bands are Rush and Kiss. My guitar heros are Ace Frehley and Alex Lifeson.
I own an Ace Frehley Custom Shop and an Alex Lifeson Custom Shop. What more do I need!

Overall, the Alex Lifeson is an awesome playing instrument, easy to play, very versatile, sounds amazing, and beautiful to look at. It's not a light intrument for sure due to the fact that it is large bodied and made of mostly maple which is a very heavy, hard wood. But, the sound makes up for the weight because it sounds awesome!