Gibson All American Special II

Like all Gibson's USA, it was already a year old when I bought it in 95, so I guess a 94. It has 24 frets, with nice in-lays - a real basic, black, smooth-looking guitar. Has a unique cross though; Resembles a Gibson SG from the front, but has a cut-away back like a Fender. 2 single pickups, vol and tone cotrol, 3 switch tuners, whammy bar.

Gives a bright bluesy sound, which fit was I was looking for at the time. Not a rockin' guitar, but nice for finger-pickin, soloing or light second guitar. The sound never really gelled with my amps distortion, but did sound real sweet through a phaser. But I did find the sound a bit limiting, it's nice, but just lost interest in it as my style required a lot more chords and this guitar couldn't cut it there.

The guitar was set up OK, know noticable flaws in the appearance - but started having major problems with sound after continued play (see durability below)

Not mine. Buttons started coming off, the guitar scratched real easily, and worst of all - I couldn't keep the damn thing in tune for a full session. Especially the D and G strings - which drove me nuts, because they went out of tune faster than the other strings, making for a real ugly sound. I even took it to a place near me to have it fixed and they said there was nothing they could do for it. Heavy chord players be warned!

I've been playing for 5, years I currently switched to acoustic only. I like sturdy guitars with dull strings you can beat the hell out of. This guitar is OK, but it's kinda wimpy in both feel and sound. If a guitar can't take a whoopin', then it aint worth having.
*I'm looking for a good-solid tough acoustic-electric if anybody is selling - I'll include my e-mail below.

Gibson All American Special II - 1997 model, solid mahogany body on Melody Maker pattern, dual cutaway; two single-coil pickups, one volume control, one tone control, three-way pickup switch; vibrola tailpiece (string-through, down-only vibrato arm a la Stratocaster); mahogany set neck, 24 frets on a rosewood board with dot shell inlays, 24 3/4" scale, 1 11/16" nut width; Grover tuners three-on-a-side; opaque ebony finish (also available in dark wine burst). I bought this guitar because I needed something inexpensive with single coils. I like Gibson necks because they are usually not as shallow as Fenders, and when I saw this I thought it had a nice purposeful look to it. I paid $450 for this guitar brand new; the dealer added a Gibson Les Paul Custom plush hard shell case for $60, so I felt OK about the deal. The finish has some subsurface splash-looking marks that I can't seem to get out; other than that, it was pristine when I bought it.

The guitar is just fine for my purposes. I needed a bright, biting tone for a couple of tunes in my band's set, and this fits the bill. The pickups seem to be very high output. I use them blended and can get a nice hollow tone if I roll back the tone pot half way. Nothing fat about the sound here, but it is very warm and bright. It can approach twang territory, but is a little harsh in the upper treble reaches. I like the sounds, although it is not as versatile as the same guitar with P-90s or humbuckers would be. I have to say there is very little noise from the pickups, no RF or any other kind of hum unless the amp gain is way up.

The dealer set up the guitar for me, but I had to do some tweaking once I had played it for a day. The action now is superb. The neck is narrower than what I am accustomed to and the action is lower, as well - I'm not used to hearing fret buzz; so I raised it just slightly at the bridge saddles. I also put a set of .010s on it to replace the .009s that were standard. Vast improvement in action, bendability and tone. Everything about the construction is flawless, except for finish goofs that you can only see in certain light conditions(and I don't know whose fault those are, but they're not mine). The controls are all smooth, quiet and solid, as one would expect from a Gibson product.

I have no doubts this will do a fine job for me. I don't bang or flail on the guitar at any rate, but this is a solid piece. I bought it because it is not at all fancy - no binding on body or neck, no inlays, no active electronics - just a sturdy single-coil axe for textural playing.

Don't know - never had a problem with a Gibson that I neede to take back to the company, but I'd bet they're pretty good about it. The guitar has a lifetime warranty.