Gibson SG Standard

Mine is a clear, dark-cherry '77 SG Standard, born and bread in Nashville, Tenn. It has 22 frets on a rosewood neck, and has two-volume controls and two "tone" controls (encased, not tulip-style) and a standard 3-way selector for its 498T/490R combo humbucker pickups (stock). SGs are double cutaways and look like they have horns. Mine is a bit strange compared to the newer models, as it has rectangular fret markers as opposed to trapezoids, and it has the smaller pickguard, (which I prefer).
I give it a seven because what features it does have work perfectly for it, but it does not have the 5-way selectors that strats have or a Floyd Rose tremelo system, locked tunning, etc. It does have the most important feature there is, though -- great sound.

As I previously stated, superb sounds can be harvested from this guitar, as long as you're into some sort of rock, whether its classic Who or Kerry King-driven Slayer. Blues players also may like this guitar, but it does NOT sound like a Strat. If you're looking for that "strat sound," then get a strat. If you're looking for an LP sound w/o the backbreaking weight and high-fret limits, (or if you want to be somewhat original and not play the same kind of guitar every other player in the world plays) get an SG.
I play indie-rock stuff with an edge (all original music) and my SG is my primary (and currently, my only) axe. I run it through several FX pedals -- including a Boss Metal Zone, a Dunlop Crybaby, an MTR Time Delay and a Boss Compressor -- to a Marshall MK II 50 watt head. (Cabinet depends on the situation, but I've found my Vox 2x12 works in most places.) The result is incredible tone.
As for strings, I usually equip my SG with 9s, but I'm trying 11s out right now. The jury is still out on this one, as I'm really not a Blues/Jazz player and the wound G affects my intonation a bit.
My SG can be funky, metalish or clean, just by adjusting the settings on my guitar's controls and those on my FX and amp. (Right now, you're probably thinking, "Really? That's weird. I never would have guessed you can get different sounds by changing settings..." My point is, this guitar is not a one-trick pony as others have stated. It can do a lot.
Here are some tips: When playing clean, you want to most likely set the selctor in the "Rhythm" position (neck pic-up) as the "Treble" position (bridge pickup) is way to twangy, unless you're into obnoxious twang. The same holds true when playing with a wah pedal.
Now the opposite is true for playing with gain, as the "Treble" really ensensuates your solos as well as rhythm riffs. (Think Sabbath's War Pigs.) I would not recommend using the rhythm position in gain situations, unless you only play power chords and have no bass player. If you have play with just a little gain -- like in Blues situations -- the rythm position does work well here, as it gives out "Sunshine of Your Love"-type tones.

I bought the guitar used 15 years ago, and my action was set up nice then and it still is today. Basically, I would describe it as lightening fast, much more like an Explorer than a Les Paul.
The playability of this guitar is just plain awesome, and is one of the main reasons why I choose SGs over everything else to date.

Someone earlier said this guitar looks like an axe, and probably could be used to chop down trees. That about sums it up.
I once dropped mine on concrete (my strap came loose). The only damage was a small nick to the headstock. Everything else still works great. It's a Gibson.

Never ever dealt with them -- never had to.

I got this thing when I was 9 and have been playing it -- almost exclsuively -- ever since. I cannot fathom a day when I would get rid of it, or move on to something else. I've had Strats, Teles and a 135, but I've always come back to my SG when I want to impress people. It may not have quite the sustain and looks (flame-top, etc.) of a Les Paul, but it's much lighter, easier to play and much more original (nowadays, at least). The only problem I ever had with it -- and it's been through some hell, I assure you -- is that my original stock humbuckers went microphonic. But this was easily fixed by my local guitar tech who just waxed the coils. (They are 20 years old, for God's sake!) Other than that, no problems whatsoever.
I recommend this model to anyone wanting to step up to a Gibson. Les Pauls are extremely nice, but SGs have about the same quality and can be bought for under $500 (used, of course).
By the way, I recommend getting used gear. Not only do you save tons of money, but you figure if the guitar is 10, 20 years old and doesn't have any problems with its neck, intonation and sound, it probably won't ever develop such problems. Many of the criticisms of the newer models of this guitar is that the strings break, and the guitar doesn't stay in tune. Mine has never had these problems, and it turns 21 this year.
Pretty much a great guitar that has been used by a variety of artists, including Eric Clapton, Tony Iomi, Angus Young, Pete Towsend, Jeff Beck, Robby Krieger (The Doors), Joe Perry (before he went to LPs) and many others.

My guitar was made in 1995 in the lovey Gibson usa factory. It has 22 frets on a rosewood fingerboard. The neck and body are both made of Mahogony and it has a binding on the neck. IT has one volume and on tone for each pickup. the pickups are 490r in the neck slot and a 498t in the bridge, these are both humbuckers. it has a double cutaway body ( duh its an sg numnuts ). it also has a heratige cherry finish. Stop bar and tune-o-matic bridge. Gibson deluxe klusion type tuning pegs. it came w/ a gig bag but traded it for the brown hard shell case thats made in Canada.

I play anything thats heavy and has a beat. and this guitar does this just fine. Why else would i have bought it if it didnt do the job. before buying this guitar i also checked out a few les pauls and a couple strats. But i kept going back to the sg, mainly because angus young is one of my idols, and i like his sound. I use this w/ a marshall jcm 800 1/4 stack ( 2x12 cab ). This sounds just fine. If i want heavier i just use a boost pedal. sometimes i use a wah pedal. It has a good thump in the low end and solid round sound. You can hear each string seperately. this guitar is not noisy, my amp is. when using the neck pickup it has a nice "women tone" very bassy. good for leads. since the pickups are high output it makes it hard to get a clean tone. this may be part of me playing loud.

the guitar wasnt that well set up at the factory so i set it up myself. Its pretty easy to do your own setups on this guitar, it doesnt require many screw drivers. its action is a breeze to set and i also like it a little higher then most so i can dig into the string for a lead. The neck pickup needed to be adjusted because it was wobbleing against the pickguard. also the bridge saddle for the g string needed to be reversed because it wouldnt go back far enough to be properly intonated. Also i may replace the tuners w/ grover rotomatics like angus.

This guitar is pretty well built. Its not a start for durability but it does hold. the hardware is made of crome so its solid. The finish is fine and will last. I accidently dropped my guitar before and it didnt break. nothing happened except that the low E was crushed at the nut but the nut was fine. I changed the strings and it played just as good.

never needed it. but i guess they're good people..

i've been playing for about 6 years and i own 2 acoustics and the sg. i also have a peavey rage practice amp and the marshall jcm 800. The sg is the only electric guitar i really need but i may buy a strat to be able to get a different sound. If it were stolen i would hunt down whoever stole it and dig their heart out w/ a spoon, so dont get any ideas! This guitar can be compared to a les paul standard but why would you want to do that. An sg has its own character as does the les paul. but it is most similar the the lp standard. i love it to death and am happy with my choice. you should too.

The SG is an american made guitar. It has 22 frets and has a 3-way selector 2 voulme 2 tone controlls. Its pickup configuation is 2 Gibson 490's, H/H and are passive. It has and extremly light mahagony body with a very fast rosewood fretbord. It also has an ABR bridge and crome hardeware. Included is a hard shell case. Its macineary is simple so its good for that clasic hard rock sound.

The SG's sound has worked out really well for me. I play a variation of music witch calls for alot of versatality from my guitar,the SG almost has that. Its distortion is close to perfect in all pickup positions, but its clean sound in medeocere. In the treble position it seems to have way to much treble, though to my suprise in the middle position it has an almost blusey sound. But what can you expect from a guitar that was made to rock.

In the past i used to be a strat guy until i had a bad experence with 3 defective strat pluses! So i set out to find a higher quality guitar and chose a Gibson, i have not been disapointed yet. The Ebony finish had no flaws in it, and everything was in great working order from the day i bought it. The only problem was the factory set up. There was a slight bow in the neck and the action was slightly high. But it only took 30 minutes to do my own set up and away i went. There is one thing i hate more than anyting and thats buzz. But with my strings set very low I still dont have any more than usual.

I trust the SG very much, with its simple design theres not much to go wrong its a very solid made guitar and can see myself owning it for a very long time.

I have not yet had to deal with Gibson

Ive been playing for 3 years, but you can take me seriously because ive been trough 10 guitars trying to find the right one, and i think that ive found my ultamate hard rock guitar. I will have to buy another difrent guitar for my clean songs because the SG just wont cut it. I plug my SG into a Digitech 2112 and it sounds beautiful. I wish it had Semore duncans and i think prety soon it will. In short if your a versatle player who plays everything from Sepultura to BBking this guitar is not for you, but if you like to rip it up and play loud this is your destany.

1995 Gibson SG Standard Heritage Cherry. Stock setup with the exception that the guitar came with LP classic pickups (500T, 496R) installed. The original pickups are in the case, and I will most likely restore this back with the original pickups.
Standard Gibson electronics with a 3 way switch, and volume and tone for each pickup. It would be nice if Gibson offered coil tapping on something other that their sig models.

I love and play mostly classic Rock (Zeppelin, FLoyd) but I also love Jazz and Blues. I can get everything from heavy distortion to clean lead. The current pickups are a bit hot, and I may go back with the originals.
I practice with a Peavey Bandid Transtube 112S, and this guitar and amp combination gives me just about any sound I want.
I've played it through a Marshall 800 series full stack, and it ROCKS!

I love the neck on the guitar! All 22 frets are a breeze to get on. The finish is great, and the workmanship is fine.
The action is great, and I love the way it plays. Intonation is fine, and it stays in tune no problem. I usually play 1-3 hours a day and do little tuning after a quick initial tune when I start. It did have a very slight fret buz on the 6th string (Low E) when I got it, but I raised the bridge just a tad and it is fine. Originally no buz through the amp, so the action was just a tad low but amped fine.
The only thing that could be done a bit better is there is a small amount of glue visable around a couple frets. I plan on removing this next time I change strings, but it does not affect anything.
I bought it uses so I'm not sure if this is a factory setup or not, but the action is great.

I have just started back into playing this year (Jan), and am not gigging (YET). But I will not hesitate to use this guitar without a backup. IMO a backup is a requirement at some point, but the only thing I think could go wrong would be a broken string unless I had some sort of wierd Spinal Tap incident on stage.

N/A. I bought this used.

This is my only guitar, but I plan on keeping it. If it were stolen, I would definately purchase it again. For the $$$ it's an awesome value. Especially since I got it with two sets of pickups and I think got one hell of a deal on a 1995 in mint condition with HSC, extra pickups or no..
I played a bunch of LP's and outside of the Classic, I just did not like the neck or action as much as the SG. The only guitar I really liked better was a PRS custom 24, but for almost 4X the cost there was no question. I also really liked a Brian Moore, but that was more expensive than the PRS.
I like the separate volume and tone controls on each pickup, and control of each. A five way switch (like on the PRS) may be nice, but I'm not sure how much I'd really use it. It also is nicely balanced, and weighs much less than a LP.
I am going to purchase an effects processor (DigiTech RP7) this week, and with that I think there will be little I can not do sound wise. I love SG's necks, and sound!
Look in many great guitar players stash, and there is usually an SG lurking. I'm never sure why it's not more popular, maybe the lack of a flame maple top......

Not sure of the year... I didn't get it knew. I won it from a guy. I think we all know what an SG looks like. Similar controls to a Les Paul, but with a double cutaway, and not as "classy Looking" Two DiMarzio Humbucker Pickups. Beautiful plush hard case. I think the older ones had tremolo, but this one doesn't. I am really more into strat style guitars, I think they are much more versitile.

It is iffy in this department. I am more of a single coiul fan, so tha is one mark against it. The sound also isn't as bright as my strat. I play through Marshalls and Fenders, and I put this through my crate practice amp as well. My strat sounded better in all situations. I could get some metal sounds out of it... but I like the blues, so I wasn't real happy there. I like to associate the "Gibson Sound" with the sound of a Les Paul, and I think that Les Pauls are superior guitars

This was my biggest problem with the guitar. It is so so so much less playable than my G&L Legacy. It felt down right awkward. The front of the strap attached right behind the neck, which makes it look cooler, but it sits terribly against your stomach. It really wasn't that cleanly made either. I could play rythm on the thing pretty well, but the solos sounded dull.

It looks like an axe, and would probably do just as well as one cutting down a tree. I have to give credit where it is do, and Gibson made this thing to last.

haven't dealt with them... don't think I will

I really am not a fan of the guitar. Maybe I have just been playing strat style guitars for too long, but it just felt ridiculous in my hands. The sound was also pretty bad. Gibson already has a great dual humbucker guitar in the Les Paul, so I think they should jsut stick with that. Needless to say, I got rid of the guitar.

this is a bit of a freak as compared to the modern issued SG's, this is a '78 lefty, small-pickguard standard, it has the normal stop tailpiece, but the bridge is the rectangular schaller style, (non- angled), the pickups are the same old 498T/490R combo, its in the clear mahogany finish. there is neck inlay similar to the customs, but the blocks are a bit smaller, and they arent the fake pearloid, its the reeeeal MOP . Another thing on it is the 70's neck volute that freaked out all the traditional gibson users. Stock gibson tuners in the sealed casing, not like the tulip klusons.

This axe suits my style of playing very much , i am a devout angus young wannabe since as far back as my memory goes, classic rock with a bright crunchy overdrive is my tone of choice. The SG helps get me there, but i also am a lover of strats. ive had this axe only about a month, and ive been playing it through my 68 fender DR. I havent yet played it through my marshall half stack, but im sure the experience will be memorable. i also run through a crybaby, boss os2, Fab tone and im very happy with the results, smooth warm clean , crunchy gritty rhythm , smooth sustaining leads, whatever i want for hard rock is there, i still find it necessary to keep a strat handy to get those clean classic sounds

this thing came to me 20 years old, good condition, few scuffs, EXCELLENT setup, i tried screwing with the trussrod when i tried to lower the action, but i soon realized it was as low as it could go without buzz kicking in. hangs comfortably, not as light as i thought it would be, this weighs about as much as a medium strat.

well , time has spoken, i actually balk at how good condition a 20 year old guitar can be in. i cant help but think that its not going to stay in excellent condition for much longer. anyway,old gibsons are rock solid,

none, i am 100% my own customer support.

ive been playing just over 3 years, im a gear head pretty much , and ive been grabbing gear left and right since i started out. i play into a 76 marshall 1087 JMP,a 68 deluxe reverb and an ampeg V4B

This is a 1997 (I think!) SG Standard.

The sound is great for the kind of music I play. I put it through a a line6 Flextone amp and it's got a great rough crunchy kind of sound.

Most of my complaints are in the setup and tuning areas. Although I've been playing for well over 10 years this is the first Gibson that I've ever purchase. It needed a setup in the store and (after a trying another SG) I let the salesperson convince me that all new guitars needed a setup. I took it home and it sounded even worse (buzzing) and wouldn't stay in tune. I did the basic setup my self and had no luck. It was exchanged for another SG which had the same problems. The second guitar went through two pro setups and on the second one I was told that it needed a fret mill. By this point I had enough and took it back for a full refund (Guitar Center - they're pretty good for that even after their 30 day warranty).

I don't really have much of an opinion. From my experiences with the bridge and the intonation on an SG, these guitars need a lot of maintenance.

I called Gibson to find out if the fret mill was under warranty and if I should expect a new guitar to need a setup. They were very helpful and assured me that the work would be covered.

The SG was a dissapointment. It sounds great (except for the buzzing - but that didn't usually go through the amp), plays well, and looks awesome. But if you're picky about your instrument staying in tune or the intonation being above average you might be dissapointed - I was. I think SGs are overrated.