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Post by benttop (Steve) on Feb 23, 2006 18:15:05 GMT -7
Anyone notice this product announcement? Looks like I'll be needing six Stingrays now... ;D www.gibsondigital.com/
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Post by bluzsteel on Feb 25, 2006 9:07:38 GMT -7
oh man a line 6 paul ...the horror, will never replace my R-8.
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Post by benttop (Steve) on Feb 25, 2006 16:53:09 GMT -7
Horror is one word... bewildered is another. I can't figure out what in the world this thing is supposed to do for me that I can't already do with an analog guitar - other than maybe it's slightly quieter.
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Post by tele1962 on Feb 26, 2006 8:48:26 GMT -7
Horror is one word... bewildered is another. I can't figure out what in the world this thing is supposed to do for me that I can't already do with an analog guitar - other than maybe it's slightly quieter. Me too. Bewildered. I'd like to see the numbers from Gibson as to where their sales of re-issues are tracking. A local dealer told me that while Fender's Custom Shop is enjoying some solid sales, Gibson's sales have not been up to par on re-issues. They havn't really presented the company with "new market dollars". A foray into Digital isn't expensive innovation, and matching this marketing tool to the prestige of the Les Paul platform is a logical move. Gentlemen, this is marketing, it's not an attempt to "build a better guitar". A new generation of purchasers is what they seek, and they havn't been able to do it the way other companies have. I'm an ex Gibson franchise holder, and this isn't a particularly proud moment for us, and current franchise holders say the same thing privately, with all hopes that it will sell of course!!
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Post by billyguitar on Feb 26, 2006 8:59:37 GMT -7
I would assume it to be more of the Roland kind of thing, at least I hope it would be more complex than the Line 6. Otherwise, what's the point?
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Post by benttop (Steve) on Feb 26, 2006 10:53:36 GMT -7
Well that's just the thing billyguitar - this thing doesn't produce any sounds other than guitar sounds. At least the Line6 Variax comes to the table to present dozens of different guitar tones. The digital Les Paul comes to the table with one set of sounds - who knows what they sound like - and the ability to have a separate amp on each string. What? Why would I EVER want to do that?
Maybe having separate signals for each string would be nice in some recording contexts, but it sure isn't a live performance advantage that I can imagine.
Gibson's sales are down because they charge way too much for guitars that are not built any better than an average guitar IMO. With guitars like Grosh, PRS, Suhr, Lentz, and many, MANY more offering guitars of obviously superior manufacture at half the price of the top end Gibsons, it's not exactly a surprise to see their sales down. I haven't owned one in about five years here, and I haven't seen one that offers some compelling reason to buy, other than the oldies.
That article in USA today framed the CEO as the savior of the company, and maybe he did save it back in the '80's. But he's not listening to his customers, or his dealers or he wouldn't think this new all digital Les Paul was such a great thing. It's a solution looking for a problem to solve....
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Post by JChance on Feb 26, 2006 12:58:00 GMT -7
Weird.
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Post by billyguitar on Feb 26, 2006 14:47:56 GMT -7
If Epiphone ever thins the finish and uses better hardware and electronics, Gibson will only be valued for the name. That's pretty much the deal now anyway, the name. If they made more guitars with a 25-1/2" scale I'd think more about them. 24-3/4" doesn't make it for me anymore. Lots of companies are making better guitars now. They better do something or get ready to scale back production in the future.
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Post by tele1962 on Feb 26, 2006 19:55:06 GMT -7
Is it my imagination or has the word "digital" almost become a marketing buzzword? Can you hear George Carlin on this one?
"I've got a DIGITAL guitar! I used to have an old guitar with passive electronics. Analog STUFF! It sounded really good, but who wants anthing to be "passive"? Does that mean it just lays there? And "analog"...like a log that just floats up there and survives somehow. Now DIGITAL!!! Here's something!!...it's NEW...it's neat...it's modern..like a cellphone with a camera built in...or a camera with a cellphone built in...it's DIGITAL!...got to be digital!"
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Post by garyh on Feb 26, 2006 21:18:38 GMT -7
From my read, the only advantage they're touting is the lack of signal loss over long cables. Seems like that was done before. Anyone remember low impedance pickups? That really caught on.
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Post by raja on Feb 26, 2006 22:46:58 GMT -7
Here's something I found at Gibson's site for the digital guitar, Strings: The Digital Guitar is set up with Gibson Humbucker electric guitar strings, Medium Light gauge. String gauges are: .011, .014, .020Wound, .028W, .038W, .050W. Gibson recommends replacing strings with the same set.
The .011 thru .050 doesn't bother me but I wont be stretching a wound .020 G too much!! I'd like to see how Gibson imagines this guitar being used before I pass judgement. It's wasn't that long ago I wouldn't be caught dead sittin' at a puter. Times change!
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Post by terryg on Feb 28, 2006 10:02:36 GMT -7
Will it do my taxes?
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