EdFinally, someone with real knowledge…The Gibson neck has never ever been a
stable component, aside from the breaking problem.
I’m 62, been living guitars for over 40 of those years, and I have NEVER come
across a Gibson (LP or SG in particular) that had a neck I could actually trust:
Both new or vintage, 5 piece of not, in makes NO difference, the design / shape
/ dimensions materials / geometry / engineering are just ALL wrong. So wrong
that tuning stability was absent, and simply moving the guitar while playing it
is enough to flatten/sharpen the whole guitar…frightening… Like a bolt on with
some bolts missing..
It was as if the weight of the headstock was enough of a mass to actually bend
the neck, under even moderate movement. I realized the guitar had to be kept
perfectly STILL to avoid de-tuning problems while on stage.
I really thought it was just me. Why is everyone nuts about a Les Paul?? I could
never find one (and I looked for many years) that didn’t have this neck weakness
problem (not to mention the “bump” where the neck joins the body, another really
common and really bad thing).. Fact is they are fraught with problems, any one
of which make the guitar unreliable at best, or totally unplayable.
It was many years ago that I stopped looking for a “stable Gibson” and gave up
the chase, I’ll never own another one, and I can’t help but feel that, Anyone
that does own them either don’t play them, or can’t hear the pitch shifting, or
stands perfectly still while playing them.
Even while fretting the damn thing, one needs to be careful not to push forward
or pull back in the slightest, especially at the first position, unless you want
an inappropriate vibrato effect, a ½ tone shift was easily accomplished without
even trying.
I’ve seen Les Paul in person I shook his hand & spoke with him, his hand is the
most delicate thing I ever held, evidently he designed the most delicate
instrument to match his playing style, and no on warned the general public of
the eminent danger of musical instability and total catastrophic failure of the
neck itself…..
Then there's always the idiot “musicians” who pride themselves on how many
guitars they’ve broken in their “careers”…
I know you’re busy, I just came across your Gibson neck weakness article, and
wanted to add my own 40+ years of similar disappointment bordering on distain
for the entire Gibson fallacy. Everything you’ve said, I have experienced.
So at 60 years old, the “bolt on – set neck” battle rages full tilt in my head,
Maybe I’ll try a set neck JET??
The Ozone Ranger
Response from Ed Roman !!!!
I usually don't print letters from people who don't sign their names, But I am
in total agreement on this and it was well written and articulate. The
public does need to know this.
I have become tremendously unpopular among many Les Paul lovers, PRS Lovers
etc etc they bash me on the internet constantly because I am taking the
unpopular stance.
I call them as I see them !!!!
I'm not running for public office so I don't care!!!! No one ever has
challenged the physics or truthfulness of my articles. They just call me names.
(Sticks & Stones may break my bones but names will never hurt me.
Ed
THE PUBLIC NEEDS TO KNOW !!!!!!!!)
Ed,
I too am one of those people who've read and heard horrible things about you.
After having read some of the articles that you've written, I've come to think
that you are a damned intelligent individual, and that all the BS and vitriolic
diatribes against you are the work of lesser minds which are preoccupied with
petty jealousies fueled by the self-loathing of their own personal inadequacies.
You have expressed the essence of one of my personal philosophies, to wit : A
smart man learns from his mistakes; an intelligent man learns from the mistakes
of others, in one of your articles.
As a former supplicant who worshipped at the altar of the great god Gibson, I am
grateful and proud to say that your informed opinions have made another convert.
I also share with you a deep loathing of
Corporate America and the control it attempts (quite successfully, it seems ) to
exert over us all.
I could go on, but I have too much to say, so I'll leave it at this : I'm
looking forward to meeting you, if possible, when I make my first visit to your
store. Although my discretionary income precludes the purchase of one of your
fine instruments at this time, I must needs see your facility and some of your
work with mine own orbs !
Thanks for having the concern and the integrity to establish and publish such a
great web site !
From this point on, I shall to spread the word !
Thank you,
John Shank
NLVNV
Response From Ed Roman
Hello John
Thanks for your very well written letter, you are obviously not
intellectually challenged. Most of the letters I get from flamers are so full
of spelling, grammar, punctuation mistakes that it is laughable. They never
have their facts right either, but that's another story for another day.
People have flamed me for 15 years since I decided to imprint my
personality onto my website. Most people in business prefer to remain bland
and boring rather than risk any political problems or flaming.
Personally, I just don't care, I didn't start this business to win any
popularity contests, I started it because that's what I do. When I started Ed
Roman Guitars I was in retirement mode, I had just sold my business of 20
years (East Coast Music Mall) and the building it was located in. I had a lot
of money, easily enough to retire, I surely did not need to work. (I just
enjoy working) !!!
The business has grown unbelievably since I started it back in late 1994,
In my wildest dreams I never expected it to do as well as it has. Which proves
to me that my attitude about what I say has greatly
benefited my business.
I don't hate any of those flamers, After all most of them really don't know
me. They usually are just going along for the ride.
"Father forgive them for they know not what they do" Ha
Ha !!!
Many of them I'm sure are "Married with Children" work in a shoe store &
really have no money, no future and no real life. Many of them have saved up
for several years to buy the biggest most expensive thing they will probably
ever own (A Gibson Les Paul or a PRS Custom)
Here I am just some jerk from Las Vegas who says that their pride and joy is
not all that great. I'm denigrating their sacred cow. Of course they will hate
me for that. They call me names and say all sorts of nasty things about me but
noticeably they never (Not even once) challenge me on what I actually say. I
don't believe that they could, They just call me a butthead and write me off.
I don't like it much when they call me dishonest, I really do try to tell it
like it is even to my own detriment. Again though, even the ones that call me
dishonest, can never seem to relate an actual situation where I have been
dishonest. They simply say it! Weaker minds will just follow them blindly.
People like this spew their hate loudly and with a lot of conviction. It
simply isn't true of course but that doesn't stop these clowns from saying it.
From their point of view, they just must think that I do my negative
comparisons simply because I sell one and not the other. They could not be
more wrong !! The fact of the matter is, I just choose to carry the ones that
are better. I do my research before I start to carry the product in the first
place. I did a complete reversal on Ibanez when they brought their prices
down. At one time I though Ibanez was unfairly overpriced. When they finally
adjusted their pricing I started recommending them again.
Some dealers hate me & my store because I am very aggressive when it comes
to beating their prices, I am generally a lot less expensive except on limited
edition hard to find rare guitars. I will probably never have the lowest
prices on those types of things. I will however always have many different
unique and special guitars that people won't find any place else.
Dealers also hate it that I am a retailer that also manufactures guitars. They
feel I have an unfair advantage over them!!!! The facts are always self
explanatory and irrefutable, The only thing they can do is badmouth me and
make up BS rumors that I am out of business.
One afternoon about 6 months ago We did a little test, We anonymously
called every music store in town looking for directions to "that really big
guitar store that everybody's been hearing about" All of them but one, told
my phone shill that "Oh, I heard they closed down and went out of business"!!
One guy from Guitar Center who shall remain un-named actually had just
purchased 2 Rickenbacker bridges from us within the week. ( I hope he reads
this) He said he had heard from 3 or 4 people that we had closed.
(the operative word he used was "heard)" By saying
"he heard" that instead of stating it as a fact he can always weasel out of
the fact that he was lying.
We get a lot of lookie loo's, be backers and geek's a gawkin' but anyone
who buys something gets a very high level of service from the store.
You can't please all of the people all of the time, Ya just gotta try !!!
Thanks again for your kind letter and your support, I won't let you down
!!!
Ed Roman
"Merry Christmas.
Now Where The Hell Is My Dinner"