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This was a thinline but fully hollow, 17", plywood top , 2 pickup and unlike the earlier versions, 25.5" scale. The originals used a 23.75", not interested in those.
Just wondering what your thoughts are and how much you think they are worth?
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07-01-2015 01:14 PM
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Jack, Dick Onstenk (The Dutch Bopper) is an owner and big fan. You are prob aware of his blog.
Here's the article he wrote on this instrument. Contact him directly if you want to discuss. He is quite knowledgeable - not to mention, an excellent player.
-Russ
Dutchbopper's Jazz Guitar Blog: The Gibson ES 350t
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They are the quintessential 1950 s Gibson jazz box , that Gibson never made in the 50s.
kind of an L5 with a ply top, or a Tal without the awkward cosmetics
they sell for around 3k ?
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The ones I've seen for sale (90's version) range from $3400 to $4400 - depending on the woods and seller desire to unload...
-Russ
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just a note, they changed to a 25.5 scale sometime in the 1970s, so your not limited to 90s models
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It's a thinline though, only 2" thick. I think the earlier, shorter scale ones were more of a traditional 3" thick archtop
Originally Posted by fws6
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No, but owned a late 70s version, 25.5 scale. They sound somewhat as you'd expect; lacking the 3" body resonance, but with a slightly 'hi-fi' tone, with attenuated bass if I remember rightly. A very 'gibson' sound - not as much thunk as a 175, but smoother-sounding. But I'd stay away from the late 70s/ early 80's ones; mine had the worst gibson sunburst I have ever seen, rather like the horrible ' clown burst' fender s/bs of that era. Not so much sunburst, more sunstroke..
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I had one for many years. I like the Tal Farlow better. Mine was a 1992 25.5 22 frets. Nice sound but not as nice as my Tal. The 22 frets made the neck seem very long to me. The body is super comfortable though. I sold mine in mint condition about 6 months ago for $2500.00.
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no, the short scale ones were thin, the ES-350 ['47-'56] was a full depth full scale guitar Originally Posted by jzucker
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" Not so much sunburst, more sunstroke"
ha!
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Actually, I believe the early ES-350T was like a Byrdland but maple lam. Short scale, thin body. Originally Posted by jzucker
Back in the 70s I had the opportunity to get one of those "regular scale" RI's (like the one pic'd above) brand new at a steep discount because a shop was going out of biz. Several c-notes. Was an awesome classic jazz axe. Still kicking myself. Like everything else back then, I didn't realize how the value would hold/grow.
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Originally Posted by rhanchin
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dick's a good friend of mine and I did check in with him. He got it as an "upgrade" to a 335 for when he had to play louder gigs but wanted a thinline with less feedback. I see them in the $3200-$4400 range but based on vinny's comment that may be too much?
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You see them occasionally here (UK) and asking prices tend to be around £2.75- 3K. I think the market is difficult to read for these; somewhat rare, not occupying a specific niche viz L5s or 175s or 335s, thin line body not to everyone's taste.
Despite my 'sunstroke' jibe above, they are v good, classic gibson electric arch tops; it's just slightly difficult to understand which niche in the product line they were meant to fill, now that they are no longer poor man's 23.75 byrdlands. Maybe the variability in asking prices reflects that?
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Hi Jack.
I have an ES350T 1992 limited edition ( one of 100 only ) i am only
its caretaker. it belongs to my son. I put it on the For Sale section
here a while back , but removed it after an acrimonious situation,
I had it on offer for £2999 but received two derisory offers only,
It is still available but not advertised, I would suggest it is not a viable
proposition for a US based buyer as the additional shipping costs would
make it expensive. However if you or anyone is interested send me a PM.
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I had a 97, so not sure if you're interested in my opinion, it had the altered scale length which I believe happened as early as the late 70's. They just didn't produce the model again until the early 90's.
Anyway mine was the most stunning example you could find and the person I sold it to thought it was made for a show or something. The maple on it was insane and coloured very much like a Heritage. Way better than Gibson's usual finish.
In regards to playing the guitar, I didn't like the weird finger board extension right into the body. Its kinda pointless and throws your eye off a bit. Also its a slim line laminate maple guitar, its acoustic tone is average at best. Plugged in its ok, but i would have preferred the 24"3/4's.
Something about a 25'5 scale on a slim line just doesn't work for me, The tone is too tight, to thin. The whole guitar feels tight if that makes sense?
Nice guitar. I sold mine for £2750 but it was totally unique. It went to a hard core Gibson collector. They should be really worth about £2000 in the open market but sellers want more of course. Chuck berry and that talentless droop from The Rolling Stones, touched one ;-)
I def wouldn't pay more than $3000 but the early 90's ones are special run, which doesn't mean jack other than they have a medallion on the back of the neck/headstock.
To summarise, they dont have that 'thunk' you like of the 175 (24"3/4) nor the nice acoustic blend of the L5 (25'5) so they dont have the best parts of either model. They should have gone with the Es-175 length, it would have been so much better imo.
The tone you get from it is really only gonna be down to how nice the pickups are and theres your problem. (90's Gibson's are amongst the best in fit, finish and tone imo, the only problem is the pickups range from ok, to absolute rubbish. The 92 byrdland i had when i sold it, the buyer said straight to me "these pick-ups are absolute garbage" I just replied "I did tell you that on the phone lol:
I guess he swapped them out the moment he could. I've actually had 4 Gibson's from the 90's and only two of them had passable pick-ups. Its their weakness, although all of them played and sounded better unplugged than any later made Gibson I have played.
Last edited by Archie; 07-01-2015 at 04:25 PM.
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i know of a couple in the $3200-$3400 USD range, just wondering if that's a good buy or not.
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Not really, well not imo. I'd pay a couple hundred more than the cheapest 175, so for me its about $2750-$3000. I dont know why but a value them against 175's. The two Es350's that sold here (one I bought) were from the same seller on Ebay both went for around £2,000 Originally Posted by jzucker
I think you will find it's an instantly forgettable archtop from the moment you pick it up, to the moment you unplug it.
Besides I'd like to see you try out that Seventy Seven Fat Hawk :-))Last edited by Archie; 07-01-2015 at 04:41 PM.
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average price Originally Posted by jzucker
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It's apples and oranges though. As a thinline it's going to be less of an archtop sound than a 175. That's an acceptable compromise in a loud band or if i'm playing pop/funk music but still want some hollowbody vibe. I would prefer something like the ES350 over a 335, sadowsky, godin montreal or comins semi which lean more towards the rock/blues side. Originally Posted by ArchtopHeaven
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I agree but I don't think you will find what your'e looking for. I mean after all, I thought exactly the same as you. Originally Posted by jzucker
Still guitars can vary quite a bit, even laminates, you may hit it lucky. I would prefer a Greco FA-95 or Jp-20 any day and they are both very feedback resistant. They just have more tone imo. Heck you have an ibanez FG-100, I'd prefer that! Thats almost a slim line too. I'd probably also prefer the Seventy Seven Hawk standard which is a slim line.
You get a dull 350T with a dull set of 90's pups, you're not gonna be that happy and lets not forget the 'Gibson Set-up' you'll have to look forward too ;-)
Anyway good luck in your search.
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I don't like the sound of the JP-20 at all. I don't like the sound of the pickup in that position. It doesn't have a bridge or a neck pickup IMO. And for funk, you have to have both pickups.
I do not have an FG100. And the Greco FA-95 is not a funk guitar. What I said was that I thought the ES350T would be a good guitar for pop and funk music. Not that it would be a great archtop guitar in the vein of a great 175 or L5.
Also, the 350T doesn't have P90s, it has humbuckers.
Originally Posted by ArchtopHeaven
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My 1992 had a real nice neck profile but something about 22 frets and 25.5 just didn't feel right or look right when I looked at the fretboard. Hard to explain. Guess I am just used to 20 frets though my Brydland has 22 frets 23.5 and it feels perfectly natural. My ES350T's tone was kind of just ok for everything. No real sweet spot. Good for jazz, good for blues, good for funk, but not great at anything. If you could only afford one axe it would be a very good choice. The pickups kinda sucked on mine too. Very pretty axe though. Build quality on mine was very good. Neck was perfectly straight and never needed the trussrod tweaked with temp or string gauge changes. IMO 175 or L5 for jazz and 335 for blues and funk would be a much better way to go if you can afford it. Jack you are a tone junkie. IMO a ES350T would not be in your horse stable for very long though they do look very sexy.
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i don't care about the 22 frets, in face I rather like that for fusiony stuff. The problem with 335s is that the are very heavy. Most are in the 8.5 and up range. I can't play anything heavier than 7.5lbs
also the 335s I have played sound too fat for funk due to the body mass. Randy Johnston played a 350T for years and it sounded great. He needed something that wouldn't feed back on the loud organ trio and sax gigs he did. He's using a 335 style guitar now though.
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My thoughts exactly. Originally Posted by vinnyv1k
(but lets be honest, when jack sets his eyes on something, its bound to turn up as an NGD soon enough. I guess we'll wait an see if he agrees with us ;-)Last edited by Archie; 07-01-2015 at 05:55 PM.
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