Gibson's Guitar A Week Program

So I'm curious what everyone thinks of Gibson's Guitar a week program and whether or not you think any of these limited run guitars will see any appreciation - if so, which ones and what are your favorites?

Unless some major artist plays some amazing widely distributed performance on them, I wouldn't bet on it. I think the Les Paul models may have a chance at holding value. If you buy a true vintage instrument you'll have a much better chance of seeing appreciation.

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My thoughts are up in the air on this one––I'm sure that no one who was around during the '50s would have ever guessed that the instruments Fender & Gibson were producing at that time would become highly-sought after investments some 50 years later.

In my mind, the same holds true today––some day far, far in the future musicians may look back at the early 2000s as being a prime era for guitar construction... there's just no way to know.

Heck, even Strats from the '80s are starting to go up in value, so it's not so hard to imagine a time a long way from now when a 2007 LP will be worth a small fortune simply because it's old.

IF that ever happens, then I suppose that a Limited Edition Gibson built in a run of just 400 units might well be worth something... but it's impossible to predict.

People could just as easily look back on 2007 as the year that Gibson's went to hell... it's a total crap shoot!

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egr :: guitar spoken here

Here are some random thoughts on the Gibson guitar of the week program...

* Great marketing! When was the last time sites like our Big Kahuna's "Electric Guitar Review" spent this much time talking about Gibson guitars? Not to mention forums, magazines, etc.. And how much traffic has been driven to gibson.com?

* I think some of the guitars will undoubtedly appreciate. The Las Paul Classic Custom in Silverburst is a hot-looking guitar, and they only made 400, so odds are they'll go up in value. The week 24 Frankenstein Firebird? I wouldn't want one if they were free! But that's just my opinion.

* What a great way to test-market new concepts. Gibson has never done well with anything other than P-90 or humbucker-equipped guitars. Now they floated out an SG-3 with lipstick single-coil pickups. Pretty cool way to get low-risk market feedback. If guitarists love them you can always make more. If guitarists hate them you can say, "hey, it was just a concept. we only made 400 of them."

In my opinion it's a great marketing/PR idea that falls under the old saying..."say want you want about me, just spell my name right."

One thing I will say about Gibsons lately is that when I walk into my local Guitar Center, the same Gibson guitars seem to be there every time I visit. Either they move very slowly or they all look the same. I've never seen any of these limited editions. On the other hand, they move through Epiphone models very quickly. Maybe San Diego is more of a Fender town...

If I were looking for a non-bolt-on neck guitar at this point, I would either get a reissue ES-335 (the Mr. 335 model) or ES-336 (which I have only seen at one store in LA) or a PRS single cut (styled like a Les Paul). That's just me...

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With the wide variety of models offered under the Epiphone brand name, and the affordability of those guitars, it's possible that Gibson sells more Epi guitars per year than it does Gibson-branded guitars. I wonder where they generate the most $$...

I agree with you on the PRS singlecut. I've never really liked the original PRS design with that long "horn" cutaway, but their singlecut guitars really appeal to me.

I agree, it's a great marketing tactic.

Since I'm a big Gibson fan, I look forward to seeing what they'll come up with next and have resisted temptation a few times - Silverburst Les Paul included.

Thanks all for weighing in on the subject

I share your love for Gibson. I know Gibson in its current form has a lot of good and bad...but the Guitar of the Week program shows a creativity and willingness to experiment that I think is really cool.

Have you noticed that NONE of the Guitars of the Week have been from the ES series?

ZZ sounds put this up for week 32 - faded ebony SG with EMG's

Gibson SG Special Electric Guitar with EMGs (with Case) from zZounds.com!

With a little more investigating I found this page with images of the future releases

Gibson_Guitar_of_the_Week_3 @ First Quality Music