Is Henry listening to Gibson fans?

Dave W · June 17, 2015, 08:21:46 PM

Apparently not

Sales have been disastrous but he seems determined to ignore reality.

westen44 · June 17, 2015, 10:51:38 PM

Unbelievable. Why does Gibson think people would care about crap like this?

neepheid · June 18, 2015, 08:05:32 AM

Listening to the voices in his head, it seems.

Also the article pee'd me off a little: "Getting the tuning correct every time you pick up a guitar is a serious barrier to entry for those just getting started"

In the wider context of guitar playing (and without wishing to seem overly élitist) is chopping people off at the door who can't even be bothered to learn how to tune a guitar properly such a bad thing?

gearHed289 · June 18, 2015, 09:01:03 AM

"In MY day..."

Tuning a guitar by ear is one of the first things a player should learn. If you can't identify pitches, you're f*cked. This and learning songs by ear - no tab, no YouTube "how to" vids. (That stuff is fine if you get stuck on something...) Sorry, rant over!

westen44 · June 18, 2015, 09:07:13 AM

Quote from: gearHed289 on June 18, 2015, 09:01:03 AM
"In MY day..."

Tuning a guitar by ear is one of the first things a player should learn. If you can't identify pitches, you're f*cked. This and learning songs by ear - no tab, no YouTube "how to" vids. (That stuff is fine if you get stuck on something...) Sorry, rant over!

I agree 100%.

uwe · June 18, 2015, 10:36:08 AM

I'm sure there is a market for self-tuning guitars just as there was a market for automatic cars as opposed to driving a stick. The lingering question is though whether it is Gibson's market. I have a hunch that a company like Ibanez might have more success with this type of thing. Or Epiphone. Or even a new brand within the Gibson family.

With Gibson it's a bit like Rolls Royce advocating lower fuel consumption on a new model - nobody who buys a Rolly Royce gives a toss about its fuel consumption. Alcohol-free Jack Daniels wouldn't be such a smash either.

Blackbird · June 18, 2015, 11:29:04 AM

I think the idea is innovative, sure...not sure that the $2500-4000 Gibson guitar buying demographic should be forced to have it though if they are looking to purchase.

EDIT: The more I see of it, the more I like it. I wouldn't hate it, couple of strums when you sit down and you're off!

They could have simply put it on a series of guitars rather than everything. Nothing to get in a knot over though.

slinkp · June 18, 2015, 12:17:21 PM

I think they burned so much money on it, now they're trying to create a market for it by putting it on every guitar. Seems backward to me.

Dave W · June 18, 2015, 09:17:05 PM

Quote from: neepheid on June 18, 2015, 08:05:32 AM
Listening to the voices in his head, it seems.

Also the article pee'd me off a little: "Getting the tuning correct every time you pick up a guitar is a serious barrier to entry for those just getting started"

In the wider context of guitar playing (and without wishing to seem overly élitist) is chopping people off at the door who can't even be bothered to learn how to tune a guitar properly such a bad thing?

Exactly.

And how many of those just getting started will be buying a Gibson for their first guitar anyway?

Quote from: Blackbird on June 18, 2015, 11:29:04 AM
I think the idea is innovative, sure...not sure that the $2500-4000 Gibson guitar buying demographic should be forced to have it though if they are looking to purchase.

EDIT: The more I see of it, the more I like it. I wouldn't hate it, couple of strums when you sit down and you're off!

They could have simply put it on a series of guitars rather than everything. Nothing to get in a knot over though.

You can't tune the GForce on the fly. You have to strum first. That's one of the complaints about it. More important, from what I've read, it's not all that accurate. The Axcent tuning system (formerly called Transperformance) can tune on the fly. It costs upward of $3K installed but it works and you can still turn your tuners manually. The GForce isn't innovative either. The Axcent has been on the open market for ten years and was in prototype years before that.

Gibson is not only forcing it on buyers, they void your warranty if you replace it with conventional tuners. Still, a number of dealers are offering to install conventional tuners on your new Les Paul at no additional cost. The few people who like it will buy it aftermarket. But all you have to do is hang out at Gibson-oriented guitar forums (like MLP) to see that it's been rejected outright by most prospective buyers. That's one big reason 2015 sales are in the toilet, although not the only reason.

At any rate, when Gibson eventually backs off, you can bet that Henry won't take personal responsibility for it.

uwe · June 19, 2015, 07:33:59 AM

If there was a bass with automatic tuners, that wouldn't keep from buying it (or using it, if there is no tuner around). I'd look at it from the entertainment/curiosity aspect. Those automatic tuners couldn't really be any more useless than the expansion and compression units on the RD Artist after all!

Dave W · June 19, 2015, 06:50:12 PM

Yeah, it's so hard to find a tuner when you need one. If only there were tons of free smartphone tuner apps and $10 clip-on headstock tuners.

Dave W · June 21, 2015, 10:47:59 PM

I hesitate to post anything related to the Gibson raid, let's not get that discussion started again, but take a look at Henry in this video. His eyes pop out and roll around every direction, inappropriate smiling, the creepy John Waters mustache.... very odd! No wonder things are strange at Gibson.

amptech · June 22, 2015, 02:17:19 AM

Creepy indeed!

66Atlas · June 22, 2015, 05:55:09 AM

He could be on that Ancient Aliens show.

uwe · June 22, 2015, 07:23:55 AM

Quote from: Dave W on June 21, 2015, 10:47:59 PM
I hesitate to post anything related to the Gibson raid, let's not get that discussion started again, but take a look at Henry in this video. His eyes pop out and roll around every direction, inappropriate smiling, the creepy John Waters mustache.... very odd! No wonder things are strange at Gibson.

It's like bad overacting - brilliant in a way.