Gibson Reverse Flying V Limited Edition Electric Guitar Review

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[UPDATED AGAIN 3/14/10: Whoa! The price just went up a *lot* - a week ago, I bought this for quite a bit less; the guitar was not $1,499 when I purchased it...keep that in mind when considering this review]Ok, I got a replacement and have given it a good workout. On that score, Amazon gets high marks. All I did was describe the issues with the first one I received and ask whether or not these were "blems". In less than 24 hours I had a reply in my inbox that didn't even bother with my questions - a new one was already on its way out, to be delivered the next day, and a return authorization provided for the first one, giving me 30 days to get it back. The only less-than-perfect bit is I have to front the cost of return shipping, but I can see their position on this. Once it's received and they see the problems, return shipping costs will be refunded. 5 stars to Amazon.
The new guitar also came new in an unopened factory box, and is a vast improvement over the first one, though it too was atrociously set-up and I was a little disappointed again. I knew it would improve with some tweaking, but you're never sure by how much. Right out of the box, there was way too much relief in the neck, the action was very high, and the guitar just felt and sounded kind of dead. The case was pristine and awesome though. 2-for-2 on the cases. But I was worried that I'd be left with that horrible feeling of falsely trying to focus on a few good points to make myself feel o.k. about what turned out to be a mediocre purchase.
I couldn't have been more wrong. Dove in and changed the strings to make truss-rod, intonation and action adjustments. Right away, it seemed like a different guitar, just having string that weren't lame and dead. It's amazing how dead strings can actually *get* just sitting on a guitar in a box for a while. And the factory strings they use are *so* bad. You'd think they'd spring for some better ones at the factory. Smart store owners must re-string their Gibsons right away before putting them on display - the strings they ship with do not show off the guitar to its advantage (though in my case I'm sure it was worse from a long time languishing in storage).
I tightened the truss rod down a bit more than a 1/4 turn and straightened the neck out to leave just a *hair* of relief at the 8th fret with the strings depressed at either end. The truss nut is a *bugger* to get at - a little finish got gummed up under it making a very tight squeeze, and the rout is just barely big enough to accommodate the thinnest nut driver you can find - but it's actually probably good that a rout in the headstock is so minimal. Got it to work. Then I dropped the action a good bit, and lowered the pickups some. Re-tuned it, made some rough intonation adjustments, and bang-o - the guitar just came to life. I was ear to ear right away, not only relieved of my disappointment, but my highest and best hopes were exceeded one by one. I'm just plumb tickled (we say that down here sometimes).
None of the nut and nut-slot issues like the first one they sent me, hardware is all great, the electronics all working beautifully (though the volume knob is currently quite stiff), and the neck laid back nicely with the truss-rod adjustment. The fretboard could use a little cleaning and a touch of oil, but the frets are aces and nicely dressed; no dings, scratches or gouges anywhere on the guitar this time. However, I did notice the fretboard is just the smallest fraction of an inch too narrow for the neck-bed; true of both of the Reverse V's I've received. Not of any real consequence - you can just barely feel a tiny 'lip' on either side of the board where it's centered on the ever-so-slightly larger neck. Doesn't interfere with playing and easily ignored, but the only word for that is "shoddy".
Unlike the previous one, the tailpiece is perfectly centered and not offset over the string holes, so the strings actually rest against the wood and not the metal tailpiece where they exit. As I stated previously, the ferules on the back are fine (if a bit 'relic'-looking, which I'm sure is not the intention), but it would be nice to have them extend to the top, or at least have some sort of insert on the top side of the string-throughs so they're not digging into the wood. Still, it's better than having that hard break angle over the metal tailpiece. The volume knob is in the *perfect* spot for grabbing it with your pinkie/3rd finger with your hand resting on the bridge. And like most Gibson-style wiring, the volume does not actually decrease very much in that first half of pot-travel (from 10 to 5), but the highs start to roll off right away. A lot of people mod their controls to avoid this, but in this case it's actually great - roll the volume back to 6 or so (a good place to leave it anyway), and you've still got 90% of your gain and sustain (giving you some room to goose it when needed) but the highs are reigned in. Bang, there's your tone control. Well, sort of. It darkens up fast from there on down, but you're losing volume rapidly too - can't have everything, and personally, I like the uncluttered look of the guitar with minimal controls on the face. I think it's fine just like it is.
This guitar, unsurprisingly, has a lot in common with a standard Flying V - which, oddly, I've never been terribly fond of. Go figure. It's very lightweight and resonant, with good sustain...quite loud acoustically for a solid-body. Often a very good sign. I don't find the unusual shape hinders playing at all. All guitars 'sit' and 'hang' a little differently, and you have to adjust to that. This one has a tendency to not want to 'lay back' and stays very vertical on you when you're standing, if not even leaning forward a touch, and I had to adjust my position a little to get it to tilt a little so you can clearly see the face and have a good playing angle. The body shape is very comfortable though, and your picking arm has great access to the bridge area and strings, unhindered by a fat lower bout. I find myself actually getting bruises sometimes from the edge of the body on Les Pauls because of where my arm tends to rest when I'm strumming, or just flat out banging against it when I'm a little over-enthusiastic. But that's more about me being a hack than anything.
The neck, as Gibson explains, is somewhere between the 'clubby' 50's neck (which I like), and the 60's slim taper (which I also like). I tend towards a more traditional hand position and don't wrap my thumb over the top of the fretboard very often, so I love this neck, but your mileage may vary depending on your playing style. It's fat-ish and feels great with my thumb on the back, but not to the point of feeling like a bat the way some older Explorers with vintage style necks can. While the neck feels nothing like the sinuous SG, the guitar is very lively in your hands similar to the way an SG feels to me. I've always thought SGs are the most "Fender-ish" of the marquee Gibsons in that regard - you can really feel the whole guitar vibrating and humming, where a Les Paul will often feel much more solid.
Needless to say, it screams. I fired up a JCM800 and plugged straight in (it *had* to be an old Marshall first out of the gate for a guitar like this). The '57 Classics do not disappoint. With the nice sustain and flatter post-adjustment neck, there were smooth singing bends all around, and nothing trying to choke-out; crisp and articulate all the way up. Even with the set-up only about 3/4s dialed-in, it feels comfy and snappy, holdd tune beautifully, and open-position chords ring out with gobs of harmonic nuance and great authority.
As for its 'voice', the highs surprised me by having that SG-ish clang and bite that's so tasty, and there's a TERRIFIC honky lower midrange that's very 'rock' - but not to the point of being 'nasal', and most noticeable on the bridge pickup, naturally. Unlike the SG however, the lows don't have that 'tonky' quality to match the toothy high-end, but are more meaty, akin to a Les Paul. Not *entirely* like a Les Paul, but hey, what are you gonna do? Nothing flat-out roars like a Custom with a good pair of Tim Shaws. And if I wanted a Les Paul, I'd buy another Les Paul I guess. The neck pickup lead tones are just *soaring*, and the rhythm sounds are nice and beefy without being muddy (if you dial the amp in for neck pickup rhythm). The guitar being so resonant, coaxing up some controlled feedback is a breeze...a slightly stanktacious breeze reeking faintly of sweaty leather, bourbon and nicotine, leaving you feeling just a little greasy. (sorry for that, can't help myself sometimes)
The only significant criticism I have left is the finish work. This replacement guitar is all-around better than the first one I received, but both of them appear to lack some grain-fill and body sanding, and possibly are shy a few coats of color. The coverage is opaque, but you can clearly see the texture of the wood grain through the finish in reflective light (yep, it's mahogany). The 'reject' I first got was worse though - actually bordering on 'orange-peel' in some spots too. Just sloppy (failed to mention that before). In actual practice, it may arguably help the tone and resonance a *hair* to have less grain filler and finish on the guitar, but solid finishes really should be smooth and glassy (I got the white one - it's the most obnoxious. Gold mirror pickguard anyone? Really send it over the edge). The neck does feel a touch ripply and gummy under your hand, but it's no real bother and will smooth out in time.
At this price, if you like Gibsons, want something freaky and you're tempted, I'd say pull the trigger. Light as a feather, cool as the other side of the pillow, and hollers like a laser-loaded pterodactyl...Read more›

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