AEG-Electrolux GIBSON ELECTRIC SOLIDBODY GUITARS User Manual
TIMELINE
1894 Orville Gibson of Kalamazoo, MI, invents the
archtop guitar and mandolin
1902 The Gibson company formed
1921 Gibson invents the adjustable truss rod –
still the industry standard – and the height
adjustable bridge
1935 Gibson’s first electric model, the E-150 Hawaiian
lap steel
1936 First standard Gibson electric, the ES-150
(“ES” stands for Electric Spanish)
1939 First cutaway Gibsons – Super 400 Premier and
L-5 Premier
1946 The P-90 single-coil pickup debuts
1949 First three-pickup guitar, the Gibson ES-5
1949 First guitar with a “Florentine” pointed cutaway,
the Gibson ES-175
1952 Gibson’s first solidbody electric, the Les Paul Model
1954 Les Paul Custom “Black Beauty” and Les Paul
Junior officially introduced
1954 Tune-o-matic bridge, designed by Gibson president
Ted McCarty, introduced on Les Paul Custom
1955 Les Paul Special introduced
1957 Double-coil “humbucking” pickup debuts, invented
by Gibson’s Seth Lover
1958 First cherry sunburst finish on Les Paul Model,
name changed to Les Paul Standard
1958 Explorer, Flying V and Moderne introduced,
designed by Ted McCarty
1958 First semi-hollowbody electric guitar, the ES-335,
invented by Ted McCarty
1959 Les Paul Special gets double-cutaway body
1961 Les Paul line changes to SG body shape
1963 SG model name is official, Les Paul name dropped
1963 Firebird guitars and Thunderbird basses introduced
1968 Les Paul Standard and Custom reintroduced
1974 Gibson opens a plant in Nashville to make Les Pauls
1982 First solidbody acoustic, the Gibson Chet Atkins CE
1984 Gibson closes Kalamazoo plant, moves headquarters
to Nashville
1986 Current owners Henry Juszkiewicz and
Dave Berryman acquire Gibson
2002 Gibson introduces world’s first digital guitar
FEATURES
FACTS
ADVANTAGES
A RETAIL SALES GUIDE FOR
GIBSON
SOLIDBODY
GUITARS
ELECTRIC
A RETAIL SALES GUIDE FOR
GIBSON
SOLIDBODY
GUITARS
ELECTRIC
PICKUPS
★ Gibson invented the double-coil humbucking
pickup
AD
Still setting the standard followed by other makers
★ Many choices of magnets and coil-winding
configurations
AD
Smooth to edgy tone, and everything in between
★ 2-wire or 4-wire
AD
Vintage wiring or modern (with coil-split capability)
★ Tight fit between polepieces and hand-machined
baseplate
AD
No lost vibrations, minimizes feedback
WELCOME TO GIBSON USA’S RETAIL
SALES GUIDE, A QUICK AND CONCISE
REFERENCE OF SALES TIPS.
Sales tips are organized by feature.
Under each feature are the facts or
specs of that feature, designated by ★.
Under each fact, designated by AD,
is the advantage to the player.
FEATURE
★ Fact
AD
Advantage
24.75" SCALE
★ Less string tension required to tune up
AD
Smooth, slinky feel
★ Allows for heavier-gauge strings
AD
Beefier tone
★ Frets spaced slightly closer together
AD
Easier to do the Chuck Berry rhythm part
(on E chord)
TUNE-O-MATIC BRIDGE
INVENTED BY LEGENDARY GIBSON PRESIDENT
TED MCCARTY IN 1954
★ Adjustable saddles
AD
Fine-tune intonation for each individual string,
for any string gauge or action height
★ Overall height-adjustable
AD
Easy adjustment to raise or lower action
AD No individual string adjustment necessary to
conform to fingerboard radius
★ Industry standard
AD
Copied by other makers, never equaled
STOPBAR TAILPIECE
INVENTED BY GIBSON IN 1953
★ Separate from bridge
AD
Does not transfer bridge vibrations to body,
better sustain
★ Height-adjustable
AD
Adjust downward to increase string pressure on
saddles = less slippage, more sustain
AD Adjust upward for less string pressure = “slinky”
or “spongy” feel when bending strings
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