Better to burn brightly than fade away! Or something like that. This vintage 1966 Gibson J-45 has a beautiful original Cherry Sunburst that is bright and unfaded-like so many you see these days. The orange-red hue glows like a beacon. The guitar is mostly original, with the exception of the upgraded set of tulip tuners and the rosewood bridge and saddle (thank you-whoever you are). The guitar was produced at the original Gibson faculty in Kalamazoo Michigan, U.S.A. This J-45 features the familiar vintage Gibson construction of the era: Solid Spruce top, X-bracing, Mahogany back and sides with set Mahogany neck. It is super solid and has zero structural issues. It is professionally set up and ready to go-it needs nothing.
This guitar has been played but well cared for. The Cherry Sunburst finish is bright and very striking. It has that perfect vintage gloss to it: shiny but not like plastic-like; more of a smooth reflection like you'd see on a grand piano. The top is clean with a few small knicks and scratches-see photos. There is light checking here; most notably the spot between the pickguard and the bridge and also one that trails from the bridge towards the strap pin-see photos. The edges are clean and the binding is totally solid. The pickguard may have been reglued at some point-that was a common thing on these guitars-It is however, nice and flat and it is certainly original. The Bridge is a nice Rosewood piece with adjustable rosewood saddle. The neck joint is solid and the neck angle is perfect.
The neck itself is straight and smooth with a nice shape. It has the classic vintage-C profile and the neck depth measures .837" at the 1st fret and 1.006" at the 10th fret. The nut width is 1.58" wide. The tuners are kluson-style single ring keystones and look appropriate for this era of Gibsons. They all turn smoothly and the guitar stays in tune great. The headstock and logo both display excellent with a touch of vintage patina-see photos. The truss rod functions and the bell cover is intact. This would be one of the last Gibsons to have the Brazilian rosewood fingerboard-and this one is totally killer! It has a beautiful high contrast grain and feels smooth like velvet. The frets are in excellent condition. They have been leveled, crowned and polished. The action is set low for an easy playing experience. The string height is .010" at the 1st fret and .070" at the 12th fret. The guitar plays with an easy, soft touch up and down the fingerboard. No dead spots whatsoever.
Now to the part you really want to know-how does it sound?
The best part of this guitar is the way it sounds. It has the classic Gibson 'box' tone that we all love. It's perfect for singer-songwriters, as the lows and mids pronounce nicely and the highs aren't too bright or loud-it is really exactly what you want to compliment your voice without getting in the same EQ zone and interfering. The tone is crystal clear with no rattles or funny business. The definition is really good and the volume expression is quite extraordinary. Most J-45's I've played are good-some are really good. This one is really great! It is in the top tier of J-45's and all other Gibsons that I've ever played. Yep, that good.
It is extremely comfortable to play also, it is super-lightweight. It only weighs 3.58 lbs! That is just crazy. Once you pick it up-You can play for hours and not want to put it back down. That's how it goes, right? Comes with original Gibson hardcase. The case has a latch that is missing but the other 3 work well. Inside of case is nice and clean.
