Gibson SG Special - Vintage Cherry Reviews
Officially in its 6th decade of turning heads and rattling eardrums, the Gibson SG Special continues to invite superlatives and adoration for its iconic body design and absolute mind-blowing tone. Launched in 1961, the SG Special became a staple stage axe for legends like Pete Townshend, Angus Young, Frank Zappa, and Tony Iommi, just to name a few. Its incredible balance and unique playability continue to win over legions of younger players as they fall instantly in love with this bona fide classic. Staying true to its origins, the SG Special features an all-mahogany body with a SlimTaper neck profile and a rosewood fingerboard; these time-tested materials produce a resonant tone that many can identify when blindfolded! Two soapbar P-90 pickups magnify all that resonance with searing hot, defined single-coil tone. The SG Special is just one of the seminal guitars that helped launch the golden era of rock ’n’ roll, and there is no doubt it will continue to rock the stages and garages of players for decades to come.
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Highest Rated Reviews
Special Indeed
After 15+ plus years of owning a Les Paul standard, I never thought I would become so attracted to the sound, vibe , and feel of an SG. The SG Special is truly a special guitar ! It's a great compliment to my Les Paul and Stratocaster. It kinda sit between both because of the single coil p90 pickups, but is also an animal of its own. It's one to have the arsenal for sure.
S/O to Ben Porter , my sales engineer, for taking care of me throughout the whole purchasing process of this guitar . He reserved for a great looking guitar with awesome grain pattern and a nice dark fretboard. The shipping was immaculate. The guitar came in flawless perfect condition. Even the exterior shipping box showed NO signs of damage. Thank you Ben and Sweetwater.
Beautifull instrument
Have a few sg,including the epi inspired by Gibson which is a great guitar,but I wanted this one,so thx to ray Gonzalez and his team for hooking me up.bought this for one purpose,to get pets live at Leeds tone,put 12 gauge on it,heavy pick,behringer super fuzz into any orange amp,treble position,and I was there.guitar is beautiful I love the neck, feels nice and full,even though it says slim taper,gets wider as you go down.p90 scream.everything set up perfect,just plug and annoy the neighbors.gibson ac on point, very impressed
An old friend
Gibson SG's have always been a favorite of mine. I have owned several over the years. I've never had one with P90's, and thought I'd give it a try. I am not disappointed! The P90's sound great, and add to my sound palette. I love the slim taper neck. If you like fat necks, this is not for you. Overall, good fit and finish. I can get the low action that I love. Two thumbs up!
Gibson SG Special Vintage Cherry
Just received my SG special and I got to say it's absolutely beautiful , came in tune but I had to set the action lower and had to set the intonation it took some time but it's not a big deal you just need patience. I ordered the locking bridge bolts from Music City Bridge to lock in the lighting bridge wish that sweetwater sold them other then that the guitar plays and sound awesome with the P90. It's got me wondering I may not need my Tele I just purchased from Sweetwater Lolol this SG goes it all and it has a wonderful neck ! Comfortable for my short fingers haha … I want to say thank u to
Nate Burkhardt great guy has a lot of patience dealing with me.
Gibson SG Special - Vintage Cherry
This thing rocks! I have a SG standard for about 10 years now but this thing definitely challenges my old SG. The P-90s sound beautiful clean and even better when a bit dirty. WOW!
It plays very easy as the PLEC process definitely makes a huge difference and was a major selling point for me.
Easy to play, like an old friend...
Add one to your stable... you won't be disappointed.
Very impressed
My personal representative Edward was awesome he lord me pick the perfect SG!
The finish and quality are perfect, Gibson really is making some fine instruments. I wouldn't change a thing other than strings! I would recommend and buy another any day.
Very happy
Amazing Guitar
Just like my title says this guitar is amazing. I haven't had a Gibson in many years and have been playing on more budget friendly guitars, but I decided it was time for the real deal. The guitar came setup ok but needed some tweaks from my tech to get it perfect. It plays like a dream now. The P90s sound great no matter what style of music I'm playing. The neck is really comfortable and the nitrocellulose finish is gorgeous. I had to decide between this guitar and the 61 Standard. I chose this one because I love the sound of P90s and there is just something about the looks of the Special that makes me want to play it. Buy this guitar. You'll be happy you did.
All that I expected!
I have been a Fender guy forever. I saw some videos with P90 guitars and I pulled the trigger on the SG Special. Right out of the box it played great and was set up decently. It has a distinct growl and fits nicely in my collection. This is my 3rd new Gibson in 18 months and I'm really impressed with the fit and finish. Thanks Gibson and thanks Sweetwater!
Gibson SG Special
I recall when I opened the case thinking that it was going to be as good as the pictures but it was better! This guitar is beautiful and plays so wonderful. I tuned it and checked the specs and the strings were high. I lowered them to specs and wow this thing is easy to play and with the P90s the sound is so old school it made me feel like a kid again. I am totally impressed with this instrument. This is my fourth guitar I have purchased thru Sweetwater and the way they pack the guitar you don't have to worry about the instrument getting damaged thru transportation. I have used Jacob Evans as my sales engineer for all purchases and he is awesome to work with. He keeps you informed the entire process and if you need help on deciding he knows his stuff and is extremely helpful.
It was my first guitar when I was a teenager
After a lot of guitars throughout my career as a professional musician this one plays excellent after I set it up and changed the strings to my liking. I have Flying V's , Les Pauls and explorers and all Gibson's. I wanted a sg like the first one I had when I was a much longer lad. They nailed it with this model. Plays great feels like a 60's sg and the red finish is the same with that nitro smell .
I have to give a Justin Sunday a enormous shout out " my sales rep" for always going above and beyond for me through out the years I've been a sweetwater customer.
You should get one today!
What can I say, cherry red, p90 pickups, hard case, and mahogany for days. The pickups, output approx 8k, sound full, bright, and plenty hot. This is an amazing axe for this price! The fit and finish were great. I cannot find anything to complain about. Love that new car smell!!! Go out & get yours from Sweetwater, these folks really do guitars right.
This review is about the service I received from Sweetwater and not the Gibson SG.
I received my Gibson SG in a badly damaged shipping box from FedEx.The shipping box was crushed on one end and wet with the inner Gibson SG box coming out on one side. I told the FedEx guy to make note on how I received it. I quickly checked the Gibson box and noticed it had dings. I assume the Gibson box came out of the shipping box in transit, because the packing tape was clear on the end that was opening and brown box tape on the end that was sealed. I quickly checked the guitar and shook it, to listen for a broken truss rod. I didn't hear any truss rod noise but, I heard noise in the neck pickup. I called Sweetwater and talked to Michael Barden of Guitar Tech Support and he was ready to do a quick return and exchange. I was worried that the next guitar might be in worse shape after my last experience with shipping. I suggested I take it it to my luthier and Michael said o.k. and that they would reimburse me for any damages. FANTASTIC! My luthier did a rush to check it out and found loose solder in the control box and the neck pickup had to be screwed down. How hard did FedEx have to drop this thing for that to happen? Everything else checked out fine. When I got home to play it. I noticed fret buzz in spots but, I can minimize the noise by pressing harder on the neck and by picking/strumming lighter. I'll have to have it set up by my luthier, but he has a 5 week backlog. I called Aric Ficek the Sales Engineer about everything and he said they would reimburse me for the setup at my luthier. Again, FANTASTIC!! I can't do a review of the SG until my luthier gets done with his backlog of work and does my guitar, but I just had to do a review of the ABOVE AND BEYOND SERVICE I received from Aric Ficek and Michael Barden at Sweetwater. You guys are ACES!!! I'll Never buy a guitar anywhere else! One final note. This the 2nd time I wrote this review. In my first review I tried to add photos of the damaged shipping box and it wiped out everything I wrote, including the pictures. (It's in the twilight zone) After the great service I received from Aric and Michael at Sweetwater, it was worth the 2 hours doing the review.
Gibson SG special revised review
Update: after about 3 hours of trying to get the intonation close and finally getting it .Woke up and went to play it it was back to step one all over again !!! Buying a guitar is suppose to a happy thing ! Will it's going back ! I will never buy another Gibson product ,how in the hell at $ plus you don't address the cheap wrap around thing you call a bridge ??? It's a garbage bridge period !!!
