Gibson Tony Iommi SG Special - Vintage Cherry Reviews

buy it, you wont be disappointed

I met Tony Iommi several times as he lived not far from me in the UK where I grew up. I lived for many years (all through my college years, in Rubery, a suburb of Birmingham, and every morning, to get to college and then later to my job at Austin Rover Cars, I waited at a bus stop right outside of the John Birch workshop.... John Birch being the mastermind behind the monkey guitar, he was very cool and friendly, even to a spotty teenager like me.
Anyway, this guitar has been on my bucket list for almost 50 years! It does not disappoint. I love the chunky, rounded neck, I don't know, it just exudes more confidence somehow..... all my other Gibsons I have owned have all had the slim taper or C shape neck.... except for one, an ES335 I had once, that had the same chunky neck feel..... I feel I can play faster and better, and for me, the skinny necks do nothing.
Another guitar hero of mine is Mike Oldfield, who played an SG Junior then later a regular SG, both with P-90's and this guitar totally reproduces his sound from albums such as Ommadawn, QE2 and other 70's albums.... I am loving it! I have nothing critical to say about this SG, it was setup perfectly (as always thanks to Sweetwater) and plays like a dream!

I have a Gibson les Paul standard that's pretty heavy when I try and be a show off and make the guitar fly around my body like over my head and under my arms I sometimes hit my face gave my self a fat lip one time this monkey replica is 37k cheaper then an original version of the monkey and it's light so when I do the hula hoop maneuver it's light enough to control the swing it has never came close to my face and it stuns the audience if you want it get it

I have a 2006 Gibson Vegas High Roller, a 2020 Gibson Les Paul 60's Standard, a 2020 Fender Telecaster American Pro II, a 2021 Fender Stratocaster American Pro II, and several other very nice guitars that I won't list here to for time. But I've played countless other guitars over the years and i can confidentially say, "the fretwork on this guitar is better than any guitar I've ever felt in 37 years of playing". I adjusted the truss rod for .005" of relief and of course having been plecked at the Gibson factory it's playing perfection. Mine weighs in at 6lb 4oz which I love. The guitar is so light, and the neck is so chunky that my buddies and I joke the neck is bigger than the guitar. But if you love chunky necks, you will love this guitar. Also, the upgrades that Iommi did made it better. Like the intonatable wrap tail, the strap hook location, and the witch hat knobs! Sometimes I must force myself to play my other guitars over this one to justify having them. Shout out to my sales engineer Jeremiah Smith - You're the best buddy!

Gibson must have had their best ppl on this guitar. The quality of the mahogony, the rosewood fretboard, the fretwork, the finish - all top notch. I've already gigged it several times. You can roll back the volume and tone knobs to really customize your sound. Everything from jazz to metal.

While I've always been a big fan of Tony Iommi and he has had a major influence on my playing style, I don't typically buy signature guitars. Actually, this is my first one in over 35 years of playing. It's a great guitar regardless of its Tony Iommi connection.

I have 2 other SGs but prefer the neck profile of this one over the others. Most SG necks are too slim for my preference but this one feels a lot like my Les Paul Special; kind of feels like that happy medium between a 50s and 60s shape.

Also, I love the sound of P-90 pickups and have been using my P-90 guitars more in recent years, so that made this guitar another win for me. So, great feel, great tone, and killer looks; you can't go wrong.

To play devil's advocate, if there was one thing I would like different, it would be that the vintage cherry finish was darker on mine, as its really light-colored compared to others I've seen, but it was the only one in stock when I decided to buy it so I took it anyway. Clearly, it wasn't a deal-breaker.

I love P-90s in a Gibson - not to mention Iommi's tone in those early Sabbath albums -- so I've been on the hunt for one for a while. A SG with P90s that I bought in 2017-2018 just didn't do the trick. Sounded a bit thin, ended up selling it. I was concerned I might have a similar experience with the Iommi SG. Not to fear! I don't know if Gibson did a different wind, but these pups have all the snarl and bark that I wanted from a P90. I play doom/prog black metal through a Friedman Runt and Friedman JJ jr, and the combo of this guitar with those amps is perfect. No boost/fuzz or other interventions needed. The neck is nice and thick, the finish seems a bit of a faded cherry which I love, and the witch hat tone knobs are incredible. Overall a great guitar with perfectly dark, moody tones. There was a delay in getting the guitar due to whatever (maybe the Gibson plant hit by the supply chain stufff?) but Sweetwater kept me in the loop throughout and overnighted it to me when it arrived. Glad I held out for it! May become my number one guitar. Thanks Gibson and Sweetwater.

Sweetwater had setup the guitar perfectly. There are no physical or electronic issues with the guitar that I have seen. The wrap-around bridge is fantastic. The neck, despite its larger size, is extremely slick and fast to play. Shredding to the upper frets is very easy and ergonomic.

The highlight of this guitar is the P90's. The Iommi features the legendary Gibson P90's. Only these are covered in chrome, like Iommi's original John Birch modified SG Special. I'm not sure if Gibson did anything to the pickups. They are on the hot side. They sound really good. All the classic Sabbath sounds are here and anything you can conjure. Overall I highly recommend this guitar. It's a great value.

Form Fit and Function is great. P90s have that vintage crunch expected of this model.

If you're spending this kind of money on a guitar, you should know how to set it up to your preferences. It played fine upon arrival, but after adjusting the truss rod and resetting intonation for my preferred string gauge, I was amazed at how comfortable the neck is on the Iommi SG. I am a long-time SG fan and there is something different and extremely supple to the neck compared to other SGs. The tone is also quite remarkable, the notes have bite and clarity but with a huge girth that brings fullness and presence to both chords and single note riffs. The horn-mounted strap button is a very cool feature as well. Very fun and mojo-filled guitar on par with many of Gibson's more expensive offerings.

One note: it arrived with a non-functioning neck pickup due to a bad solder joint. This is a severe quality control issue that shouldn't happen at this price range, but it was an easy fix. That said, I was alarmed. Hence the one star removed.

I do not. The guitar looks great and sounds great, but it does not play great. Am I supposed to have get a set-up on a $2400 guitar that was pleked? This is disappointing. The biggest problem is the action is way too high; borderline unplayable for me. Also, the intonation is obviously off and the neck is very sticky feeling, even for lacquer finish. I have come to regret every signature guitar purchase I have made. I hope I have finally learned a lesson.
Bottom line - if you're a Tony Iommi fanatic and have money to burn, go for it. Otherwise, I'd get a Gibson or Epiphone SG Special. Sadly, I am past my return period. I will take to a luthier and hope for the best.