Anyone ever heard of this J-45?

Dukester · Posted: Wed May 25, 2005 10:04 am Post subject: Anyone ever heard of this J-45?

New member of this board...first post here...

I found a J-45 Macassar in a local shop. Gibson told me it was a limited run model that they just tried for the heck of it a few years back. Apparently the sides and back are Macassar, which I think is a kind of ebony? I guess what I want to know is:
1. Has anyone heard of this or know anything about it? I even tried "Googl"ing it and found almost nothing on this guitar.
2. Would it be something that would go up in value given its limited production run? It is selling for about $2500; not sure if that's a good deal or not.
3. How would the ebony/Macassar body affect the sound/tonality? I played it and it sounded pretty strong, much like an AJ. Gibson said it didn't sound as warm as their other guitars but I like it.

Anyone who knows anything about this, or knows where I could get any info on it?

Thanks!

herb · Posted: Wed May 25, 2005 3:34 pm Post subject:

Welcome to the forum! Very Happy

I know nothing about this guitar from personal experience, but would imagine the sound would be brighter than a rosewood side and backed guitar due to the extreme hardness of ebony. That's an educated (?) guess only.

Dukester · Posted: Thu May 26, 2005 9:41 am Post subject:

You're quite right--thats exactly what Gibson said, and it does in fact sound like an absolute cannon, really amazing. I guess that it is because of the ebony.

Unfortunately, Gibson's well-known quality control issues have created a problem. The guitar has a constant, very present rattle to it. The (Gibson certified) luthier in the shop has tried everything and cant get rid of it and concluded it is Gibson's problem.

I love the sound so much I'm tempted to buy it (maybe at a large discount) and then send it to Gibson myself to see if they can fix it, because its the nicest I've heard, but I know that wouldn't be a smart idea....Would it?

herb · Posted: Thu May 26, 2005 5:15 pm Post subject:

Sending it to Gibson would get it fixed, and fixed right, but be prepared to be without it for a long time!

nogin007 · Sea Monkey Joined: 28 May 2005 Posts: 12

It's probably Macassar Rosewood. I had a Washburn Millenium made out of Macassar Rosewood. It has a little different look than the rosewood Gibson normally uses. There is also an ebony from Macassar, but I doubt if the sides and back would be made out of it. Hope this helps.

GDC · Tadpole Joined: 08 Jul 2005 Posts: 19

I've heard of Madagascar Rosewood, but don't know anything about Macassar ebony or rosewood. That's interesting. Anybody know any more about this wood?

Gibson does some neat stuff. A friend of mine has a J 45 koa that is blonde top and not marked as a custom. The folks at Bozeman said something like we just sometimes run a guitar if we think it'll be a good one. I've never seen any info on j 45 koas as regular production models, and I've never even heard of Macassar. Gibson is cool.

As to value... who knows. Since Gibson is notorious for not keeping records, proving the rareity of a lot of Gibson's special guitars is difficult sometimes. If you really want to know, George Gruhn will appraise it by photograh for about $35.

Gary

tonguy · Not So Newbie Joined: 23 May 2003 Posts: 5

I've played a Macassar Ebony at a shop outside of Philly called Acoustic Roots (Medley Music) a few years ago - probably was the best new J-45 I've ever played. Plenty of volume and sustain, and a crisp bottom-end. There is a rosewood called Madagascar Rosewood which will be more similar to Brazilian rosewood than anything else, but Macassar Ebnoy is another wood species entirely. I remember the distinct medium-brown to almost black striped graining of the Macassar ebony back/sides and the crisp and booming tone. I believe that one was priced in the low-to-mid $2K range.