The madness of loving SGs...

PonchoGreg

For some odd reason I've always been attracted to SGs. It's almost irrational given its many foibles and idiosyncrasies:

- neckdives
- doesn't hold tuning particularly well
- the neck pickup sound isn't as pleasing as LP / 335
- can lack body and / or sustain compared to the aforementioned, or other twin humbucker guitars

Case in point: my 2013 standard fits pretty much all of the above, and yet I'm very fond of it. Love the way it plays, and just looking at it gives me the horn (pun intended)!

I know they tend to be a marmite guitar for these reasons (and a lot of people also don't seem to get on with the way the neck "shifts" everything left) , but does anyone else love them in spite of everything?

stickyfiddle

Madness? Are you nuts?  SGs are the best solidbody Gibson makes.

Les Pauls are an ergonomic nightmare, super heavy, shit upper fret access and way less versatile. Explorers are amazing but unwieldy, Vs are cool but stupid. Firebird are gorgeous but you need to buy a new car just to fit the case in.

PonchoGreg

Ha ha this is exactly the sort of take I was looking for

Philtre

I have a 2016 Standard. Light as a button and as sweet as a nut. (For neck dives a cloth strap does the job)

Creed_Clicks

To be honest I never ever noticed the neck dive with SGs, and have played several Gibson models and Epis over the years. Never once interfered with my playing, either at home or at gigs. Lovely light guitars. But I bought a Guild!

Jota

I've been having a hard time with the intonation in my SG (wrap-around bridge) and hate the neck pickup sound but it has been the only guitar I play.

The bridge pickup sounds awesome, love the neck and it's light.

Been GASing hard for a 61 Standard but I can't do it at the moment.

TheMarlin

I love SG’s, was my dream guitar from 12 years of age. I still get pangs when I see a nice one. 

I’ve had many, and all left me underwhelmed. 

I recently got one of these as a starter guitar for my daughter. https://www.jhs.co.uk/products/guitars-folk-instruments/electric-guitars/vintage/vintage-reissued-electrics/vintage-v6-reissued-vibrola-tailpiece-gun-hill-blue

Was so blown away by it, I bought another for myself. It’s a fantastic guitar, both bridge and neck sounds great, sustains beautiful, got great tone, and love the properly functioning Vibrola 

Honestly, best SG I’ve ever had my hands on. 

Adore the thing. 

Marlin 

RandallFlagg

I kind of agree, the neck pickup sound isn't full and plummy like a LP or 335 but...it has it's own thing, reminds of a PRS neck pickup sound. I chose my CS '61 Std after spending a couple of hours comparing it to CS R7's, R8's, R9's and Jrs and it was the one I kept coming back to so I bought it.

There is just something about an SG despite it's foibles. Mine stays in tune very well and has no neck dive. The thing I don't like is how close the pickups are together, I have unpotted pickups and coming from a Fender it takes a while for me to adjust and stop hitting the neck pickup with my pick which sends a huge clonk through to the amp. I also hate the fiddly restringing, it's nowhere as easy as a Fender Tele as things fall off when you take all the strings off but that's not just an SG it's all Gibsons.

Once adjusted after 10 minutes or so, I get the most lovely warm clean tones that I can get lost for hours with and it snarls overdriven. The SG is Gibson's Tele.

Philly_Q

I've always liked SGs.  I think they look great (although occasionally I'll see a picture and think the body looks just a bit too wide relative to the length).  They're nice and light, the much-bemoaned neck dive has never really bothered me (except on the one I have with stupid robot tuners).  It's easy to reach the upper frets.  The bevelled body shape is infinitely more comfortable than the dished top and hard edges of an LP.

That said, I've never managed to find a really great one.  I've owned 11 or 12 SGs over the years (including a Greco, 3 Tokais and a really shitty Samick) and none of them were amazing.  And it doesn't help that 99% of all SGs have skinny necks.  But one day I'll find "the one".

HandwrittenHero

RandallFlagg said:

I kind of agree, the neck pickup sound isn't full and plummy like a LP or 335 but...it has it's own thing, reminds of a PRS neck pickup sound. I chose my CS '61 Std after spending a couple of hours comparing it to CS R7's, R8's, R9's and Jrs and it was the one I kept coming back to so I bought it.

There is just something about an SG despite it's foibles. Mine stays in tune very well and has no neck dive. The thing I don't like is how close the pickups are together, I have unpotted pickups and coming from a Fender it takes a while for me to adjust and stop hitting the neck pickup with my pick which sends a huge clonk through to the amp. I also hate the fiddly restringing, it's nowhere as easy as a Fender Tele as things fall off when you take all the strings off but that's not just an SG it's all Gibsons.

Once adjusted after 10 minutes or so, I get the most lovely warm clean tones that I can get lost for hours with and it snarls overdriven. The SG is Gibson's Tele.

I thought I was finally onto a winner with the maestro for restringing, no more instances of the tailpiece falling off while all strings were out to clean the fretboard. Instead I got the experience of trying to get the ball ends to stay put in the comb while strings aren't up to tension.

Bill_S

Love my SG. Wanted one badly since ogling one in a music shop window in Bath in 1978, the night after watching Angus Young with one at the Bristol Colston Hall. Took me 25 years, but secured in 2003. It’s a keeper. Nothing sounds better through an old Marshall 

HandwrittenHero

PonchoGreg said:

For some odd reason I've always been attracted to SGs. It's almost irrational given its many foibles and idiosyncrasies:

- neckdives
- doesn't hold tuning particularly well
- the neck pickup sound isn't as pleasing as LP / 335
- can lack body and / or sustain compared to the aforementioned, or other twin humbucker guitars

Case in point: my 2013 standard fits pretty much all of the above, and yet I'm very fond of it. Love the way it plays, and just looking at it gives me the horn (pun intended)!

I know they tend to be a marmite guitar for these reasons (and a lot of people also don't seem to get on with the way the neck "shifts" everything left) , but does anyone else love them in spite of everything?

I've not personally found neck dive to be an issue. May have just got lucky.
Neck pickup is going to be personal preference. I like all 3 positions on my SG. Likewise the body/sustain is preference and all down to what sound you're going for. I love my LP and my SG and they both cover different sounds and moods.

Redlester

A black SG is a beautiful thing. 

soma1975

Selling my 2020 Epi '61 SG as I need the dosh but once I got it buzz free out of the box I've really come to love its tones. Don't miss my full fat Gibson LP Standard at all. 

Seems a lot more versatile than the LP was. 

Bigsby

PonchoGreg said:

For some odd reason I've always been attracted to SGs. It's almost irrational given its many foibles and idiosyncrasies:

I think you could make a good case for all of the 'classic' guitars having foibles and idiosyncrasies around weight, balance, upper fret access, pick up selector location, and so on. To get away from those issue guitars need a lot of redesigning*, which is something many today guitarists simply don't want - if anything they want the opposite, to add back all the issues so the guitar is truly authentic to it's original form. Who cares if you have to take the neck off to adjust the truss rod?

*Of course the SG was exactly that, a radical redesign intended to solve the 'issues' that had caused LP sales to slump, it just managed to bring it's own set of issues around balance and weak neck joint, making it a legitimate classic guitar.

So IMHO it's no more irrational to love the SG than any other 'classic' guitar. I certainly do:

PonchoGreg

Yeah, totally aware of that as others have pointed out - LP too heavy, strat with annoying switch/knob placement, etc. They all have their quirks.

It's just that the SG always seems to be getting a bit less love than the other classics (although I wouldn't be surprised if someone proves me wrong with sales figures, especially given that Gibson have always managed to keep it at relatively sensible price points)

sixwheeltyrrel

Aren't SGs the biggest selling of the Gibson range?

I'm certain they were at one point.

stickyfiddle

RandallFlagg said:

The SG is Gibson's Tele.

Nuff said imo. 

My Cs-336 and Strat just edge it for me, partly due to sentimental value, but I wouldn’t be without an SG.

They’re typecast as “the Angus guitar” but they’re super versatile and really sweet at the cleaner end. 

Jota

I always think of the LP Jr/Special as Gibson's Tele...

PonchoGreg

stickyfiddle said:

RandallFlagg said:

The SG is Gibson's Tele.

Nuff said imo. 

My Cs-336 and Strat just edge it for me, partly due to sentimental value, but I wouldn’t be without an SG.

They’re typecast as “the Angus guitar” but they’re super versatile and really sweet at the cleaner end. 

This. Part of the reason I parted with my LP and not my SG (despite the former being great, especially with SD Antiquities) is because I always found it more versatile clean. Dare I say, Tele-esque

Philly_Q

sixwheeltyrrel said:

Aren't SGs the biggest selling of the Gibson range?

I'm certain they were at one point.

Gibson themselves used to advertise it as their biggest seller.

I don't know if anyone ever produced sales figures to back it up, or if it was based on average annual sales or, perhaps, total historic sales.  It certainly "feels" like there are a lot more Les Pauls than SGs around.