Gibson Reviews 68

Bought a guitar from the Gibson website. Was supposed to be a surprise birthday present from my wife.

FedEx messaged us to say we owed import duty taxes, in addition to the sale price. This was incorrect, as we paid VAT within the sale price, and it was for Gibson to pay the import duties, but somehow they messed up the paperwork and FedEx were contacting us for an extra £129!

The guitar was in holding because the payment was not received.

The birthday surprise was totally ruined and at the time of writing, the guitar has still not been received.

Various messages have been sent to Gibson, all of which have been ignored!

Appalling customer service from one of the world’s supposed world leading guitar maufacturers.

Buy from Fender instead, Gibson sucks!

Gibson Les Paul
First off I am the proud owner of several Gibson Les Pauls and all are of very high quality, looks feel and sound ( new and used).
I recently took delivery of the new limited edition NG Les Paul. I was so excited to be able to get one as I thought it be a great way to mark actually being at Live 25 which was amazing experience. This instruments is rather cool however this has to be the worst build quality I have ever seen on a Gibson. The frets are terrible every one is scratchy and feels very rough. The tooling marks on the binding and fretboard are so disappointing. The frets board was very dry.
Looks like Gibson have been struggling to keep up with demand and as result the quality in my guitar is not up to the usual standard which in turn has took the usual thrill of opening the case of your Gibson away.

They make guitars for under probably $500 and they charge $2500-$4,000+… yeah… they can suck a fat one lol

I bought a guitar from their website but it never arrived.

I am a professional lead guitarist and own several Gibson Les Pauls mainly 50s and 60s standards from 23 to current as well as an older R8, 24 J45 Standard and a 24 ES335 in water melon all professionally set up and fret levelled by my tech.
Firstly it seems reading the comments that there are mainly 2 types of people making them.
1 is the Epiphone owner who feels the need to slag off an incredible professional instrument.
2nd is the out of the box reviewer which gets right on my nerves.
There are 2 guitar brands I love Gibson USA and Fender USA, this been said I do have a soft spot for LPs.
This new CEO has made a difference he’s obviously passionate and has listened to the consumer.
As for the 3rd type of customer who thinks the original bursts are made from woods from a mystical tree and Seth Lover waved a wand at the pick ups.
It’s placebo pure and simple.
Thanks Gibson and to Caesar and Mark let me review the guitars like Marty I actually care and know what I am doing 👍

Their costumer service is horrible. I contacted Gibson because the paint job on my Les Paul Studio was literally peeling off and I only owned it since 12/16/2023. I sent them pictures of what was happening and I did get a response. A day later they sent me a survey as to how my experience was from their customer service and then never heard from them again. Anyone who has worked with nitrocellulose lacquer paint knows it does not peel because of how brittle it is. Gibson apparently feels they can do no wrong but something went terribly wrong when that guitar was painted. Because I was brushed off, I will never deal with that company again. They were useless and I felt it was because I bought a bottom shelf guitar. Model #GIB-161223-NTL/ CASE # 00694681

I paid $6,000 for my Gibson SJ200 in 2023 I bought it from the Gibson warehouse in Nashville and was promised a life time warranty. The finish on the guitar neck started chipping so I contacted Gibson and was told I must be using a capo or putting my guitar in a stand. I treat this guitar like it’s one of my children. I take it everywhere I go and I’m careful not to expose it to extreme heat or cold. If I had of bought a cheap guitar from Walmart they would fix or replace it with no hassle but no I went to Nashville and bought it straight from Gibson warehouse. I can not believe I’m being treated like this. Folks don’t invest in this product like I did. That’s a lot of money for a retired truck driver to be cheated out of.

Gibson is a company who's riding on tjhe coat tails of it's former self from the 50's-60's.Gibson thinks it's completely acceptable to rip off their customers and charge $3,000 -$100,000 for a hunk of wood!
A standard lp is $3,000 usd but a reissue is $7,000!
You mean to tell me a long neck tenon, and a different top carve constitutes a $4,000 usd difference!?! This is a complete scam! Today in 2025 95% of the guitar is built BY MACHINE and very little actual handwork goes into a Gibson guitar in 2025..Almost everything is done by machine! But yet Gibson is still changing "hand made" prices?!? It's a laughable con! Tokai can produce a vintage accurate lp with 50% more actual hand work than Gibson but at a $2,000 usd price point! This alone shows the massive marking con by Gibson.. The quality of Gibson in 2025 is absolutely questionable at best! There's more guitars being sent back to Gibson on warranty repairs then ever before! Everything from finish flaws, shoty fretwork, and even necks that have been set wrong and I don't even know how that's possible with cnc machines doing the work!
Gibson is complete trash! They hide behind trademarks and intellectual property to prevent Japanese manufacturers from selling in the USA,so Gibson is effectively impeding on the great American "right to a free market" Gibson has cornered the market and sued everyone to prevent a "fair market competition" Gibson feels they shouldn't have to compete but rather be an only option.. And I'm not even going to mention the Gibson community which is made up of the worst, most nasty cold hearted individuals you'll ever encounter..
Here's some friendly advice, buy from Japan and have it shipped to America! It's well worth the import fees

Ordered a new GIbson @thomann.de came with a broken volume poti. NO QUALITY CONTROL @ Gibson. Ok, that was a 2,5k guitar, but that makes me really keen on the 10k jimmy page doubleneck. VERY SAD. My christmas is ruined.

What sort of idiot send out packs this time of year with their logos on full display. I'm all for minimising packaging waste, but leave it blank for goodness sake.

Another present spoiled

I purchased a 1970 Gibson Flying V last year, my dream guitar that has turned into a nightmare.

The build quality and inspection process of Gibson which you assume is a prestigious brand is drastically poor. when I first received the guitar there was damage both sides of the neck where it joins the stock, this was sent back and repaired by Gibson, a month later I received the guitar back I used it once then hang it on the wall mounted hanger that I have for the other 5 of my guitars (2 of which are also Gibson)

Upon removing it from the hanger I noticed damage to the finish where it had been hanging, I assume from poor paint quality or incorrect mixing / finishing of the paint.

I have contacted Gibson and had several responses with large wait times between and all they have offered is a free wall hanger to prevent further damage. This from a "lifetime warranty" is unacceptable and trying to blame the customer for incorrect storage for the cause is disgraceful as stated before multiple other guitars on the same mounts no others damaged.

I am currently awaiting another response from Gibson but feel their after sales care, product quality and processes are all sadly lacking.

Gibson is no longer a great of the guitar would but another company scrimping in the wrong areas to maximise profits. abysmal.

Bought a pair of speakers for £400. (KRK VXT4)
This was late 2023.
they come with a user mountable front grill.
I removed the screws to allow for fitting. The Allen key head screws are made of wax and rounded during removal.
(6 of 12 screws and I was very careful after the first one)
Contacted customer service for new screws. Been sent all over the place back and forth. Often no response. Still no screws. Now no response again.

Customer services doesn’t seem very customer orientated.

Bought a 61 reissue Gibson SG Standard 2022 model from Bonners in 2023 brand new.
Whilst the shop sale went smoothly within a year then toggle switch fell off -the pick up selector switch is playing up i.e it keeps cutting out when switching to the neck pick up ( I was told this is a common problem on SG's ) and now a cap from the tone knob has fallen off! Bearing in mind this was a brand new guitar - surely the this is not representative of all new Gibson's. Have I just been unlucky??? Currently joined the SG forum to see what other owners think .....

I own a 57 reissue special from 2019. Its a good guitar, but for one at this price it shouldn't have some of the finish flaws it has.

I purchased an Epiphone Joe Bonamassa 1962 ES-335 (replica of original Gibson) in February 2024 from a retailer. It was obviously shipped from a retail showroom, because the pick guard was covered in scratches and the chrome parts were covered in oily fingerprints and smudges. The retailer did not even bother to clean it up before shipping it to me. I was able to get a small refund as a concession from the retailer for its condition and it was generally in good shape otherwise.

Now, in June 2024, the neck has developed cracks along both sides starting at the nut, so I contacted Epiphone (Gibson) support expecting them to honor their guarantee from defects in quality and craftsmanship. This is a practice guitar for me, so it is never out of my sight and I have treated it with kid gloves to ensure it is not damaged in the slightest. When I travel (only locally) with it, I use the custom hardshell case it came with, so there has been no opportunity for me to have caused any damage myself.

Epiphone responded:
Thanks for reaching out and I'm sorry to hear about your Epiphone Joe Bonamassa neck having cracks. I want to inform you that headstock breaks are generally not covered under the standard Epiphone warranty terms. However, we understand the importance of assessing each case individually. Could you please send the photos in JPEG format? Once we receive the images, we'll take a closer look to better understand your situation.

Thank you for your understanding, and we'll be in touch after reviewing the photos.

I had already sent them photos but sent them again, and they almost immediately responded:
Thanks for providing the photos. While we understand the frustration that can accompany such incidents, unfortunately, these types of headstock breaks are not covered under our warranty policy.

The reason for this lies in the nature of headstock breaks, which often result from accidental damage rather than a defect in materials or craftsmanship. These breaks almost always happen due to an unusual amount of stress being forced onto the headstock, and unfortunately, there is no way to really tell if it happened under normal circumstances. Our warranty primarily only covers manufacturing defects and issues arising from normal use.

While headstock breaks are not covered by the warranty, if you require repair services or have any questions on how to handle it, please feel free to reach out to the Gibson Repair and Restoration Team.

I pushed back saying:
Considering I had no control over the guitar on the [retailer’s] showroom floor and it was clearly played while there, I should have some recourse to at least be reimbursed for the cost of the repair. In the less than 3 months that I have had the guitar it has never touched anything other than the wall hanger, a floor stand, or its case, so there is no chance I did anything to cause this issue. I disagree that it is not an issue of a defect or that the damage was not caused by neglectful handling by [the retailer]. I doubt the original 1962 Joe Bonamassa guitar experienced this issue and I am certain it saw much more stress on his tours than this replica that has been treated by me with kid gloves.

It is offensive that you would not trust me to have handled the instrument carefully and take responsibility for ensuring my investment in your instrument is backed by your guarantee of quality and craftsmanship.

If you have no other offer than for me to seek repairs at my own expense, this is the last Epiphone or Gibson product I will ever purchase. I will take action to ensure your customers and potential customers are aware of this issue and your refusal to make good on your guarantee.

I regret being put in this position and hope you will reconsider.

Epiphone support responded:
I understand your frustration and disappointment with the situation regarding your guitar from [the retailer]. It sounds like you've taken excellent care of your instrument, and it's understandably frustrating when damage occurs outside of your control.

It might be helpful to directly reach out to [the retailer’s] customer service department to discuss reimbursement for the repair costs. Sometimes they can offer solutions that might not initially be apparent. I hope you're able to find a resolution that meets your expectations.

I also contacted the retailer, who said the purchase was past their 45-day return policy, so there is nothing they would do either.

I luckily have a local master guitar builder who should be able to repair it at my expense.

I am following through on my promise to Epiphone/Gibson support to let their customers and potential future customers know of this situation and that purchasing Epiphone or Gibson guitars may be at their own risk.

I just recently bought a Gibson J 45 and also the Gibson Goldtop Slash Victoria model. I can't say enough how impressed I am with both instruments. I feel like these guitars play themselves. Gibson makes the best guitar, by far.

I contacted the Gibson customer service via e-mail tree timed (on Feb. 23rd, March 5th as well as on March 9th).
I received two case numbers, however, I did not get any response yet.

The following fact exists: I purchased a set of PMMH-10 machine heads about one or two years ago.
Unfortunately, at first I couldn't use them because my Les Paul had 8 mm holes.
However, I was able to use the tuners on my new Gibson.

Now I had to find out that the plate disk/washer was apparently missing from one machine head. This is quite annoying.

I complained about this to my music store, but the purchase was made too long ago. Accordingly, I was referred to Gibson.

I’m a jazz guitarist and recently bought my 16th Gibson Les Paul. Gibson Guitar’s customer service replied to my Authenticity Verification and Year Built information on that guitar. The delay in their response was due to a systems glitch. There’s no doubt Gibson Guitars produces some of the finest, most beautiful guitars in the World, and in my opinion, the Gibson Les Paul is the perfect guitar for both jazz and rock genres.

I ordered a Gibson L-OO in April 2021. It arrived in perfect condition and played beautifully. Just recently in June 2023 the pickup malfunctioned and stopped working. Unfortunately the warranty on the electronics is only 2 years, so I missed the mark by 2 months. I called Gibson but they refused to take care of the problem because it's "out of warranty", which I understand. But I've only had the guitar for 2 years and it's already malfunctioning. I'm a gigging musician and I bought this guitar because I needed a high quality, reliable instrument from a company I could count on to have my back. Unfortunately, Gibson isn't in the business of standing behind their products when they're out of warranty for 2 months. Technically, they don't have to. But I've had cheap pawn shop guitars that lasted longer and were more durable than this one. Since Gibson won't stand behind its products, then I will no longer be doing business with them. I'm having the guitar fixed at my own expense, then it will be sold.

Disgraceful Gibson service,
After purchasing a j45 the bridge started to peel away
Apparently it’s my fault 🤔
Funny how it’s not happened to my fender, epiphone & morris guitars which are all stored exactly the same.
Won’t be buying another gibson that’s for sure 👎🏽