This is my first Gibson – until now, I had only played Fenders.
I bought the ES-335 partly out of curiosity, and partly because I'm a huge fan of John Scofield. I know he plays an Ibanez, but the construction is quite similar. Still, I’ve never wanted to own a guitar bearing another guitarist’s signature, so the Ibanez was never really an option.
I unboxed it, plugged it into my amp and… after more than 30 years of playing Fenders and endlessly chasing my sound, I decided it was time to say goodbye to them.
All because of the Gibson ES-335 – this guitar is exceptional in every possible way!
In terms of tone, the range is incredible:
The neck pickup delivers a warm, full sound with a jazzy character – but without any muddiness. It's articulate, clear, and pleasantly rich in the low end.
In the middle position (both pickups), you get that classic funk tone I’ve had in my head forever – and suddenly, it’s right there under my fingers.
The bridge pickup, combined with my Vemuram ODS-1, is pure magic!
As for playability – I always thought Fenders were easier to play. But now, my tired fingers were shocked at how effortless it is to bend strings or play faster licks on this guitar.
The ES-335 is incredibly responsive to articulation – which I think is its greatest strength. And on top of that, it’s surprisingly lightweight.
The case is quite heavy, but that’s totally understandable – it’s there to protect the instrument, so it can’t exactly be made of paper.
To me, this is the perfect guitar, and I truly hope it stays that way for many years to come.
PS: Of course, there was one small issue: the neck pickup came tilted at a pretty steep angle toward the neck. Rotating the plastic mounting ring 180 degrees fixed it. Judging by some comments I found online, I’m clearly not the only one who experienced this.
This guitar is worth every single penny – I’d recommend it to anyone!
Huge thanks to the team for the fast and hassle-free shipping!
I still can’t believe I get to play such an amazing instrument. 😊🎸
