Description
This Gibson ES-175D Archtop Electric Guitar in natural finish dates to 1970 and was built at Kalamazoo, Michigan. It is in very good, clean and original condition with light wear, oxidation and natural yellowing to the clear nitrocellulose lacquer finish. It has some very light scuffing from clothing, and some pressure wear to the heel end finish, where a strap button is mounted.
In production from 1953 to 2016 and the successor to the 1949 single pickup ES-175, the Gibson ES-175D was perhaps the most widely used archtop electric guitar. While found in many genres of music, from jazz to early rock and roll, from pop to arena rock, it is most associated with the many jazz guitarists who built careers with it.
Fret wear is very light, primarily under the first position high strings, and the chromed metal parts have only very light tarnish. This guitar plays well, feels and sounds like an ES-175D - warm and rounded, with a nice 'thunk'. It is currently strung with a set of Thomastik-Infeld George Benson flatwounds.
This example, like most other Gibson archtop electrics, uses Maple laminate for the top, sides and back, with Mahogany for the body blocks, and linings. The top bracing is Spruce. The neck is a 3-piece Mahogany construction for strength and stability, with Indian Rosewood for the bridge top and base, and the bound fingerboard. Position markers are split-parallelogram acrylic while the headstock Gibson logo and crown are Mother of Pearl into the black-dyed Pearwood headplate. The hardware is entirely original. Tuners are Gibson Deluxe models with plastic Keystone buttons. The wiring consists of a pair of humbuckers, individual volume and tone controls leading to a 3-way switch, and the output jack on the side.
The original hard shell case is included.
From 1983 to 1989, some Gibson ES-175D models were built with a Maple laminate top but Mahogany laminate for the sides and back, with solid Mahogany for the body blocks and neck. As with the other models, the bound fingerboard and floating bridge base were Rosewood. That change seems to have had some tonal effects: there’s a bit less top and bottom end, and a bit more midrange compared to the Maple models. The finish was slightly different on these models; the Maple versions received Sunburst shading on the top and back, but the Mahogany one is shaded only on the top.
Early on, Gibson established a winning formula for hollow-body archtop electric models, using laminate Maple for the top, back, and sides rather than carving plates from solid Maple or Spruce. This approach dramatically reduced production costs and increased consistency. Increasingly importantly, it also reduced feedback on ever-louder stages as amplifiers evolved and became more powerful. The Gibson ES-175D and the ES-175 were both built using this formula.
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There are no refunds or returns on used items unless authorized in advance by a Twelfth Fret Sales Associate at time of sale. View Our Full Terms Here |
DETAILS:
- Instrument Model: ES-175D
- Instrument Manufacturer: Gibson
- Instrument year: 1970
- Instrument Finish: Natural Gloss
- Instrument Class: Vintage
- Instrument serial number: 103107, built during 1970 at Kalamazoo, Michigan
- Country of Origin: USA
- Instrument Condition: Very Good
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Playing Condition: Very Good
- Right-handed
- CITIES Documentation Required: No
- Case included: Yes
- Case original: Yes
- Case Type: Hard
- Instrument Weight Imperial: 6.688 lbs
- Instrument Weight Metric: 3.04 kgs
- Scale Length Imperial: 24.6 in
- Scale Length Metric: 625 mm
- Nut Width Imperial: 1.695 in
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Nut Width Metric: 43.06 mm
- Items in Case: N/A
- Consignment: Yes
- Product ID: 190174
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There are no refunds or returns on used items unless authorized in advance by a Twelfth Fret Sales Associate at time of sale. View Our Full Terms Here |