Gibson ES-175

1951

What other archtop than the ES-175 has contributed so much to shaping the music of the 20th century? The first guitar with a Florentine cutaway created by Gibson, it was introduced in the catalog in 1949. The model presented here is therefore from the first generation since it left the factory in 1951, that year only 559 ES-175s were built. This one is in excellent playing condition. It sounds wonderful, even unplugged it has a pretty incredible resonance. The original P90 and the original pots work wonderfully. The original rosewood bridge is present as well as the pickguard. The tuners are original and hold tuning well. We note as on many of these models a small stabilized crack at the jack and that the tailpiece has been replaced for a more recent chrome part and not nickel plated. Small parenthesis, I don’t think I’ve written it here yet: when changing strings I always recommend on this type of guitar, as on resonators which also have a fragile tailpiece to start with the low and high E, to put them under tension gradually then to pass the other strings by returning to the center A and B, D and G. This avoids exerting a lateral tension which can end up breaking it. You can also start with the D and G but the passage of the strings at the headstock is a little less easy in this direction. The 2 are equal, a question of habit. Let’s get back to this guitar, the original sunburst is in beautiful condition, and the guitar very playable. The sound of the P90 is really amazing and inimitable. It comes with an old non-original hard case.