Gibson ES-335 – Your Very Own Lucille

Body And Neck:
Electronics:
Hardware:
Sound:
Value:

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Are you familiar with late great BB King's legendary guitar named Lucille? Well, that baby is most commonly described by gear aficionados as the Gibson ES-335, one of the best guitars for blues and jazz music and a bonafide icon of the six-string domain.

This is a high-end instrument and something many players define as their dream six-string. We had the privilege of taking it our for a brief spin, you can check out our thoughts in the rundown below.

Body & Neck

So, laminated maple body with an arched top, an iconic tonewood combination that works like a charm when premium components and top-level craftsmanship is added to the mix.

The neck is a glued-in maple piece combined with a torrified maple fretboard, a pack of 22 frets and classic white dot markers. On top of it all, we are looking at a simplified Gibson headstock and a gold logo.

The guitar feels like an amazingly solid single piece and gives the feeling of a perfectly balanced tool just waiting to be wielded by masters. Thanks to the amazingly smooth feel, nothing but high-end components, and a stellar job on the frets with zero buzz and sharp edges, we can only give this puppy a clear 5 outta 5.

Hardware

As for hardware, the guitar sports a set of Grover Rotomatic tuning machines that do an exceptional job in keeping the instrument in proper shape over extended periods of time.

Everything about this section was placed to add sonic value by keeping the tuning and intonation in place while locking in extra sustain and optimal resonance. The mix also includes an AVR2 bridge and a long-anchor tail piece.

Electronics

The company opted for a set of classic Gibson humbucker pickups that reel in that iconic PAF vibe while incorporating some of the improvements the world of pickups yielded over the past decades. The pickups are routed to a single pair of control knobs for Tone and Volume adjustments. Additionally, a standard three-way pickup selector is included in the mix for extra tonal tweaks.

Sound

As always, maple provides a bright, punchy, and articulate sonic foundation, while the addition of arched top with classy F holes secures additional resonance and a more rounded up sound with prominent middles and warm basses.

When you think of that classy classic jazzy/bluesy guitar vibe, the one packed with brightness and clarity, but still just enough punch and low end to secure that the tone is not dry and capable of cutting through the mix. Hitting this sweet spot requires some serious skills, and this Gibson jazz guitar has all you need for it!

Value/Conclusion

This is a high-end guitar with a high-end price, but it's still within reasonable boundaries of what a top-level six-string should cost and therefore still something we can thoroughly recommend. If you want the best jazz guitar tone under 2000 bucks, we say check this fella out, it just might be your perfect match!

For more info about the Gibson ES-335, click here.
For more Jazz electric guitars, click here.