zeittgeist Posted February 23, 2011 Posted February 23, 2011 +1 for old guy taking up the guitar again after 35 years. Recently bought a LP Studio and had a great time with it. Decided I wanted something nicer and got a new LP Standard Plus 2008. Beautiful guitar with a great neck (the new asymmetrical design) and a lovely upper register tone. In the past I played folk and blues, but now I want to learn jazz. Began looking for an archtop. Bought an ES-137 which was awful, just hated touching it. Then a new ES-165, arrived with the floating pickup broken off from the pick guard where it had flopped around and scarred the finish. Then ANOTHER Herb Ellis, this one with a twist in the neck. I began to wonder if the fondly remembered Gibson of my youth was not the company it used to be. Stumbled on to a site called Glassdoor.com which allows employees to rate the company they work for. And, man oh man, its employees just ravished Gibson. This was the final straw for me, I don't want something so personal to come from such an unpleasant setting. Remembered reading something about employees buying the old Gibson plant back in the '80's, and founding Heritage. Read everything I could, joined HOC, and decided Heritage might be the answer. Found one on Ebay that seemed to answer my needs. It came last Friday, and I couldn't be more thrilled. The 2006 H550 is a joy to look at, the workmanship surpasses my memories of the great Gibsons I owned in the past. And the sound: I am up to lesson 5 in Mickey Baker, and those chords are just so beautiful. Whereas with the LP these same chords sound muddy and the individual tones get lost and blurred, the H550 articulates them so exactly that sometimes I will just play the same chord over and over again for the pleasure of hearing it. So now what? Even though this guitar is everything I could ask, why am I still eyeing selling sites looking to see what other models are available? But I'm guessing you all know the answer to that. Thanks for the opportunity to ramble. Daniel
yoslate Posted February 23, 2011 Posted February 23, 2011 Welcome, Daniel! Nothing to say to you, actually, because you've obviously figured it out, eh? The 550 is a terrific box, and yours is just a beauty! Congrats on the acquisition! "So now what?" Is that rhetorical, or do you require an actual substantive response? I think the response to that question, from virtually anyone on the HOC, which you did presage, would be, clearly: More!
FredZepp Posted February 23, 2011 Posted February 23, 2011 Welcome and thanks for sharing your story. We have a deep appreciation for the legacy that has brought us these wonderful Heritage guitars. It makes a person so happy that they kept building the finest instruments at 225 Parsons St. Your 550 is a beauty !
Gitfiddler Posted February 23, 2011 Posted February 23, 2011 It is always a pleasure to welcome yet another intelligent and articulate new member to the HOC. Obviously you have great taste in fine archtops also. Tim
Guest HRB853370 Posted February 23, 2011 Posted February 23, 2011 Daniel, regretfully, I just sold my 550 (you may have seen it, the 95 antique sunburst model) to be able to pay for a cherry red 535 I just purchased, and I have to tell you that everything you said about it is spot on. I loved that guitar, but right now I need to keep my stable at 5 Heritages. Sounds like you got bit!
Blunote Posted February 23, 2011 Posted February 23, 2011 Beautiful instrument. I bought my first Heritage a little over a year ago. Just took delivery of my 3rd today. I predict yours will multiply as well. Enjoy it, and welcome. I'll look forward to reading more from you as you develop your inner artist.
zeittgeist Posted February 23, 2011 Author Posted February 23, 2011 Thank you all for such a fine welcome. And, yup, as we speak, I am mentally going through all the closets evaluating what I might be able to sell to finance the next Heritage. Daniel
pegleg32 Posted February 23, 2011 Posted February 23, 2011 Hey Daniel, I'm with you on the old guys taking up guitar late, I am also in that club. Glad to see that you finally came to Heritage. As you can tell the folks on this site are all believers, and I am also in that club. Looks like you started out with a fine guitar. You most likely will be adding more.
mark555 Posted February 23, 2011 Posted February 23, 2011 Welcome Daniel, and what a fine looking guitar! I hope you hang with us and join in our discussions, it's a nice place to be.
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