cobrahead1030
Well-known member
TLDR; pics are down below.
I've been wanting some type of nice 330 for a few years now. I like the idea of growly p90's in a full hollow, that's wild & hard to tame at full volume. Played a handful over the years that I liked, but never found one that really screamed at me when I had the cash to spare. I really like the heritage H 530 in blonde, and had been hoping to come across a nice used one at some point.
About 2 months ago, I came across what was advertised as a "players grade non-reissue 1959 es 330" semi-locally on market place for $5k. With a wedding to pay for, and no intention of spending $5k on a guitar in the foreseeable future, I just added it to my 'saved' list just to see how long it took for someone to snatch it up. On more than one occasion I'd go back and look at the ad, when I was bored and looking at things I can't afford. To my surprise, the price dropped a time or two & the guitar was still there. Eventually I discussed it with the wife, told her I was thinking of making an offer. I hit the seller up asking some general questions, and he informed me that it was on consignment at a shop in Atlanta, about 2.5 hours away.
Here's why it's affordable. It's a refinish, originally sunburst. The hardware, pickups, etc. have all been swapped out, original case is long gone. The owner said he didn't do a deep drive to verify that on the electronics, but it's assumed that's all non-original. All intact, these list in the $10-15k range. I'm not sure how many sell for that. Date code on the Factory Order # checks out, as best I can tell. The condition not only made it affordable, but something I could enjoy playing & not afraid to put a scratch on.
Overall the finish really isn't bad. It's a little rough around where the fretboard binding meets the body, but most of that is covered by the neck pickup & pick guard. There's a few spots where the clear is a little cloudy, and around the forearm area I can see what looks to be remnants of the original checking & wear pattern. It doesn't look like there was anything damaged when the original finish was removed. From a few feet away, it looks like it could've came from the factory natural like this. Even in my hands, I have to look for finish flaws to find them & differentiate them from the normal wear it's attained since.
The neck profile feels great in my hands, it was refretted with slightly larger fret wire, but they're not jumbos and fit the guitar pretty well. The mystery pickups overall sound like a solid pair of p-90's, I may look into some nice repro's at some point, but for the time being I'll be happy to play it as is. A quick check with the meter shows 10.5k on the bridge & 9k on the neck pickup. The neck pickup is audibly louder; a little more than I'd like, it's less noticeable with some dirt on it. I tried it through a Bogner Metropolis & Tone King Imperial at the shop, then got some time in with my Mark V when I got home.
Unplugged it sounds fantastic. The shop had some nice Gibson and Heritage 330, 335, & 339's around, a few of which I picked up to compare. Overall I preferred this one, it's bit on the dark side, but has a more unique character and rings like a good hollow should.
Receipt in the case showed the previous owner took it in for a setup last year. It's pretty good in that department; action is about where I'd set it height-wise. I can find a little sizzle if I pick hard and play bends in certain spots. About as much as you'd expect on most Gibsons, but no standout fret buzz. There is some visible fret wear, and the first couple of frets have some divots in the fretboard, but it doesn't affect playability overall. Intonation is really good, not perfect.
Unfortunately, I've got a heavy work schedule & a couple of vacations right around the corner. I will make the time to record something cool with this, as soon as I can.
I've been wanting some type of nice 330 for a few years now. I like the idea of growly p90's in a full hollow, that's wild & hard to tame at full volume. Played a handful over the years that I liked, but never found one that really screamed at me when I had the cash to spare. I really like the heritage H 530 in blonde, and had been hoping to come across a nice used one at some point.
About 2 months ago, I came across what was advertised as a "players grade non-reissue 1959 es 330" semi-locally on market place for $5k. With a wedding to pay for, and no intention of spending $5k on a guitar in the foreseeable future, I just added it to my 'saved' list just to see how long it took for someone to snatch it up. On more than one occasion I'd go back and look at the ad, when I was bored and looking at things I can't afford. To my surprise, the price dropped a time or two & the guitar was still there. Eventually I discussed it with the wife, told her I was thinking of making an offer. I hit the seller up asking some general questions, and he informed me that it was on consignment at a shop in Atlanta, about 2.5 hours away.
Here's why it's affordable. It's a refinish, originally sunburst. The hardware, pickups, etc. have all been swapped out, original case is long gone. The owner said he didn't do a deep drive to verify that on the electronics, but it's assumed that's all non-original. All intact, these list in the $10-15k range. I'm not sure how many sell for that. Date code on the Factory Order # checks out, as best I can tell. The condition not only made it affordable, but something I could enjoy playing & not afraid to put a scratch on.
Overall the finish really isn't bad. It's a little rough around where the fretboard binding meets the body, but most of that is covered by the neck pickup & pick guard. There's a few spots where the clear is a little cloudy, and around the forearm area I can see what looks to be remnants of the original checking & wear pattern. It doesn't look like there was anything damaged when the original finish was removed. From a few feet away, it looks like it could've came from the factory natural like this. Even in my hands, I have to look for finish flaws to find them & differentiate them from the normal wear it's attained since.
The neck profile feels great in my hands, it was refretted with slightly larger fret wire, but they're not jumbos and fit the guitar pretty well. The mystery pickups overall sound like a solid pair of p-90's, I may look into some nice repro's at some point, but for the time being I'll be happy to play it as is. A quick check with the meter shows 10.5k on the bridge & 9k on the neck pickup. The neck pickup is audibly louder; a little more than I'd like, it's less noticeable with some dirt on it. I tried it through a Bogner Metropolis & Tone King Imperial at the shop, then got some time in with my Mark V when I got home.
Unplugged it sounds fantastic. The shop had some nice Gibson and Heritage 330, 335, & 339's around, a few of which I picked up to compare. Overall I preferred this one, it's bit on the dark side, but has a more unique character and rings like a good hollow should.
Receipt in the case showed the previous owner took it in for a setup last year. It's pretty good in that department; action is about where I'd set it height-wise. I can find a little sizzle if I pick hard and play bends in certain spots. About as much as you'd expect on most Gibsons, but no standout fret buzz. There is some visible fret wear, and the first couple of frets have some divots in the fretboard, but it doesn't affect playability overall. Intonation is really good, not perfect.
Unfortunately, I've got a heavy work schedule & a couple of vacations right around the corner. I will make the time to record something cool with this, as soon as I can.
