I’ve poked around on the Gibson web site and can’t find a hint that Gibson makes mandolins. Is there a trick to finding mandolin info?
I’ve poked around on the Gibson web site and can’t find a hint that Gibson makes mandolins. Is there a trick to finding mandolin info?
Doug Brock
2018 Kimble 2 point (#259), Eastman MD315, Eastman MDA315, some guitars, banjos, and fiddles
It's been missing for months now. There was at least one other thread regarding it.
Yup, here it is.
And another.
And back in 2014.
"It's comparable to playing a cheese slicer."
--M. Stillion
"Bargain instruments are no bargains if you can't play them"
--J. Garber
Thanks! I did some searches here and on Google but searches like "Gibson web site mandolin" got me lots of unrelated info.
Doug Brock
2018 Kimble 2 point (#259), Eastman MD315, Eastman MDA315, some guitars, banjos, and fiddles
I know that Gibson has been having financial problems for years but I'm still shocked that they have such an incomplete web presence and that it doesn't seem to be getting fixed. You'd think the web site, the company's face to the world, would be a very high priority.
Doug Brock
2018 Kimble 2 point (#259), Eastman MD315, Eastman MDA315, some guitars, banjos, and fiddles
Dare I suggest that you look elsewhere for new mandolins?
Apparently, Gibson is still making mandolins, but only in very small numbers.
Their dealers are Guitar Center/ Musicians' Friend, The Mandolin Store, and Morgan Music.
Morgan Music is listing one F-9 in stock. The Mandolin Store is lists an unspecified number of F-5 Ferns in stock, plus one each of 5 other models. Guitar Center/Musician's Friend lists the F-9 and the F-5L Fern in stock; the number of instruments available is not listed. The total number of new Gibson mandolins available does not appear to exceed 12 or 15 total.
Gibson has had 7 months to get mandolins listed on their website since the change of management. They do not provide a list of mandolin dealers. However, they do list 46 Les Paul models on their website, and are listing two new budget acoustic guitar models.
I know of another American company that makes high quality mandolins. Their instruments are available for viewing in stores throughout the US. They maintain an up-to-date website, and have even been known to honor their warranties. And as far as I know, they are financially sound. I believe that their name starts with the letter "C".
Last edited by rcc56; Jul-08-2019 at 12:49am.
I found this link:
http://legacy.gibson.com/Products/Ac.../Mandolin.aspx
The marketing people at Gibson are actually pretty good. I see this one and I want to go out and buy an old Gibson.
Do Gibson make a lot of money out of you selling me your old Gibson? Yep.
I cannot afford a Gibson or one that starts with a "C", but if I could, I believe I would be going with the one that starts with a "C".
"All of us contain Music & Truth, but most of us can't get it out." - Mark Twain
Eastman MD615SB
Martin D35
Gibson SG
Doug Brock
2018 Kimble 2 point (#259), Eastman MD315, Eastman MDA315, some guitars, banjos, and fiddles
You actually might be able to find that 2016 information on the site. Nothing new. People have to understand what a small part of Gibson's business the mandolins are. It's an after thought.
"It's comparable to playing a cheese slicer."
--M. Stillion
"Bargain instruments are no bargains if you can't play them"
--J. Garber
The Mandoline market is a small niche market, and Gibson treats it as a custom shop/ "boutique" market. New Gibsons are not hard to find; The Mandoline Store has several, and as to quality, Dave Harvey is building some of the best Gibsons every made. IMHO!
If you can read this, thank a teacher. If you can read this in English, thank a vet.
Doug Brock
2018 Kimble 2 point (#259), Eastman MD315, Eastman MDA315, some guitars, banjos, and fiddles
Hmmm, I wonder if Gibson took them offline as part of their legal trademark protection strategy since that involves mandolins... Or it may just be part of the restructuring. Web presence and accuracy -- or for that matter, catalog accuracy -- has never been Gibson's strong point.
-- Don
"Music: A minor auditory irritation occasionally characterized as pleasant."
"It is a lot more fun to make music than it is to argue about it."
2002 Gibson F-9
2016 MK LFSTB
1975 Suzuki taterbug (plus many other noisemakers)
[About how I tune my mandolins]
[Our recent arrival]
"It's comparable to playing a cheese slicer."
--M. Stillion
"Bargain instruments are no bargains if you can't play them"
--J. Garber
When companies get taken over, sometimes the sideline products like mandolins can get shelved, at least in the short term.
The big money will say simply, ‘what’s the profit if this worker is on a guitar, what’s the profit if he’s on a mandolin?’
It can be soul destroying for the workers (Gibson has 800+?) because they can see that the stocks of raw materials aren’t being replenished.
They see the sales staff are being fired, demand is still high but they can see the day when it will end.
It can be even worse for the guitar workers, some of them, because with incentives they can actually start to earn more than before.
You're describing a normal company. Gibson isn't built like that. As I stated in my post in another thread, this isn't the worst thing Gibson has ever done to itself. They'll survive.
"It's comparable to playing a cheese slicer."
--M. Stillion
"Bargain instruments are no bargains if you can't play them"
--J. Garber
I look at it this way, if management at Gibson is paying no attention, it's less likely they do something stupid.
Silverangel A
Arches F style kit
1913 Gibson A-1
There are so many other quality builders who highlight their instruments on their websites that if Gibson treats mandolins as an afterthought they will get equal consideration from this customer.
Sorry about the picture quality, I couldn't figure out how to save it so just took a picture with my phone.
This is the picture of a Master Model that was on their old website. If they sold them like that, I'd buy one. But I've never seen one for sale that looked this good and the current ones aren't even close to this.
Interesting comment. Two points: 1) I was on your website last week and the mandolins you make are simply incredible -- they are all so individual and different from each other -- but all beautiful like snowflakes -- pretty amazing! (BTW the email address on the site bounced?). So it surprises me that you would have an interest in owning an MM (not intended as a knock on the MM) just wondering what sparks your interest in having one? (In truth I came very close to just buying a brand new MM a few months ago but managed to suppress the urge in time).
2) I am also very curious as to what are the features you see (or want to see) in the pictured MM --I assume it might be one of the Derrington era models? -- that you see (or want to see) in the newer ones?
Bernie
____
Due to current budgetary restrictions the light at the end of the tunnel has been turned off -- sorry about the inconvenience.
Well, about my website, I was paying Godaddy a bunch to keep it up but fellow Cafe friend Don Grieser volunteered some of his web space to park it. There were a few more mandolins that never got added and unfortunately all the audio clips disappeared in the transfer but its still around. All my contact info is wrong too. Always hated Comcast till they buried a fiber optic right up behind the house so everything changed when I said bye-bye to Centurylink.
As far as buying a MM I was being facetious but that particular example looks like what they should build with the Gibson name on it for the price they want. Back in the mid aughts there were quite a few threads about what they got right and what they got wrong but to me the scroll is the first thing you should get right. They consistantly made what gets called the hawks bill where the binding merged on the scroll. A real tight bend on the piece coming up from the body to get them joined.
looks all wrong. To me the current ones got worse with the "drive a truck through it" look. They jump out at me everytime I see one.
Wouldn't have volunteered this except I was asked.
I don't see any mandolins when I got to the Gibson page. I only see Gibson mandolins on The Mandolin Store page.
There are no mandolins on the standard Gibson website. They have not had mandolins listed for a very long time, except on the legacy page referred to in post number 6.
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