Positive side of the new Gibson "G Force automatic tuners"

[Duffy]

Quote

The Neanderthals who reject it will be left in the dust of antiquity. Unquote.


This may indeed be prophetic.

I have to admit that I originally thought it looked like a misplaced waffle iron and represented a transition from a great classic design to some more typical modern Gibson junk. Actual hands on experience has, like so many times before, changed my mind.

I just bought a Gibson LP Junior and planned to replace the auto tuners. They are going to be staying, at least for a while, probably until they break or longer. The new Gibson case that comes with the Junior is also very nice. I also dig the brass nut.

Those much criticized auto tuners have a 40:1 gear ratio; re-read - 40:1 gear ratio. That is an incredibly accurate tuning level of tuning precision. So for those like me that immediately dismissed the auto tuners without a second thought, it might be wise to give them a second look.

Robert, you might want to grab a Gibson LP Junior and do a demo. It is possible that you, too, will find this new technology to be surprisingly impressive.

heck out the new Gibson LP Junior if it is something that you had wanted to do before you noticed the, initially, unsightly "auto tuners". Like me you might find that you quickly start digging them after you waste a lot of time contemplating ways of replacing them with a nice set of classic style Grovers.

I very much dig this new LP Junior and appreciate it more than I thought I would. I think it will become one of my most favored guitars. It has great feel, a solid extra heavy feel (always nice with an LP), a great feel, and produces a very awesome sound. The neck is really nice as well and might be a surprise to more than a few.

[yuominae]

Hmmm, I've always been in two minds about them. I see the practicality, but I also wonder I I really need something to help me tune my guitar? Sure it's convenient, but does it outweigh the hassle of having to "feed" it every so often?

And... If they break, how easy are they to replace?

[Tig***]

For my SG, I chose the standard tuners. It isn't a neck diving monster but a little more weight might have changed that.

Looking up the spec's it has 36 custom preset tunings so you can store all the alternate tunings you would like.

[marnold***]

What's the upcharge for those tuners these days? I really haven't looked at that at all since they were first announced.

[Duffy]

The tuners on he auto tuning system are actually real nice "locking tuners".

[tonebender]

My band bought a new LP with the G Force tuners. He did not like them and called Gibson about how to replace them. They were not helpful. He soon discovered this latest version of auto tuners by Gibson can simply be removed and replace with standard tulips without hassle, dropped right in. I do not think this is the case with the first version. I think they left holes exposed, etc. He's back to what he knows.

This lead me to wonder about them so I went to GC and tried them for myself. I really liked this feature and I think I could live with it just fine. I found them easy to use and they worked perfectly. I do not have a Gibby with these tuners but if I get one they will probably remain. I gig and like to tune while muted to avoid a lot of unnecessary noise so have a tuner pedal or some other type mute pedal would be necessary for me.

[jtees4]

I love my MinEtunes, I put them on my o1 SG Special recently. I think they're great. And I know how to tune a guitar, thank you. Been doing it for 45 years.

[ZMAN]

Interesting topic. I talked to my local Gibson dealer about the new 2015 Gibson's. He is one of the larger authorized dealer/repair centers. He has already replaced 3 of the G force tuning system, with normal tuners for guys who tried it and hated it. He also said that the width of the neck and the new brass nut are causing an audible binding noise when the strings are bent coming from the nut slot. He is very upset with Gibson and says that most people are looking for NOS 2014 guitars. (New Old Stock). He said the tuners are rarely able to tune the High E, especially when they come with 9s on them. They changed the neck width but left the string spacing the same, so there is extra fret board on either side of the high and low E making it very uncomfortable to play. Now this is a dealer talking and one of the best techs I have ever seen, as well as being a professional player.
I recently talked to Duffy and I know he has already, in a short time has gone from loving to hating it, and is going to replace the G Force system with a set of regular tuners and accept the fact that he will void the warranty. I will leave that up to him to explain.
I can see a major change at Gibson in the near future, back to what people really want!
The only thing I am happy about is that my 3 Older Gibson Les Paul's will most likely gain what they had lost in value due to the lower end Gibbies that have come out in the last few years, back to where they should be.

[Tig***]

Yeah, I'm not sure why Gibson thought the wider neck change/same string spacing was a good idea.

The brass zero nut is even more perplexing!

[Robert****]

Thanks for the heads up. I'll try one at NAMM next week!

[ZMAN]

My guy also said it would take a skilled Luthier to remove the brass nut and put in a regular nut. I am not that technical but he is. He has put several bone nuts into my guitars that had a plastic nut. Something about not enough depth to fit a nut after the brass one is removed, I guess it would need some wood removed!