# Blues king?



## darreneedens (Nov 13, 2007)

Hi,

I am really interested in picking up a gibson blues king acoustic guitar... I have not played one, I havent found one at a store in town yet to try. I love small body guitars, most of my instruments are...

anyone with any experience with this guitar able to tell me the good and the bad?

The only thing I dislike is the fact that it comes with a gig bag not a hardshell case...


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## gurianguy (Nov 20, 2007)

Hi,

I played one in a store here (Calgary). I was quite disappointed. It didn't project well, and did not impress me at all. I only tried that one, and each guitar is different, so maybe there are good ones out there. My impression is that it is way overpriced for what it is. If you want a raunchy old time blues tone, I would look for an older Harmony on craigslist or e-bay.

My Gurian S3R is a smaller bodied guitar, but it is quite harmonically rich, and not really well suited as a blues guitar.(Could be the player a bit here also).

Happy hunting.


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## fraser (Feb 24, 2007)

i played one a bit in a store, and really liked it. didnt mess around much, as it was out of my price range- but i left it thinking that it was great. i would have gotten it if i couldve afforded it.
i like small bodied guitars too, i got one of these instead of the blues king, as it was way more affordable.
http://www.epiphone.com/default.asp?ProductID=76&CollectionID=9
its based roughly on the blues king, feels about the same, same size etc.
i made a bone nut and saddle for it, and now it sounds almost as good.
speaking of projection, it makes the guitars on my walls hum when i play it. 
lots of midrange- the pickguard was sort of a stick on one- i pulled it off there- looks better lol.


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## darreneedens (Nov 13, 2007)

If you dont mind me asking how much was the epiphone?

It looks like I am just going to have to try this guitar out for myself... seems to be a 50/50 split so far... one person thinks it is worth it, one person not so much.

thanks for the input so far!


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## fraser (Feb 24, 2007)

i think i paid $275 after taxes and discount on the epiphone, 
the same mahogony body and solid spruce top as the blues king, the epi has a larger lower bout, so it maybe has a bit of an advantage in terms of bass and projection, but the blues king has a great voice-
personally i could see the blues king as the type of guitar that i could play exclusively for the rest of my life, the epi, not so much, 
i guess the price difference shows in a lot of small ways.

wether its worth it or not is up to you, if you can afford it, and its what you like, then its worth it
its too bad you cant try one though- id be a bit hesitant too if i couldnt try it first, but i doubt youd be disappointed with it


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## fraser (Feb 24, 2007)

i did a search to see if anybody near you carries this guitar, and came up with nothing- i wish guitar store websites had more info-
but i did find this video review- the guy doesnt really like the guitar, as it doesnt suit his playing style, i can see why, but it does suit my own style and sound- brings up some interesting thoughts-
you might want to look-
http://www.gearwire.com/gibson-blues-king-l-00-lab.html
scroll down the page a bit, and theres a windows media video there-


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## darreneedens (Nov 13, 2007)

Thanks for all the info fraser.

I saw that 12th fret has a used blues king, so it may be worth it for me to make the trip there... I wouldn't fork out that kind of money unless I played the guitar first.

we will see what happens after I try it lol.


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## darreneedens (Nov 13, 2007)

I watched that video...

that guy seems like a tool.


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## fraser (Feb 24, 2007)

yes lol he does seem like a tool
great that you found one you can try.
if you go, give that turn of the century bruno for a spin for me will ya?
http://www.12fret.com/used/BrunoTP.jpg


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## darreneedens (Nov 13, 2007)

haha will do!


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## NB-SK (Jul 28, 2007)

fraser said:


> i did a search to see if anybody near you carries this guitar, and came up with nothing- i wish guitar store websites had more info-
> but i did find this video review- the guy doesnt really like the guitar, as it doesnt suit his playing style, i can see why, but it does suit my own style and sound- brings up some interesting thoughts-
> you might want to look-
> http://www.gearwire.com/gibson-blues-king-l-00-lab.html
> scroll down the page a bit, and theres a windows media video there-


Yeah, it's that there are better sounding guitars available but if you must have this one, buy it second hand.


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## darreneedens (Nov 13, 2007)

It is not that I must have this one, I just really like the looks of it. Without playing it I thought I would post here and get some opinions before making a trip to try one.

Does anyone know what the difference is between the 1937 small body re-issue and the blues king is?

And, since I seem to be getting some surprising feedback about the lack of sound from this guitar... Can anyone suggest a small body acoustic in the $1000-$2000 dollar range?

And please, I just prefer small bodies...A lot of people tell me they arent worth it because they dont sound as good, But I have a '66 guild F-20 that plays well live and records great, I love the sound.

Thanks:food-smiley-015:


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## fraser (Feb 24, 2007)

the 37 reissue is a faithful reproduction of the original, while the blues king has a thinner body, according to gibson, to give a "fuller more balanced tone"
its my thinking that folks who find these are lacking, will find any guitar of these dimensions to be lacking. with a little guitar the tone is less complex, its just physics. it wasnt built to fill a large room with sound, so simply strumming an e chord isnt going to produce an awe inspiring, complex tone.
it excels at what i like to do because the lower end wont overwhelm the higher end, if im playing the bass line with my thumb the boominess wont stifle the higher notes etc. chords strummed wont stifle the little lead runs in between.
one way to explain it is that i have a terrible time getting a dreadnought recorded, it needs all kinds of eq- its just a huge uncontrollable sound, big, boomy, and the little things my hands do get lost in the sound- while a parlour size is much more transparent and manageable. it wont play the song for you, itll just amplify the sound your hands are making.
your already using small guitars, so your well aware im sure of this- but i think that this is why others may not like its sound.


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