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Thursday December 26th, 2002

Acousticville: Gibson's Advanced Jumbo
by Steven Stone for Vintage Guitar

In vintage guitar circles you often hear, "They don't make 'em like the used to." The entire vintage guitar industry seems based on the rarely questioned veracity of this clich.

I agree with this old chestnut, but for different reasons than most. I believe new guitars are better than the old stuff. Think I'm all wet? Here's a case in point - the new Gibson Advanced Jumbo.

Gibson premiered its Advanced Jumbo guitar in 1936, and ceased production after issuing a scant 300 examples.

Unofficially dubbed "The Bone Crusher," it was designed to compete directly with Martin's 14-fret D-28, but its $80 price tag made it too expensive for most casual pickers. Although the AJ was $20 less than a Martin D-28, the Martin outsold it by 153 guitars in the same time period.

Flash forward to 1990. Gary Burnett, guitar store owner, Gibson flat-top collector, and a fine picker, loans his prototype '35 AJ to Ren Fergusen, Gibson Montana's head luthier, to copy it for a new version of the AJ. History repeats itself as Gibson produces another fine guitar that sells badly. After a brief stint as a standard production model, the AJ is relegated to custom-order status. During the next 10 years, AJs dribble out of Montana as limited editions and special orders.

Finally, in 2001 (and due in large part to popular demand), Gibson decides to make the AJ a standard production model once more. Our history lesson has ended.

Today's AJs
Simply stated, the Gibson Advanced Jumbo is a slope-shouldered jumbo-sized guitar with rosewood back and sides and a spruce top. But to say it's just another rosewood guitar is like saying a Ferrari is just another red convertible.

The details of the AJ's design make it special. Its 25-1/2" scale neck drives its top harder than Gibson's more standard 24-3/4" scale. Combined with a 102-degree X-brace located only 1" behind the soundhole, the sonic result is a loud, highly responsive instrument.

The AJ's unique bridge shape also adds to its sound. Most bridges are flat, but the AJ bridge is tapered thicker on the bass side. Its small (11/8") wide maple bridge plate, scalloped braces and tone bars, and slightly narrow 10-11/32" waist also contribute to the Advanced Jumbo's singular tonality and copious volume.

Some specifications on the current AJs differ from their late-'30s predecessors. Gone are the two anchoring bolts beneath the pearloid dots on the bridge; the standard model uses Indian rosewood instead of Brazilian; and Sitka has replaced the Adirondack spruce top. A Custom Shop version of the AJ with Brazilian rosewood and Adirondack spruce is still available as a special order instrument, but since the internal bracing pattern of the AJ was created with quartersawn back and sides in mind, quartersawn old-growth Indian rosewood used in the standard version is actually closer to the original specs than slab-sawn Brazilian rosewood found on the custom version.

"Current AJ's have Gibson's new slightly oval-shaped, wide/flat profile."

Randy Scruggs

The neck profile on current AJs also differs from AJs of the past. The original had a slightly triangular neck profile, while the early '90s versions featured a rounded neck. Current AJ's have Gibson's new slightly oval-shaped, wide/flat profile. Although this new shape is not traditional, it's an excellent compromise between Gibson's established neck shape and the "low-profile" necks found on most modern acoustics. Its extra smidgen of width makes the neck more comfortable, especially for players with smaller hands whose fingers hit the strings at an angle. Even when you do fret a bit off-angle, the added space prevents your fingers from muting the adjacent strings.

During their centennial year, 1994, many of Gibson's flat-tops did suffer from their all-too-familiar variations in build quality and sound. Obtaining consistently high quality, properly aged wood coupled with overly ambitious production schedules, contributed to these problems. Since '97, when Gibson expanded its wood storage capabilities and scaled back production, consistency has vastly improved. Current Gibsons demonstrate that these efforts have been largely successful.

At this year's Dallas guitar show, Gibson Montana plant manager Eric Klotz suggested I take a look at the new AJ. As a longtime fan of the design, I jumped at the chance. Several months later, a brand spanking new one showed up on my doorstep.

Who says Christmas doesn't come in July?

Gibson is justifiably famous for its sunburst tops, so I was at first disappointed that the one they sent me was blond. After getting over my initial surprise, I gave the top a careful inspection. Not only does this Sitka spruce have remarkably regular and even grain, but it has a trace of silking when viewed from a slight angle. What a lovely piece of wood!

While the top is impressive, the back and sides on this particular AJ are even more remarkable. Unlike most contemporary Indian rosewood, which is often unevenly grained with swirls and bends, this rosewood is the straightest, most consistently grained quartersawn wood I've seen this side of a '30s Martin. Except for its color, you could easily confuse it with the best quartersawn old-growth Brazilian.

"Without a doubt, the workmasnip is the equal of any factory-made guitar I've seen."

The fit and finish match the quality of the wood. Inside, the kerfing and bracing are neat and precise ? no ragged edges or spots of glue. The single-ply binding on the back and sides shows no uneven spots or masking errors. The AJ's neck binding displays Gibson's trademark precision edging that rises to meet each fret end. The AJ's simple trademark of graduated diamond-pattern fretboard inlays show no signs of slop or filler. Both the bone bridge and TusQ nut are well-polished and fit tightly and cleanly.

The lacquer finish is just thick enough to produce a mirror gloss, but thin enough so you can see the wood grain texture. Without a doubt, the workmansnip is the equal of any factory-made guitar I've seen.

Setup is such a personal thing. So what's a guitar maker to do? Set up an acoustic to keep the strumming and humming crowd happy? Or make the action high enough so an acoustic guitarist can really play it? Gibson chose to set up the Advanced Jumbo for serious acoustic players. The AJ has enough clearance so it won't buzz, no matter how forcefully you pick.

Even though the action looks high, especially to folks accustomed to electrics, it plays easily. Perhaps it's the added width coupled with the jumbo frets and slightly oval neck shape, but I can play even the trickier tunes in my flatpicking repertoire with ease.

Tone and Tuning
Right from the first G-run, this Gibson AJ sounds fantastic. It's loud and well-balanced, with a big bottom as well as sparkling well-defined upper frequencies. The AJ's initial attack gives it a superb clarity on individual notes, along with excellent sustain. Even when I really dig in with my pick, the sound never gets muddy, only louder. You'll be hard-pressed to find a better-sounding, new flatpicking instrument.

Unlike many Gibsons, the AJ has a less-nasal upper midrange and a richer lower midrange. Its overall harmonic balance reminds me more of my '51 D-28 than my '56 Southern Jumbo. Compared with modern dreadnoughts, the AJ is slightly crisper than most HD-28s, but not as cool and dry as most Collings D-1As.

For players who want a guitar with adequate tonal definition for an ensemble situation, but with enough lower midrange warmth for solo work, the AJ has an ideal harmonic balance.

Picking nits, the AJ's intonation could be a bit better; the B string needs to be tuned a few cents flat to match the high E, and the low E requires a slight flattening to match the A. After these small adjustments, the tuning is spot on. A custom-compensated bridge saddle could easily remedy these slight problems.

Gibson's Best Flat-top?
As I've written many times in the past, I'm not really a new guitar sort of guy. Just as with automobiles I generally prefer an instrument that has already had prior contact with humans and the commensurate beauty marks. But given that vintage AJ's go for between $35K and $55K, the chances of my owning an original AJ are practically nil. For most guitarists, a new Advanced Jumbo is the only sanely-priced option. With a list price of $3199, you would expect a new AJ to be more expensive than a new Martin HD-28, Collings D-1, or Santa Cruz Vintage Artist guitar, but street prices for new AJ's hover right around $2000, making its actual retail price quite competitive with these other fine instruments.

"... this AJ is the best flatpicking Gibson I've ever played. Its sound and playability rival any new factory-made guitar, regardless of manufacturer or price."

I've owned a number of Gibson acoustics; limited edition rosewood J-200s, Centennial Doves, J-200s, Hummingbirds, J-45s, SJs, J-185s, J-1000s, J-2000s, and even a Mark or two have passed through my hands. Without a doubt, this AJ is the best flatpicking Gibson I've ever played. Its sound and playability rival any new factory-made guitar, regardless of manufacturer or price. Its fit and finish are first-rate. With copious volume and harmonically neutral tonality the Advanced Jumbo delivers a special sonic balance equally perfect for both solo and ensemble duties. In short, this new AJ is one killer box.

If you're in the market for a truly great large-bodied guitar, you simply must try a Gibson AJ. Perhaps in heaven they make superior guitars, but here on Earth they just don't get any better.

This review orginally appeard in the October 2002 edition of Vintage Guitar magazine. It is published here with the permission of editor Ward Meeker and author Steven Stone.

Steven Stone is a contributing editor to Stereophile's Guide to Home Theater. He has also written for Stereophile, The Absolute Sound, Creem, and Spin magazines. He is also a recording engineer specializing in capturing the sound of symphony orchestras using purist recording techniques. He has 24 instruments in his collection, including a '44 Martin D-18, '46 Martin D-28, and a '37 Gibson L-5. His e-mail address is sstone8807@aol.com.