Need help with Gibson electric guitar question (Page 1 of 2)

I don't think you'll find a new Gibson for that kind of money. You may be able to find a used SG or LP studio for that though.
$500 would get you a new Epiphone Les Paul however. Hold off on the purchase until the Joe Bonamassa Epiphone Les Pauls come out (should be soon). I don't think Joe would allow Epi to put his name on a piece of junk so those may be a very good deal for the money, whatever the street price will be. As always with guitars, play before you pay! 

I've played a few of the new Les Paul Jr's and I thought they sounded very nice for around $700.

Look for used Gibsons studios you should be able to find them from $500 to $900 depending on the condition. They will be a big step up from you bullet strat and a much different guitar.

Honestly I think, for that money you should get a nice Epiphone Les Paul, get one that feels right in the shop, then spend the rest of the loot on getting a nice set up done. Believe me even the best guitars in the world will play like dogs if they aren't set up right, especialy Les pauls, they always require nut / truss ajustment or the G string will drop out of tune every 2 minutes.

Don't want to start knocking Gibson but most Les Pauls I have looked at recently are of dreadful finish and quality control. The Epiphones seem to be spot on, and as I said a good set up and your away!

When you are talking about guitars in and around this price range what a lot of people don't know is that many of the makes you are looking at do not actually build the guitars. Many of the big names like Gretsch, Fender (who own Gretsch) PRS, Ibanez, ESP etc do not own the Far Eastern factories where these budget guitars are made, they simply do a deal where their products are reproduced under licence. For example Fender Japan guitars are not actualy made by Fender. They were until recently licenced to a company called Fujigen who made them for Fender.
You will also have heard of a Korean company called 'Cort', they make for Ibanez Schecter, ESP etc. This is a huge company with dreadful treatment of it's workers that employed 40 000  in the Daejon factory until the owner closed the main plant without telling the workers and moved the factory elsewhere.
I have a friend who works in the main Avalon factory here in Northern Ireland and they used to have their lower priced guitars made by Cort in Korea.He said quality per batch was either really good or really bad, in fact they had to send a whole order back.

My point is whatever you buy in this range, the chances are it is made in one of the handful of big Far Eastern factories so 'name' really doesn't matter that much at this level, they will all do the job. Just find one you like the look and sound of and get it well set up. Quality control at these factories is where they save money, and the way some guitars leave the factory - well, they are unplayable IMO. You can get a good one or a dud. But take it to a good luither and get it the best you can get it.
Don't buy based on colour or look, buy the one thet FEELS the best, to hell with the colour or the name. Trust your gut!

RIC, yeah, that's what I did yesterday.  He's the one who suggested the Samick.  I have to admit, it's going to be either the Samick or the Epiphone.  I know some of you advised not to go with the Epiphone, but I honestly thought the one I played sounded pretty nice.

if you're a beginnier you might want to consider resale value. that greg bennet guitar won't be worth any money after you buy it. If you get a Gibson it will hold its value way more if you ever decide to sell it.

Plus, I really prefer buying used as opposed to new. Guitar Center is not my favorite place, and I'd rather give my money to somebody who needs it. Used guitars are also nice and broken in. My hands wont swell up as much after playing a used guitar. Last, the finished on used guitars has more time to cure or even wear, so the wood can resonate better with hardened finish.

- Nic from Detroit... posting on JB's Forum since 6-2-2006
Ask me about my handwound Great Lakes Guitar Pickups
Since 2010, Bonamassa fans have taken advantage of my JB friend discount = my cost + shipping.

At this point, not so much an issue with the name value as it is for the sound.  I suck, so the better the guitar sounds the better I'm sure to sound.  HA!
As for resale: I don't see myself doing that in the future.
And, at this point, there's no way in hell I can afford to pay for a Gibson unless it's used.  I'd love to be able to afford one, but there are extenuating circumstances to do with health that prevent me from even considering it.  I mean, we're talking thousands of bucks, here.  No, I think the Gibson will just have to be something I work towards as I get better at playing.  Sort of like a reward for the hours of hard work I'm putting into this and more to come,  I see it as a good thing to work for.  Definitely more realistic in the future than right now.