Gibson Press Release – Even the fiercest rockers like their hot-looking guitars, and no axe out there offers the intensity of eye candy captured in the form of the stunning new Eye Guitar, a new 2009 Limited Run Series model from Gibson USA. You’d better believe this is one sweet-looking instrument — but watch out! Try to take a bite and you’ll expose yourself to an eviscerating maelstrom of tone. Available beginning April 1, 2009, only 350 of the new Limited Run Series Eye Guitars will be produced, and they’re bound to go fast.
Dressed to Kill
Eye catching? You’d better believe it. Gibson USA’s new Eye Guitar nails a look like nothing else on the planet. Its ultra-pointy, offset double-cutaway body is dressed in a nitrocellulose lacquer Fire Engine Red finish that’s matched on the headstock, while the powder-coated pickup covers echo the theme. The swooping, symmetrical pickguard recalls custom creations seen on the guitars of the ’70s, but is totally original and unique, while the jet-black ebony fingerboard — sans position markers — adds a touch of elegance and simplicity.
Eviscerating Tone
More than just a looker, the Eye Guitar is packed with all the tonal goodness that Gibson USA is known for. Its solid mahogany body and glued-in mahogany neck maximize resonance and sustain, while the ebony fingerboard adds an edge of clarity and definition to every note – even through heavily distorted settings on high-gain amplifiers. The pickups, a 490R at the neck and a 498T at the bridge, are the optimum humbuckers for hard rockin’ performance, blended with a dash of vintage-voiced sweetness. The 490R uses Alnico II magnets and features pole-piece spacing suitable to the string spread at the neck position, while also being calibrated for balanced volume when matched with a hotter 498T in the bridge, a “Hot Alnico” design that uses a punchier Alnico V magnet and modified coil windings to provide even more oomph for rock lead work.
Keeping it Simple
The new 2009 Limited Run Series Eye Guitar has also been designed for the pure functionality that a hard-gigging guitarist needs. Controls are a can’t-miss pairing of master volume and tone knobs, along with a three-way pickup selector switch. Hardware includes the time-tested Tune-o-matic bridge with stop bar tailpiece and Grover kidney button tuners, all chrome-plated. Finally, 24 frets, the legendary 24 3/4″ scale length and that classic rounded Gibson neck profile all make this one of the easiest players under the sun.
Only 350 of the guitars will be made, so get ’em while they’re red hot. Each new Eye Guitar comes with a Gibson USA hardshell case and special 2009 Limited Run Series certificate of authenticity.
2009 Limited Run Series Certificate of Authenticity reads:
There’s something special about the beauty and playability of a Gibson guitar from Gibson USA. Mixing time-honored processes with remarkable attention to detail, the hand-crafted guitars of Gibson USA have withstood the test of time to become the absolute standard for exceptional playability and tonal quality. The new Limited Run Series guitars from Gibson USA are the ultimate testament to this fine legacy.
Throughout 2009, Gibson USA will unveil 22 very special guitars under the new Limited Run Series label, each one a confirmation of the legendary and skill of the craftsmen of Gibson USA. Only 350 guitars will be made of each model–no more, no less–and each one will be identified by the guitar’s serial number and the Certificate of Authenticity you hold in your hands.
HIDEOUS! How out of it are the Gibson designers? Save the crack for weekends, guys!
I couldn’t be happier to see all of these negative comments about this new guitar. That just means my chances of actually getting mine (yes, already pre-ordered) are pretty good. As long as every one, apparently, hates it, then no one but the handful of us who recognize it’s potential will be able to score one. Unconventional? Yes. Garish? Oh, hell yes! Ugly? Well, beauty is in the eye of the beholder. All I know is the specs are amazing, and I can’t wait to plug mine in and WAIL!!! This guitar was built for screaming. Yeah, the tone knobs are a little too close for my comfort, but how often do I pull a Pete Townshend pinwheel? Color-wise, I would have preferred black, but the fire engine red is so IN YOUR FACE, that it’s over the top. I think the Gibson designers knew exactly what they were doing. The Gibson Eye was designed to PUNISH!!! Both eyes and ears alike. I’m excited. Only 350 of us will actually get one. Only half of those are actually players. And only a small percentage will actually be heard by anyone outside their immediate family and pets. So when I upload the first tracks that I create with this gnarly beast, I’ll be sure to come back here and say to all you nay-sayers…just like my little guitar…IN YOUR FACE!!!
I got mine today and its a wicked axe! This thing just sings and feels great! I say to all of you that trashed this quality guitar, just like Jake Daniels previously posted:
“IN YOUR FACE!”
yeah this guitar is freakin beastly ive always wanted a gibson but never like d the style this one fits my perfectly maybe not color wise but those horns and that body is perfect THANK YOU GIBSON
Oh my lord, this is the gayest friggin’ guitar of all time! Makes me want a Fender even more. I smell an Ernie Ball MusicMan comin’ my way. Let me know when this guitar plus all the other gay Gibson faliures such as the Zoot Suit SG and Dark Fire and Henry Juskiewicz (Gibson CEO) get back from their honeymoon on Fruitcake Island. They ruined all of the brands that they bought, too, like Kramer and Steinberger. I am ashamed to have an SG. If you want thick humbucking tones, get an ESP, you’ll save a LOT! Gibson=overpriced garbage. Why should I pay a PRS price for a subpar guitar?
ESP and PRS and Fender are cool because they don’t endorse GULP! the Jones Bros and all the other Gay pretty boy Disney bands. AAWWK, that was me and my laptop blowin’ chunks because I typed that. In homage to Ken Jeong/Mr. Chow, SO LONG GAY BOYS! ( thats Gibson). See You Later. BGP (blues guitar player).
Limited run..plus..controversy..can only add up to one thing..COLLECTABLE ( I distinctly recall similar mixed reactions to the ” Flying V “…and yes I’m old enough to remember..check around for the $$$$$ they are fetching now )
I found 2 of these little babies that needed a home….#35 & #72…
Thanks to everyone around the world that didn’t buy one..
I have one and I quite like it! It plays/sounds great and I don’t find it ugly. I’m no fan of the Flying V or Explorer so just a matter of taste. It’s light and a joy to play
This rare guitar looks so cool. I have a friend who has #17 of 350 and it is pristine!
Wish I could get it away from him, but he told me it’s not for sale. (at least not yet). I heard it plugged into a Marshall and this baby rocks! If you can get one in your hands, you’ll love it!
Yep! It’s a keeper!