Gibson Acoustic Guitars: J-185 True Vintage

by Guitar Guru
(play-acoustic-guitar.com)

”A Vintage-Style Guitar with a Big Sound”

Made with a premium (AAA-grade) Sitka spruce top and AAA-grade flame maple back and sides, the J-185 has a fascinating bell-like woody tone that is incredibly well balanced from bass to treble.

Loud without getting strident, the projection ability of the J-185 is incredible for a pure acoustic guitar and will allow you to be heard in most any situation. But it isn’t just the tone of the guitar that makes the J-185 such a joy to play, it’s also the playability.

The J-185 has a jumbo body that is curvy enough to allow for comfortable positioning, even for smaller players, it plays like butter. Pressing the strings to the frets is nearly effortless and this flexibility lends itself extremely well to blues and fingerstyle playing. However, due to its well-balanced tone and sturdy construction, this little number also stands up well to flatpicking; though aggressive strumming tends to make to make the treble notes stand out distinctly and can actually create a rather overbearingly bright sound.

The vintage sunburst pattern of the J-185 puts one in mind of the guitars you see in the reruns of the old 1950’s TV shows. At <$2,800 the Gibson J-185 acoustic guitar is by no means a cheap guitar, but its tone and quality will make it a guitar that will make it a joy to play.


See more great guitar reviews at Gibson Acoustic Guitars.

Shop safe at Musician's Friend and enjoy free shipping on EVERYTHING - No Minimum!