I bought a used H-535 in 1994 for $400 . Nice guitar , but different than a 335 . The body was thinner , the neck profile was more oval shaped , the stock pickguard was wood , and finished in the same sunburst as the body . I traded it even up for a 1977 Fender P-Bass I needed to play in a band . Later on I bought a used 1982 Gibson es 335 dot neck in natural finish . Never really connected with it , sold it after a few years . My favorite guitar I now own is a Epiphone Sheraton 2012 model , after years of playing Fender Strats and Teles . I have been playing guitar since 1963 , I can tell you there are some fantastic guitars both acoustic and electric being built today . My Sheratn is better build quality than my 82' es 335 !
I totally agreed with you about epiphone over gibson. I mean, Of course we all know that the built quality of gibson is excellent but I feel like epiphone guitars especially es335 epiphone have something in it. Whether about the touch and feel or even the TONE!. I know this might sounded fake and offended for those gibson lovers but it makes me wants to pickup and play more than my gibson es335. lol Don't get me wrong I still love gibson and my gibson guitars. This is only my opinions.
He literally plays clean in the video too. Just complaining about nothing. Its important to hear distortion tones too unless youre a really one dimensional guitar player who only plays on clean
The 535s are amazing, but I've played some that are so resonant that the pick attack is non-existent (which could be a good thing, I suppose). You just know when you pick a Heritage guitar up that those folks know what they're doing. 335s seem really inconsistent to me...I've played awesome ones and I've played duds. I think a lot of it just comes down to feel and what intuitively speaks to you.
Heritage all day long. Even with the buy out as of late Heritage still cares about about their customers, Ive had countless emails and calls with them and they take time to make sure all is good.
Heritage for me, those open chords sounded much more “in tune”, the neck pickup was less muddy, and it’s hasn’t got that annoying upper mid chirpy squeal that the Gibson has.
Good to see a young man playing some classic rock! When was the last time you heard someone demo a guitar playing a Rush song? Red barchetta all the way !
I have listened to this a lot of times. In this comparison the heritage sounds much better I think. In other videos I am not so sure or I even tend towards an ES335, even though I have a H535. Don't know man it's all so complex
The Gibson has the more prototypical midrangey ES-335 sound, the Heritage sounded a bit more scooped to me...both very nice and excellent playing. I have a 2018 ES-335 Traditional and the quality isn’t far off from my also recent custom shop R8 Historic Les Paul.
sixbladeknife44 I was just thinking that the Heritage made me think of a solid body sound more than the archetypal 335 sound. I think the people who are preferring the Heritage over the Gibson are those who may not be as familiar with that 335 midrange honk. Nothing wrong with that, but the Heritage definitely does not sound like a 335.
@@hi13ts I believe you are 100% right in your assessment. I have listened to many 335 alternatives such as Collings, Heritage, Eastman, D'Angelico, etc., and while these sound really good, they sound different, and that is fine as they are different products and should have their own personality. That being said, I personally love that 335 mid-range honk and I always feel like something is missing from the other contenders, something that I invariably find again as soon as I listen to a real 335. Ultimately, it is a question of preference and there is absolutely nothing wrong with any of these options, but the pretension that one is clearly better than the other, when in reality they are simply different strokes for different folks, leaves somewhat to be desired.
@@purpleirony i would extend that to all gibson vs non-gibson. Gibbies seem to have a very distinct midrange that is not there in other instruments with similar or the exact same construction. Maybe the pickups?
Hello, thanks for demo. Both guitar looks good and sounds great. I prefer the fantastic Seymour Duncan Seth Lover pick ups. I have them in my Eastman T59v, that's the perfect tone engine for those classic rock and blues music. About Heritage and Gibson ES335, did Gibson fixed their quality control issues ? And are they in the same price range ?
Just received a brand new, 2020 Gibson ES 335 Gloss Cherry last night. Pulled it out of box, looked it over...everything looked great. Setup was a little, eh. Reach down to the pickup switch, it won't stay in the bridge position. The only way to keep it fully down is to unscrew the little plastic knob a couple of turns😱. I googled it, turns out the wood around that nut ring is too thick and would need the some adjustments. Or perhaps that inside switch is bent or just needs replacing. Of course I'm not touching that. So...right back it goes. This is the 2nd Gibson (1st one was a Les Paul Modern) thats had a screwy pickup selector switch.. and I've had to return.... in 3 weeks. I'm now looking very hard at a Heritage 535
For me, it is the heritage that is the better guitar. I am sure on quality they are equal. I just think the Seymour Duncan SL pick ups sound better, more clarity. If I had $2500 to spend on a guitar, it would be the heritage.
Yep. They got rid of the traditional methods and fired many of the craftsman who didn't cheerfully comply with the new methods. But they plan to make a historic pub, beer garden where the factory once stood, Yea. Fuck Heritage guitars.
@@anthonyrosa5006 what do you have agajnst heritage guitars? I have been playing a heritage lp style guitar for about 15 years and it's well road worn now but sound great, always holds tune and is the best playing guitar I have, and possibly ever played. It's also the only heritage I've played as they are very uncommon in Australia so can't really comment on other ones. Just wondering as I am thinking about searching out a 535 based on previous experience.
Adam Richards I think they are saying that it was a great company around the time you got yours. They seem to be saying now they’ve made changes and the direction isn’t so good. I don’t know if it’s correct.
I vastly prefer the new production Heritage guitars to the pre-ownership change ones. Without expressing opinion on any firings, the finishes, electronics, wood selection, and fit and finish are all better now than they were. Not all (but some) of the old finishes were down right ugly.
Play authentic....LOL! I think it would be cool if Gibson certified Heritage to continue building out of the KM location. The only potential issue, I recently read an article stating that there was a management change at Heritage which made the decision to put all the old Gibson tools and equipment into a museum(along with their senior master luthiers which were let go) in place for the common CNC machines from Asia. Not sure the validity of this claim though.
Gibson all the way. I had a 535 and It was a fantastic guitar but don't deserve this horrible SD p' us. 335 sound is bigger, articulate, dinámic and clean.
Had a heritage too. Pickups were fine but the guitar itself could never reach the level of warmth a 335 can have. I don't know why, I mean I know the body is a bit smaller but could this make such a big difference? In any case a traded it with a 335 and they are different beasts. Not necessarily one better than the other but the heritage doesn't sound like a 335 at all. Still sounds very nice
I might have boought the Heritage but that was before they decided to go all venture capitalist, mechanize the production to remove the hand craftsmanship that made buying from Kalamazoo special. Gone is the Parsons St factory and machinery along with much of that old guard craftsmanship. Now its cookie cutter cnc guitars to maximize profits, and a historic beer garden where the Parsons st factory stood. Fuck Heritage guitars. At least Gibson has a name and apparently the quality is improving with the new managment. Certainly the Gibson will retain more value through the years and be considered vintage in time where Heritage will become some old guitar from a defunct greedy corporation that sacked its skilled craftsmen for machines and profits.
Anthony Rosa:: You are an idiot talking out of your hind end. The factory has a cnc but it is only used on producing the new Harmony line. Lower end guitar to make $$ just like Gibson did with Epiphone. EVERY Heritage is made by hand including neck and body sanding. They do use state of the art plek for finishing frets, but so does everybody, its a better way. In fact they had one in 92! I know. I was just at the factory. Its a custom quality built guitar. Holy crap talk about venture capitalist (Gibson). No idea what you are talking about.
That Heritage is a beaut, hands down winner for me. I’d definitely weigh in for that over the Gibson
Love the way both sound. Cant go wrong with either one
Do the same with Les Paul Standard and H150....
I bought a used H-535 in 1994 for $400 . Nice guitar , but different than a 335 . The body was thinner , the neck profile was more oval shaped , the stock pickguard was wood , and finished in the same sunburst as the body . I traded it even up for a 1977 Fender P-Bass I needed to play in a band . Later on I bought a used 1982 Gibson es 335 dot neck in natural finish . Never really connected with it , sold it after a few years . My favorite guitar I now own is a Epiphone Sheraton 2012 model , after years of playing Fender Strats and Teles . I have been playing guitar since 1963 , I can tell you there are some fantastic guitars both acoustic and electric being built today . My Sheratn is better build quality than my 82' es 335 !
I totally agreed with you about epiphone over gibson. I mean, Of course we all know that the built quality of gibson is excellent but I feel like epiphone guitars especially es335 epiphone have something in it. Whether about the touch and feel or even the TONE!. I know this might sounded fake and offended for those gibson lovers but it makes me wants to pickup and play more than my gibson es335. lol
Don't get me wrong I still love gibson and my gibson guitars. This is only my opinions.
I love my Heritage 535. Stellar instrument.
This guy is so creative he even combined the phrases "out of left field" & "left of center" and combined them into an exciting new hybrid phrase.
When i was out for a 335 I preferred a heritage because a) they were lighter and b) they were brighter.
i love this video, Im from Kalamazoo, born and raised and still live here.
guitaristbiker curious to get your thoughts on the employees that got escorted out? Is the factory a tourist destination now?
Ended up buying a H-535...Love it.
Heritage H-535 is the winner, by far..
That dude is a killer player. Well done man
I always enjoy listening to Jack.
As a stark Heritage fanatic, but also just a fan of beautiful guitars, that Gibby is gorgeous!
Why do people who do guitar demos always play with a distortion pedal? I want to hear the clean tone not the box!
Amen sister
@@vonalxao1 Sister? His name is Jim, lmao 😂
Or even worse, the people who just shred the entire time.
He literally plays clean in the video too. Just complaining about nothing. Its important to hear distortion tones too unless youre a really one dimensional guitar player who only plays on clean
Because that’s how it’ll mainly be played on stage and in a real world context. It’s also important to hear how the guitar drives.
The 535s are amazing, but I've played some that are so resonant that the pick attack is non-existent (which could be a good thing, I suppose). You just know when you pick a Heritage guitar up that those folks know what they're doing. 335s seem really inconsistent to me...I've played awesome ones and I've played duds. I think a lot of it just comes down to feel and what intuitively speaks to you.
You need to have more Hertage guitars
Heritage all day long. Even with the buy out as of late Heritage still cares about about their customers, Ive had countless emails and calls with them and they take time to make sure all is good.
There was a buy out??? Who bought it? I hadn't heard about it. I've got an old Heritage Golden Eagle jazz box. It is incredible.
@@bmoraga01 they were sold 2 yrs ago but they are better than ever. The original owners are still somewhat active with Heritage.
Heritage for me, those open chords sounded much more “in tune”, the neck pickup was less muddy, and it’s hasn’t got that annoying upper mid chirpy squeal
that the Gibson has.
So where’s the link to the clean comparison? This could have been any two guitars.
Good to see a young man playing some classic rock! When was the last time you heard someone demo a guitar playing a Rush song? Red barchetta all the way !
I have listened to this a lot of times. In this comparison the heritage sounds much better I think. In other videos I am not so sure or I even tend towards an ES335, even though I have a H535. Don't know man it's all so complex
I live for these videos. Please do any high-end shootouts you can think of. Jack is the man. I'm still watching the Nocaster one lol.
The Gibson has the more prototypical midrangey ES-335 sound, the Heritage sounded a bit more scooped to me...both very nice and excellent playing. I have a 2018 ES-335 Traditional and the quality isn’t far off from my also recent custom shop R8 Historic Les Paul.
sixbladeknife44 I was just thinking that the Heritage made me think of a solid body sound more than the archetypal 335 sound. I think the people who are preferring the Heritage over the Gibson are those who may not be as familiar with that 335 midrange honk. Nothing wrong with that, but the Heritage definitely does not sound like a 335.
@@hi13ts I believe you are 100% right in your assessment. I have listened to many 335 alternatives such as Collings, Heritage, Eastman, D'Angelico, etc., and while these sound really good, they sound different, and that is fine as they are different products and should have their own personality. That being said, I personally love that 335 mid-range honk and I always feel like something is missing from the other contenders, something that I invariably find again as soon as I listen to a real 335. Ultimately, it is a question of preference and there is absolutely nothing wrong with any of these options, but the pretension that one is clearly better than the other, when in reality they are simply different strokes for different folks, leaves somewhat to be desired.
@@purpleirony i would extend that to all gibson vs non-gibson. Gibbies seem to have a very distinct midrange that is not there in other instruments with similar or the exact same construction. Maybe the pickups?
@@topografer Definitely the pickups, but I suspect their recipe/combination of wood, aging and treatment, etc., all play a role in this result.
@@purpleirony one thing is sure, it's a very Gibson specific sound and i totally get that people dig it
completely shocked at how much better the heritage sounded
agreed
This is really a good demo.
I am surprised at how much better the H535 sounds… Makes me want to buy one right now!
Do it. I bought one and am very happy with it!
I did I bought one off reverb, love it, absolutely gorgeous guitar!
I like the Heritage more. The features are very close. More attention to detail was on the Heritage.
Both are sweet , I lean a bit more to the Heritage they still use Nitro . 2017 and prior are the best made by the old masters
Gibson uses nitro according to their website
Wonderful Mr Big cover!
Great idea for a video guys. Thanks! 🙏👍
Hello, thanks for demo. Both guitar looks good and sounds great. I prefer the fantastic Seymour Duncan Seth Lover pick ups. I have them in my Eastman T59v, that's the perfect tone engine for those classic rock and blues music. About Heritage and Gibson ES335, did Gibson fixed their quality control issues ? And are they in the same price range ?
Heritage 535 brand new is around 2700 or so.
Just received a brand new, 2020 Gibson ES 335 Gloss Cherry last night. Pulled it out of box, looked it over...everything looked great. Setup was a little, eh. Reach down to the pickup switch, it won't stay in the bridge position. The only way to keep it fully down is to unscrew the little plastic knob a couple of turns😱.
I googled it, turns out the wood around that nut ring is too thick and would need the some adjustments. Or perhaps that inside switch is bent or just needs replacing. Of course I'm not touching that. So...right back it goes.
This is the 2nd Gibson (1st one was a Les Paul Modern) thats had a screwy pickup selector switch.. and I've had to return.... in 3 weeks. I'm now looking very hard at a Heritage 535
For me, it is the heritage that is the better guitar. I am sure on quality they are equal. I just think the Seymour Duncan SL pick ups sound better, more clarity. If I had $2500 to spend on a guitar, it would be the heritage.
I got a h535 and i got to tell the headstock ain't that bad
Great playing my friend
Mr. Big tunes , love it!
Great playing but bad demo as its too distorted. We must hear clean tones at every pickup setting!
Now for clarity re shoot the video using clean setting and forget distortion
I believe that most of the ex-Gibson guys have now gone
Yep. They got rid of the traditional methods and fired many of the craftsman who didn't cheerfully comply with the new methods. But they plan to make a historic pub, beer garden where the factory once stood, Yea. Fuck Heritage guitars.
They certainly can't play in both ways!
@@anthonyrosa5006 what do you have agajnst heritage guitars? I have been playing a heritage lp style guitar for about 15 years and it's well road worn now but sound great, always holds tune and is the best playing guitar I have, and possibly ever played. It's also the only heritage I've played as they are very uncommon in Australia so can't really comment on other ones. Just wondering as I am thinking about searching out a 535 based on previous experience.
Adam Richards I think they are saying that it was a great company around the time you got yours. They seem to be saying now they’ve made changes and the direction isn’t so good. I don’t know if it’s correct.
I vastly prefer the new production Heritage guitars to the pre-ownership change ones. Without expressing opinion on any firings, the finishes, electronics, wood selection, and fit and finish are all better now than they were. Not all (but some) of the old finishes were down right ugly.
Play authentic....LOL! I think it would be cool if Gibson certified Heritage to continue building out of the KM location. The only potential issue, I recently read an article stating that there was a management change at Heritage which made the decision to put all the old Gibson tools and equipment into a museum(along with their senior master luthiers which were let go) in place for the common CNC machines from Asia. Not sure the validity of this claim though.
Jack you're an awesome guitar player.. Greetings from austria my man
How are we supposed to tell which guitar sounds the best in this type comparison? Makes me question Peach Guitars.
A lil Red Barchetta at 3:52
535 by a mile, much more controlled, warm harmonics dirty. 335 sounds harsh and brittle, surprising really.
Great review if you want to hear how the guitars can fart through an amp. Many people like that.
Heritage sounds a lot clearer, more “vintage” if that’s appropriate. The Gibson, on the other hand is a lot fuller, and a little hotter sounding
After hearing this kid play, I now know I picked up the wrong instrument.
Rush!
what is the fretboard material ?, looks like a very light tone for rosewood at least on the first 2
both great but 335 is the clear winner here
Heritage product is great , but aesthetically , the headstock..not keen .Each to his own ..
Ugh, the ES-335 sounds better. I was hoping the heritage would sound better so I could save $1,000 lol.
Gibson all the way. I had a 535 and It was a fantastic guitar but don't deserve this horrible SD p' us. 335 sound is bigger, articulate, dinámic and clean.
Had a heritage too. Pickups were fine but the guitar itself could never reach the level of warmth a 335 can have. I don't know why, I mean I know the body is a bit smaller but could this make such a big difference? In any case a traded it with a 335 and they are different beasts. Not necessarily one better than the other but the heritage doesn't sound like a 335 at all. Still sounds very nice
This guy gives me a headache!!!!!!!
Gibson for me, less high mid a bit metallic sounding...
Eat a peach
I might have boought the Heritage but that was before they decided to go all venture capitalist, mechanize the production to remove the hand craftsmanship that made buying from Kalamazoo special. Gone is the Parsons St factory and machinery along with much of that old guard craftsmanship. Now its cookie cutter cnc guitars to maximize profits, and a historic beer garden where the Parsons st factory stood. Fuck Heritage guitars. At least Gibson has a name and apparently the quality is improving with the new managment.
Certainly the Gibson will retain more value through the years and be considered vintage in time where Heritage will become some old guitar from a defunct greedy corporation that sacked its skilled craftsmen for machines and profits.
Nothing wrong with cnc machines if used properly. That said, when did this mess happen to Heritage guitars? Had no idea
Fabrizio Donadelli dude every heritage video has this crap on it. Cncs are not used for heritage guitars.
@@taxothey make 6 guiatrs a day for the heritage line. all hand made
Anthony Rosa:: You are an idiot talking out of your hind end. The factory has a cnc but it is only used on producing the new Harmony line. Lower end guitar to make $$ just like Gibson did with Epiphone. EVERY Heritage is made by hand including neck and body sanding. They do use state of the art plek for finishing frets, but so does everybody, its a better way. In fact they had one in 92! I know. I was just at the factory. Its a custom quality built guitar. Holy crap talk about venture capitalist (Gibson). No idea what you are talking about.
Jesus. I wonder if it matters to you that most of what you said is wrong.