Iconic guitar brand Gibson has launched a new family of acoustic guitars for a new generation of up-and-coming pickers. Each guitar in the Generation Collection features a port in the upper side that started life as a 1964 concept blueprint, and has now been refined by the Gibson Lab for today's players.
The Generation Collection is made up of four models: the G-00, G-45, G-Writer, and the G-200. As well as the usual soundhole out front, the upper side of each guitar is home to a precisely shaped hole called the Gibson Player Port. This is designed to project sound toward the player, kind of like an acoustic stage monitor that allows pickers to better hear what those out in front are experiencing.
All family members come with a walnut back and sides, a Sitka spruce top offered in a natural finish, an African mahogany (utile) neck topped in a striped ebony fingerboard with acrylic inlays, a TUSQ nut and saddle, and Grover Mini Rotomatic tuners.
The G-00 is inspired by parlor guitars from the 1930s, and despite rocking a slightly thinner body than bigger acoustics, Gibson is promising a full, balanced sound from a guitar it's pitching at blues and fingerstyle players. This model carries a US$999 price tag.
The G-45 is the round-shouldered jumbo of the series, and is based on the best-selling Gibson acoustic so far – the J-45 workhorse. And the company says that players can look forward to "incredible dynamic range" in exchange for $1,199.
The $1,599 G-Writer and $1,999 G-200 guitars include fancy strip inlays in the neck (instead of dots) and a LR Baggs Element Bronze pickup system. Both feature a cutaway design for easier access to the upper frets, with the former offering a "wide range of sounds, from gutsy and loud, to soft and sweet" while the latter is a "Super Jumbo" with a booming sound that's ready for stage or studio.
All of the guitars are hand-crafted at Gibson's Bozeman, Montana, facility, ship with gig bags, and are available now. The video below show Amythyst Kiah performing Wild Turkey on the G-45 model.
Product page: Generation Collection
