1970s Gibson J-160E Acoustic Electric Guitar

This is a later version of the 1950s/60s J-160E model that the Beatles (among others) made famous. In this case, the slope dreadnought body gives way to a Martin-style dreadnought body shape, pickguard, and belly-down bridge. The bracing is X, however, which gives this instrument a more traditional dreadnought tone compared to the earlier, ladder-braced J-160Es. It has a P90-ish pickup fit at the neck but due to the distance of the coil from the strings (and the fact that the poles need to be set for phosphor bronze windings), the output is only so-so.

All that said, it's a rather handsome guitar despite all that and retains the cool, 15-fret neck joint (which I think we should all migrate to, anyway) which gives it a different playing-feel than the usual fare.

This was in-shop for the usual repairs needed of an older guitar -- a neck reset, fret level/dress, new bone saddle with good compensation, and setup work. It's playing spot-on, now, and ready to serve. Its serial number places it around '73-'74.