I’ve always wanted an ES-335, but they are out of my range. I’ve played on and off for 35 years, and now just wanted to finish off my modest collections with a semi-hollow. I first played a 135 last summer, tried a used one in a store in Nashville, with the P100’s. It had a really nice warm tone all the way up the fretboard, and a nice action. It seemed to be less of a handful than my friend’s 335, which is a good thing.

In the past week I took possession of an ES-135 in Blues Burst, a new limited edition package with the 㥁 PAF pick-ups. It is everything I liked about the older model, but with a bit more punch and sparkle with the PAF’s. I am playing it through a Vox Cambridge 30. Clean, the neck pickup is nice and warm, but not muddy or sleepy. The bridge pickup was a surprise; the brights were sharp, clear, and jangley, perfect for 60’s type material, such as Beatles and others. With two volume and two tone controls, and a three way switch, you can dial in anything in between, and it all sounds great.

My other 6 string electrics are a Strat and a recent SG Special. The Strat is of course a whole different animal, and comparisons are meaningless. The SG on the other hand just dropped a notch to me due to the output of the PAF’s on the 135. Every sound that I just couldn’t coax out of the SG kicked right out with the 135, especially with my Snarling Dog distortion unit. With the stomp box, it reminds me a lot of a Less Paul. ‘Money For Nothing’ sounded more accurate on the 135 than on my SG, and a good test for the intonation and tuning. The feedback was not bad, in fact it was fun to let it slowly build up on a note. Sustain is very good, just what I would expect. By the way, the Chromalyte center block helps the weight issues, and reportedly has more feedback than mahagony, which is being used in the new ES-137 models. I actually like the low but present level of feedback on the ES-135. It is certainly controllable. By the way, the ‘Chromalyte” looks like balsa to me.

When I first opened the case, after recovering from the shock of how beautiful this guitar is, I found the action very easy. I figured it was detuned for shipping, but it was right on. Despite the loose feel, there was no buzzing. I don’t often tinker with my guitar set-ups, but this one seems just right for me out of the box, which is a rare occurrence. The neck is a little more squared than my SG, and I think a bit thicker than I remember the 335 being. So this is not a guitar for ultimate speed trials. I could stand the neck to be a bit thinner, but overall the play action is easy for me, and intonation is very good. Once tuned, the 135 seems to stay there longer than the SG or the Strat. Part of this may be the 10’s instead of 9’s strings. Another surprise for me was the access to the upper register. While nothing beats an SG there, the access was still very good, and I had no problem soloing on the upper A range.

The finish is superb. I had a hard time deciding between the natural, vintage burst, and blues burst. The natural was eliminated first as I do not care for the gold hardware… my SG has it and it wears quickly. Anyway, the Blues Burst is rich and gorgeous, and the finish was well executed. I hard to look hard to find one or two micro-flaws in the finish. The wood does show through the blue, and the wood quality is very good.

This review is dated in a way, as the ES-135 Limited Edition is not made anymore (or is wrapping up). This means you can find it for even less than the $999 usually seen, but you may have to search a bit to find the color you want. The next trick from Gibson is the ES-333, a budget edition 335. Different finish (matte) different pickups (uncovered), and other changes, most notably a bag instead of a hard case. (!) For a couple hundred more, I paused and considered it over the 135. In the end, I prefer the real pick-ups (and I am so glad I did!) the real nitro cellulose finish, and I could not even think of putting a hollow body in a gig bag. In fact, having played my own 135 now, I do not even covet a full-blown 335 anymore. I find the 135 to be more manageable, and every bit as full in the tone department.

Bottom line: Rich, high quality finish and sound (even unplugged!), and extremely playable. Also very versatile. If the dreaded Wife Ultimatum came, the SG would go before this one. Then the 12 string. Even with Texas Specials, I think I would keep the ES135 over the Strat, and that is saying something. The Gibson ES-135 is not perfect, but it is closer to the ultimate guitar than I imagined I would ever find. This is a classic in its full tones, and exceptional beauty and design. Ask me how I like it in 30 years; I’ll still have it.


Recommended: Yes