Gibson L6-S
Encyclopedia
The Gibson
L6-S was the working musician's descendant of the L5S
jazz solid body electric guitar
. It was the same shape - very much like a wide Gibson Les Paul
, but with a 24 fret two-octave neck - the first Gibson guitar to have this.
(Gibson employee) in 1972, with the remit to make a "multi-sound system" under a very tight budget. The final production guitar was somewhat different from the Guitar he had in mind but "even with these changes, the early production L6-S was still an excellent performer"
The popularity of the L6-S gradually dropped after 1974, despite high profile endorsements from the likes of Al di Meola
and Carlos Santana
. Pat Martino
also used the model during this period. All models were dropped from price lists in 1979. The L6-S Custom remained in the catalog in 1980 and was still being made in the Nashville plant. No model has ever been reissued. It is considered by many to be the most underrated of all the Gibson solid body guitars.
The L6-S came in three variants; all were maple
-bodied with twin super-humbucking
pickups.
Maple body, and set neck
with a choice of maple or ebony fingerboard. Controls include a six position pickup selector, master volume, mid-range and treble roll-off
controls. At the time of its introduction, the L6-S Custom was simply called the L6-S, not gaining the "Custom" badge until later, when the simpler L6-S Deluxe was introduced. The L6-S and L6-S Custom are identical, except for the word "Custom" in the name.
The L6-S Custom is noted for its six way rotary selector switch, complete with "chicken head" pointer knob. Starting with switch position #1, in the most clockwise position, the available pickup switching options are as follows:
The capacitor in the #4 position gives a fuller tone than the otherwise very nasal out of phase tone. The capacitor serves to limit the low end response of the neck pickup, and also phase delays the signal from that pickup, resulting in a fuller tone, not too unlike the #2 and #4 switch positions on a Fender Stratocaster guitar.
The mid-range control on the L6-S Custom uses a 1.8Hy inductor, which is split wound for hum-cancellation, along with a capacitor. This is a variation of the notch filter concept introduced by Gibson with the VariTone circuit. In the VariTone, however, the resistance is fixed, and different capacitors are chosen. In the L6-S's mid-range control, the resistance is variable, while the capacitance is a fixed value. The result is one which allows decreasing of the middle tones, while retaining a large degree of "sparkle" or "brilliance" to the tone of the instrument.
The volume and treble roll-off controls work as they do in most other electric guitars with passive circuitry.
A notable feature of the L6-S Custom, perhaps contributing to its demise, is the awkwardness for a player to switch tones during live play. Guitars such as the Gibson Les Paul, Fender Telecaster, etc, using a simple toggle switch for pickup selection, make switching very easy during live play when compared alongside a six position rotary switch.
Maple body, and bolt-on
maple neck with a maple fingerboard. Controls include a pickup selector, master volume, and tone control. Strung through the body.This guitar is a Les Paul Special Edition.
The Deluxe had a set maple neck, with a rosewood fingerboard. Controls include a pickup selector, master volume, and tone control. Strung through the body
Gibson Guitar Corporation
The Gibson Guitar Corporation, formerly of Kalamazoo, Michigan and currently of Nashville, Tennessee, manufactures guitars and other instruments which sell under a variety of brand names...
L6-S was the working musician's descendant of the L5S
Gibson L5S
The Gibson L5S is a solid-body electric guitar model produced by the Gibson Guitar Corporation.Introduced in 1972, the Gibson L5S was essentially a solid-body version of the popular Gibson L-5 hollowbody. Like the L-5, it featured multiple binding on the single-cutaway body, neck, and headstock,...
jazz solid body electric guitar
Electric guitar
An electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker...
. It was the same shape - very much like a wide Gibson Les Paul
Gibson Les Paul
The Gibson Les Paul was the result of a design collaboration between Gibson Guitar Corporation and the late jazz guitarist and electronics inventor Les Paul. In 1950, with the introduction of the Fender Telecaster to the musical market, electric guitars became a public craze. In reaction, Gibson...
, but with a 24 fret two-octave neck - the first Gibson guitar to have this.
Model history
It was designed by Bill LawrenceBill Lawrence (guitar maker)
Bill Lawrence is a recording musician and an electric guitar pickup designer/maker and guitar designer/maker in the musical instrument industry, designing pickups and guitars for Fender, Gibson, Peavey and other companies from the 1950s to the present.MusicianThe Bill Lawrence story began...
(Gibson employee) in 1972, with the remit to make a "multi-sound system" under a very tight budget. The final production guitar was somewhat different from the Guitar he had in mind but "even with these changes, the early production L6-S was still an excellent performer"
The popularity of the L6-S gradually dropped after 1974, despite high profile endorsements from the likes of Al di Meola
Al Di Meola
Al Di Meola is an acclaimed American jazz fusion and Latin guitarist, composer, and record producer of Italian origin. With a musical career that has spanned more than three decades, he has become respected as one of the most influential guitarists in jazz to date...
and Carlos Santana
Carlos Santana
Carlos Augusto Alves Santana is a Mexican rock guitarist. Santana became famous in the late 1960s and early 1970s with his band, Santana, which pioneered rock, salsa and jazz fusion...
. Pat Martino
Pat Martino
Pat Martino is an Italian-American jazz guitarist and composer within the post bop, fusion, mainstream jazz, soul jazz and hard bop idioms.-Biography:...
also used the model during this period. All models were dropped from price lists in 1979. The L6-S Custom remained in the catalog in 1980 and was still being made in the Nashville plant. No model has ever been reissued. It is considered by many to be the most underrated of all the Gibson solid body guitars.
The L6-S came in three variants; all were maple
Maple
Acer is a genus of trees or shrubs commonly known as maple.Maples are variously classified in a family of their own, the Aceraceae, or together with the Hippocastanaceae included in the family Sapindaceae. Modern classifications, including the Angiosperm Phylogeny Group system, favour inclusion in...
-bodied with twin super-humbucking
Humbucker
A humbucker is a type of electric guitar pickup, first patented by Seth Lover and the Gibson company, that uses two coils, both generating string signal. Humbuckers have higher output than a single coil pickup since both coils are connected in series...
pickups.
L6-S Custom 1973–80
The best known version with total production of over 12000 instrumentsMaple body, and set neck
Set-in neck
Set-in neck is a method of guitar construction that involves joining guitar neck and body with a tightly fitted mortise-and-tenon or dovetail joint, secured using some sort of adhesive...
with a choice of maple or ebony fingerboard. Controls include a six position pickup selector, master volume, mid-range and treble roll-off
Roll-off
Roll-off is a term commonly used to describe the steepness of a transmission function with frequency, particularly in electrical network analysis, and most especially in connection with filter circuits in the transition between a passband and a stopband...
controls. At the time of its introduction, the L6-S Custom was simply called the L6-S, not gaining the "Custom" badge until later, when the simpler L6-S Deluxe was introduced. The L6-S and L6-S Custom are identical, except for the word "Custom" in the name.
The L6-S Custom is noted for its six way rotary selector switch, complete with "chicken head" pointer knob. Starting with switch position #1, in the most clockwise position, the available pickup switching options are as follows:
- Both pickups, in series
- Neck pickup, alone
- Both pickups, in parallel
- Both pickups, parallel out of phase, with the neck pickup's bass response restricted thought a series capacitor.
- Bridge pickup, alone
- Both pickups, series out of phase.
The capacitor in the #4 position gives a fuller tone than the otherwise very nasal out of phase tone. The capacitor serves to limit the low end response of the neck pickup, and also phase delays the signal from that pickup, resulting in a fuller tone, not too unlike the #2 and #4 switch positions on a Fender Stratocaster guitar.
The mid-range control on the L6-S Custom uses a 1.8Hy inductor, which is split wound for hum-cancellation, along with a capacitor. This is a variation of the notch filter concept introduced by Gibson with the VariTone circuit. In the VariTone, however, the resistance is fixed, and different capacitors are chosen. In the L6-S's mid-range control, the resistance is variable, while the capacitance is a fixed value. The result is one which allows decreasing of the middle tones, while retaining a large degree of "sparkle" or "brilliance" to the tone of the instrument.
The volume and treble roll-off controls work as they do in most other electric guitars with passive circuitry.
A notable feature of the L6-S Custom, perhaps contributing to its demise, is the awkwardness for a player to switch tones during live play. Guitars such as the Gibson Les Paul, Fender Telecaster, etc, using a simple toggle switch for pickup selection, make switching very easy during live play when compared alongside a six position rotary switch.
L6-S Midnight Special 1974–79
The least known version with total production of around 2000 instrumentsMaple body, and bolt-on
Bolt-on neck
Bolt-on neck is a method of guitar construction that involves joining a guitar neck and body using screws as opposed to glue as with set-in neck joints. The term is a misnomer, introduced mostly by Fender whose guitars traditionally had "bolt-on necks". Real bolted joints are uncommon in guitar...
maple neck with a maple fingerboard. Controls include a pickup selector, master volume, and tone control. Strung through the body.This guitar is a Les Paul Special Edition.
L6-S Deluxe 1974–79
Still less popular than the Custom, but more popular than the Midnight Special. Total production around 3500 instrumentsThe Deluxe had a set maple neck, with a rosewood fingerboard. Controls include a pickup selector, master volume, and tone control. Strung through the body
External links
- L6-S original schematic on the Gibson Website
- Gibson L6-S– Information, statistics and schematics for the Gibson L6-S.