As my title states, this is a mixed review. Here's why. The first ES-335 satin I received had the tuner holes drilled off center. This was quite obvious and yet somehow got past Gibson quality control. Also the fretboard was made from a piece of rosewood that was obviously rotten in spots. I returned it. Fortunately I had bought it from Musician's Friend and they were great about the return. The replacement guitar was pretty good but not perfect. The bridge pickup was slightly crooked but not bad enough to return. The setup on both guitars was horrible but then I've never found a Gibson factory setup to my liking. Anyhow, I had Browns Guitar Factory do a pro setup and a fret dress. The guitar plays and sounds great now. Brown's btw did a great job. Anyhow, while Gibson quality control has, in my opinion, leaves a lot to be desired, this guitar can be made to play and sound great. I had tried both the gloss finish and the satin finish. Both sounded completely different. To me, the satin's sound was far superior. It had the vintage sound I remember from 1958. Not quite sure why this would be since they are essentially the same guitar but they did sound different. Try this test yourself. Also, fingerprints don't show on the satin finish. Much cooler vintage look. Bottom line, loved Musicians Friend's service, loved the guitar (after setup), not impressed with Gibson quality control. Gibson support was great however.

Lost the strat in Hurricane Katrina and immediately felt justified to go get my new baby and take her home. Take her home I did, and four years later she still has my heart. I call her Dorothy and she's treats my right. Feels smoother everytime I touch her and has such a soft, understated glimmer that makes gloss finishes look over-done.

She whispers and howls, sings and she growls, she needed my hands and that's what she got, my sweet my love my beatiful 'Dot'

I bought this guitar in 2005 and have loved it ever since. This guitar is by far one of the highest quality guitars I have played and for the price, you cannot bet it. I put in Seymour Duncan Antiquity pickups in it not that the stock ones were bad, I just prefer the way the Antiquitys sound and blend together. I have had not one problem with this guitar and would recommend it to anyone with the money. Buy it now before the price goes up anymore. This is a guitar you will love and be able to play for a long long time.

I always wanted a 335 but many of the new and/or used ones I played by Gibson or others were too expensive (more than I could justify for the instrument not more than I was willing to spend on the right instrument), too cheap or just did not have that sound/feel I wanted. This includes some very high end custom jobs by some independent builders and many guitars priced higher than this one.

This search ended the moment I played this guitar. I love the slimmer neck feel, the outstanding vintage humbuckers (although I don;t think your daddy's 335 sounded this good), the cherry satin stain (which I think will look real cool after awhile) and the nickel hardware. The guitar feels balanced and breaths quality. It is very fun to play and a joy to own. A couple of frets seemed to feel a bit rough at first but they seemed to smooth over after a week of playing. Thanks Gibson for making this dream come true.

I bought this guitar in Florida on holiday after alot of saving, and I'd just like to say that it is simply amazing. Ive had it for over a year now and it just keeps getting better, play after play. I recently had the bridge pickup changed, but thats not because the '57 was weak, straight out of the factory it was amazing to play. I would recommend it for any type of music, so long as you have the cash to spend on it.