There's some truth in this, but if you consider inflation, the price of some of these instruments isn't that out of line with what the price was back in the day. If a 1963 Fender Stratocaster sold for $289 USD, that would be $2,138 today. I know you can get a very nice USA made Strat, Tele, or what have you for less than this. So this shouldn't be out of reach for any serious working musician. Gibsons have always been more expensive, and their guitars are commensurately more expensive today. Whether their "quality" matches this price today is another question. But in a relative sense they aren't out of line in terms of the buying power needed to purchase one today versus back in the 50s or 60s. So I wouldn't say these instruments are "simply for collectors."
No doubt both companies make "custom shop" or other special models that are far more pricey. But you can get a USA made guitar for a fraction of the cost of these from both Fender and Gisbon, and far less if you move to a Mexican, Japanese, Korean, and even Chinese made guitar by these makers; many of which are completely usable by a serious musician.
I have two American made Fender reissues, one a 1963 Jazz Bass in the style of Jaco's bass, and one a 1957 Stratocaster. I bought both new and paid about $1,600 for the bass and about $1,400 for the guitar. I also have a Japanese 1951 reissue Precision bass that I paid about $700 for (all these might cost a bit more now as I've owned them for a while). I've played A LOT of instruments, including Nash and LSL guitars and boutique basses that cost between $800 to $2,000 more than the two American guitars. For me, I haven't noticed any difference that would have justified my paying more (except in some cases the pickups, which is about a $200 upgrade). So I think the American Fenders are actually extremely reasonably priced for a serious player, recognizing that some specific features like neck shape, fingerboard radius, etc. might make other brands appealing to certain players. But I still think the American Fenders are a good deal. My Japanese Fender was a steal at that price.
I'm not as much of a Gibson guy, so I can't do that kind of comparison for solid-body Gibson style guitars. I have played a bunch of Gibson and heritage hollow and semi-hollow bodies. I couldn't immediately see a huge quality differential between the two, but my sense is the Heritage would probably have won out over time in terms of playability and sound. The Gibson would have been worth more in the end, though!
As I'm not really a jazz guy, I actually wound up with a Chinese made Epiphone 1961 reissue Casino. I prefer the P-90s to the humbuckers, and they used the same Gibson p-90s that are on the ES-330. I paid about $700 for this guitar, and I think it plays and sounds as good as many of the vintage Gibsons and Epis I've toyed around with. So under the Gibson umbrella, I think some good guitars are being made, but I know their reputation is spotty. It's actually kind of unfortunate to me that Gibsons have such a poor quality reputation. It would be great to have an esteemed US manufacturer making quality stuff, like I believe Fender still does. If their instruments largely
justified the price, you probably wouldn't see as many complaints from the musicians who buy them.
Bill
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