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Wasn't really shopping for a new guitar at all until I saw one of these Cadillac Green H-150 Custom Cores. I absolutely love this color. It seems the metallic part of it is gold instead of silver so it has these gold-top-esque undertones to it, just beautiful. My first Heritage guitar and I'm really impressed with it. Fit and finish is outstanding, better than my recently sold R8, and the quality of fretboard wood especially stands out compared to what I see on most Les Paul's these days. Probably going to drop that tailpiece and top wrap it at first restring. The bridge on these is nice but it definitely needs a pretty shallow break angle to not hit the back of the bridge.

Thank you David for the heads up on this!!! I drove to Detroit yesterday to pick up this bad boy! Still working on setup and maintenance. I’ll have more pics later today.

2014 H575 Custom. Since I sold my 575MH a few years ago (I loved that guitar - sweetest tone on earth- but the neck was too skinny for me), I’ve been wanting another 575. Here it is… Looking forward to seeing it person.

Korina Korina, where you been so long? My baby at the train station, right after I picked her up:

I resemble that remark. This happened to be a gig in a club in Memphis.

Our old buddy, RhoadsScholar, picked up a Cadillac green Gretsch from the 1950s a few yew years ago. He got it from a pawn shop in Detroit. Pete Moreno repaired the binding. The first view it looked disgusting. About 5 seconds later and thereafter it was just plain cool. Back then Gretsch simply painted the guitars and didn't worry about wood flame and grain. Of course Gibson and Heritage had their whites, blacks and goldtops as well as the occasional orange, blue and green. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/19658508-rhoadsscholar-com

Last night we hit a milestone... STRINGS! I borrowed a bridge and tailpiece from a friend, and my gold Grover Rotomatics showed up, so it was time for the rubber to meet the road. It's a guitar! Geometry held up perfectly thru the glue up and repairs. Neck is straight and true and feels like a million bucks. Now time to start actually ordering parts! Once it's all together and mostly set up I will take all the shiny hardware into the shop and age it to match the checking on the body. Been thinking of leaning the Pearly Gates direction for pickups. PAF-ish, but a little hotter. Ideas from the group? (I've got a line on at-cost stuff from Seymour-Duncan, so going to use something from their arsenal.) It's a poplar guitar, I'd imagine it's going to be pretty bright. EXCITED.

My Heritage Eagle getting some back porch time. Got it out to takes pics to sell but now I’m not sure I can let it go. Sorry for the crappy picture. Can’t figure out how to shrink the good ones.

I am now a believer in these pickups as a quality PAF-ish. I’ve previously found them a little lackluster in other guitars but in my new (to me) 2014 575 they are terrific. When I bought this 575 I just assumed I would swap the ‘59s out for Lollars or similar but I don’t think I will, at least for a while. In this guitar they are warm, yet responsive and articulate- without being overly bright, etc. A lot to like about them. anyone else?

I have been wanting to get an R9 so that I could compare and contrast the differences between it and the Heritage Custom Core H150. Here are my findings/opinions between the two… CASES: Heritage Yes, I’m comparing the cases. Lol. The cases that the Heritage CS are using are built like a tank. Plush green crushed velvet. Very heavy. Very solid. The replica Lifton cases are nice. Not as solid and heavy duty. I realize they are trying to replicate the old ones. WEIGHT: Heritage Between these two guitars, it was very close. The Gibson weighs 8 lbs. 10 oz. The Heritage weighs 8 lbs. 5 oz. So between these two particular guitars, it’s pretty close, but nevertheless, the Heritage does weigh less. PICKUPS: Neither I’m not impressed with either set of stock pickups. Gibson. These pickups squeal like stuck hog. Heritage. These were an alnico III. They were very bright and lacking bottom end. TUNERS: Gibson The tuners that Gibson uses are far superior. Heritage used sone cheap Gotoh tuners that really suck. BRIDGE/TAILPIECE: Heritage They both use lightweight aluminum. The one thing that tipped the scale for me, was the Pinnacle locking bridge that Heritage uses. FIT AND FINISH: Tie Both of these guitars are EXTREMELY GOOD QUALITY!!! Neck pitch is perfect on both. Setup is perfect on both. (Both PLEKed). They both feature a VOS style finish. The paint itself, both bursts are spectacular!!!! ELECTRONICS: Gibson I’m basing this basically on the pots. Both used Switchcraft toggles and jacks. Both used vintage style braided wire. But the posts that Gibson used have a much better taper. And Gibson used much better capacitors than Heritage did. Heritage only used orange drops, while Gibson used bumblebees. WOODS: Tie The quality of woods used in these guitars are incredible. I mean, look at those fretboards and tops!! Both feature lightweight mahogany. Both have a holly head veneer. NECK CARVE: Heritage I realize this category is purely opinion driven. But I do prefer the neck on the Heritage. My reason is that the Heritage neck is a bit fuller and fills my hand better. It has a tad more shoulder. The Gibson neck is not terrible. I do like it. TONE: Tie Both of these guitars, with pickups of my choice, sound incredible!!! Pickups are SO IMPORTANT when you get into this tier of instrument!! My initial reaction is that the Gibson is a tad brighter. But that could vary from guitar to guitar. You can’t go wrong with either as far as the sound!!! PLAYABILITY: Heritage This is really close for me. What it really came down to was the height of action achieved, how much relief was necessary in the neck to achieve a low action and the nut cut. Also the overall finished fretwork. The Heritage just feels better to me when cranking out a tune. Not that the R9 is terrible, it’s also very good. PRICE AS TESTED: Heritage Gibson CS R9 new….$6699 Heritage CC H150 new….$4199 In conclusion, these are both great guitars. I’m giving the Heritage the nod. Mainly because of price and playability. The main reason that I did this comparison is because I have been getting asked a lot lately, hey man, how old do the Heritage Custom Cores compare to the Gibson R9? You would not believe how many times I have been asked this in the past year. I don’t want this to turn into a Gibson or Heritage, bashing thread! That is not my intention, my intention is to do an honest unbiased comparison of two high-end single cut, solid body electric guitars.

To answer Lance's original question... Sadly a lot less than you would hope. You would have to find the right buyer that knew the history of Marv & Heritage, instead of someone just viewing it as a Gibby copy. Just my opinion, hey you asked...

Arrived today, well packed and in good shape. A few nicks and scrapes which the seller had noted, so no surprises. This guitar is fabulous. Will post more over the weekend, but I’m very happy with this one. Sounds great. Plays great. I like the ‘59 pickups more than i thought i would. Might not even swap them out. more to come…

I'll ask Marv. CJ Stanley in Illinois has over 14 of them and looking for more. I talked to him a few times about buying one of his but he said he'd think about it but probably not. Great guy. Here is a couple pics of his band and a few Marvbirds. That is his son playing them.

I just moved into my new studio which is a smaller room, so I bought some shelves to save floor space, get the amps off of the floor, and make them easy to access. I found these cheap shelves at Wayfair. I was a little worried they would be too flimsy, but after putting them together, installing the center struts to stiffen the frames, and doubling up on the wood shelves, they are just fine. After putting together the three individual racks, I bolted them all together, which also stiffened them up. A bonus was that I had some extra room for mic boxes that were piling up on the floor by my recording racks:) When I record, I will take the amp(s) that I'm using off of the shelf, as I like the way they record on the floor... Amps are... Frenzel Super Deluxe Head, Clark Beaufort Deluxe (5E3), Mesa DC-2, Vox AC-15 Handwired, Fender Handwired Reverb Unit Clone (6K6 version), Dirty Girl Reverb (Supro Style 6973 tubes), Tophat Club Deluxe, Victoria Regal II, 1969 Vibro Champ, Fender Princeton Reverb Clone Handwired with vintage Fender transformers (Winnie Thomas), 1964 Fender Deluxe Reverb.

It depends on the amp; but a good chunk of them it will work on; and can get some cool stereo and reverb like effects from it too. But doesnt work for all. Some may end up out of phase (sound waves will partially cancel each other out; having a detrimental effect on the Tone and volume); some may cause an oscillation (hiss, screech, bad feedback); and some may not have inputs wired in a way that will daisy chain (may send signal to ground).

Sound panels are on wheels so I just roll them out of the way when I need a guitar from the case rack...

Just joined this forum as I have my first Heritage coming this week. Wasn't planning on buying a new guitar anytime soon but then I saw the limited run of CC H-150s in Cadillac Green that have recently hit some shops. Got the chance to play one over the weekend and was quite impressed. Have one on the way to me now and am excited to get my hands on it.

I met up with Brian @kbp810today. It was great to see him again, it had been a lonnggggg time!! We did a little horse trading. And I took home one of Brian’s awesome amps!!! It is a 50 watt Dumble Overdrive Special clone. 1x12 combo. EL34 power section (although it will take 6L6s too) Its am absolute beast!!! Incredible sounding amp!!!!

Happy NAD! I'm with bolero on lacquering or shellacking it. I always liked to use amber shellac on raw tweeds. I think that would look great over the natural patina it's developed; and help keep it from deteriorating.

Yeah, funny how each guitar responds in it's own way to various pickups. It's almost like each tree & piece of wood is unique? Who'da thunk? All part of the fun IMO

I bought a guitar rack the other day that I thought was going to give me a hernia lifting the boxes into my car and then loading them into my studio...

It was great seeing you again too Brent! Great demo video

Oh boy, are you on a slippery slope! First shelves, then packing multiple heads on each shelf, next comes collecting every flavor amp out there. Why not? There's room... Then, it's off to the races with speaker cabs and speaker swaps (so Many speakers...). Once complete you've got to keep power, speaker and guitar cables apart to minimize cross inductance. If you fire up multiple amps at the same time, you'll need to split the guitar signals - mind the ground loops. Finally you'll need a solid core door and much more insulation; it's going to get LOUD! It starts quite innocently and, if you mind the minor setbacks, ends in total madness enveloped by sonic nirvana. You've already mounted the stallion, enjoy the ride! But, what we really want to know is how did you find SO MANY straight 2x4s?!

I hear those are rare as hen's teeth. Nice snatch BR. Since I think I recall that particular amp, may I add - Dibs.

I agree too- don't get me wrong, great guitars and everyone here obviously loves them and knows what they are. But it doesn't go much farther than that. It's the same reason you see a million fake Gibsons out there but not one fake Heritage. There just isn't a market enough to even bother to try making one for the counterfeiters. Your average person on the street is still clueless about Heritage and certainly a Marv Bird. I don't know how many people I still mention Heritage to and they look at me like "Huh?" But you say "Gibson" and everyone and their Grandma knows what it is. So, the market for who is willing to part with big bucks for a Marv Bird is pretty limited to, basically everyone on this forum! Lol!

How about a "Korena" version? (That's how it's spelled on the label 😄)

Hello, I’m a new Heritage Custom Core h150 tobacco sunburst owner, first Heritage guitar. I’ve had it less than a day so won’t provide observations yet, other than to say I really appreciate the overall quality and thought that went into this. -JJ

The Heritage stock tuners are MIC. I spoke with Pete about these at PSP. He said they have a high failure rate and are looking for better tuners.

Good to hear you're knot barking up the wrong tree

Thanks for all the positive vibes everyone!! Im thoroughly enjoying this 357!! I never thought I would like a 357 with “Firebird” pickups. But this one, I do.

A little birdie told there was a H357 at MOTOR CITY GUITARS. The FIREBIRD that Heritage built!!! The H357!! This one is a 1993, (post lawsuit) NON REVERSE headstock. Marv Lamb started building 357’s around 1989 or 1988, I believe. Originally, the 357, had a reverse head stock, just like a Gibson Firebird. At the same time the 150 also had a body design that was exactly like a Gibson Les Paul. In 1991, Gibson threatened to sue Heritage over the 150 body design, and the 357. So Heritage changed the body design on the 150 to its current state, and started making the 357‘s with a non-reverse head stock.  I can’t recall ever seeing another H357 with a non-reverse head stock, I’m sure there are others out there, but I just don’t ever remember seeing one. There are many more of them out there with reverse headstocks than there are non-reversed headstocks.  A couple things that make this particular  357 unique and different, are the fact that it actually has  Firebird pick ups in it! The vast majority of the H357’s had humbuckers in them. The second run of 357’s that Marv did just before he retired, had a wide variety of pick up, variations, mainly because they were all custom ordered for the most part. The other thing that really sets this one a part is the gold finish! I have never seen another H357 finished in gold. Maybe someone else out there has?  Just like with all of the other H357’s that Marv built, this one is neck thru construction. The neck is a medium C carve.  It has an Ebony fretboard with pearl dots. Schaller tuners. Seymour Duncan pickups. I swapped out the original bridge and tail piece with Nashville style hardware. And the original owner swapped out the knobs and one potentiometer. Overall, the guitar is an excellent condition for 30 years old! There are no cracks, no brakes, no repairs. There really isn’t any major wear to speak of. It was obviously very well taken care of.  The frets are in great shape.  It sets up and plays great! 

That is a great color, one of the best shades of green I've seen on a guitar, congrats!

Part of the sweetness you are hearing is the wood of your H575. Good pickups should amplify, not color the sound of a well built guitar. Archtops made of carved/solid wood should have a nice sounding natural acoustic sound. That natural sound should be amplified through pickups (and obviously your amp of choice). I experienced that with my former Sweet 16. Unfortunately its acoustic sound left a bit to be desired, so I went on a pickup adventure, trying out 3 different p'ups (Schaller, Gibson 57 classic and finally a custom wound Kent Armstrong 12 pole. Each pickup improved the sound...a little! The best was the KA 12 pole paf. In the end I sold the guitar and later picked up two H575's. Both of them sound amazing, no matter what pickup I put in them (Schaller, HRW, Seth Lover, etc.) I attribute the guitar's construction as the primary reason for the basic tonal sweetness. Each pickup contributed to the lows, highs and midrange...a little. My 575's sound great with or without an amp! I guess that's why I own two of the same archtop. Heritage archtops are hand made, so each has its own personality, feel and sound. Bottom line, you got a good one!! 🙂

Great looking top (and color), on that one! That squiggly flame is my favorite type of flame! Here's my R0 which has that same type of flame...

Yes....but the Heritage has a cooler pickguard

BOTH Gibson CS and Heritage CC use A3 magnets (Custom Buckers use A3 for Gibson and Parson Street use A3 for Heritage). I am not a fan of A3 magnets, especially in the bridge. Give me A2 magnets all day and twice on Sunday. Gibson used to make a set of pickups called MHS (Memphis Heritage Specials) that had an A3 in the neck and A2 in the bridge. I have this set in my Gibson 345 and they ROCK!!! The best pickups I played next to Throbaks (and I have tried them all, essentially). Then Gibson changed the MHS to MHSII which I think, they switched to A5s. They don't sound good according to Gibby fans. Bottom line, A3s are very clear, can be brighter, but to me lack the low mids that many (including myself) want in a PAF humbucker.... and the wax potting on Heritages doesn't help the tone either.

Is Gibson really using PIO capacitors these days. The original ones were totally fake. They were selling $3 capacitors for well over $100 because they put them inside a bakelite case and painted some stripes on it. It was a classic PT Barnum scam. There are only a couple of folks making PIO caps these days. Luxe and Emerson are the two that come to mind. Others are doing oil filled caps, but they are usually polypropylene/foil inside. The caps from 70 years ago used castor oil. I think a lot today are using mineral oil. I wonder if anyone had done a study to see which oil sounds the best. 🤔 I was also of the impression that Gotoh tuners were very good. I do like the look of the plastic keystone buttons on Klusons. I tried to change the buttons on my 535, but the plastic ones weren't solid, so I took them off and put the originals back on. Are both using CTS pots? Do they have the standard CTS nomenclature on the back? I wonder what taper they are each using.. 15%, 25%, 30%?

Well...there ya are. From our resident "Been There; Owned That," Joe Friday. "Just the facts, ma'am." Good simple A/B, Brent! Nicely done.

Getting there!

I also have a zebra set of Pearly Gates that I'm about to list for sale.

UPDATE: Home for more than a couple days in a row, so I actually found time to get this thing rolling! As stated, there was a significant crack in the tenon/neck heel area that needed to be addressed before any real plans could be made (or $$$ spent). The lateral crack was pretty deep, and had caused the existing joinery to come loose as well. I ended up diluting some Titebond by about a 6th and then working it into the crack. First by masking off and pulling vacuum, then just forcing it in and articulating the crack. Clamped it, applied some "weights" to pull the perpendicular joints closed, and gave it 24 hours. It is SOLID now. Gave it quite the testing once the clamps came off and it didn't budge in the slightest. Thanks for all the feedback about this model, and for following along on the journey. Neat to know that it is a poplar guitar, I thought that it felt veeeeeeery light for a piece of Maho that size! I suspect it will be pretty bright, and that also will help to inform my choice of pickups. As far as hardware, it's great to know what it would've looked like from the factory. I've been able to narrow my search for images, and I think I have a really good idea of the vibe of the guitar. That said, I am going to deviate a good bit from stock spec... The Schaller stuff, while great, is a little overly complicated for my taste. It's also pretty hard to find. Ultimately, I'll go with a stopbar and and ABR or Nashville bridge. For now I'm going to get some derelict placeholder parts from the shop just to make sure that all of the geometry is still solid. The overall plan is black plastics (pup rings, truss cover, control covers, maaaaaybe knobs) and then all gold hardware (thinking keystone Klusons with green buttons?) aged to match the existing patina/checking. I'm not usually a big fan of artificial aging, but this thing already has so much character. It's a cool opportunity to make it look like it's been played all those years, all while having ZERO fret wear. More to come soon!!!