Image: Tom Bojean, CC BY-SA 4.0 — via Wikimedia Commons
Gibson 335-S
| Category | Strings (solid-body electric guitar) |
|---|---|
| Country of origin | USA |
| Classification | electric guitar |
| Wikipedia | en.wikipedia.org |
| Wikidata | Q5559282 |
Overview
The Gibson 335-S is a solid-body electric guitar manufactured between 1980 and 1981. As its name suggests, it shares the double-cutaway outline of the celebrated but replaces the semi-hollow body with a solid mahogany body. The result is an instrument that looks like a 335 from a distance but plays and sounds more like a Les Paul.
Origin & History
By the late 1970s, Gibson was experimenting with several variants of its core electric models in response to changing rock-guitar tastes. The 335-S was released as a solid-body alternative to the ES-335 for players who wanted the iconic body silhouette without the feedback issues of a semi-hollow guitar at high volumes. It was offered in three trim levels — Standard, Deluxe, and Custom — but had a short production life of roughly eighteen months and was discontinued before the model could establish itself.
How It’s Played
The 335-S behaves more like a solid-body Gibson than a 335. Its mahogany body and twin humbucking pickups deliver a thick, sustained voice well suited to rock and blues. Without the semi-hollow body’s air and resonance, the instrument is heavier and more compressed in feel, and it tolerates high gain and volume better than its semi-hollow counterpart. Standard tune-o-matic bridge and stop-bar tailpiece keep tuning stable.
Cultural Significance
Although a commercial near-miss, the 335-S now has a small but devoted collector following. Surviving examples — particularly the Deluxe and Custom variants — have appreciated steadily because of the model’s short production run and unusual position in the Gibson catalogue.
Related Instruments
- – the semi-hollow original
- – sonically similar solid-body Gibson
- Gibson ES-339 – smaller-bodied semi-hollow Gibson
- Gibson ES-333 – another semi-hollow Gibson variant
- Gibson Sonex – contemporaneous Gibson solid-body experiment
Frequently Asked Questions
Is the 335-S a hollow body?
No. Despite its 335-style outline, the body is solid mahogany.
How long was it made?
Roughly 1980 to 1981 — a brief production window that has made surviving examples collectable.
Image: Gibson 335 S Deluxe, photo by Tom Bojean, CC BY-SA 4.0 (Wikimedia Commons).
