| Gibson Corvus | |
|---|---|
 A Corvus II model. | |
| Manufacturer | Gibson |
| Period | 1982–1984 |
| Construction | |
| Body type | Solid |
| Neck joint | Bolt-on |
| Woods | |
| Body | Alder |
| Neck | Maple |
| Fretboard | Rosewood |
| Hardware | |
| Bridge | Fixed |
| Pickup(s) | 1 or 2 Alnico V humbuckers or 3 single-coils |
| Colors available | |
| Silver, yellow, orange, others | |
The Gibson Corvus was a short-lived series of solid body electric guitars produced by the Gibson Guitar Corporation in the mid-1980s.
During its prototype stage, bearing the name "Futura", it was initially designed as a headless guitar with tuners located at the offset V-cut at the body, as well as a reduced headstock. The compact headless design was rejected in favor of traditional headstocks, and the prototype remained in the Gibson Vault until 2023. [1]
The production model featured a solid body with an offset V-cut at the tail, which led it to be colloquially known as the "can opener" guitar. If the guitar is turned sideways, [2] it supposedly looks as if it is the shape of a crow in flight. Corvus is the Latin word for crow. The guitar appeared in Gibson's 1982 American Series catalog as "an instrument with a look as daring as it sounds". [3]
The Corvus was poorly received, and remained in production for only two years. The guitar would later be considered somewhat of a "cult" guitar, appearing in the Guitar Hero video game series. [3]
The Corvus was sold in three model variations:
An upscale Corvus with a set rather than bolt-on neck was marketed under the name "Futura" (not to be confused with the Explorer prototype).
The Corvus was one of several new models designed to renew interest in Gibson guitars. It was discontinued after two years due to poor sales. [4]
The Corvus is featured in the video games Guitar Hero , Guitar Hero II and Guitar Hero III and in the bar band scene of the movie The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai. [5]
The Gibson Les Paul is a solid body electric guitar that was first sold by the Gibson Guitar Corporation in 1952. The guitar was designed by factory manager John Huis and his team with input from and endorsement by guitarist Les Paul. Its typical design features a solid mahogany body with a carved maple top and a single cutaway, a mahogany set-in neck with a rosewood fretboard, two pickups with independent volume and tone controls, and a stoptail bridge, although variants exist.
The Fender Starcaster is a series of semi-hollowbody electric guitars made by the Fender company. The Starcaster was part of Fender's attempt to enter the semi-hollowbody market, which was dominated by Gibson's ES-335 and similar designs.
The Gibson ES-335 is a semi-hollow body semi-acoustic guitar introduced by the Gibson Guitar Corporation as part of its ES series in 1958. It features a solid maple wood block running through the center of its body with upper bouts that are hollow and two violin-style f-holes cut into the top over the hollow chambers. Since its release, Gibson has released numerous variations of and other models based on the design of the ES-335.
The Fender Jaguar is an electric guitar by Fender Musical Instruments characterized by an offset-waist body, a relatively unusual switching system with two separate circuits for lead and rhythm, and a short-scale 24" neck. Owing some roots to the Jazzmaster, it was introduced in 1962 as Fender's feature-laden top-of-the-line model, designed to lure players from Gibson. During its initial 13-year production run, the Jaguar did not sell as well as the less expensive Stratocaster and Telecaster, and achieved its most noticeable popularity in the surf music scene. After the Jaguar was taken out of production in 1975, vintage Jaguars became popular first with American punk rock players, and then more so during the alternative rock, shoegazing and indie rock movements of the 1980s and 1990s. Fender began making a version in Japan in the mid-1980s, and then introduced a USA-made reissue in 1999. Since then, Fender has made a variety of Jaguars in America, Mexico, Indonesia and China under both the Fender and Squier labels. Original vintage Jaguars sell for many times their original price.
The Fender Precision Bass is a model of electric bass guitar manufactured by Fender Musical Instruments Corporation. In its standard, post-1957 configuration, the Precision Bass is a solid body, four-stringed instrument usually equipped with a single split-coil humbucking pickup and a one-piece, 20-fret maple neck with rosewood or maple fingerboard.
The Gibson Firebird is a solid-body electric guitar manufactured by Gibson beginning in 1963.
Variax is the name of a line of guitars developed and marketed by Line 6. They differ from typical electric and acoustic guitars in that internal electronics process the sound from individual strings to model (replicate) the sound of specific guitars and other instruments. The maker claims it is the first guitar family that can emulate the tones of other notable electric and acoustic guitars. It also provides a banjo and a sitar tone. The Variax is currently available as an electric guitar, but modeling acoustic guitars and modeling electric bass guitars have been available in the past.
The G-400 is an Epiphone solid body electric guitar model produced as a more modestly priced version of the famous Gibson SG. Currently, Epiphone is a subsidiary of Gibson and manufactures the G-400 and other budget models at a lower cost in Asia. Visually and ergonomically, it is almost identical to a 1962 SG.
The Gibson Moderne is an electric guitar model prototyped by Gibson in 1957. It was designed alongside the Flying V and Explorer-"Futura" as part of a stylistically advanced line of electric guitars. However, unlike the Flying V and Explorer, the Moderne was not put into production until 1982.
The Fender Lead Series was produced by the Fender/Rogers/Rhodes Division of CBS Musical Instruments. The series comprised Lead I, Lead II, Lead III and Lead Bass models.
Fender Telecaster Custom is a model of electric guitar made by Fender.
The Gibson Les Paul Studio is a solid body electric guitar produced by the Gibson Guitar Corporation since 1983. It is a model of Les Paul with some features omitted to appeal to musicians looking for the tonal qualities of the guitar but with less of an emphasis on cosmetics and to reduce the price of the instrument.
The Gibson L6-S is a solid body electric guitar. It was the 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 neck, the first Gibson guitar to have this.
The Gibson Nighthawk was a family of electric guitars manufactured by Gibson. Introduced in 1993, the Nighthawk represented a radical change from traditional Gibson designs. While its maple-capped mahogany body and set neck were reminiscent of the classic Gibson Les Paul, the Nighthawk incorporated a number of characteristics more commonly associated with Fender guitars. The Nighthawk was not a commercial success; production of all models was discontinued in 1998 after only five years.
Kalamazoo is the name for two different lines of instruments produced by Gibson. In both cases Kalamazoo was a budget brand. The first consisted of such instruments as archtop, flat top and lap steel guitars, banjos, and mandolins made between 1933 and 1942, and the second, from 1965 to 1970, had solid-body electric and bass guitars.
The Gibson ES series of semi-acoustic guitars are manufactured by the Gibson Guitar Corporation.
The Gibson Spirit was a guitar model sold under Gibson and Epiphone USA nameplates in the 1980s. This article does not refer to the made-in-China Spirit guitar sold under the Gibson Baldwin Music Education nameplate.
The Gibson Futura was an electric guitar that was the precursor of the model introduced as the Explorer. These prototypes, christened "Futura" many years later, resembled the eventual Explorer design, but had a differently-proportioned body, as well as a 'split' or 'forked' headstock that survived into the first few production Explorers but was quickly replaced. Gibson obtained U.S. Design Patent number 181,865 for the Futura body shape.
The Yamaha Corporation is a multinational corporation and conglomerate based in Japan with a wide range of products and services, predominantly musical instruments, motorcycles, power sports equipment and electronics.
The Fender Telecaster, colloquially known as the Tele, is an electric guitar produced by Fender. Together with its sister model the Esquire, it was the world's first mass-produced, commercially successful solid-body electric guitar. Its simple yet effective design and revolutionary sound broke ground and set trends in electric guitar manufacturing and popular music.
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