What are the REAL difference between Orville and OBG

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cino.and

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Hi to All :D ,
I have one answer about this two brand..
The difference are limited on Pick-up and tuners or not?
I have read some information on japanguitars.co.uk and on japanaxe but the information is not clear for me..i don't undestand, yet, the real difference between this brand.
 
cino.and said:
Hi to All :D ,
I have one answer about this two brand..
The difference are limited on Pick-up and tuners or not?
I have read some information on japanguitars.co.uk and on japanaxe but the information is not clear for me..i don't undestand, yet, the real difference between this brand.
ALL MINE are Orville by Gibsons (OBG). I did get an "Orville" (just 'Orville' not OBG) from a guy in Japan several years ago. It was a tobacco-burst LPS that looked like Slash's signature model. Looks-wise and play-ability, it was a very nice guitar but sound and build-wise, materials and hardware it was not even in the same league as an OBG. I knew from the very first time I played it I was going to sell it. I've never sold a single one of my OBGs.

That 'Orville' was a very nice guitar but my experience (I got my first OBG in '93) is that there are a lot of very valid reasons (more than just the nitro and US pickups) why the OBGs cost more and they're a bargain at that compared with current U.S. Gibsons and especially ones from the same period.
 
The regular K and ink stamped Orville LPs were priced at 75,000 Yen and the cheapest Orville by Gibson LP was 93,000 Yen in 1988 but went up to over 100,000 Yen soon after. The Orvilles have poly finishes and Gotoh pickups while the Orville by Gibsons have nitro and Gibson USA pickups. There are other things as well like some Orville by Gibsons have fret edge binding. The actual wood type used on all the Orville by Gibsons and Orvilles is the same. It was African Mahogany for the LPs and SGs bodies and Maple as well for the LPs.

Terada was using the same Mahogany bodies in a lot of cases for the G serial Orville by Gibsons and the K Orvilles and they also have the same tenon variation (medium, medium long and long) same bodies, same tenons. FujiGen were probably using the same Mahogany bodies for their no letter serial Orville by Gibsons and Orvilles which all have a long tenon. If you look at a K Orville SG African Mahogany body and a G serial Orville by Gibson SG African Mahogany body they are exactly the same and the same goes for a lot of the LP African Mahogany bodies.

The Orvilles are more likely to have 3 piece Maple tops because 2 piece Maple tops cost a bit more. Terada made the G serial Orville by Gibsons and the K Orvilles in a different way to the no letter FujiGen OBGs and Orvilles. Different guitar makers do different things. For instance some Terada K Orvilles have a separate piece of wood for the neck heel but so do some Terada made G serial Orville by Gibsons. I havn't seen too many neck heels on the FujiGen no letter OBGs and Orvilles.
The Terada G serial Orville by Gibsons and K Orvilles have a mixture of medium, medium long, and long tenons and the FujiGen no letter serial Orville by Gibsons and Orvilles always have long tenons.

There is a difference to the feel and playing of the Orville by Gibsons and Orvilles due mainly to the nitro finish and pickups. Also Terada and FujiGen probably selected what they would consider the best looking and maybe the best sounding and maybe lighter in weight pieces of African Mahogany and Maple for the Orville by Gibsons but this sort of thing varies. You could get a basic looking Orville with changed pickups sounding as good or better than a top of the line Orville by Gibson and you might not.

The Orvilles are cheaper versions of the Orville by Gibsons and the main cost cutting is in the guitar finish and pickups and the number of pieces of wood used.

The difference between a Orville and a Orville by Gibson is similar to the differences of the 1980 Greco Super Reals. The 1980 Greco EG500 LP Super Real 50,000 Yen has a 3 piece Maple top and a poly finish and cheaper pickups and oddly also has fret edge binding which at this low price is not expected. The 1980 Greco EGF1000 LP Super Real 100,000 Yen has a 2 piece Maple top and a nitro finish and more expensive pickups.

Both the Greco EG500 and EGF1000 bodies and necks are made from the same types of wood as can be seen from the Greco specs at Japanaxe http://forum.japanaxe.com/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=1070 but the fingerboard wood types differ and the number of wood pieces might differ for the bodies and necks. So a 1980 Greco EG500 is close in specs to a 1990 K Orville and the general price for these low spec guitars goes up from 50,000 Yen in 1980 to 75,000 Yen in 1990 which is what you would expect as the Japanese labor rates rose in the 1980s.
A 1980 Greco EGF1000 is close in specs and price to a 1990 Orville by Gibson.
 
Thanks to all for your answer..expecially japanstrat :wink:

What do you think of this Orville LPS?
http://imageevent.com/chingo123/orvillelps80fflame2858

The sellers say is an '88 model..is true?
 
cino.and said:
Thanks to all for your answer..expecially japanstrat :wink:

What do you think of this Orville LPS?
http://imageevent.com/chingo123/orvillelps80fflame2858

The sellers say is an '88 model..is true?

photo flame top = very cheesy & unrealistic, IMO
 
The Orville at http://imageevent.com/chingo123/orvillelps80fflame2858 is a LPS-80F 80,000 Yen that first appeared in the Orville by Gibson catalogs in 1993 so it's another case of a seller not doing any research. The guitar is a 1998 Orville which was the last year for the Orvilles. It's a FujiGen made no letter serial number (The serial number is made up of numbers only and no letters). It's a photoflame which means that the pattern on the guitars top is not real and is a fake replica of a flamed Maple top.
 
It seems like you might be referring to the comparison between "Orville" and "OBG," but without further context, it's challenging to provide specific details. If you could provide more information about what "Orville" and "OBG" refer to, I'd be happy to help clarify the real differences between them.
 

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