Gibson J-45 Century 12-Fret Acoustic in Vintage Sunburst
This acoustic guitar embodies the full, powerful tone for which Gibson's J-45 is renown, and is constructed with a solid Sitka Spruce top and solid Mahogany back and sides.
While it embodies the familiar features that players associate with the J-45, this version shifts to a 12-fret neck-to-body joint in place of the standard 14-fret configuration. This change shortens the overall neck length and moves the bridge plate deeper into the body, positioning it closer to the widest part of the top. That placement allows the soundboard to move more efficiently, creating a comfortably played instrument with a warm, punchy, resonant voice-one that responds especially well to fingerstyle technique and lighter picking dynamics.
Although Gibson has built 12-fret J-45 variations before, they've traditionally appeared only as artist collaborations or in limited Gibson Custom runs, making them sought after and relatively uncommon. With the introduction of the J-45 Century 12-Fret, this distinctive feel and tone are now available to every player. As part of the new Century Collection, celebrating a century of Gibson flat-top craftsmanship, it pairs a mahogany body with a Sitka spruce top, accented by single-ply cream binding tracing the top and back.
The mahogany neck features the fast, familiar SlimTaper 12-Fret profile and is joined to the body at the 12th fret with a compound dovetail joint secured with hot hide glue, consistent with Gibson's traditional acoustic builds. A rosewood fretboard carries 19 frets and simple mother-of-pearl dot inlays.
Up top, the headstock is fitted with open-back Golden Age strap tuners with cream buttons and dressed with an early-1900s-style Gibson script logo decal. A sloped rectangle closed-slot rosewood bridge-echoing those found on the earliest J-45 models-adds another vintage-inspired touch. The guitar features a bone nut and saddle, TUSQ bridge pins, a classic Gibson L-00-style pickguard, and a hand-sprayed satin nitrocellulose lacquer finish.
Each J-45 Century 12-Fret ships in a premium Century Collection tweed hardshell case and is offered in both right and left-handed versions. Pick one up today and discover the distinctive, resonant voice of a 12-fret Gibson flat-top.
Specifications
- Shape: J-45
- Top: Sitka Spruce
- Back & Sides: Mahogany
- Binding: Single-ply top and back
- Body Finish: Satin nitrocellulose lacquer
Neck
- Neck: Mahogany
- Profile: SlimTaper 12-fret
- Fingerboard Radius: 12" (304.8 mm)
- Fingerboard: Rosewood
- Scale Length: 24.75" (628.70 mm)
- Nut: Bone
- Inlay: Dot
Hardware
- Bridge: Rectangle, Rosewood
- Saddle Material: Bone
- Bridge Pins: TUSQ
- Tuners: 3 on a plate with cream buttons
Case: Hardshell case included
