Gibson SG Special (2019-Present)

About the Gibson SG Special (2019-Present)

This guitar shares its origin story with the SG Standard researched alongside it - both products of the 1961 redesign that replaced the single-cutaway Les Paul, and both part of Gibson's Original Collection relaunch following the 2018 bankruptcy. Where the Special diverges is in a genuinely different electronics philosophy. Instead of the Standard's maple neck and 490R/490T humbuckers, this guitar carries a mahogany neck with a SlimTaper profile and two P-90 soapbar single-coils, wired through hand-assembled electronics with Orange Drop capacitors. The bridge configuration differs too: a compensated wraparound unit combines bridge and tailpiece into one piece, rather than the Standard's separate Tune-O-Matic and stopbar setup. That combination of P-90s and wraparound hardware isn't a downgrade so much as a different historical starting point - it's the more stripped-down, earlier-style electronics configuration within the current SG range. This nameplate carries particular weight in rock history through Tony Iommi. He originally played a Fender Stratocaster, and switched to Gibson SG almost by accident: on the very first day of recording Black Sabbath's debut album, during the song 'Wicked World,' his Stratocaster's pickup failed, and the producer simply told him not to worry, he had the other guitar. That other guitar was a heavily modified 1964 SG Special, nicknamed 'Monkey' after a sticker on its body, which went on to produce the riffs behind 'Paranoid,' 'War Pigs,' and 'Children of the Grave.' Gibson released the first-ever Tony Iommi Signature SG in 1999 - the first artist signature model built on the SG platform in the company's history - cementing a connection that began with a piece of malfunctioning equipment rather than a deliberate choice.

Where to buy

• Reverb 1.073 EUR Best price View details
• Reverb 1.399 EUR View details
• Reverb 1.399 EUR View details
• Reverb 1.454 EUR View details
• Reverb 1.959 EUR View details

No platform selected – pick at least one above.

Some links below are affiliate links. We may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.

Source: https://reverb.com/item/98867077-2026-gibson-sg-special-ebony-finish-w-ohsc

Sound character of the Gibson SG Special (2019-Present)

The P-90 soapbars deliver snarly midrange and excellent dynamic response, with a fat, aggressive snarl when driven into overdrive and a smooth sweetness in clean settings. The compensated wraparound bridge tends toward a slightly more direct, less processed fundamental tone than a separated Tune-O-Matic and stopbar arrangement - a general characteristic of that bridge type rather than a specific documented test finding for this exact model.

What owners of the Gibson SG Special (2019-Present) say

Players choosing between the current SG Standard and Special tend to frame the decision around pickup preference rather than build quality - P-90 fans specifically seek out the Special for its rawer, more dynamically responsive character, while humbucker players default to the Standard. Both share the SG platform's well-known neck-dive and neck-joint discussion, treated as an accepted trait of the shape rather than a defect specific to either model.

Playability & handling of the Gibson SG Special (2019-Present)

The structural SG traits documented for the Standard - the neck-dive tendency from the long neck-to-body leverage and the thinner, break-prone neck heel joint - apply equally here, since both models share the same fundamental body and neck construction beyond the wood and pickup choices.

Recommended accessories & strings for the Gibson SG Special (2019-Present)

Standard 24.75-inch scale takes .010-.046 sets well. As with the SG Standard, a wide, grippy strap helps counteract neck dive during standing performance - a practical accessory recommendation rather than a required purchase.

Technical data for the Gibson SG Special (2019-Present)

Price history for the Gibson SG Special (2019-Present)

Cheapest seen: 1.073 EUR  ·  Most expensive seen: 1.959 EUR

The history of the Gibson SG Special (2019-Present)

The SG Special's story runs on two tracks worth separating clearly. The nameplate itself belongs to the same 1961 design shift and 1962-63 renaming saga documented for the Standard, both products of Gibson stepping away from the Les Paul name after Les Paul himself distanced himself from a design he hadn't been consulted on. The second, more colorful track is specific to the Special configuration: Tony Iommi's accidental switch from Stratocaster to SG Special on the first day of recording Black Sabbath's debut album turned a piece of malfunctioning gear into one of rock's most consequential instrument choices, eventually earning the first artist signature SG Gibson ever produced in 1999. Both threads matter to understanding this current 2019-present reissue, even though Iommi's own instrument was a heavily modified vintage original rather than this specific production model.

About Gibson as a manufacturer

Built at Gibson's Nashville, Tennessee facility as part of the Original Collection, offering the P-90-and-wraparound-bridge electronics configuration as a simpler, historically earlier alternative to the humbucker-equipped SG Standard within Gibson's current lineup.

Notable players & recordings featuring the Gibson SG Special (2019-Present)

Tony Iommi's connection to this nameplate is genuine and extensively documented, though it belongs to his heavily modified 1964 SG Special 'Monkey' rather than this current 2019-present production model - the same honest distinction applied throughout this research project between historical icons and current-production instruments.