"One Of The Great Aristocrats Of The Guitar World…"

This absolutely mint eighteen inch-wide, full-depth, single venetian cutaway archtop weighs just 7.80 lbs. Two-piece carved close-grain spruce top, two-piece lightly flamed carved maple back, and maple sides. Three-piece 'flamed' maple neck with two mahogany center strips, a scale length of 25 1/2 inches, a medium profile and a comfortable nut width of 1 11/16 inches. The neck on this guitar has an unobtrusive volute (as typical from 1969-1981) and a peghead angle of 17 degrees. Ebony fretboard with 20 jumbo frets and inlaid pearl split-block position markers. The top has nine-ply binding, the back has five-ply binding, the f-holes are triple-bound, the neck is triple-bound, the headstock is multi-bound, and the fretboard has double white lines on each side. Headstock with inlaid pearl "Gibson" logo and pearl five-piece split-diamond inlay. Black laminate headstock back with pearl three-piece split-diamond inlay. Individual Kluson Sealfast tuners with tulip-shaped metal buttons. Black plastic truss-rod cover with a white border and the word "Custom" etched into the parallelogram on its face. Two 'patent number' humbucking pickups with "Patent No. 2,737,842" engraved on the underside and perfectly balanced outputs of 7.51k and 7.49k. Multi-bound tortoiseshell pickguard. Four controls (two volume, two tone) plus three-way selector switch. Black plastic ribbed-side conical-shape "Witch Hat" knobs. Slightly-compensated solid ebony bridge on adjustable ebony base with two 'bow-tie' shaped pearl inlays. The underside of the ebony bridge base is marked in pencil "Super 400 CES 06100687". Small oval transparent label on back of headstock lettered in gold "S 400 CES / Made in USA / 06100687". All hardware gold plated. Apart from a miniscule amount of tarnishing to the treble edge of the pickup covers, this spectacular example is in mint (9.50) condition. Housed in it's original Gibson four-latch black hardshell case with blue plush lining (9.00).

"Though a large guitar, the Super 400CES proved itself to be an exceedingly versatile instrument in many respects. The tone quality of the guitar, unamplified, was less than desirable because of the additional bracing under the top, the additional top thickness, and the presence of the pickups and controls mounted in the top. However, such body details were designed to inhibit top vibration and minimize feedback at moderate volumes. When plugged in, the Super 400CES really came into its own, producing a deep tone with much color that was in sharp contrast to other electric guitars available up to that time."

"The biggest single change in the Super 400CES occurred with the introduction of the seventh model in mid-1960. The change involved replacing the graceful, rounded Venetian cutaway with a deep, pointed Florentine cutaway, which was also introduced on the L-5CES and the last of the ES-5 guitars at the same time. Again we see the influence of Ted McCarty and CMI in the decision to radically alter the appearance of the Super 400CES and the L-5CES to present "something new" to guitarists. This model was produced from mid-1960 through mid-1969… For the Super 400CES, the year 1960 was a time of transition in neck contour as well as body cutaway shape. The necks on the 1960-1962 Super 400CES guitars felt rather wide and flat by comparison to their predecessors, which although retaining the same width were somewhat thicker in circumference, giving the earlier necks a more rounded feel… From mid-1960 through 1962, the seventh model Super 400CES featured PAF-style humbucking pickups with gold-plated pole pieces and covers. These were encased in black bezels, which were screwed into the top of the guitar with black screws. The tops of these guitars were made of carved spruce, and the very early backs were of book-matched, carved curly maple…" Thomas A. Van Hoose. The Gibson Super 400, pp. 66-69, and p.76.

According to Larry Meiners, Gibson Shipment Totals, 1937-1979, a total of 155 Super 400CESN's were shipped from the factory between 1971 and 1979. This example is one of just 24 that were shipped in 1977.