PART IV - Here is the last part of the 2012 thoughts on the single coil manifesto

16. Fender and Gibson will continue to dominate the market, give or take about 10% from time to time. Guitar players are inherently conservative about equipment. That's just the way it is.

Not anymore. Quality control in the Gibson line has gone to heck in the past five years. What seemed like a solid instrument five years ago has left many players wondering what the future of Gibson will be. Fender has gone off on a pawn shop tangent shipping mid grade guitar building to Japan. As secondary companies like Ibanez and ESP bring cheaper guitars to the market that have equivalent quality as their counterparts, and USA companies like G&L increase their customer base, Fender and Gibson will lose market share. As long as Disney Superstars are given a Gibson guitar, Gibson will have a cult following. That is really how it is in 2012.

Original post blogged on Burlap and Blues Blog.