Agile AL-3100

Agile makes some of the best budget Les Paul copies on the market. These guitars have features that even some Gibsons do not come with. These guitars are made in Korea and their main vendor is Rondo Music. This guitar comes with the classic Les Paul wood combination. It has a mahogany body with a flamed Canadian maple top. The body and headstock have triple binding while the next is bound also. It comes from the factory with Grover tuners. The tuners have an 18-1 ratio to keep you in tune. The guitar features home brand Alnico V pickups which are so good I have heard people will buy the pickups from people second hand. Like any good Les Paul it has two volume and two tone controls with a 3-way toggle switch pickup selector. It features a mahogany neck with an ebony fretboard something not all Gibsons have. The 22 frets on the ebony fretboard are also hand filed so there will be no sharp ends for your hand to get hung up on. It comes from the factory strung up with D'addario strings so its playable right out of the box. Another great feature is the pre-installed aftermarket bridge. It is a Graph Tec NVS2 with string saver saddles. String saver saddles is an upgrade I would recommend to anyone because the sharp points on the Les Paul style bridge can cause wear on strings and in the end cause strings to break. String saver saddles will increase the life and tuning stability of your strings.

UTILIZATION

The ergonomics of this guitar are the same as every Les Paul. The upper frets may be a little hard to reach due to the neck joint. The guitar is solid mahogany with no chambering so it might weight 10 pounds or more. These are all classic hallmarks of the Les Paul design. The hand filed frets are a great touch. Even Gibson nowadays has some trouble with their fretwork. The neck is wide and flat like a Les Paul and that makes it very easy to play and with the ebony fretboard it feels smooth as glass on your fingers.

SOUNDS

This guitar gives a great full Les Paul sound. Many Gibsons today are chambered for lightness. They go in and remove some wood from the inside to make the guitar lighter. Any removal of wood from a guitar will effect the tone. The Agile has the full classic tone that you expect from a Les Paul with a full body of wood. The medium output Alnico V pickups are setup perfectly to give you a classic rock tone. If you are looking to play heavier music you may want to switch the pickups with some aftermarket high output pickups.

OVERALL OPINION

Agile is clearly listening to what people want when they design their guitars. The factory installed aftermarket parts are a huge benefit and something most companies wont do. Grover tuners and D'addario strings along with a string saver bridge. This guitar comes with half your intended upgrades already done. More people should take a look at these small brands before shelling out big dollars for the big name companies. The small companies can make great guitars too and if more people started getting them they could really give the big companies a run for their money. This guitar is a Les Paul no matter what the headstock says and I would recommend it to anyone looking for a Les Paul style guitar.

(Originally written by Shredchris/translated from Audiofanzine FR)
Les Paul copy. Same features as the Bound Back I praised a few weeks ago.. Two well-sounding alnico V humbuckers.

UTILIZATION

Pleasant neck: same advantages and disadvantages as a Les Paul with a '59 neck (but a bit slimmer).

For the rest of the features read the 3100 Bound Back review. It's the same guitar except for the look.

SOUNDS

Typical Les Paul sound. Neither better nor worse. Excellent overall sound. You can change the original pickups if they don't match your taste although they sound quite alright.

OVERALL OPINION

Great value for money. Sold with a hard case, delivered in one week. And a killer sound...

(Originally written by Shredchris/translated from Audiofanzine FR)

Made in Korea. 22 frets. Stop tailpiece / tune-o-matic bridge, 2 volume controls, 2 tone controls, 3-way toggle switch. In short, it's a Les Paul. It has the features of a Les Paul Custom with mahogany body, one-piece mahogany neck and ebony fingerboard. Binding on the body (top and back), the neck and the head. Vintage design, nothing has been modernized so I could give it a lower mark, but it's just not possible...

UTILIZATION

The neck factory setting is very good: no rattling strings, low action and very stable tuning. Access to the upper frets is marvelous if have fingers 30" long... In other case, it's virtually unplayable from the 19th fret on, like every Les Paul. But we don't buy them for that. The original sound is excellent, the pickups do a good job and provide that special Les Paul sound character. Nevertheless, considering the manufacturing quality, I feel that the guitar could sound better with high-end pickups. But I won't take off points for this reason because the original setup does its job very good (much better than other guitars often equipped with awful pickups).

SOUNDS

THE LES PAUL sound. The real one. Not a bad copy. The manufacturing quality is nearly comparable to original Gibson models. The quality of this copy reminds me of the old Tokai and Ibanez Lawsuit from the 70's.

OVERALL OPINION

Time will tell if the guitar gets better with aging but I'm pretty confident. With such a simple design aging often has surprisingly good consequences. Right now the guitar sounds really good and it ought to be better in the future. I will soon order a second one and another one in January. I'm sure that this guitar is an excellent investment and it matches my music taste (and also my budget). It will be difficult to find anything similar in its price range and what's more, it can even compete with guitars four times as expensive... I give it... 10/10!

Made in South Korea
Solid mahogany body in two parts with median joint
Canadian flamed maple top
1 piece mahogany neck
Ebony
Benchmarks trapezoidal pearl
22 jumbo frets
Radius 13.7 "(350 mm)
Graph Tech nut
Bridge with Graph Tech saddles NVS2 "string saver"
Chrome hardware
Grover 18-1 (Model 102-18N)
2 humbucker pickups Alnico V
2 volume controls, 2 tone controls
3-position selector
Nut width: 41.275 mm
Width at 21st fret: 55.5625 mm
Neck thickness at 1st fret: 21.5 mm
Neck thickness at 12th fret: 23.5 mm
Weight: 4.5 kg
Price: $ 419.95
10/10

UTILIZATION

Balanced guitar.
Reasonable weight for a Les Paul.
Violin and impeccable finishes.
The ebony fingerboard is the same invoice as my Yamaha SG1000 MIJ 1977.
Very comfortable handle.
Frets filed down with precision.
The joy of playing is immediate.
Mechanical, bridge and nut upscale.
Benchmark real pearl, perfectly adjusted.
Wiring neat, quality components (I looked under the hood).
Until the 3-position selector, firm to the touch, nothing has been left to chance.
10/10

SOUNDS

All I was hoping by buying this guitar, hand, remote, without having ever tried or even seen in real life was that his violin is a reflection of the specifications set by the manufacturer, and the opinions found favor here and there are not bluffing, dry eyes, or the excessive enthusiasm of a kid who takes out his first guitar.
From this point of view, no disappointment: So, violin and quality fittings require already empty, it rings.
I expected by a weak side against mics, and I had, even before you receive it, devised a plan to replace them with Bare Knuckle: The Mule side handle, Black Dog next bridge.
Then I plugged the guitar, and there I was stuck.
The pickups in this guitar sound!
Clearly as saturated, straight into the amp (Peavey Classic 30 with Celestion Alnico Gold), or behind a pedal (Digitech RP500).
The output level is high, but the sound is clear, the power does not attack the ear.
It does not break down in the treble, it does not graze in the bass.
In saturated, stunning harmonic spring from the bridge pickup at the slightest twist of the pick. That answers!
As for sustain ... it's just ... endless!
As I do not like to pack in a hurry, I immediately grabbed my neck Washburn WI66 passing by to the test with the same settings, then my Yamaha SG1000, then my Gibson SG faded equipped Bare Knuckle pickups (model Riff Raff), then copy my AZ 335 equipped pickups Gibson SG on the recovered ...
All these guitars have their own character, their sonic identity. But the least we can say is that the Agile AL3100 was not ashamed of the confrontation.
Finally, I glued in the paws of a friend who is doing pretty good guitar issue. It's always interesting to play his guitars by someone else, someone with a different game. It also allows better focus on what is meant.
And it was a joy. In addition, he plays well, this con. I'll have pint address his teacher one of these four.
In short, Agile AL3100 has passed the difficult entrance examination.
It is now part of the club.
And if I replace one day his microphone, because I really still love the Bare Knuckle (ah you get the idea?), In any case there is no emergency. The pickups are original very well their job.
10/10

OVERALL OPINION

To conclude, I'll make it short (it will change me!)
Some would say, "value" is a very good guitar.
I say: This is a very good guitar.
10/10