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tjon901 « Faded finish Les Paul Studio »
Published on 08/04/11 at 17:14The Faded series Gibsons are some of the cheapest real Gibsons you can get. When I say real I mean a model that isnt a melody maker or some piece of garbage like that. These guitars are real workhorses and the cost cutting is done in a way that doesnt really effect anything important on the guitar. The Faded name reflects the fact that the finish on this guitar technically is not complete. With these guitars Gibson skips the last few stages in the finishing process and sells them with a satin finish. This finish is non glossy and is just a step above bare wood. Some companies will charge more for a finish that looks old like this. With the finish exposed like this it is very easy to get wear marks on the guitar where you play it. Lots of people like this in a guitar finish because it makes it look like they are really into their guitar. This guitar is a basic Les Paul otherwise. It has a chambered mahogany body with a maple top. It has the fat 50s mahogany neck with a 22 fret rosewood fretboard. Stock it has two burstbucker pickups but the example I had was upgraded with Gibson 57 Classic pickups. The controls are standard fare with a tone and volume for each pickup. The bridge is also standard with the tune-o-matic bridge. A full Gibson Les Paul for less than 800 USD.
UTILIZATION
The faded finish is not only cheaper but it helps improve playablity. The semi-finished finish on the guitar is super smooth due to the lack of a glossy coat. This means the back of the neck is smooth and fast and you will need all the help you can get with the fat 50s baseball bat profile. Upper fret access is standard Les Paul: mediocre. You cant really hate on it as it is part of the design and they tried to change it in 61 but people cried too much.
SOUNDS
This guitar has all the same Les Paul sounds that a 3000 dollar Les Paul Custom gets. As I mention this model was slightly upgraded with a set of Classic 57 which are some of the best Gibson pickups out there. They are much better than the Burstbuckers or 498's that you would get in a normal Les Paul Studio. 57 Classics give you the classic PAF tone everyone wants from their Les Paul. There are many PAF imitations but with the 57 Classic you are getting a pickup from the people who know the PAF best. These pickpus in this guitar can do clean and dirty but not too dirty. Being vintage style pickups they are not the best for the heaviest metal and whatnot. If you have a Les Paul Studio you can do yourself a favor by throwing in some nice pickups.
OVERALL OPINION
This is probably the cheapest way to get a real made in America Gibson Les Paul new. Ignore all the melody makers and Les Paul Junior garbage. This is the bare minimum when getting a Gibson Les Paul. Even being the bare minimum you can get great tones from this guitar because it is essentially the same thing as the thousand dollar Les Pauls. It has the wood and the shape and is made in the same factory here in America. Its not that these guitars are great values, it more shows how overpriced most other Les Pauls are. They can build these and sell them for this of course they are making a profit. How much of a profit are they making on the models that cost 3x as much? If you are looking for great Gibson Les Paul tone and dont care that your guitar is not shiny a Faded Studio is really all you need.
UTILIZATION
The faded finish is not only cheaper but it helps improve playablity. The semi-finished finish on the guitar is super smooth due to the lack of a glossy coat. This means the back of the neck is smooth and fast and you will need all the help you can get with the fat 50s baseball bat profile. Upper fret access is standard Les Paul: mediocre. You cant really hate on it as it is part of the design and they tried to change it in 61 but people cried too much.
SOUNDS
This guitar has all the same Les Paul sounds that a 3000 dollar Les Paul Custom gets. As I mention this model was slightly upgraded with a set of Classic 57 which are some of the best Gibson pickups out there. They are much better than the Burstbuckers or 498's that you would get in a normal Les Paul Studio. 57 Classics give you the classic PAF tone everyone wants from their Les Paul. There are many PAF imitations but with the 57 Classic you are getting a pickup from the people who know the PAF best. These pickpus in this guitar can do clean and dirty but not too dirty. Being vintage style pickups they are not the best for the heaviest metal and whatnot. If you have a Les Paul Studio you can do yourself a favor by throwing in some nice pickups.
OVERALL OPINION
This is probably the cheapest way to get a real made in America Gibson Les Paul new. Ignore all the melody makers and Les Paul Junior garbage. This is the bare minimum when getting a Gibson Les Paul. Even being the bare minimum you can get great tones from this guitar because it is essentially the same thing as the thousand dollar Les Pauls. It has the wood and the shape and is made in the same factory here in America. Its not that these guitars are great values, it more shows how overpriced most other Les Pauls are. They can build these and sell them for this of course they are making a profit. How much of a profit are they making on the models that cost 3x as much? If you are looking for great Gibson Les Paul tone and dont care that your guitar is not shiny a Faded Studio is really all you need.