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James... « needs upgrades »
Published on 01/29/12 at 18:35Carved maple top
Mahogany body with chambered weight-relief
Mahogany neck, '50s Rounded Les Paul
Rosewood fingerboard (Ebony on Alpine white)
22 frets
Corian nut
Nashville Tune-O-Matic bridge with stopbar
Chrome or gold hardware
490R and 498T Alnico 2 magnet humbucker pickups (BursBucker Pro on faded models)
2 volume and 2 tone knobs with black speed knobs, 3-way switch
Vintage-style 14:1 tuners with perloid buttons
UTILIZATION
First of all, I have the black and gold one which I happen to think is one of the classier looking les paul studios. But at this price point I don't think it's fair to get hung up on looks really. There is a lot of debate on how much of a maple cap exactly is on here. Some people say the quality of wood on these is not up to snuff with the higher end les pauls. Personally I don't think there's a lot to that. These feel about the same as my other higher end les paul guitars. That said, there are some issues with mine. The finish is not that great. After two years of touring it has seriously worn down. Also, the neck and fret work is not too hot for this price range. There is a lot of buzzing due to mis filed frets. Nothing a really good setup couldn't fix, but to be honest I have seen korean guitars which better fret work than this. Other than that it's solid. Pots work good. Stays in tune pretty well.
SOUNDS
I really really really don't care too much for the stock pickups that come in these. They are okay for hard rock but not much else. Couldn't Gibson have put in some burstbuckers or something decent? The fact is that a lot of players agree with me, this guitar needs a pickup change to sound good. Some guys like the stock pickups but even they usually admit they are just so so. I recommend 57 classics myself or something even better. With that, it becomes a pretty nice sounding instrument.
OVERALL OPINION
Gibson seems to miss a few details on these. I have owned a few and every one has some minor flaw or two. But the price is pretty good. I wish the fret work was better and they would put in some better pickups. But that's how these things work. I think these are better deals on the used market but they aren't terrible for what you pay new. Gibson quality is what it is. I have owned 4 or 5 so what does that tell you.
Mahogany body with chambered weight-relief
Mahogany neck, '50s Rounded Les Paul
Rosewood fingerboard (Ebony on Alpine white)
22 frets
Corian nut
Nashville Tune-O-Matic bridge with stopbar
Chrome or gold hardware
490R and 498T Alnico 2 magnet humbucker pickups (BursBucker Pro on faded models)
2 volume and 2 tone knobs with black speed knobs, 3-way switch
Vintage-style 14:1 tuners with perloid buttons
UTILIZATION
First of all, I have the black and gold one which I happen to think is one of the classier looking les paul studios. But at this price point I don't think it's fair to get hung up on looks really. There is a lot of debate on how much of a maple cap exactly is on here. Some people say the quality of wood on these is not up to snuff with the higher end les pauls. Personally I don't think there's a lot to that. These feel about the same as my other higher end les paul guitars. That said, there are some issues with mine. The finish is not that great. After two years of touring it has seriously worn down. Also, the neck and fret work is not too hot for this price range. There is a lot of buzzing due to mis filed frets. Nothing a really good setup couldn't fix, but to be honest I have seen korean guitars which better fret work than this. Other than that it's solid. Pots work good. Stays in tune pretty well.
SOUNDS
I really really really don't care too much for the stock pickups that come in these. They are okay for hard rock but not much else. Couldn't Gibson have put in some burstbuckers or something decent? The fact is that a lot of players agree with me, this guitar needs a pickup change to sound good. Some guys like the stock pickups but even they usually admit they are just so so. I recommend 57 classics myself or something even better. With that, it becomes a pretty nice sounding instrument.
OVERALL OPINION
Gibson seems to miss a few details on these. I have owned a few and every one has some minor flaw or two. But the price is pretty good. I wish the fret work was better and they would put in some better pickups. But that's how these things work. I think these are better deals on the used market but they aren't terrible for what you pay new. Gibson quality is what it is. I have owned 4 or 5 so what does that tell you.