All user reviews for the Gibson Les Paul Standard

This guitar is made in the United States, in Nashville.
It has 22 frets and two humbuckers (bridge and neck). My guitar from 1995, it is still equipped with another type of micro today. (Change from 2002) Do not ask me the difference my dear friends, I can not answer you.
Bridge Tone-o-matic, 4 knobs (1 tone and 1 volume micro)
Set neck with a button in palisandre. Inserts in the shape of trapezoids nacre.

The finish of this guitar hands down deserves a 10.

UTILIZATION

So many people say that the handle of a Les Paul is limited log, or you still have to admit that the playability is great. Despite not very easy access to acute handle is quite fast. There's watching Kirk Hammet (Metallica), he comes well ... him!
The weight is considerable but it is now known so I do Aprende nothing.
Sound, then there ... acccrochez you. Warm-air, in the bluezy pitcher and the big sound in full. We're in heaven with an instrument of this type! So in summary, to get a sound like this, there is that Mr. Gibson can do ...
I put a 9 because access to acute is not ideal.

SOUNDS

I started playing Metallica, then I discovered the blues and I also play lots of rock style ACDC, Black Sabbath etc. ... and I can say that over the last 10 years I found a perfect companion .
I play with a Fender Hot Rod Deluxe and it's great. I'm also on modeling amps like the AD30VT (VOX) and I made my debut in lamps with special valve (EPIPHONE). In fact, it sounds good on all the amps or less correct. On HOT ROD, it is nevertheless still a step up. The bridge pickup is a little too aggressive for my taste but treble the neck pickup is extremely warm.
I put a 10 property willingly.

OVERALL OPINION

I use it since 1995. I bought it new and ebony (black painted). At that time the price was about € 1500 but now ... I do not esay many other models before, because the distinction of being left handed is that you got "a lot choice "... especially 10 years ago. So I tried it, I had the budget and I bought it. I do not part with it because when you buy an instrument of this quality is that he accompanies us throughout our lives. The price / quality ratio (at the time) was quite correct. Today, we must admit that this is not given to everyone to realize a dream ...
However, I will make the same choice if I had to pick a guitar today.
I put in 10 because there is no 9.5 ... and you, if you have the budget, do not hesitate because you will not be disappointed ... muscicien word!

Guitar made in the United States (in 1996 with respect mine)
body and set neck curved (specificity gibson legacy of their expertise in the manufacturing of traditional instruments) mahogany table maple, rosewood fingerboard
2micros gibson humbucker 490R (neck) and 498T (bridge)
Mechanical gibson deluxe
Selectors 2 volume, 2 tone, 1 3 position pickups selector

regarding finishes, they are much more careful than the models "studio".

However, they (including paint) leave an impression of fragility, with a presence far too important parts of scratching plastoc for this price (pickup Closed, that the rest tends to delaminate over time), switch, contours microphones, backplates, pickguard that I removed ... of course) when you can have all wood in a violin maker ...

Briefly, I find that limit (I am also trying to make customization of those infamous plastic parts that I replaced with wooden parts)

anyway, I think this guitar is a whole aesthetic success (the table in maple finish with this sumptuous iced tea (unless it is "honey burst "?)!)

UTILIZATION

The neck is super comfortable (no offense to those who are too round, but hey, matter of taste). This is a good compromise between thick and grip. I find it pleasant and reassuring.

access to acute is more difficult than on other guitars strat-type, but for the use I make, I am totally appropriate (question usually more comfortable than real).

In terms of weight, it remains a Les Paul Custom it does not bother me, matter of habit, even if for a few hours of play standing up (which rarely happens to me, I'm rather lazy), the belt is felt on your shoulder.

an ergonomic point of view, no problem, I play standing or sitting (mostly) while being perfectly comfortable in each case.

Finally, the quest for a "good" sound is facilitated by the presence of two tones and two volumes, a combination that I like. after, depending on the pickups and what we're looking ...

SOUNDS

So the sound .. . having owned a "studio" before, I realize now the difference between the two: the sound is still as distinctive, bold and friendly, but also deeper, more powerful, a little more specific in terms of mediums and Acute (where the studio could be a little confused), including distortion.

However, if distortion and crunch in this pair of microphones (490 R/498T) is shown to advantage with a powerful and very rock n 'roll, its clear I am on my hunger and much prefer my Start and my tv. Indeed, it has a very pole, thick, loaded with bass and lower midrange encroaching too much on the treble, although I recall that the definition and precision are better than on a studio (maple table in addition to the standard ), this same tone with the neck pickup in 10 (in bridge, the sound with the tone-bottom clear sound is rather blah). While this can be an advantage in some styles, including jazz, but personally it makes me tired a little at a time.

So I plan to change the mics for trade for a couple less loaded with bass and lower midrange, even with an output level a little lower.

In any case, sounds perfect for all that is rock, jazz, or hard metal. However, no finesse in its clear. damage. This is the same for newer models equipped Burstbucker? to see ...

OVERALL OPINION

I use this guitar for two years. initially, she was my favorite, then my tastes sound somewhat bifurcated into fender telecaster and, much higher in terms of clean sounds, and on arrival, more versatile.

indeed, if at the time I was looking for his big fat rock n'roll though, that this lp brings to perfection, with time and the discovery of the tele, my expectations were a little sound evolved, I know now seeking some type of clear sound, more subtle and fine, which is not really that brings the lp standard, far too loaded with bass and low mids that are losing treble clarity and definition. damage.

In addition, for the price, the excessive presence of parts plastoc is a scandal, especially as this affects the rest of the aesthetics of this magnificent yet shovel (form, table, color ...).

Fortunately, I got it secondhand, but it is still very expensive compared to what you can find elsewhere for versatility .....

That said, it remains my childhood sweetheart with her slinky shapes and effectiveness in crunch sounds / saturated. I forgive him so badly without its minor flaws.

Model of 1996
standard that serves as a studio guitar
Honeyburts me even I would call Tobacco (ptite a cigarette for the road)
a les paul with tulips etc ... see the other descriptions

vein of the wood, hummmmmmm

UTILIZATION

Channel I played the guitar in 2009 and is 1996. Bin I feel it comes out of the factory. Too nickel even see too perfect. Connected to analog I prefer, if I do not like about the digital (multi purpose etc.)

SOUNDS

Not difficult. lot of saturated power and character of my stuff.
very good guitar for the chorus of the year 80 90, very powerful. As against less than a ringing Deluxe Goldtop 71.

OVERALL OPINION

Repeated several times and we understand the proper way. By doing it against the vagaries of small cargo bend 21 that does not sound as an example (used cargo that has been changed since). 490R and 498T pickups to keep their legendary reputation of saturation. on the other hand I can not find better than pa seymour duncan in the clean and crunch.

Quote: ca a les paul it gives you all a. ..

A to check, and I think she was really in the froc.lol

This has to be one of the coolest Gibson Les Paul guitar that I've seen. It has a great feel a great look and overall great balance to it. The mahogany wood body in the mahogany neck coupled with the rosewood fretboard gives it a nice beefy and sick tone. This is a great guitar when playing rhythm and a hard rock band or even a metal band. Overall the Gibson Les Paul guitars have to be some of the most versatile and highly used guitars and all of music. They have such a good transition from genre to genre of music as well as an ability to give the user plenty of opportunity crate some great soulful music.

UTILIZATION

The tone is guitar is fantastic. If you've ever spent any time with a Gibson Les Paul can you know exactly what I'm talking about. When you find yourself against the wall looking for a guitar riff for a guitar tone that is in your head to you can't really translate into your guitar amp; with a Les Paul and it's very easy to come up with something unique and catchy. Whenever I grab a Gibson Les Paul I always find myself writing new music and new riffs as well as getting overly energized just play my guitar. The Gibson Les Paul has such a good soul and feel to it that is very easy to create music. I'm like a Paul Reed Smith guitar or Ibanez guitar you can't really find that soul that's within the guitar. Anyone is ever spent a lot of time playing these guitars would know exactly what I'm talking about.

SOUNDS

This guitar sounds fantastic when you couple it with a good hiking amplifier such as a marshal amplifier for Mesa boogie amplifier. I particularly like the Gibson Les Paul with a high gain marshal because it just connects chemically better than any two instruments I've come across. A Fender Stratocaster and fender amplifier. Have a great connection as well for good clean bluesy tone but when you want to get a high intensity rock tone then there is nothing better than a Gibson Les Paul and a martial full Stack hygiene guitar rig. It has a good connection in a great solid tone that matches very well with the voicing of that amplifier.

OVERALL OPINION

I highly recommend this guitar to anyone looking for a good solid mahogany wood guitar that is built for a gigging musician or recording musician. At new you can find his guitar for ride around $2600 which is a great price for this guitar. It's in America made classic and great guitar for anyone looking to step up their instrument level to a whole new territory. It's one of the best guitars but it's ever been created in one of the most iconic guitars that is ever been manufactured and produced.

United States, 1993

UTILIZATION

it is a Les Paul, so it's no surprise, but what I wanted

SOUNDS

So we are in the trick: I have a good two weeks before trying to find it. the others had not Mojo!

so I am more than satisfied. the cleans are just amazing, they are crystalline trs (yes ...) but with this reserve of mdium which pierce the mix and does not attack the ears.
distos the crunch and are standards that have little volume on the amp, it's carrment all styles available to you.

Quite simply, all the guys with whom I have found his jou super qq including Nutcracker ing well with a. ..

I took my time but I found my LP can be on the other would not agree

OVERALL OPINION

I have for over a year and never made me do a scraper this l. I had an LP bcp including but not quite a classic little more than lbr />
I prfre? but above all his year of birth ... (The best years have long gibson)

I like the least? I like that a. ..

However I think the Gibby these years is starting to get the best price!

In the early 60s Gibson was looking to make their guitars a bit easier to play. Fender was out selling them with their guitars so they had to change up the feel of their guitars. This eventually led to the Les Paul being replaced by the SG but before that they tried to fix some perceived problems with the Les Paul. This early 60s style Les Paul has a super thin 60s profile neck. Which is found on most SG guitars. This guitar has a mahogany body with a maple top. The set neck is mahogany with the mentioned 60s profile neck. It has a rosewood fretboard and a cool black finish. It has vintage looking aged green tuners. It has a set of Burstbucker pickups and the standard controls.

UTILIZATION

These guitars are very playable because of their 60s neck profiles. The body shape is standard Les Paul so most of it plays like a normal Les Paul. The 60s neck profile is something you find more on SG guitars. Gibson Les Pauls with these necks are pretty rare but when they make them they play really well. With these thinner necks you can really wrap your hand around them. These guitars have a really nice setup out of the box due to Gibsons Plek process. A Plek machine is a machine that uses a laser to level the frets on a guitar to crazy accuracy. This means the out of the box setup on these guitars are very good.

SOUNDS

This guitar has a great Les Paul tone. It has a full bodied mahogany sound which is what you expect when it comes to a Gibson Les Paul. The neck pickup is nice and smooth like you want with a Les Paul. The tone is perfect for blues or classic rock leads right out of the box. The bridge pickup has a nice hot rodded sound to it. It has a good crunch going that could do heavy rock. With some clean tones the guitar is good for blues and Jazz. With these pickups I dont think it would cut the mustard for a metal tone. If you are looking for that kind of sound you may want to swap in some Duncans or a set of active EMG's if you want the ultimate in metal tone.

OVERALL OPINION

The Les Paul Standard is what people think when they think Les Paul. There are models above and below it but this is the workhorse that more people have used throughout the years than any other. And throughout the years it has gone through changes. This guitar represents a certain era in the guitars history where it had its unique style and playability that stemmed from the needs and requirements of a guitar at that time. A lot of those needs are things people still want today. People like smaller necks because more people find them very comfortable to play. This is this models strong point. If you are looking for a good standard Les Paul with a slim neck that you can really play Gibson has you hooked up right here.

Gibson guitars is one of those companies that is just as iconic as many of the famous artists who have played them. These guitars have revolutionized rock an roll. They took what Fender build and compounded upon it to create a much better and more practical machine for the new age of distortion and overdrive guitars tones. To get the overdriven guitar tones of the 60's and 70's you could not achieve that with a Fender guitar and their classic single coil pickups.You much fort play it with humbuckers and then you need a heavier thicker body and preferably used mahogany wood as your base body wood.

This guitar is a page right our of Jimmy Paige's book of guitars. This guitars looks exactly like one of his famous Gibson Les Paul's from back in the 70's It has that vintage looking red cherry sunburst that just gleams with attitude and flare. This is the guitar you would want to have if you were out playing gigs and needed a strong workhorse guitar.

UTILIZATION

Gibson Les Paul Standard Heritage Cherry Sunburst Features:

Body: Mahogany
Top: Carved maple
Back: Mahogany
Neck: Set mahogany
Neck Profile: '60s
Headstock: Angled
Scale length: 24-3/4"
Fingerboard: Bound Rosewood
No. of frets: 22
Nut width: 1.69"
Inlays: Trapezoid
Binding: Antique
Bridge: Tune-O-Matic with stopbar tailpiece
Tuners: Locking Grover
Hardware: Chrome
Bridge pickup: potted BurstBucker 3 humbucker with push/pull coil splitting
Neck Pickup: '57 Classic with push/pull coil splitting
Electronics: 2 volume with push/pull coil-splitting, 2 tone, 3-way toggle pickup selector
Knobs: Vintage Gibson top hats
Pickguard: Period-correct
Case: Hardshell
Other: Plek setup



SOUNDS

Every time I look at this guitar I think about ripping up some Ramble On or perhaps some dazed and Confused. This guitar just screams vintage classic rock and roll. This is a blazing guitar with a great feel and an exciting tone. The guitar just begs to be rode hard and put up wet. This is defiantly a players guitars and needs to be knocked around a while.

Play this guitar with a nice Marshal or British flavor amp and you'll see what rock n roll was back in the 70's. This guitar combined with a voicing of that famous British tone is just a match made in heaven. The tonal bliss of striking that first chord and letting it ring out in a blaze of heavy saturation gain is a thing or pure beauty. You won't want to put this guitar down for one second as soon as you get it home.

OVERALL OPINION

You can find these guitars pretty much anywhere. At new these guitars come in right at around $1999, which isn't bad for a solid sound great rock n roll Gibson Les Paul. You will have a lot of fun playing this guitar in a band or at home. It is a sweet sounding and beautiful looking guitar.

The Standard has long since been the go-to model for Les Paul lovers all around the world, and it's for good reason. This is the guitar that really started it all. The 50s neck on here is the big point as it's a bit thicker than the normal necks out there. The guitar features a mahogany body with a maple top, mahogany neck with a rosewood fretboard, 22 frets, trapezoid inlays, pickguard, binding, hard tail bridge, two humbuckers, two volumes, two tones and a three way switch.

UTILIZATION

These are the regular Standards that most people know and love from yesteryear, but they seem to lack the vibe the older ones have. The fretwork was good on this, and the nut was cut correctly. However, I think the neck angle might have been off by a touch. I didn't have any way to measure it, but it looked a little different. It could have just been this guitar or my eyes. I'm not entirely sure.

SOUNDS

The guitar sounded pretty good, but it was a touch on the bright side compared to some of the other ones I've tried. The bridge has some nice bite to it while remaining decently thick sounding. You could easily do everything from blues to heavy metal with this thing. The neck pickup had a nice vowely tone, but I prefer hotter and smoother neck pickups. Rolling down the tone knob helped get the fattness I wanted, but it still didn't have that "oomph" that I like. I'm thinking it came down to the wood more than anything else.

OVERALL OPINION

Be sure to play a lot of these before you buy one. Choose the one that both plays the best and sounds the best. There are some QC issues that can occur, but they're generally not too hard to remedy if you do have one that's a bit iffy. My favorite mod to these guitars, aside from a pickup change, is locking tuners. They really add some stability for tuning, as well as making string changes a lot quicker.

This guitar is a Les Paul Standard that gives the feel of a real 50s Les Paul. The biggest difference with this guitar is that it has the 50s profile neck. Everyone knows the story of the famed 50s Les Paul Standard. The Les Paul standard guitar was introduced in 1958. They came with the first PAF pickups and when people talk about the Gibson tone they are talking about these. They were only made for two years and less than 2000 were made. They stopped making these when they came out with the 61 Les Paul which became the SG. The current Les Paul standard was introduced in 2008 and it has many of the same features as the original. The main difference and problem with these guitars is that they are chambered for weight. This effects the tone and makes them kind of sound like hollow body guitars. They have the standard Les Paul setup with mahogany body with a maple top and a mahogany neck with a 22 fret rosewood fretboard. Two humbucking pickups with dual volume and tone controls with a 3 way toggle switch pickup selector. The up position on the switch selects the neck pickup. The middle position on the pickup selector selects both pickups. And the down position on the pickup selector selects the bridge pickup.

UTILIZATION

The Les Paul naturally is not the best playing guitar out there. But with the 50s neck it takes it to a whole new level of vintage. The 50s neck is what they call the baseball neck. It is probably the biggest neck you can find on a guitar sold nowadays. Because of the set neck design there is a large neck tenon and joint. This can make the upper frets hard for some people to reach because the body essentially joins the neck at the 17th fret. After the 17th fret you are reaching around the body to get to the frets. The tuning stability is good because there is no tremolo. When you change strings the bridge can come off because it is held on by string tension. If this happens make sure you put it on the right way because you can put it on backwards and your intonation will be horribly off. When this happens your guitar will sound in tune on the open strings but any chords you play will sound off.

SOUNDS

A 58 Les Paul standard is the tone that everyone thinks about when they say Les Paul sound. With the chambered body the sound is quite different. A few years ago Gibson started chambering their guitars for weight. I think they were giving in to some people they should not have. People who complain about weight are obviously not playing a Les Paul for the tone. The guitar comes with Burstbucker 2 and 3 pickups. A 2 in the neck and a 3 in the bridge. With Burstbucker pickups the higher the number is the hotter they are. The 2 pickup is a little hot and bright for the neck position. I had to roll off some tone knob to get a neck pickup tone I liked. Once you did that you can get nice smooth leads with the neck position. The 3 is good in the bridge. The 3 has great bite and clarity. It might even be too bright for some people depending on what kind of amp they are using. I think they used a 2 in the neck to compliment the 3 in the bridge. I would have preferred a 1 in the neck and a 3 in the bridge. With a 1 in the neck it would have no problem getting smooth neck tones.

OVERALL OPINION

Since this is a Gibson it will hold its value well. I am pretty sure there are other new Gibson models that better replicate the 58 guitar. If i was looking for a Les Paul nowadays I would steer clear of any chambered guitars. Part of the Gibson tone is the mass of the guitar. Making the guitar lighter is putting comfort ahead of tone. People in the 50s would laugh at you if you complained that your guitar was too heavy. If you are looking for a light guitar that plays like its from the 50s but doesnt sound like it is from the 50s this guitar is for you I guess.

Gibson has recently revamped their Standards in the past few years. The new ones come complete with a chambered body that was first experiment with during the Supreme series. The guitar features a chambered mahogany body, maple top, set mahogany neck with a rosewood fretboard, 22 frets, tune-o-matic bridge, two humbuckers, two volumes, two tones and a three way switch.

UTILIZATION

These guitars seem to be built fairly nice, but I experienced some fretwork issues on a few that were in the store. Gibson still has some QC issues, so you really need to play all of these before ultimately buying them. The good thing is that they were all fairly resonant sounding. That means that any fretwork issues or nut issues can usually be corrected by a competent luthier without too much of a hassle.

SOUNDS

These sound a little different from the normal Les Paul since they're chambered. There is some "air" in the bass that makes it kinda soft sounding. The bridge has some nice bite, but it's pretty fat sounding overall. This gives a great classic hard rock and metal tone. However, I wish it would have more output and be a bit more clear. The neck pickup is fairly warm sounding, but it has some treble that I'm not entirely crazy about. My favorite pickup combo for these guitars is a JB/59 combo, so I'll probably swap that in when I get the time.

OVERALL OPINION

The guitars are pretty resonant, and I attribute that to Gibson stepping up their QC a bit from the past few years. That said, I highly recommend you play these first as they're extremely love or hate with the chambering that's going on in the newer Standards. Pay attention to the fretwork and nut as well as those are the most common issues with these guitars.

Electric guitar solid body. U.S. manufacturing (Nashville, Tennessee)
Mahogany body with carved table Rabl (AA quality)
Mahogany (60's slim profile type) with rosewood (22 squares)
Scale 24 3 / 4 "
Nickel fittings
Tune-o-matic
Cordier Stopbar
2 Alnico V pickups Burstbucker Pro
2 volume, 2 tone, 3-position micro Slecteur

UTILIZATION

The neck profile is not as big as a 60 50 ', even if we lose parat sustain a little ... Well, let's. Has tight deadlines that sounds good when roughly even. CHAC is moderately easy to acute, but a les paul c, to be expected. The varnish is great. particulire DGIG smell it when you open the box for the first time. The weight is a bit heavy (especially since I played on Fender ...) and we feel good at the end of repeat or set. But we get his little fact, this is a Gibson, a legendary guitar. It is true that it is ds branch, a ring, a ring even though rudemment.

SOUNDS

I play rock and pop, blues and some hard rock, it suits any style, but dpend what one expects. On Stones I often prfre my fender and handle Rabl. This fits better than the rosewood fingerboard. Matter of taste. Anyway, she sends. I play on a Twintone Koch II, trs little effect (wah, chorus and delay), overdrive the amp enough. The sound is the heavy, thick and velvety. J'aime bcp the microphone handle.

OVERALL OPINION

I use it for 4 months now and I like especially its complementarity with my fender. Least, it would be the weight. Another thing too, the c ct "wow, did you see the gibson! It is beautiful," the kid of 14 who attends the set. Above all, I also like t a. C so that a kid j'assouvis rve. So I tried a few MODELS if we're talking guitar brand, but bcp les paul diffrent DCID before going for it. That said, I bought it in Germany for 1600, new. The report price is good quality and the choice, I do it again without hsiter since the time I expected from the possder bte ...

The Gibson Les Paul Standard is a standard Les Paul guitar for the most part. The Les Paul standard guitar was introduced in 1958. They came with the first PAF pickups and when people talk about the Gibson tone they are talking about these. They were only made for two years and less than 2000 were made. They stopped making these when they came out with the 61 Les Paul which became the SG. The current Les Paul standard was introduced in 2008 and it has many of the same features as the original. The main difference and problem with these guitars is that they are chambered for weight. This effects the tone and makes them kind of sound like hollow body guitars. They have the standard Les Paul setup with mahogany body with a maple top and a mahogany neck with a 22 fret rosewood fretboard. Two humbucking pickups with dual volume and tone controls with a 3 way toggle switch pickup selector. The up position on the switch selects the neck pickup. The middle position on the pickup selector selects both pickups. And the down position on the pickup selector selects the bridge pickup.

UTILIZATION

In modern terms the classic Les Paul design is not the most playable guitar out there. If you are use to Ibanez necks the Les Paul neck will be very big for you. Because of the set neck design there is a large neck tenon and joint. This can make the upper frets hard for some people to reach because the body essentially joins the neck at the 17th fret. After the 17th fret you are reaching around the body to get to the frets. The tuning stability is good because there is no tremolo. The tune-o-matic bridge can be uncomfortable for some people. It has sharp edges where the strings come in contact and these can get into your hand. Replacing these with roller bridges can make them more comfortable and decrease string breakages. When you change strings the bridge can come off because it is held on by string tension. If this happens make sure you put it on the right way because you can put it on backwards and your intonation will be horribly off. When this happens your guitar will sound in tune on the open strings but any chords you play will sound off.

SOUNDS

A 58 Les Paul standard is the tone that everyone thinks about when they say Les Paul sound. The original Standards go for hundreds of thousands of dollars now. The Standard today may look the same but internally it is very different. With the chambered body the sound is quite different. A few years ago Gibson started chambering their guitars for weight. I think they were giving in to some people they should have. A real Gibson player knows the weight of the guitar is part of the tone. People who complain about weight are obviously not playing a Les Paul for the tone, they are probably playing it for the looks or because they want to say they play a Gibson. With the chambered bodies the Les Pauls get a thinner airy sound. It is not the thick sound you associate with a Gibson Les Paul.

OVERALL OPINION

There are a lot of things to like about the Les Paul. It is a Gibson Les Paul so it will hold its value well. It has the classic looks and feel of an old school Les Paul. Modern sensabilities have taken some of the tone from the Standard. People complaining that they were too heavy have the wrong mindset. Some things have to be sacrificed for tone. And with the new Standard Gibson sacrificed the wrong thing.

USA made, great quality except the height of the frets that hurts your fingers ..... then editing a luthier

UTILIZATION

The handle is easy, no Woodman, the guitar is heavy and not balanced
But the sound ....... waw this is not a legend but the reality
In all areas except the brit type on a clear sound AC30 why nothing better than my telecaster

SOUNDS

I play on a AC15 ccx1 (a bomb) with a pod HD500, all guitars sound
I love all the sounds

OVERALL OPINION

Lespaul a TV with it can play almost everything (at least try)
An expensive guitar,

The "2008" model USA made Gibson Les Paul Standard takes the classic Les Paul silhouette and feature set and updates it with various "improvements" such as an extremely chambered body construction, '50s asymmetrical neck, locking tuners and PCB mounted electronics with a locking output jack.

The core features of the classic Les Paul are still there which is nice. It still features a mahogany body and neck, maple top, rosewood fretboard with 22 frets, tuneomatic adjustable bridge with stopbar tailpiece, dual Gibson Burstbucker humbuckers, the standard LP control layout of a volume and tone control set for each pickup and a three way toggle switch to select neck, bridge, or both pickups at once.

Basically, this guitar takes the classic Les Paul layout and gives it some upgraded features that, to some act as improvement upon the Les Paul design.

UTILIZATION

The Les Paul is not the most ergonomic guitar by any means. The design is somewhat "clunky" when compared to some modern takes on the single cut solidbody. The body, other than a slightly curved top, has no contouring whatsoever, so the ribs and neck joint can cause discomfort on occasion, especially, if you're more of a superstrat type player who's used to very light guitars. The chambering on this one helps the weight issue, but I found that it adversely affected the tone of the guitar and I did not like that. The upper fret access was never great on LPs and this guitar is no exception.

Getting a good sound out of the new LP Standard is not that difficult. My big problem was the chambering of the body. Though it definitely made the guitar easier to play for extended periods of time, it sounded more like a hollow body guitar (IE: Gibson ES335) than a classic thick, raunchy Les Paul tone. It wasn't too bad but when compared to a Les Paul Traditional it was a very different sound to my ears. Not bad, just different and not what I was looking for in a Les Paul.

SOUNDS

I've tried the LP Standard with various Fender, Marshall and Mesa Boogie amplifiers. It sounds like a Les Paul should... for the most part. The cleans are thick and darker, great for jazzier or bluesier textures. The mid/classic gain tones have a nice classic sounding bark that only an LP can deliver. High gain tones had a great raunch to them that was accented by the slightly hotter Burstbucker pickups that were in the guitar. Compared to say. a Les Paul Classic with ceramic 496R/500T pickups, they aren't as hot, but they have more punch than the '57 Classics in a Traditional.

My biggest gripe with the tones was the body chambering. Hollowing out a guitar is going to take away some of the resonance and thickness that a good solidbody has when put through an amplifier. The end result is a guitar that sounds good, but sounds a bit more hollow and warmer than I'd like in a Les Paul. In the end I opted to buy a Traditional simply because the tones were more what I wanted from a Les Paul.

OVERALL OPINION

All in all I think the Les Paul Standard 2008 from Gibson is not a bad guitar, but ultimately they should call it something else. The myriad of feature changes makes it very different from what a Les Paul Standard should be and ultimately this LP is more like a modern take on the classic design.

The price on these is high, about $2600 CAD, and I don't think that's a great value for the money. I tried many of the 2008 Standards and opted to buy a Traditional Plus instead, which ran me $2300. If you want a more classic Les Paul tone, look into a Traditional or a used Classic. If you want something more modern or you need a lighter guitar, give the Standard a look. It wasn't for me, but give one a whirl for yourself and see what you think.