For all the Les Paul folks out there

It’s not an issue for all Les Pauls. From my experience, it all depends on how well the nut was cut.
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That's the whole point.
It shouldn't be an issue with ANY Les Paul or other Gibson for that matter.
Nor should all the other QC issues be.
For the price they charge, they should all be perfect.
You shouldn't have to rely on luck or have to try a whole bunch to find a decent one.
But I get it, you don't feel complete without the "authentic" logo on the headstock ;)
I'd rather support companies that have consistent great quality and don't go around bullying other companies because they can't seem to get their QC up to standards.
I have a Slash Custom Shop VOS 2010. I just tried to bend the strings way too far and see how much they go out of tune. Zero! Even the G-string.
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Well, at the price these things were sold it'd better be damn perfect.
Eventhough, for that price, I would do as Slash did and have one made by a luthier and be sure I get a perfect one :p
 
Everybody has a right to have their own opinion about what guitar company they like or dislike, or what guitar is worth or not worth a certain amount, sure I get it. But the simple truth of the matter is, until you’ve owned a good Les Paul, one that really speaks to you, you just won’t get it.
 
I've got plenty of geetars that speak to me.
Some even sing to me ;)
Some are Larkins and it's a ASAD model which stands for "All Singing All Dancing" :D
 
randyvanmartini said:
Still wouldn’t trade my Les Paul for one......like I said, until you’ve had one.....
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I’ve had one. I now have a Tokai. I don’t understand what the fuss around Gibsons is about. The ones I tried before purchase didnt speak to me because they were not good guitars.

I’ve not heard this term being used often with other brands (fender, PRS) because they are reliable and consistent. You choose the model and finish and they are good to rock. I honestly thinkcGibson produces such underwhelming guitars that when you find a good one, it ‘feels’ great.

Or at least that’s how it used to be until a few years ago. I stopped shopping for LPs when I got my Tokai.
 
We've established that it has nothing to do with the tone.
See my previous and Randy's reaction.
It's all about what's on the headstock.
There's this kind of people that swear to certain brands in everything, instruments, clothing, wine,...amps....
It's just snobbery.
And they turn into these zealots who show up on your gig and ask you why you don't play a bloody G§#b$€n
And the money grabbing corporate bastards at G§#b$€n love it.
I’ve not heard this term being used often with other brands (fender, PRS) because they are reliable and consistent
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So right.
And I would rather support a company that's run by people that have a passion for the instrument like PRS or even better a (local) luthier.
Have a look at this - a hand built instrument that costs less than a G§#$€n custom shop - have a look at the build.
or this - about the same price as a custom shop:
Chris-Larkin_ASASD-Semi-160802_016.jpg

Hand built, carved top and back
Made by a man who had been building guitars for over 40 years and who started off because he wasn't happy with his G§#b$€ns :D
He was complaining all the time about what was wrong with them and one day his said "If you think you can do better, why don't you build one yourself".
And so he did. he became one of the best luthiers in Europe, celebrated at the last Holy Grail Guitar Show and respected by his peers.
He had a great love of wood and had a huge collection of rare woods. He didn't believe in all the talks about magic this and built by elves and goblins and whatnot...
He sadly passed away two years ago.
For him, it was all about the craftsmanship. His tools were very limited, he had what he needed, no CNC, all done by hand.
And the ones at G§#b$€n that had any craftsmanship are now working for The Heritage ;)
 
thepacifist20130 said:
I’ve had one. The ones I tried before purchase didnt speak to me
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Why would you purchase one that didn’t speak to you? I have have never recommended that anybody purchase a Les Paul blindly before playing it. As a matter of fact, I have stated In other threads on this very forum that it takes playing a few to find “the one”.....so? The only thing I am saying is once you find one, you won’t want to put it down.....I have two. ;)
 
MisterE said:
We've established that it has nothing to do with the tone.
See my previous and Randy's reaction.
It's all about what's on the headstock.
There's this kind of people that swear to certain brands in everything, instruments, clothing, wine,...amps....
It's just snobbery.
And they turn into these zealots who show up on your gig and ask you why you don't play a bloody G§#b$€n
And the money grabbing corporate bastards at G§#b$€n love it.

So right.
And I would rather support a company that's run by people that have a passion for the instrument like PRS or even better a (local) luthier.
Have a look at this - a hand built instrument that costs less than a G§#$€n custom shop - have a look at the build.
or this - about the same price as a custom shop:
Chris-Larkin_ASASD-Semi-160802_016.jpg

Hand built, carved top and back
Made by a man who had been building guitars for over 40 years and who started off because he wasn't happy with his G§#b$€ns :D
He was complaining all the time about what was wrong with them and one day his said "If you think you can do better, why don't you build one yourself".
And so he did. he became one of the best luthiers in Europe, celebrated at the last Holy Grail Guitar Show and respected by his peers.
He had a great love of wood and had a huge collection of rare woods. He didn't believe in all the talks about magic this and built by elves and goblins and whatnot...
He sadly passed away two years ago.
For him, it was all about the craftsmanship. His tools were very limited, he had what he needed, no CNC, all done by hand.
And the ones at G§#b$€n that had any craftsmanship are now working for The Heritage ;)
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Umm, “we” haven’t established anything. I’m no snob or zealot. I couldn’t care less what kind of guitar you or someone else plays. I only chose to enter the thread when, yet again, you were bashing Gibson Les Pauls, apparently without having owned one. We get it, you don’t like em. I happen to have two that I love, but don’t have a vendetta against the “other brands” like some do. ;)
 
Sooo..... Topic change! I've had my Studio Les Paul for 25 years, when I bought it brand new with my employee discount for under $500 - That's right, I used to be an employee there at the Nashville factory, where I ran the CNC machines that cut out the guitar bodies and also the cool trapezoid inlays for the fretboards. I think I got a pretty decent one, but my friend at the time was one of their best luthiers and just to be sure he went over everything with a fine-tooth comb just in case. Don Blom, a famous craftsman in his own right in the Nashville area, has also given my axe the once-over. The pickups weren't hot enough for me, so I installed Zakk Wylde EMGs and it's perfect for me.

Question: Am I the only one that can't use a capo on their Les Paul? Makes it horribly out of tune!! The strings stay in tune themselves fairly decent, but using the capo makes it out of whack!

Love my LP, but last year bought it's polar opposite - A PLEK'd Jackson Pro Dinky with a locking Floyd and JB humbuckers & single coil switch. Couldn't be more different, and the tolerancing is insane & capo works perfectly. Have a feeling the PLEK wasn't necessary, but did it to make sure.
20180320_090309.jpg20190706_164121.jpg
These guitars couldn't be more different, and that's the point - I love them both, they are different animals. And don't forget my Ibanez BTB bass that plays like a guitar! But back to my original question: Is not being able to use a capo on a Les Paul a thing?!?
 
randyvanmartini said:
Why would you purchase one that didn’t speak to you? I have have never recommended that anybody purchase a Les Paul blindly before playing it. As a matter of fact, I have stated In other threads on this very forum that it takes playing a few to find “the one”.....so? The only thing I am saying is once you find one, you won’t want to put it down.....I have two. ;)
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Umm...what I’m saying is that after playing through 6, I picked the best one of those 6. That didn’t hold a candle to the Tokai (or the PRS Ce-24) I have now. So yes, I guess the way you are describing, that guitar ‘spoke to me’ of the 6.

Maybe your approach to this is different, but I don’t feel that buying a guitar should be an arduous journey. The journey is learning it. You and I and other experienced players can maybe judge a guitar by playing it for 10 mins in a store. Somebody who is buying an instrument for the first time without anyone to guide them may never find a good Gibson unless they shell out for custom shop. Coming from a country where guitars are not as ‘common’, and the options are limited, I have first hand experience of how severely limiting a bad guitar can be to people starting to learn.

I believe the fact that you can’t buy a Gibson without trying it speaks a lot of the company and their product. I can confidently recommend anyone to buy any PRS online. The only thing I’ve heard people drool over when looking at PRSes on person is the top.
 
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thepacifist20130 said:
Umm...what I’m saying is that after playing through 6, I picked the best one of those 6. That didn’t hold a candle to the Tokai (or the PRS Ce-24) I have now. So yes, I guess the way you are describing, that guitar ‘spoke to me’ of the 6.

Maybe your approach to this is different, but I don’t feel that buying a guitar should be an arduous journey. The journey is learning it. You and I and other experienced players can maybe judge a guitar by playing it for 10 mins in a store. Somebody who is buying an instrument for the first time without anyone to guide them may never find a good Gibson unless they shell out for custom shop. Coming from a country where guitars are not as ‘common’, and the options are limited, I have first hand experience of how severely limiting a bad guitar can be to people starting to learn.

I believe the fact that you can’t buy a Gibson without trying it speaks a lot of the company and their product. I can confidently recommend anyone to buy any PRS online. The only thing I’ve heard people drool over when looking at PRSes on person is the top.
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Oh I hear ya, believe me. I too wish you could just buy one blindly and get a good one......I hear they are heading in the right direction with the new guy, but not there yet. I do think they have been there before, and I hope they return. :)
 
So, I've often wondered what the difference is between a Stradivarius violin and a normal violin? Obviously a lot of really great violinist can tell the difference...maybe it's our ears, hands, etc... maybe guitars are the same?
 
Axe Grinder said:
Question: Am I the only one that can't use a capo on their Les Paul? Makes it horribly out of tune!! The strings stay in tune themselves fairly decent, but using the capo makes it out of whack!
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Some capos seem to have too much tension, and they make the strings go out of tune. It’s not just a Les Paul thing.

Try this capo, which has adjustable tension. It has worked well for me:

D’Addario NS Tri-Action Capo, Black – For 6-String Electric and Acoustic Guitars – Micrometer Tension Adjustment for Buzz-Free, In-Tune Performance - Single Hand Use – Integrated Pick Holder Amazon product ASIN B008BPI3AA
 
I have a 2003 Les Paul studio (bought it on eBay and like it well enough), but have been thinking about getting a standard or classic - one with binding.

Regarding comments about finding "the one that speaks to you" etc, what is it that would tell you "no"? What would tell you "yes"? Not worried (at all) about cosmetic flaws, just playability/tone. Can't "any guitar" with a good (to the person playing it) setup and at least new-ish strings feel good (playing without amplification) and sound good (with decent pickups/amp/speakers). Outside of that, what would make a Les Paul speak to you... or not?
Is it something physical that prevents you from playing it properly or makes it enjoyable to play?
Is it a "feeling" due to the way it looks...good or bad?

I've not really played any guitar (since 1982} that wasn't playable to some degree...and perfectly fine once adjusted. Maybe I'm just not that picky and/or I don't have the technical skills to recognize "faults" vs "quality".... but I'm genuinely interested in what others have to say re Gibson Les Pauls.
 
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<MACHINE> said:
I have a 2003 Les Paul studio (bought it on eBay and like it well enough), but have been thinking about getting a standard or classic - one with binding.

Regarding comments about finding "the one that speaks to you" etc, what is it that would tell you "no"? What would tell you "yes"? Not worried (at all) about cosmetic flaws, just playability/tone. Can't "any guitar" with a good (to the person playing it) setup and at least new-ish strings feel good (playing without amplification) and sound good (with decent pickups/amp/speakers). Outside of that, what would make a Les Paul speak to you... or not?
Is it something physical that prevents you from playing it properly or makes it enjoyable to play?
Is it a "feeling" due to the way it looks...good or bad?

I've not really played any guitar (since 1982} that wasn't playable to some degree...and perfectly fine once adjusted. Maybe I'm just not that picky and/or I don't have the technical skills to recognize "faults" vs "quality".... but I'm genuinely interested in what others have to say re Gibson Les Pauls.
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For me, if I'm thinking about laying down some serious cash for a Les Paul, it's got to #1 resonate really well....I mean when you lean over it and play you can feel it in your chest. #2 it's got to sustain notes just as well as it resonates. #3 It's got ring like a bell....both plugged in and not. #4 It better play like butter! #5 It's gotta look the part......yep, don't want no ugly Les Paul ha ha! But yeah, in order to plunk down some serious change for one, it's gotta do it all. Yes, I realize some of this is how it's set up, but if it's a reputable dealer, it'll be on the money.
 
randyvanmartini said:
For me, if I'm thinking about laying down some serious cash for a Les Paul, it's got to #1 resonate really well....I mean when you lean over it and play you can feel it in your chest. #2 it's got to sustain notes just as well as it resonates. #3 It's got ring like a bell....both plugged in and not. #4 It better play like butter! #5 It's gotta look the part......yep, don't want no ugly Les Paul ha ha! But yeah, in order to plunk down some serious change for one, it's gotta do it all. Yes, I realize some of this is how it's set up, but if it's a reputable dealer, it'll be on the money.
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TBH, if I was going to drop that kind of coin on a LP, I would instead find a good US-built PRS 22 fretter. Their Indonesian-made SE 245 and SE Standard 24 are awesome guitars for reasonable price, so the US ones can only be better yet....
 
Joe Bfstplk said:
TBH, if I was going to drop that kind of coin on a LP, I would instead find a good US-built PRS 22 fretter. Their Indonesian-made SE 245 and SE Standard 24 are awesome guitars for reasonable price, so the US ones can only be better yet....
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Right on man.....nothing wrong with that, but he was asking about Les Pauls. ;)
 
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