How to love a Les Paul

  • Maybe some of you know that. I prefer to play with my jem 77 fp and my music man majesty, but i also have a Les Paul studio special edition and a Les Paul Joe Perry.


    It was crazy, both Paulas where only decoration of my room for a long time. I got GAS for changing pu's and i changed the pods and i insert orange drops in both guitars.
    Setup today:
    Les Paul Studio: New original gibson pods (500) , dimarzio superdistion on bridge and dimarzio tone zone on neck position and the orange drops.


    Les Paul Joe Perry: New cts pods (500), gibson 57 Pu's, orange drops.


    Both guitars are sounding fantastic with the setups .


    After that changes i play both a lot more than in former times. I love this warm neck slashy solosound and the punch when playing rythm.


    Never had this 'stay in tune' issue. All parts from the bridges and the nuts are original. I am no luthier, so of i get an issue with that i would give the guitars to a good luthier and i wont try to correct it by nyself. I think a good luthier does this job my learning it for years and he gets a proffesional, i am an amateur. Who will do it better as a proffesional?

  • Hey guys,
    to each and every one of you that answered: Thank you! :)
    Thank you for sharing your stories and your wisdom regarding this topic.
    I've come to the conclusion that I want to sell my LP or trade it for another guitar.
    Like @eskimoke put it. "Life is too short to fight with a guitar you are not bonding with"
    Maybe I'll try some LP clones that have a longer scale.
    24,5'' is just too short for me. My fat fingers can't solo fast and trip over each other if I get beyond the 15th fret.
    I know that the scale is also part of the sound but I guess my next purchase will be mostly based on playability.
    Thanks again to everyone that responded. I was really blown away by the amount of responses :)

  • Try ANY PRS! That's mostly what I've played since the '85 classic (4 different models), but occasionally use my Music Man Majesty.


    I hate my Les Paul also, although that's what I grew up on. I'm trying to sell mine as well. I of course appreciate the tone. But that's all I like about it. I've always been uncomfy with Strats due to the neck shape/feel. My hands are I guess a bit small for some of these larger necks.

    Gary ô¿ô

  • whenever I get asked to help someone pick a guitar, I pretty much sum it up like this:1) find a guitar with a comfortable neck
    2) forget any advice and 'knowledge' about brands, tonal characteristc of wood etc.
    3) find a guitar with a comfortable neck
    nobody can tell you which ones are right for you, but when you pick one you like - you will know it :)

    I disagree with this. Pretty much any neck shape or string gauge or action setup will eventually become comfortable or at least manageable after you spend a few hundred hours on it. Adapting to these variables will change your playing style and make you a more versatile musician. I'd say it would be very limiting to dismiss a specific model because at that one time where you tried it, your body wasn't used to it and felt uncomfortable. Depending what your genre is, you might want to have experience in manipulating all these iconic models because soon enough, you'll have a professional situation where you just need to go for a specific sound/look or otherwise you might not get called again after that jazz corporate gig you did on a pointy Ibanez because "the neck was comfortable".


    It might be a product of the kind of society we live in at the moment but I feel we are increasingly quick to expect the outside world to "fit" us immediately instead trying to adapt to it.

  • I disagree with this. Pretty much any neck shape or string gauge or action setup will eventually become comfortable or at least manageable after you spend a few hundred hours on it. Adapting to these variables will change your playing style and make you a more versatile musician. I'd say it would be very limiting to dismiss a specific model because at that one time where you tried it, your body wasn't used to it and felt uncomfortable. Depending what your genre is, you might want to have experience in manipulating all these iconic models because soon enough, you'll have a professional situation where you just need to go for a specific sound/look or otherwise you might not get called again after that jazz corporate gig you did on a pointy Ibanez because "the neck was comfortable".


    It might be a product of the kind of society we live in at the moment but I feel we are increasingly quick to expect the outside world to "fit" us immediately instead trying to adapt to it.

    no matter what 'type' of guitar you're looking for, jazz box, "pointy Ibanez" as you call them, Strat, Tele etc... there is a huge number of different feeling necks out there in each category.


    After 25+ years of playing I have at least one guitar of pretty much every major genre/type there is and they all feel comfortable to me - even my bass or the classical guitar with the completely flat fretboard.


    It might be a product of the kind of society we live in at the moment but I feel some are increasingly quick to make very general statements based on surprisingly specific examples. ;)

  • I've come to the conclusion that I want to sell my LP or trade it for another guitar.

    Wise choice !


    The good news is that lots of alternatives are ready to be picked up. I have 3 LP & likes , a 1970 original Gibson norlin custom LP, a 1973 yamaha SG and a cheap (250€) Vintage (the brand) with pearly gates duncan on it. Guess who's receiving most of my love ?


    [Blocked Image: https://i1.sndcdn.com/artworks-000091430510-x7nrre-t500x500.jpg]


    The cheap one :) It sounds wonderful and is full of mojo.


    I made a blindtest a while ago between the Gibby and the junior one : ( clip 2 is the Gibson)


    External Content soundcloud.com
    Content embedded from external sources will not be displayed without your consent.
    Through the activation of external content, you agree that personal data may be transferred to third party platforms. We have provided more information on this in our privacy policy.


    here is the yam SG in action , this guitar records very well with the splits and


    External Content soundcloud.com
    Content embedded from external sources will not be displayed without your consent.
    Through the activation of external content, you agree that personal data may be transferred to third party platforms. We have provided more information on this in our privacy policy.


    While the Les Paul is such an iconic instrument it's also a piece a antiquity , semi limited versatility , uncomfortable, not that much PU options ...But every guitarist need to spent some time with these , they sound so great and fat.


    Putting some splits like the one on my Yam SG is really a great option, to play cleans , crunches and rhythm parts.

  • @MonkeyPeanutButter
    keep it simple: if it does not fit for you, sell it! I had also guitars which didn't fit for me and sold them, I remember a G&L Comanche and the buyer asked me why I sell this super axe. I said it did not fit for me, that's all.
    Another possibility is that you bought the right guitar to the wrong time. 15 years ago I couldn't imagine to play a LP, now it's one of my favourite axes.

    zuviel thread macht blead

  • There has been lots of suggestions to try PRS guitars, and they are terrific, but they aren't everyone's cup of tea. I have a 1990 PRS Custom 10 top with birds, brazilian rosewood fingerboard, and the small heel. I sold a LP Custom and Strat back in the early 90s to buy it as it was supposed to be the best guitar available. It is a exceedingly fine instrument, fantastic in every way, and it leaves me stone cold bored when I play it. I pull it out of the case maybe once a year, and only keep it as my wife won't let me sell it (she thinks it's beautiful). And apparently it's supposed to be "the next collectible guitar", but the prices haven't gone up that much. I really wish I loved it, but it bores me to tears. By comparison, I still get a charge every time I take any of the Gibsons out of the case.

  • I thought my PRS had a fantastic playability and really good tones. But it didn't "wow" me. It ran between my Strat and LP but it didn't seem to really have a character that stood out to me. (It was a custom 22 with dragon IIs that I swapped 59/09s into)


    My problem with Strats were often their fickleness. But when I got a super-strat, my Thorn SoCal R/S, I found that "perfect guitar" in terms of neck, action, tone. But I like more than one type of tone.
    I recently got a Duesenberg Starplayer, and for recording it's a dream. It plays really well for action and neck too, sustains forever.


    Which brings me to my LP. Until I got the Thorn and Duesenberg, I thought my 2012 LP Traditional Plus was the bomb. But now it's neck feels a little narrow. It records "dark".


    But... It simply has balls. It rocks ass. And it can nail classic tones of famous LP recordings that no other guitar can touch. Now I've never played a "super LP" but I bet they are out there.
    That said, I upgraded the tuners and it stays in much better tune (grovers that drop in w/o drilling larger holes or new screw holes)


    The only other guitar that rocked was my Tele. I sold that because the LP can rock when I want it, and my Thorn can approach those tones, but I am thinking of getting a "super Tele" with humbuckers.


    Bottom line, NOTHING is like an LP. Not an SG. Not upgraded Epiphones. Not Classic 57's dropped into any other guitar made of mahogany be they Gretch, PRS, Parker, you name it. Only the Les Paul sounds like a Les Paul.


    So I'd say, IF you dig the SOUND of the LP, keep the LP. If you only want one guitar for everything, that's another story and it rarely works unless you are into only one type of music (ie Blues, Jazz, Classic, Flamenco, Folk) and you don't need a variety of guitar tones.


    I am keeping my LP because nothing is like it. ONE DAY, when I'm bored and have the money, I may look into a boutique LP that plays better, has has a wider neck, etc. But this one does the job.


    Now, when you change the neck, the frets, etc, you do kind of change how you play it a bit and how it sound. Straight up Strats just play a little different than super strats (ie Anderson, Suhr, Thorn, Grosh, Tyler, etc) because you HAVE to fight them, they classically have have staggered pickups, they do go out of tune easier, and that ALL gives you a different sound. If you want to play Hendrix's tone as a right-handed player, you need left-handed staggered late 60's pickups on a lefty guitar strung for a righty on a very small neck (his hands were huge so the neck was small to him) Just illustrating the many nuances that even the best boutique guitars often try improve upon (it even pickup magnets for modern strings, thicker frets)

    Edited once, last by db9091 ().

  • There has been lots of suggestions to try PRS guitars, and they are terrific, but they aren't everyone's cup of tea. I have a 1990 PRS Custom 10 top with birds, brazilian rosewood fingerboard, and the small heel. I sold a LP Custom and Strat back in the early 90s to buy it as it was supposed to be the best guitar available. It is a exceedingly fine instrument, fantastic in every way, and it leaves me stone cold bored when I play it. I pull it out of the case maybe once a year, and only keep it as my wife won't let me sell it (she thinks it's beautiful). And apparently it's supposed to be "the next collectible guitar", but the prices haven't gone up that much. I really wish I loved it, but it bores me to tears. By comparison, I still get a charge every time I take any of the Gibsons out of the case.

    I just don't see that becoming a big collectors item. Think, the big collectors items are famous ones. Now if you had Santana's guitar, well, yes. OR if you have signature series of some small runs, they will perhaps grow. Have a pre-1965 Fender all original? Pure Platinum. That said, you can get a few more hundreds for a Top 10 than one that isn't.


    Since Strats and LPs are played by many famous artists, they will stupidly become collectors items. Have an all original Strat from 1990? Probably hold superb value in 30+ years. Even now people talk about 1980's strats like they were amazing. 1970's Fender basses were considered crap. Now they're collectors items and considered guitars with that "mojo". Collecting is a strange art.


    I'd just sell it and get the guitar you really want and love to play. IF it becomes a collectors item, maybe your progeny will have something to buy a thing they love with it. (especially when all these current woods become so scarce they are illegal to import)


  • But... It simply has balls. It rocks ass. And it can nail classic tones of famous LP recordings that no other guitar can touch. Only the Les Paul sounds like a Les Paul.

    Agreed. No guitar is perfect for everything and a LP has soul. Though some more than others. Gotta find your LP.

    Never too old for rock'n'roll

  • I tried all kinds of Les Paul's and could not find one I really liked or would purchase. With that said I came across a beautiful 2013 Standard model that was in mint condition and I fell in love with it. It played amazing and sounded great, after setting it up it even got better and is effortless to play. Shortly after that I found another Standard a 2012 model that played well and I was able to purchase it also. I think it just takes time to sort through one that just hits all the marks. keep looking they are there . I've tried and played Paul's from 1,000.00 to 10,000 dollars and have found price isn't always a factor in finding a gem.

  • I had a 1981 Les Paul Custom and did not like it. Tried different pickups but still did not sound good. It was just a dead piece of wood so I sold it. In fact I have never played any off the shelf Les Paul I liked. The exception is the Gibson Historic series Les Pauls from 2010 and earlier, have not played any Historic made after 2010. I found all the Historics to be very nice sounding. Play a bunch and found one I really liked an R9. Sounds great.

    The Kemper Profiling Amp is the best musical invention since the Electric Guitar and the Marshall Amp .

  • LP are difficult BUT
    the way to love them is
    set the strings a bit higher,
    don't set them too low, you can go lower on this guitars but that changes the sound
    if the strings are higher you will get the tone and playability you will love
    great guitars , took me years to realise

  • I just don't see that becoming a big collectors item. Think, the big collectors items are famous ones. Now if you had Santana's guitar, well, yes. OR if you have signature series of some small runs, they will perhaps grow. Have a pre-1965 Fender all original? Pure Platinum. That said, you can get a few more hundreds for a Top 10 than one that isn't.
    Since Strats and LPs are played by many famous artists, they will stupidly become collectors items. Have an all original Strat from 1990? Probably hold superb value in 30+ years. Even now people talk about 1980's strats like they were amazing. 1970's Fender basses were considered crap. Now they're collectors items and considered guitars with that "mojo". Collecting is a strange art.


    I'd just sell it and get the guitar you really want and love to play. IF it becomes a collectors item, maybe your progeny will have something to buy a thing they love with it. (especially when all these current woods become so scarce they are illegal to import)

    When I bought the PRS in 1991 there was a lot of press on how they were supposed to be collectible. So I bought into the hype. Rats.


    BTW, this thread has me lusting again for a early Yamaha SG, I'd just sit and play late 70's Santana licks or Big Country tunes on it. Never had one in 35 years of playing, and they look SO fine. Why didn't Gibson ever make a double cut LP just like it?


    On a side note, thanks to Cristoph for curing my amp desires. Now when I get an amp itch I just look for profiles. :)