Advice for those challenged by a Les Paul

Nick

Try a PRS McCarty with solid Rosewood neck. Myself and a friend both own one - his rings a little more and sounds very much like a CS LP...

slacker

tone1 said:

This cured me of my Les Paul GAS



http://i1373.photobucket.com/albums/ag391/tonysmyth1/Mobile Uploads/125FFA23-C46A-4C01-8901-8C9CF25CA96E_zpshqxe25ja.jpg

Nothing a can of red paint couldnt cure

AllthegearNoidea

CloudNine said:

Not easy to find one to play, but I have a McInturff Carolina which fixes all the Les Paul issues imo, and still has amazing vintage sounding LP tone. Have owned a good few single cuts, Historics, other boutique stuff etc, and this is head and shoulders my favourite. Often the non Gibson stuff lacks that little something in tone that an LP gives, but not this. Probably for my tastes, the best all round guitar I have ever owned. And that is from an absolute shitload of pretty nice guitars....

Weighs 8lb, easy upper fret access, stays in tune, neck angle perfect. The carve on the top is rolled slightly flat where forearm rests, which you can barely see but makes a difference, rolled edge in the cutaway, lots of little things which add up to improve comfort. People who have compared them directly against Gustavsons, Bartletts and that sort of thing put them on the same level, and they are a little less expensive than those. Still not exactly cheap though.

Sounds amazing on the demos that are available

AllthegearNoidea

Too expensive for me I think

AllthegearNoidea

Voxman said:

I love my Les Paul, but I agree, access to the highest frets is awkward.  

However, with all the recommendations made here I'm amazed that no one's mentioned the one guitar that IMO is the perfect 'LP alternative' ...and that is the guitar intended to be the LP's replacement, the Gibson SG.

Great humbucker tone, very light by comparison, and terrific access to the top frets. In addition to my LP Custom I have an SG Standard and a PRS Cu24.  The latter I use when I need both H/B and single coil tones.  But I treat my LP and SG very much as 'interchangeable' guitars and having played my friends LP Standards, the SG is very, very similar tonally.  And of course the original SG's were called Les Pauls!

Very comfortable to play, great LP type tone 

Great shout.  Any particular model.

TTBZ

Another +1 for the SG. Once you get used to the slightly thinner tone (or compensate for it) and not quite as much sustain it's better in every other way. I used to be an "LP or nothing" guy but don't think I'd have one again now unless it was a thinner bodied junior.

My next guitar will likely be a PRS SE Standard 22 though. Couldn't care less if people think it's not a "cool" guitar - they're well made, well priced and just all round good guitars imo. They look nice in plainer finishes as well. 

DamianP

Dr Know's Lester:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v403/mouldynudger/IMG_0603.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v403/mouldynudger/IMG_0573.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v403/mouldynudger/IMG_0232.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v403/mouldynudger/IMG_9773.jpg

Voxman

AllthegearNoidea said:

Voxman said:

I love my Les Paul, but I agree, access to the highest frets is awkward.  

However, with all the recommendations made here I'm amazed that no one's mentioned the one guitar that IMO is the perfect 'LP alternative' ...and that is the guitar intended to be the LP's replacement, the Gibson SG.

Great humbucker tone, very light by comparison, and terrific access to the top frets. In addition to my LP Custom I have an SG Standard and a PRS Cu24.  The latter I use when I need both H/B and single coil tones.  But I treat my LP and SG very much as 'interchangeable' guitars and having played my friends LP Standards, the SG is very, very similar tonally.  And of course the original SG's were called Les Pauls!

Very comfortable to play, great LP type tone 

Great shout.  Any particular model.

Depends on your budget and personal taste, but the key differences are largely only cosmetic.  I like the SG Standard for its classic looks and tone & slightly punchier bridge p/up (see later).  The Standards have chrome covered p/ups (I don't generally like open-p/ups), trapezoid inlays, SG on truss rod cover, mother of pearl logo on headstock, a bound-edged rosewood fingerboard similar to a LP Custom, and a richer glossier nitro-cellulose finish.  

The SG Specials which are a bit more minimalistic ie uncovered p/ups unadorned headstock/truss-rod cover, acrylic dot inlays, and non-bound fret board.  Even cheaper are the SG Special 'faded' finish versions.  If you're looking at new/newer versions check the fretboard material - some may have richlite instead of rosewood. 

Both the Standard and Special have the same tulip tuners, bridge, stop-bar etc

There is one noticeable difference re p/ups.  The SG Special carries a 490R in the neck position and a 490T in the bridge, which are alnico II magnets calibrated for a balanced output. The SG Standard also has a 490R in the neck, but it has a hotter 498T in the bridge position made with an alnico V magnet and modified coil windings for a little more punch - so the Standard p/ups are more akin to a Les Paul - but you won't go wrong with any of them.

Blueingreen

It's all subjective, of course, but I think I can get on with most good quality mainstream pick-ups,  and the only exception was a 490R 498T set in a Les Paul that I swapped out for Bareknuckle Mules.  The neck pickup was too muffled and the bridge too ice-picky. You may well disagree but I'd advise you to try before you buy.

57Deluxe

Telecaster - you all thought Jimmy Page used a Les Paul on LZ1 for years!

Jalapeno

57Deluxe said:

Telecaster - you all thought Jimmy Page used a Les Paul on LZ1 for years!

Wis'd

LP Smartwoods are very light - almost neck heavy.

Gordon Smith Lesters also light.

And regarding the 335  - get a 4" strap.

Jalapeno

In fact ...

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Gibson-USA-2017-Melody-Maker/dp/B01LRWJQ3Q/

TTBZ

Just to make things more complicated, unlike @Blueingreen I really like the stock standard pickups. I went through a lot of bridge pickups and other than the axesrus purist I have there now the 498t was the best. And that included a few Bare Knuckles. The pickup I have now is similar to a Mule but a bit hotter and not as polite sounding. Works great for the type of music I play.

Moe_Zambeek

Love the Probett Rocket. 

AllthegearNoidea

Moe_Zambeek said:

Love the Probett Rocket. 

Me too

AllthegearNoidea

Thanks for all the suggestions SG is a guitar I've never tried. Will go and have a guitar day tomorrow and try a McCarty and Sg and then go back to the 594 for a final comparison 

Skipped

Take your strap (and a Grolsch washer) when you try an SG. (Subject to your earlier comments....)
Some are neck heavy. And some are not.

mudslide73

I had a bit if a epiphany trying some SGs in GuitarGuitar a while back. They do a great job of doing the Gibbo thing and they're a proper classic shape to boot. 

siraxeman

Struggle with a LesPaul ? Own several other easier guitars? Solution.....put the others away and don't touch them for a month. Play the LP for a solid month. If after than you still struggle...sell it.

richardhomer

Just a warning about the SG love - yes they sound like a Gibson (as does a 335) - but they don't sound any more like a Les Paul than most double cut PRSs. 

I speak from experience - I had one for a while - it too got moved on.