What? I want a LES PAUL?

[Glowing Tubes]

I must need help,
I'm a Tele/Strat guy
but I went into GC today and they had these Les Pauls with a flat finish. They were extremely nice. I find myself wanting one.

I cant seem to find any info on them and the guy who worked at GC was a freaken idiot. (suprised) :messedup

RC

[Bluedawg]

Good Luck

Lots of good info here on LPs both positive and negative.

Myself, I'm a lover of Gibson guitars even though I'm not always happy with their corporate practices. Some folks have run into serious QC problems, but then many of us, including me, have had good experiences so far.

Also check out the guys at www.lespaulforum.com (http://www.lespaulforum.com) for more info. Use the search function and you'll find a wealth of info. Just be aware that this is a very pro LP site, which seems to upset some folks.

It's hard to beat a used Gibson. Try as many as you can get your hands on new and used and get the one that's right for you.

There's a lot of hard core Gibson lovers and Gibson haters out there, but make up your own mind for yourself what's best for you.

If you have any specific questions shoot 'em at us. Just realize that these threads will bring out some who are on an anti Gibson campaign and take it all in stride.

Good Luck

:dude

[tonedaddy]

The aged "flat finish" LP's you're referring to are known as VOS (Vintage Original Spec) Historic versions, identified in this list when you look at each model:
http://www.gibsoncustom.com/VOS/index.html
http://www.gibsoncustom.com/print/VOS.pdf
http://www.gibsoncustom.com/flash/products/lespauls/list.html

Besides the non-gloss finish, you'll find these models have been setup using the PLEK system:
www.plek.com

Here are some recent threads on the VOS Historic series:
http://thegearpage.net/board/showthread.php?t=154215
http://thegearpage.net/board/showthread.php?t=152590
http://thegearpage.net/board/showthread.php?t=152757

[enharmonic]

There are good ones to be had. Play a bunch of them, and get educated on the things to look out for. IMO, if you find one that feels right in your hands, you can overlook some minor finish work, but you can't overlook a bad fret job or a bad nut. That goes for any guitar though. The prices are just sick, but the demand is there, so you know how it goes...

Truth be told, I've been itching for an R8 goldtop myself. Someone here has a black Johnny A that rang my bell too...but his is the only black Johnny A I've ever seen.

[Mr.Hanky]

I hear ya, there is nothing like a good LP and that is coming from a guy that owned several Anderson's, which were also great guitars, my favorite being the Cobra Special I had.

[OldSchool]

I must need help,
I'm a Tele/Strat guy
but I went into GC today and they had these Les Pauls with a flat finish. They were extremely nice. I find myself wanting one.

I cant seem to find any info on them and the guy who worked at GC was a freaken idiot. (suprised) :messedup

RC

I know.............Even I bought one. http://www.thegearpage.net/board/images/icons/icon11.gif

http://img159.imageshack.us/img159/5613/dscf1426rz6.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

Its a Les Paul Standard Fadded.





http://www.gibson.com/Products/GibsonElectric/Gibson Electric Guitars/LesPaul/Standards/Standard %281%29/


I got one used off BAM when TGP was down. I think its the best Les Paul Gibson has made in years.http://www.thegearpage.net/board/images/icons/icon14.gif

[ABKB]

Just purchased a R8 about 3 months ago after being a Strat guy most of my life. Got to say, most of the friends who have played it have all said the same thing. The guitar almost plays itself it's just so smooth and the Burstbuckers are so thick. I can understand how some people dont like that, I refer to it as "the fight". Some people like to have a bit of a fight with a guitar to get it to sound like they want, and some folks dont want the fight. I still play my Tele and Strat a lot, but the R8 is now the #1. In a band with just 3 guys, I need something which covers a lot of sonic territory and the LP does just that. But again, it's not for everybody and I too have seen my share of QC problems with Gibbys. Luckily the R8 was setup perfect.

[OldSchool]

I can't get that link to work..........(Why should their website be any different then the other products? :horse )


Try this one and Hit Gibson USA , LesPaul then Fadded:

http://www.gibson.com/Products/GibsonElectric/

[tonedaddy]

I can't get that link to work..........(Why should their website be any different then the other products? :horse )


Try this one and Hit Gibson USA , LesPaul then Fadded:

http://www.gibson.com/Products/GibsonElectric/


Try this link:
http://www.gibson.com/Products/GibsonElectric/Gibson%20Electric%20Guitars/LesPaul/Standards/Standard%20%281%29/

[Glowing Tubes]

Excellent! I'll keep my eyes open and take my time finding the right les paul. I had one many years back but it was very heavy and I didnt bond with it.
I'm ready to try again.


The guy at GC told me there was no finish on the top, that you could sand it and it would look the same.:jo

I walked in looking to try a fender twin amp, The guy asks: "what kind of guitar do you want to try it with"
I tell him, I'd like to try a strat, preferably one with a nitro finish.
I love this answer:
"Fender does not make any models with a nitro finish"

I ask: do you have an Eric Johnson strat? "Yes", I'll just play that then...
:messedup :messedup :messedup

Hey, if you work in a music store at least have some basic knowledge of some of the products... jeeeze!!

RC

[OldSchool]

Excellent! I'll keep my eyes open and take my time finding the right les paul. I had one many years back but it was very heavy and I didnt bond with it.
I'm ready to try again.


The guy at GC told me there was no finish on the top, that you could sand it and it would look the same.:jo

I walked in looking to try a fender twin amp, The guy asks: "what kind of guitar do you want to try it with"
I tell him, I'd like to try a strat, preferably one with a nitro finish.
I love this answer:
"Fender does not make any models with a nitro finish"

I ask: do you have an Eric Johnson strat? "Yes", I'll just play that then...
:messedup :messedup :messedup

Hey, if you work in a music store at least have some basic knowledge of some of the products... jeeeze!!

RC


The one thing I can say about this Les Paul is it ain't heavy at all. I expected it to be a boat anchor becuase its just a USA Standard or be lacking tone wise from the weight relieving holes Gibson drills in them ..............But I gotta tell ya..........this one is around 7 pounds and sounds fantasic! If I tap around the top I can hear the slight differences so I know Gibson drilled the shit out of this top........I could probably get away with calling it a Hollowbody!! But bottom line is...........it sounds fantasic. And I love the feel of the Finish on the neck. Its a whole new ballgame for me Gibson wise. Non of that sticky glossy Laquer........just wood! I really love it and best of all...........the price: $1350 slightly used. I'll put this up against ANY stock R7. http://www.thegearpage.net/board/images/icons/icon14.gif

[pokey]

Truth be told, I've been itching for an R8 goldtop myself.


Didn't know there was an R8 GT.

[Glowing Tubes]

The one thing I can say about this Les Paul is it ain't heavy at all. I expected it to be a boat anchor becuase its just a USA Standard or be lacking tone wise from the weight relieving holes Gibson drills in them ..............But I gotta tell ya..........this one is around 7 pounds and sounds fantasic! If I tap around the top I can hear the slight differences so I know Gibson drilled the shit out of this top........I could probably get away with calling it a Hollowbody!! But bottom line is...........it sounds fantasic. And I love the feel of the Finish on the neck. Its a whole new ballgame for me Gibson wise. Non of that sticky glossy Laquer........just wood! I really love it and best of all...........the price: $1350 slightly used. I'll put this up against ANY stock R7. http://www.thegearpage.net/board/images/icons/icon14.gif

Cool,
Let me know when your ready to sell... LOL
Nice looking guitar!

RC

[AaeCee]

Didn't know there was an R8 GT.He must mean an R7 GT.

[ThePoignants]

Just to join in on the Les Paul love wank, I just bought a GC Custom Shop 1960 "Authentic" Les Paul and I just love it: it goes fat, chimey, chirpey, bell like, and heavy (with overdrive) with ease ..I tried two of them, and there definitely was a difference between the two, I obviously picked the one I thought sounded better..anyway, if you are looking for a good Custom Shop and accurately spec'ed Les Paul and have about 2.5K to spend (instead of 4K for a Historic 59 or 60), check these out..I despise Guitar Center, but they were brilliant in having the Custom Shop make a Les Paul with lightweight mahogany, long neck tenon, correct dish carve, lightweight stop bar, correct neck angle, and, 60s neck with an aged finish for significantly less than what a Historic goes for. The only thing it lacks compared to a Historic are 1) CTS pots and Bumblebee caps and 2) the little metal knob indicators at the base of the vol and tone knobs and 3) flame top (but I prefer plain tops anyway). Mine weighs just shy of 9lbs so it is well in the range of the "light" LP range of 8-9lbs. And this is without weight relief holes. Anyway, check one out, you might find a good one. Another "good value" (all Gibsons are overpriced in my opinion) is the R8 Historic plain top, but those necks are to fat for me. I bought my LP to play it, but I think the R8 might be a better investment if you are into that.

Also experiment with those Burstbucker 1 and 2 polepieces, you could really change the personality of the pickups by doing this. My 57 classics in my CS336 prefer a 12 inch radius set up, but with the BB's I had to drop the D G and B pieces down lower (almost like the staggered pole pieces on a Strat) and it sounds a lot more chimey and chirpy.

Good luck, and join the Les Paul Army!

[rockinlespaul]

I'll put this up against ANY stock R7. http://www.thegearpage.net/board/images/icons/icon14.gif

Surely you jest....

[Coach]

Hey, if you work in a music store at least have some basic knowledge of some of the products... jeeeze!!

RC

That would bug me to no end but in defence of the GC guy, knowing the finish on a guitar isn't really basic knowledge.

It took me 2 minutes and a trip to the computer to explain what an SG classic was compared to a standard before an associate at GC knew what I was talking about. :jo

[tonedaddy]

That would bug me to no end but in defence of the GC guy, knowing the finish on a guitar isn't really basic knowledge.
I disagree completely.

I don't blame GC employees for not knowing anything about their products. That's GC's fault. What's insane is that GC obviously doesn't believe that their employees need basic product knowledge to serve their customers.

The finish is one of 2 major distinctions to Gibson's new VOS series for this year (aged finish/hardware + PLEK job).
I don't think that's too much to learn, do you?

[Glowing Tubes]

Yes, I think some basic knowledge is manditory.. I didnt know the Les Paul was a nitro finish, or pleked. Had he known information on the guitar, he'd probably sell more. I think knowing your products no matter what business your in, is critical. At the very least on the high end items. I also agree its GC's problem, not the particular employee anthough I find it very lame on his part to be that uninformed.

The part where he told me there was no finish and I could "sand" the top and it would look the same was intriguing though:jo


Maybe as part of training, all GC employees need to spend a week on TGP to learn about gear.. LOL:messedup

RC

[phoenix 7]

For years I hated Gibson and never thought I'd buy one. Then I found my Les Paul R8 at Willcutt's. It was a great guitar when I bought it, but after putting in Lollar Imperials and an RS Tone kit, it's just unbelievable. It has displaced my Grosh Set Neck (uber Les Paul) as my numero uno. This is a pre-Plex 2004 Historic, but it never even needed a pro set up -- it was perfect off the rack and it has remained perfect since I bought it over a year ago.

[ThePoignants]

For years I hated Gibson and never thought I'd buy one. Then I found my Les Paul R8 at Willcutt's. It was a great guitar when I bought it, but after putting in Lollar Imperials and an RS Tone kit, it's just unbelievable. It has displaced my Grosh Set Neck (uber Les Paul) as my numero uno. This is a pre-Plex 2004 Historic, but it never even needed a pro set up -- it was perfect off the rack and it has remained perfect since I bought it over a year ago.

sounds nice..hey does your RS tone kit include Hovland Musicaps, or Guitarcaps in there? I'm thinking of changing the pots and caps in GC 60

[Killcrop]

The only guitar I have found to be equal to my 2001 R7 is my newly aquired 2005 R8. In fact I liked my newly aquired R8 so much I bought an 06 VOS this week.

http://home.comcast.net/%7Edtleslie/Dscf0029.jpg

[Glowing Tubes]

The only guitar I have found to be equal to my 2001 R7 is my newly aquired 2005 R8. In fact I liked my newly aquired R8 so much I bought an 06 VOS this week.

http://home.comcast.net/%7Edtleslie/Dscf0029.jpg

Holy sh*t!! That is so NOT helping!

[Coach]

I don't think that's too much to learn, do you?

That's not what I'm saying. I'm saying that the finish on a guitar isn't basic knowledge and that it's a little more 'advanced'. The guitars finish isn't something as basic as Hum/SC/P90 or Les Paul/Strat.

[phoenix 7]

sounds nice..hey does your RS tone kit include Hovland Musicaps, or Guitarcaps in there? I'm thinking of changing the pots and caps in GC 60

I think it's got the Guitarcaps in it - not 100% sure, though.

[Glowing Tubes]

That's not what I'm saying. I'm saying that the finish on a guitar isn't basic knowledge and that it's a little more 'advanced'. The guitars finish isn't something as basic as Hum/SC/P90 or Les Paul/Strat.

In many cases I agree with you, however. On these new VOS Les Pauls, the finish is a big part of what makes them different.
Same with the EJ strat, Nitro finish is noted clearly in the description and is part of the appeal.

When selling guitars over the $1500 range, dont you think its warrented to have more than a little "basic knowledge" of the product? (I think it is at any price)

Maybe its just me, but seeing the low level of knowledge by these sales guys at GC was a real eyeopener. :rolleyes:

RC