Gibson LP doublecuts, whats the scoop?

Now we're talking!!

I've owned two (and still own one that was my main guitar for a few years, before I got PRSi GAS).

The hollow chambers in the sides allow for a lighter guitar, but man, they play like a DREAM!!! Sustain for days, and a REALLY rich sound.

It's the ONLY guitar besides my PRS that I would tour with.

It can give me a really, really pure, clean sounds... and a truly growling sound...

It's the beautiful "black pepper" standard.

(they also made them in studio models, but without the tune-o-matic bridge).

 

I have a DC Standard from '98. It was my first LP. It gave me the LP bug, and I so I had to get 'proper' LPs, too.

The 24-fret thing is useful but not as good as it could have been. First, access to the top 2 frets isn't that great (but at least access to the 22nd is better than a regular LP). You can see it in this pic:


Second, the extra frets push the neck pickup towards the bridge, so the typical LP neck tone is not to be found here.

What else? They're a fraction neck-heavy. But they're light enough that a decent strap (i.e. some friction) will stop that. Only two controls, which complicates matters if you like to switch pickup settings quickly. Thinner body than a regular LP, too, so adding switching pots - which are longer - can be tricky.

Finally, mine has a strange resonance on the 8th fret of the B-string: the fundamental morphs into the octave really quickly on sustained notes. It's like instant feedback (but it's not - it even does it when being played unamplified or with headphones). No idea what causes it, but I actually quite like it.

Finally, finally. They never caught on, so they tend to be quite cheap - great value for money.

 

What an excellent review/description of the doublecut. Feel like I learned something. Thanks loverocker.

 

When these guitars came out, I really wanted to love them. I played several, and it just wasn't happening for me. I really can't explain why either. I have a double-cut Special that I adore. I was hoping that the Les Paul DC would give me the best of both worlds.

 

KK - the only famous connection I know of is Gary Moore - the track "The Prophet" on his 2002(?) album is a DC Standard. But from being over at the LPF, I know that a lot of LP traditionalists didn't click with it.

Forgot to mention that all/most of these have the slim taper '60s neck profile - perhaps another reason why some LP fans don't like them much. It suits me perfectly, though.

Gibson did discontinue them pretty quickly (in '99 I think), but I think they came back again last year? There's also a Pro version, but I forget the distinction.

 

Same here. I looked at them about 7 years ago. The standard les paul was sounded much thicker and fuller. I remeber feeling that it didn't quite sustain as well too.

I'd label it as a tweener. It doesn't quite get there as a standard les paul and it isn't quite like a LP special. Tweener sounds always left me wanting more.

 

The DC Pro is/was a Gibson Custom Shop model where you could choose finish, top, and pickups (I think). It has a narrow stylized headstock as well, as in this pic: