#1 Short tenon necks. Find me someone who can Hear or Feel the difference between a short and long tenon neck, and I'll shake his hand and say "Nice to meet you Eric Johnson." I have NEVER seen an LP broken at the heel, and never known anyone who could tell.
I can tell! The big thing I notice is the feel of the guitar, not so much the sound. The long tenon guitars I have (R8 and two G0s) feel like a really good Martin acoustic with the scalloped bracing. The guitars feel ALIVE. They resonate better than my short tenon models. Strum an open chord and the guitars vibrate from end-pin to the tip of the neck. The guitars I have that come closest to this are the chambered Classic Antiques, but not quite there.
#3 490/498 I have never heard any kind of music that I COULDN'T play with one of those. Yes there are pickups I would PREFER. But that's just my preference. Gibson, contrary to popular belief, can make pickups. Gibson does make some good pickups these days though BB's (except the Pro to my ears), 57's, and my personal faves: 500T and Dirty Fingers!!!
And I absolutely hate this set in my LP Supreme, LOL! I can see guys that use a Marshall type amp (I use a Mark Series Boogie) and play with a lot of gain (e.g. metal--I'm more blues.rock/country/jazz) would like these pickups. Individually, they sound fine, but I don't like them together. Everytime I switch pickups, I feel an overwhelming need to run back to my amp and adjust the tone controls. The 490R is a bit muddy, nice for jazz and blues; the 498T has an upper-mid spike that sounds grainy and edgy--perfect for a high-gain tone that cuts through the mix. Just not my cup of tea.
I liked the 496R/500T set in my 1960 Classics, but they made the input of my Mesa amps go crazy. A lower output pickup works better for me, but I did like the tone of the Hot Ceramics. Fave Gibson pups are the Burstbucker 1 & 2, and Classic '57s (including the '57 Plus in the bridge).
Everybody hears something different.
#4 Volute - reality = fail. A volute (little wood bumpy near the headstock) actually causes the neck to break on the headstock itself. Much harder to repair. Personally, I don't drop LP's often, but the times I have, they have proved indestructible.
Broken headstocks are a common problem to Gibsons. The volute was an effort to strengthen the neck at it's weakest point--where the neck transitions to the headstock. (It has to do with the cut-out for the truss rod nut and the shnge in the orientation of grain of the wood.) But, players resisted, "That's not the same as the old ones!" Goodbye volute.
#5 The weight. Hey - it's a big chunk of heavy wood. Grow a pair, or go play something made out of Agathis. Honestly 8lbs or 10lbs....after an hour does it matter? Or if you are sitting down does it matter at all?
Yeah, it can matter if you have a bad back. The weight of the LP has been an issue since the guitars were first introduced in the Fifties. Certainly the new chambered versions make it possible for guys who can't handle the weight to enjoy the style and playablity of a Les Paul, with minimal impact on tone. I would say that the peak of the bell-shaped curve representing players' weight preferences would peak at about nine lbs. Some guys like the real heavy guitars for their focused sustained tone, others prefer the airy resonance of the very light guiitars. My heaviest is about 9.3 lbs, the lightest is 7.8 lbs--and BOTH ARE CHAMBERED.
#6 Chambers/Weight Relief - These things were done LONG before Gibson told anyone (much like the neck tenon). No one said a word, or even noticed. More likely they said "Hey - light, resonates, open sounding" and liked it. Don't worry about if it is hollow, creme filled or whatever. Just play it.
The tenon issues bothered people back in the Seventies, when they quickly found out their new LP did not sound like one of the Fifties instuments. My two mid-Nineties 1960 Classic Plus Les Pauls have swiss-cheese weight-relief and short-tenon contruction; and other than pickup diffenences, there's not much to choose tonally between them and my short-tenon, chambered Custom Shop Elegant. These three guitars all weigh in at 9.1 lbs. Hmmm.
My two chambered GOTW Classic Antiques do sound and feel very diffrerent than the two 1960 Classic Plus guitars; but I enjoy them all.
#7 Good years/Bad years - I have played Les Pauls from pretty much every year since 1979. I have also played 68's and a 73 and 74. There is no such thing as a good year or a bad year. Yes - construction does vary. However, with a Mashall, and a Duncan Distortion (or SuperDistortion) any of them would have rocked your face right off.
Agreed. My Norlin 1975 Les Paul '55 Special Reissue was a great guitar, and I have never seen another one that was that good. Though, with prices rising even in the Norlin-era guitars, with $3,000--$5000 to spend on either a Norlin-era or a late-model Historic, I'm going to take the modern Historic, every time. Remember, a lot of us who lived and played back in the Seventies didn't think much of the guitars from that era, even when they were new. Fender, Gibson, Martin, Guild--they all had their problems.
Two made right after each other can sound night and day. Listen to it ACOUSTICALLY. Anything missing can't be added, and anything too much will need tamed. Pups can be changed. The wood can't. Some of them have the mojo, some don't, but almost all of them are unbelievably solid well constructed guitars of a general sonic nature.
Totally agree! It is all about the guitar that you are holding in your hands. Some good, some bad.
When Gibson gets it right, they do a very good guitar, indeed.
Respectfully,
Bill
