Redoing electronics on rare 82 Mat Epi '59 Les Paul

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MuddyWolfJohnson

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Last week I scored one of the ultra rare 1982 Matsumoku Epiphone '59 Les Paul's. For those not familiar with them Matsumoku made semi and hollow body guitars when Epiphone moved production to Japan. But nobody's really sure how the Les Paul Epis came about. There doesn't seem to be any contract for Mat to build them. Yet here they are. Well a few of them anyway.

Today I took mine to Guitar Center for a shoot out with a $5800 Gibson Custom 2013 1959 Les Paul Reissue. Mine was almost identical. The only significant differences that I could see were

1. Epiphone tuning pegs instead of Kluson
2. The paint on the back and sides of the Gibson is a bit clearer revealing more of the wood grain
3. The wood on the front of the Gibson was a bit nicer
4. Mine says Epiphone rather than Gibson and
4. The round plate on the back identifies the Gibson as a reissue.

In fact if you made those modifications and asked an experienced player which was an original '59 they'd probably pick mine because its obviously been around a lot longer than the Gibson. The $5800 Gibson played just a little bit better. But a good set up might remedy that. And they were close enough that after swapping back and forth a few times I sometimes forgot which one I was playing (through a Vox AC30).

But when it came to tone I have to admit the Gibson was superior. They were in the same ball park but mine sounded a bit muddy by comparison. Each note on the Gibson was distinct and clear. Here's what the specs on Guitar Center's website say about it.

http://www.guitarcenter.com/Gibson-...eissue-GLOSS-Electric-Guitar.gc#productDetail

Gibson Custom's new Custom Bucker accurately recreates the original PAFs of the late '50s, using Alnico III magnets and unequal turns of 42 AWG wire in each coil for that characteristic PAF "bite." These pickups clean up beautifully at the guitar's volume controls, while Bumble Bee tone caps assist in that warm, singing "woman tone" when you roll back the tone controls.
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What recommendations would you give me to make my '59 sounds as good as the Gibson? Assume that I am going to scrap all the electronics and start over. I play blues so let's say that I am trying to recreate Clapton's "woman tone". BTW I have another guitar with SD Whole Lotta Humbuckers and the Page wiring set up. How can we max out the potential on this one?
 
Re: Redoing electronics on rare 82 Mat Epi '59 Les Paul

My first choice
Seth Lover set

Alternates:
Custom Shop 78 Model Bridge + Jazz Neck
59/Custom Hybrid + Jazz or Pearly Neck
Pearly Gates bridge + Jazz Neck
Pearly Gates set
59 model bridge + Jazz Neck

Others to consider (I don't have experience with, so can't recommend directly)
Antiquities humbucker set
Custom Shop Greenies
Custom Shop Bonnamassa pickups
 
Re: Redoing electronics on rare 82 Mat Epi '59 Les Paul

Wow!

If it plays as good as it looks, you've found yourself a keeper for life!

Is the harness a good quality one? If it is, I'd get a Seth Lover set for it.

HTH,
 
Re: Redoing electronics on rare 82 Mat Epi '59 Les Paul

I think this might be the one I saw at GC. But this is priced at $6799 and at the store it was $5800. But it had the same "tomato soup" finish.

http://www.guitarcenter.com/Gibson-...a-VOS-Finish-1959-Les-Paul-Electric-Guitar.gc

LtKojak said:
Wow!

If it plays as good as it looks, you've found yourself a keeper for life!

Is the harness a good quality one? If it is, I'd get a Seth Lover set for it.

HTH,
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The two play very comparably. If the one at the store was a true indication then you could have handed mine to Jeff Healey (before he passed) and tell him its a genuine 59 and he'd never have known the difference except for the tuning pegs and maybe the tone.

As for the harness I don't know much about electronics. I don't even know if its got the original pups or if its got the vintage or newer wiring scheme. (IE rolling off the treble with the volume.)

The Seth Lover pups seem a bit too country for me. I understand that the '57s are supposed to be awesome too. But judging from YouTube the videos above sound right to me. That might have to do with the guys playing though.
 
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Re: Redoing electronics on rare 82 Mat Epi '59 Les Paul

How have you identified it as a Matsumoku build if they had no official contract? Just curious. I've got a late 70s Mak-era Vantage Flying V that I couldn't get $2 for but wouldn't take $2,000 for, so I know the quality, even on the bolt-ons.


As for the pickups, you could try a P-Rails set.
 
Re: Redoing electronics on rare 82 Mat Epi '59 Les Paul

seths, antiquitys, 59's, pearly gates... there are lots of paf style options
 
Re: Redoing electronics on rare 82 Mat Epi '59 Les Paul

DrNewcenstein said:
How have you identified it as a Matsumoku build if they had no official contract? Just curious. I've got a late 70s Mak-era Vantage Flying V that I couldn't get $2 for but wouldn't take $2,000 for, so I know the quality, even on the bolt-ons.


As for the pickups, you could try a P-Rails set.
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Good question! The ad on ebay identified it as Matsumoku and it was shipped from Japan. Also note the slight red tint on the fretboard inlays. But the serial number is the real proof.

http://www.matsumoku.org/models/serial_no.html

Guitars produced by Matsumoku
Nearly all guitars produced by Matsumoku (beginning sometime late 1976 or early 1977) bore serial numbers indicating the year and possibly production sequence. A small number of guitars produced had serials preceeded by a letter, but as to what the letter inidicated is yet a mystery and one can only guess without concrete evidence. I have seen both 6 and 7 digit serial numbers (excluding the letter if it is present).This new serialization covered Aria, Aria Pro II, Vantage, Westbury, most Westones, Japanese Washburns, some Electras, and the Skylark as well as others. As far as I know, the Korean version of these labels bear 8 or more digit serials and sometimes the production locaciton code (letter indicating Korea, Phillipines, Indonesia, etc.) which does not concern us here.
.
The first digit (and upon rare occasion the first two) indicated the year. There is an inherent flaw with this single-digit method as the single digit year indicator will re-cycle after a decade! Attention must be paid to when the particular model was available and apply that to the first digit of the serial, excluding the letter if present. A bit of cross referencing is required. For example, my first Cardinal CS-350 has the serial 2010237 which indicates both by the first digit and the duration of the Cardinal CS-350 run it is a 1982 (and I know it is, I bought it then!). In rare instances the first two digits would indicate the year, in which case we can safely assume that my Cardinal is not a 1920! Had it been the two-digit version it would have begun with 82XXXXX rather than 20XXXXX, which would also indicate 1982.
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Re: Redoing electronics on rare 82 Mat Epi '59 Les Paul

The first thing I would do to that guitar is put a lightweight aluminum tailpiece on it. If it has a zinc TP, the aluminum will open up the tone a bit. Steel studs can help, and many guys go for long bridge posts.

If the electronics are typical, an RS Kit (pots, caps, switch, jack and wire) and '50s wiring would be next.

For pickups, I would choose something in the PAF family. I can recommend Seth and Antiquitys from personal experience, but WLH, PGs, SNSs, and the Bonamassa sets would all work too. Or the Gibson Custom Buckers.

Nice guitar!

Bill
 
Re: Redoing electronics on rare 82 Mat Epi '59 Les Paul

Boogie Bill said:
The first thing I would do to that guitar is put a lightweight aluminum tailpiece on it. If it has a zinc TP, the aluminum will open up the tone a bit. Steel studs can help, and many guys go for long bridge posts.

If the electronics are typical, an RS Kit (pots, caps, switch, jack and wire) and '50s wiring would be next.

For pickups, I would choose something in the PAF family. I can recommend Seth and Antiquitys from personal experience, but WLH, PGs, SNSs, and the Bonamassa sets would all work too. Or the Gibson Custom Buckers.

Nice guitar!

Bill
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Thank you Bill. I checked some youtube videos and the aluminum is definitely better. But how can I tell if mine is aluminum vs zinc? Ebay shows Kluson and Gotoh available. Do you recommend one over the other?
 
Re: Redoing electronics on rare 82 Mat Epi '59 Les Paul

You can tell immediately by the weight. The zinc has some heft, but the aluminum is a featherweight.

Stew-Mac has the Gotoh. You'll need to know if your guitar is SAE or Metric. The wrong one won't fit on the tailpiece studs. You can check on Gibson Historic parts (USA only), Faber, RS Guitarworks, and Tone Pros for options.

Bill
 
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