Tell Me About Les Paul Customs Please

[Rand-O-Monium]

Re: Tell Me About Les Paul Customs Please

My 2 cents is that the LP custom is a more snarling beast than the standard. Maybe its the ebony board, but most harder rock/metal players on a LP had a Custom (that I know of anyhow). I've only played them in passing, but a friend had a stock 80's Custom then bought a standard. The Custom sizzled, the standard was more sweet toned - only 1 example of each sure, but I was quite amazed at the difference

Don't necessarily be afraid of the Norlin era. The Custom seems to be a better bet from that age bracket than a Standard/Deluxe. Ace Frehley, Adam Jones, and Randy Rhoads all made/make great tones on theirs. The maple neck on many of them also helps with some of the snappy tone.

Thanx,I needed that!!!
I kinda suffer from Norlin "Neurosis" w/mine(74/5 Custom),until I pick it up...
Mine's got a mahogany neck,tho...
:headbang:

 

[marantz1300]

Re: Tell Me About Les Paul Customs Please

I have a vOS 57 Custom.All hog,long tenon etc.It plays and sounds great,but I got it for its looks.I had a 90 white Custom,which I let go and missed.The 57 is lighter and sounds darker.
My No. 1 is a 71 Deluxe,Its light 9lb,sounds great and feels so comfortable. If the Norlin era Customs are like my 71, I'd go for one of them.

 

[ItsaBass]

Re: Tell Me About Les Paul Customs Please

9 pounds. Man, that is a luxury for a Norlin LP. My '83 black beauty is over 12.

 

[marantz1300]

Re: Tell Me About Les Paul Customs Please

I had a 77 maple neck Deluxe,had the voice of god and was the heaviest Les Paul I've ever picked up.

 

[donahue]

Re: Tell Me About Les Paul Customs Please

Ok, I'm going to take this thread in a new direction. When looking around for a LPC, I found this one. It seemed a little too good to be true, price-wise, but I have found a fair share of good deals, so I always give the benefit of the doubt, until I see it in person. I"m going to go look at the guitar on Saturday. Gibson gas clouded my judgement until I woke up today, got a gut feeling and realized it could be fake. I'm a pretty good candidate for a fake victim: I work my ****ing ass off for my money, I have extreme Gibson gas, and I'm a lefty, so finding a good deal, is very very hard. Judgement can get clouded.

I've since asked the seller to send me some closeups of the headstock, and control cavity. The main thing that the blurry pic is telling me so far, is that the truss rod cover looks off. But in the meantime, what do you guys think?

 

[Ayrton]

Re: Tell Me About Les Paul Customs Please

All you need is the serial number, and you can email/call Gibson.

 

[donahue]

Re: Tell Me About Les Paul Customs Please

He said he would get me the serial number off of it later. Said he would sent some pics to my phone also. I wish it wasn't 40 mins away, I'd go check it out asap, but I can't until Saturday.

 

[Aceman]

Re: Tell Me About Les Paul Customs Please

Well, this was an interesting thread.

Tells me that a ton of you know NOTHING about Les Paul Customs, and should have to be certified to give opinions.

I also don't think a dammm one of you could tell from a recording if a Custom or a Standard was making the righteous noise you heard.

Too cut through fast - I generally agree with everything Zerb said. Except the last statement. for the record, I think the Ebony board does less for the highs than it does the percieved 'speed of attack' when playing.

 

[formula73]

Re: Tell Me About Les Paul Customs Please

Well, this was an interesting thread.

Tells me that a ton of you know NOTHING about Les Paul Customs, and should have to be certified to give opinions.

I also don't think a dammm one of you could tell from a recording if a Custom or a Standard was making the righteous noise you heard.

Too cut through fast - I generally agree with everything Zerb said. Except the last statement. for the record, I think the Ebony board does less for the highs than it does the percieved 'speed of attack' when playing.

Generally, probably not. In a full band situation, I honestly doubt most of us could tell an Explorer from an Epi LP, as a listener with our eyes closed.

 

[MetalManiac]

Re: Tell Me About Les Paul Customs Please

In my very limited experience, the "Fretless Wonder" frets play very well as long as they arent worn down. You really can't just do a mill on them like you can bigger frtes omnce they are played out very much I don't think. ..theres no meat left to speak of.
I do own a Standard, and the frets are really nice. being mainly a modern Superstrat lover, no, they aren't humongous, but they will do.
I think also that the Ebony fretbaord, which sounds magnificent above and beyond the Rosewood wiht the mahogany Paul body, is the biggest factor for the greatness of the Custom , well, besides the way it looks with the back and headstock binding, and you've also got to realize that Gibson grades the very best tone woods for its Custom models.

 

[orpheo]

Re: Tell Me About Les Paul Customs Please

a custom has a specific feel, a vibe to it that no guitar can copy. Even a standard with an ebony board doesn't feel like a custom, though it (might) sound like a custom. My first les paul was a gibson LP custom '76 and that got me hooked: 1976 LP customs are the only gibsons I'll ever buy; those guitars are for me the best gibsons I've ever had, and I had a lot of gibsons. Really a LOT of them.

 

[ItsaBass]

Re: Tell Me About Les Paul Customs Please

a custom has a specific feel, a vibe to it that no guitar can copy. Even a standard with an ebony board doesn't feel like a custom, though it (might) sound like a custom. My first les paul was a gibson LP custom '76 and that got me hooked: 1976 LP customs are the only gibsons I'll ever buy; those guitars are for me the best gibsons I've ever had, and I had a lot of gibsons. Really a LOT of them.

They definitely look a lot different, so exude a different "vibe." The extra purfling makes both the size of the painted area and the width of the fretboard a tiny bit less all the way around. And the strip of binding appears to completely encircle the edges of the guitar in a continuous loop, body, neck, and head. Makes the whole thing look "tighter" to me. Kind of like a fat guy crammed into a too-tight tuxedo.

 

[Mr 9finger]

Re: Tell Me About Les Paul Customs Please

Ok, I'm going to take this thread in a new direction. When looking around for a LPC, I found this one. It seemed a little too good to be true, price-wise, but I have found a fair share of good deals, so I always give the benefit of the doubt, until I see it in person. I"m going to go look at the guitar on Saturday. Gibson gas clouded my judgement until I woke up today, got a gut feeling and realized it could be fake. I'm a pretty good candidate for a fake victim: I work my ****ing ass off for my money, I have extreme Gibson gas, and I'm a lefty, so finding a good deal, is very very hard. Judgement can get clouded.

I've since asked the seller to send me some closeups of the headstock, and control cavity. The main thing that the blurry pic is telling me so far, is that the truss rod cover looks off. But in the meantime, what do you guys think?



Dam boy are you high? Tell me I'm imagining that link. You didn't really post a link to that ad that possibly has the best deal on a Les Paul Custom that a lefty will ever find these days on a very busy gear site.

 

[guitfiddle]

Re: Tell Me About Les Paul Customs Please

^I didn´t say "introduced by", merely stated that of the few hundred LPs I´ve seen and worked on in the last 20 years those with fretless wonderesque frets were mostly Norlin Era instruments. The main reasons for that you already stated.

I agree that most Norlin era instruments were sub-par, same goes for CBS era fenders. But on teh Flip side, my Flying V is a Norlin and so was the best LPC I ever played, a wine red ´78. She tore every other LP a New one, I still know the serial number just in case she ever pops up again. My first born would be a small price for that guitar :deal:

I had a wine red '78 Custom, too. What was the date of your? Mine was on the 81st day of the year, the 20th made in Nashville that day.

 

[Franknfilms]

Re: Tell Me About Les Paul Customs Please

Dam boy are you high? Tell me I'm imagining that link. You didn't really post a link to that ad that possibly has the best deal on a Les Paul Custom that a lefty will ever find these days on a very busy gear site.

+1 I have found some insane deals on craigslist but never share them on the forum until after I buy, I wouldn't take any chances. The LP Custom for a lefty would be the deal of a lifetime for the lucky buyer, hopefully the seller is holding it for you.

 

[butnut]

Re: Tell Me About Les Paul Customs Please

yep...I highly doubt it's a knock off, lefty's are a small market...hope it's still there....40 minutes away? I drive an hour to work every day....hehe. Owned a 70 LPC for over 10 years. In my early 20's, don't recall how heavy it was, but I was younger and stronger. Eventually got bigger frets and the trendy brass nut. Played and sounded great, sold it when I hung up on music (douh!) but I have 2 MIJ LPC now that really are as good, if not better than my '70. I have a gold top Standard, but the LPC's just feel and play so much better. Can't deny, they just look kool...

 

[donahue]

Re: Tell Me About Les Paul Customs Please

He's saving it for me. My buddy called about his amp. Yeah but ok, point taken.

 

[jmh151]

Re: Tell Me About Les Paul Customs Please

In my opinion, the ebony fretboard on the Custom provides the biggest difference. Having guitars with ebony, rosewood and maple fretboards, ebony and maple provide a very quick attack. I don't hear a big difference in tone, other than no 2 guitars sounding exactly alike, but ebony and maple have a quicker attack than rosewood- with ebony being smoother feeling.

As far as the myth that Customs weigh more, it's a myth. My 1986 Custom is 8.5 lbs, I've pretty light. I've played Standards and Customs, and both were all over the place as far as weight.

Customs are too expensive new, but are better buys on the used market

You want to get a Les Paul made after 1986. Halfway through 1986 was when Juskewitz bought Gibson and overhauled the company, moving production from Michigan to Nashville and improved the poor quality control Gibson had.

Pots IMO are a weak point. My Les Paul Custom was always a bowl of dark mud until I replaced the pots with 500K's.

 

[Zerberus]

Re: Tell Me About Les Paul Customs Please

I had a wine red '78 Custom, too. What was the date of your? Mine was on the 81st day of the year, the 20th made in Nashville that day.

WTF?!?!??! Your wine red custom is only one guitar away from my old one?? Mine was the 21st. cool :beerchug:

Maple neck?

 

[guitfiddle]

Re: Tell Me About Les Paul Customs Please

WTF?!?!??! Your wine red custom is only one guitar away from my old one?? Mine was the 21st. cool :beerchug:

Maple neck?

Hell yeah!! Man, that's too cool.

:headbang:


Three piece maple neck, and no pancake...the body was solid and it sounded killer. None of the mud in the neck pickup that people change out that unit to get rid of.