I realize that this is a Fender site, and I am a diehard Fender fan, but I just felt like discussing Gibson's poor quality (Fender is not immune to poor quality either).

Back in '04 I bought a brand new Les Paul Std. (w/ AAA flame top). I got it because I already own several Strats and Teles and wanted something different.

Anyway over time i realized that Gibson uses crap material for their neck nuts and they don't give their instruments time to coir. They buff them up and send them out the door. Then all the seams crack.

I can count on one hand how many hours I've played this guitar. In fact the lead guitarist in my last band put more wear on it than I have.

So finally I got around to have my local luthier, Phil Jacoby (of Philtone Guitar), out of Baltimore, replace the Corrian nut with a bone. The guitar plays a lot better. Phil does amazing work and is a really nice guy, too. I'm hoping that now I'll get playing time it.

I agree. It's a warranty issue.Not all Gibson guitars are garbage and many guitar manufacturers use Corrian for their nut material including Martin up to about the D-16 series. I just bought a Studio 60'sTribute and the nut, setup and overall build quality was beyond my wildest expectations. It plays and sounds incredible. Every manufacturer has QC issues. Everything's too automated and there's no pride in workmanship.

_________________
Life...... It's sexually transmitted and always fatal

I agree about everyone having quality issues, but I still swear by bone. It looks better than Corrian.

I haven't really had a chance to test drive the Les Paul at my house with my amp. At some point I might swap out the pickups as well. I feel like modern Les Paul pickups are a little too dark for my taste. I have a SD Jazz pickup HB in my Andy Summers Tele and it sounds really nice; a warm, yet clear sound to it.

What most think is bone is not. Its sinthetic bone even though its called bone.

Speaking of Gibson quality, why do the Les Pauls show their seems along the side edges the way they do. It looks like its going to split in half at some point. Even the neck is made from 3 pieces, I can see where it was joined together. Is that normal for an LP ?

_________________

They show edges because the bodies are two pieces. It's usually Mahogany capped with a Maple top. I've never seen one split in half. A three piece neck is a normal guitar neck building technique. I makes for a stronger more stable neck. Many so-called bone nuts are synthetic. Sounds like you're not a Gibson person. My advice is don't buy one. My Gibson is guaranteed for life and it keeps American working. Very few guitar manufacturers make perfect mass produced guitars. You can almost always find some flaw. I've even seen flaws in custom shop Strat and LP's.

_________________
Life...... It's sexually transmitted and always fatal

Saying Gibson uses crap for materials is just confirming you don't know what good materials are! You would never hear Jacoby say that either!
What makes Fender's materials better? I could use some education. I am just learning some of these things.

_________________
The strongest reason for the people to retain the right to keep and bear arms is, as a last resort, to protect themselves against tyranny in government.

Thomas Jefferson

A jamming buddy of mine paid over $3,000 for a Les Paul in 2009 and has had nothing but trouble with it since day one.He has brought it back for warranty work countless times and the thing still won't stay in tune-no matter what they try.He won't bring it back and insist on a replacement for this obvious lemon despite constant urging by his friends because it's his first Les Paul and he has developed an emotional attachment to it.

The absolute best Les Paul that I ever played was an Epiphone 1959 Vintage Reissue.The pups sounded just like PAFs and you could hardly feel the frets-the action was that good. My $500 Epi Les Paul Traditional Pro sounds so much like a PAF Les Paul that it's uncanny.Epiphone is no longer the poor folks Gibson bargain brand but is giving its parent company a very serious run for the money.

_________________
'65 Strat,65 Mustang,65 Jaguar,4 more Strats,3 vintage Vox guitars,5 Vox amps,'69 Bassman with a '68 2-15 Bassman cab,36 guitars total-15asst'd amps total,2 vintage '60s Hammond organs & a myriad of effects-with a few rare vintage ones.

I don't know, I paid $850 for my Gibson Studio 60's Tribute and I don't have a single problem with it. Nothing wrong with Epi's either. I started out getting an EPI Tribute and came home with the Gibson. The P-90's in this thing are killer. My buddies SG wouldn't stay in tune either. It was the way he was stringing it up when he went to a lighter gauge. Improper stretching and the strings felt like rubber bands. The guitar has a lifetime warranty. I don't get all that attached to my guitars.

If I had a guitar that wouldn't hold tune from day one, I would have taken it back the same day.

_________________
Life...... It's sexually transmitted and always fatal

Gibson has been doing better the past 5 years or so but in the early to mid 2000's there were a lot of complaints about fit and finish, including some serious complaints of my own. I actually sold my Gibson LP and bought an Epiphone LP because it was a better guitar. That's not an easy thing for a guy like me to admit. That Gibson had a lot of issues that were not readily apparent at the time of purchase. One flaw was apparent and I missed it but the others developed over time. Thing is, it doesn't matter to me now that they've improved their QA/QC process and the culls aren't getting through anymore. I have a bad taste in my mouth now and it's going to take years and years to lose. There's an old saying, "It takes many years of hard work to earn trust and only a moment of weakness throw it all away." Marriages are disolved this way and so was my interest in Gibson.

_________________

Just think of how awesome a guitar player you could have been by now if you had only spent the last 10 years practicing instead of obsessing over pickups and roasted maple necks.

This is why I buy cheap guitars with nice pups.

_________________
Life...... It's sexually transmitted and always fatal

Ex-Zachary...
I replaced my Epi control pots with PRS units for a better taper and I'm running a Dimarzio Super Distortion at the bridge and Humbucker From Hell at the neck. It's a great combination.

_________________

Just think of how awesome a guitar player you could have been by now if you had only spent the last 10 years practicing instead of obsessing over pickups and roasted maple necks.

I love my Strat, I love my Tele.
But I figure when my daughter inherits my Les Paul, she'll have to pry it from my cold hands to get it.
I admit that for the price Gibson charges they should protect their good name a little better as an investment in the future.
Speaking of prices, has anyone gandered the $3,499 Select Carved Koa Top Telecaster, yet?

_________________
'10 American Deluxe HSS Sunset Metallic
'10 JA-90 Thinline Telecaster
'15 Music Man JP-15 Blueberry Burst
'07 Les Paul Standard Faded LCPG #82
'14 Carvin ST300
'12 Carvin CS424S
'66 Guild Starfire IV w/Bigsby
'14 Warmouth Partscaster Daphne Blue

Your right I don`t know much about Gibson`s but I inherited this 68 or 70 Les Paul when my brother passed away 31 years ago. I just opened up the 2 back plates and sprayed the pots and pup switch with a corrosion cleaner and got it all cleaned up and it sounds real nice.
Thanks for the info on the Les Paul, I had no clue what their building procedure is.

_________________

I have owned a few Gibson's that were not of great quality. One of them was a CS-336 that I waited a year to be made for me. The back of the neck never cured properly and I finally got fed up with the lack of Gibson Customer Service and just got rid of it.
I currently own 3 Gibson's (2001 LP Standard, 2011 LP Studio 60's Tribute, 2011 SG Jr), all are fabulous guitars. The Standard and the 60's Tribute both have TonePros locking bridges and studs with aluminum tail pieces. The Sg Jr will be getting TonePros locking studs and adjustable wraparound bridge.

_________________
Chet Feathers

Authorized TonePros Dealer
Authorized WD Music Products Dealer
F/A Official Southpaw Compliance Certification Tester http://faamps.com/

http://www.facebook.com/cafeathers


I didn't Lose my mind, I traded it for this guitar.