I always enjoy reading your opinions when it comes to guitars. Now, that I feel like I have exhausted other resources, I must come to the oracle for guidance.
I will be breaking a few rules in this post, and I will try not to make a habit of it. I have been spending some time on the gibson forum, trying to soak up info to help steer my next purchase. Although there are knowledgable people over there, I am not really getting anywhere with them. A classic case of rosewood or maple it would seem. It reminded me of what I love about our forum. It reminded me how neat it is that a newcomer can come here and ask, rosewood or maple, white or black, strat or tele, without backlash and attitude. This is something that sets us apart from the gibson forum. Kudos to all who contribute to this community.
The reason for my post is, I want a Gibson Les Paul Standard or Traditional. It turns out that gibson routes cavaties within the bodies of these models, which has turned some people off to them. I value the info I have gained here regarding strats, and because of this, I feel confident picking out a new strat. I know what to look for because they are familier. The exact opposite is true with the LP. I have always avoided thinking about them because they have always been out of my price bracket and probably will be if I don't commit while the money is in my hand. It turns out, the only solid body les pauls gibson usa makes these days are the vintage reissues, which are out of my spending limit.
My question for you is, are these non solid body les pauls worth what they go for? Do you have experience with the older solid lp's? Do they compare to the new swiss cheese bodied hacks? Also, the taylor solid body custom? Any experiance with one of those?
I have played these guitars, as different as they are, and I would love to own either, but because I will likely won't get another axe soon, I want my money's worth.
What say you?
Regards, J

I don't like the weight of the Les Pauls so maybe the more wood routed out the better.

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That is one of the arguments I have been considering. But why change an age withstanding design. To myself, part of the lp appeal is its heritage, which does not seem to matter to gibson all that much.
Thanks for the input!
J

Hiya mate. Whilst you wait for Martians sage advice i'd like to chip in with a few points.

1 a guitar must appeal to you and primarily you. Any guitar you buy because someone else likes, you'll likely end up not liking much.
2 A guitar must remain playable. Gibson have obviously decided to address the weight problem of that model. A move which is primarily set to increase popularity through increased comfort. According to OrvilleOwner (who's quite the LP afficiando) the weight relief measures have been happening since the eighties. All of a sudden (past 6 years) people have noticed it though. Seems a little fishy to me that their is any discernable difference aside from weight. I've been playing a few lately, I certainly cant tell which do and which dont. For a guitar to be of value, it has to be playable. Thats why vintage collectors dont mind things like nut and fretwork. They expect it on a old used instrument.
3 Given the notion of body resonance being an important factor in a good guitar, surely a chambered body must be desirable. After all it can only improve resonance, by acting like a soundhole.

Just some thoughts dismiss or accept em as you see fit mate.

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No no and no

Thanks niki,
I can feel a difference in the necks between the standard and trad for example. Ive played both. One isnt better though. Its just, these are so much more $ than I intended to spend in the first place. And all the lp fanatics at gibson were kinda trash talkin the newer models. The standard is chambered, and the traditional is "lightened" with 9 swiss cheese type holes.

I know when it comes to strats, I prefer slab necks over the modern variations. But that is something that took me years of playing strats to learn. Unfortunately I am allergic to money. When it goes into my pocket I can feel it starting to burn my thigh. To alleviate these pains I must spend! That combined with my gas pains means, I will probably get whatever I am going to get today. Which does not leave me much time to learn over at gibsons forum.

Thanks for the thoughts ninja. Do you own non fender guitars you would reccomend me checking out?
Regards,
J

Yeah I've a old 76 LP and a mosrite ventures at my moms. The LP is a old acquisition and hasnt been played in something like eight years. The mosrite is a newer acquisition and is just their to accumulate value.

Myself I dont think you can beat a LP, if thats what you want. The look and sound are all bang on, the construction less so lately. But thats a guitar to guitar thing. Pay carefull attention to the inlay work, theres usually some glue smears around the inlays that to my mind point towards a bad guitar. Not that the glue smear makes for a whole hill of beans, but i tend to think where theres one sloppy mistake, their are liable to be more.

The ESP eclipse is a guitar getting rave reviews
http://tinyurl.com/ygsoqmv
User Allthumbs has one that he loves. I myself bought a lower end esp ltd (hanneman model) and hated it. But I am very particular about a guitars feel.

The PRS LP is always a favourite
http://www.dv247.com/guitars/prs-singlecut-trem-satin--39739
I've never owned one, have played a few of his traditional models. Great guitars, I'm just put off by the fact that during the 90's everyone was prs into a boogie, it became bland fast for me. (told you I was very particular).

My alltime fave lespaul copy has to be the Tokai Loverock. Japanese made excellence, utterly stunning and to my mind a much more appealing guitar than anything gibson offer. You will pay through the nose for their top end stuff, but its still far better value for money than anything fender or gibson offer.
http://tinyurl.com/yknwo3d

Buying tokai is not without its pitfalls. Their £1K+ range offers quality that you wont find anywhere else for the same money. Their lower end japanese and korean products are very much a "you get what you pay for" affair though. Availability isnt great anywhere either. They are solid though.
Thats the way I'm going if ever I decide I need a LP that I find playable.

Honestly mate spend some time looking around, theres a whole world out there.

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No no and no

Thanks again Niki, I imagine todays gonna be a long day. I will keep an eye on the inlay work. I agree that is a great indicator of the luthier's attn to detail. I will throw some pics up if I pull the trigger this afternoon.
J

Well, thank you!

In my objective opinion, NO Gibson Les Paul is worth what they are asking for them. Yes, I have extensive experience with all Les Paul models and years.

The perforated Les Pauls do compare in the sense that they have to a degree, a guaranteed resonance because of them being, "semi-semi-acoustic" and still, the usual composition of the woods and hardware. As you know, totally solid LPs can resonate into next week or the sound can go out 4 inches and just drop off and die. Nowadays, chances are it would be even easier to find a 'dead', totally solid LP than you would with one of the perforated ones.

As you also know, the Taylor brand is way up there in terms of quality, desirability and comfort. The price of their solid body units are are clearly worth the money in comparison to so many other brands/models. Yet, cutting through even all the great stuff about them, they are neither a Les Paul nor a Strat. I say this as two ends of the scale for sonic and feel of playing references. Consequently, they are their own entity unto themselves but to reinforce, still outstanding. I compare them in a way to PRSs in the sense that they certainly aren't for everyone and players either love them or reject them; I've yet to see a moderate opinion, either way although the respect is surely there from both camps. Longevity wise, both appear to be able to well withstand the test of time but as of yet, they don't have that kind of lengthy history most surviving manufacturers have.

Resale value of Taylor solid bodies right now are pretty much akin to where G&Ls are right now, irrespective of quality, etc. (which isn't good). So, this is a consideration if you ever decide that you'd want to unload the Taylor for a more popular brand and genre solid body. And then there's the whole world of if you start modifying the instrument.

Some players are firmly entrenched in the, "LP Camp" and don't want to know anything otherwise. Personally, I think they sonically are, "one trick ponies" although a very nice, "one trick". The Taylors sonically cover much more ground but not that of a Les Paul's. Which begs the next question, how much of this Taylor ground is or would be, your's?

As you can see, I'm not going to try talking you into or out of either. Rather, I'm just laying out my perspective before you and hope that I've coherently answered some of your questions. Please feel free to ask if you have more.

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You dig?

I have a chambered LP Standard. I personally like the sound. Best bet is to try out a few and don't even think about if it's solid or chambered. If it feels and sounds good to you, who is to tell you otherwise?

btw I have read some of the chambered/solid debates on the gibson forum and, I see why it could be unhelpful ....

FWIW, I couldn't agree more...

Thank you for everyone's thoughts on the matter. I did purchase a guitar, and I have some visual stimulation for you all in return.
What you are looking at is a 2008 Gibson Les Paul Supreme. It had me from the moment I laid eyes (and hands) on it!




And finally, a pic of the new one along side my trusty old Strat!

Lots of luck with it and I hope you enjoy it for many years to come!

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You dig?

Thats a beautiful guitar t--wood. Most Gibson's are worth every penny they cost. They are some of the finest guitar made along with some from PRS. I don't know to much about the Taylor's solids I did take one apart at a class this year held by the Taylor rep. at the Bluegrass shoppe. The bolt on T-neck was cool I must say.

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