Things to Consider When Buying a Les Paul Guitar
Whether you are new to guitar or are an experienced player, there are certain things you should consider before purchasing a Les Paul guitar. These tips can help you make an informed decision and find the best guitar for your needs.
Epiphone Les Paul Junior
Whether you’re a beginner or an experienced guitarist, you can find a guitar for every player with Epiphone. They offer guitars that are affordable, easy to play, and look great. There are several variations of the Les Paul guitar, and these are available in a range of colors. However, there are a few things you should know before purchasing one.
Epiphone Les Paul Junior is a solid-body electric guitar that features premium CTS electronics and a P-90 Pro single-coil pickup. Its body is made of mahogany and it is lightweight. Its neck is smooth and easy to play with. It is designed with rockers in mind. Its fingerboard is genuine ebony. It’s also available in a variety of finishes, including Cherry, Vintage Sunburst, and Alpine White.
Another feature you should look for is the NuBone nut. A self-lubricating synthetic nut provides a brighter tone than a traditional TUSQ nut while maintaining tuning stability. The Epiphone Les Paul Junior has a nut width of 43mm, which is popular among guitarists. This width allows for open chords without muting strings, which makes it ideal for Country or rock.
If you’re looking for a guitar with a rich, warm sound, the Epiphone Les Paul Junior may be for you. The P-90 Pro pickup produces a sparkling and rich sound that grows with your playing. Its pickup also responds to your picking and the nuances of the notes you play. Its tone is also much wider than a regular humbucker.
If you’re looking for fewer features, you can also opt for the Epiphone Les Paul PRO-1. This guitar is equipped with an EZ-PRO C-shaped neck and Ultra-Light strings. It’s an Editor’s Pick in Guitar Player magazine, and it’s also available in three different finishes. Its EZ-PRO bridge and E-Tuner allow you to quickly switch between single-coil and PAF sounds. The Alnico Classic PRO pickup set is also available in a coil-split option. The pickup is made of Seth Lover’s original P-90 pickup design, which is ideal for rich, vocal-like tones.
The Epiphone Les Paul Studio is also a good option for beginners. It’s a stripped-down alternative to the Les Paul Standard, and it offers a great LP tone for an affordable price. The Epiphone Studio is a great budget choice, but it lacks some of the flashy extras found on higher-end models. This model, however, still offers a no-nonsense package. It’s available in Translucent Blue, Cherry, and Heritage Cherry Sunburst.
The Epiphone Les Paul Junior also offers a few other extras. Its Graph Tech nut is a premium component that adds a little extra to the guitar’s sonic excellence. Its nut is also more stable than a TUSQ nut, which means you can be more sure of your tune. It’s also a better-looking guitar, with a rudimentary finish and a ’60s SlimTaper neck profile.
Tonewood
Whether you’re a novice or a guitar enthusiast, you’ve probably heard the term “tonewood” before. It’s a term used to describe the wood used in the construction of acoustic and electric guitars. The tonewoods in these instruments affect the sound of acoustic and electric guitars in different ways.
The first Les Paul guitars were made of mahogany, but today you’ll find a variety of materials being used in these instruments. Some are more expensive than others, but they all have their unique tonal qualities. Mahogany is a very popular tonewood for luxury furniture and is the most commonly used tonewood in Les Paul guitars. Other woods used in the construction of modern Les Paul guitars include Okoume, cedar, and rosewood.
Okoume is a hardwood indigenous to Africa. It has a slightly brighter tone than mahogany and is often used as a replacement for mahogany in several guitar models. It’s also a great tonewood for Les Pauls, and many luthiers make custom guitars featuring Okoume as the main wood. It’s not as mellow as mahogany, however, and can be harder to notice in the upper midrange.
Another highly prized guitar tonewood is Indian rosewood, which is a wood from East India. It adds a sparkling treble and a deep bass to a spruce soundboard. It is used in acoustic guitars and fingerboards. It’s also paired with cedar tops in some acoustic guitars. In addition, some guitar manufacturers have begun using all mahogany on their guitars.
Another popular choice for a top on an electric guitar is maple. It has a bright, airy tone that complements flamenco styles. It’s also a good choice for guitarists who prefer a natural stain or tinted transparent colors. It’s also used for guitar laminate because of its grain patterns. It looks good with a wide variety of sunburst colors.
During the late 1960s, companies like Hofner and Greco made replicas of the original Les Pauls. Their paint jobs were almost identical to those of the original models, but their tonal quality varied. This led to nicknames such as the “lemon burst” and the “tobacco burst”. Some manufacturers opted to use synthetic materials instead of protected woods, and Japanese companies came close to making perfect copies of the 1958-1960 Standards.
Poplar is a relatively soft wood that is often found in Asian-made electric guitars. It’s also used in fretboards and the bodies of some reasonably priced guitars. It isn’t as resonant as basswood, but it’s an inexpensive alternative for alder. It’s also a good match for a classic Tele tone.
As with all woods, the density, weight, and tonal properties of any particular species will vary. This is why it’s a good idea to check out a range of guitars before buying. The best way to determine which tonewood will work best for you is to play one.
Body construction
Having a good body construction of a Les Paul guitar can help you get the most out of your instrument. Some of the factors that determine the overall tone of a guitar include the wood used for the body, the size of the body, and the shape of the neck. It is also important to consider the type of pickup that is installed. Some models have a solid pickup, while others have a hollow pickup. Regardless of the pickup, a hollow-body guitar has more sustain and a brighter, acoustic sound. On the other hand, a solid body guitar has less sustain, a weaker low-frequency response, and a thicker, heavier sound.
When it comes to the body of a Les Paul, Gibson has designed a series of models for a variety of players. These models include Custom, Special, and Recording. Each of these guitars has a unique appearance, but the specifications of each model are similar.
Learn how to choose the best Les Paul for the money.
The custom model had a maple top, a three-piece maple neck, and a white finish. The Special was a slab body that fit between the Standard and Junior. The necks on these guitars were slightly wider and thicker than those on the Standard. The Recording and Professional were slightly altered versions of the standard model. They both had different control layouts. They featured two soapbar P-90 single coil pickups. The neck pickup in these guitars had a cavity. This added to the strength of the neck-to-body joint, but it also reduced the pickup’s ability to receive vibrations.
Aside from these upgrades, most of these guitars have the same body structure. However, Gibson changed its dye formulation in 1960 and switched from a translucent red to a lighter orange color. This change in dye formulation helped prevent fading. Depending on the formulation, the new dye might lighten or darken, so some vintage models might have a darker or lighter red than their original color.
Some of the most well-known original Les Paul models have unique looks. Some of these models were built to mimic Fender’s custom color finishes. Other models were created to compete with the custom-colored guitars offered by other companies. In addition, Gibson included hundreds of photographs of a late blues guitarist’s instrument in the design process. These photographs helped to give the company a realistic idea of what to expect from the new design.
Some of the other guitars that feature a set-in neck are the Paul Reed Smiths. These instruments are built to PRS specifications, and Platts and his team hand-select woods from trusted suppliers. The wood is then palletized to ensure even drying. The set-in neck contributes to smooth linear sustain, and many players feel that the guitar’s vocal quality is improved with a set-in neck.
Other features of a Les Paul guitar include a neck-through-body construction, Grover tuning keys, and a stop tailpiece. These features add to the overall look of the instrument and can make the guitar more comfortable to play. Some of these guitars use mahogany as the neck-through section, but the majority of these guitars use maple.
Source: Owning a Gibson
