Gibson Paul Standard Electric Heritage

The new Gibson Les Paul Standard is a terrific guitar in a good deal of ways, and we sense the spirit of classic Les Pauls here.

Along with the Fender Stratocaster, the Gibson Les Paul is synonymous with rock & roll and blues guitar. Though the shape and thick, chunky sound have stayed uninterrupted allround the years, the particulars, from pickup selection to neck design, have been altered to reflect Gibson’s continued desire to innovate.

In 2008, Gibson introduced a Gibson Les Paul Standard that contained more than it is reasonable part of alterations, a great deal of welcome and numerous not. Let’s take a look at the guitar’s construction details more closely.

Features

The new Les Paul Standard now includes Strap Locks (Dunlop), chambered body, Grover Locking Tuners, TonePros bridge/tailpiece, Neutrick output jack, and a set up by way of Plek.

The body wood is mahogany with a figured maple top. The scale length is 24-3/4″ with a mahogany neck and rosewood fretboard. The pickups are Gibson’s own Burstbucker Pros. A quality hardshell case is frequent equipment.

Performance

We didn’t assure any lack in tone due to the chambered body, and played acoustically, the Les Paul Standard had a well-balanced, deep tone. If you’ve ever gigged with a Les Paul for any extended amount of time of time, you’ll prize the lighter weight.

Since I ordinarily alternate tune-o-matic style bridges with TonePros, the upgraded bridge and tailpiece are a welcome addition, as is the Plek setup, which resulted in a solid playing and sounding guitar right out of the box.

We did have to make a little truss rod adjustment, but for an instrument that was sent halfway all over the country, that’s regular procedure. For the record, though, this guitar was ready to take to a gig straight out of the box. Not bad.

The finish on the revised Standard is as superb as ever. We went over a Heritage Cherry Sunburst finish that had just a gorgeous flame. We found no defects in either finish or fit, and the fret dressing and setup was as good as we’ve ever seen from a production instrument. Gibson likewise opted to exclude the pickguard from this model, altho you could effortlessly install one if you miss it. The pickguard is included, however.

We were intrigued when we found that Gibson built this series using an asymmetrical neck profile; however, we have to say that we’re glad they did. The profile sports a thicker bass side and a thinner treble side.

Think of it as the best of a 50′s and 60′s profile in one neck design. The fretwork and factory setup were the best we’d ever seen from an out-of-the-box Gibson.

It’s hard for us not to think of a LP without thinking of the sound of a Les Paul cranked up through a Marshall, so we ran the Gibson through a reissue Marshall JCM800 half-stack. We liked what we found, though you do need to know that the chambered body gives the guitar something of a ES-335 sound when cranked. Think old Clapton.

The Burstbucker pickups seemed to be a finelooking nice fit, since they are aggressive and dark by nature. There are unquestionably galore definitive Gibson tones to be found here, though the chambered body/Burstbucker combining has it is own distinguishable flavor. To each his own. We liked them.

We have to say, though, that there were a couple of things we just didn’t care for. Gibson chose to include Neutrik locking input jacks, for example. Some persons love them, but we’re not fans. Still, the Neutrik jacks are superior quality, so we be grateful for that at least.

Same goes for the PCB mounted volume and tone pots. In fact, all pots, the pickups, the selector switch, and the jack are all connected to a main PCB board by way of pluggable connectors. While it’s cool in a way, it could likewise principally hinder switching a pot or swapping pickups. We were left rubbing our heads on this one.

The Bottom Line

Still, these worries are minor. Overall, the new Gibson Les Paul Standard is a terrific guitar in galore ways, and we sense the spirit of classic Les Pauls here. Gibson likewise now makes a “Les Paul Traditional” that might appeal to persons who want a more conservative Les Paul. Obviously, Gibson has something for everyone in their Les Paul series.

Name of Gear: Gibson Les Paul Standard Plus

List Price: $3,899.00

Manufacturer Info: Gibson Musical Instruments; gibson.com

Pros: Excellent setup; good classic LP sounds; nice feel

Cons: PCB mounted pots

Gibson Paul Standard Electric Heritage

Like the landmark Les Paul before it, the SG Standard shattered all perceptions of what a guitar could be when it was firstborn introduced in 1961. Today, it stands as one of the most frequent and best-selling of all Gibson guitars. Its distinct twin cutaways, pointed horns, and beveled edges have made it one of the most inspired and iconic designs in the history of guitar-making. And not only is it one of the most eye-catching guitar designs, it is also one of the most functional and effective.

Gibson’s best-selling SG Standard shatters all perceptions of what an electric guitar can–and should–be. The slim, lightweight mahogany body; unmistakable twin cutaways, pointed horns and beveled edges; the most immediate neck in the business; a pair of Gibson’s screamin’ humbucker pickups–all irresistible features coveted by some of the biggest guitar players of all-time. Various SG models have been played on-stage by the likes of Pete Townshend, Angus Young, Tony Iommi, Robby Krieger, Chris Robinson, Alex Lifeson, Derek Trucks, Elliot Easton, Jim James, Jeff Tweedy, Moby, Keith Urban, Nick Jonas, Rocco DeLuca. When will you add your name?

A New Classic for Rocking Through the Twenty-First Century

Available Finishes

A thicker, rounder, time-honored neck profile emulates the neck shapes of the iconic late ’50s Gibson models.

Set-neck construction for better tone, better sustain, and no loose or misaligned necks.

Gibson’s 490R AND 498T pickups for screaming tone.

Take your pick amidst two gorgeous, time-honored finishes–Heritage Cherry or Ebony–both of which are applied by hand in a procedure that demands various coats and a great deal of hours. Unlike a lot of of our competitors, who settle for a polyurethane finish, Gibson opts for a nitrocellulose finish that will give hope or courage to the natural vibration of the instrument for a purer tone. In addition, a nitro finish is very porous and in truth gets thinner over time. That way your guitar’s wood may breathe and age beautifully.

Exquisite Mother-of Pearl and Acrylic Inlays
Among other key distinctions, the SG Standard stands out from it is no-frills kid sister, the SG Special, because of the fine mother-of-pearl Gibson logo and holly inlays that decorate it is headstock. The SG Standard likewise boasts figured acrylic trapezoid inlays along it is rosewood fingerboard.

’50s Rounded Neck Profile
No guitar neck profiles are more distinctive than the neck profiles applied on the Gibson models of today. The more traditionalisti ’50s neck profile–found on the SG Standard–is the thicker, rounder, more time-honored profile, emulating the neck shapes of the iconic late ’50s Gibson models. The neck is machined in Gibson’s rough mill using wood shapers to make the initial cuts. But once the fingerboard gets glued on, the rest–including the final sanding–is done by hand. That means there are no two necks with the precise same dimensions. So while it still has the basic characteristics of it is respective profile, each neck will be somewhat different, with a distinct but traditionalisti feel.

Set-Neck Construction
Like all classic Gibson guitars, the necks on Les Pauls and SGs are distinguished by one of the more conventional features that have always set them apart–a glued neck joint. Gluing the neck to the body of the guitar ensures a “wood-to-wood” contact, no air space in the neck cavity, and greatest or most complete or best possible contact among the neck and body, permitting the neck and body to function as a single unit. The result? Better tone, better sustain, and no loose or misaligned necks.

Gibson’s 490R AND 498T Pickups
The mid to late 1960s saw the emergence of a very dissimilar type of music coming from the clubs of England. This new genre’s players were demanding more powerful amplifiers with increased volume outputs to satisfy their sonic explorations. This led to a call for a more versatile pickup, and Gibson answered the call with the 490T and 490R pickups (“T” for treble, and “R” for rhythm), humbuckers with the tonal characteristics of an introductory PAF, but with a slight increase in upper mid-range response. The Gibson 498T bridge pickup is the 490′s idealisti complement. Taking the 490 one step further, the 498 swaps the Alnico II magnet to an Alnico V, thence making it more or less hotter with special and significant stress on mid-ranges and highs. The pole pieces on the 498T are likewise aligned a little further apart to accommodate the spacing of the strings at the bridge, which is dissimilar than the spacing of the strings at the neck.

Solid Mahogany Body
Probably the most central of all SG features is it is solid mahogany body. The mahogany goes through the same stringent selection routine as all of Gibson’s woods, and is personally inspected and qualified by Gibson’s team of skilled wood experts before it enters the factories. Inside the Gibson factories, humidity is maintained at 45 percent, and the temperature at 70 degrees. This ensures all woods are dried to a level of “equilibrium,” where the moisture content does not change for the duration of the fabricating process. This warrants tight-fitting joints and no expansion, and controls the shrinkage and warping of the woods, in addition to reducing the weight. It likewise improves the woods’ machinability and finishing properties. Consistent moisture content means that the SG will respond evenly to temperature and humidity changes long after it leaves the factory.