Incredible guitar! (Les Paul Standard)

Member Name: Smitty83

Product:	Les Paul Standard
Date:	08/01/08 (144 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Everything? Sounds brilliant, lovely to play.

Disadvantages: Price and tuning keys are funny colour.

What can I say? I've had my Gibson Les Paul for years now, and it is easily the best guitar I've ever played! Not only is it beautiful, but it's incredibly nice to play. As for the price, well...
There's just too much to say about this guitar, so I'll do it in lots of stages.

APPEARANCE:
Incredible! When I first started playing guitar, I was looking for a beginners axe and I saw one of these on the wall. My jaw literally dropped! (No kidding, I didn't even think that happened in real life...!) Obviously I didn't buy it as my first guitar, I'm not that rich/stupid, but it was always the one I wanted and I eventually got it!
The shape of the Les Paul is legendary; every famous guitarist you can think of has had a picture taken with one probably. It's elegantly curved and looks just perfect, and it suits any need from metal to blues. The finish? Well there's all sorts of different finshes. I myself went for the "Desert Burst" which looks incredible, a kind of sandy brown that fades darker to the outside. Every time I go on holiday, I come back and think "My god I've got a nice guitar!".

'FEEL':
I've tried many guitars in my lifetime, and there really is no competition in this area. The only other guitar I've tried that has come close, is the Dean Vendetta, because I found it amazingly easy to do sweeps on, but it doesn't have anything like the versatility of the Les Paul, so this is the clear winner.
The Standard can come with two different types of neck, 50's rounded, or 60's slim taper. I chose the 60's neck, and it feels fantastic. The fretboard lets your fingers glide effortlessly up and down, and it's just the right width and depth for a comfortable hold.

TONE:
The tone, in my opinion, is a large factor that separates the Gibson Les Paul Standard from it's cheaper alternatives. In every style you can imagine, this guitar will pump out a full bodied, gorgeous tone from start to finish, even if you're strings are old and rusty. (Like mine at the moment...!)
I play in a Melodic Death Metal band, and a Punk band, and I record the occasional blues/jazz song on my computer, and I've never had a situation where I can't get the right tone out of my guitar!

RELIABILITY/DURABILITY:
I can't say that a guitar 'dying' or stopping working is a regular occurance, but it does happen, and has happened, to some of my previous guitars. However, as of yet, my Gibson has stayed as good as new since the day I bought it, and although I've tried my best to take care of it, it's had it's fair share of bumps and knocks. I can say though, that I've heard stories about Les Paul Standards from other owners, who bought them back in the 50's and 60's when they first came out, and alot of them have survived to this day, so I would say that they are a fairly reliable and durable guitar!

FEATURES:
The Les Paul Standard comes with two Burst-Bucker Pro pickups with Alnico V magnets, which sound great for factory pickups, and last a long time. It has a 3-way switch, to toggle between Bridge Pickup, Neck Pickup, or both, and separate volume and tone controls for each pickup.
It comes equipped with Gibson Brite wires, which are really nice, they sound crisp and clear, and they feel great, but in my experience they don't last for very long.
The back of the body is made from Carved AA Maple, and the front of the body Mahogany. The neck is also mahogany, and the fingerboard is rosewood.
The tune-o-matic bridge is easy to adjust, and can give you a 12th-fret action of as low as 1mm if you want!
Unfortunately it comes with some rather horrible pale green tuning keys, but these can be replaced for less than a fiver, so it's not a problem.
Oh, and it also comes with a gibson hardback case, polish and cloth, strap, and string winder, which together can come to around £150 if you buy them separately.


CONCLUSION:
I think I've said enough really! Every aspect of this guitar is brilliant, and you're never going to run the risk of someone looking at you at thinking "Hmm, my guitar's better than theirs"!!!
A final note, is the only downside to this guitar... the price!
When I bought mine, I got it for £1300 off the internet, but at the time most places sold them for £1800.
If you have the money, I would definitely recommend buying this guitar. If not, go down to your local guitar shop every day and just play it!
It will make you feel warm inside!

Summary: Easily the best purchase I've made in the last 16 years.