Advice for those challenged by a Les Paul

Danielsguitars

What about a carved top sg 

Problem solved

siraxeman

^^Yamaha SG2000

AllthegearNoidea

siraxeman said:

^^Yamaha SG2000

The prices I'm seeing from one seller seem ridiculously optimistic. What's a good price

Danielsguitars

I would've thought anything with a mahogany body and maple cap will get you close

What about a mahogany body maple cap strat style, damien probett rockett comes to my mind like others have said

Jalapeno

siraxeman said:

^^Yamaha SG2000

He said he had back issues ........

Voxman

richardhomer said:

Just a warning about the SG love - yes they sound like a Gibson (as does a 335) - but they don't sound any more like a Les Paul than most double cut PRSs. 

I speak from experience - I had one for a while - it too got moved on.

I couldn't disagree more. I like PRS and have a Cu24 and have played lots of different PRS.  Each model has their own character and charms. But no PRS I've ever played sounds or feels like my LP Custom or SG Standard. 

Rabs

There is also the new neck heal on the Gibson HP line..   And you can always replace the autotuners if you don't like that.. But the new heal so I have heard does actually make it easier to get up there.

http://i1173.photobucket.com/albums/r588/Rabs2010/2008 standard/front-and-back_2016_texture-horizontal_zpscsulazal.jpg

richardhomer

Voxman said:

richardhomer said:

Just a warning about the SG love - yes they sound like a Gibson (as does a 335) - but they don't sound any more like a Les Paul than most double cut PRSs. 

I speak from experience - I had one for a while - it too got moved on.

I couldn't disagree more. I like PRS and have a Cu24 and have played lots of different PRS.  Each model has their own character and charms. But no PRS I've ever played sounds or feels like my LP Custom or SG Standard. 

I should have been more specific - the 24 is 'much' thinner sounding than most Gibsons - I really meant McCarty based models - tough you'll note from the quote that I didn't say they sounded the same.

The point I was making is that both an SG and (to be precise) a thicker bodied, 22 fret PRS with a fat neck, mahogany body and a maple cap - will get you in the Gibson ballpark but will not replicate the tone of a Les Paul. Neither has anywhere near the fatness and low-end grunt of 'the real thing'.

monkey42

Les paul axcess?

TTBZ

richardhomer said:

The point I was making is that both an SG and (to be precise) a thicker bodied, 22 fret PRS with a fat neck, mahogany body and a maple cap - will get you in the Gibson ballpark but will not replicate the tone of a Les Paul. Neither has anywhere near the fatness and low-end grunt of 'the real thing'.

This is true but I found I don't even notice it now. It was only when a/b'ing the two that I found the LP to be a bit thicker. And in a band mix the difference is negligible (imo). Since I don't have the lp any more I've just got my amp set a bit bassier and it sounds fine. The only real difference is the sustain, the SG feels a bit "dryer" to play if that means anything.

A thinner/lighter LP alternative might be the ESP/LTD eclipse, at least one of the thinner bodied models. 

Voxman

richardhomer said:

Voxman said:

richardhomer said:

Just a warning about the SG love - yes they sound like a Gibson (as does a 335) - but they don't sound any more like a Les Paul than most double cut PRSs. 

I speak from experience - I had one for a while - it too got moved on.

I couldn't disagree more. I like PRS and have a Cu24 and have played lots of different PRS.  Each model has their own character and charms. But no PRS I've ever played sounds or feels like my LP Custom or SG Standard. 

I should have been more specific - the 24 is 'much' thinner sounding than most Gibsons - I really meant McCarty based models - tough you'll note from the quote that I didn't say they sounded the same.

The point I was making is that both an SG and (to be precise) a thicker bodied, 22 fret PRS with a fat neck, mahogany body and a maple cap - will get you in the Gibson ballpark but will not replicate the tone of a Les Paul. Neither has anywhere near the fatness and low-end grunt of 'the real thing'.

I've played McCarty's & Cu22's and I agree that the McCarty's are nearer the 'Gibson' tone.  I never really liked the Dragon II p/ups on the Cu22,which have far less 'grunt' than the Cu24 p/ups - the HFS & Vintage bass p/ups are much ballsier - I wouldn't necessariiy describe them as 'thinner' sounding than Gibson p/ups, but they are tonally quite different, 

BigLicks67

57Deluxe said:

Telecaster - you all thought Jimmy Page used a Les Paul on LZ1 for years!

Also, don't forget the solo on STH and the Strat he used on Tea for One.

usedtobe

I've got a les paul and an sg, both with p90s, and I feel they are different enough to justify both. If a les paul wasn't working for me, in whatever way, I'd be happy enough with the sg..

stickyfiddle

Try a CS336. They're effectively a semi-hollow les Paul shaped like a small 335. Tone-wise they're closer to LP than 335, almost always weigh about 7lbs, and they're really comfy to play.

i love SGs but they really don't sound like les pauls 

Voxman

stickyfiddle said:

i love SGs but they really don't sound like les pauls 

They certainly do & and an SG Standard & LP Standard are unbelievably similar tonally - Which SG and LP were you comparing?  

TTBZ

In a mix/live situation I wouldn't have thought there's much in it tbh.

Voxman

TTBZ said:

In a mix/live situation I wouldn't have thought there's much in it tbh.

There's nothing in it - in a blind test you'd hear no difference!

siraxeman

I had an SG Standard for a few years till about 9 months ago (and one before that) alongside my LP...and I to thought they sounded the same more or less anyway. The SG definitely lacked a bit of sustain when compared to the LP...but really only noticeable on higher notes say past the 12th fret. I did prefer the hotter darker sounding 490R/498T to my LPs Classic 57's and the BB Pros on the Standard before it. Essentially IMO they sounded very similar to each other. But the SG was WAY more comfier ie lighter and brilliant upper fret access....but a trade off in a slight loss of sustain.

stickyfiddle

Voxman said:

TTBZ said:

In a mix/live situation I wouldn't have thought there's much in it tbh.

There's nothing in it - in a blind test you'd hear no difference!

Massively disagree. Obviously neither sound like a Strat, and both sound like dual-humbucker guitars. But with vintage output pickups (e.g. 57 classics), an SG has a lot more snap to the tone than an LP - that LP "fatness" isn't there. Obviously if you have a significant amount of gain on that'll hide it, but played through a crunchy AC30 they're really quite different. 

AllthegearNoidea

Representative?