School me on Lesters.

boogieman

I have a chunk of money coming my way in January and the gas is getting strong for a "proper" Gibson LP. I've got a Gordon Smith LP-alike, which is actually a nice guitar and gets close to an LP sound wise, but if I'm honest it's never really scratched that itch.
My ideal would be a black Custom but my back's dodgy so I think that's a non starter.
So I know roughly what spec and finish I want but have no idea what the various models are. Mid to darkish burst, nothing cherry or clownburst. Ideally I want a natural top with some figuring, but nothing ultra blingy. Edge binding (so I think that rules out Studios?). Nothing baseball bat sized in the neck dept, although I'm not adverse to something reasonably chunky. I like metal tipped tuners rather than the snot green ones, although I guess I could always change them.
Price limit would be £1500ish. Happy to go second hand.
Thoughts??

p90fool

There are dozens of details we can bog you down with, but only one matters - how dodgy IS your back?

Real Les Pauls don't have to be mega heavy, but if you're considering going down the chambered route you'll never scratch that once-in-a-lifetime LP itch, they just don't have the same sound or dynamic response of the solid or drilled ones IME.

I'm not one of the macho "it has to be 10 pounds plus" brigade, but if they don't have a certain heft you may as well get a 335 IMO.

octatonic

Look for a USA Std from late 90's up until 2006.

You could get a plus top with your choice of 50 or 60's neck profile for £1000 to £1200, depending on condition.

They are weight relieved but NOT chambered.

Tobacco or Desertburst are good colours.

You would have to put grovers on yourself.

I've had an 02 and an 04 in the last few years and they were great, no-nonsense rock machines.

Try to get closer to 9lbs, rather than closer to 10.

That extra bit of weight makes a difference.

The more expensive, lighter models R7/R8/R9 will be out of your budget and tend to have the blingier tops.

I sold mine because I'm more of a Fender type of player and the weight was messing with my shoulder.

ICBM

There is a 'Les Paul Custom Lite' which has a chambered body, and inexplicably only three knobs so it looks wrong and might be cheap second hand. (Then fit the fourth control!)

That said, chambered bodies don't sound quite like proper Les Pauls, so you might have trouble getting a sound you're happy with at the same time as light weight.

The odd thing is that heavy Les Pauls don't always feel as heavy as they are - the guitarist in my band has two Customs, one weights 10lb+ and the other 11lbs - but really, they don't feel that heavy, and actually the heavier one feels lighter! It's something to do with the balance and the neck angle rather than the outright weight. He has a bad back too, and actually finds these Customs less uncomfortable than the Special he had which was much lighter.

p90fool

octatonic said:

Look for a USA Std from late 90's up until 2006.

You could get a plus top with your choice of 50 or 60's neck profile for £1000 to £1200, depending on condition.

They are weight relieved but NOT chambered.

Tobacco or Desertburst are good colours.

You would have to put grovers on yourself.

Good advice in my opinion, ticks all your boxes

Bogwhoppit

Chambered ones from 2007 weigh around 3.3 kilos ( 7and 1/2) pounds. Same as my USA Strat and Tele.

 

£1500 would buy you a hardly used mint condition example with all case tags. I just turned down a desert burst 2010 Standard in shop condition for £1200 because I felt it was slightly too much in the current market.

 

In the studio using a range of amps including a 60s plexi, none of us can tell the difference between a chambered and a weight relieved les paul, with the exception of a 1970s LP pancake body which sounds shite.

Hertz32

http://www.andertons.co.uk/solid-body-electric-guitars/pid30114/cid671/gibson-les-paul-traditional-pro-ii-60s-neck-merlot.asp

http://www.andertons.co.uk/solid-body-electric-guitars/pid30341/cid671/gibson-les-paul-traditional-pro-ii-60s-neck-vintage-sunburst.asp

http://www.guitarguitar.co.uk/electric_guitars_detail.asp?stock=13081515203532

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-8GyONfg4P4

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JYpcHsB_AM8

Literally your perfect guitar from what you have described, unfortunately the black one has a 50's (baseball bat) neck so I didn't link to it.

RichValentine

2008 standards come with locking tuners and are chambered with an asymmetric neck. Has pcb wiring inside which I didn't like and replaced.

Richardj

I'm on my third one now.  Had an '04 Standard and it wasn't heavy, sounded and felt nice but I couldn't bond with it.  Picked up one of the much cheaper Worn Satin Studios and it was actually much nicer to play and much more dynamic. Very light weight and resonant thanks to the Swiss cheese body. Sadly had to sell it but now have an '01 Studio again and it seems the best yet, heavy as anything and sounds great. OK Studios I know and not what you are going to end up with but the key as always is play lots of them and check the finishing carefully as it is still way more hit and miss than it should be at that price point.

Neil

octatonic said:

Look for a USA Std from late 90's up until 2006.

You could get a plus top with your choice of 50 or 60's neck profile for £1000 to £1200, depending on condition.

They are weight relieved but NOT chambered.

Tobacco or Desertburst are good colours.

You would have to put grovers on yourself.

I've had an 02 and an 04 in the last few years and they were great, no-nonsense rock machines.

Try to get closer to 9lbs, rather than closer to 10.

That extra bit of weight makes a difference.

Good advice.

My '04 + has a '60's neck and weighs 9.2lb. 

It's vintage sunburst.

ThePrettyDamned

Les Paul vixen?

mcsdan

Go for a used non flamed custom historic - 57,58 or 60s plain top. You'll get a lightweight (< 9lbs) Les Paul with the best wood and hardware for cheaper than a new Traditional. There have been a few on the forum recently. You may have to pay a little more than £1500 (£1700-£1900 is about right) but you'll get much more for your money and if you don't get on with it you'll be able to sell on without any loss of money.

bandmaster188

i traded my musicman axis ss for a 2008 lp standard on the music radar forum last year and i must  say i was slightly underwhelmed by it initially. but  the a-symetric neck has really grown on me (i've always favoured 60's profile but this is really comfortable), i put a bare knuckle abraxas set in it which has fattened things right up and the pcb control thing is a bit shit but easily changeable. its now my current favourite guitar which i find very hard to put down. i even prefer it to my lp custom.

get one!!!

http://i1231.photobucket.com/albums/ee512/bandmaster188/tn_zpsf16b0522.jpg

not my amp by the way

Jalapeno

When I got my Les Paul Goldtop (2012 60's neck) Andertons had 6 to choose from - 6 !

They always have loads in stock - try them

http://www.andertons.co.uk/Products/Products.asp?keyword=les+paul&type=search&attributeXML0=||||#1387736157901page-1

boogieman

Thanks for all the input. Much appreciated and plenty of food for thought there.

Plain tops just don't do it for me. I hadn't thought about a 335 tbh but I suspect I would still be hankering for a Lester if I went for one. And don't they sound very different to an LP?

Those Traditionals look very nice and could well be the answer but, before I dismiss them completely, just how heavy are Customs? Do they vary much year by year?

Jalapeno

I think all Lesters vary and by quite a lot. Try before you buy.

ESBlonde

Always try before you buy with a Gibson. The 335 can sound similar but doesn't have that 'thud' or all of the 'authority' of notes on the thin strings above the 10th fret like a good LP.

There is the small bodied 339 made the same way or for more cash the 336 which has the body carved from a solid piece of mahogany with a centre strip and then capped. They might get you close.

But there are Gibsons and there are Gibsons, the model might denote better guitars but sometimes the gems slip through so play the damn thing and then decide.

Parker

I'm used to the unchambered models from the last 30 years, and have owned dozens of Gibbos over the years. I bought an '08 facelift model from this forum that is light as a feather in comparison - and bloody love it! We did our Xmas band party on Saturday night and I've never had so many people asking me about my tone! It feels great, plays great and sounds enormous! I turned my nose up at chambered Les Pauls for years, but mine is quite possibly the nicest Lester I've had! Try them if you can. They're very resonant and it's easier to manipulate into feedback.

ToneControl

Parker said:

I'm used to the unchambered models from the last 30 years, and have owned dozens of Gibbos over the years. I bought an '08 facelift model from this forum that is light as a feather in comparison - and bloody love it! We did our Xmas band party on Saturday night and I've never had so many people asking me about my tone! It feels great, plays great and sounds enormous! I turned my nose up at chambered Les Pauls for years, but mine is quite possibly the nicest Lester I've had! Try them if you can. They're very resonant and it's easier to manipulate into feedback.

I love mine too, felt and responded much better than the heavy solid ones I tried before. Might feedback too easily if you're playing very metal though, but for normal playing, the extra sweetness and feedbacky-sustain are a real treat. They cost more than the traditional, so you would assume that Gibson think they are a better guitar (or at least more expensive to make)

Lixarto

Parker said: I've never had so many people asking me about my tone!

Does this really happen?

I've been gigging since 1986, and have been complimented on my playing lots of times (including by people you've heard of), my songs and even my clothes. Once the guitar player in a support band asked me a few technique questions, which made me a little uncomfortable to be honest.

But, "tone"? (It's a bit of a bollocks word anyway, it doesn't really mean anything).

jd0272

I only really link the word tone to a Strat on neck pickup thru a good valve amp. But that's just me.