1990's or 2000's ?? pros and cons

[flameburst]

Dear all,

I wanted to ask everyone... Who prefers the 1993-1999, or 2000-present Les Paul Historics, and their reasons why.

I play a '97 and an '03 and they are totally different guitars, and lovely in different ways.

Thanks,
flameburst.

I HATE the inlays before 2003, It never used to bother me. That aside. I really like the 93-96 Historics.....a LOT! I had a package D from HM done on a 95 and this is the way to go!!

I have 5 Historics between 03 and 05 (see no need to get a 00, 01 or 02) and they are fine, in fact one of them is my favorite, it just has something special. 3 of mine have SKATTERBRANE PUPs, (because they are keepers) and that Really helps the tone.


So, to answer your question, in general I prefer the 90s, but I would put package Ds on ones I knew would be a keeper. I have no intention of putting package Ds on 2003 and new LPs, because the inlays are not bad, and Madagascar RW is nicer than Indian IMHO.

[ReverendJWblues]

I have had 94 and 96 they were nice the 94 std had a nice darker tone which I prefer. 96 I sold month after I got it I hated it for some reason dont really know why just preference. I have an 03 and 3 06s 1 60RI 1 GC60RI or whatever its called hell I luv the thing and a Page. I play mostly the page cause its helps with arthritis. They are plecked and I can tell difference so I wont buy anything anymore thats not 06 or above. pups I havent changed in any guitars since the 70s guess Im a dinosaur just dont see the need. You guys can have all the mods. As I dont perform much live anymore. Mostly just mess in my studio.... Give a few lessons. Always hated the road loved playin live just hated road. But all Id really like to have back is my 68GT and kill the bastard that stole all my gear. So I guess I prefer the 06s.

[lp59aholicDon]

I have no preference, I try and take each guitar as a individual piece, seek out its good and bad points and see if it has that magic mojo, I passed over a nice early 07 R8 VOS that was faded and had a great neck , action and tone was dark burst , no flames but tone to the bone I am and will be on a quest for more Classic 60s made before 93, that have long tenon necks and more orginal features and no Mt Dew Green MOP Trap markers

[LoKi]

Originally Posted by lp59aholicDon

I have no preference, I try and take each guitar as a individual piece, seek out its good and bad points and see if it has that magic mojo, I passed over a nice early 07 R8 VOS that was faded and had a great neck , action and tone was dark burst , no flames but tone to the bone I am and will be on a quest for more Classic 60s made before 93, that have long tenon necks and more orginal features and no Mt Dew Green MOP Trap markers

I HATE those sickly green inlays. What were they thinking?

Late 80's Classics are pretty nice. I had a HCS Classic and enjoyed it a lot... Pickups out of the box were way hot though... but I lowered them down into the wood and was very happy with the results.

I like what they are doing with some of the new RI's. I'm not a fan of 'relicing' or any thing other than making a quality guitar... but its nice to see some higher quality craftsmanship coming out of Gibson these days. There were some rougher times in the 80's and 90's where job turnover rate must have been high... Still great guitars, but there are tiny details that add up, making the guitar not worth what they were asking for them at the time.

[Paul]

my 1999 les paul custom is the oldest les paul i have and it sounds the best my 2000 les paul is close but it hasn't had the usage that my LP custom has the pickups in it are getting warmer and the neck is really nice. just feels, sounds and looks great.

for me the older the guitar is the better.

I thought we were talking Historics.

[Mike60]

...'03 to present...previous years are too much like my '93 Classic plus...so I don't need an older one...

[GuitarsFromMars]

I am a big fan of Historics and Gibson guitars in general.However,The Stinger series from MusicMachine released in 2003,are head and shoulders,tonally, above the rest of the Historics I have heard.They all have Bazzillium,and most of the wood for each individual guitar was tap tuned and hand selected.Most are remarkable guitars,some are truly exceptional.I would put my R7 Stinger/60 neck up against any Historic I have heard.It does have mods,but has been held up next to real Vintage Les Paul guitars,and not found lacking by the collectors/players themselves.

[johnreardon]

I can understand those who want Historics to be as accurate as they can be, but to me, they are just guitars. So like LP59........ below, I have no preference and just try the things before I buy them. I don't worry about how the things look, it's just the sound and playability for me.

[rockinlespaul]

I really like the 01-03's, but I hear the new VOS is the shit too...

[loneguitar]

I heard that as far as the ES 335's go the best recent years were between '88 and '92 , all I can say is my '91 335 is a tone monster and my '95 Studio rocks, the inlays are beautiful on my LPS