Hi guys,
Here's my latest guitar. It's a 1959 Les Paul replica.
Well, I finally got to play her last night for the first time. I'm not going to come out like a lot of guys who get new guitars and yell "this is the greatest guitar of all-time!!!" I'm lucky to own 2 real-deal, vintage Les Pauls, as well as another replica by a different builder. What I can say is that each guitar has its own character. My Custom is smooth and bassy. My Goldtop is raunchy and aggressive. The MCI is slinky, with a totally unique tone...sort of a fat single coil, P-90ish tone.
Having said all that, the new one is simply spectacular. This Lester has AMAZING piano-like clarity. The resonance is incredible. She vibrates like my Modern Eagles. I'm really blown away by the low end on this guitar. She's not boomy in the least but the lows are super tight. Do you remember how Stevie Ray Vaughan used to end some songs by snapping the low E? I've never played a Les Paul that could do that without the sound falling apart. This baby nails it. But it's a Les Paul, so the sound is heavier. Awesome tone.
As for the pickups, I bought two sets to A/B. I loved the Electric City RD-59s in my MCI so much, I ordered a custom set of ECPs for this guitar. However, they never made it into this guitar. I tried them in my Faded Blue Jean ME1, and I can't see removing them. I have some Sheptones in this Burst, with a push/pull pot for the neck pickup phase. (I love that out of phase Peter Green/ Gary Moore tone.). All I can say is the guitar sounds fantastic. The Sheptones are staying.
The big reason to buy a Burst replica is because it's as close as one can get to a vintage Burst. I own 2 vintage Gibsons, and have owned a lot of reissues. I must say a good replica blows a Historic away. He builds them like Gibson used to...old growth Honduran mahogany, old growth Brazilian rosewood fretboard, aniline dyes, proper grain filler, celluloid binding and inlays, accurate "no-condom" truss rod, hide glues, authentic hardware, proper routing, angles, etc. One really needs to try one.
One thing that I found interesting is that both of my replicas neck carves feel exactly the same. Remember, these are from different builders. They were both modeled directly from real 1959 Les Pauls. And they feel NOTHING like a Gibson Historic. And something else. This amazing guitar, with the spectacular wood costs less than a new R9. Amazing.
Like I said, I'm just getting familiar with this Burst. But I absolutely love her. She needs a bit of play time to put a good polish on the frets. But she's an amazing example of what a talented builder who cares about his work can do.
Five Stars!
Here's my latest guitar. It's a 1959 Les Paul replica.
Well, I finally got to play her last night for the first time. I'm not going to come out like a lot of guys who get new guitars and yell "this is the greatest guitar of all-time!!!" I'm lucky to own 2 real-deal, vintage Les Pauls, as well as another replica by a different builder. What I can say is that each guitar has its own character. My Custom is smooth and bassy. My Goldtop is raunchy and aggressive. The MCI is slinky, with a totally unique tone...sort of a fat single coil, P-90ish tone.
Having said all that, the new one is simply spectacular. This Lester has AMAZING piano-like clarity. The resonance is incredible. She vibrates like my Modern Eagles. I'm really blown away by the low end on this guitar. She's not boomy in the least but the lows are super tight. Do you remember how Stevie Ray Vaughan used to end some songs by snapping the low E? I've never played a Les Paul that could do that without the sound falling apart. This baby nails it. But it's a Les Paul, so the sound is heavier. Awesome tone.
As for the pickups, I bought two sets to A/B. I loved the Electric City RD-59s in my MCI so much, I ordered a custom set of ECPs for this guitar. However, they never made it into this guitar. I tried them in my Faded Blue Jean ME1, and I can't see removing them. I have some Sheptones in this Burst, with a push/pull pot for the neck pickup phase. (I love that out of phase Peter Green/ Gary Moore tone.). All I can say is the guitar sounds fantastic. The Sheptones are staying.
The big reason to buy a Burst replica is because it's as close as one can get to a vintage Burst. I own 2 vintage Gibsons, and have owned a lot of reissues. I must say a good replica blows a Historic away. He builds them like Gibson used to...old growth Honduran mahogany, old growth Brazilian rosewood fretboard, aniline dyes, proper grain filler, celluloid binding and inlays, accurate "no-condom" truss rod, hide glues, authentic hardware, proper routing, angles, etc. One really needs to try one.
One thing that I found interesting is that both of my replicas neck carves feel exactly the same. Remember, these are from different builders. They were both modeled directly from real 1959 Les Pauls. And they feel NOTHING like a Gibson Historic. And something else. This amazing guitar, with the spectacular wood costs less than a new R9. Amazing.
Like I said, I'm just getting familiar with this Burst. But I absolutely love her. She needs a bit of play time to put a good polish on the frets. But she's an amazing example of what a talented builder who cares about his work can do.
Five Stars!
cool
