Tell me about the P-90/Alnico Black Beauties and iterations thereof, please

[Axis39]

So, I have fallen in love with the R4/55 Customs with the P-90 and Staple pickups. I doubt there is a chance I will be able to afford an original in this lifetime, so I am seeking as much info on the reissue 54's and the new 55 style Customs with the P-90 bridge and Alnico V neck pickups.

Is there a history of them out there somewhere? Any webpages devoted to these ebony sultry mistresses?

When did they first start making reissues? Are the early ones better than later ones? Where they ever chambered? Are there huge differences between the wraptail '55s and the R4s? Uhm, what am I forgetting to ask about?

I am relatively new to owning a Les Paul (they always seemed out of my reach when I was younger), so while I have an unhealthy obsession with them and know more than the average Joe, I'm still a knob when it comes to historics.

School me brothers and sisters!

 

[Ob Com]

So, I have fallen in love with the R4/55 Customs with the P-90 and Staple pickups. I doubt there is a chance I will be able to afford an original in this lifetime, so I am seeking as much info on the reissue 54's and the new 55 style Customs with the P-90 bridge and Alnico V neck pickups.

Is there a history of them out there somewhere? Any webpages devoted to these ebony sultry mistresses?

When did they first start making reissues? Are the early ones better than later ones? Where they ever chambered? Are there huge differences between the wraptail '55s and the R4s? Uhm, what am I forgetting to ask about?

I am relatively new to owning a Les Paul (they always seemed out of my reach when I was younger), so while I have an unhealthy obsession with them and know more than the average Joe, I'm still a knob when it comes to historics.

School me brothers and sisters!

I can help with some of your questions.

They have been making the R4 BB for many years- some are refered to as "pre-historics" because they predate Gibson's use of that designation "historic", but are still reissues.

Some peeps feel that the carves on these are nicer.

To my knowledge they have never been chambered. They are not weight relieved either. They are solid mahogany one piece bodies with mahogany tops, hence darker sounding than les pauls with maple tops.

The weight varies greatly guitar by guitar. Mine is very light indeed- I would guess 7.5 lbs.

The 55 wrap tails are, so i believe, not "reissues", because the BB was always had the tune 0 matic bridge.

The wrap tail should give more sustain, but comes with the downside of being potentially more tricky to adjust intonation if you get one that needs that.

The 55's are also a cheaper way of getting a gloss finish- the gloss R4 BB is more that its VOS counterpart, whereas I have seen the 55 BBs Gloss at the same cost as a VOS 54BB.

I think (but could be wrong) that there are some slightly different electronics in the 55's- different caps or wiring or something like that but I may be wrong

the shoulder profile of the neck on the 55 is different from the 54.

Gibson seem to be having a bit of experimentation with both the GT and BB 55's and the combination of wrap tail and slightly spiffier wiring sure has the potential to be an amazing guitar.

I have a VOS 54 RI BB- the VOSing is much more carefully and tastefully done that you often see.

Its my favorite guitar. The tone of the neck Alnico V is unique.

The guitar is unique sounding amoung Les Paul's- very dark. I love it

here is the best review of the RI 54 BB I ever read. Its by Dr P on eopinons, who does great reviews imo:

"Dr.P's Full Review: 1954 Les Paul Custom Black Beauty ReissueBack in 1952, when Gibson launched the Les Paul line of electric guitars, you could have any color you wanted, as long as it was Gold. Because the front of the guitar was the color of Gold, the guitar quickly earned the nickname of Goldtop, and that name has stuck to this day. According to early interviews with Les Paul, and as can also be verified on the Gibson website, Les wanted the line of guitars that carried his name to come in two colors. One was gold, because it he felt that gold symbolized all that was fine in life. The other color he requested was black, because as a performer, he felt that a musician’s hands and fingers would stick out more clearly against the black background of the guitar, at the time, Les Paul was at the height of his career, and no one had quicker fingers than that boy.


In a previous review on the 1952 Goldtop and the 1954 Goldtop, I discussed some of the history of the development of the Les Paul Guitar, and as such it does not bear repeating here. Those interested in finding out more about the history of this guitar, can go to the Gibson website for information, or to the many websites dedicated to Les Paul himself, or to the guitars that bear his name. You may even wish to check out my reviews of the 1952 Goldtop Reissue or the 1954 Goldtop Reissue guitars, if you are so inclined. Now on to my review of the 1954 Les Paul Custom “Black Beauty” Reissue.


This model of the Les Paul Custom had a very short run of only three years, from 1954 to 1957, but a faithful reproduction, of which I am writing about here, is still available as a reissue from Gibson. I must confess that I am very partial to this guitar. It was the first good electric guitar that I owned. I purchased an original 1956 model back in 1969 used for $100. It was in unplayable condition, and it took me 9 months of painstaking work to restore to its original glory. Alas, after falling in love with this guitar, it was stolen, but that is another story. I have never owned or played a guitar that was this magnificent again. However, the 1954 Gibson Les Paul Custom Reissue is remarkably true to the original, and if any one out there wishes to buy me one for a present to help me get over my grief, I would humbly accept such a gift.


The 1954 Les Paul Custom Reissue, like its original predecessor the original 1954 version, is made of solid mahogany. There are no “weight relief” holes drilled into the body of this guitar like there are on newer Les Paul models. Newer Les Pauls have up to 9 weight relief holes drilled into strategic parts of the body to reduce the weight, and they also use a lighter weight mahogany. Apparently the folks at Gibson turned into “weight watchers,” as they became conscious of the public’s complaints that the early original Les Paul’s were just too heavy to play long night gigs. Personally, I never found this to be the case, and I love the balance and weight (all 9 pounds and 12 ounces of it) of the 1954 Custom Reissue. For those who prefer a lighter guitar, such as a Gibson SG or a Fender Stratocaster, be warned, the 1954 Reissue is one heavy guitar, and the whole body is made of carved Mahogany. The Les Paul 1954 Custom does not have a maple top like most other Les Paul’s do, and so it sounds different from its brothers. Part of this difference in sound can be attributed to the wood that is used in building this guitar, as well as to the type of pickups that were used. I shall focus first on the wood, and address the pickups later on in the review.


Typically most Les Paul models have a Mahogany body with a Maple top and a Rosewood fretboard. The use of a Maple top adds a different coloration to the sound of a guitar than does using Mahogany alone. Maple is a very hard wood that produces a sharp bite and a long sustain. Mahogany is a very stable and consistent wood, and it also produces a sharp bite, but it is also is known for its enhancement of the midrange and bass frequencies. It can produce a singingly sweet sustain, and a rich round fullness. Jazz players loved this guitar. The fretboard of the 1954 Les Paul Custom is made of solid Ebony, as compared to the traditional Rosewood fret board found on most Les Paul’s. Ebony is a very finely grained, and very hard dense wood, and this adds extra snap, definition, and crispness to the sound.


While I am on the topic of the woods used in making the 1954 Les Paul Custom Reissue, it think it is also important to discuss the finish of the guitar. The color is a rich deep midnight black ebony that is absolutely gorgeous, especially when highlighted by the gold hardware and binding. The guitar is encased in a nitrocellulose lacquer, just like the originals were. Lacquer lets the guitar “breath” and does not stiffen or dampen the resonant qualities of the wood the way some other finishing products do. A number of “signature” series guitars from other major brands also have been turning to guitars made with nitrocellulose lacquer for these very same reasons, as opposed to the polyurethane finishes on their other mass produced nonsignature series of guitars.


The 1954 Les Paul Custom Reissue has pearl block inlayed position markers on the neck, and they look just like the originals, both in shape and color. There is a distinctive and attractive split diamond mother of pearl inlay on the headstock as well, which adds to the subtle elegance of this guitar. A single ply white binding adorns the neck. The neck has 22 frets and an Ebony fret board over a solid Mahogany neck, and there is even binding on the headstock. To add to the elegance, there is also multi-ply white/black binding on the sides of the front and back of the body of the guitar, as well as gold hardware that puts the icing on the cake.


The neck on the 1954 Les Paul Custom Reissue is an early 1950’s style, which some people refer to as a “baseball bat” neck because of its thickness. Personally, I love the neck on this guitar because it gives you something to grab onto, and provides proper leverage for those slow soulfully mean blues oriented string bends, and it is just wide enough for precision finger placement when playing lightning fast jazz riffs. The original 1954 Custom was also nicknamed the “Fretless Wonder” by some. That is because the wire used in making the frets was broad and flat, and this permitted the action of the guitar to be lower than on other guitars made at the time. When used in combination with the firm Ebony fretboard, the guitar was so easy to play, that people likened it to a fretless instrument, and thus the guitar earned the nickname “Fretless Wonder.” A problem with this design was that because the frets were so low to the fret board it was more difficult for some players to bend the strings for blues riffs, and blues players preferred the Les Paul Goldtop, and later the Les Paul Standard for that reason. Gibson has thankfully made the frets on the 1954 Reissue version a bit higher and they are medium sized, and this has made the 1954 Reissue suitable to any style of playing. The tuning pegs are kidney bean style tuners, and as mentioned above, the color of the hardware is gold. The bridge is an ABR-1 bridge, and the tailpiece is a stopbar. The contrast of the white, black, and gold color combinations are reminiscent of a “sharp dressed man” in a Tuxedo.


There are a few differences between the 1954 Goldtop Reissue and the 1954 Les Paul Custom Reissue which reflect the evolution of the Les Paul guitar as a musical instrument, and which improved the guitar both cosmetically and functionally. The 1954 Goldtop had a one-piece wrap-a-round bridge/tailpiece, and the strings wrap over the bridge/tailpiece. The design of the bridge/tailpiece on the 1954 Goldtop has similar attributes to the bridge on a good acoustic guitar. The biggest drawback with this tailpiece is that one cannot adjust the intonation of the strings with the same precision that one can with a modern tune-o-matic bridge. In an effort to improve the playability and functionality of the Les Paul line, the 1954 Custom was the first guitar to be fitted with the newly designed tune-o-matic bridge and stopbar tailpiece. This bridge, sometimes referred to as the ABR-1, was an instant success, and from then on, became the standard bridge found on the newer versions of the Goldtop, Les Paul Standard, and of course the Custom.


As to the sound, there is simply no other Les Paul that sounds like this one, and it is a wondrous instrument to hear. This guitar comes with one single coil P-90 pickup in the bridge position, as well as the then newly designed 480 Alnico 5 single coil pickup in the neck position. Both of these pickups of course preceded the introduction of the humbucking pickups in 1957. The sound of the P-90 in the bridge position can produce a wide variety of sounds, and enable the player to reproduce classic blues, rock, jazz, country, and just about anything in between. However, one of the things that sets this guitar apart from all other Les Paul’s is the 480 Alnico 5 pickup (sometimes incorrectly referred to as a P-90 Alnico 5 pickup).


Unlike the typical screw pole pieces in the P-90, the 480 has large rectangular pole pieces, which are both unique in shape and distinctive in sound. Most pickups made during this era had a long magnet with screw like pole pieces deriving their magnetic properties from proximity to the core magnet. The thing that sets the 480 apart from other pickups of this era was that the pole pieces themselves were actually individual magnets, and thus the 480 had six individual Alnico pole piece magnets. This pickup was designed by the legendary Seth Lover, who is best known as the inventor of the Humbucking pickup, which later revolutionized the sound of the Gibson guitar line. The 480 Alnico pickup found on the 1954 Gibson Les Paul Custom is nothing short of amazing. When it is cranked up to 10, it is more loud and powerful than a typical P-90, and produces a sound that can vary from warm creamy sound to a stingingly sweet bite. When the volume is turned down a bit, the 480 Alnico 5 produces a warm jazzy sound that just cannot be believed unless you hear it. Mr. Les Paul himself was noted to prefer the middle position on the toggle switch, thus engaging both pickups, and adjusting them to get the best of both worlds.


For the technically minded, there are 12 different types of Alnico magnets (Alnico 1 through 12), and Alnico 2 and Alnico 5 are the most commonly used in making guitar pickups, although Alnico 3, 4, 6, 7, and 8 have also been used at times. Each different Alnico Magnet has different magnetic properties, and each one has different sound characteristics. Alnico is a composite material that is made of a combination of Aluminum, Nickel, Cobalt, and Iron. Different types of Alnico magnets are used in different types of pickups, and each produces different sounds qualities. The original 1954 Les Paul Custom introduced the Alnico 5 pickup to the Les Paul, and these specially designed single coil pickups are also found on the 1954 Reissue. The Alnico 5 pickup employs a higher strength magnet with a very directional (Isotropic) pattern, and is noted for its distinctive tone. The pickups on this guitar produce a very classic and distinctive sound, and according to Gibson, every effort was made to be sure that these pickups were wound to the same specifications that were used in the 1950’s. For those of you out there who want to have a sound that is like no other, you must consider the 1954 Les Paul Custom because the 480 Alnico 5 pickup sounds like no other, and the combination of the P-90 and 480 is distinctively unique. The 480 Alnico 5 is a very rarely seen pickup, and was only used on Gibson’s top of the line jazz guitars and the Les Paul Custom, and they were only used for three years, beginning in 1954. Starting in 1957, when the Humbucking pickup was introduced, the production of the 480 was sadly discontinued.


The external controls are the same much what you would find on any modern Les Paul, namely two volume controls and two tone controls, one for each pickup. As with the 1952 and 1954 Goldtop Reissues, these controls are attached to “Bumblebee Capacitors.” I have discussed these in a previous review, and as such I do not want to take up the reader’s time by discussing them again here. For those interested in the specifics of the “Bumblebee Capacitors,” you may wish to read my review of the 1952 Goldtop Reissue.


The bottom line for me is this. This is my favorite Les Paul Guitar. It has amazing tonal variation, excellent control over intonation, and a sound like no other Les Paul ever made. This guitar was never as popular as other guitars in the Les Paul line of guitars, and its tonal qualities are not as well known because of this. For a musician who wants a distinctive sound, there is no other Les Paul that sounds like this one. For the collector, this is a must own guitar, and since so few of the originals were made, it may be the only way for a person to own a guitar that is this close to the original sound and feel of a 1954 Les Paul Custom Black Beauty Guitar. It is sure to keep its value, and may itself be a collector’s item some day. With that being said, I need to get back to my practicing.





Recommended:
Yes "

 

[SKATTERBRANE]

You would alway try to find a 1971 LE version, which was a pretty good reissue of the 1954 Custom.

 

[cochrane]

Currently have a pre-Hist '54 from '92. I'm pretty sure these ones aren't quite Historic/Vintage spec, in that the neck tenon doesn't appear to be long, and the TRC and pickguard are as per straightforward LPCs of that period. Heavy tailpiece and Grovers. Electronics (before I gutted and rewired) - 500k tone and 300k volume pots on that big metal ground plate (caps were repro Bumblebees). Otherwise, full solid mahog and ABR-1 bridge. Neck profile is neither super slim nor as chunky as current Histos, frets are modern. Neck pup is lovely.

 

[zhivago]

I have a 2003 one...great guitar, just under 10lbs

the alnico is powerful and unique...it makes T-Bone Walker sounds clean, distorted it is all-out mean

the P90 on the bridge makes so many of my favourite sounds, it's instant rock n' roll

it is a very versatile guitar, and IMO, looks absolutely amazing...worth every penny I paid for it, and after all the upgrades (tuners, tailpiece RS kit etc), it absolutely kills.

 

[zhivago]

man, this thread has sunk fast!

where is the love?