Along with the Fender Stratocaster, the Gibson Les Paul is synonymous with rock & roll and blues guitar. Though the shape and thick, chunky sound have stayed constant through the years, the details, from pickup selection to neck design, have changed to reflect Gibson’s continuing desire to innovate.
The last major round of alterations made to the Les Paul Standard come about in 2008. Some of the changes have gotten positive critiques while others have not. We’ll take a look at the details and let you decide for yourself.
There are various revisions to note, including a TonePros locking bridge and tailpiece, chambered body, Neutrik locking output jack, asymmetrical neck, Bourns pots, Grover Locking Tuners, Dunlop Strap Locks, and a Plek’d setup. Perhaps the most transparent change, if you’re even remotely familiar with Les Pauls, is that the new Standard is much lighter, obviously due to the chambered body.
You might guess that the modification in the body type could result in loss of sustain or tone, but that’s just not the case here. It has a balanced, thick tone that you’d expect from a Gibson Les Paul. One thing’s for sure, and it’s that the light weight will make the guitar much more “gigable,” since Les Pauls have been traditionally back-breakers.
We were encouraged to see some of the hardware upgrades, especially the TonePros bridge and tailpiece. Likewise, the Plek’d setup resulted in a really playable and terrific sounding instrument literally out of the box.
Granted, a minor truss rod adjustment was essential, but that’s ordinarily the case when you get a guitar via UPS. Out of the box, the instrument was pretty much gig-ready, a testimonial to both the Plek’d setup as well as the TonePros hardware.
The finish on the revised Standard is as terrific as ever. We went over a Heritage Cherry Sunburst finish that had just a stunning flame. We found no blemishes in either finish or fit, and the fret dressing and setup was as nice as we’ve ever seen from a production guitar. Gibson also opted to exclude the pickguard from this model, though you could easily install one if you miss it. The pickguard is included, however.
The neck profile has also undergone a transformation. It now has an asymmetrical profile, which is thicker on the bass side and thinner on the treble. Though it sounds a bit odd, the end result is a good one: increased playability.
It’s sort of a cross between a 50’s profile and a 60’s profile, but in one guitar. We don’t know if we should thank Gibson or Plex, but the fretwork was the finest we’ve seen from a stock Gibson, as was the setup.
As we put the instrument through its paces, we decided to respect a classic matchup, so we played through a Marshall Reissue JCM800. It was unquestionably a marriage made in heaven! The chambered body added a little ES-335 flavor, but only in a good way.
We were also surprised by the pickups, since we’re used to installing aftermarket pickups (e.g. Seymour Duncan), but the Burstbuckers did the job praiseworthily. They unquestionably let you know that you’re playing a Les Paul, since all the heavy sounds are here.
For all the preferential modifications in the new Les Paul Standards, there are a few modifications that we just didn’t get. For starters, we’ve never been a fan of locking input jacks. Granted, Neutrik jacks are as high quality as you can get, but that’s not the point. It’s more of a pain than a help, and we wish they hadn’t assumed all guitarists would want such a “convenience.”
Same goes for the PCB mounted volume and tone pots. In fact, all pots, the pickups, the selector switch, and the jack are all coupled to a main PCB board via pluggable connectors. While it’s cool in a way, it could also greatly hinder switching a pot or swapping pickups. We were left scratching our heads on this one.
Aside from these minor concerns, we think the freshest incarnation of the Gibson Les Paul Standard has a lot to offer and that it emphatically has the spirit of a classic Les Paul. If the revisions are not to your liking, Gibson now offers the “Les Paul Traditional” that is more, well, traditional. There’s something for everyone in Gibson’s Les Paul lineup.
If you are shopping for the absolute cheapest price on a new or used Gibson Les Paul Standard, then you must visit Ray’s Guitar Shop, which offers the best prices on all new and used guitars. It doesn’t matter if you’re shopping for a Fender Stratocaster, an Epiphone G-400, or a PRS Custom 22, Ray’s Guitar Shop has what you’re looking for!