Les Paul Preference: Classic, Trad., Std.?

  • Thread starter Thread starter MistaGuitah
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My old 2002 Claasic weighed about 10 lbs, and was one of the cheapest models back then. Who knew they'd be cherished these days. Or the horrible Norlins, for that matter. That Classic can hang with anything after a pickup electronics swap.
The current Slash standards have a feel that's like a mix of that old classic and an R8. I think the beefier neck adds some body to the sound. Gotta run the racks to find the good ones.
I'm Jonesing for the AJ Standard.
Was out looking for an LP Custom when I ended up with an ES-335. Man, what a guitar. Again, huge discrepancy in playability from guitar to guitar of the same model. Play em all.
 
My #1 is a 2010 Traditional with a 60's neck. A few years ago I did swap out the bridge pickup for a JB, had 50's wiring and jumbo stainless frets installed. Won't ever sell it.

I also have recently owned a 2020 Standard with a 50's neck, and a 2022 Standard with a 60's neck. The 2020 was a great guitar! My only issue was that the bridge pickup would squeal with heavy gain. The 2022 was really good but I did not like the bridge pickup. Too bright.
 
Early 90s Special with P-100s. Very unique tones.
A9E250C0-D1D8-4A14-A1E6-57432184D387.jpeg
 
Bardagh said:
The price of Norlins is crazy. In the 2000's it was like nobody wanted them, kinda like JCM 800's.
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Word !! When I was in college int he 70's these were considered THE WORST . I still think they are .
 
My very first LP was 2000 Classic and I was so in love with the skinny neck.

The older I get though, I really dig 50s style necks more. So anything with a fat neck to be honest
 
Tried a bunch of LesPauls and fell in love with the Classic. Neck felt great and sounded good to my ears.

Something about the Standard and Studio models I didnt bond with.

Cheers
 
Bash_Man said:
same with my 2020 classic. anytime I play i pick it up right away.
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I have 2022 or 2021 and love it. I just had to change the tuning keys got some locking ones and the pickups to suhr aldrich. But yeah it's one of my favorite pieces of gear. Just wish I had another one with a different top
 
ClintN667 said:
I have 2022 or 2021 and love it. I just had to change the tuning keys got some locking ones and the pickups to suhr aldrich. But yeah it's one of my favorite pieces of gear. Just wish I had another one with a different top
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funny that exactly what I did to mine with locking Tuners. Just got the Grover ones, quick install direct exchange for the factory grover ones.
 
MistaGuitah said:
The reason I still buy Les Laul Classics is because they're a little cheaper. They Classics I used to own had fairly hot ceramic pickups called Dirty Fingers, but it looks like the newer ones come with Alnico V Burstbuckers. As far as I know, they're weight-relieved like the Traditionals, while the Standard is not weight-relieved. Between the Classic and Traditional, it kind of boils down to whether you want a figured maple cap or plain maple. Personally, I'd rather save the money and get a classic. I can always sort through several and find one with an attractive top.

I've seen some people say they got a Traditional because they didn't like the 61 Burstbuckers, but turn right around and say the first thing they did was replace the pickups. I'm pretty experienced with pickups and can say with a reasonable degree of qualification that the 61 Burstbuckers are just as good as the others. In fact, they seem like a great choice since the pots are push/pull for coil-tapping and their slightly brighter edge lends well to that.

Which of the 3 do you prefer and why?
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I've heard from numerous Gibson aficionado's that all Les Paul's ( Except Customs) are weight relieved going back decades including standards .


LP Classic:
first LP Classic - autumn 2006 ( traditional weight relief )
autumn 2006 - spring 2012 ( chambered )
spring 2012 - 2015 ( traditional weight relief )
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LP Standard:
somewhere in 1983 - autumn 2006 ( traditional weight relief )
autumn 2006 - spring 2012 ( chambered )
spring 2012 - now ( modern weight relief )
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Every guitar Gibson produced from 82 had the 9 hole weight relief
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ccn said:
I've heard from numerous Gibson aficionado's that all Les Paul's ( Except Customs) are weight relieved going back decades including standards .
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Then Gibson has lied to all of us. The specs specifically say that some models were not weight relived.
 
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Geo said:
Then Gibson has lied to all of us. The specs specifically that some models wee not weight relived.
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I don't doubt it at all because I flipped when I was informed of this a while back . I have a 1990 Standard and never in a million years thought it could be weight relieved but I was told they all are going way back to the early 80's . There are plenty of Gibson and Les Paul specific forums where you can just do a basic search and read about it .
 
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The more recent Trads and Standards are not weight relieved. The early Trads had 9-hole relief at the time because the Standards at the time were practically hollow. Then around '13 the Trad became completely solid and the Standard followed a few years later.
 
cardinal said:
The more recent Trads and Standards are not weight relieved. The early Trads had 9-hole relief at the time because the Standards at the time were practically hollow. Then around '13 the Trad became completely solid and the Standard followed a few years later.
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Are you positive or is that a rumor because I'm hearing it's really really really difficult to find anything in Gibson's line that isn't heavily weight relieved these days.
 
Anything that doesn’t have a laminate top isn’t going to be weight relieved, obviously. I have an 06 Explorer that doesn’t seem to be as heavy as you would expect for such a huge slab of mahogany. Maybe the shape of it balances it out.

The aforementioned LP signature player plus I have is definitely not weight relieved, it feels like the proverbial boat anchor strapped to your shoulder, even compared to that Explorer.
 
ccn said:
Are you positive or is that a rumor because I'm hearing it's really really really difficult to find anything in Gibson's line that isn't heavily weight relieved these days.
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I know when Gibson came out of the near-Bankrupt period back around 2018ish and had to start getting back to basics and focus on marketing, the non-weight relief thing was popular again. My 2019 is definitely not weight relieved and I think it is 9 pounds? I'd have to look it up but is a rock compared to my 2013 Classic.

I haven't looked up up in awhile but I thought Modern Standard models were weight relieved and regular Standard models were not.
 
My favorite overall guitar is my 2007 68ri lpc. It has a very large neck and the antique pelham is the coolest color, I even dig the 57 classics in it, it's just perfect imo. That said, I've got 2 standards and 2 customs, each in a different tuning, different pickups etc. Each is set up to be the perfect guitar for what I use them for. So in a way, they are all my favorite for what they do, if that makes sense.
 
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