i got approved at sam ash for 2500.
ive been told to avoid the studio les paul.

suggestions?

Ive got this one. I won it in a competition. It is very basic but perfect for me. This post isnt really relevant as they only cost around 650 dollars.

the studio les pauls are truly awesome, anyone who hates on them is some kind of weirdo purist/elitist/rich asshole, or someone who experienced a badly made one i guess. they are great guitars.

however, if your willing to spend 2500, i suggest just going there and seeing which you like best. the differences between LPs in that price range is pretty subtle. personally i would go for the LP with the floyd rose and the P90 in the neck, or a regular goldtop. thats just me.

the way i figure it is id rather spend the extra money for an investment that should be the only guitar ill ever need to buy.

im kinda in love with this one. but its $1900.

Originally posted by: dylantasch

the studio les pauls are truly awesome, anyone who hates on them is some kind of weirdo purist/elitist/rich asshole, or someone who experienced a badly made one i guess. they are great guitars.

however, if your willing to spend 2500, i suggest just going there and seeing which you like best. the differences between LPs in that price range is pretty subtle. personally i would go for the LP with the floyd rose and the P90 in the neck, or a regular goldtop. thats just me.

ideally id spend around 1200-1500.
it'd be sweet if i could spend less OBV.

you should look into agile guitars too. same guitars, different name, way cheaper. rondomusic.com, idk if youve seen em before but they are seriously great. it seems too good to be true but its true. that being said, if i could afford it, id get a gibson anyway. because gibson swag.

exactly. ive wanted a gibson les paul since ive been 12. its expensive as shit but itll be so worth it.

Traditional Plus desert burst:



My favorite finish/neck/pickups of all Pauls, $2300 new, or you can get one used for $1600-$2000

Studios are excellent buys and there's a reason Gibson sells so many.


As a side-note, I was a sworn LP guy for years but plugging in an ESP Eclipse (not an ltd, which are fine but feel different to me) converted me. Theyre much cheaper, just something to consider (lesson learned; just because people say actives are soulless to them doesn't mean they will be to you).

so i ended up getting the gibson les paul classic custom. it rules.


cool story i know.

Jealous

Also congrats on owning the dream

Originally posted by: squanto

Traditional Plus desert burst:



My favorite finish/neck/pickups of all Pauls, $2300 new, or you can get one used for $1600-$2000

Studios are excellent buys and there's a reason Gibson sells so many.


As a side-note, I was a sworn LP guy for years but plugging in an ESP Eclipse (not an ltd, which are fine but feel different to me) converted me. Theyre much cheaper, just something to consider (lesson learned; just because people say actives are soulless to them doesn't mean they will be to you).

I'm right there with you. While I only have a $900 LTD EC-1000, I will one day get the ESP eclipse and shit all over my band and self the first time I plug it in. They just sound sooooo good. Plus if you're really THAT against actives, you can just buy a pair of S. Duncans and swap em out which shouldn't be an issue considering you're spendin $1200 on a guitar.

Originally posted by: KTroublesome

Originally posted by: squanto

Traditional Plus desert burst:



My favorite finish/neck/pickups of all Pauls, $2300 new, or you can get one used for $1600-$2000

Studios are excellent buys and there's a reason Gibson sells so many.


As a side-note, I was a sworn LP guy for years but plugging in an ESP Eclipse (not an ltd, which are fine but feel different to me) converted me. Theyre much cheaper, just something to consider (lesson learned; just because people say actives are soulless to them doesn't mean they will be to you).

I'm right there with you. While I only have a $900 LTD EC-1000, I will one day get the ESP eclipse and shit all over my band and self the first time I plug it in. They just sound sooooo good. Plus if you're really THAT against actives, you can just buy a pair of S. Duncans and swap em out which shouldn't be an issue considering you're spendin $1200 on a guitar.

i love these guitars too, i used to have the EC-400 and even that was awesome.

Originally posted by: dylantasch

Also congrats on owning the dream

thanks man.

now if it could only make me a better guitarist hahaha

I have a Les Paul, they're great guitars. However, I wouldn't buy a new one, because their quality has gone downhill steadily for the last 20 years or so. If you can find a nice vintage Paul, get that instead. It'll probably be cheaper, they sound better broken in, and you won't be giving money to a company that decided to fuck over small independent retailers and only sell their guitars at big box music retailers.

Don't buy a new LP.

If you HAVE to use sam ash credit... get a standard. The 80's to mid 90's studios are awesome but the materials and craftsmanship since on those models has gone to shit.

If you can, look into 70's and 80's standards. Less money, better guitar.