[Way Off-Topic] The Music Gear Thread

[Emil El Zapato]

Aragorn

Pete's playing today, Connear sounds very good not surpisingly.

[Aragorn]

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JN6PGtWpFXg

[Aragorn]

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hOkBl2q-CMc

[Emil El Zapato]

Van Nuys

I wish I could do that...

[Aragorn]

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8i4NEETAHQE

[Aragorn]

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rRzsY233DNQ

[Aragorn]

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r2vpU3hgbRs

[Aragorn]

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ypxXNXLMIEs

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YI67XRj_8PY

[Aragorn]

I took this picture last night, and it was the first time ever that I took a picture with my current phone, so it's a bit out of focus and the lighting is not exactly correct either. But it should give you an idea.

Attachment 2612

It is a 2002 Gibson Les Paul Standard Mahogany. That was the official name on Gibson's website, but what the name does not reflect is that it came with three pickups. Also, the pickups are not the Gibson Burstbucker Pro pickups that were en vogue on the Les Paul Standards of that era, but instead Gibson opted to put three uncovered Seymour Duncan SH-6 "Duncan Distortion" pickups in this model. They are scatterwound ceramic magnet pickups, and they sound very bright and articulate, as well as that they hit the front of the amplifier quite hard if you don't back off on the volume controls. Hence the "Distortion" moniker, of course ─ they were intended for hard rock and heavy metal sounds. As the name of the model says, it also has a top made of mahogany ─ like the rest of the guitar ─ instead of the maple used on other Les Paul Standards, resulting in a somewhat sweeter and warmer attack.

I bought this guitar in February 2003, but the serial number indicates that it was built in January of 2002; it is not uncommon for Gibson guitars to be laying around at the distributor's warehouse for a year or longer ─ my Firebird VII came straight out of Gibson Europe's warehouse in 2005, while its serial number indicates that it was built in 2003.

To this very day, my Les Paul is my most expensive guitar. I seem to remember that I paid €3'163 for it, and that amount does not cover the significant discount I got from the music shop because I had just bought another Gibson only three months earlier. But back at the time, the Euro was still new as a currency, and it still stood very weak opposite the US Dollar. As the matter of fact, the exchange rate was about the exact opposite of what it is now, which may explain the high retail price. But at the same time, Gibsons were very expensive in those days. It is only under the new ownership ─ since about 2017/2018 ─ that the prices were significantly lowered again.

Lastly and to top it all off, I'm also pretty convinced that I'm the only one in Belgium who owns one of these. When I put in the order, I was literally told that the importer had one of them in stock, and he was the importer for the whole of Europe at the time, before Gibson established its own European distribution center in the Netherlands ─ which is where my Firebird came from.

This particular Les Paul Standard Mahogany model was only in production for about two years ─ from the fall of 2001 until the middle of 2003 ─ and only in small numbers, even though it wasn't officially listed on Gibson's website as a limited edition model.

As it just so happens to be, I've just come across a (still fairly recent) Youtube video of a 2002 Gibson Les Paul Standard Mahogany just like mine. It should give you an idea of what it sounds like and what it looks like from up close.

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J8Xbj46kcHU

[Aragorn]

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3SVlsmQffV4

[Wind]

I've been admiring the sparkling Burgundy version, but the price is around 2,666 euros here. One day!


Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v5m93JZKFlw

[Aragorn]

I've been admiring the sparkling Burgundy version, but the price is around 2,666 euros here. One day!

If you want my personal opinion, I'd advise you to go for a Les Paul Classic instead. They're quite a bit less expensive, they have the same switching options, they come in beautiful sunburst finishes, and they're not chambered — the Les Paul Modern has the so-called ultra-modern weight relief, which is actually a form of chambering.

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3nZAdIy6KNU

[Wind]

If you want my personal opinion, I'd advise you to go for a Les Paul Classic instead. They're quite a bit less expensive, they have the same switching options, they come in beautiful sunburst finishes, and they're not chambered — the Les Paul Modern has the so-called ultra-modern weight relief, which is actually a form of chambering.

That's something I have to consider, although I'll have plenty of time to do so as it's not relevant now.

If I'll get the chance then perhaps I should go to some music store and compare and test those guitars.

[Aragorn]

That's something I have to consider, although I'll have plenty of time to do so as it's not relevant now.

If I'll get the chance then perhaps I should go to some music store and compare and test those guitars.

That's always the best approach. Sometimes the one you intended to buy turns out not to be the best one.

[Aragorn]

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G8H8_BEUokg