Tell me what Les Paul copy you think is best

[Robert****]

We have touched on this topic but I couldn't find a thread about it, so I'm starting a new one.

What do we have for suggestions? I have not tried many Les Paul copies, so I can't contribute too much to the suggestions. I do like the Hagstroms I've tried. Some of their models are somewhat of a Les Paul style.

Please try mentioning a price range too when you mention the brand.

[Jimi75]

Hello Robert,

best choice in my opinion is the Les Paul made by a UK company called Vintage. They export in all countires and have of course distributors throughout the world.

They have a nice reliced 59 Paula for 395€ approx. 550 USD. The unreliced version goes for approx. 480 USD.

http://realguitars.de/htm/electrics.htm

Take a look at the VINTAGE ICON SERIES - it is unbelievable value and craftsmanship for this price.

Here's also the link to the company itself:
http://www.jhs.co.uk/vintageelectric.html

[Radioboy950]

I still say the Roundhouse w/HB.
http://www.betterguitar.com/equipmen...use_hb_fm.html
I really like Reverend's set-neck guitars. They feel good and play great for about $550.

And who knows, maybe you'd be lucky enough to score one w/P90's for free
http://reverendguitars.com/reverend/giveaways.html

[mrmudcat]

Around $1200(maybe a lil less or more depending on options) a new carvin cali single cut is the best thing going since sliced bread!! Yea I said it!!

The cs6 is the fancy maple quilted/flamed top base is $1379.......mine is the cs3 in all mahog body neck solid paint.(cheaper but total was $1358 including case)Here is a thread link that explains the new guitars.There is a 2-3 month wait though on the build and im not sure if this is to high but if it said gibby or pms it would be twice or three times as much!!:

http://www.carvinbbs.com/viewtopic.php?t=4810

no im not a carvin employee

[t_ross33]

Said it before, gonna say it again:

Hagstrom Super Swede

Gonna guess under a grand, street price ($600-700?)

Then again, I haven't played a lot of LP style axes, so wadda I know I did like the SS tho :

[abraxas]

If we are talking about "exact" copies and replicas, nothing beats the Japanese IMHO.

I'm talking about companies such as Edwards, Tokai and Orville and the now discontinued Greco.

I had a Tokai for a few months back in the 80s and it was one of the best LPs I had the opportunity to hold.

They don't come cheap (if we are talking about the Japanese models, because some of them have a Korean made line also). A good Edwards will set you back at least $700-$800 while some of the Tokais retail for more than $1500. But we are talking Gibson Custom Shop quality here (read, $3000+ price range).

Now, if we are after a "Les Paul Style" guitar, then Hagstroms are unbeatable in my opinion. In Europe, you can have a Select Swede with less than 600 euros and it's a guitar that needs nothing in terms of mods or tweaking to be "right". My point of reference is my Hagstrom Viking (a 335 type guitar) which looks, plays and sounds fantastic.

[Spudman***]

Abraxas has what I'd call the top 3 listed.
I'd also look at the upper end Agiles 3000 series and up. Great value. But for the real deal Tokai or Orville, but you'll be shelling out a chunk of change for them. Try an Epi Elitist too.

[hindmarsh]

I like Agile, they are quality Korean built and are solid. The higher end models have a 3/4" maple cap. Prices for the high end double cut are $370 and the single cut $450. He also has a variety of neck configurations, slim, wide, and standard. Here are a few links.

http://www.rondomusic.com/al3000mhsb.html
http://www.rondomusic.com/al3000rootbeerwide.html
http://cgi.ebay.com/Agile-Double-Cut...QQcmdZViewItem
http://stores.ebay.com/Rondo-Music-O...QQftidZ2QQtZkm

I also like my Michael Kelly Patriot custom - $499 included a hsc.
http://www.michaelkellyguitars.com/patriot_custom.html

[Brian Krashpad]

I have an Agile SG (Valkyrie II) and it's very solid. Plus Kurt at Rondo is great to work with, so an Agile LP is probably a good bet for $200-$400 USD. The new Xavieres from GFS have a great repurtaion as does GFS's honcho Jay, iirc they are in the $200-$300 USD range.

Tokai, Edwards, and Burny are the leading MIJ "exact" knockoff companies, as noted above, but are more pricey. Hamer USA makes doublecuts that are great and are often in the same price range used as a used LP Studio, for even less Hamer has an import line as well. In the higher tier of LP-types are used Guild Bluesbirds, although these are chambered and thus a bit different than trad LP's.

Last but not least there's the used DeArmond setnecks in the M-series, such as the M-72, M-75, and M-77. These are based on the old Guild Aristocrat (the guitar that later morphed into the Bluesbird with a slight restyling). You can find the DeArmonds on ebay in the $250-$400 USD range, they are MIK but with DeArmond pickups made in the US Fender plant.

[Justaguyin_nc]

I have an Agile SG (Valkyrie II) and it's very solid.

Nice run down on the LP types Brian..

I am interested in your Valkyrie though..
I keep looking at SG's or type of SG.. just to try one
How thick are those necks on the Valkyrie?
And does the different body shape make the neck less likely to divebomb?

Seems those are the things most mentioned.. balbat necks on SG's unless you get a slim tapered and the neck heavy problems.

Valkyrie's do look nice to me..and priced right.. $249 for the Valkyrie III
http://www.rondomusic.com/valkyriehc.html

[hubberjub***]

Not that I am a supporter of the company (they currently do more wrong than right) for the prices most of you are mentioning you can pick up a used Gibson Les Paul of some sort. Just thought I'd point out the obvious. Other than that a used USA Hamer is one of the best values around.

[Brian Krashpad]

Nice run down on the LP types Brian..

I am interested in your Valkyrie though..
I keep looking at SG's or type of SG.. just to try one
How thick are those necks on the Valkyrie?
And does the different body shape make the neck less likely to divebomb?

Seems those are the things most mentioned.. balbat necks on SG's unless you get a slim tapered and the neck heavy problems.

Valkyrie's do look nice to me..and priced right.. $249 for the Valkyrie III
http://www.rondomusic.com/valkyriehc.html

I don't recall the neck as being particularly thick on my Valkyrie, I'd uncase her and check directly, but I'm at the office (about half my guitars are here) and Val is at Casa Krashpad. On the divebomb issue, it's hard to say. My Valkyrie II doesn't dive as bad as my Epi G400 did, nor anywhere near as much as my Epi Flying V did (which was way worse than an SG). Additionally, the III models might dive a bit less after the body redesign, but mine has a slightly different body shape than the current, so I'm becessarily guessing.



If you moved the strap peg to the top of the upper horn, especially since it's been elongated on the III model, I'd think it'd solve most if not all of the neck-heavy issue.

To get back to the orignal post request, another guitar I left out because it doesn't really look like an LP, but which is a cheaper alternative and should sound very similar, is the Fernandes Ravelle. I got the Deluxe model, which has no Sustainer (something I'd rarely use) and comes stock with Seymour Duncan Jazz/JB pickups:



I got my used but minty Ravelle for $400 USD, I've heard of them occasionally going for even under $300 used.

[Bloozcat]

While a double cut LP style and not the traditional single cut LP, I find this one to be not only gorgeous, but feature packed too for $420.00. This is no modders special. It's a true plug in and play guitar as is:


A word about Agiles's improving quality: I own an original horn/headstock 2800 DLX Agile, and an AL 2500 DC with P-90's. The 2800 is supposed to be a better grade of guitar than a 2500, but the 2500 is actually a better built guitar. The 2500 is about 3 1/2 years newer than the 2800. So, how much better then are the AL 3000's? With the upgraded features and the ever improving fit and finish, I'd say substantially better.

[Duff]

I like that double cut agile LP. I bet one of those would be like the access on an SG to the frets. Plus it looks great. I saw a couple other brands of the same style tonight and played a Schecter one into a Crate VTX65B, nice amp, it sounded great. It was a fancy Schecter double cut LP style, not sure what model it was but fancy binding and beautiful quilted top and nice inlays, gold trim. I have a couple schecters that are both great guitars.

A lot of people don't know about the double cut LPs. I think it is an underexposed guitar. That Schecter really played and felt nice, plus looked super good. About 600.
That Crate ss amp was about 399.

I've got two Epi LP standards, one a plus top that I put SDs on and they are both very nice in every way. I have a 1966 SG Gibson copy epi G400 with the full pickguard that is really nice playing, looking, and sounding with the stock pickups, mysteriously. It looks like one solid slab of mahogany, beautiful cherry stain, highly varnished. Slim neck. Roars like a lion and chimes like a strat.

Duffy

[Brian Krashpad]

I like that double cut agile LP. I bet one of those would be like the access on an SG to the frets. Plus it looks great. I saw a couple other brands of the same style tonight and played a Schecter one into a Crate VTX65B, nice amp, it sounded great. It was a fancy Schecter double cut LP style, not sure what model it was but fancy binding and beautiful quilted top and nice inlays, gold trim. I have a couple schecters that are both great guitars.

A lot of people don't know about the double cut LPs. I think it is an underexposed guitar. That Schecter really played and felt nice, plus looked super good. About 600.

I agree about doublecut LP's, because of the iconic status of the singlecut design a lof of people don't realize there is such a thing as a DC LP, or if so, they don't consider it a "real" LP somehow. I briefly mentioned the Hamer doublecuts, both USA and import, in my first post on page one.

I have one of the USA Hamers and it's a great guitar. Mine is a Hamer Special, which is basically a P-90 LP Special minus the pickguard found on Gibbies, and with Hamer's 3-pot (vol/vol/master tone) setup rather than Gibby's 4-pot. These flattop Specials are out of production but can still be found on ebay, etc., used. I found mine used but VG+, no case/bag, in a local store for $450 USD about 5 years ago. I'm guessing they run around 6 bills now, depending on condition/case, etc. I added a pickguard to mine for a more trad look:



Of course Hamer still makes maple cap/archtop doublecuts, both USA and import, and both solidbody and semi-hollow. They also have what's basically an LP Junior clone called a Korina Special, USA-only sfaik, but those are particularly pricey compared to their Gibby counterparts (over a grand for a Junior, whereas you can find Gibby Juniors for $600-700). The thing about USA Hamers, though, is that they're basically all Gibson custom shop quality, if not better, as Hamer USA is still a small luthier shop with a little over a dozen artisans making the guitars, unlike the big factory-produced regular-run Gibbies.

Speaking of Gibbies, of course Gibson make doublecuts too, and on the used market these can run a bit less than the singlecut counterparts. The faded P-90 DC's I've seen go used for $450-$600 USD, depending on condition/case. The archtop humbucker versions are more. I found a used Gibby Les Paul Studio DC, 4 or so years ago for $525 in good condition w/a non-original hardshell case, and it's a great guitar:



Lastly, I agree with you on Schecter Diamond Series (their main line imports; Schecter also have a small USA custom shop) quality. A lot of their guitars are too blingy/superstratty for my personal tastes, though I dig their more "retro" models. In fact, I have a Tempest Special (out of production for a couple years) which is basically their Tempest body shape, but done as a flattop with P-90's, like a Gibson LP Special with a different shape:



I found this'un in VG condition, w/ohsc, locally for $250! The pickups are import Duncan Design P-90's and perfectly giggable stock. A nice feature (also found on my P-90 Agile Valkyrie "SG") is that one of the P-90's is reverse-wound/reverse-polarity, so that the middle position is hum-cancelling. Iirc Schecter still make an archtop Tempest with humbuckers.

All the above are good LP variants, depending on how broadly one defines a Les Paul. :

[Duff]

Really nice. Looks way better in person. Super nice.

[Brian Krashpad]

Here's an owner's pic of a Tempest with humbuckers, can be compared to my Tempest Special above:

[mechanic]

The best les paul copy I've tried out lately would have to be a Dillion.
It was a gold top copy, brand new priced at $395.
It felt alot better to me and sounded better than any other copy I've tried out.
Great guitar,not just "for the money" just a plain great guitar.
Eric