Question about two recent acquisitions
Marketplace has been good to me this month with two beautiful bargain Les Pauls. The one in the left is a ‘21 Tribute in mint condition (seriously - looks like it came off the factory floor yesterday). My 16yo son got this one for $650. On the right is a ‘98 Special (maybe SL, though I’ve read conflicting stories that the SLs said SL on the headstock, and this one does not. Also, the finish reacted to the acetone test on the inside of the cavity…doesn’t feel like nitro, but acetone softens it right up). This one has fine scratches all over and a couple small dings in the body, but no buckle rash or anything major, and it was still a deal at $500.
Both of them have the 490r/498t pickup set. I’ve opened both bodies to confirm.
But they sound completely different.
The Tribute sounds like a perfect Les Paul to me. Plenty of chug, with a shimmer on top of it. The special is all chug, no shimmer. It still sounds great, but not as good to my ears as the Tribute.
I’ve spent days setting up the Special, the Tribute is likely still sporting the excellent factory setup. It plays so well, I don’t feel the need to mess with it. I’ve set up the Special with the same strings, same pole height, same pickup height as the Tribute.
The Tribute is weight relieved with a maple cap, coming in at a svelte 7lbs. It’s sporting a pcb system, but as far as I can tell, it still has 500k pots and .22 caps. It has a maple neck.
The special is NOT weight relieved. It’s a built on a hearty piece of “good wood era” mahogany, with no maple cap, and tips the scale at about 9.2lbs. It has Gibson branded full size pots with 50s wiring and .22 caps, but they are the small, round, orange ones. It has a mahogany neck.
Who do the guitars sound so different? Is it the maple cap? Is there a way to get the shimmer out of the Special, or is it just a chug machine? New pups…different cap/wiring?
I also have an Epi 1959 with the Gibson custom specs (non weight relieved mahogany body, full thickness maple cap, Burstbucker 2/3, 50s wiring with orange drop caps. It sounds more like the tribute than the special. Plenty of chug and shimmer.
Marketplace has been good to me this month with two beautiful bargain Les Pauls. The one in the left is a ‘21 Tribute in mint condition (seriously - looks like it came off the factory floor yesterday). My 16yo son got this one for $650. On the right is a ‘98 Special (maybe SL, though I’ve read conflicting stories that the SLs said SL on the headstock, and this one does not. Also, the finish reacted to the acetone test on the inside of the cavity…doesn’t feel like nitro, but acetone softens it right up). This one has fine scratches all over and a couple small dings in the body, but no buckle rash or anything major, and it was still a deal at $500.
Both of them have the 490r/498t pickup set. I’ve opened both bodies to confirm.
But they sound completely different.
The Tribute sounds like a perfect Les Paul to me. Plenty of chug, with a shimmer on top of it. The special is all chug, no shimmer. It still sounds great, but not as good to my ears as the Tribute.
I’ve spent days setting up the Special, the Tribute is likely still sporting the excellent factory setup. It plays so well, I don’t feel the need to mess with it. I’ve set up the Special with the same strings, same pole height, same pickup height as the Tribute.
The Tribute is weight relieved with a maple cap, coming in at a svelte 7lbs. It’s sporting a pcb system, but as far as I can tell, it still has 500k pots and .22 caps. It has a maple neck.
The special is NOT weight relieved. It’s a built on a hearty piece of “good wood era” mahogany, with no maple cap, and tips the scale at about 9.2lbs. It has Gibson branded full size pots with 50s wiring and .22 caps, but they are the small, round, orange ones. It has a mahogany neck.
Who do the guitars sound so different? Is it the maple cap? Is there a way to get the shimmer out of the Special, or is it just a chug machine? New pups…different cap/wiring?
I also have an Epi 1959 with the Gibson custom specs (non weight relieved mahogany body, full thickness maple cap, Burstbucker 2/3, 50s wiring with orange drop caps. It sounds more like the tribute than the special. Plenty of chug and shimmer.