spender81 Posted January 6, 2017 Share Posted January 6, 2017 Hi all, I´ve just sold my 1976 les paul standard and i´m looking for a newer les paul standard.. I´ve heard alot about les paul standards from the 90´s being the best?? I´m also looking at a 2009 57 goldtop VOS... Don´t want to spend anymore than ca £1600/1600euros/1650 Dollars I want something that has sustain and not to heavey... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IanHenry Posted January 6, 2017 Share Posted January 6, 2017 Spender, the best thing is to go out and try as many Les Pauls as you can. I think if your looking for the natural successor you Standard your best bet is the Les Paul Traditional, but even then you've got to choose between a Traditional T (that's really a Traditional Traditional :unsure: ) or the High Performance model. I hope you didn't think this was going to be easy! Good luck, Ian Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pippy Posted January 6, 2017 Share Posted January 6, 2017 I´ve heard a lot about les paul standards from the 90´s being the best??...I´m also looking at a 2009 57 goldtop VOS... I want something that has sustain and not to heavy... Taking your points in order; I don't think any set of years is necessarily any better than any other. Having said that over the last eight years or so I've bought four LP "Standards" (two '1960 Classic' and two RI's) and they were all built between '91 and '95... If you can try out the '57 Re-Issue and it's a good one then you really can't go wrong. The RI's tend to be a bit better than the regular USA-line fare. If weight might be an issue then, again, the RI's are good because Gibson uses lighter mahogany for the body blanks for these instruments. Other than that some of the chambered Standards (from c. 2006?) can be easy on the back and shoulders. As Ian has just said please go out and try as many as you can find; they really DO vary from one to the next even within the same model. Good luck in the chase! Pip. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kidblast Posted January 6, 2017 Share Posted January 6, 2017 I don't really think any one can reliably say with any facts at all that one years/decades builds are superior to any others in general terms. like Farns mentions, The only thing for you to do is shop em hard in the price range you've committed to. I have a 95 standard that's in great shape, and has been a very solid buy for me (bought new in august of 95). it's one of the electrics I'd NEVER part with. But my 2002 standard, everybit as solid a build. (60s neck vs 59 RN on the 95) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Farnsbarns Posted January 6, 2017 Share Posted January 6, 2017 I don't really think any one can reliably say with any facts at all that one years/decades builds are superior to any others in general terms. like Farns mentions, The only thing for you to do is shop em hard in the price range you've committed to. I have a 95 standard that's in great shape, and has been a very solid buy for me (bought new in august of 95). it's one of the electrics I'd NEVER part with. But my 2002 standard, everybit as solid a build. (60s neck vs 59 RN on the 95) Like all these theories about good and bad years, it depends who you talk to. I sold my 02 standard to a friend. I had 2 people who had both heard that 2002 was a magic year and they both wanted it. I sold it for enough to buy a reissue, nearly double what I paid new. Sold in 2010 I think. It was a great LP, no doubt, and I wanted as much as I could get like anyone selling anything so I took the highest offer. I don't believe in good and bad years. I think I'll always avoid 2012 and 2015 but specifically because I don't like the idea of laminated fret boards and I definitely don't want the 2015 features. So really I'm avoiding features I don't like, not years. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spender81 Posted January 6, 2017 Author Share Posted January 6, 2017 Hmmmmm alot to take in... Since i live in Sweden i´m a bit limited for choice, guess i´ll have to try anything and everything i can get my hands on.. What confuses me is all the titles, Traditional, classic, premium, and i´ve just found a cheapish les classic 60 from 1997 just down the road.. and then i do like the VOS 1957 goldtop.. Would the VOS 57 goldtop be both a good investment and better than the others (Standards, classics, traditional and so on...)? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sparquelito Posted January 6, 2017 Share Posted January 6, 2017 If it's a genuine Gibson, it doesn't especially matter what model it is. It will retain its value. My recommendation is to go for the model that appeals to you most, and if you are blessed to be able to try it out beforehand, with your own hands, all the better. My own problem, as a lifelong guitar addict, is that my desires and ambitions are very much a matter of the whimsy of the day. Somedays a Les Paul gold-top appeals to me. Other days a white Custom like Lindsey Buckingham used to play. On yet another day, I crave a black Studio with chrome hardware and naked pickups. Or a swamp ash Les Paul like the one depicted below. I really shouldn't be trusted, I guess that's what I'm saying. I'm like a kid in a candy store, and then a squirrel runs by, and I'm like, "SQUIRREL!!" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kidblast Posted January 6, 2017 Share Posted January 6, 2017 Hmmmmm alot to take in... Since i live in Sweden i´m a bit limited for choice, guess i´ll have to try anything and everything i can get my hands on.. What confuses me is all the titles, Traditional, classic, premium, and i´ve just found a cheapish les classic 60 from 1997 just down the road.. and then i do like the VOS 1957 goldtop.. Would the VOS 57 goldtop be both a good investment and better than the others (Standards, classics, traditional and so on...)? I can't be sure of this but check the specs on the mid / late 90s classics, just be mindful of the 500 series (ceramic) pickups. These tend to be very hot and don't carry what most of us consider a traditional Les Paul tone. Traditionals are what revisit of what "standards" once were, Since Gibson started pushing the specs around for the Standards, the Trads were a product line that more or less held true to the specs from what the Standard LPs used typically were) especially when 2015 rolled around and they made all kinds of changes to the standard lineup. I think it may be that the Premiums have more to do with the cosmetics that internal specs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pippy Posted January 6, 2017 Share Posted January 6, 2017 What confuses me is all the titles, Traditional, classic, premium, and i´ve just found a cheapish les classic 60 from 1997 just down the road.. and then i do like the VOS 1957 goldtop.. Would the VOS 57 goldtop be both a good investment and better than the others (Standards, classics, traditional and so on...)? The Traditional model is quite similar to the '57-'60 originals in many ways. More so than most of the Standards built over the last 56 years. A 2013 Traditional is the exception to the 'year doesn't matter' mantra as for this one year the Les Paul Traditional was not weight-relieved nor sullied by commemorative nonsense. If, of course, you think any of that matters at all. The early '1960 Classic' models were a half-way-house between the then Standard and the Re-Issue Standards. After roughly 1995, however, the models' specs were 'diluted' somewhat. Still; Very Good Guitars. The ceramic p'ups need to be understood if the best is to be extracted from them but once they ARE understood they are very good p'ups indeed. I dislike contradicting what kidblast has just said but if you are a fan of, say, Aerosmith/G'n'R style rock then the ceramics are without a doubt the p'ups to have. Rolled back they can even get to within, say, 10% of a good PAF replica such as a '57 Classic. IMX, of course. 'Premium' just means 'fancy top'. No More; No Less. No regular modern Les Paul is ever going to be a good investment in the proper meaning of the word. Frankly there are too many being made. Having said that; the reissues will probably fare better than the USA-line guitars as they are simply better instruments in the first place and built in smaller numbers. Pip. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
'Scales Posted January 6, 2017 Share Posted January 6, 2017 Yep. IMO no guitar should be considered a financial (as opposed to emotional) investment unless you are a dealer/flipper - in fact I'd speculate that the less you pay for a (genuine) Gibson, the less you will lose in real dollar terms on resale - if you can buy a reissue LP for 1600 that kind of says it all. I agree with others to find the one you really love if possible - and then perhaps the inspiration it gives you to play the heck out of it and do heaps of paid gigs may be the closest it comes to being a financial return and clearly an awesome emotional return. Enjoy the fun of finding a beauty! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Megafrog Posted January 7, 2017 Share Posted January 7, 2017 Spender, depending on where in Sweeden you live, there is a great guitar store in Copenhagen called 4Sound. When I go to Denmark on business and want to try something I can't find in the states, 4Sound is where I go. They do business by appointment for trying out Gibsons so call in advance if you go. Not too bad of a commute there if you are in Malmö or around there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
american cheez Posted January 7, 2017 Share Posted January 7, 2017 What confuses me is all the titles, Traditional, classic, premium, and i´ve just found a cheapish les classic 60 from 1997 just down the road.. and then i do like the VOS 1957 goldtop.. you can brush all of that aside, it's not important. any time the question is "which guitar should i buy?" the answer is always the same: pick the red one it's scientific Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spender81 Posted January 7, 2017 Author Share Posted January 7, 2017 Spender, depending on where in Sweeden you live, there is a great guitar store in Copenhagen called 4Sound. When I go to Denmark on business and want to try something I can't find in the states, 4Sound is where I go. They do business by appointment for trying out Gibsons so call in advance if you go. Not too bad of a commute there if you are in Malmö or around there. Hi, i´ve just been to my local 4sound and tried a few Les pauls, I´ve ran into a slight issue, It seems like I have to forget the standards and go for an Custom shop , R7,R8 , or basically the higher end of the les paul market.. I tried a 58 custom shop, it was very nice. I´ll have to save up the extra cash.. Next problem is.. Are there any of the newer custom shop that i should avoid?? any changes for better or worse? Or it is the case of just try every one that i can get my hands on?? The R7 VOS is now sold otherwise i would have taken it.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cleburne Posted January 10, 2017 Share Posted January 10, 2017 I own 14 geetars....everyone I treasure because I took the time to play them, over and over, until I was satisfied with tone and playability. That being said, out of my 3 Pauls, I love my 2012 Studio Custom. I just love the feel of the guitar, It fits me. Yes, it has Burstbucker Pros, not P90's or more classic pickups, but it is a player. That is the thing about guitars. If you want to pick it up 1st out of all of your gear, that's the one you would be on a deserted island with...my 2 cents, For What It's Worth. ~ Buffalo Springfield. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
1all's Pub Posted January 10, 2017 Share Posted January 10, 2017 There's not really one year or set of years that is all "good" (or all "bad" for that matter). You just have to play them to find out which one you like best and what fits you. If you want a Standard from the 90s then seek one out and see if you like it, but if you run into, say, a 2006 or a 2011 or <fill in the blank year> that you connect with then, that's the one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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