SG or Les Paul

[bluefire98]

I already have an epiphone les paul studio and played a worn epiphone sg once. The question is, should I get a sg or something else. I also have a peavey generation exp (3 single coil tele) and I want something different in tone and style. I can't exactly recall how an sg sounds (g.a.s. amnesia ), but I don't just want a different looking les paul. I do have to say, after seeing this, you can probably guess which one I'm leaning towards...

 

http://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/SGDXCFCB-13/

[charlie brown]

SG's take a little getting used to...BUT, once you do, they're awesome!

They have exactly the same scale neck, as the Les Paul, but it seems so

much longer, due to the neck/body joining position, and subsequent upper

fret access. They tend to be a bit more "mid-range" prone, less bottom

end, than a Les Paul. As to whether or not, that's good or bad, is up

to you/your preferences, or needs. Most of that difference, can be easily

compensated for, by adjusting amp settings. Some folks complain, that the

SG's are "neck heavy." Some are...but, a good strap will compensate for

that. However, my own SG's are both very well balanced, and not neck heavy,

at all!

 

So...If I could only have ONE solid body Humbucker guitar, it would be the SG!

Don't get me wrong, I love my Les Paul's! But, my SG's are just outstanding,

in every way.

 

CB

[bluefire98]

Thank you very much for your input. and yes, the 1 thing i remember about the sg was that it had serious neck dive, but i was sitting down without a strap at guitar center playing it, plus i was sick (never go to guitar center sick, it messes with you). oh, to anyone else who wants to add, don't be picture shy! \:D/

[capmaster]

SG and Les Paul are rather different, even when equipped with same type pickups. The only thing that sucks is to have not at least one of them each.

 

As I am a regular user of piezos and HiFi-like acoustic amps for a real acoustic tone, I couldn't do without my Alex Lifeson Les Paul Axcess and my SG Supra. OK, but I also couldn't do without my Fender Nashville Power Telecasters and my piezo-modded Fender FR Strats...

 

The best thing about LP and SG IMHO is to save money on having them both since they are worth it.

[Big Norm]

My favorite is the Casino, but if I would have choice between the 2 submitted, I would go straight to Les Paul. I really don't like SG's. But it's really personal.

[milod]

I have one solidbody six-string. Period.

 

It's an early '70s Guild S100c, functionally an SG clone.

 

I don't care for Fender necks, don't care for the "feel" of an LP.

 

Big Norm is absolutely correct that it's very personal.

 

I have two semis and four full hollows. The rest basically are variations on AE.

 

Actually I'd suggest that you try a batch.

 

Each of us will feel a degree of literal physical comfort with some guitar shapes and scales; and less comfort with other guitar shapes.

 

Me, I started on a classical, so regardless of style of music I'm playing, I've tended to feel most comfortable with guitars that are roughly the same size and scale.

 

Seriously, I think one "raised" on a Fender neck may find guitars with less fingerboard radius and a less "club-like" neck something they'd like to seek to reproduce on another style of guitar. Not me. Also one "raised" on solidbodies seems to me to be likely to be more comfortable with something in that general size, scale and playing geometry.

 

I know a lotta folks are kinda tone freaks, but honestly, although each guitar brings something different to challenge the player to apply technique somewhat differently, I think we're most likely to play and sound best on a guitar that just plain fits our personal "geometry" and habit. You're never going to sound exactly like somebody else regardless of your talent, skill and equipment.

 

My arms, for example, are short - a 32-inch U.S. dress shirt's sleeve is too long for me. I think that's one reason I prefer the shorter scale. Also, I just plain feel most comfortable with a full hollow or flattop that's about the size of a classical guitar because I can play it with similar overall geometry. OTOH, I have some big flattops to beat on with Bluegrass/old time and some less climate-sensitive semis.

 

As for SG vs Les Paul... I love my old Guild that has a very similar geometry vs the SG. It may be more likely to neck dive if you wear it as a jock strap instead of higher on the body.

 

It works well with anything from rock to country to blues to jazz and - I've even done classical on it. I've just gotten a bit more protective of it the past 10 years or so and an Epi Dot is not the loss if something horrid happened. And the Dot is a really nice substitute for any style of music regardless that it has an entirely different geometry.

 

Again, I'd suggest that you try a batch of different stuff.

 

 

m

['Scales]

yep - what Charlie Brown said.

 

PS - 100 watts of Marshall should provide any extra bottom end you might need.

 

PPS - unless you are prone to clumsiness ... they dont handle dropping too good - in which case maybe go for a telecaster... ;)

[milod]

Yup, Fenders do make far better bayonets in case of a saloon contretemps - and luckily I was playing a Fender bass when such need arose many years ago.

 

But for six-string playing...

 

BTW, CB's feeling that the SG seems to have a longer neck ain't my experience - and the 335/Dot seems as if it has a much longer neck than either.

 

Kinda proves to me that each of us has a different feel and geometry that is not idly to be ignored.

 

As for amps... yeah, and that's an entirely different discussion.

 

m

[Bluemans335]

You already have an LP, so get an SG, great pair. Each has it's own sound and feel, and inspires you in different ways. I have both an switch back and forth between them. If you're in a rut playing with one, pick up the other.

[bluefire98]

Alrighty then, i think i have enough feedback to assume that the sg is the winner. And to the people that said it's always better to have both, then getting an sg would be the best option as i already have a les paul. I will be going to guitar center sometime this august to make a final decision, but i probably won't buy from there. Thank you very much, just wanted to make sure i wasn't getting a pointy les paul.

:D/

[STEVIL]

An SG, but then I'm biased, I love them. My next port of call is an LP though.

[Bluemans335]

just wanted to make sure i wasn't getting a pointy les paul.

 

It's a very different feeling and sounding guitar. Small, lightweight body, and a long neck. You have full neck access at the 22nd fret. Neck PU's aren't as bassy/boomy in SG's either. Gives you more tonal possibilities when you have a couple guitars that aren't exactly alike. A lot of big name players who've played Gibsons have used both LP's and SG's, in fact probably most of them. Great pairing of guitars.

[bluefire98]

One last question, i've read a lot of stuff that says sg's are unbalanced, and that they are prone to neck dive, while some people say it's completely balanced if you have a good strap. my dad also once told me he didn't like sg's as much as he liked les pauls because the body of an sg kind of dug into his armpit. i'm fairly tall (~6') so i don't think this should be a problem. Now, if anyone has had these issues, give me a heads up!

[milod]

We've got an example of different folks playing differently. To me the SG is the ideal solidbody. Period. Then again, I wear it rather high compared to some folks nowadays. If you wear it at groin or knee level, yeah, it's likely to neck dive I think.

 

The way I wear mine relatively high means little or no concern with neck dive for me although the heavier LP may feel "more balanced" for someone who wears the instrument differently. OTOH, that's also a matter of personal feel. I don't care for the LP precisely because it's not a comfortable fit for me.

 

So as the saying goes, you pays yer money and takes yer choice.

 

I had literally dozens of solidbodies before around '73 or 4 I found my Guild S100c that's functionally a fine quality SG clone. I still have it and haven't even considered buying another solidbody of any sort. Just don't ask about semis and full hollows after that date.

 

m

[hilm3]

I have an SG, my son an LP. They sound totally different in good ways. They play completely differently, too. The LP is uncomfortable for me. It is heavy, to be sure, but the worst thing is the placement of the jack. The LP's jack is perfectly positioned to stab me, get snagged on something, or get in my way. The SG is perfectly balanced for me and comfortable. The whole neck diving thing to me is just an internet myth. How the heck can a neck dive if you are holding it in your left hand? I guess if you are jumping up and down on stage clapping your hands over your head instead of playing, it could happen.

 

The caveat is that 99.9% of the time, I play sitting down on the edge of my bed. The Casino is perfect, the SG is perfect, the LP not so much.

[Bluemans335]

One last question, i've read a lot of stuff that says sg's are unbalanced, and that they are prone to neck dive, while some people say it's completely balanced if you have a good strap. my dad also once told me he didn't like sg's as much as he liked les pauls because the body of an sg kind of dug into his armpit. i'm fairly tall (~6') so i don't think this should be a problem. Now, if anyone has had these issues, give me a heads up!

 

A good leather strap fixes any neck-dive issues. I'm 6'5" and think SG's are very comfortable. So does Angus Young and he's 5'3". They're sleek and contoured, hard not to like them.

[bluefire98]

Thank you very much. will be getting a good strap with this guitar. Now you can all use this topic for the endless, bloody, debate over lp's and sg's . Enjoy!

[midiman56]

Buy it from a place that has a return policy ... that way you can see if you bond with it over a period of time instead of just a few minutes of playing.

 

Personally, I've never had an SG that I could bond with. I love the way they look, love the way they sound, and love guys that can play 'em ... but I'm just not that guy! Best of luck!

 

 

Jim

[Bluemans335]

Personally, I've never had an SG that I could bond with. I love the way they look, love the way they sound, and love guys that can play 'em

 

+1. It's hard not to like SG's. If only more players would try SG's instead of those awful tinny-sounding Fenders (sheep mentality).

[charlie brown]

+1. It's hard not to like SG's. If only more players would try SG's instead of those awful tinny-sounding Fenders (sheep mentality).

 

Hmmmm Never found my Telecaster to sound "tinny!" Don't think Jimmy Page did,

either, since Led Zepplin 1 & most of 2, were recorded using his Tele.

 

But, SG's are Great, too!

 

CB

[milod]

Midi...

 

Actually I feel the same way, but about the LP. I can't imagine ever owning one unless it were a gift.

 

But my "baby" brother (he's the younger of my two brothers and only around age 40) apparently fell totally in love with an LP. I wonder if that's not because he's a lot bigger physically than I am in just about every measure from altitude to shoe size and arm length.

 

I find that latter interesting because he started pretty much "electric" and yet we still have very similar preferences in scale, neck and fingerboard shapes, and in overall playability over perceived "tone values." And... I'd long moved far away from home when he was born and our preferred music for performance generally is quite different. Hmmmm.

 

m

[Bluemans335]

Hmmmm Never found my Telecaster to sound "tinny!" Don't think Jimmy Page did,

either, since Led Zepplin 1 & most of 2, were recorded using his Tele.

 

Jimmy's tone improved when he started playing LP's, which was on LZ 2. As a studio musician, he learned a lot about how to make guitars sound good. Most players don't have Jimmy's engineering/recording skills and experience. Living in an area plagued by Fenders, I can say without fear of contradiction, that average blues player down here (west coast of Florida) has no clue how to EQ his Strat. 90 % of the time it's either treble squared or too much distortion for that lovely 'bee in a can' sound. Most of those guys would sound a lot better with an Epi or Gibson. They really ought to give SG's a fair try. But Fenders apparently are part of the uniform, just like country singers with their obligatory boots and cowboy hats.

[charlie brown]

Well, all that aside, Strat's and Tele's are both Great Guitars!

People that KNOW how to use them, to their best advantage, are

the key...IMHO. Same, with SG's LP's and ES's. But, personally,

I like 'em all! They all have their place, and fans.

 

One may have a personal preference, or even an aversion, to one or

more of them. I really don't care, all that much, who plays what,

as long as it's done well, and "tasty!"

 

CB

[LP121]

Jimmy's tone improved when he started playing LP's, which was on LZ 2. As a studio musician, he learned a lot about how to make guitars sound good. Most players don't have Jimmy's engineering/recording skills and experience. Living in an area plagued by Fenders, I can say without fear of contradiction, that average blues player down here (west coast of Florida) has no clue how to EQ his Strat. 90 % of the time it's either treble squared or too much distortion for that lovely 'bee in a can' sound. Most of those guys would sound a lot better with an Epi or Gibson. They really ought to give SG's a fair try. But Fenders apparently are part of the uniform, just like country singers with their obligatory boots and cowboy hats.

 

I too am in an area overrun by the Fender menace. As far as the "bee in a can" thing goes, most of those guys think that Metal means scooped mids. It's been done to death and it's especially bad with single coils. They don't understand that guitar is by nature a mid heavy instrument and taking that away makes it sound terrible. Having said all that, with the right song and proper EQ a Tele can sound really really good.

[jfine]

I'm primarily a Tele player, but I played Gibsons for years too. I don't sound like a bee in a bottle--well, maybe a very large bee in a very clean bottle! My first good guitar was a Gibson SG that I bought new in '67, and I've had several SG's and Les Pauls over the years. Both varieties can be great, but they're both different. I have to admit that I'm more partial to SG's--I got rid of my last Les Paul because of the weight. It was probably the best-sounding Les Paul I've ever had, and I had it for twenty years--but the older I got, the less I wanted to hang it around my neck for 4-1/2 hours a night! I don't currently have a Les Paul, but I still have an SG--it's a 2002 Gibson SG Supreme, and it's a better guitar than either my old '67 Standard or the '65 Standard I had in the '80's. Maybe this belongs in the Gibson forum--but I played an Epiphone SG Custom some years back that blew away a Gibson SG Custom reissue in a side-by-side comparison.