2017 Gibson Les Paul Standard HP is Bad and being returned!!

[scottpaine_69 5]

The 2017 Gibson Les Paul Standard Hp in Blueberry Burst Looked Great but on the inside it is junk! Lets back track a bit. I ordered a 2016 Gibson Les Paul Standard HP and when it arrived it had some cosmetic issues and a chunk of the headstock missing. I sent it back and decided to wait on the 2017 line to see what it was going to be. Well I ordered the 2017 Gibson Les Paul Standard HP in Blueberry Burst (which was backordered for a while) I finally received it a week ago with more than just cosmetic issues. All 4 knobs wobbled like crazy when they were turned. I opened up the control pocket to checkout the dip switch and the circutboard/control knobs were cramed in so tight and there was a giant chunk of the inner pocket chisled out by hand because the machine didn't cut out enough and the pocket was filled with sawdust (which is the reason my guitar case had sawdust in it). That is unexceptible to me. I heard some people say that a few imperfections are common. Is it just me who thinks that these issues are to much for a guitar that cost $3200? It was very light and I like my guitars a bit heavier and there were no specs up yet (or now) on what the Ultra-Modern weight relief is. I just heard a rumer that it means they are chambering there guitars again which explains the feedback with high gain.But that is my fault for ordering without specs. I've watched an interview with Jim Decola saying how people did NOT like there solid body guitars being chambered because of the sustain being taken away and the feedbck problems so they did the Modern weight reliev along with the traditional weight relief. So why are they chambering there Les Pauls again and calling it Ultra Modern Weight relief? They preace about listing to there customers yet they do the opisit. At least they started getting it right with the 2016 line by doing the traditional and HP line. I'm one of the few who actually liked the 2015 line with the wider necks (not as wide on the HP's from either 2016 or 2017). I do understand the reason for the 2015 line being unpopular due to the lack of choice and you had to take all of the changes without a choice. If I had a choice in 2015 I may not have picked my 2015 Gibson Les Paul Classic which is my #1 go to guitar and I have 4 Les Pauls. SO I got lucky with the wider neck. But The problem is that my 2016 Gibson Les Paul Standard HP had to be returned and My 2017 Gibson Les Paul Standard HP will be returned due to it being even worse quality. Somy advice to you is if you own a 2017 Gibson Les Paul HP open up the control pocketand see if it is jacked up or not. I never opened up the control pocket on the 2016 les paul hp but I have a suspicion that they have the same jacked up control pocket as the 2017 Gibson Les Paul Standard. If the knobs wobble when you turn them that's a sign that something may be screwed up inside!

 

http://imgur.com/fvX7Yts http://imgur.com/ZLjY7Yo

[Dub-T-123 466]

I wouldn't really worry about the chiseled out part of the cavity since it is not visible with the cover installed.

 

It is pretty unprofessional of them to leave it full of sawdust. That needs to be vacuumed out or blown out

 

Are the nuts on the pots loose and causing them to "wobble", or are the pots just wobbly feeling due to the push-pull switch design?

 

If the nuts on the pots are loose then that's an easy fix. Still an annoying thing to deal with on such an expensive guitar but maybe easier to fix than to return if you like the guitar otherwise.

 

Sounds like Gibson was in a big hurry to get these out the door or maybe the seller shipped you a guitar that was a demo or returned by another customer

[scottpaine_69 5]

The nuts are not loose and the wooble is not due to the push/pull pots. The circut board is cramed in tight and on a bind. The Zero-Fret nut also has a nice chunk bashed in on the high e side. You can see that these and the other issues are flaws from the factory. It was also not a demo version. It was shipped straight from the warehouse. The issues on the 2016 were also from the factory.

[deeman 114]

Here we go with the anti-chambering again.

 

However, that sawdust is crazy! That is terrible, just terrible.

[Rabs 1,026]

Ohh dear ohh dear...

 

It just looks like the dust is from the holes drilled for the cover.... Still.. to not remove that dust is pretty unprofessional ...

 

And as for the chambering... if it is chambered, I have a 2008 Standard which is chambered and I love it... Maybe you need to buy a Traditional???

[scottpaine_69 5]

A traditional will be in my future. As for the sawdust, It's not from the holes drilled from the screws. I know the pics. aren't the greatist but ig you look at where it has been chisled out in the control pocket to make the circut board fit there is a mountain od dust and large chunks of wood piled up around the knob (top right knob in the pic). I get that there may be a few bits of dust here and there but the way they mangled the control pocket to make it fit is not acceptable for my standard on a $3200 guitar. My 1996 Gibson Les Paul Studio,My 2012 LesPaul ZW Bullseye Custom Plus, and my 2015 Gibson Les Paul Classic (which has a circut board with push/pull pots and 15db boost toggle) do not have any crappy looking crudely chisled out pocket to have a circut board cramed into the pocket. The Chambering issue isn't the topic in this original post. I was making an observation on what was said about listening to the customers and why they went with a differant weight relief. I have weight relieved guitars butI still choose the heavier guitars because that's what I prefer. My 2015 Gibson Les Paul Classic has the traditional weight relief (swiss cheese) and it weighs 10lbs. 14oz. and the others that I had to choose from (same year, model and weight relief) had weights that varied from 9lbs. all the way up to my pick of 10lbs. 14oz. I don't want to get intoa dabate on wether or not chambering has any effect on sustain. I do know that there is more potinial for feedback at high gain and volume with a chambered guitar asopposed to not being chambered. There also is a differant tone that comes from a guitar that's chambered as opposed to a non-chambered. But you could have 2 guitars of the same year,model,weight relief and so on but thay will both sound and play a bit differant. So that's why the weight relief is NOT the issue for this post. The issues of the QC issues from the 2 guitars (2016,2017) from the last 3 months is terrible. The control pocket could have been chissled out in a much nicer way without leaving all the wood chunks and sawdust inside to cause issues with the allready jacked up circut board. It shouldn't have been forced into the control pocket like it is. That's why the knobs wobble when turned. The tension on the circut board is going to cause problems and the dust is going to cause problems. It just should have been done better for the price!

[LPguitarman 115]

For that price, it should be perfect. Return it. Extra hand chiseling in the control cavity is horrendous. This guitar should have never passed Quality Inspection.

[Dub-T-123 466]

There are probably wood chips and dust between the pots and body causing the wobbly issue

[Pesh 14]

Haha that is so weird - I was looking through this post and saw a very similar post on the 'Gibson Les Paul' Facebook group about seemingly the same guitar (I've reacted to the post - Tom Michael Fisher).

 

Sorry that you've had such troubles with the Blueberry already, and that you feel she needs to go. Especially given that, as you said, this is the second bad experience.

[IanHenry 282]

The thing I'm struggling to understand is why the chamber would need any hand chiselling in the first place. I would assume the cavity is cut out using a CNC router and they will all be to a uniform size and shape to fit the electronics (especially if they are using a circuit board which will all be the same), it wouldn't make sense to introduce another hand operation that late in production! Time's money.

 

 

Ian

[Guest Farnsbarns]

The thing I'm struggling to understand is why the chamber would need any hand chiselling in the first place. I would assume the cavity is cut out using a CNC router and they will all be to a uniform size and shape to fit the electronics (especially if they are using a circuit board which will all be the same), it wouldn't make sense to introduce another hand operation that late in production! Time's money.

 

 

Ian

 

Exactly my thoughts. Wondering if the dealer replaced the pots and used short shafts.

[american cheez 118]

the modern weight relief is not chambering, it's swiss cheez holes. the new ultra modern weight relived guitars are actually heavier, so that means there's more wood, not less. the claim that it's causing feedback is wrong. that's not how it works. you're probably using too much gain, and playing too close/facing the cab. any guitar you play the way you play that one, will feedback, as long as it has equally hot pickups.

 

 

people complain about my lack of punctuation, and avoidance of capital letters drives them crazy. you refusal to use spell check is helping me understand them better.

[scottpaine_69 5]

I'm going to try to awnser a couple of the questions above in one post. 1). I do NOT believe they added another hand carving process in to the line. It looks as if the guitar made it down the line to the install and the electronics jsut did NOT fit. So the quickly cut out some of the control pocket by hand and did a very bad,messy and unprofessional job leaveing it filled with chucks of wood and dust to get into the electronics. Not to mention it looks like crap. I understand that it's in a place that not many people besides myself would see it BUT I will see and the it and it looks like crap. 2). The dealer did NOT replace anythg. It was shipped in the unopened box from the factory. The wobble is caused but the knobs being cramed into the contol pocket to tight. 3). Chambering is not the issue! I like heavier guitars regarless of the weight relief. 4). I use lots of gain but my other Les pauls (3) do NOT feedback when the settings are all set the same. I plug in each guitar nto the same amp leaving all settings the same and the only one feeding back is the 2017 Standard. It may or may not be caused by type of weight relief and the fact that the guitar is very light. I know It could be a few other things causing the feedback with this guitar. It also does it at lower volumes. In my experiance if you unplug your Les Paul and plug in a semi hollow body such as a es-335 to the amp without changing the settings, the es-335 will feedback like crazy. That's how extreme the differance is from my other Les Pauls compared to the 2017 Standard. Donn't get me started on the 2016 Gibson Les Paul Standard I had to return.

[J.4knee 1]

I am at a loss for what you describe but know this if it was me who received that I'd be shitting fire back at the factory over that kind of apparent gross negligence and unprofessional workmanship.

[SteveFord 267]

It sounds like you have a Les Paul you like quite a bit so maybe it's time to branch out.

SG, Firebird, 335, Lucille, Explorer, lots of flavors out there in the Gibson line up.

[rct 1,184]

I am at a loss for what you describe but know this if it was me who received that I'd be shitting fire back at the factory over that kind of apparent gross negligence and unprofessional workmanship.

 

Gross negligence kills people ferfuxsake. It's just a guitar.

 

rct

[Dub-T-123 466]

It sounds like you have a Les Paul you like quite a bit so maybe it's time to branch out.

SG, Firebird, 335, Lucille, Explorer, lots of flavors out there in the Gibson line up.

Shewt for $3,200 you could get a real nice guitar or three

[jaxson50 445]

At a time when the build quality of instruments is rising due to the use of CNC machines, to see this level of quality control is just inexcusable. I would expect this from a China Doll guitar, but Gibson has been racing towards lower quality for some time now, and appears to have hit bottom.

[jaxson50 445]

Double post!

[jaxson50 445]

Triple post?