Silverbursted Posted July 25, 2008 Share Posted July 25, 2008 I was having a conversation with a guy at work, and we began discussing how heavy Les Paul's are compared to other brands. I have limited experience with the LPs and Super Strats (Kramer, Jackson, Charvel and Ibanez), and in my opinion, the heavier the guitar is, the better it sounds. I commented last week how much fuller the Traditional was compared to the Standard, and the Custom Shop Reissues have an even more distinctive smoother sound than the Traditional and all LP's have sustain for days. Strats and Super Strats very trebley in tone, and are pitifully weak in sustain. I base my assessment on the tone while playing them unplugged. I have not had the pleasure of playing LP's from the 60's, 70's, 80's or 90's and am curious as to how they stack up compared to todays offerings. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shredhed Posted July 25, 2008 Share Posted July 25, 2008 If you're comparing anything to a LP then yea, it probaly won't sustain as well. But to use pitiful to describe anything else just isn't really fair IMO. It all depends on the body and the bridge. I've got a Jackson DKMGt that's got the same bridge and is strung through the body. It doesn't sound the same a s a LP but that's just because it's alder and not mahogany/maple. But it sustains great. On the other hand I had a DKMG that had a FR trem. Same in every other way as the DKMGt but the bridge was different. It had sustain but didn't sound good compared to the other one, so I sold it. Another guitar I have is a Charvel Model 3a. Basswood. It has the Jackson JT6 (which is brass) Tremolo blocked for dive only. The blocking also makes the sustain block in contact with the body for better tone/sustain. Man, when you play this bad boy you can actually feel strongly the vibrations from the strings in your stomach. it almost tickles. It has sustain plus.... Kramer F3000, all maple body, rosewood board. Floyd rose blocked also. It's the loudest unplugged guitar I own. I'd have top say compared to my Les Paul it's louder. Now for a standard vintage trem guitar (sort of, it's got the 2 piont Fender trem on it). A 2006 deluxe strat. Ash body, rosewood board. It sustains as well as most of my guitars. No loss of sustain on this one either One more and I'm done. Kramer F1000. Floyd Rose Original. Not blocked. It has a Duncan Alan Holdsworth pickup in it and if you closed your eyes you'd swear it was a Les Paul (well, close - lol) To me it's a mixed bag. I openly accept all forms of guitar. They all were all designed for a reason and I want to play all of them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tim Plains Posted July 26, 2008 Share Posted July 26, 2008 and in my opinion' date=' the heavier the guitar is, the better it sounds.[/quote']I beg to differ.... I love the feel of a heavy Les Paul. My Custom is just shy of 10lbs.............big kahones! A Les Paul Custom wouldn't be a Les Paul Custom if it didn't weigh a ton. At the other end of the scale is my beloved R9. A featherweight in comparison...8lbs 3 oz of pure heaven! If I come across a Les Paul that sounds better than this R9, I'll let you know. Btw...I love your choice of wording. Strats and Super Strats very trebley in tone, and are pitifully weak in sustain. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AXE® Posted July 26, 2008 Share Posted July 26, 2008 It's the wood . Not so much the density . Remember the Veleno ? 100% aluminum, and the tone was phenomenal as well as consistent . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Silverbursted Posted July 26, 2008 Author Share Posted July 26, 2008 Mr. Shred, I should have been more specific when I was describing my personal experiences with the Super Strats. All of them had un-blocked FR's or liscenced FRs. And I agree with you that they are completely different animals than the LP. They were built for speed, with thin tapered necks and light weight bodies; they do what they were designed to do very well. I guess my question should have been, how does the new line of LP's compare to their older brethren from the 60s, 70s, 80s, and 90s. Not that I'm complaining about the new stuff at all. Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stymye Posted July 26, 2008 Share Posted July 26, 2008 a friend of mine has a very old danelectro that his father gave him. the guitar is very light but it will squeal and sustain for days! almost too much. it has the old lipstick pickups.same with the hollow body guitars like the gibson's , just listen to any Nugent so I don't think it has everything to do with weight. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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