Questions about the les paul custom

[Leftydude]

Hey guys,

I'm a left handed player looking for my first gibson les paul. I'm considering getting a Gibson Les Paul Custom. I play punk music and I want a ferocious guitar with fat/darker tone. I may change out the bridge pickup for dirty fingers. I just had a few questions.

http://www.guitarcenter.com/Gibson-Custom-Les-Paul-Custom-Left-Handed-Electric-Guitar-512006-i1147490.gc

1. Does anyone know if this guitar is weight relieved?

2. Is it worth the extra money for a custom shop les paul? (wood, craftmanship, materials)

3. Thoughts on ebony vs rosewood fretboard?

[Mike From Canada]

Hi Lefty,

 

I've had a Les Paul Custom for about 20 years, and I love that guitar. I played punk/metal with it when I was younger (and it sounded awesome for that), and now I like rockabilly/country, and it still sounds fantastic.

 

The pros for the Les Paul Custom are the decorative touches (more binding, real mother of pearl inlays, gold hardware, etc.), it's not chambered, and it's made by the custom shop, so it should have lighter wood.

 

The body is a bit thicker, which can make LP customs a bit heavier, even if the wood is better. The ebony fretboard feels really nice and does sound different. It's a bit brighter, which may not be what you are after if you want a darker tone.

 

Lastly, the custom has lower, flatter frets, which always buzzed on the high e string for me. I recently had the guitar re-fretted at a cost of about $500 dollars. If I were to buy another custom, I'd budget to have this done right away. Maybe I'm just a heavy player, but the flat frets always bothered me.

 

If I were you, I'd check out a Les Paul Traditional and a Les Paul Custom in person at a store. The traditional will have higher, rounded frets, a thinner body, and like the Custom, it also isn't chambered. See which one you like better. I love my Custom, but you may prefer the rosewood fretboard, the rounded frets, and the thinner body.

 

I hope this helps.

 

Mike