A light LP style?

Frankiestylee

This might sound odd... but I'm wondering if there is a Les Paul sounding guitar out there that's a lot lighter? One of the guitarists in my band used to use a LP but has started using my SG because it's lighter. It's guitar buying time and he wants an SG but I think it's mainly a comfort thing rather then about the sound. Is there anything with a sound similar to a LP without the traditional weight that I could recommend to him?

Don1

I personally love my G&L ASAT Deluxe semi-hollow. Weighs feck all compared to my LP and is not a mile behind it in terms of sound. Doesn't have the all out balls of the LP but still sounds furken sweet tbh. Lovely sustain too.

bat boy

The esp ltd ec1000 is a great guitar if yer looking for the lp feel without the weight. Its got active emg's though, which might not have the sound yer friend is looking for.

Paolo_M

Frankiestylee wrote: »

This might sound odd... but I'm wondering if there is a Les Paul sounding guitar out there that's a lot lighter? One of the guitarists in my band used to use a LP but has started using my SG because it's lighter. It's guitar buying time and he wants an SG but I think it's mainly a comfort thing rather then about the sound. Is there anything with a sound similar to a LP without the traditional weight that I could recommend to him?

you'll struggle to get a genuine lp sound as a major contributor to the sound and sustain that made it famous is the mahogany construction. mahogany is very dense, therefore heavy.
LPs can vary greatly in tone depending on pick-ups too. Might be better to tell us what kind of sound your after ie. like slash, jimmy page, zakk wylde etc. as they all use LPs but each sounds different.

Voodu Child

Frankiestylee wrote: »

This might sound odd... but I'm wondering if there is a Les Paul sounding guitar out there that's a lot lighter?

A 'Les Paul sounding' guitar could be anything with mahogany body and humbuckers tbh.

Frankiestylee

Yeah, I was kinda afraid the weight would be part of the sound. I was looking at the G&L option all right, but couldn't really find any for sale in the usual online haunts and I've never even seen one let alone played it so I didn't really pursue the idea first.

Honestly I couldn't start describing tones by using famous guitarists, I'm quite useless at that. On stage we used to use a strat/lp pairing, now it's a strat/sg pairing and on the album it's a tele/lp pairing. I think one guitarist is definitly going to replace his strat with a tele so a return to the LP for the other lad would be nice.

Might do an aul trawl for guitars with mahogany bodies and humbuckers then.

pariko

bat boy wrote: »

The esp ltd ec1000 is a great guitar if yer looking for the lp feel without the weight. Its got active emg's though, which might not have the sound yer friend is looking for.

Yeah, I've one of these, but with Seymour Duncans (JB/59) which are capable of a more classic LP-style sound. It's a mahogany guitar, but way lighter cause it's quite a lot thinner than an LP. This is the particular model I have; really happy with it. Only problem was that it was set up pretty crappily outta the factory, but a trip to the luthier sorted that out.

Frankiestylee

Oh that does look nice, pricey enough though. Do many places in Dublin carry those bad boys? I haven't gone guitar shopping in an age.

boycey

Has your friend played any of the new Classic Antique series Les Pauls? Very light for a LP with a great sound. Best sounding LP for a long time imho. Or theres always those ones aimed at the girlies, Vixens or something. Have'nt played one though.
BTW new here, hello all.

darrenw5094

Edwards Les Paul made in Japan.....a bit lighter......probably built better than the Gibsons these days.........

You would have to import from Japan, but there are sellers on Ebay.ie
They come fitted with Seymour Duncans....:cool:

deaddonkey

PRS SE series.

Johnny Storm

voodoo_child wrote: »

A 'Les Paul sounding' guitar could be anything with mahogany body and humbuckers tbh.

Surely it should have a maple top too or else theres not much to distinguish it from the SG he already has?

Jack Vegas

Frankiestylee wrote: »

Oh that does look nice, pricey enough though. Do many places in Dublin carry those bad boys? I haven't gone guitar shopping in an age.

Seriously, can't reccomend the EC-1000s enough. You can try one out in Instrumental on the Quays, but last time I was in they only had an EMG-fitted model, how and ever, it should give you a feel for what the guitar is like. As for buying one though, E-Bay all the way, I got one for 700 a few months ago from the states, tax and shipping included.

http://cgi.ebay.ie/ESP-Eclipse-semi-hollow-body-with-ESP-hardshell-case_W0QQitemZ220207877833QQihZ012QQcategoryZ33038QQrdZ1QQssPageNameZWD2VQQcmdZViewItem?_trksid=p1638.m122

Or, here we have a top of the range hollowbodied ESP. At that price I think you'd me bad not to.

Voodu Child

Johnny Storm wrote: »

Surely it should have a maple top too or else theres not much to distinguish it from the SG he already has?

Nah, the question was about a 'Les Paul sounding guitar'. Sure that could be a skinny HH Fender and most LP nuts couldn't tell the difference...

pariko

Jack Vegas wrote: »

I got one for 700 a few months ago from the states, tax and shipping included.

Snap! They quite frequently crop up on eBay for very reasonable prices.

Frankiestylee

If the sg is the same wood and it's a case of the pickups being the main influence, could one replace the sg pickups with LP sounding ones? I actually thought they were the same general type of pickups, but I really don't enough about such magical things.

Johnny Storm

The SG lacks the thick maple top of a real LP. AFAIK this means it wont get the trebley edge an LP can get.

deaddonkey

Frankiestylee wrote: »

If the sg is the same wood and it's a case of the pickups being the main influence, could one replace the sg pickups with LP sounding ones? I actually thought they were the same general type of pickups, but I really don't enough about such magical things.

they're both the same pickups, by and large.

SG's lighter smaller body and lack of maple top = honkier and mopre piercing midrange and less treble than a les paul

having said that, it doesn't sound *that* different, realistically they sound quite similar, much more alike than say a tele and a strat.

Voodu Child

Frankiestylee wrote: »

If the sg is the same wood and it's a case of the pickups being the main influence, could one replace the sg pickups with LP sounding ones?

Again, what are 'LP sounding pickups'? They've used dozens of different pickups in LPs over the years, and i've played stock LPs that sounded nothing alike.

Forget about this 'magical LP sound' you seem to have in your head, just try a few different pickups, or a few different guitars, and find one you like. If it happens to be mahogany & maple, great...but there's just as much chance of it being something else.

Seriously, all this talk of exact body woods and maple caps etc....I could get a cheap basswood squire, put some good pickups in it, and by the time i'd put it through a raging amp and a few effects, im sure Mr Gibson himself would swear blind it was a Les Paul, if that's what i told him it was. Just find a guitar that you like the feel of, and the weight of, and the sound, and stop focussing on this 'LP sound' you keep mentioning. It doesnt exist.

Frankiestylee

Ah, then an SG it is. Heh, and I wasn't even looking for me, which I guess is kinda at the root of my confusion. The lad is the furthest from a guitar-geek I have ever seen in a guitarist. I guess running after that stereotypical LP sound is a bit crazy when there's so many variations.