I just bought the same guitar a month back and I absolutely love it. I didn't scrutinize the build quality like you did, but for the most part I don't see anything on mine that causes concern. After all, some people pay double what I did to have the custom shop make look like it's been in a train wreck. Never did understand that mentality, but hey, to each, their own.
I agree that none of these detail items would be, "deal breakers," but I share your frustration with inexcusable sloppiness of things like crooked jack plates and misplaced tuning machines. Even if done by hand, it's simply too easy to create a basic jig or template to get this right every damn time.
How many non “deal breakers” were there on this guitar? These aren’t $300 knock offs. There’s no excuse for these flaws. If Gibson insists on accepting these flaws, their price point should be reduced considerably.
I agree! always loved Ice tea burst. They have a new finish i want called "Unburst" which is gorgeous! Looks like a nicely faded heritage cherry burst. The highly figured ones in this color look outstanding!
This video is so informative on Quality Control at Gibson. I’ve taken all of my les Paul’s off my guitar rack (including my 60s standard) and I’m fine tooth 🪮 combing them all for imperfections.
Yeah, my OCD would kick in with the cockeyed output jack forcing me to return it or drink heavily! Quality wise, I picked up a Gibson Les Paul Standard '50s AAA Top Cherry Sunburst and then a few months later an Epiphone Slash Les Paul Standard Appetite Burst to take on the road with me that I wouldn't mind being a little rougher with. The funny thing is that the Epiphone was nearly flawless with just 2 slightly rough fret ends with a perfect setup for me, and the Gibson at nearly $2000 more, had a bunch of annoying problems with the fit and finish. Nothing earth shattering, but stripped out off center screws and access plates on the back, spots of bleed-over on the neck and body binding. The setup wasn't great at the factory and I had a bad tuner after a few weeks. They replaced it, but I felt like I lost out a little on the Gibson-lottery - except for the top - it was amazing and took the sting out of the little flaws. Props to Epiphone on the Slash however!
My mom scored a stored under the bed and never played Les Paul Custom shop Studio for $400 while I was at a Bluegrass guitar lesson when I was 12. I still have it and it looks very similar to this beautiful guitar. Everyone should have 1 Les Paul. Love your channel!
I bought a new Gibson SG standard in 2018. It had the nicest fretboard I ever seen on a guitar. Beautiful streaks of light and dark running up and down the fretboard. Same with the body, beautiful grain, I got the red one. It arrived with two problems. The first issue was also with the nut. It looked as if it was chipped on the low E string side and superglued really sloppy. Second issue was... Whenever I get a new guitar I put my Schalled strap locks on so there's no costly accidents. When I unscrewed the rear body strapholder, there was a huge hole, looked like Gibson tried several times to screw it in. The strap holder was barely grabbing any wood. I called where I got the guitar from and sent it back. They sent me a replacement. That guitar came flawless, a plain Jane, identical to the first as far as color. The newer SG had a better neck as far as playability goes, love the pickups. Plain Jane turned out to be the keeper. The beauty was sent back, I'm very happy with my decision and my guitar.
This was a really interesting video. I learned a lot about detail. I'm almost afraid to go downstairs and look at my own guitars! lolol Thanks for posting!
I feel out of place commenting because I'm not a guitar player, yet, but have eyes on learning in retirement, which is fairly soon. But as I am "window shopping" on the internet, I find this vlog immensely helpful in knowing what to look for, and what production flaws could be deal breakers or not. Thank you for investing in the purchase and your time for such an honest and thorough review and tutorial!
@@lordPix3lUK yeah exactly, if these will be issues for you just don't buy a gibson and get an ibanez or fender instead. a fender was designed to be simple to make with as few steps as possible so these flaws just won't appear as often
Interesting take. Love the Luthier's deep dive. In the past year, I have bought two electric guitars from a boutique shop that are phenomenal. One is not necessarily 'perfect' as far as fret finishing, but literally hand-made guitars. I do not expect perfection. Hand made. I love them both. Amazing instruments. In the same year, I also purchased two Gibson LPs and one Epiphone Lazarus LP. Again, not perfect, but phenomenal looking and playing guitars. There's no such thing as perfect in life. I wouldn't trade my 2023 LP 60s Unburst Standard for anything. Or the Epi. Effing great guitar.
Hey! First off, nice video of a beautiful guitar! Very detailed / informative. If I may, I'd like to correct some things that were mentioned that weren't factual. The finish partially up the ends of the nut have been a feature of Gibson Les Paul's (Standard, Junior, Special) since the late 50's / early 60's. In fact, folks purchasing vintage LP's and collectors look for it; it signifies that the nut is original to the guitar. Nuts are installed first at Gibson, then finish applied. (See Tony Bacon's book). The finish 'flaw' below the pickguard is indeed from the piece of felt placed over the nut that holds the bracket on. I agree; finish wasn't cured enough, however, Gibson places the felt there to avoid the inevitable finish 'ding' from the nut, that was commonplace prior to them using the felt. At least with the felt impression, it can be buffed out; not so with an actual ding in the finish. Finally, on every Gibson Les Paul I've owned, the E,A and D strings sit halfway above of the nut top or 'level'; the G, B and E strings are 'just' buried / even with the top of the nut. I do agree; for a $2500. guitar the attention to detail is lacking. But honestly, it's better (IMO) over the last two years or so than it has been in quite some time. BEST WISHES with that beauty! (Brian)
Glad to see someone who knows what he,s lookin for in a Les Paul , was considering getting one but Im like any other person on a price like this ....I want perfection on a 2700 to 2800 dollar guitar and if Gibson cant provide that Im going elsewhere...Thank You.
We all don't have a luthiers eye when it comes to inspecting guitars so thank you for making this video, I will definitely use your expertise when purchasing a guitar online again,personally for the cabbage we dish out for these guitars ,even for the minor imperfections you found,my guitar would definitely be going back, again great video and congrats.
I just bought this exact same guitar yesterday, lovely top! Almost like a cherry sunburst finish. I plan on keeping it stock and putting 11’s on it. Also, I had the same finish issue as you at the nut, and I pointed this out to the employee at Anderton’s. He checked with a colleague and said it’s just an imperfection. One of the other standards in there had the same issue. Thanks for the video!
Gibson Nitro Cellulose finishes stay pliable for years, especially if you keep your guitars away from direct light sources. Just leave a guitar tuner on your headstock for a few days and you will see an indent where the clip held.
I wonder when they drill the jack plate holes in the process. As in, would they have to scrap a guitar that was 90% complete over a small detail. It would drive me nuts too btw
After watching this vid checked on mine immediately. I think someone was having a rough day while working on yours. These kind of flaws don't even happen on the cheapest guitars. Idk you still got a great guitar. Its minor shit but it can get annoying too.
@@BITESIZEJONES since watching this video I've paid close attention to the jackplates on these new LPs and have seen a couple others that were off center as well. Weird how an issue so simple to solve isn't being addressed.
Both my 60s standards have the little felt mark in the nitro under the pick guard. Better than the old ding that was in the older ones from the nut resting on the nitro. Great guitars none the less!!
Been following the gold channel for a while and saw some of your old Luther videos. I'm loving this review and would def love to see more unboxing like this. As a musician and long time guitar player for the price you paid and the brand I WOULD expect perfection. I'd expect this from and Epiphone not on a Gibson branded instrument
@@Klesh this is one of the biggest problems I've heard of Gibson's over the last 20 years or so. Quality control has been an issue. That being said with the new management it seems that they have improved considerably but still far below expectations. A comparably prices Ibanez or schecter would have far far less flaws. But I liken it to buying a high end sports car. The sticker price is 90 percent brand and 10 percent substance
@@Klesh I'm agree with you buddy it's exactly what they think about us they take our money and then they laugh they don't care about us they let us know that's a long time ago they care about money
I agree that GIbson should take more time with the finish. Since most les pauls are on back-ordered, make it near perfect at least. I'm expecting my Ice tea 60s model. Can't wait.
Just got a 50’s standard in cherry burst this week, built in March of 2021. Took back a studio due to gouges in the side of the fretboard. This one has chipped finish at the top of the head on the corners which may be from the store I bought it as they hang other guitars to close to the top. The nut on mine is a little worse as only two strings sit above the top surface and sides are not clean. The tuners are in alignment and Jack plate is just a hair off. The rear plate has a gap on one side and tight on the other. Fretboard seems very dry. Wasn’t sure if I should apply Dunlop 65 lemon oil to a new fretboard but I believe it needs it. I didn’t receive keys with my case and no lock even if I did. Even with its minor flaws I still cherish and proud to own it.
It's best to inspect the headstock before looking at any other parts of a new Les Paul. I learnt that the hard bitter disapointing way. I opened the case and immediately beheld the beautiful flame maple top and shining pickups. Then my eyes slowly travelled up the lovely rosewood fingerboard. Until I reached the nut, and was devastated to see the headstock hanging off the severely cracked and splintered neck. That was despite the brand new guitar being delivered in a bubble wrapped case within 2 cardboard boxes.. Minimise potential heart break, just examine the headstock first..
That’s very unfortunate. Yes it does happen, as a guitar maker myself I shipped a guitar to a guy using UPS and when he received it it was broken. Of course I replaced the neck but that really was terrible. Sorry for your loss hope they replaced it!
Absolutely, Gibson's are fragile and shouldn't be handled by "non guitar players". Whereas Fender can be tossed, smashed into amps, dropped etc with very little damage. Mahogany's fragile, there's a lot more work that goes into making Gibsons. I can't say they're better. My all-time favorite guitar was my 2006 American Vintage reissue Telecaster. Kieth said it right "Leo got it right the first time."
I have that exact instrument in my collection and love it. The 60's neck makes it very easy to play rock and blues, but my fingers are a bit too large to actually finger pick it with enough consistency in the studio, and like you, I sometimes overshoot the frets. The tone is badass, though.
That’s one thing that sucks about being an expert in a given field. You notice things that most people wouldn’t. I Just got my 60’s standard in and luckily it doesn’t have any of the drilling alignment issues. That would have triggered me the most. Haven’t checked under the pick guard yet, but all in all it’s solid as hell. The tuning has been extremely stable after stretching the strings and it’s very easy to play!
I bought the same style and color early this year made in Oct 20 . I did notice some differences though. I had a steel jack plate, and mine came with a blank truss rod cover I didn't see in the paper bag with the case keys on yours. I also have the faded interior type case without the janky handle yours has. But mine does weigh a ton empty. I had the same issue with the finish at the nut which I attributed to it being sprayed before the nut was sanded and honestly didn't know it shouldn't look like that. I didn't have any issues with the tuning machines thankfully but my bridge volume knob reflector fell off when I picked it up to reveal the knob was shattered and shortly after the reflector on the tone knob fell out. Gibson sent replacements immediately and I have had no other issues. I agree that for $2600 they shouldn't let them out the door with issues like that but I am grateful I couldn't afford one until now. All the videos I've seen on the quality before the new management along with things like the chambering I'm just glad that I got the motto I did when I did while they were still trying to show it was a new Gibson.
The felt washer under the pickguard WAS the fix, for years you would lift the guard to find a gouge in the new finish, Then they started shipping with the guards not mounted, then the felt washer
I bought mine(60's Unburst) in 2019 and surprisingly it has none of those blemishes or imperfection. Even the tuners are aligned straight and smooth fret edges no dings or cracks. Judging from most of other Gibson guitar unboxing videos that shows all these flaws, I feel extremely lucky how mine turned out! Of course I haven't opened inside of the humbucker slot or back of the wiring case, but I'd rather believe it'd be okay......
Loved the detailed info, realistically the biggest difference between a custom guitar shop and Gibson is several hundred guitars per month verses 1 or 2. If you want a flawless Les Paul you better get ready to dig deep. I purchased a 2015 and a 2018 and both are perfect. Again, awesome video with tons of detail.
if you want flawless for $2000, just get a japanese made ESP with passives and wahlah. you got the quality of a $5000 Gibson for 40% of the price. you also get some gotoh locking turners for good measure.
I'm watching this because I'm now on the market for either the 50s or 60s Les Paul. I'm not a Luthier but I would have picked up on some of those obvious imperfections. Specifically anything wonky would really spoil it for me. I wouldn't be able to unsee it. Thanks for the review 👍
Thanks and yes anyone just "looking over" a gibson guitar will easily be able to tell there's something off about them. Especially when comparing them to another brand of guitar.
I have a new 60's GLP Standard, Ice Tea. I love it. Flawless, plays great, set up perfectly and checked by Sweetwater. Good idea to buy through the retailer, in my opinion. They screen the incoming inventory, you pick the specific serial number. Bought a Gibson Songwriter too - gorgeous Bozeman Gibson.
In 2008 in bought the Slash Les Paul brand new. Right out of the case it had a couple of indentations in the Nitro finish on the back of the neck. The factory put into the case before the Nitro was completely cured.
I've been a Fender fanatic for decades, my favourite being the Jeff Beck strat. Loved it a lot. Just recently picked up a Les Paul Standard 60s in Bourbon Bourst... haven't put it down since I got it. Poor Fenders are feeling neglected 😅
Love the content ! With you being a luthier,you know right where to look for imperfections.I am not a luthier,but I do the same when buying a guitar. I could watch vids like this ALL DAY ! New subscriber here. Love it 👍
Ahh , what we love from Gibson perfect imperfection . I have the exact same model my near vision isn’t the greatest so I don’t know if mine had the same imperfection, would imagine so but nothing that bothers me . Really enjoyed the professional over view , great work. For me it’s American as apple pie and I love it ..
I’ll get a Gibson Les Paul from 2000 and they didn’t even put a cover over the screw back then 22:38. Normally wears a hole down through the finish to the wood. You can see it on a lot of Gibson Les Pauls
Beautiful Les Paul Shane. I hope you have many years of enjoyment with it. I used to have a LTD 5 string bass that had a flame maple top. and came in a coffin case with crushed purple velvet. Sad day when I had to sell my bass
Come on Gibson! the standard should be a issues free out of the box. That is a deal breaker for me at that price range. Thank you so much for that review.
I played ibanez (longer scale) for years and also found the gibson scale length odd at first, but I got used to it fairly quick. The top on that guitar looks amazing! I recently got a few gibby's and none have a top like that. I also had to recheck my specs based on your observations and luckily the ones I got didn't have those flaws. But all things considered, I would still be happy with a guitar like that, even with the mis-alignments....as for the curing, the 2021 LP studio was sticky when I first got it, meaning it needed more time to cure (but it can take a few months or longer to fully cure apparently). The 2020 classic and 2019 standard didn't have the stickiness because they were sitting in the store longer.
First video I have seen where its a different approach at a review. I like the craftsmanship aspect of this. For the price these guitars are currently, they should be perfect.
Got rid of my Les Paul studio about 4 years ago because of the weight issue . It was a worn mahoganey finsh with burst buckers , vintage tuners ,Gibson hard shell case , made exclusivly for Musicians friend . The guitar had killer tone . Ended up buying a Pelham blue sg . Slso a niece guitar . Missed the Les paul and was about to purchase the new epiphone 59 with gibson hardware after hearing good things . Any way I found a 2019 60s ice tea on Reverb and was able to purchase it for total price 1730 delivered . The guitar is mint and set up beautiful out of the box . There may be some imperfications, but nothing that stands out . After a couple years of gigging and just out right playing whos gonna care . I did post a video of this guitar a few months ago . Have to say its a great guitar even at Full price .
I got mine from wildwood. They do free set ups. Their tech must be awesome because that thing doesn't go out of tune. Plus looked great. I usually don't nitpick guitars though so probably wouldn't notice. But the tuning amazes me. However he set the nut and action up was dead on. Left in the case for two weeks. Took it out and still in tune.
Very nice I bought the 60’s un burst…the first batch.I am playing awhile …it’s a nice Les Paul…enjoy👍👍..nice chevron flame top..I’ve noticed the figured tops lately aren’t as nice as honestly the first run when they came out…I’m sure there is nice ones..but not like fist year first batch..Hope they don’t get complacent…..again…price just jumped ouch..
i can respect your honesty in this video for the amount your paying it should be flawless but as you have said in this video these are things that dont impact the guitar in a major way its nice seeing a luthiers insight and as youve said you would never let one of your guitars leave with any imperfections as they are custom hopefully QC is better on custom shop guitars as theyre hand made and not like a production guitar im pretty easy when it comes to guitars as long as the issues dont impact the guitar in a bad way frets not being shiny and maybe some slight left over finish or buffing marks arent gonna kill the guitar
Just picked up a 2022 leftover 60's standard on sale in Iced tea with a excellent top(mine does not have the chevrons like yours it has the wider Quilty flame. After giving a good look over following what you did in this vid the ONLY fault i can find is very faint tooling marks on the FB. These are very faint and unless you have a bright light on the FB and are looking for something you would never even see them. The rosewood has a nice dark chocolate look to it. I would give Gibson a 9.5 out of a ten on this Les Paul.That covers cosmetics onto the sound, unplugged the LP has a strong loud tone and to my surprise not only can you feel it vibrating on chords but even when you play single notes you can feel it. Has great sustain and plays clean from the box. I did no set up to it. action from factory set was at 1.5mm high E and 1.75mm low E which is perfect for me. Other than maybe adjusting the p'u height this LP was good to go from its box. Very satisfied with it.
Traded that standard toward a 2018 Historic R9 vos in honey lemon fade. The 59 is my dream guitar so i do not think i will miss the standard even though i still say it was a killer guitar for the $2500 is cost me!
Hello how are you? What's going on in Australia right now? I hear bad things about camps and having to stay in your house etc but I don't trust most media sources so not sure what to believe. Hope you're doing well and enjoy your guitar!
Nice review and I like the particular attention to detail when you lined up that stick on the tuners. That's not something I would have noticed just looking at it 🙏🕊️❤️
nothing is perfect when building a guitar. thats why every one is different. even custom shop guitars are not perfect. now production line guitars may be different over seas but at Gibson USA all are hand made by people
I don't think they'd sell more if they were perfect to be honest. They're Gibson, and they're constantly selling out as-is, so I think they get complacent without any real need to work harder. "Why work harder when they don't have to?" is the feeling I get.
In my professional opinion, when building a guitar (non-automated processes) the attention to detail should be more closely observed. For example, when I do a fret job, I don't file the frets down and leave big file scratches in the frets. I use a higher and higher grit paper to make the scratches go away. I don't say "good enough" and send it with tooled up frets to a paying customer like Gibson does.
@@spitfire27028 : Yes, and some of those people don't take pride in their work or this kind of stuff wouldn't be happening. Ok, they have their off days but for Gibson's QC dept to then allow the guitar to go out into the world is rediculous. Fix the issue(s) then send it out. Oh wait, profits, profits profits... get em out the door no matter what! :(
@@KleshGuitarsOfficial The frets are done on a Plek machine, not by hand! You clearly received a lemon and should have sent it back for a replacement. My LP Standard made in Oct.2021 has none of these "flaws" you show and constantly cry about. I bought mine from Sweetwater, and they would have simply sent you a new guitar and sent yours back to Nashville for QC issues. Where you buy makes a big difference. Dummy
Love the video. I own a handful of Gibson's and am critical of their QC shortcomings. At least the issue with the felt pad over the pickguard screw is better than what they were doing not long ago where the screw would directly hit the finish! The felt pad may be a newer thing. Good job on the video, thank you.
Yeah Gibson added the felt pad after many were complaining about the nick the screw was making into the finish. Gibson should leave the PG off and ship it i the case as a option like they do with the extra truss rod cover.
An excellent video. Seems like Gibson are taking their eye off the ball. This is the most informative I've seen yet on production quality. Take away the name & the shinyness & you need guys like this with a Pro eye to look out for standards. I've just put down a deposit for a new Epiphone ES 335. From the research I've done the build quality on some are actually better than their Gibson counterparts😳.
The tuners and the output jack are the only thing that would bother me. I'm sitting here with my 2021 les paul tribute and all those issues are absent on mine. I would get that replaced if I were you.
Honestly if they’re charging $2000 or better for a Les Paul they should make sure it’s right. Those finish flaws you’ve shown to my mind should have been caught in QC before it left the factory. I love wear on a guitar when it happens over time but if it’s a brand new instrument they need to pay more attention to detail. Thanks for educating us!!!
i love my 2019 bourbon burst Standard 60s and all her little flaws. i added a B7 Bigsby and a schaller roller bridge via vibramate and she plays like a dream. Every Gibson is different thats what makes them so special. my only complaint is the ABR-1 bridge posts. They are cheap and really shabby and loose. But watch my video on how i rectified that situation. Congrats on that beautiful work of art
The top saves it. If I were meh about it I would have returned it. I would have a long think about the tuning pegs being that far off and the skewed input jack. Just bought one in black so I’ll give the eagle eye. Thanks!
Have to say the quality of Gibson guitars has gone down considerably over the years mainly because Gibson laid off some of their most skilled workforce. I own a 1988 Cherry Sunburst Les Paul Standard and the quality of it speaks volumes for itself unlike the quality what you can buy new today, which is most unfortunate.
I would send that back ,what an eye-opener,my heart would sink Ive got a tribute £1000 on UK it's mega and was thinking of buying my dream LP got me thinking now
Hey man, I like your review.Very thorough. I myself purchased a 2019 Gibson Les Paul Standard with the same specs as yours. The funny thing, is that it has the same crooked jack plate. So it might be some type of mechanical or CNC issue. Just wanted to bring that up since you had the same issue. That is the ONLY thing that bothers me since I'm a perfectionist with OCD. Other than that, great guitar. Lastly, I'm building a Billy Bo guitar, and when I drilled my tuning machine holes it wasn't perfect, and it bugged me. However, when you pointed out the imperfection on your Les Paul, my work isn't so bad.
Picked up a 2019 pretty much new earler this year Shop owner said his tech went over any QC issues that might have come up so fit and finish pretty near perfect No bleed over on the binding or the little stuff that can be so annoying on mass produced instruments It's a 50's HCS Standard Nice wide flame Not too bright of a finish as well and the clincher 8.4 lb's Got the chance to play it in Nashville on a road trip and pulled the trigger when I got home Only issue is it could use better pups than the BB's that are in it Lot's of really nice winder's for the real deal WCR...Wizz...Bare Knuckle... Doyle's Coils...even the old 57 Classics out of a 97 R9 Historic I used to have Great demo Enjoy
My Les Paul was just delivered in the exact same box, headstock fully snapped inside the case. I was so gutted! Currently awaiting the company y to call me back
My 2022 50's standard had bad scratchmarks on the fretboard and inlays too, and the frets were rough. I'm not sure they polish after the PLEK proces. I did some sanding and polishing, that shouldn't be necessary, but after that it looked and felt great. The good part is the tone!! It's loud and rich acoustically and i dig the Burstbuckers as well. I might add a string butler to keep me sane 😉
A wonderful, informative unboxing. My “Unburst” was just delivered before the end of this video. Now the wait until it acclimates. What a nice coincidence! Thank you for the detailed description of what you found.
I guess I was lucky. Mine has a date within 2 weeks of yours, and I don’t see those things, and I used a big magnifying glass. As long as it plays well, I wouldn’t worry, but I know you will. I would too. Just enjoy it, or return it.
I don't find it acceptable that a guitar at this price point has such imperfections. It would be interesting to see how an Epiphone Les Paul stacks up using the same inspection methodology.
Since I am currently playing a personally upgraded LP100, I too should very much welcome a nit-picky analysis of an Epiphone Les Paul. I've been fooling with fretted strings for over 60 years and currently own (and often play) many stringed (and sometimes bowed) intstruments. When Fender moved from Fullerton and Gibson moved from Kalamazoo they both traded high quality for a focus on bean counting. I have played consistenly-high-grade Epiphones from Kalamazoo and from off-shore. Imports had a back headstock sticker that read, "Made overseas and expertly set-up in U.S.A by Epiphone."
Mine has the felt mark. I've heard it can take years for nitro to really settle in. Not sure how true that is. After owning mine for a few years now, the nitro still stains pretty easily. Nothing a buff couldn't remove though.
Yep, nitro can take years to become hard. It's not a bad thing of course, just how it is. I actually prefer the "crazing" of old vintage guitars with nitro finishes. Crazing is the term used for all those little cracks you see in vintage nitro guitars.
For $2,700 that guitar would be going back. As one of the oldest mass produced electric guitar companies around, you know they know how to do it right. They just don't.
@@bryangawcki4266 No, I’m someone who loves Gibson but is irritated with their quality and has been for years. Letting things like this slide is exactly why they continue to put out products with defects like this. Because nobody holds them accountable.
It’s called outsourcing ! Most aren’t made in America so they can the most profit off of cheap labor . Still charge the same ! Even if they say made in America they are not . Assembled in America let’s them put a USA sticker on it when it’s not ! That might mean putting the tuning keys on In America .
I just bought this exact guitar. Mine didn't have those blemishes. for the price... I might have sent mine back if it had the issues your guitar has. I wouldn't have noticed the blemishes had you not pointed them out. luckily; I'm happy with my purchase. I love my Les Paul. new sub. great video!
I just purchased a standard 50s burst and there were definitely some fit and finish issues. The cavity routing was a atrocious-like their router bit was dull. However, it sounds amazing and feels perfect in the hands.
The chatter marks you point out at the nut and 5th fret are at every fret of my 2001 Custom Shop Historic R4 (1954 reissue gold top). I suspect they’re left over from fret crowning or maybe nibbling the binding depending on their process. On a custom shop guitar it’s really inexcusable, but we know Gibson had QC issues under Henry. Other than that, the guitar is magical.
Yep, the chatter marks are from the guy who is cleaning the glue from the frets, or possible finish getting under the tape. I always used a razor blade to clean up, and yes those chatter marks happen when your razor gets a little dull. Yeah i mean the guitar still sounds good, but come on there's some inexcusable mistakes here that aren't even "mistakes" buy more just "laziness" on Gibson's part. In my opinion of course.
So I've bought two brand new Gibson LPs in my lifetime and still have both. Both with the 60s neck. I don't like the 50s neck. They are both excellent guitars. I set them up years ago, and I play them, clean them, and change strings, and they never fail me. One is from 2008, the other 2015. I bought a couple of Fender strats in that time and have not had the same experience. I actually just bought a 2024 American ultra, and im probably sending it back. I just seem to have better luck with Gibson.
Gibson and taking their time don’t fit in the same sentence usually. I have a standard 50s in ice tea burst with a AAA flame top and I love it. Best guitar I’ve ever owned and I enjoy every second I get to wrap my hands around the neck. Personally the Les Paul look is complete to me with the pick guard on so I have no inclination to take it off. I do agree with you that it’s apparent Gibson is still cutting corners on guitars that should be virtually flawless in that price range however.
I just got mine today, I looked at everything you showed here and the only thing I saw was the plastic covers on the back weren't centered either. But, I cannot complain. It's freaking beautiful. (Haven't taken the pick guard off yet)
I am not surprised! Just because it has a nice top does mean that it is a good guitar! Hell, I owned two 1960 Sunbursts with great tops and one was great and the other so so. You just got to get lucky! Serious Business! Same with Fenders!
I totally agree with everything that you have shown. I noticed these flawed details too. I ended up purchasing a Gibson Les Paul Classic instead at my local store because it did not have any of those flaws. This is unfair to those who own a 60s and paid much more for it than I did for the Classic. I do not care if the guitar is built all by hand or CNC machines. I do care that a guitar costing over $2000 is done perfectly.
How bout those tones?!? I bought a 2020 Gibson Les Paul Goldtop with P-90's last year, and I'm super happy with it. Gibson's quality has gone up, even with some small imperfections here and there.
I bought my first Gibson Les Paul 50's the same week this video came out. It was an uncharged AAAA flamed maple heritage cherry sunburst from AMS online. Looked amazing in pictures so I just went for it. Looked amazing in person also until I pulled it out and strummed to find the worst buzz I've ever heard. Then noticed the fret nibs were chewed up like a dog chewed on them and the inside of the horn had finish cut through to the wood from shaving binding. Then sat it down on table to see how bad the neck was twisted. Sent it back to AMS and put a sour taste in my mouth and haven't went for another one yet. I've purchased 15 Epiphones sense there 2020 changes and never had any issue. A full Korina set from AMS and the last 2 Joe Bonamassa LP's and a few 50's and 60's LP's and they were all great from box. Only issue I had was shipping from AMS for Korina explorer the hockey stick wasn't supported and cracked so they exchanged and packaged better. Long story short my thoughts were "COVID" got rid of all the experienced "Luthiers" on the line and no one wants to work any more so they were training on these guitars. Unacceptable for the blown up costs to start.
I just bought the same guitar a month back and I absolutely love it. I didn't scrutinize the build quality like you did, but for the most part I don't see anything on mine that causes concern. After all, some people pay double what I did to have the custom shop make look like it's been in a train wreck. Never did understand that mentality, but hey, to each, their own.
That was my first walk around a guitar.
I think I learned something today.
Thanks for the guided tour.
I agree that none of these detail items would be, "deal breakers," but I share your frustration with inexcusable sloppiness of things like crooked jack plates and misplaced tuning machines. Even if done by hand, it's simply too easy to create a basic jig or template to get this right every damn time.
I prefer organic rather than template perfect- I just bought the cherry burst
What a great review and break down of what to look for in the details …Thank You
How many non “deal breakers” were there on this guitar? These aren’t $300 knock offs. There’s no excuse for these flaws. If Gibson insists on accepting these flaws, their price point should be reduced considerably.
the jack plate and misaligned tuners are shocking for this price point
Top side they probly all line up. its a hand made guitar with flaws, you want perfect get a cnc Epiphone and love on that"
Here in my hometown the famous Maple man who makes all of the maple face covers for Gibson guitars 👍 just thought I would share that!!
That is absolutely beautiful! Love the color. Guitars are super pretty instruments in general.
I agree! always loved Ice tea burst. They have a new finish i want called "Unburst" which is gorgeous!
Looks like a nicely faded heritage cherry burst. The highly figured ones in this color look outstanding!
This video is so informative on Quality Control at Gibson. I’ve taken all of my les Paul’s off my guitar rack (including my 60s standard) and I’m fine tooth 🪮 combing them all for imperfections.
Glad it was helpful!
Yeah, my OCD would kick in with the cockeyed output jack forcing me to return it or drink heavily! Quality wise, I picked up a Gibson Les Paul Standard '50s AAA Top Cherry Sunburst and then a few months later an Epiphone Slash Les Paul Standard Appetite Burst to take on the road with me that I wouldn't mind being a little rougher with. The funny thing is that the Epiphone was nearly flawless with just 2 slightly rough fret ends with a perfect setup for me, and the Gibson at nearly $2000 more, had a bunch of annoying problems with the fit and finish. Nothing earth shattering, but stripped out off center screws and access plates on the back, spots of bleed-over on the neck and body binding. The setup wasn't great at the factory and I had a bad tuner after a few weeks. They replaced it, but I felt like I lost out a little on the Gibson-lottery - except for the top - it was amazing and took the sting out of the little flaws. Props to Epiphone on the Slash however!
My mom scored a stored under the bed and never played Les Paul Custom shop Studio for $400 while I was at a Bluegrass guitar lesson when I was 12.
I still have it and it looks very similar to this beautiful guitar.
Everyone should have 1 Les Paul.
Love your channel!
I bought a new Gibson SG standard in 2018. It had the nicest fretboard I ever seen on a guitar. Beautiful streaks of light and dark running up and down the fretboard. Same with the body, beautiful grain, I got the red one.
It arrived with two problems. The first issue was also with the nut. It looked as if it was chipped on the low E string side and superglued really sloppy. Second issue was... Whenever I get a new guitar I put my Schalled strap locks on so there's no costly accidents.
When I unscrewed the rear body strapholder, there was a huge hole, looked like Gibson tried several times to screw it in. The strap holder was barely grabbing any wood. I called where I got the guitar from and sent it back.
They sent me a replacement.
That guitar came flawless, a plain Jane, identical to the first as far as color.
The newer SG had a better neck as far as playability goes, love the pickups.
Plain Jane turned out to be the keeper. The beauty was sent back, I'm very happy with my decision and my guitar.
It’s not surprising but very unfortunate about the hole drilled for the strap button multiple times. Glad you are enjoying your new one!
Most comprehensive video on a new guitar I've ever seen. Great video!!
This was a really interesting video. I learned a lot about detail. I'm almost afraid to go downstairs and look at my own guitars! lolol Thanks for posting!
I feel out of place commenting because I'm not a guitar player, yet, but have eyes on learning in retirement, which is fairly soon. But as I am "window shopping" on the internet, I find this vlog immensely helpful in knowing what to look for, and what production flaws could be deal breakers or not. Thank you for investing in the purchase and your time for such an honest and thorough review and tutorial!
If you are learning, these "flaws" are not an issue literally at all, and you'll never notice them unless you play with magnifying glasses
@@lespaulranger They are an issue for the price. Just buy an inanez or usa fender instead
@@lordPix3lUK yeah exactly, if these will be issues for you just don't buy a gibson and get an ibanez or fender instead. a fender was designed to be simple to make with as few steps as possible so these flaws just won't appear as often
Interesting take. Love the Luthier's deep dive. In the past year, I have bought two electric guitars from a boutique shop that are phenomenal. One is not necessarily 'perfect' as far as fret finishing, but literally hand-made guitars. I do not expect perfection. Hand made. I love them both. Amazing instruments. In the same year, I also purchased two Gibson LPs and one Epiphone Lazarus LP. Again, not perfect, but phenomenal looking and playing guitars. There's no such thing as perfect in life. I wouldn't trade my 2023 LP 60s Unburst Standard for anything. Or the Epi. Effing great guitar.
Hey! First off, nice video of a beautiful guitar! Very detailed / informative. If I may, I'd like to correct some things that were mentioned that weren't factual. The finish partially up the ends of the nut have been a feature of Gibson Les Paul's (Standard, Junior, Special) since the late 50's / early 60's. In fact, folks purchasing vintage LP's and collectors look for it; it signifies that the nut is original to the guitar. Nuts are installed first at Gibson, then finish applied. (See Tony Bacon's book). The finish 'flaw' below the pickguard is indeed from the piece of felt placed over the nut that holds the bracket on. I agree; finish wasn't cured enough, however, Gibson places the felt there to avoid the inevitable finish 'ding' from the nut, that was commonplace prior to them using the felt. At least with the felt impression, it can be buffed out; not so with an actual ding in the finish. Finally, on every Gibson Les Paul I've owned, the E,A and D strings sit halfway above of the nut top or 'level'; the G, B and E strings are 'just' buried / even with the top of the nut. I do agree; for a $2500. guitar the attention to detail is lacking. But honestly, it's better (IMO) over the last two years or so than it has been in quite some time. BEST WISHES with that beauty! (Brian)
Glad to see someone who knows what he,s lookin for in a Les Paul , was considering getting one but Im like any other person on a price like this ....I want perfection on a 2700 to 2800 dollar guitar and if Gibson cant provide that Im going elsewhere...Thank You.
We all don't have a luthiers eye when it comes to inspecting guitars so thank you for making this video, I will definitely use your expertise when purchasing a guitar online again,personally for the cabbage we dish out for these guitars ,even for the minor imperfections you found,my guitar would definitely be going back, again great video and congrats.
Good luck with finding all these tiny imperfections when purchasing guitars online. Lol.
I just bought this exact same guitar yesterday, lovely top! Almost like a cherry sunburst finish. I plan on keeping it stock and putting 11’s on it. Also, I had the same finish issue as you at the nut, and I pointed this out to the employee at Anderton’s. He checked with a colleague and said it’s just an imperfection. One of the other standards in there had the same issue. Thanks for the video!
Gibson Nitro Cellulose finishes stay pliable for years, especially if you keep your guitars away from direct light sources. Just leave a guitar tuner on your headstock for a few days and you will see an indent where the clip held.
I put one on mine long enough to tune and it left a dent on both side
Even my Hercules wall mounts that are supposedly "neutral" left marks below the headstock of my Gibbys' finishes.
For $2500, the finish issues I can let pass. The 1/4 inch jack plate and tuning pegs however should be dead on and a standard qc check.
100% should be perfect every time, in my opinion there's no excuse for not making and using a simple template for drilling these holes.
I wonder when they drill the jack plate holes in the process. As in, would they have to scrap a guitar that was 90% complete over a small detail. It would drive me nuts too btw
After watching this vid checked on mine immediately. I think someone was having a rough day while working on yours. These kind of flaws don't even happen on the cheapest guitars. Idk you still got a great guitar. Its minor shit but it can get annoying too.
@@Asherr6 No point in scrapping it. If anything, offer it up as a B stock model for reduced prices.
@@BITESIZEJONES since watching this video I've paid close attention to the jackplates on these new LPs and have seen a couple others that were off center as well. Weird how an issue so simple to solve isn't being addressed.
Both my 60s standards have the little felt mark in the nitro under the pick guard. Better than the old ding that was in the older ones from the nut resting on the nitro. Great guitars none the less!!
iTS A GUITAR MADE BY A HUMAN BEING....
Been following the gold channel for a while and saw some of your old Luther videos. I'm loving this review and would def love to see more unboxing like this. As a musician and long time guitar player for the price you paid and the brand I WOULD expect perfection. I'd expect this from and Epiphone not on a Gibson branded instrument
That's true, these kinds of problems would be passable on a Epi, but for an actual Gibson Les Paul, what do they take us for, idiots?
@@Klesh this is one of the biggest problems I've heard of Gibson's over the last 20 years or so. Quality control has been an issue. That being said with the new management it seems that they have improved considerably but still far below expectations. A comparably prices Ibanez or schecter would have far far less flaws. But I liken it to buying a high end sports car. The sticker price is 90 percent brand and 10 percent substance
@@Klesh I'm agree with you buddy it's exactly what they think about us they take our money and then they laugh they don't care about us they let us know that's a long time ago they care about money
I agree that GIbson should take more time with the finish. Since most les pauls are on back-ordered, make it near perfect at least.
I'm expecting my Ice tea 60s model. Can't wait.
This LP really has nice figured top. As long as the flaws, you mention, don't hinder playability, I will gladly own an LP like that.
Yep, I'm happy with it and happy to share everything I found on it for you.
Just got a 50’s standard in cherry burst this week, built in March of 2021. Took back a studio due to gouges in the side of the fretboard. This one has chipped finish at the top of the head on the corners which may be from the store I bought it as they hang other guitars to close to the top.
The nut on mine is a little worse as only two strings sit above the top surface and sides are not clean. The tuners are in alignment and Jack plate is just a hair off. The rear plate has a gap on one side and tight on the other.
Fretboard seems very dry. Wasn’t sure if I should apply Dunlop 65 lemon oil to a new fretboard but I believe it needs it.
I didn’t receive keys with my case and no lock even if I did.
Even with its minor flaws I still cherish and proud to own it.
Nice! Yeah you will want to oil the board, common issue is a dry board from the factory.
It's best to inspect the headstock before looking at any other parts of a new Les Paul.
I learnt that the hard bitter disapointing way.
I opened the case and immediately beheld the beautiful flame maple top
and shining pickups.
Then my eyes slowly travelled up the lovely rosewood fingerboard.
Until I reached the nut,
and was devastated to see the headstock hanging off the severely cracked and splintered neck.
That was despite the brand new guitar being delivered in a bubble wrapped case within 2 cardboard boxes..
Minimise potential heart break, just examine the headstock first..
That’s very unfortunate. Yes it does happen, as a guitar maker myself I shipped a guitar to a guy using UPS and when he received it it was broken. Of course I replaced the neck but that really was terrible. Sorry for your loss hope they replaced it!
Absolutely, Gibson's are fragile and shouldn't be handled by "non guitar players". Whereas Fender can be tossed, smashed into amps, dropped etc with very little damage. Mahogany's fragile, there's a lot more work that goes into making Gibsons. I can't say they're better. My all-time favorite guitar was my 2006 American Vintage reissue Telecaster.
Kieth said it right "Leo got it right the first time."
Also remove the truss rod cover and give the truss rod nut a turn. i learned that the hard way. First thing I check.
I have that exact instrument in my collection and love it. The 60's neck makes it very easy to play rock and blues, but my fingers are a bit too large to actually finger pick it with enough consistency in the studio, and like you, I sometimes overshoot the frets. The tone is badass, though.
That’s one thing that sucks about being an expert in a given field. You notice things that most people wouldn’t. I Just got my 60’s standard in and luckily it doesn’t have any of the drilling alignment issues. That would have triggered me the most. Haven’t checked under the pick guard yet, but all in all it’s solid as hell. The tuning has been extremely stable after stretching the strings and it’s very easy to play!
I bought the same style and color early this year made in Oct 20 . I did notice some differences though. I had a steel jack plate, and mine came with a blank truss rod cover I didn't see in the paper bag with the case keys on yours. I also have the faded interior type case without the janky handle yours has. But mine does weigh a ton empty. I had the same issue with the finish at the nut which I attributed to it being sprayed before the nut was sanded and honestly didn't know it shouldn't look like that. I didn't have any issues with the tuning machines thankfully but my bridge volume knob reflector fell off when I picked it up to reveal the knob was shattered and shortly after the reflector on the tone knob fell out. Gibson sent replacements immediately and I have had no other issues. I agree that for $2600 they shouldn't let them out the door with issues like that but I am grateful I couldn't afford one until now. All the videos I've seen on the quality before the new management along with things like the chambering I'm just glad that I got the motto I did when I did while they were still trying to show it was a new Gibson.
The felt washer under the pickguard WAS the fix, for years you would lift the guard to find a gouge in the new finish, Then they started shipping with the guards not mounted, then the felt washer
Id prefer not having it on cuz I'll take it off whenever I can afford one of these but at least they tried lol
Nice, that is like a dream to have, the ones you make are incredible as well! My dad used to play a Gibson,just took me back 30y. Beautiful!
Got that for my Graduation present this year. Absolutely love this guitar.
I bought mine(60's Unburst) in 2019 and surprisingly it has none of those blemishes or imperfection. Even the tuners are aligned straight and smooth fret edges no dings or cracks. Judging from most of other Gibson guitar unboxing videos that shows all these flaws, I feel extremely lucky how mine turned out! Of course I haven't opened inside of the humbucker slot or back of the wiring case, but I'd rather believe it'd be okay......
Super cool. Congrats. Nice work keeping your major collecting to smaller things than guitars.
Loved the detailed info, realistically the biggest difference between a custom guitar shop and Gibson is several hundred guitars per month verses 1 or 2.
If you want a flawless Les Paul you better get ready to dig deep.
I purchased a 2015 and a 2018 and both are perfect.
Again, awesome video with tons of detail.
if you want flawless for $2000, just get a japanese made ESP with passives and wahlah. you got the quality of a $5000 Gibson for 40% of the price. you also get some gotoh locking turners for good measure.
I'm watching this because I'm now on the market for either the 50s or 60s Les Paul. I'm not a Luthier but I would have picked up on some of those obvious imperfections. Specifically anything wonky would really spoil it for me. I wouldn't be able to unsee it. Thanks for the review 👍
Thanks and yes anyone just "looking over" a gibson guitar will easily be able to tell there's something off about them. Especially when comparing them to another brand of guitar.
I have a new 60's GLP Standard, Ice Tea. I love it. Flawless, plays great, set up perfectly and checked by Sweetwater. Good idea to buy through the retailer, in my opinion.
They screen the incoming inventory, you pick the specific serial number. Bought a Gibson Songwriter too - gorgeous Bozeman Gibson.
In 2008 in bought the Slash Les Paul brand new. Right out of the case it had a couple of indentations in the Nitro finish on the back of the neck. The factory put into the case before the Nitro was completely cured.
I've been a Fender fanatic for decades, my favourite being the Jeff Beck strat. Loved it a lot. Just recently picked up a Les Paul Standard 60s in Bourbon Bourst... haven't put it down since I got it. Poor Fenders are feeling neglected 😅
Love the content ! With you being a luthier,you know right where to look for imperfections.I am not a luthier,but I do the same when buying a guitar. I could watch vids like this ALL DAY ! New subscriber here. Love it 👍
Cool, thanks!
Ahh , what we love from Gibson perfect imperfection . I have the exact same model my near vision isn’t the greatest so I don’t know if mine had the same imperfection, would imagine so but nothing that bothers me . Really enjoyed the professional over view , great work. For me it’s American as apple pie and I love it ..
I’ll get a Gibson Les Paul from 2000 and they didn’t even put a cover over the screw back then 22:38. Normally wears a hole down through the finish to the wood. You can see it on a lot of Gibson Les Pauls
Beautiful Les Paul Shane. I hope you have many years of enjoyment with it. I used to have a LTD 5 string bass that had a flame maple top. and came in a coffin case with crushed purple velvet. Sad day when I had to sell my bass
Beautiful guitar!! Congratulations on the purchase. Love your channel man. Keep up the great work and I always look forward to your next vlog.
Come on Gibson! the standard should be a issues free out of the box. That is a deal breaker for me at that price range. Thank you so much for that review.
I got mine almost a year after you but the 50's neck in cherry burst and I love it and have no complaints
I played ibanez (longer scale) for years and also found the gibson scale length odd at first, but I got used to it fairly quick. The top on that guitar looks amazing! I recently got a few gibby's and none have a top like that. I also had to recheck my specs based on your observations and luckily the ones I got didn't have those flaws. But all things considered, I would still be happy with a guitar like that, even with the mis-alignments....as for the curing, the 2021 LP studio was sticky when I first got it, meaning it needed more time to cure (but it can take a few months or longer to fully cure apparently). The 2020 classic and 2019 standard didn't have the stickiness because they were sitting in the store longer.
I agree this top is ridiculously nice! I'm glad your gibson didn't have the same flaws mine has, besides the sticky finish. Thanks for the comment
your camera work is fantastic. At 20:26 I just noticed all the tool marks on the rosewood...... Great video
Congrats on the new guitar! This was an awesome video and very informative! I subscribed and hope to learn more from your channel. Cheers!
First video I have seen where its a different approach at a review. I like the craftsmanship aspect of this. For the price these guitars are currently, they should be perfect.
Got rid of my Les Paul studio about 4 years ago because of the weight issue . It was a worn mahoganey finsh with burst buckers , vintage tuners ,Gibson hard shell case , made exclusivly for Musicians friend . The guitar had killer tone . Ended up buying a Pelham blue sg . Slso a niece guitar . Missed the Les paul and was about to purchase the new epiphone 59 with gibson hardware after hearing good things . Any way I found a 2019 60s ice tea on Reverb and was able to purchase it for total price 1730 delivered . The guitar is mint and set up beautiful out of the box . There may be some imperfications, but nothing that stands out . After a couple years of gigging and just out right playing whos gonna care . I did post a video of this guitar a few months ago . Have to say its a great guitar even at Full price .
100% on letting the nitro cure longer. Common problem amongst alot of guitar manufacturers.
That top is crazy! Like you said, minor finish flaws but no deal breakers for me. Good video!
I got mine from wildwood. They do free set ups. Their tech must be awesome because that thing doesn't go out of tune. Plus looked great. I usually don't nitpick guitars though so probably wouldn't notice. But the tuning amazes me. However he set the nut and action up was dead on. Left in the case for two weeks. Took it out and still in tune.
Very nice I bought the 60’s un burst…the first batch.I am playing awhile …it’s a nice Les Paul…enjoy👍👍..nice chevron flame top..I’ve noticed the figured tops lately aren’t as nice as honestly the first run when they came out…I’m sure there is nice ones..but not like fist year first batch..Hope they don’t get complacent…..again…price just jumped ouch..
i can respect your honesty in this video for the amount your paying it should be flawless but as you have said in this video these are things that dont impact the guitar in a major way its nice seeing a luthiers insight and as youve said you would never let one of your guitars leave with any imperfections as they are custom hopefully QC is better on custom shop guitars as theyre hand made and not like a production guitar im pretty easy when it comes to guitars as long as the issues dont impact the guitar in a bad way frets not being shiny and maybe some slight left over finish or buffing marks arent gonna kill the guitar
Just picked up a 2022 leftover 60's standard on sale in Iced tea with a excellent top(mine does not have the chevrons like yours it has the wider Quilty flame. After giving a good look over following what you did in this vid the ONLY fault i can find is very faint tooling marks on the FB. These are very faint and unless you have a bright light on the FB and are looking for something you would never even see them. The rosewood has a nice dark chocolate look to it. I would give Gibson a 9.5 out of a ten on this Les Paul.That covers cosmetics onto the sound, unplugged the LP has a strong loud tone and to my surprise not only can you feel it vibrating on chords but even when you play single notes you can feel it. Has great sustain and plays clean from the box. I did no set up to it. action from factory set was at 1.5mm high E and 1.75mm low E which is perfect for me. Other than maybe adjusting the p'u height this LP was good to go from its box. Very satisfied with it.
Traded that standard toward a 2018 Historic R9 vos in honey lemon fade. The 59 is my dream guitar so i do not think i will miss the standard even though i still say it was a killer guitar for the $2500 is cost me!
That’s a damn good-looking guitar…
This is a very informative video. Thank you. Got my 50's LP Standard in Heritage Cherry yesterday. Love it. G'day from Australia
Hello how are you? What's going on in Australia right now? I hear bad things about camps and having to stay in your house etc but I don't trust most media sources so not sure what to believe.
Hope you're doing well and enjoy your guitar!
Nice review and I like the particular attention to detail when you lined up that stick on the tuners.
That's not something I would have noticed just looking at it
🙏🕊️❤️
Imagine how many more they’d sell if they were perfect. That fingerboard binding work would make me send it back immediately.
nothing is perfect when building a guitar. thats why every one is different. even custom shop guitars are not perfect. now production line guitars may be different over seas but at Gibson USA all are hand made by people
I don't think they'd sell more if they were perfect to be honest. They're Gibson, and they're constantly selling out as-is, so I think they get complacent without any real need to work harder. "Why work harder when they don't have to?" is the feeling I get.
In my professional opinion, when building a guitar (non-automated processes) the attention to detail should be more closely observed. For example, when I do a fret job, I don't file the frets down and leave big file scratches in the frets. I use a higher and higher grit paper to make the scratches go away. I don't say "good enough" and send it with tooled up frets to a paying customer like Gibson does.
@@spitfire27028 : Yes, and some of those people don't take pride in their work or this kind of stuff wouldn't be happening. Ok, they have their off days but for Gibson's QC dept to then allow the guitar to go out into the world is rediculous. Fix the issue(s) then send it out. Oh wait, profits, profits profits... get em out the door no matter what! :(
@@KleshGuitarsOfficial The frets are done on a Plek machine, not by hand! You clearly received a lemon and should have sent it back for a replacement. My LP Standard made in Oct.2021 has none of these "flaws" you show and constantly cry about. I bought mine from Sweetwater, and they would have simply sent you a new guitar and sent yours back to Nashville for QC issues. Where you buy makes a big difference. Dummy
Some luthiers or techs will leave the unwound strings just below to keep from jumping out, as long as it's cut correctly there shouldn't be an issue.
Love the video. I own a handful of Gibson's and am critical of their QC shortcomings. At least the issue with the felt pad over the pickguard screw is better than what they were doing not long ago where the screw would directly hit the finish! The felt pad may be a newer thing. Good job on the video, thank you.
Yeah Gibson added the felt pad after many were complaining about the nick the screw was making into the finish.
Gibson should leave the PG off and ship it i the case as a option like they do with the extra truss rod cover.
If only Gibson had the same quality control as the people at PRS or even PRS SE (Indonesia) the fretwork on my SE Custom is immaculate.
I've purchased 2 prs se customs both sent back for bad fret work where they were unplayable here in the UK
An excellent video. Seems like Gibson are taking their eye off the ball. This is the most informative I've seen yet on production quality. Take away the name & the shinyness & you need guys like this with a Pro eye to look out for standards. I've just put down a deposit for a new Epiphone ES 335. From the research I've done the build quality on some are actually better than their Gibson counterparts😳.
Thanks I like to look at these instruments as if I were doing the QC at my own shop. Yeah the Epiphones do kick ass let us know how it turns out!
@@KleshGuitarsOfficial Will do my man
The tuners and the output jack are the only thing that would bother me. I'm sitting here with my 2021 les paul tribute and all those issues are absent on mine. I would get that replaced if I were you.
Honestly if they’re charging $2000 or better for a Les Paul they should make sure it’s right. Those finish flaws you’ve shown to my mind should have been caught in QC before it left the factory. I love wear on a guitar when it happens over time but if it’s a brand new instrument they need to pay more attention to detail. Thanks for educating us!!!
Yep exactly. I also like beat up guitars as long as its not like that from the factory LOL!
i love my 2019 bourbon burst Standard 60s and all her little flaws. i added a B7 Bigsby and a schaller roller bridge via vibramate and she plays like a dream. Every Gibson is different thats what makes them so special. my only complaint is the ABR-1 bridge posts. They are cheap and really shabby and loose. But watch my video on how i rectified that situation. Congrats on that beautiful work of art
That's a nice Les Paul. With such a nice piece of flamed maple you would think they would pay more attention to the details.
The top saves it. If I were meh about it I would have returned it. I would have a long think about the tuning pegs being that far off and the skewed input jack. Just bought one in black so I’ll give the eagle eye. Thanks!
Congratulations man, that’s exciting!!!
Have to say the quality of Gibson guitars has gone down considerably over the years mainly because Gibson laid off some of their most skilled workforce. I own a 1988 Cherry Sunburst Les Paul Standard and the quality of it speaks volumes for itself unlike the quality what you can buy new today, which is most unfortunate.
Congrats man. Those guitars are amazing. But it does need the dunlop 65. That's when the smile stays on your face.
I would send that back ,what an eye-opener,my heart would sink Ive got a tribute £1000 on UK it's mega and was thinking of buying my dream LP got me thinking now
Beautiful guitar, I’m going to pull the trigger on one soon. Between the jack plate and back plate I think that I’d be sending that one back.
Awesome video Thanks for the mention brother 🤘🏻
Hey man, I like your review.Very thorough. I myself purchased a 2019 Gibson Les Paul Standard with the same specs as yours. The funny thing, is that it has the same crooked jack plate. So it might be some type of mechanical or CNC issue. Just wanted to bring that up since you had the same issue. That is the ONLY thing that bothers me since I'm a perfectionist with OCD. Other than that, great guitar. Lastly, I'm building a Billy Bo guitar, and when I drilled my tuning machine holes it wasn't perfect, and it bugged me. However, when you pointed out the imperfection on your Les Paul, my work isn't so bad.
Picked up a 2019 pretty much new earler this year Shop owner said his tech went over any QC issues that might have come up so fit and finish pretty near perfect No bleed over on the binding or the little stuff that can be so annoying on mass produced instruments It's a 50's HCS Standard Nice wide flame Not too bright of a finish as well and the clincher 8.4 lb's Got the chance to play it in Nashville on a road trip and pulled the trigger when I got home Only issue is it could use better pups than the BB's that are in it Lot's of really nice winder's for the real deal WCR...Wizz...Bare Knuckle... Doyle's Coils...even the old 57 Classics out of a 97 R9 Historic I used to have Great demo Enjoy
My Les Paul was just delivered in the exact same box, headstock fully snapped inside the case. I was so gutted! Currently awaiting the company y to call me back
My 2022 50's standard had bad scratchmarks on the fretboard and inlays too, and the frets were rough. I'm not sure they polish after the PLEK proces. I did some sanding and polishing, that shouldn't be necessary, but after that it looked and felt great. The good part is the tone!! It's loud and rich acoustically and i dig the Burstbuckers as well. I might add a string butler to keep me sane 😉
A wonderful, informative unboxing.
My “Unburst” was just delivered before the end of this video.
Now the wait until it acclimates.
What a nice coincidence! Thank you for the detailed description of what you found.
I guess I was lucky. Mine has a date within 2 weeks of yours, and I don’t see those things, and I used a big magnifying glass.
As long as it plays well, I wouldn’t worry, but I know you will. I would too.
Just enjoy it, or return it.
I don't find it acceptable that a guitar at this price point has such imperfections. It would be interesting to see how an Epiphone Les Paul stacks up using the same inspection methodology.
I'd bet you money that the Epiphone would actually have better QC
You guys should stick with epiphone then. Mine was perfect!
Since I am currently playing a personally upgraded LP100, I too should very much welcome a nit-picky analysis of an Epiphone Les Paul.
I've been fooling with fretted strings for over 60 years and currently own (and often play) many stringed (and sometimes bowed) intstruments.
When Fender moved from Fullerton and Gibson moved from Kalamazoo they both traded high quality for a focus on bean counting.
I have played consistenly-high-grade Epiphones from Kalamazoo and from off-shore. Imports had a back headstock sticker that read, "Made overseas and expertly set-up in U.S.A by Epiphone."
You can't compare a polyurethane finished guitar with modern binding methods versus a nitro traditionally finished methods.
Only these come pleked from the factory though so that’s very nice
Mine has the felt mark. I've heard it can take years for nitro to really settle in. Not sure how true that is. After owning mine for a few years now, the nitro still stains pretty easily. Nothing a buff couldn't remove though.
Yep, nitro can take years to become hard. It's not a bad thing of course, just how it is. I actually prefer the "crazing" of old vintage guitars with nitro finishes. Crazing is the term used for all those little cracks you see in vintage nitro guitars.
@@KleshGuitarsOfficial I prefer the natural aging process myself. Plus it doesn't feel as plasticy as my poly finished guitars.
For $2,700 that guitar would be going back. As one of the oldest mass produced electric guitar companies around, you know they know how to do it right. They just don't.
You complain to much. Your not going to find a top like that one. Great Purchase! 🇺🇸
@@bryangawcki4266 No, I’m someone who loves Gibson but is irritated with their quality and has been for years. Letting things like this slide is exactly why they continue to put out products with defects like this. Because nobody holds them accountable.
It’s called outsourcing ! Most aren’t made in America so they can the most profit off of cheap labor . Still charge the same ! Even if they say made in America they are not . Assembled in America let’s them put a USA sticker on it when it’s not ! That might mean putting the tuning keys on
In America .
@@douggauzy6258 wha?? These are made at Gibson USA!
Typical non-Gibson owner comment. Not being mean, just saying.
Good educational video! I’m not that detail oriented when it comes to my guitars. Gives me something to look for in the future.
I just bought this exact guitar. Mine didn't have those blemishes. for the price... I might have sent mine back if it had the issues your guitar has. I wouldn't have noticed the blemishes had you not pointed them out. luckily; I'm happy with my purchase. I love my Les Paul. new sub. great video!
Rock on!
I just purchased a standard 50s burst and there were definitely some fit and finish issues. The cavity routing was a atrocious-like their router bit was dull. However, it sounds amazing and feels perfect in the hands.
Good to know!
The chatter marks you point out at the nut and 5th fret are at every fret of my 2001 Custom Shop Historic R4 (1954 reissue gold top). I suspect they’re left over from fret crowning or maybe nibbling the binding depending on their process. On a custom shop guitar it’s really inexcusable, but we know Gibson had QC issues under Henry. Other than that, the guitar is magical.
Yep, the chatter marks are from the guy who is cleaning the glue from the frets, or possible finish getting under the tape. I always used a razor blade to clean up, and yes those chatter marks happen when your razor gets a little dull. Yeah i mean the guitar still sounds good, but come on there's some inexcusable mistakes here that aren't even "mistakes" buy more just "laziness" on Gibson's part. In my opinion of course.
Well 7/16/2021 was a Friday! End of week guitar. Hurriedly assembled to push numbers up for quota. Still a beautiful Standard.
So I've bought two brand new Gibson LPs in my lifetime and still have both. Both with the 60s neck. I don't like the 50s neck. They are both excellent guitars. I set them up years ago, and I play them, clean them, and change strings, and they never fail me. One is from 2008, the other 2015. I bought a couple of Fender strats in that time and have not had the same experience. I actually just bought a 2024 American ultra, and im probably sending it back. I just seem to have better luck with Gibson.
Gibson and taking their time don’t fit in the same sentence usually. I have a standard 50s in ice tea burst with a AAA flame top and I love it. Best guitar I’ve ever owned and I enjoy every second I get to wrap my hands around the neck. Personally the Les Paul look is complete to me with the pick guard on so I have no inclination to take it off. I do agree with you that it’s apparent Gibson is still cutting corners on guitars that should be virtually flawless in that price range however.
Les Pauls are like our children: None are perfect but we love them anyway.
I just got mine today, I looked at everything you showed here and the only thing I saw was the plastic covers on the back weren't centered either. But, I cannot complain. It's freaking beautiful. (Haven't taken the pick guard off yet)
Your hand is really big man. I reallly enjoyed your video, thanks.
Great review, it sucks that there’s still such sloppy work.
I am not surprised! Just because it has a nice top does mean that it is a good guitar! Hell, I owned two 1960 Sunbursts with great tops and one was great and the other so so. You just got to get lucky! Serious Business! Same with Fenders!
I totally agree with everything that you have shown. I noticed these flawed details too. I ended up purchasing a Gibson Les Paul Classic instead at my local store because it did not have any of those flaws. This is unfair to those who own a 60s and paid much more for it than I did for the Classic. I do not care if the guitar is built all by hand or CNC machines. I do care that a guitar costing over $2000 is done perfectly.
How bout those tones?!? I bought a 2020 Gibson Les Paul Goldtop with P-90's last year, and I'm super happy with it. Gibson's quality has gone up, even with some small imperfections here and there.
I bought my first Gibson Les Paul 50's the same week this video came out. It was an uncharged AAAA flamed maple heritage cherry sunburst from AMS online. Looked amazing in pictures so I just went for it. Looked amazing in person also until I pulled it out and strummed to find the worst buzz I've ever heard. Then noticed the fret nibs were chewed up like a dog chewed on them and the inside of the horn had finish cut through to the wood from shaving binding. Then sat it down on table to see how bad the neck was twisted. Sent it back to AMS and put a sour taste in my mouth and haven't went for another one yet. I've purchased 15 Epiphones sense there 2020 changes and never had any issue. A full Korina set from AMS and the last 2 Joe Bonamassa LP's and a few 50's and 60's LP's and they were all great from box. Only issue I had was shipping from AMS for Korina explorer the hockey stick wasn't supported and cracked so they exchanged and packaged better. Long story short my thoughts were "COVID" got rid of all the experienced "Luthiers" on the line and no one wants to work any more so they were training on these guitars. Unacceptable for the blown up costs to start.
Wow yeah I bet CV19 had something tto do with it for sure. Seems like nobody wants to work anymore thanks for sharing
The Fret board Frets and nut are all done on a Plex machine!
You’d think a machine can do a better job huh
Thanks for this! Yours is a research project; any other consumer buying (especially a $2500) Gibby from a website , sight unseen, are chumps.