The Myth of the 1959 Les Paul & sales gimmicks.
This is me bitching about the hype that only a vintage Les Paul can sound the “best,” according to those SELLING THEM. I’m sure this video is going to attract every “expert” troll out there, but it needs to be said. Dealers hire slick players who could make a tin can sound like the best guitar in the world. Many also use amps that cost thousands, Its an agenda to keep old guitars and amps as toys for the rich. Thats fine, but most who own them don’t play well and they are “trophy” guitars for the rich. Its really even hard to find great demo videos of the ’59 Les Pauls, and there are gimmicks used by dealers. Some will be using pedals boards or multi-channel amps, and things that are out of frame you can’t see, and those with rack mount complex electronics that completely ruin the sound of these guitars. The clip I used is one of the better ones where they didn’t try to squelch the treble PAF’s all have on the top end. . Some use amps that sound absolutely horrible and muddy, and you see comments saying “wow thats THE SOUND, when the sound is terrible š It seems that if you own a ’59 LP, that makes you “special” when most owners easily make them sound boring without character. The SOUND of these guitars CAN BE HAD, and you don’t need a zillion dollar vintage LP to get there. Guitar builders like Steve Michael and Bartlett can make anything that rivals the originals, but they tend to use pickups that never really got there, but there are demo’s of those guitars with my work in them to close the final gap in authentic sounds. As usual, I remove trolls who just want to draw blood with inane clueless comments, so don’t even bother. LOL.
#Myth #Les #Paul #sales #gimmicks
Originally posted by UCvHJpHwEV3L9LSf0F-5x9uQ at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OLUwFySKz7s
PLEASE DON'T COMMENT WITHOUT WATCHING THE ENTIRE VIDEO. THE PAF COMPARISONS START AT 13:30. You won't understand anything unless you watch full video. I had to remove a couple comments for this reason. The real PAF comparison of real PAF's to the X set at the end of this video, was originally done as a BLIND AUDIO POLL. comparison. 60% of viewers on FB and Youtube swore that the X set were the REAL PAF's. They were not told which was the real set until the poll ended and I tabulated the results. In this video I wrote exactly which were the real PAF's and which were the X set. What happens if I do an audio demo and I say "these are real '59 PAF's, anyone watching and listening are right away going to think they ARE. Its a mind trick that your mind will immediately think thats what they are because it is written. I also DID say that the PAF's are both 7.6K, bridge and neck. And that the X bridge is 8.8K. So obviously the real PAF's are going to sound noticeably BRIGHTER but not really obviously. So because I wrote that, a couple guys right away are saying that the real PAF's are "magical" and they can hear that completely. LOL. Talk about "magical thinking," many of these same type guys are the ones who couldn't tell the actual PAF's from the X set in the original BLIND audio poll. So suddenly they are "experts" and can easily tell which are which? I don't think SO……Not only that, but nowhere did I claim the X set is a clone of the real PAF's or any specific PAF's at all. They are simply a demonstration of all the combination of ALL knowledge i have learned directly FROM all the PAF's from every year into one set that in many ways replaces all of my other set designs from years past. Stay tuned for my next video showing how rotted braided wire may be why some old LP's don't sound great because rotted braide wire kills capaitance and more than that……subscribe to view it when its done…..thanks everyone for great comments!
The best sounding guitars I've played over my 35 years of playing have all been 50s Juniors with the single p90. I've had 2 sets of PAFs and they were nice but my favorite pickup is a late 1940s p90 that I was fortunate to find with windings that read around 9k. The SD pickups sound like real PAFs to me if thats the sound you are looking for.
Your pickups sound great, depth,clarity, with lovely warmth and tone.
When I see people raving about how much better the old guitars were, I always remember a quote from a Fender executive (whose name escapes me at the moment) who worked for the company back in their Glory Days. He said "Even we didn't make them as good as we used to".
I thought I could tell a slight difference. Not meaning one sounded better than the other.
I've always said that I won't sound any better on a $6k guitar than I will on a $2k guitar.
As far as the cork sniffers and rich dudes, let them do what they want with their $$
I won't be buying any vintage axes so it's a non issue for me.
10:01 One more commentā¦two things I do āt like about the LP is that I cannot get comfortable on the higher frets like A. Also the weight of some of them! Lol I do like my 2010 LP but keep it for detuned stuff. ????????????
Also, not every 58,59,60 lp was an amazing sounding guitar, there were, and are the known duds. Ive no problem with a clean boost pedal for certain things, and agree 100% with an amazing sound is achievable without these vintage instruments.. also true is the fact that a quality player can make almost (within reason)anything sound good.. can i check your pickups out ?? Prices ??
I canāt STAND ācollectorsā!!! Even guys like Rick Neilsen and Gary Moore. All these great guitars just warehoused!!!! Fk!
3:54 I would never send you a crappy comment. You are totally right!
I love the touch sensitivity of your pick ups the way the distortion is absorbed into your pick up pretty amazing beautiful depth plus clarity and Rich sustain
Totally agree with your angle here. "Tone" might be one of the most nebulous concepts out there. A pickup is a primative electrical device that is EASILY replicated. There is no magic, there is no mojo. There's only good vs rubbish playing and know-how of the instruments and gear. all the rest is human effort/emotion/craft. That's where tone comes from. Even a Stradivarious sounds like a joke in the hands of a bad player.
Subscribed, but man your follower's are seriously long winded, I just want to learn some stuff.
100 percent correct, the mind is so easily fooled if you choose to allow it
I agree with everything you said 100%
Your tone is actually better imo with more range due to recording methods. The sound is bigger.
Help me if I'm wrong.
But the Vintage PAF craze makes no logic, the quest for the grail pickup so often heard on thousands of late 60's and early 70's tracks. The likes of Clapton, Bloomfield, Page, Green, Allman, Kossoff and many more with that beautiful PAF tone.
The lack of logic comes to mind while yes these legendary tones are magical and people see it by buying over 60 year old picups thing they're going to achieve that tone from those recordings of many years gone by.
Time is our enemy as well as it's for guitar pickups.
These songs were recorded on "ALNICO" pickups that were only within a 10 to 15 year age range, most likely still full Gauss winding wires still not yet exposed to the outer environments Sweat, air and shock.
My point is, like a capacitor they loose their power over time especially if they have been played extensively.
Thus can't possibly sound the same today.
Find a good Pickup builder and you will have that tone.
Why yāall molest them guitars like that? Boy behave yo self! ā¤
THE WORLD IS FULL OF HYPE. NOT MUCH REALITY.
You claim that a lot of LP owners can't play. We haven't heard you play yet. Perhaps these owners who you have judged are happy with their playing level. A real guitar player doesn't really need a specific pickup to get their sound. No 2 guitars sound exactly alike. Good try.????
Your pickups sound amazing!
I have a buddy who spends multiple thousands on custom shop Gibsons. None of them have sounded better than the Heritage H150 I paid a grand for.
i think your pick ups rock. amazing replication of the pafs. actually thought your pickups were sweeter
Have You heard of the teleport peddle ? it can give you a better comparison sound to demo your pickups.
All those "vintage" classic rock sounds from the 60s were made on near enough brand new guitars, or 2nd hand Les Pauls which would have been less than 10 years old at the time. Same with the amps. Is anyone buying up 60 year old strings?
It's NOT the rich guys who buy these guitars that are snubbing you. They could not care less.
It's the masses of nameless irrelevant Toddlers on Youtube who want to live in a world of lies.
You popped their bubble and they want to live in a fantasy world. They are angry at you.Ā
I call them Toddlers, rich or not.
There has always been a lot of BS in the guitar industry, which is shrinking by the minute.
Guitar lore does a great deal of work for Gibson. Vintage instruments are now luxury status goods – and Gibson is now a luxury brand. It's very difficult to justify the expense ant other way. Are you going to gig with that 150 k instrument? Just record? Do you actually think it sounds 147k better than a modern instrument with these replacement pickups in it? 147 Grand has tremendous alternate utility for virtually any professional musician who isn't Kirk Hammett.
Then there's also the reality did vintage pickups go bad all the time it have to be rewound. Does using new wire kill that magical vintage tone? Larry DiMarzio has a business precisely because people wanted different pickups than what came on their "vintage" instruments (which were just guitars back then).
Guitar players love lore!
Sir may i ask where you are located ? I have always wanted to compared a real 59 to my les paul.
I play punk/ metal rhythm.
And have always wanted to see if the sound of a real 59 is a massive difference to my Les Paul
Myths are the mycelium from which our collective psyche fruits our most precious jewels.
Thereās a reason that the epithet āholy grailā has become so common, and itās because we need these stories and this lore. Itās not just about money. Donāt let your resentment of rich people ruin your enjoyment of culture, just be a clever guy and make your own great instruments.
Today thereās so much talk about tone and gear and vintage stuff. People forget that weāre playing music, to express something. I have an old Les Paul SG 1961 with PAF pickups, and it plays very good and sounds great. The reason is that I take care of my instruments. Some years ago there suddenly was a loud crackling sound coming out when I played. It came back again and again when I moved, so I took the guitar to āmyā luthier, but he couldnāt find what was wrong. But, he said, Iāve heard that sound before from old guitars, and it has sometimes been the old soldering that gets worn out. So, he resoldered the cables where they go into the pickups. Andā¦ problem solved, no more crackling sound. However, when I told people that the cables were resoldered they went; What, now itās not all original! Well, perhaps not, but I use my instruments to play music, to express something. Not to brag about how old, original and expensive my guitar is.
your pickups sound great! Pretty expensive lol- only for rich people. I'm surprised I never heard of them. I bought some ox4's and wasn't too impressed.
Dave you talk a lot of sense. How I look at it is that I would not go to a gig to hear top guitarists because they play a specific guitar, model, pup configuration or a burst this or any guitar that used to be owned by whoever. I go to gigs and buy albums because I listen to the music, the feeling, the motion, the skill etc.
I don't care what they are playing through which pedals, cables, amps etc. You are correct it is now a protected market where many people have invested in these things now have to keep the myth going to protect their investment. In the end there will be some pups that just hit the mark and just have a real nice sound , but 'better' ? . Its all subjective. I have a Yamaha SG, Hohner L59, a Greco and a Gibson LP studio. All sound great to me for different things and I would never spend 50 to 100 times the money just to say I have an XYZ from 19XX, can't you hear the difference ? It's 99% Spinal Tap to me. Nice video and good luck with your pups. You could call one of your models 'ST elevens' . Cheers.
You canāt argue with the vintage guys. They have it in their heads that the old stuff canāt be replicated. Theyāll die with that notion.
Youāre right they arenāt worth that much, most vintage guitars need a lot of work new tuners/hardware and frets. New Gibson Les pauls are fine, even the custom shop R9s are overrated, they look cool but is it really worth 10grand for Murphy lab? NO. All those old guys got lucky through experimenting and finding out what worked for them. Go play play it doesnāt need to be even a Gibson. Find one that fits you, and fall in love.
theirs more than one way to acquire true golden age vintage feel and tones. if the right woods are combined with some actual vintage hardware you can get pretty dam close without dropping at least 400K$ on an original. i even saw a 50s lp special converted and topped with a maple cap and re necked to 59 specs, this particular example was a unique way to salvage a badly broken and slightly burnt lp special and it turned out great. i have an epiphone hb pickup that to me sounds closer to a paf than any of the paf clones ive tried. i can't explain how or why but it sounds fantastic! it was the middle pickup in a Korean made 90s 3 pickup eppie lp custom that a buddy wanted replaced for some reason. so i threw it in my back up strat as an experiment and wen i plugged it in i was amazed at how rich it sounded with a lil gain. i liked it so much i used it to replace a SD sh6 distortion that was in my dean flying v. ive tested this pickup vs a handful of other stock eppi humbuckers and even a few diff Gibson pups hoping to find good match but they all sounded muddy in comparison. it reads 7.2k and has a bright rich tone that has ben highly sought after even tho it shouldn't. ahhh that paf tone witch if you ask me varies from pickup to pickup in the originals, to the point wear the tone was not super consistent at all. for the first hand full of years things changed rapidly. my dad tells me that back in the 70s you could get a hold of a few pairs of pafs say 5 pairs and mix and match them up better than Gibson did.
Rich man's toy ????????????
You would know the answer to this question.. I have a 2003 epiphone Les Paul and I want to change the pickups to get a good real classic Gibson Les Paul sound.. How close can I get? I was told both the Epiphone and Gibson produced in the same year 2003 are the same weight.. I just want a good Les Paul sound for recording
what started all this was the scarcity of LPs in the 1960s/ I remember liner notes on a Lovin Spoonful album describing John Sebastian's LP being his most prized possession because they were so hard to find! I took a Chibson LP and spent a few years and modest expense to make it a P90 champ! I also have an Epi Elite LP that is fantastic. BTW my amp is a Deluxe Reverb Tone Master!
Your pickups sound great! Am I allowed to say that nice pickups in a nicely-set-up solid body guitar is the 90% that really matters? It's so simple, people overcomplicate the last 10% instead of just getting the 90% figured out. The body and neck don't know what country or year they were made in. They are like a nice "stage" for the pickups and the strings. That's it. Just give the pickups and strings a decent platform to sing on and it's gonna sound good
im not a expert by no means, but just a 50 years+ guitar player. I could barely notice any difference in the 2 samples, other than the 59s may have been a little brighter, but Im not 100% sure. It was so close in simularity I really cant tell any differences.
PAF X nails it perfectly
Absolutely. It keeps the prices high, but that's the American way I guess.
I have come full circle. I used to believe in tone wood, etc, then after playing for 45 plus years and playing hundreds of guitars and hundreds of pickups I've decided any decent guitar can sound good and I know what I like. I recently built a strat out of a Mexican body and EMGs with a Warmoth maple neck and fretboard with stainless frets and it sounds great. I'm using three SAs in the pick guard and I love it. I love passives too of all types, but I play mostly hard rock and blues hard rock and those work for meā¤.. That LP classic is cool. If you like it and it sounds good to you with your pickups, then enjoy it my friend ā¤
You don't have to be rich and have original PAFs.
There are bad demos. I'm shocked at the amount of people that can't play that well, or play okay, but have bad timing, etc..
Interesting conversation.
I will check out more of your videos sir. ā¤
I subscribed sir. Very cool stuff. ā¤
Then Gibson sells you a set of PAFs for $1000! Insane but people are buying them.
People sometimes forget that a lot of great records were made with quite primitive equipment. 59 Les Paulās are made from the same wood, wire, pickups, tuners and steel truss rods that any good guitar is made from. The truth is, any well made guitar built anywhere in the world can and should sound good. I love American guitars. I own a few Les Pauls but Iām not daft enough to assume that the only way to get a great guitar sound is to spend $3_$5k on it
Your pickups sound great to me
Very impressive. You have totally nailed the sound. But is it just the pick-ups? If I throw a set of your pick-ups into an Epiphone, will I get those sounds? Or do you have to change all the hardware, electronics/wiring etc? Apologies, excuse my ignorance here, I only just discovered your channel, so I don't know the full extent of what you do. Could you point me i the direction of builders you could recommend? i don't care what it says on the headstock
I think it is impossible for any person to be objective on a divisive topic such as this, as we all have our own inherent biases and agendas that shape our opinions.
What I can say from my experience is that a great guitar is a great guitar, period, regardless of when it was made. I can also say that in my experience the chances of picking up a guitar and having it be great seem to be higher with vintage guitars. I can also say that I own a recent R9, and a ā64 335 with its original PAT pickups. I havenāt tried SD pickups, but the R9 has a set of JM Rolphās, another high quality builder and I can say that both guitars sound excellent and neither is clearly better than the other.
The one thing I can say from the comparison is that the PAFs sound more microphonic and wanting to run away into feedback. Depending on your style this may be a good or bad thing.
Thanks for the interning and informative video.
You gotta learn one sales gimmick. Start off with a five single phrase samples comparing each.. That's all you need. Sold. These are so close it's like comparing 2 different PAFs.