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counterfit Les Paul

#21
/\/\3phist0 said:
By the way I'm not pissed, I'm disheartened that envy and the need to be accepted drive so much of our society. Brand identity and being envied for what we own, and feeling that the label somehow makes us better.. sad.
It's also sad that Gibson plays into this by severely overcharging so agregiosly for such a pedestrian mass produced product.
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BTW it's "egregious" (if we're going to start correcting everyone's spelling)
e·gre·gious
/əˈɡrējəs/
adjective
adjective: egregious
1.
outstandingly bad; shocking.
"egregious abuses of copyright"
synonyms: shocking, appalling, horrific, horrifying, horrible, terrible, awful, dreadful, grievous, gross, ghastly, hideous, horrendous, frightful, atrocious, abominable, abhorrent, outrageous; More
 
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#22
the thing is, the les paul became popular partly because of its sound. you aren't going to get that sound with a counterfeit. btw, my husband bought his less paul in rat condition for $800 used here in l.a. (a 1971 black beauty) and gradually did minor repairs and replacements. it was never pristine - it had mojo, it had wear, it sounded a-freaking-mazing.
 
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#23
quindecima said:
Well,lets face it those guitars are OVER priced and I'm not saying that the public is being ripped off,
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Uh-huh. But aren’t you inferring it just the same?

quindecima said:
No motivation, I know the head stock is not good but I'm not parting with it, it's only to impress my non-music friends they don't know squat.
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So you have no motivation in this…other than to impress on your non-music friends that they don’t know squat? And in order to do that you took time and trouble to acquire and mod a knockoff “Less Paul”?

Am I the only one who’s having a little trouble reconciling the contradiction in that statement? :cautious:
 
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#24
You have to know that the top looks rubbish. Can't imagine what the mahogany looks like. Not impressed.

If I was short on funds but wanted a Les Paul, I'd get a lightly used Epiphone Les Paul and throw some Gibson USA pickups in it and replace all the hardware with good stuff. Every single bit of it. When I was done, I'd probably be into it about $600 (my parts guitars always end up there).

Using a Chinese fake as a starting point is not a good plan.
 
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#26
Sorry, I think buying a counterfeit instrument is shameful. As has been mentioned, there are plenty of cheaper alternatives to a real Gibson out there.

While you may be honest with a potential future buyer about the guitars true origin, will that buyer be just as honest when they sell it to someone else? I hate that when looking at used instruments I have to worry about a potential fake.
 
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#27
33d.jpg
 
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#29
This is what happens when people don’t believe in tonewoods. Might as well buy a Chinese counterfeit, put Gibson pick ups in it is what they do. Personally, I’d have gone Warmoth.

I will say, that piece of furniture in the background looks like quality. Very nice.
 
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#30
Aaaannnnddd this is one of the many reasons why, when I shop for basses and guitars, I go for the bargain brands/sleeper models:

- 6 basses: 3 USA Peavey, 1 import Jackson, 2 Samick/Valley Arts

- 3 electric guitars: 1 Samick/Valley Arts, 1 Carvin, 1 Peavey import

- 1 acoustic guitar: Epiphone (gifted to me)

Point being, I know I have the "real thing" in all cases, because none of these names had/have the panache for anyone to bother counterfeiting 'em...:laugh::D:hyper:
 
#32
pcake said:
the thing is, the les paul became popular partly because of its sound. you aren't going to get that sound with a counterfeit.
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If you put some decent pickups in you'll probably get close enough. And decent enough pickups don't cost the earth. I have a copy with 'meh' pickups to guide me through a build for a friend with nice SDs in, but I might put the SDs in the copy while I am finalising the absurdly complex switching (see posts passim) so I will be able to get a feel and recordings of the difference. The kit is mahogany with a maple cap, so pretty much a Les Paul. I don't know what the copy is made of other than it's a glued in neck too and seems to be made of some form of condensed matter, mostly bosons.
 
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#33
This just reminds us to be careful out there. My son's friend bought a Ric 325 (guitar) knockoff, as he's a huge Beatles fan. He told me he paid $2,500 and asked me what I thought. I privately asked my son if his buddy knew the guitar was fake. My son, a drummer, would not know. So he asked his friend. I was concerned that the guy got ripped off. He then admitted he knew it was fake, and that he paid $300 for it. It was more of a test for me.... I think.
 
#37
Funny what motivates people. I intentionally stayed away from Fender and Gibson (as well as most popular brands), it’s in part how I discovered Spectors. Les Paul’s are one of my favorite guitars, but I bought an Epiphone and it’s probably 90% as “good” as a Gibson at about 20% the price. Back in the day, when I played guitar, I picked up a Guild Strat style guitar. One of the best guitars I’ve ever played.
 

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