Gibson Les Pauls vs Sg's - standard vs. studio

[craig]

What are the differences between a Les Paul Studio from the early 90's vs. a Les Paul standard? *I know binding on the neck and body comes on the standards, but what else? *I'm not talking about Studio Lites either. *I like the looks of the sudio better, but any differences that compromises the sound? *Also, how do the tones of these guys compare to an SG?

[Gabe Nickelson]

There are not too many differences in these guitars. *Mainly, the binding, as you mentioned on the Standards and the colors. *Pretty much just visualization differences. *But there is a quality issue with the Studios too. *I've seen one or two cross my path that were excellent players, but most need lots of care to get them in a players condititon. *Standards are a bit better crafted IMHO - more attention to details of the guitar at the factory so it seems. *I believe these even have the same pickups - the 490 and 498 and the same wood.

I like the looks of the Standards much better than the studios.

The SG's are a completely different sounding guitar. *They're screechy and tend to feedback a bit more than LP's. *They have a bit higher-end tone. *I feel the LP has a bit more full 'ballsy' sound than the SG, but both are fine instruments. *The neck joint on SG's are fragile and have been known to crack and break when dropped or abused.

Gabe

[craig]

True to the fragile SG neck joints...
What kind of care are you talking about for the studios? *Like nut/tuner/bridge cheapness or something like that? *I'm wondering if there are consistent problems in a certain area I should be aware of...

[Gabe Nickelson]

Mainly quality flaws. *Look for them. *Most of the problems are with the setup of the guitar which can be fixed on your end or by a guitar tech. *Neck alignment, bridge, action, etc.

As far as I know the wood, HW, nut, and everything between the Studio and the Standard are the same.

Gabe

[JackButtler]

Arent the main sg flaws in the 61, and some of the reissues though. *When Les Paul Designed this and Gibson did their damage he later refused to endorse it because he wanted it to be neck through with a thicker less neck heavy body and a two octave neck. *They later changed the neck joint after les paul refused to allow his name to be put on the headstock, and now I think the only ones that bear his name have the good neck joint. *I currently have a 68 sg, with a locking kahler trem, and some salvaged Ibanez pickups in it. IT was a give me fixerupper, the humbuckers were added and it has no finish, but still, it sounds fat. *I had to completely rewire the thing. * Still I like sgs far better than les pauls. *The sg just has more feel to it. *While the original les pauls feel to be too muddy and the pickups are just odd to me. *Its just a matter of taste. One of the pauls I played that I did like was the Gary Moore issue, and the Zakk Wylde paul. *Those are the only two that i really dig. *