• The poor man's Custom

  
  As reviewed by JIM RAZNOFF on 4/4/2012

  Mine is a 2012 in Antique Natural. A lot of folks are saying the fretboard is much darker than in the pictures here. That's true, to an extent, but the fretboard on my guitar, to my eyes, is only a few shades lighter than my rosewood 'boards. Plus, the additional curliness of the grain of the maple wood makes for a beautiful pattern that, in my opinion, lends to the overall classiness of the guitar. It's important to remember the uniqueness of unfinished woods and that no two fretboards will be exactly alike. Your mileage may vary. Speaking of class, this guitar oozes it. This really is a poor man's Custom. It's got all the custom hallmarks - classy white binding, split diamond headstock inlay (in mother-of-pearl), block fretboard inlays starting on the 1st fret (made of acrylic instead of mother-of-pearl). Unlike a true Custom, there's no binding on the back side of the guitar, but looking at it from the front, you'd never be able to tell. This guitar has tone for days. Whereas the Burstbucker pickups in my other LP snarl, growl, and scream, the '57 Classic pickups in the Classic Custom will hum, sing, and moan. It's a sweeter, less edgy, more dynamic sound. But make no mistake, this is still a Les Paul, and it will rock the hell out when you want it to. The $1899 price tag on this guitar floored me, I had to have it. It plays and looks as nice as any Custom I've played, for way less money. A small tweak to the action was all that was needed to make this guitar perfect right out of the box. Fit and finish were perfectly flawless. If you're used to playing Studios and are making your first leap into the higher-end Gibsons, be prepared for a little more weight than you're used to. The body of the Classic Custom is weight-relieved, but it's still heavy. That's ok - the tone, feel, and classy looks are worth it. In short, if you've got the cash, buy one! This may not be a $5000 Custom, but it still plays just as smooth and sounds just as great. It's an heirloom quality instrument that I plan on keeping forever.

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• Incredible Tone - Gorgeous Looks - Quality Craftsmanship

  
  As reviewed by Chuck Wells on 1/30/2012

  I was very apprehensive about the baked maple fretboard; however my fears were relieved the moment I played it! This instrument was a serious investment for me, so I took a lot of time and effort in researching various guitars and trying out as many as I could in my price range ($2000 or less). After spending two days and playing a wide range of instruments, I knew this was the one within 30 seconds of picking it up! The first thing I look for is it's feel and how it sounds acoustically and this bad boy was perfect for me from the word go! When I plugged it in... WOW! What a a beautiful tone! There is a difference between the baked maple and the rosewood fretboards, but all I had to do was roll the treble back a tiny bit and voila there it was! Moreover, the unexpected quality that I was very happy with was it's articulate quality. Each note seemed to be a little crisper, especially on the low end. Thanks to Greg at the Nashville Guitar Center for his help and patience!

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• Great LP for the Money

  
  As reviewed by JONATHAN SHARPE on 1/13/2012

  Got the Gold Top a few weeks ago and Gibson did a pretty good job with this one. I purchased a few traditionals and standards before but didn't like the build quality. The traditional had finish problems and a warped neck and the standard just didn't play well. I returned both and went with a PRS 245. The Classic Custom however is a great player and beautiful to look at. The inlays are not MOP but acrylic which is fine with me since this is a factor in keeping the cost down. The baked maple is brighter than a traditional Rosewood fretboard but that entices the player to use the tone knob and create some really warm throaty sounds from the neck p-up and gives nice chime to the bridge. Not strat like but a nice clean bright tone. The mass of the body gives it wonderful sustain even when unplugged and with a compressor in the chain it will sing forever. The frets are larger than the PRS 245 but that doesn't take much getting used to since the action is just right. As for the pups, they're 57's - enough said. The cons of this guitar, in my opinion, are (1) the binding quality is lacking. I checked out two of these and the finish bled onto the binding before the final finish coat on both. (2) the inlays on mine are not centered on the fretboard. That's petty but it shows this is not a Custom Shop instrument. I recommend this guitar for anyone who wants a great Les Paul that has all the tone and playability and looks of a custom with the price of a traditional.

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