Epiphone Les Paul Custom Guitar Review

The Gibson Les Paul style guitar has had a rich and storied history. A version of it is offered at all price levels, bet getting one that genuinely compares to the original in quality can be tough to accomplish. It takes a special instrument to be able to copy the Les Paul to a tee and still be affordable to the average musician. Epiphone tried to do just this with the Epiphone Les Paul Custom guitar. Let's take a closer look to see how it fares.

Features: It first glance, it's glaringly obvious that this guitar is a Les Paul all the way. It's got the switches, knobs, body style, and pickguard in all the right places with all the right looks. The body of the Epiphone Les Paul Custom is made of one hundred percent mahogany, and its feature finish is a deeply rich ebony. It looks great, but be sure to play it with clean hands, because it is a fingerprint magnet. The neck of the Les Paul Custom is set into the body, and is also made of mahogany. The fretboard is ebony rosewood, and has pearloid block inlays. As an additional Gibson-esque feature, the headstock has its own pearl split diamond inlay. All of the hardware on the Les Paul Custom, including the tuning heads, pickup covers, and Tune-O-Matic bridge are all made of gold. Electronically, the guitar has two volume and two tone control knobs, with a three way selector switch. And for pickups, the Les Paul Custom features two Alnico Classic humbuckers.

Playability: For those musicians who love the feel of the Les Paul, the LP custom is definitely the real deal. The body has a nice weight to it, and the neck is wonderfully smooth. That being said, the body and neck are both considerably thick. It takes some getting used to to build the skill needed to play cleanly on this instrument.

Sound: The sound of the Epiphone Les Paul, in a word, is impressive. The neck pickup really delivers the classic Gibson Les Paul crunch many rock musicians look for. And when playing clean, it has a pure and rich tone. The bridge pickup, meanwhile, provides some surprisingly nice bluesy tones rivaling that of a Fender Stratocaster.

Overall: If you are a musician looking for all the quality characteristics of the Gibson Les Paul at a price that's a little easier on your wallet, the Epiphone Les Paul Custom might just be the guitar for you. It has the looks and feel of an LP, and can deliver some amazing, studio quality sound. You can find the Epiphone Les Paul Custom in music stores for around $800.