The Fender Stratocaster vs. the Gibson Les Paul

Assuming you're ready to spend over $1000 US dollars we will compare the American made Standard Fender Stratocaster with the Gibson Les Paul Standard.

Price

In my over thirty years in playing the guitar, I've learned that in most cases, you get what you pay for. You're going to pay a street price of about $1200 to $1350 US dollars (depending on the finish you choose) for a new American Fender Stratocaster and about $2000 US dollars for a new Gibson Les Paul Standard. Now just because the Gibson Les Paul Standard is more money doesn't mean it's a better guitar than the Fender Stratocaster. Keep reading.

The Fender Stratocaster and it's features.

If you listen to some Stevie Ray Vaughn or even some Pat Benitar from the 80s, you'll hear that unmistakable Fender Stratocaster sound. The Fender Stratocaster features a solid alder wood body. 3 American strat single coil pickups, 22 medium jumbo frets, patented Delta-tone™ no-load circuit (includes high output bridge pickup and special no-load tone control for middle and bridge pickups), Copper infused cast strat bridge block for increased mass and improved tone, the American 2 point tremolo, and it comes in your choice of a rosewood or maple fret board. What's nice about the Fender Stratocaster is that without much of a price difference, you can buy them with (instead of the 3 single coil pickups) 2 single coil pickups and a humbucker pickup in the bridge position,(known as the HSS configuration) or with just 2 humbucker pickups. (known as the HH configuration)

The Sound

What I like about the Fender Stratocaster is that you can tailor the sound to any style you like if you have the right pickup combination. Just look at the people playing the Fender Stratocaster. Metal, Rock, Jazz, Pop, or Twangy country, you can play any style with the Fender Stratocaster. With the HSS configuration, you have your two single coil pickups for your highs and twangs and your humbucker for a fat sound. You can also mix the sound of the humbucker with your single coil pickups. You can also spit the humbucker pickup and make it into a nice hot single coil pickup. The combinations are wild. You'll never get board. The Fender Stratocaster is comfortable to play. It has a nice satin finish on the back of the neck and hand rolled edges on the fret board. It melts into you hand.

The Good

The Fender Stratocaster is light weight and very comfortable to play. You can get just about any sound you desire from the Fender Stratocaster.

The Bad

Unless you have a Fender Stratocaster with a locking tremolo know this... If you are the type to wail on your whammy bar, you can expect your Fender Stratocaster to go out of tune. The Fender Stratocaster doesn't depreciate like your car but it will decrease in value over time.

The Gibson Les Paul Standard and it's features.

OK, how's your back? Seriously. The Gibson Les Paul Standard is a great guitar but HEAVY. Heavy to carry around and heavy to wear when performing. The Gibson Les Paul Standard features a body that is made of mahogany wood with a carved maple top. The Gibson Les Paul Standard has a set mahogany neck which plays a good part of the Gibson Les Paul Standard's famous sustain. The Gibson Les Paul Standard comes with two humbucker pickups. Some models (and there are a LOT of different Gibson Les Pauls) have coil splitting for the humbucker pickups. Depending on how much money you want to spend, the Gibson Les Paul Standard, you can get one with a really nice flamed maple or curly maple top.

The Sound and Comfort

The Gibson Les Paul Standard has a neck like "buttah" They usually stay in tune very well. You can usually set your action very low and you'll notice your speed getting better. The Gibson Les Paul Standard has great sustain and a good beefy sound. They are capable of knocking a Fender Stratocaster or Tele out of the water.

The Good

The Gibson Les Paul Standard is among the most collected guitars in history. An original Gibson Les Paul Standard from 1958 or 1959 in decent condition will fetch at least $250,000 at auction. Your new Gibson Les Paul Standard isn't worth that much but it will always be worth at least what you payed for it as long as you care for it well. The Gibson Les Paul Standards hold their value very well. You can't beat the sustain of the Gibson Les Paul Standard.

The Bad

It's HEAVY. Now the first time you pick one up, you'll think that it's not that bad but trust me, you'll know what I mean after you've had it a while. You might keep your Gibson Les Paul Standard in the case with a humidifier in the case, you might wipe it down after each use but accidents happen. The Gibson Les Pauls (all of them) for some reason are prone to damaged necks. The headstocks are not able to withstand a decent knock. If your Gibson Les Paul Standard falls down and that stress is put on the head stock (like what usually happens), it has a very good possibility of breaking right off. Talk to a Luther or someone who repairs guitars and ask them about that. They all make a lot of money repairing Gibson Les Paul necks.

So, which one?

Well it depends really. Both the Fender Stratocaster and The Gibson Les Paul Standard are excellent guitars and worthy of all the praise they get. If you play country music, you'd be best suited with the Fender Stratocaster. If you play Jazz, I think the Gibson Les Paul Standard will be more to your liking. If you play metal or pop or classic rock, you can use The Fender Stratocaster or the Gibson Les Paul Standard. Both instruments are well suited for those types of music. Everyone's sound preference is different. When you feel it and hear it, you'll know which one to pick.

Try Before You Buy

Regardless of what guitar you choose, you're spending some serious money. Sit down at a music store, plug in a Fender Stratocaster and a Gibson Les Paul Standard and try them out. Regardless of which one you end up with, you'll be the envy of the rest of your band. Enjoy your new guitar!