Gibson Les Paul Melody Makers.

[Brow]

Hey guys.

My bands recording a new EP at a studio in Nottingham and while there today I nipped into the local Sound Control to see what (if anything) they had that was to my taste.

In a glass case and marked up at £399 was a Gibson Les Paul Melody Maker, like this 1: http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Red-Gibson-Melody-Maker-Les-Paul-great-condition_W0QQitemZ120079609700QQihZ002QQcategoryZ33040QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

Does anyone happen to own 1 of these or has played 1 before? I might head back to the shop while I'm there the next few days to try it out. For the price (and if it's anygood) I might pick 1 up as I don't have a P90 guitar  :D  :twisted:

[Twinfan]

Sambo on here has one - drop him a PM  ;)

[sambo]

finally my guitar gets some attention! lol.

i love mine mate; just bought a jackson that has a £700ish RRP with at about £400 worth of upgrades and i still love to play the Gibson.

Its got a bare knuckle in as well; great combo. the harmonic richness of the mahogany with the BKP is awesome... its so resonant as well.

very similar to a double-cut, in terms of playing/feel (except of course it only has 1 cutaway)... sound wise i guess its a bit limiting for some people, but thats why i got Tim to make my P-90 coil-tapped... increases the tonal options significantly on a 1-pickup guitar... REALLY worth doing if your gonna replace the pickup.

neck is nice and full.


oh and the finish starts to wear down pretty easily giving you an awesome relic-type look after a while... (not sure how obvious that would be on one of the red finish - mines black - as the wood underneath is a rich orangey/red mahogany.

basically, i love it, and for £350 (used), i cannot fault mine at all. £399 sounds like a good price and its definitely worth the money in my opinion.

having said all this, im no guitar expert by any means, and it may be that the melody makers are a bunch of cr@p compared to some other stuff you could get in the price range. but considering its USA-made (whether that means much these days is debatable with Gibson i guess), and relatively cheap, i think its definitely worth the money.

go for it!

and tell me what you think as well- even if you try it and hate it id be interested to know your view.

cheers,

sam.

[Mr Ed]

I think, personally, they're some of the most bland and plain guitars I've ever seen. Boring satin finish and they're gonna be tonally very limited with only one pickup.

Plus the cheaper end Gibson are shockingly bad.

[indysmith]

that looks gorgeous man. I'd nab it! Only thing is if ur used to humbuckers, the noise from P90s REALLY gets to ya. well it does to me. i gotta get me a noise decimator still

[sambo]

^ lol!

well i can assure you that it definitely isnt as grim as our friend Mr.Ed here makes out.

the finish has a cr@p-load of character in my opinion... the grain shows through the finish... its pretty unique - similar to the DC finishes- satin but with the grain still visible/feel-able almost...

and like i said when the finish wears away (which doesnt talk long- especially with some gigging/rehearsing) then the character increases ten-fold.

its got me plenty of compliments from guitar shops/mates/other players alike as its not a common guitar for people to have/see....

and its not extremely limited... thats like faulting the orange rocker 30, or the Epi valve junior for having limited controls. just because they are limited doesnt mean theyre bad.

and like i said- with the coil-tapped BKP its almost as versatile as a lot of twin-humbucker guitars ive played.

Indys point is a good one though./

[sambo]

I think, personally, they're some of the most bland and plain guitars I've ever seen. Boring satin finish and they're gonna be tonally very limited with only one pickup.

Plus the cheaper end Gibson are shockingly bad.

from the way you say that mate, it appears youve never seen one? definitely not played one i take it?

personal opinion on the looks and sound front i guess... although i think its a lot more aesthetically interesting than a standard sunburst LP or a stock-colour superstrat/RG which is what im used to seeing.

and saying all low-end gibsons are shockingly bad is a slight generalisation.

oh and for what its worth- i think STRATS are some of the most bland and plain guitars ive ever seen.... (mainly because everyone has one)    :lol:  :)

[dave_mc]

i haven't tried the MM, but try some Gordon Smiths as well, similar vibe, similar price, made in England. they compare very favourably to the lower end Gibsons I have tried, for less cash.

[sambo]

i think he has one...?

or am i confusing you with someone else?  :oops:

if not, ditto what dave said... it's something that i would really like to do- try some Gordon Smiths...

[Brow]

You are correct Sam, I do have a Gordon Smith Guitar, and I love it :)

I play a mixture of guitars with both Humbuckers and Single coil pickups on them, so I'm definitely not scared away by P90s having more noise than a Humbucker :)

I hadn't actually thought about a Gordon Smith in this style to be honest, they must've slipped my mind  :lol:

I'll keep my eyes open on Ebay for possible GSGs in this style, but the stripped down single P90 LP look is really growing on me  :roll:  :lol:

[sambo]

ah, i thought so!

and yer i think its got a kinda marmite thing going on- people either love stripped-down, back to basics axes, or despise them for being boring e.t.c...

good luck with whatever you choose anyway!

[Brow]

ah, i thought so!

and yer i think its got a kinda marmite thing going on- people either love stripped-down, back to basics axes, or despise them for being boring e.t.c...

good luck with whatever you choose anyway!

Thanks mate :)

I'm not definitely in the market for a new guitar, just saw the guitar and thought it might be a good deal  :D  :roll:  :twisted:

[sambo]

no probs.

and yer that sort of feeling is familiar to me lol

well it seems like a good deal to me anyway.

didnt actually ask- is it new or second hand? just assumed it was used, due to the price.

[dave_mc]

heh, i had no idea you had a gordon smith, lol.

:drink:

[Brow]

no probs.

and yer that sort of feeling is familiar to me lol

well it seems like a good deal to me anyway.

didnt actually ask- is it new or second hand? just assumed it was used, due to the price.

It's not priced as being 2nd hand, so I'm assuming it's new. They've discontinud this Melody maker series infavour of a new version of an older guitar, so maybe it's clearance pricing or something?

heh, i had no idea you had a gordon smith, lol.

:drink:

Yup, I had 1 custom ordered a few years ago with money I got left me when my Grandad died., and here it is:



Just incase you care  :lol: