• Guys, we've spent considerable money converting the Les Paul Forum to this new XenForo platform, and we have ongoing monthly operating expenses. THE "DONATIONS" TAB IS NOW WORKING, AND WE WOULD APPRECIATE ANY DONATIONS YOU CAN MAKE TO KEEP THE LES PAUL FORUM GOING! Thank you!

Looking to buy a TH vs a 2018 Historic

jam81

New member
Joined
May 20, 2016
Messages
57
Congratulations! We will need to see a photo of the guitar! They are definitely different guitars
and yes you may have a great sounding 2016 HP standard! I’m sure there is something different sound wise between the custom and your HP.
How do I post a picture? Can I do it from my phone? I am typing from it right now.
 

Thundermtn

Member
Joined
Dec 30, 2016
Messages
548
Just make a new guitar day thread.

Places like postimage.org will host for free and you just copy and paste the link after you upload the pics.
 

jam81

New member
Joined
May 20, 2016
Messages
57
here is the pic, it looks small
 

Attachments

  • IMG_0982.jpg
    IMG_0982.jpg
    52.6 KB · Views: 55

MrMarr

New member
Joined
Oct 13, 2017
Messages
43
Thanks. I definitely have buyers remorse due to the price more than anything. I so love the guitar but I want there to be a vast difference to support the price I guess.


First of all, congratulations on the purchase! I would LOVE one of the braz board ones.

My thoughts on the tonal differences between your USA and this one...

  • It is possible you got a stellar USA LP. In my experience, I've never heard a USA LP that comes close to Custom Shops.
  • Is it possible that you were attached to the sound of the USA LP before buying, and ended up buying the guitar that most resembled that without knowing it? For instance, some people have 1 "good tone" in their head they're looking to hit... it's usually something familiar to them, and when selecting guitars, they're inclined to go towards it.

I'm curious what tonal qualities you were looking for specifically while selecting the guitar? For me, my CME LP sounded better than any guitar I've ever owned - having said that it also sounded much more different than all the guitars I've owned and there was a learning/familiarity period to be had at first. Going for a CS LP I would look for:

  • Long sustain - longer the better.
  • High end clarity (some call it snarl.. some of the real good ones have this.. not bright or thing, but snarly in teh high end)
  • Full but articulate bottom end (not muddy.. still can hear details of every note, but has a full body)
  • Low end growl with low overdrive.
  • Dynamic and clear, with lots of articulation (hearing every movement of the fingers and pick etc)

Most CS LP's are awesome, but having said that they're not all the same... some are not as full.. some are bright and thinner, some are not as clear, some don't have that high end snarl etc... these are things I look for (or get my sales guy to give me honest opinions about, which CME have been awesome at) when buying an LP.

From my experience, none of the recent USA stuff really has anywhere near the sustain or clarity/articulation that the CS stuff has.. but it is possible you could've got a good one - although with the pickups being really different (I think burstbuckers in the USA? VS Underwound Custombuckers) I think it's unlikely they sound the same across the tonal board.
 
Joined
Jan 5, 2018
Messages
206
First of all, congratulations on the purchase! I would LOVE one of the braz board ones.

My thoughts on the tonal differences between your USA and this one...

  • It is possible you got a stellar USA LP. In my experience, I've never heard a USA LP that comes close to Custom Shops.
  • Is it possible that you were attached to the sound of the USA LP before buying, and ended up buying the guitar that most resembled that without knowing it? For instance, some people have 1 "good tone" in their head they're looking to hit... it's usually something familiar to them, and when selecting guitars, they're inclined to go towards it.

I'm curious what tonal qualities you were looking for specifically while selecting the guitar? For me, my CME LP sounded better than any guitar I've ever owned - having said that it also sounded much more different than all the guitars I've owned and there was a learning/familiarity period to be had at first. Going for a CS LP I would look for:

  • Long sustain - longer the better.
  • High end clarity (some call it snarl.. some of the real good ones have this.. not bright or thing, but snarly in teh high end)
  • Full but articulate bottom end (not muddy.. still can hear details of every note, but has a full body)
  • Low end growl with low overdrive.
  • Dynamic and clear, with lots of articulation (hearing every movement of the fingers and pick etc)

Most CS LP's are awesome, but having said that they're not all the same... some are not as full.. some are bright and thinner, some are not as clear, some don't have that high end snarl etc... these are things I look for (or get my sales guy to give me honest opinions about, which CME have been awesome at) when buying an LP.

From my experience, none of the recent USA stuff really has anywhere near the sustain or clarity/articulation that the CS stuff has.. but it is possible you could've got a good one - although with the pickups being really different (I think burstbuckers in the USA? VS Underwound Custombuckers) I think it's unlikely they sound the same across the tonal board.

There is definitely something going on tone wise with True Historics that is something special.....just sayin'
 

lpthomas

Member
Joined
Mar 12, 2017
Messages
164
There is definitely something going on tone wise with True Historics that is something special.....just sayin'

I don't see why the 2018 shouldn't be able to recreate that. Unless we knew, what exactly is the difference.

Someone here said, go TH if you care about the finer details of vintage accuracy? I don't quite get it. Talking about the rounded edges? The fret dressing?

That said, sure, I love my True Historic. I'll be able to compare it to a 2018 on Monday and I'd like to give that guitar the benefit of the doubt. it would be frustrating to know that every reissue in the future will be inferior to this short-lived and limited series. What was Gibson's plan anyway once all TH were built?

The name True Historic sure sounds like it will forever be the closest thing to a burst. In reality, it's a set of specs and some of them were labour intensive, it seems. Does that translate to tone? Yeah, it might. As I said, I am a big fan of mine and think they certainly all look special. But I also know that the name and the ambered binding/Gibson logo alone always made it feel special to me. And that's not even very "vintage correct", I guess.
 
Joined
Jan 5, 2018
Messages
206
I keep going back to the rarity of the guitar itself. That to me is the biggest part of it. The 17 Standard Historic I had sounded real good but there was something different with the TH. I simply plug into my Marshall no effects keep all levels the same on the amp and all volume and tone knobs in the same position on both axes and just unplug and swap guitars. It's not that it's like holy crap difference it's more like a familiar sound from the TH in my head in comparison to the cats I grew up listening to and learning from if that makes any sense.
 

jam81

New member
Joined
May 20, 2016
Messages
57
First of all, congratulations on the purchase! I would LOVE one of the braz board ones.

My thoughts on the tonal differences between your USA and this one...

  • It is possible you got a stellar USA LP. In my experience, I've never heard a USA LP that comes close to Custom Shops.
  • Is it possible that you were attached to the sound of the USA LP before buying, and ended up buying the guitar that most resembled that without knowing it? For instance, some people have 1 "good tone" in their head they're looking to hit... it's usually something familiar to them, and when selecting guitars, they're inclined to go towards it.

I'm curious what tonal qualities you were looking for specifically while selecting the guitar? For me, my CME LP sounded better than any guitar I've ever owned - having said that it also sounded much more different than all the guitars I've owned and there was a learning/familiarity period to be had at first. Going for a CS LP I would look for:

  • Long sustain - longer the better.
  • High end clarity (some call it snarl.. some of the real good ones have this.. not bright or thing, but snarly in teh high end)
  • Full but articulate bottom end (not muddy.. still can hear details of every note, but has a full body)
  • Low end growl with low overdrive.
  • Dynamic and clear, with lots of articulation (hearing every movement of the fingers and pick etc)

Most CS LP's are awesome, but having said that they're not all the same... some are not as full.. some are bright and thinner, some are not as clear, some don't have that high end snarl etc... these are things I look for (or get my sales guy to give me honest opinions about, which CME have been awesome at) when buying an LP.

From my experience, none of the recent USA stuff really has anywhere near the sustain or clarity/articulation that the CS stuff has.. but it is possible you could've got a good one - although with the pickups being really different (I think burstbuckers in the USA? VS Underwound Custombuckers) I think it's unlikely they sound the same across the tonal board.


You are correct, the more I play with it, the more I see the differences. Only the sustain is better on my USA lespaul. By a few extra seconds only though. The USA is heavier which is weird since it is chambered for weight relief.

It also has more static than the USA one. Not sure if that is normal to the difference in pickups.
 
Last edited:
Top