“If we were told these two Les Pauls were made in completely different factories, we’d believe it”: Gibson Les Paul Modern Figured and Modern Lite review

There’s a sharp dividing line in between Gibson USA’s designs– Original and Modern– that ought to imply if you’re more vintage-specific, then you choose the previous, and if you like a couple of more noises and some modern upgrades, not to point out colours, you ‘d opt for the latter. Basic … other than there’s lots of crossover in design, not to point out rate.

Together with the current launch of the $/ ₤ 4k Les Paul Supreme, with a design name that initially appeared a number of years back, 2 more brand-new additions to the Modern Collection highlight the variety even more.

Our brand-new Modern Figured, priced at $/ ₤ 3k, is essentially a somewhat pared-back Supreme, however the Modern Lite is half that cost and although it’s bundled into the exact same hair of the brochure, it is a really various guitar.

Notably, Gibson informs us, “although the Modern Lite is not billed as a direct replacement for the Tributes, they are taking their location as the entry-level design from USA. The Tributes have actually been terminated.”

The Modern Figured is a somewhat updated Modern Les Paul, and shares plenty with that brand-new Supreme: it’s a quite posh-looking ‘Paul with an upmarket ebony fingerboard, which promotes (however does not define) a substance radius, shimmering mother-of-pearl inlays, an AAA figured leading and a trio of, well, ‘contemporary’ colours.

Ours is Cobalt Burst, a strong blue ‘broken over the maple top that’s edged with an intense white binding and a clear blue over the back, sides and neck back, which looks much darker, nearly black. Not remarkably, we get the ‘Ultra-Modern’ weight relief– sticking this one on the scales, it weighs 3.85 kg (8.47 pound). An excellent start.

The centre-joined maple leading definitely has a great very finely flamed figure, even if it seems slip-matched, instead of completely bookmatched. It’s challenging to see the back wood through the surface, however under intense daytime you can see some strong grain removing and the truth that it’s centre-joined and basically quarter-sawn. You observe the contoured heel, or rather the particular location of the body right behind the heel that’s machined away, decreasing the bulk under the leading stresses.

Outwardly, there’s little else that screams ‘modern-day’. Yes, rear-lock tuners weren’t around in the late 50s, however they’ve been with us for years. And although each control has actually a pull-switch triggered alternate function, once again, we’re taking standard things: so-called ‘coil-taps’ (which provide “Gibson humbucker and single coil P-90 noises”, states Gibson), a stage switch and a direct-to-output switch for the bridge humbuckerAdditionals if you desire them, then, however keep the controls lowered and its company as normal.

Easy Style

The Modern Lite takes rather a various path and is the current in rather a long line of ‘cut-price’ Gibsons, not least the outbound Tribute, which under-cuts the Modern Lite by $/ ₤ 250, and the long-running ‘economy’ Les Paul, the Studio, which is just $/ ₤ 100 more pricey. What’s the offer here?

Off, the body– all mahogany with no weight relief– is much thinner than the timeless Les Paul, developing an extremely light weight of 3.03 kg (6.67 pound). In depth, it determines 45mm at the pinnacle of the sculpted top and 33mm at the rim, rather of the 62mm/50mm measurements of the full-fat Modern Figured.

The real leading sculpt looks a little shallower than the Modern Figured, an impression that’s improved by the 5 nontransparent satin ‘open pore’ colours.

Gibson describes these shades as “eye-catching”, and while that properly explains our Cardinal Red evaluation sample, the other 4 colours are a little pared back, a bit more stylish.

Unlike the Modern Figured, and lots of other LPs, these colours cover not simply the leading however the entire guitar– consisting of the headstock for the very first time on a Les Paul design– with the exception of the unbound, dot-inlaid rosewood fingerboard. What’s below is anybody’s guess, although the grain you can see appear like it’s a centre-joined two-piece body with a one‑piece neck.

Regardless of the various colours, all have the exact same exposed black humbuckers, a black pickguard, black knobs and black toggle switch pointer, which do aesthetically pull the level down a bit.

Plainly, this Lite is a workout in economy, price-conscious craft, however you can’t assist believing specific colours would look a little cooler with some zebra pickup bobbins, cream and amber parts, or even those sophisticated transparent top-hat knobs we see on the Modern Figured.

There’s some commonness, too. Clearly, the scale length and the medium jumbo fretwire, which is basically requirement for the USA designs, and we get the very same Nashville-style tune-o-matic with a light-weight aluminium stop tailpiece on both, in addition to the ‘larger than vintage-style’ aluminium strap buttons.

Feel & & Sounds

If we were informed these 2 Les Pauls were made in totally various factories, we ‘d think it. Each has an extremely unique feel. There’s the considerably various weights for something, then the seated balance, the ribcage cut on the Lite, not to discuss its only a little radiused edges.

SG fans will feel comfortable with the Lite: it’s a little brasher and more raw-sounding, too.

Even the necks, while comparable, have a contrasting feel thanks to their diverse surfaces: the Modern Figured is extremely glossed and really smooth, however the Modern Lite’s more textured feel isn’t bad.

The SlimTaper profiles provide a reasonably thin-depthed shallow C with big-ish shoulders and are essentially similar. Determined with our callipers we get: 20.7 mm at the 1st fret and 23.2 mm at the 12th on our Figured; and 20.9 mm/23.6 mm on the Lite.

Regarding that substance radius of the Figured, we determined that at around 241mm (9.5 inches) in front of the nut and 305mm (12 inches) at the fingerboard end; the Lite stays with the basic 305mm (12‑inch) radius.

Decoration is respectable on both– the Figured stresses really sit over the edge binding without the more typical nibs (another Modern-ism) and appear more refined than the a little grittier feel of the Lite’s worries.

Setup smart, there’s not a lot in it. Both necks were arrow directly with a little various string heights on arrival, so we presented some really small relief and standardised the string heights at 1.5 mm (0.06 inches) on the treble side, 1.8 mm (0.07 inches) on the bass.

To be fussy, the nut slots on the Figured are somewhat high, too, less so on the Lite, and the Lite has a somewhat steeper neck angle that implies the bridge sits about 1.2 mm greater. We can cope with that.

These subtleties in feel and surface are obvious– and they’re amplified by the somewhat square fingerboard edges of the Lite, which likewise has lower height stresses, indicating you can feel the more textured grain of the rosewood over the smoother ebony of the Figured. The impact of the substance radius fingerboard? Well, with those over-high nut slots, it’s difficult to discuss. ‘Subtle’ would be our take.

Unplugged, the distinctions are much easier to assess. The Figured has that common strong, punchy and rather wide-sounding ring, whereas the Lite is– you thought it– a little lighter and less wide-sounding. Gibson SG fans will feel comfortable with the Lite: it’s a little brasher and more raw-sounding, too.

Once again, with various pickups you’re in for a rather various experience plugged in. The Lite has a quite traditional mid-focused punch that would sit well in 70s Who and classic-era Clash.

The Figured is a Les Paul design with substantial influence, depth and clearness, however it sounds more refined than our LP Classic

There’s not the high-end information we hear on the Figured, nor the depth, and regardless of the high DCR measurement, the bridge pickup kicks and has density, however it’s not exaggerated. It may be really light on your shoulder and yet, as we stated, its SG-like traditional rock and beyond qualifications shine through.

The Figured is a Les Paul design with significant influence, depth and clearness, however it sounds more fine-tuned. We compared it to our recommendation 2019 Les Paul Classic (with retrofitted Burstbucker 2 at the bridge and 1 at the neck) with the exact same pull‑switch circuit, and if anything the Figured noises simply a little smoother, with a somewhat more open midrange. The pickups are expected to be potted here, however while the bridge most likely is, the neck pickup does not sound it to our ears.

We have an unreasonable benefit here because the Les Paul Classic gets a great deal of usage, so we’re utilized to the ‘coil-taps’, which take down the highs a little, practically like you’ve somewhat drawn back on a wah pedal with hardly any volume drop. And they’re not single coil: they’re humbucking in both modes.

They definitely do not seem like basic coil‑splits, however we believe they have a really functional character, particularly in the dual-pickup mix and when you bring the stage switch into usage. It does a ‘Greeny’ perfectly– simply draw back among the volumes a little. Pull up the bridge tone switch and we get the complete output of the bridge pickup, quickly offering a little additional sizzle. More noises? They’re absolutely there if you desire them.

If you play in a quite rocking ‘one-two-three-four, see you at the other end’ kinda band, the Lite would be our option. And while the Figured does not rather have that particular raw punch, it does have a lot more and, like any great Les Paul, it covers significant ground with included textures that you will not get on your vintage-style LP.

Decision

Together with the cost, there’s an ocean of distinction in between these guitars. They share the Modern name and some parts– and both have ‘Gibson’ on the headstock!– however that’s about it. Both likewise share a couple of lapses in the finer information, and although those would be promptly arranged in-store, you are left with the sensation that both have actually been a little hurried off the production line.

In addition to the rate, there’s an ocean of distinction in between these guitars

The ‘however’ is that both sound rather excellent, with steady tuning. The light-weight Modern Lite’s more uncomplicated, rawer voice is timeless all-mahogany Gibson that might quickly do excellent service as a budget friendly extra or at the same time tuned slide guitar.

The Modern Figured includes substantially more sounds with extra clearness and width, and some great touches such as that contoured heel. It’s most likely reasonable to state we’ll see more modifications to the developing Modern Collection in 2024, however both brand-new additions have function and credibility, supplying a lot more option for the Gibson fanbase.

Specifications

• RATE: $/ ₤ 2,999 (inc difficult case)
• ORIGIN: U.S.A.
• TYPE: Single-cutaway, solidbody electrical
• BODY: 2-piece mahogany with sculpted AAA figured maple leading
• NECK: 1-piece mahogany, SlimTaper profile with contoured heel, glued-in
• SCALE LENGTH: 624mm (24.6″)
• NUT/WIDTH: Chart Tech/43.1 mm
• FINGERBOARD: Single-bound ebony, mother-of-pearl trapezoid inlays, determined 241-305mm (9.5 12″) substance radius
• STRESSES: 22, medium jumbo
• HARDWARE: Nashville tune-o-matic bridge, aluminium stopbar tailpiece, Grover Rotomatic rear-locking tuners w/ keystone buttons– chrome-plated
• STRING SPACING, BRIDGE: 51.5 mm
• ELECTRICS: Covered Gibson Burstbucker Pro (neck) and Pro + (bridge), 3-way toggle pickup selector switch, volume and tone for each pickup each with pull-switches for coil-tap, stage and bypass
• WEIGHT (kg/lb): 3.85/ 8.47
• CHOICES: None
• VARIETY OPTIONS: LP Modern with 3 strong leading colours ($2,999/ ₤ 2,799); LP Classic ($2,199/ ₤ 2,399) utilizes the exact same pull-switch electrical wiring however with exposed 60s Burstbuckers. More luxurious LP Supreme ($/ ₤ 3,999) shares numerous functions with the Modern Figured, consisting of pickups and circuit
• LEFT-HANDERS: Not this design

Gibson Les Paul Modern Lite

• COST: $₤ 1,499 (inc soft shell case)
• ORIGIN: U.S.A.
• TYPE: Single-cutaway, solidbody electrical
• BODY: Mahogany with sculpted leading
• NECK: Mahogany, SlimTaper profile, glued-in
• SCALE LENGTH: 624mm (24.6″)
• NUT/WIDTH: Chart Tech/43.2 mm
• FINGERBOARD: Indian rosewood, acrylic dot inlays, 305mm (12″) radius
• STRESSES: 22, medium jumbo
• HARDWARE: Nashville tune-o-matic bridge, aluminium stopbar tailpiece, Grover Mini Rotomatic tuners w/ kidney buttons– chrome-plated
• STRING SPACING, BRIDGE: 51.5 mm
• ELECTRICS: Revealed Gibson 490R (neck) and 498T (bridge) humbuckers, 3-way toggle pickup selector switch, volume and tone for each pickup
• WEIGHT (kg/lb): 3.03/ 6.67
• CHOICES: None
• VARIETY OPTIONS: Other expense efficient ‘Moderns’ consist of the unbound LP Studio ($1,699/ ₤ 1,599); LP Tribute ($1,299/ ₤ 1,249) has a thinner depth body with maple neck and covered 490T/490R humbuckers; slab-bodied LP Special Tribute with wrapover bridge (and humbuckers or P-90s) ($999/ ₤ 1,029)
• LEFT-HANDERS: Not this design
• SURFACES: Cardinal Red (as examined), television Wheat, Gold Mist, Inverness Green, Rose Gold– satin nitrocellulose with colour-matched headstocks
• CONTACT: Gibson

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Dave Burrluck is among the world’s most knowledgeable guitar reporters, who began composing back in the ’80s for International Musician and Recording Worldco-founded The Guitar Magazine and has actually been the Gear Reviews Editor of Guitar player publication for the previous 20 years. Along the method, Dave has actually been the sole author of The PRS Guitar Book and The Player’s Guide to Guitar Maintenance As contributing to many other books on the electrical guitar. Dave is an active gigging and taping artist and still discovers time to make, repair work and mod guitars, not least for Guitar player‘s The Mod Squad.