Gibson going bankrupt but NOW a $99 Les Paul????

https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/ENOLTQCH
 
 
 

craigb
The financing is $3 a month for 36 months.  Might as well get a few, ya? 
 
(If the quality of their $2,300 LP's was poor, it makes you wonder about one that costs $99, eh?)

we live in a millennials disposable society anyway roight?

ampfixer
That guitar is a long way from being a Les Paul. The only things similar are the name and the outline. Still a great thing to get kids into guitars again. Dirt cheap yet functional.

Not according to Gibson, I quote
 
The Epiphone Les Paul SL guitar delivers the look and feel of one of the world's most popular electric guitars, and it's also the most affordable Les Paul ever made. Comprised of a poplar body with solid hard maple neck and rosewood fretboard, the Les Paul SL is primed for rock and blues, and just like its namesake, it's amazingly versatile in a wide range of styles. The Epiphone single-coil pickups with ceramic magnets offer Master Volume and Master Tone controls for simplicity, with a three-way switch lending access to a wide range of sounds.
 
I am not arguing with you , but the ad copy is tending to say this is just like a Les Paul!!

Gibson is even manufacturing this?  Lol..   likely Gibson is licensing the name to a foreign - Chinese/Korean/Pakistani company that is manufacturing this.
 
The current corporate structure of Gibson leaves a lot to be desired, to say the very least.

today UPS delivered my Harley Benton Les Paul....it's about 175 usd new.
https://www.thomann.de/nl/harley_benton_sc_450plus_hb_vintage_series.htm?glp=1&gclid=Cj0KCQjwruPNBRCKARIsAEYNXIgC0-8jLkbGjVo6DzF7HibvgSNV92sdSR2SZ7_7Zf91lBHkbfJc3JkaAgatEALw_wcB
iic it's made in the Epiphone factory, it has Wilkinson pups and harware.
From the tuners and knobs I could tell it's not a top guitar, and frets were a little rough.
The thing did sound killer though, I'd say it beats an Epiphone.
 
I'm gonna return it because the color of the paint is just awful, instead of a honeyburst it's a almost neon orangeburst....really looks bad imo.
But other than that it's not a crap guitar at all imo.
 

That Harley Benton looks just like the Hondo guitar I had as a kid (my first pseudo-guitar).  So glad when I dumped that POS for a real '76 Les Paul...

craigb
That Harley Benton looks just like the Hondo guitar I had as a kid (my first pseudo-guitar).  So glad when I dumped that POS for a real '76 Les Paul...

lolololol...
 
My jammin' buddy when I was teen had a Hondo (Explorer copy IIRC).
 
It was the WORST!!!
 
I think the body was made out of particle board and had the crappiest bolt on neck I think I've ever had the displeasure of playing on.
 
Just soooo bad.
 
edit: oh... and it sounded like an old man trying to take a crap.

It's an Epiphone.
 
Single coils are wrong on an LP of any make.  Unless they're P90s, of course.

BobF
It's an Epiphone.
 
Single coils are wrong on an LP of any make.  Unless they're P90s, of course.

to my ears the humbucker on the neck sounded better in split coil mode.
personally rarely hear a nice neck pickup on LP's.
but I haven't heard a humbucker sound good on Fender yet, not saying there aren't any.
I have a Squier with a humbucker that would do great for metal and drop tuning though.

Sheanes
hey Beeps, usually if a guitar doesn't stay in tune it's NOT the tuners.
have you tried cleani?ng the nut in the carves where the strings sit ?
many luthiers advise to put a little graphite (you can use a simple pencil) so the strings don't get stuck.
you can get great tones out of an Ibanez LP, as with many copies.

Naw, it's the tuners, dood. They are loose and floppy and generally El Garbage-o.
 
hmm... now that I think about it though I might see if I can pop the buggers open and see if I can tighten them up a bit.
 
hmm...

Beepster

craigb
That Harley Benton looks just like the Hondo guitar I had as a kid (my first pseudo-guitar).  So glad when I dumped that POS for a real '76 Les Paul...

lolololol...
 
My jammin' buddy when I was teen had a Hondo (Explorer copy IIRC).
 
It was the WORST!!!
 
I think the body was made out of particle board and had the crappiest bolt on neck I think I've ever had the displeasure of playing on.
 
Just soooo bad.
 
edit: oh... and it sounded like an old man trying to take a crap.

 
I had a Hondo as well... A Hondo II 'SD Curlee', whatever that was supposed to mean. Nasty guitar. Upgraded to a Gibson Sonex, which I still have, but never play.

At least get the one with the humbuckers:
https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/ENSVEBVCH
 
Its $50.00 more...Yes, it too is probably a piece of crap but at least it will sound like a Les Paul & not a Stratocaster...
 
 

Hi,
 
Aren't these the cardboard guitars that are made in Mexico?
 
They don't even come with a drink!

Sheanes
guessing it would be a starter guitar for young teenage girls, from the looks of it.
sure is not a top guitar or a real les paul, but for a girly starter guitar not bad imo.
sounds somewhat reasonable too
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=seICRkGNyUM
 

When I decided I wanted to get the equivalent of my Gibson EB-0 back, the only option I had was to get me an EB-0 or EB-3 by Epiphone. I got me an EB-3 (still have it) and it has no feel whatsoever, and does not have the great action and spunk that the original EB-0 by Gibson did. It pretty much helped me put the bass to sleep and not play a whole lot.
 
I miss dearly the original EB-0 I had, and if I ever get some extra money, I will get me one ... a real one, instead of a fake, Mexican cheap crapper that does not sound good and can not be made to sound good.
 
It might be good for a starter kit, and such, but in the end, it will also turn off the kids, because they can not make it sound better and more attractive to one's ear ... it's like saying that you have to have the chops to make a shi!!y guitar sound good, and in general that is not the case, and not likely to happen, and this is where learning, and teaching has a serious distance that is losing kids from learning music even more and better. 
 
I can see some kids in my own neighborhood playing and trying to sound good, and playing some fair to better stuff, but when you get up close, you know the difference right away ... it's not the kids or the chops ... it's the cheapness of the guitars and the amps that are the difference ... the quality and fidelity are lost. The better equipment helps you clean up details and get better, and you would not know that until you try it!
 
As they say ... you get what you pay for ... but many will never get that far to know that part ... you can't get the paying gig on crap equipment in general!

I don't play but I'm tempted to pick one up just for grins.
 
I also find it a bit humorous that a case costs more than the guitar.
https://www.sweetwater.com/store/detail/ENLPCS