Autor: Konrad Martin

2009 Gibson Les Paul R7 VOS Goldtop

Gibson Custom Shop R7 VOS

If I had to choose the best sounding Les Pauls of my selection, this axe would be on second place. Built in 2009, it got the 2009 historic specs including the `50s wiring.

Typical 1957 fat neck

Weight:  8,87 Lbs/ 4,02 kg

2009 historic specs:

1. Bridge: Non-wire ABR
   Nut: Correct nut material
   Switch Nut: Correct number of ridges; much closer to vintage specs
   Poker Chip: Thin, and much closer to vintage
   Pots: Upgraded
   Back Control & Switch Plates: Proper material
   Back Control Plate: Correct location/orientation
   TRC: Period correct Truss rod cover
   Tailpiece & Knob Positions
   Overall body thickness is the same, but mahogany is slightly thicker and maple is slightly thinner
   Fingerboard thickness is more accurate (thinner than it was previously)
   the radius on the edge of the body backside is sharper
   Pickguard shape more accurate
   Maple „window“ in cutaway is smaller
   The jackhole is now 1″ diameter (was smaller)
   The overall body shape is more accurate
2. 50´s wiring is a cool thing and introduced in 2009 for the Custom Shop Models. What is 50´s wiring?

This wiring was used in the first Les Pauls until the end of the fifties.

What’s the difference between Gibson 50’s vs. Modern Wiring?

 50’s Wiring

• when turning down the Volume more heights are remaining
• a turn of the Tone also affects the Volume
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• Example: Turning guitar´s volume to eight ( as indicated by pointer washer!) tone cleans up for wonderful crunchy sounds or soloing. Fully turned on you got an enormous amount of volume for solo guitar
• Turning down the tone pot around to 4/5 you achieve affects sound and volume.
• Joe Bonamassa sound and 50´s wiring

Gary Moore performing „Evil Love“ using the volume knob ( 3:50 – 4:50)

Neal „Schon“ guitar by Larrivee

One of my „vintage“ guitars. Bought in 1988 @Musik Produktiv Nuremberg, after listening to Neal´s solo cd „Late Nite“ to promote his guitar line, I had to buy one. And really all the guitar tones on that superb cd can easily be achieved with that axe. A very versatile guitar: from Les Paul/ Strat tone to Tele twang.
All Original (with exception of the vibrato unit)
#107 of 500 (Stamped in the last fret)
These were produced between 1987 and 1991
24 5/8 Scale
22 Fret (Frets are in Very Good Condition and smooth/no sharp edges)
Neck through body construction
Maple and Alder Wings
Maple Neck
Ebony Fretboard
Binding on Neck & Headstock (No Damage to Binding)
„Schon“ Pickups by PJ Marx (PJ Marx was an Engineer and President of Laney Amps, in the 80’s he designed some pickups that were endorsed by several musicians)
5-way Switch
1-Tone 1- Volume Knob /push pull in Tone knob
Original Floyd Rose Licensed Tremolo with Non-original Tremolo Bar/ Now it´s got a Schaller one.

Overall mint condition for it’s age, it is signed by Neal Schon, while I met him in Augsburg on 6/ 26 2011.

Heavily used on many “Klopstock” and some „Wired“ gigs. Great axe and easy to play with a special unique sound.

Neal Schon 1986 with NS guitar, soloing starts around 3:10.

Fender PM-2 Deluxe Paramount Parlor is one of my favorite acoustic guitars. Love the small body sized guitar. And it sounds amazing to be heard on some tunes on my cd „On Scrambled tunes“. All the specs here:

Parlor corpus shape,, massive Sitka spruce top, massive Indian Rosewood back and sides, Ebony fingerboard, Mahogany neck (C-shape), bone nut and saddle

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The PM-2 acoustic is equipped with a Fishman and Fender designed PM preamp specifically voiced to the shape of parlor acoustic guitar, responding to playing dynamics and bringing out the most subtle tonal nuances. Sitting flush with the side of the guitar, its smaller footprint offers maximum control in a discreet design.

Complete with tuner, frequency (bass, master volume and treble) and phase controls, this collaboration in preamp design not only offers versatile ways to fine-tune your tone, but also imparts an elegant retro look reminiscent of vintage radio knobs.

The Paramount Series (started in 2015) are designed with elements of classic ’60s Fender models, including checkerboard purfling and rosette, pickguard shape, and abalone and mother-of-pearl ‚Concert Tone‘ fingerboard inlays on the Deluxe models. Even with this art deco look, The Paramount Series acoustic guitars still retain their footing in modern design.

After buying my first R9 I saw this one on BTM Guitars Nuremberg´s website and fell in love. An amazing axe with the VOS treatement and a bit heavier than my R9. The neck is a typical 58 chunky one. In Hugo For Sale I often used this axe.

Specs

Back wood: Solid mahogany, no weight relief

Top: Plain Top

Fingerboard rosewood

Neck: 1 piece, with long neck tenon

Profile: 58 rounded

Pickups: Burstbucker 1 (R) 2(T)

Hardware : Nickel

Bridge ABR-1 Aluminium stopbar

Klopstock´s end, Klopstock II, Wired, Savage Blue, Hugo For Sale and finally Earl Grey…….

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What a great evening it was: a great venue, great folks and a fantastic promoter. From the first song to the encores the audience attentively listened to the music and wittty anecdotes about the Les Paul guitar. Thank you all!

Earl Grey´s lineup was (from left to right)

Conny Martin (Les Paul/ Vocals)) Xaver Hauck (drums) Stefan Gerhard (Vocals/ Bass)

Guitars used:

Gibson R8 Lemonburst nicknamed „Gary Moore“ Fender Original ´50s Stratocaster White Blonde and Gibson BFG Gary Moore

Some more photos…….

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Amps used with Deeflexx- Sound System

Fender Blues Junior IV and Koch Jupiter

2006 Fender Stratocaster Jeff Beck Artist Series

Bought this 2006 built one Stratocaster in 2009 @ music butik (Darstadt/ Germany). It got some aging by heavy playing. Love the seafoam green color. Guitar got a three piece alder body. The neck is not as fat as the ones from the first Jeff Beck series in 1991 and they changed the old roller system for a better LRS Roller. In combination with the locking tuners it stays in tune. String changing is easy. Here are the specs:
BODY:

Body Material: Alder
Body Finish: Urethane
Body Shape: Stratocaster

NECK:

Neck Material:Maple
Neck Finish:Satin Urethane
Neck Shape:“C“ Shape
Scale Length:25.5″ (648 mm)
Fingerboard:Rosewood
Fingerboard Radius:9.5″ (241 mm)
Number of Frets:22
Fret Size:Medium Jumbo
String Nut:LSR Roller
Nut Width:1.6875″ (42.8 mm)
Position Inlays:Pearloid Dot
Truss Rod Nut:1/8″ American Series
Headstock:Artist Signature on Headstock
Electronics

ELECTRONICS:

Bridge Pickup: Dual-Coil Ceramic Noiseless
Middle Pickup: Dual-Coil Ceramic Noiseless
Neck Pickup: Dual-Coil Ceramic Noiseless
Controls: Master Volume, Tone 1. (Neck Pickup), Tone 2. (Bridge/Middle Pickup)
Pickup Switching: 5-Position Blade: Position 1. Bridge Pickup, Position 2. Bridge and Middle Pickup, Position 3. Middle Pickup, Position 4. Middle and Neck Pickup, Position 5. Neck Pickup
Pickup Configuration: SSS

HARDWARE:

Bridge: 2-Point American Series Synchronized Tremolo with Stainless Steel Saddles
Hardware Finish: Chrome
Tremolo Arm Handle: Standard Tremolo Arm
Tuning Machines: Deluxe Staggered Cast/Sealed Locking
Pickguard: 3-Ply Mint Green
Control Knobs: Aged White Plastic
Switch Tips: Aged White

It´s got a great sound with the noiseless pickups. Used it on many gigs and demos.

Listen to the Fender Jeff Beck guitar:

2006 Gibson Les Paul Custom Shop R9 VOS Washed Cherry

One of my best sounding and looking Les Pauls. Great flame top. Bought back in 2006 @ Guitar Point, Maintal. After watching Joe Bonamassa in Aschaffenburg playing a Custom Shop Les Paul I had to buy one. And Guitar Point had a large selection of  Gibson Custom Shop Les Pauls. So I could select mine from ten Les Pauls then. On my way home I stopped several times to look after the guitar.

2006 was the first year the VOS (Vintage Original Specs) guitar line was introduced. The VOS guitars are lightly aged. Guitars finish is no gloss, and the hardware aged. By the way all my Custom Shop Les Pauls are VOS models. I don´t like the gloss finish. More in the video clip below.

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Body: Carved AAAAA figured maple

Back wood: Solid mahogany, no weight relief

Fingerboard rosewood

Neck: 1 piece, with long neck tenon ( greatest difference to USA Standard Les Paul)

Profile: 59 rounded

Pickups: Burstbucker 1 (R) 2(T)

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Hardware : Nickel

Bridge ABR-1 Aluminium stopbar

The guitar got a  great vintage tone, very dry sounding. It´s getting better by year. Real vintage bleeding and fading.

2009 Gibson Les Paul BFG Gary Moore Signature

Introduced in 2009 with thin satin Lemon Burst finish. Mine is 2009 built. Gibson ended them some years ago. And it´s on the way to get very rare and sought after. It is similar to the BFG model except two 60s knobs and one 50s knob. It has got a P 90 and a Bursbucker 3 bridge pickup. It´s really featherweight with the chambered mahogany body and acoustically really loud guitar. The body enormously resonates resulting in a lively ringing electric tone What I like is that chunky neck with 22 medium -jumbo frets, a baseball bat. This guitar sounds absolutely awesome. Listen to the vids.

Gibson Gary Moore BFG Advertisement

It’s no coincidence that Gibson USA’s Gary Moore Signature Les Paul guitar is a BFG – perhaps the mightiest and most extreme Les Paul to ever leave a Gibson factory. The Gary Moore Signature Les Paul BFG takes the raw, unrefined power of Gibson’s classic BFG and matches it with the look of Moore’s personal and legendary Les Paul Standards from the late 1950s, resulting in a beautifully radical Les Paul that certainly embodies Moore’s iconic status among the world’s finest guitarists.
With satin nitrocellulose finish, the Gary Moore Signature Les Paul BFG is a stripped-down Les Paul, with no body or neck binding. This model has an uncovered Zebra Burstbucker 3 humbucker in the bridge, with a single-coil P-90 in the neck, all controlled by two top hat style volume controls and one tone knob. The traditional toggle switch has been wired to act as a kill switch, and a smaller toggle pickup selector switch in the place of the missing tone knob controls pickup selection. The mahogany body is chambered for weight relief and the unbound fingerboard is rosewood without position marker inlays (although there are probably side dots).