Les Paul or SG opinions?

[Greentone]

Yes, SGs are (a) neck heavy, and (b) easy to trem with the headstock and body--due to the light body/short neck tenon.

That said, the guitars sound marvelous. String up an SG Standard or Custom with a set of flatwound .11-.50 and you have a guitar that sounds/plays sensationally well on the neck pickup. Looks good, too.

[sandal90]

If You need good and non expensive Les Paul, try brands like Vintage
Electric Guitars | Sweetwater
https://musicsquare.co.uk/118903g_Gu...c-Guitars.html
Electric Guitar Types | Gear4music

[p1p]

Thank you all very much for your opinions, it's definitely helped. Though I didn't end up with any of your suggestions, hah...

I actually swapped my Squier strat (with my beloved Original 57/62 pickups) for a hardly used Washburn:

Washburn HB32 Hollowbody Thinline, Distressed Matte

Bargain.

Love the feel (chunky neck, med. jumbo frets), and sounds great. Not a fan of the 'distressed hardware' look, but that could be changed some day if I care to. It's also quiet enough to practice at night. I'll be happy with just this one and my #1 for a long, long time.

[icr]

Gibson SGs can be found for reasonable money. It can be a versatile solid-body jazz guitar but not as recognized as the Telecaster.
It was the instrument used by the young Allan Holdsworth (RIP). I use mine mostly for blues, but it works well with legato style jazz/fusion too.

[artdecade]

Late 70s Ibanez Artists. Les Paul killers.

[JPG]

I'm a huge SG fan so that would be my choice, over an LP - although I must say an LP makes a wonderful jazz axe (see Ulf Wakenius with Oscar Peterson, probably my favorite all time tone .. see "When Summer Comes" from the Vienna concert)

I have 2 Standard SGs, a 2016 and a 2017 bought new ... the 2016 was under 1000 Eur and the 2017 as a bit more expensive. Only thing I have to say about them is that the fretwork/binding option puts them a bit "on the edge" ... that you can adjust to, easilly. Other than that they're simply wonderful. My 2016 got a set of Bare Knuckle "Stormy Monday" pickups and it became a surprisingly nice bebop machine.

Also have a SGJ 2014 that costs about half of a Standard and that, while not having the same "mojo" is just as much a wonderful guitar as the Standards. I played a few of these 2014 models and honestly believe they're really special.

I can only speak nice things about my Gibson guitars - but if you're not into them, I'd suggest....

Vintage, ESP/LTD, PRS - even if it's a 300 bucks guitar, with a careful overhaul they can be made to play and sounds just as great as their "original" counterparts.

The only difference (and that may be a big one depending...) is, again, mojo.

[p1p]

I'm a huge SG fan so that would be my choice, over an LP - although I must say an LP makes a wonderful jazz axe (see Ulf Wakenius with Oscar Peterson, probably my favorite all time tone .. see "When Summer Comes" from the Vienna concert)

..

I can only speak nice things about my Gibson guitars - but if you're not into them, I'd suggest....

Vintage, ESP/LTD, PRS - even if it's a 300 bucks guitar, with a careful overhaul they can be made to play and sounds just as great as their "original" counterparts.

The only difference (and that may be a big one depending...) is, again, mojo.

I've never owned a Gibson, but maybe some day, if one were to speak to me. The tools I've got are perfectly capable of getting the job done for me at the moment, and I enjoy them..

[virtuoso]

"Vintage" guitars are awesome .

[Roberoo]

I have an Epiphone SG with some GFS Alnico II Professional pickups that was bought for playing blues gigs. The neck dives but damn it plays beautifully and the set up is fantastic.. It sounds incredibly sweet also and the low notes are clear like a good piano. The high notes explode and sustain. But... it does not produce a classic jazz sound as there is always a upper mid honk that I cannot dial out. I think this a product of the body size because all my previous SGs had this sound to some degree. That said, it works for modern jazz gigs and jazz rock. Frankly, it is my most comfortable guitar but does not work for swing gigs that are my bread and butter.