The Epiphone 59 Les Paul Standard - As good as they say? 

I still have my old Epiphone LP 1960's tribute from 2010. It was the first real guitar I ever purchased. Quality is outstanding, as I imagine yours is also.

Great review and playing and even though I got a lemon burst a few weeks ago and I love it I still tend to view all of these good videos about it ... the first Epiphone make and model that I think is really great😮

Nice playing and good video. I enjoyed it. Mine is cherry sunburst. I added locking tuners to mind and touched up the fret ends…now it perfect. I like satin finish, neck is perfect for my hand.

I have the '59 Cherry Fade example, it's colorful😀Have had it for several months now & very much enjoy playing it.What a deal it is, $ wise! I like it better than my Gibson Studio LP. I actually dig the VOS satin finish, especially on the neck - it's so smooth!

I’m inspired to play a Les Paul tonight! I agree with you that the finish is a bit too “satin”. I also agree that at this price point, and particularly when competitors to it more reliably, that Epiphone should up its finishing game and produce guitars with consistently better fretwork. Otherwise, I have no problem with the specs you mention and what I see. I have no problem with the name on the headstock, and I’d love to try one. Maybe even own one, however in full disclosure I already have three Les Pauls, each with different electronics configuration, and this one would double my Tokai. A further thought: it does seem this in every way, a “main” guitar. It seems good enough, and deserves better than being “backup” status. In any event, great playing, sounds and thoughtful review as always.

The Epiphone 1959 Les Paul Standard deserves the Les Paul name on the head stock as much as any Gibson. I owned Gibson's in the past Studios, Classics, Faded Standards and even played older models like the Deluxe and an 54 Custom. But I love my Epi '59 LP Standard (Southern burst) I will keep this one. I regret letting my Gibson's go. Perfect Video on this guitar thank you so much for making it.

great video.. it was my very first guitar ever. I bought it 5 months ago. and love it

Great review! I bought my '59 epi right around the same time that my band's other guitarist bought a Gibson SG standard with the '57 classic humbuckers. There were some slight differences in tone, obviously, but as far as quality went the '59 Epi was right up there with his Gibson in terms of build and tone.

I recently got the lemon burst and having had older epi LP's and playing buddies older Gibsons and my Gibson Flying V (different thing I know) but I am very impressed with the guitar so far. Glad to see Epiphone stepping it up, they went through a bad spell there for a second. I may have gotten lucky but the fretwork and neck are phenomenal for the price. The kalamazoo headstock is a plus as well.

An enjoyable video. You hit on all the reasons as to why this Epiphone is such a good guitar. I'm well pleased with mine.

I don’t recall if I commented on this video but I bought the 59 in Southern Fade. After about 20 applications of Carnauba Wax, it looks fantastic. I just realized that the neck had a rounded shoulders and it’s too much for my hands. I agree with you, the 50’s model f lt much more comfortable than the 59. Also, the 2012 SG Pro I mentioned in the SG video has the sand shoulders as the 59 LP. And that is why I stated that the 2012 SG neck felt too wide for me. Thanks for pointing that feature out. Cheers!

I got one about a month ago and gotta say, the matte finish doesn't bother me the way I thought it would. Sounds and plays great.

My quest for the best Les Paul experience available for under $1000 US led me to your site. After watching MANY videos and speaking with several local pros, I decided on the used Epiphone 1959 Les Paul Limited Edition, which comes with genuine Gibson Burstbucker 2&3 pickups, for $700. That left enough budget to replace the bridge & tail hardware with a Faber Master Kit (~ $225 I think). I also buffed out the factory satin body to a glossier finish with Meguiars ScratchX and darkened the laurelwood neck with some walnut stain so that it looks *exactly* like the rosewood fretboard on my relic Strat by Dan Strain (Danocaster). The Faber hardware is a solid upgrade and I think it looks better AND more authentic now. It's not really a problem but I could do with a little less gain - I may buy a Gibson Burstbucker 1 for the neck and move the BB2 down to the bridge, keeping the stock bridge BB3 as a spare. Mine weighs 9.3 lbs which is 2 lbs more than my Fender type guitars. I wouldn't go any heavier, and would advise to look for 8.5 to 9 pounds for the best balance. Beyond that, each tree sounds a little different so try to play the one you buy (I didn't and got lucky :o)

I got a dark burst 59 today. Quite pleased with it. You were right about the fret ends, mine were a little rough at the bottom E 12th fret and up, so no biggie. Other than that I can't fault the build quality as there wasn't a single blemish on it. I think the neck itself is sublime - a perfect fit for me. The guitar is heavy like a Gibson too, but not too heavy - just about right. Only tested on a Vox Amplug AC so far and it sounds pretty great on that, especially the cleans, but I have a couple of Vox amps to put it through next (which are very very dusty) - a new VX15 and a MV50 AC with cab - so should be interesting paired up with an equally dusty Boss ME80 pedalboard. It's shaping up to be a pretty sweet home player :) - so cheers for the review, it really helped me decide on this. Subbed. 👍

Love your playing. I have this guitar in cherry. I was initially underwhelmed with the satin finish but it's growing on me. Thanks for the review.

Yep, I did enjoy this video! Thx Mr. G, great playing! Looking forward to the next episode!!

The stand out features here are the Gibson Custom Shop pickups. Ive got this guitar and they sound unreal!

They're outstanding guitars, but Leonard, I definitely agree with you about the finish...the Dark Burst is great, but personally, I can't stand that matte-y finish. In fact, every person I know that owns these immediately gave the finish the once-over with some mild rubbing compound and a buffing wheel in an effort to add some shine and gloss to them. And they look so much better that way! Great review and great playing, Leonard! 🎸😊👏👍👊

Great video sir!. Could you ever consider doing a review of the aio brand, they are a store in los angeles that make their own guitars, they adjust the guitar according to your specifications for free, in particular I would love a honest review of the s3 relic strat because there are practically no good ones reviews of that guitar and are very few out there. I really enjoy your videos, u have a new subscriber!.

Got one love it.Wish they were limited though.

Just came across this review! With you on all the points you make but no problem with the fret finishing on the Cherry Burst I bought and I do like the satin finish . . . I guess I like the low key vibe and certainly the back of the neck feel, preferable to nitro or poly. I think it's a good buy, especially for gigging if you don't have a guitar tech and security team in tow to keep on eye on your original 50s or 60s Gibson while you're signing autographs and having an after show dwink 😆

Great Video, Nice playing.

Great review, I own one (in lemon burst from andertons), but whats actually limited about it?

Love your style. Just got one

I highly recommend for u ppl to try it

I was unimpressed I returned mine 😐 it was ok but I’m going to get the Greeny it’s $1,499 but it has the Gibson headstock 👏😆

Great guitar! Big bang for buck..

Thanks!

Nice sounds

I think Epi would do well to offer this model and a few others with a factory installed Bigsby option.

👍🏻👍🏻

Sounds amazing , fantastic playing , but goddamn that fingerboard looks dry .

Do you prefer this or the PRS SE McCarty or DGT?

So you would gig with this guitar?

I have a Gretsch G5230T. Would this be an upgrade?

What gets me is this guitar is a 59 in name only, not one single spec has anything to remotely do with a 59, they couldn't even put a real rosewood fretboard on it for a grand.

For $1,000 you would think the fret ends and high frets would be addressed. That isn't a cheap guitar nowadays.

Better get a made in Japan Les Paul clone for half the price

Why don't they fill Les Pauls with helium, to make them lighter?!! 😂

WHAT CAN I ANSWER IF YOU ARE PLAYING YOUR ROLE AND WE (CONSUMERS) ARE BEING TAKEN FOR MONEY. WITH BEST WISHES.