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Show Some Love →Gibson Les Paul Standard - Hand Wired with DiMarzio Pickups and Orange Drop Tone Caps
Weighs 9.8 lbs
Free Pro Setup - $100 Value - See below for details.
Case: Includes Gibson Original Hard Shell Case (OHSC) shown
Condition: Excellent condition overall. Frets are in excellent 9.5/10 condition. It looks, plays and sounds awesome.
Description: This guitar offers the best Les Paul features from several periods. It's got traditional 1950's wiring and a 1960's slim taper neck.
Upgrades: This guitar started life as a 2021 Les Paul Classic. It came from the factory with quick connect wiring, a printed circuit board and push-pull pots. That has all been replaced with a set of DiMarzio pickups, and traditional hand-wired and hand soldered connections like what you'd get on a vintage or current Les Paul Standard. It has long shaft CTS 500k audio taper pots, Orange Drop tone caps, 1950's wiring, and the control cavity has been shielded with copper foil. All the work was professionally done. If you took your Les Paul into a shop for these upgrades, it would easily cost over $500.
Pickups: The pickups have been upgraded to a wonderful set of DiMarzios, whith a DP100 in the bridge and a DP151 PAF in the neck. They sound great and look incredible with the cream bezels set against the ebony body with cream pickup rings and binding. These pickups are like what Ace Frehley and Al DiMeola put into their Les Pauls and what Dave Murry put into his 1957 Strat.
Bridge pickup - DP100 Super Distortion is arguably the most important aftermarket guitar component ever made. Released in 1972, it was the world’s first widely available replacement pickup, effectively birthing the entire guitar mod industry. Before 1972, if players wanted more gain, they had to rely on primitive boost pedals or turn their amps up to deafening levels. The DP100 solved this by offering over twice the output of a standard PAF, driving the front end of tube amps straight into natural, thick overdrive. It became the sonic signature of '70s and '80s rock scenes, famously used by legends like: Ace Frehley, Randy Rhoads, Dave Murray, Al Di Meola and Kurt Cobain, to name a few.
Neck pickup - DP151 PAF Pro is one of the most famous, versatile, and enduring medium-output humbuckers in rock history. Introduced in 1986, it was designed to address a massive problem of the time: how to get a transparent, vintage PAF-style vibe to "cut" through the mix without turning to mud. It became a legendary staple for players like Steve Vai, Joe Satriani, and Paul Gilbert. While both the DP103 PAF and the DP151 PAF Pro trace their roots to the classic late-'50s Gibson humbucker recipe, the fundamental difference is the DP103 is a vintage-output tribute to the original 1959 Gibson PAF, while the DP151 is a hot-rodded, medium-output humbucker engineered in 1986 to slice through high-gain mix.
Ace Frehley Budokan: Ace acquired the guitar new in the summer of 1976 from Manny’s Music in Manhattan. It was a standard 1974 Les Paul Custom in Heritage Cherry Sunburst. Ace added the middle pickup because he "liked the look of the three-pickup Les Paul Custom". He loaded a double-cream DiMarzio DP100 Super Distortion into the bridge and two DiMarzio double cream DP103 PAF models in the neck and middle positions. The guitar earned its legendary nickname in April 1977, when KISS flew to Tokyo for their first massive Japanese tour. KISS played a historic four-night residency at the legendary Nippon Budokan arena. The shows broke the attendance records previously held by the Beatles, sparking an unprecedented level of rock fandom across Japan. Ace played his triple-pickup Cherry Burst for those sets, forever cementing its image in the minds of millions via live photos and television broadcasts. From then on, it was known as the "Budokan Les Paul"
Al DiMeola 1971 Les Paul Custom: Al recounted: “One of my most famous guitars is my 1971 Les Paul Custom. I ordered it from Manny’s Music in New York when I was in my last year of high school. That place was like a mecca for gear, it was the place to get your equipment. It’s where Hendrix got all his stuff, The Who... Everybody in the music business went there. Any day of the week you’d go in and see somebody famous. Everyone thought it looked so cool. I ended up adding DiMarzio pickups and a coil tap. I used it on most of my early records. On my biggest-selling album, Elegant Gypsy, that’s the guitar you’re hearing and the one you can see on the cover. I also used it on Land Of The Midnight Sun, all the Return To Forever stuff and a few other things. The sound of that guitar going into my 50-watt Marshall is one of the punchiest tones I’ve ever heard.”
Dave Murray '57 Strat: Mr. Murray's original black 1957 Stratocaster was owned by the late Free guitarist Paul Kossoff. Mr. Murray recounts, "I bought it in 1976. I saw it advertised in Melody Maker, (and) got the serial number to check it was [Kossoff's] guitar. It cost quite a bit of money but I didn't care. I just sold everything I had so I could get it, and I used it from then on. It just felt like I was holding a piece of magic because he had used this guitar." Mr. Murray added a pair of DiMarzio humbuckers, a Super Distortion in the Bridge and a PAF in the neck, and the rest is Rock N Roll History!
Sound: This Les Paul sounds wonderful unplugged and even better through a good tube amp!
Luthier's Measurements and Assessment:
Features and Specs:
About Del Mar Lutherie: We’re a small shop in San Diego County, California. We build electric guitars, hand-wired tube amps, and do mods and setups. We also buy and sell vintage and used gear. Our owner is a guitar enthusiast, wood worker and professional engineer by training. We’re part of the local guitar community (Fender, Taylor, Carvin/Kiesel). We're not open to the public, but we do welcome clients by appointment.
Why buy from us? Our customers have peace of mind knowing they are buying from a highly rated professional shop. We've been doing this type of work since 1999 and have thousands of happy customers. We pride ourselves in providing best-in-class personalized service for each of our clients. We are a Reverb Preferred Seller, and our approval rating is close to 100%.
Dr. T’s Professional Inspection and Setup: You may find a similar guitar at a lower price, but ours may still be the better value as we include our professional inspection and setup. This service costs from $80 to $150 at most shops. With over 25 years in the industry, we’re convinced that a good setup is the single most important investment to improve the playability and sound of your guitar. Here’s what in entails. We inspect the guitar and address issues. Next, we remove the strings and tighten and set the drag on the tuners. We inspect the frets, find any high spots, then level, crown and polish. We clean and oil the fingerboard, restring, tune to pitch and set the neck relief, action and intonation. We then play each fret and check for fret buzz and fret-outs during bends, and we fine-tune as required. Next, we test the electronics, clean and tighten pots and jacks and balance the pickups. Occasionally, we find a fault with the electronics, so we dig in and diagnose and repair that. Once the electronics are tip top, we play the guitar to make sure everything is just right. Finally, we clean and polish the guitar, then slacken the stings to get it ready for shipping.
String Gauges and Settings: We do our setups using common string gauges and settings, which we've found work well for most players. For electrics, we use 9-42 gauge strings for Fender (25.5") scale guitars and 10-46 for Gibson (24.75") scale guitars. We set action to 0.050 on the high e side and 0.060 on the low E side. This action is fairly low and allows for easy fretting without buzzing or sacrificing tone. If you have special preferences, please let us know, and we will do our best to accommodate you.
Light Gauge Strings: We recommend light gauge strings on electrics, which makes fretting and bending easier. And if you want more volume, just turn up your amp. I don’t know anyone who thinks Tony Iommi or Billy Gibbons have thin tone - Tony uses 8’s and Billy uses 7’s. If you use 10’s you might consider 9’s, or if you use 9’s try 8’s. It will take a little time to get used to, but you’ll be surprised at how much easier your guitar is to play… and if you turn up your amp a little, you won’t be sacrificing volume or tone.
Fine Tuning Adjustments: Your guitar will be playing and sounding wonderful when we finish our setup. However, occasionally minor adjustments will be needed after shipping due to changes in temperature and/or humidity, rough handling or other unfavorable conditions. Since we have no control over this, we cannot cover the cost of these adjustments. However, if your guitar was mishandled during shipping, please let us know, so we can see if a shipping claim is in order. Sometimes it’s possible to get you a partial refund to help cover issues if we can show that they were caused by shipping.
Condition Ratings: We do our best to be consistent with Reverb’s condition rating system. Please keep in mind that Reverb’s descriptions are very general and can be open to interpretation. The guitar you get will be the one shown in the photos, and if it has any major flaws or defects, we will point them out in the listing. Our guitars rated below “Mint” will have signs of use and cosmetic imperfections, including minor dings, dents and swirl marks, which might only be visible upon close inspection. If you are sensitive to minor cosmetic defects, please let us know, and we can provide you with close-up photos. We do not accept returns nor give partial refunds if you receive your guitar and believe that it should have been rated lower. We’ve sold thousands of guitars, and almost without exception, our clients have not had issues with our ratings. This tells us that we are doing a great job with our condition ratings.
Standard of Care: We strive to meet our clients’ expectations, and we want you to be happy with your purchase. Guitars develop wear with use and it’s widely accepted that honest wear adds character and shows that the guitar has been played and loved. Our used and vintage guitars will have signs of use. Our Del Mar Lutherie brand guitars are hand-built and will have artifacts that some people might view as "imperfections". If you want a guitar in “perfect” or “flawless” condition, we advise you to buy new from an authorized dealer or buy locally so you can inspect it in person. We do not guarantee that our guitars will be cosmetically flawless, and we don’t accept returns or give partial refunds due to cosmetic imperfections.
Specs: We list specs as a courtesy. Some specs are measured by our techs. Others are taken from the manufacturer's data. Manufacturers change specs all the time, and their listed specs may not be 100% accurate. Also, some used guitars have mods that may not be apparent upon visual inspection. The guitar you will get is the one shown in the photos. If there are any "deal breaker" specs that you must have, please let us know so we can double check for you before your purchase.
Videos: We often provide YouTube links to provide our clients with more information. These videos will be of a similar make and model which is representative of the guitar in our listing.
Shipping: We ship guitars via UPS ground. The fee shown includes shipping within the contiguous USA with insurance. It also includes packaging materials and our time to pack up and drop off at UPS. For guitars, shipping costs are controlled by box size and insurance is based on value.
Delivery Time: We do our best to get your guitar setup, boxed and shipped as soon as possible. However, sometimes this can take a few days depending on our workload and other factors. Once UPS receives your guitar, they will estimate a delivery date, which you can access via Reverb. UPS will typically deliver your guitar within 2 to 7 business days after they receive it, depending on your distance from Southern California. If you're in a hurry, please let us know and we’ll do our best to accommodate you, or at least we can advise you of the estimated wait, so you can decide if you need to make other arrangements.
Damage Claims: Although rare, guitars sometimes are damaged during shipping. If you receive a guitar that is damaged, please let us know immediately so we can open a claim.
Returns and Canceled Orders: We are a small business and can’t afford to offer free returns like the big guys. There is a lot of time, effort and cost involved with processing your order, pulling your guitar from inventory, setting it up, packing and shipping it. Please make sure you want the guitar before you commit to buy. If we agree to a return or to cancel your order, you will be responsible for shipping costs (both ways) and a restocking fee to cover our time.
Trades: We are a professional guitar business. Anything we take on trade, we resell. Due to shipping costs and transaction fees, we only do trades in person. To make sense for us, we can only offer wholesale value, which is typically 40% to 60% of what it would sell for on Reverb. This is usually as good or better than Guitar Center. If you’re OK with this, please send current photos of the actual gear you have for trade. We need brand, model, year, and condition. Note any mods, repairs or other issues. If your guitar includes a hard case or gig bag, send photos of that as well.
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