I've been wanting to pick up an inexpensive Les Paul for a while as, while I don't really regard myself as a LP player, it's nice to have one around to get those tones that only an LP can do convincingly. It also gives me a more traditional humbucker guitar to try out amps and pickups (that's my excuse and I'm stickin' to it...). A Tokai Love Rock has been on my shopping list for a couple of years now (and still is), but I never seem to get around to it as when I have the money, there is usually something higher up the want/need list that trumps it. And lower down the price scale, the wood choices, electronics or hardware tend to veer a bit too far away from the LP spec.
So when the recent TID sale drew my attention to the Vintage guitars, I had a look and discovered the V100AFD Paradise, which unlike the other V100s has a maple cap under the flame veneer. A bit more money too, but not a lot more and still relatively very inexpensive. So I took a chance and ordered one.
If it looks a little familiar, that's because it is modelled after a very particular Les Paul:
Yes, that's right - it's a copy of the guitar the leathern-top-hatted one used to record
Appetite for Destruction (hence AFD), including
Paradise City (hence "Paradise". Geddit?). I was a bit unsure before I ordered as I would really have liked a different colour from my other guitars (which it seems are all shades of yellows, ambers and honeybursts and with more flame maple in evidence than one man should own), but colour is one of the last things I worry about (after name on the headstock), and it's attractive anyway... so I bit.
Published specs:
Body: Soild Mahogany
Top: Flamed Maple Veneer & Carved Maple Cap
Neck: Mahogany
Neck Join: Set Neck
Fingerboard: Rosewood
Scale: 24.75”/ 628mm
Frets: 22
Neck Inlays: Pearloid Crown
Tuners: Wilkinson Deluxe WJ44 Chrome
Bridge: Tune-O-Matic
Pickups: Wilkinson WVHZ Humbucker x 2
Hardware: Chrome
Controls: 2 x Volume/ 2 x Tone/ 3-Way Toggle
Accessories: Straplocks
..all of which loosely translates to "it's a Les Paul", without giving me really meaningful specs as to exactly what
kind of Les Paul in a way that is meaningful to me (neck profile, neck thickness, body weight, 1/4"or 1/8" maple cap, etc.). So... proof, pudding and tastings time.
First impressions
First thing I noticed about the Paradise was the weight - it feels like a Les Paul should, substantial, but not a '70s boat anchor either. The top is more yellow than the amber most pics show. First inspection revealed the fit and finish is all good with no major flaws.
Body
Overall thickness is correct and the shape is close, with just a slightly sharper point on the cutaway than the real deal. The veneer top is fairly attractive with a bold flame. The flame is very one-dimensional, but I don't expect anything better in this price range. The top itself is not a full 1/4" thick, so is probably 1/8". The back turns out to be a two piece (not bad), joined off-centre and not grain matched, but no major flaws either.
Neck
The neck is surprisingly chunky - something like the '59 roundback shape, I'd guess about .87" thick (22mm) at the first fret (I haven't measured it yet though). I like it a lot. The fingerboard is a bit plain and quite dry (or rather, was ?). The fret job is quite good (frets are a little rough, but leveled nicely) and the inlays are well done.
Hardware
The bridge and tailpiece are both excellent quality, the nut is synthetic, but seems decent. The tuners are a little cheap looking, but seem to hold well enough for now. Plastic parts are mostly quite good (although the curve of the pickup surrounds doesn't quite match that of the top). The strap locks are of the type that use ball-bearings, which I don't trust (thanks to a traumatic experience in my formative years), so they've already been replaced by a set of Schallers.
Electronics
The Wilkinson pickups are quite good - better than I expect in this price range ( I haven't measured DC resistance yet). The rest of the electronics are pretty much what I expected - cheap and cheerful with no problems, but worth an upgrade. Cavities are screened with paint, but the back of the cavity covers are not.
Setup
The setup surprises me. It is not perfect, but is most of the way there - far better than on most more expensive instruments. The guitar plays really well out of the box. But I'm a fussy b#tard, even then, I only had to slack off the truss a touch (to be expected with the change in climate) and tweak the nut slots ever so slightly to get it to perfection.
Sound
The guitar is quite resonant and lively and the pickups are good enough to make good of it. It's a rockier LP with a bit of grunt in the bridge pickup and all the classic rock tones are there.
Summary
For the money, this is a pretty wonderful guitar and an amazing deal. Yes, I've heard and played better, but not at anywhere near the price. It's not going to stop me lusting after and getting an LS160 one day, but it's a great placeholder and there is a little room for upgrades too (nut, tuners, pickups).
