I went to Bothners yesterday to pick up my Tokai LS150 that Alan dropped off there for me after reviewing it. Having dropped the cash, little worries were bouncing around an over-excited brain. Was it going to disappoint me? Would the weight differ only slightly from my LP Deluxe (a hippo of note)? Would it just not justify about 10 months of GAS?
I got into the shop and was asking for the contact person Alan had told me about. I saw the lurid, bordello boudoire case lying open and empty on the counter. For a second I thought, "What the heck are they doing to it?" The guy I'm talking to is asking a flurry of questions about the guitar - where did I get it, how can they get hold of the supplier, how he doesn't usually like Les Pauls, but wow!
I get into the glass testing room, and there's a shop guy with the guitar. He looks up at me dazed, like someone who's just been in a car crash, and says, "This is the best Les Paul I've played in my life."
And there it is, in all it's sunburst sweetness. They've got it plugged into one of those little Roland modelling amps (which are not bad, I've decided). The sound is just so expansive. The difference between this and some Les Pauls is like the difference between listening to The Ode to Joy through your hi-fi, and listening to it performed at a concert hall by a full choir and orchestra. The dynamics are just huge. That incredibly acoustic sound that you hear from Peter Green and Jimmy Page is all there. Either the stock pickups are sh&t-hot, the guitar has some insane acoustic quality, or it's a combination of the two.
So then I get handed it. OMG. My 83 Deluxe is an anvil with strings. It would be exaggeration to say I nearly fell over, but I just wasn't prepared for how much lighter it was. And bear in mind, the back of this guitar is one single piece of solid mahogany - not a hole or a tone chamber in it. The weight feels closer to the Angus Young SG than to my Les Paul.
The guy who showed me in is talking about how they used to sell Gibsons but that this guitar beats them out. When I told him what I paid, I think he must have thought I was talking whole-sale price. I don't think he could comprehend that it was half of what they used to charge for a factory Gibson. I said Alan would be able to put them in touch with Lance.
Ok. Enough, enough. Here's a pic that Lance took when this guitar landed SA-side a good while ago:
Specs:
BODY ： Maple Two Pieces Top
： Mahogany One Piece Back
NECK ： Mahogany One Piece
Set-Neck Deep Joint
Head Angle 18°
FINGERBOARD ： Rosewood
RADIUS ： 300R
FRETS ： 22F ♯213
SCALE ： 625/312.5mm
BRIDGE ： HLS-VB（Brass Saddle）Bridge
HLS-VT Aluminum TailPiece
TUNERS ： Gotoh SD90-SL
NUT(width) ： Bone(43.0mm)
INLAY ： Dish（Amber Cell）
PICKUPS ： PAF-Vintage MK2×2(Made In Japan)
CONTROLS ： 2V.,2T.,
3way Toggle SW
POT ： CTS
SWITCH ： Switchcraft
CONDENSER： Sprague Orange Drop
JACKS ： Switchcraft
FINISH ： Lacquer Finish
COLOR ： CS,VF,BS,GT
The top is just lovely. Swirls of grain with lovely little imperfections and micro hints of tiger striping in one or two places. But it's a plaintop - equivalent to a 1958 Gibson Les Paul. It's got a great resonance - vibration that you can feel in the neck. The neck is much fatter than on my Deluxe - but the same as on the SG. A '50s neck. Super comfortable. The guitar has a vague smell of nitro ?
It's got all the little '50s details: the little metal position markers on the bell knobs, the way the binding leaves a strip of maple visible in the cutaway, the longer toggle switch with the amber tip. The top is deeply carved. My Deluxe was from the first year that Gibson reintroduced the deep carve and the sharper headstock angle. But even it was flatter than the '50s guitars, and the headstock angle was 17 degrees instead of 18. Not only does the Tokai have an 18 degree headstock, but the carve is deep enough that the ring around the toggle switch actually bends onto the slope of the top.
The cut of the nut is perfect - the brass saddles likewise. The whole finish of the guitar is extraordinary. The action is great - but just a little higher than I like it on a Gibson type guitar. But that's just personal preference. The tuners are rock solid and super-smooth.
What do you not get that you get on a custom-shop Gibson?:
The name, on the headstock firstly. Tokai has wisely not tried to ape the Gibson logo, but has a beautiful cursive logo reminiscent of early Gibson archtop logos.
You don't get the "bell" truss-rod cover. I'll probably put one on, as the triangular Tokai TRC alters your perception of the shape of the headstock slightly. Makes it look more flared than it is.
You don't get fret-end binding. On many Gibson guitars, the binding pops up to cover the ends of the frets. It's very classy, but it's crazy expensive to refret without getting rid of those little nibs. As a result, all of your favourite rock stars' 50's Les Pauls no longer have this. There are some limited Tokais (not more expensive, just different models) that have the fret end nibs. But frankly, why bother?
And that's about it, as far as I can think. Sprague Orange Drop capacitors instead of bumble-bee reissues. And all this, brand new, for the price of two new Epiphones after discount (according to a recent quote spoken about on this forum).
It's the guitar I wanted ever since first seeing The Song Remains the Same when I was 13.
p.s., if the LS90 has the same sound and feel, it's the bargain of the century. The only real difference in construction from mine is a two-piece, instead of a one-piece back. Then it's like 65% of the price of this one.
p.p.s. Tokai's crazy naming scheme (a common Japanese approach) means that when Lance brings in more of these, they'll be called LS160 - since the price has gone up marginally.
