Gibson.com: Gibson Les Paul Piezo

Les Paul Piezo

The Les Paul Piezo might possibly be the perfect guitar, and certainly one of the world’s most versatile. With a deeply hued gold finish and unflinching details like mirrored Top Hat knobs, gold tuning keys and antique binding scraped by hand, this guitar is nothing short of stunning. And we’ve yet to even broach its sound capabilities. Taking the best from today’s advancements in guitar technology, the Les Paul Piezo has been armed with L.R. Baggs’ best-selling piezo bridge and a pair of the ever popular active EMG 85's. Top metal guitarists favor this choice in pickups for its crystal-clear soloing capabilities and inexhaustible variety of tones, while the piezo saddles offer the ability to quickly tap realistic acoustic-like tones on stage or in the studio—or to blend magnetic and acoustic outputs for a near-fathomless array of tones. With the same show-stopping glamour of an original Les Paul and the endless options you’d expect from this generation’s finest guitar innovator, the Gibson Les Paul Piezo has set a new gold standard.

Body

	Species Each Les Paul Piezo is constructed of a two-piece maple top, fitted snugly atop a two-piece mahogany body. Top and body are bonded together with ultra-strong Franklin Titebond 50 glue. This wood combination yields a specific yet versatile tone that many guitarists have come to demand.
	Grade This Les Paul’s maple top is Grade C and its mahogany body is Grade A.
	Design Once the finishing process is complete the top rim of the guitar is scraped by hand to reveal exquisite antique binding. Beyond the façade, the guitar’s interior is treated to Gibson’s traditional 9 hole relief to give you enhanced tone and a guitar of manageable weight.
	Average Weight The average weight of a Les Paul Piezo body is 5.37 lbs.
	Tonal Characteristics The mahogany body of the Les Paul Piezo cranks out tone that is somewhat soft, but extremely well-balanced, with good grind and bite. It has the potential for good depth, with full (though not super-tight) lows, velvety highs and a slightly compressed response. Its maple cap adds snap, sizzle and sustain. And like a number of Gibsons, the Les Paul’s interior has weight relief cavities, which gives you a guitar that is louder acoustically and features increased sustain and resonance.

Finish

	Color The Les Paul Piezo comes in the original Les Paul finish: Gold. A high-gloss sheen produces deep, almost three-dimensional luster, aided by the refracted light and reflectivity of the finish itself. The overall effect is a kind of iridescence and a deep, lustrous gold hue.
	Surface Texture The 90-sheen lacquer finish gives the Les Paul Piezo a sleek surface that’s smooth to the touch.
	Process The Les Paul Piezo gets it finish by hand in a process that demands several coats and many hours. Unlike a lot of other manufacturers, who settle for a polyurethane finish, Gibson opts for a nitrocellulose finish that will encourage the natural vibration of the instrument for a purer tone. In addition, a nitro finish is very porous and actually gets thinner over time. That way your guitar’s wood can breathe and age beautifully.

Neck and Headstock

	Species The neck of the Les Paul Piezo is constructed from three pieces of Grade-A maple, long a popular choice for its tight, fine, appealing grain and outstanding strength. Before becoming “putty” in the hands of Gibson’s skilled craftsmen, the mahogany is milled and cut to a highly desirable “quarter sawn” wood grain orientation and then kiln dried until it has reached optimum moisture levels.
	Truss Rod Gibson’s traditional truss rod, found in most all of our guitars, is highly responsive to the individual adjustments you’ll want to make to personalize and optimize string action and sustain.
	Grade A-grade
	Profile This Les Paul is fitted with Gibson’s classic ’50s neck profile, which is a thicker, rounder profile that’s been modeled after the neck shapes of the iconic 1958 and 1959 Les Paul Standards.
	Joint Angle 5.0°
	Headstock Angle The Les Paul Piezo headstock is carefully angled at a tried-and-true 17 degrees, which increases pressure on the strings and helps them stay in the nut slots. An increase in string pressure also means there is no loss of string vibration between the nut and the tuners, which equals better sustain.
	Headstock Logo The Gibson logo — one of the most globally recognized logos of all time — is inlaid in mother of pearl into the headstock of the Les Paul Piezo.
	Tonal Characteristics The angled, classical-style peg head offers enhanced sustain, while the maple neck contributes to outstanding clarity and articulation from every note.
	Average Weight The average weight of the neck on a Les Paul Piezo is 1.24 lbs.

Neck Fit

	Joint Gibson uses what is known as the Mortise & Tenon joint to bind neck to body so that the two pieces form one solid unit. This time-tested joint style has been used in all the great woodworking arts — from shipbuilding to cabinetry — and has been proven to yield a stronger neck and body than if the instrument was made from a single piece of wood.
	Adhesive The adhesive used to join neck and body on the Les Paul Piezo is Franklin Titebond 50, one of the strongest glues on the market today.
	Tolerance When fitting the neck and body together, we take advantage of our precise measuring equipment so that all angles, pitches and alignments maintain a tolerance within .005 of an inch. Not only does this help to keep your guitar in tune but it also maintains proper string alignment relative to the fingerboard.
	Joint Angle Tolerance 0.0° (+/- 15 seconds)

Fingerboard

	Species The Les Paul Piezo is equipped with a Grade-A rosewood fingerboard, loved by guitarists the world over for its comfortable playability and mellow tone.
	Radius The 12-inch radius of the Les Paul Piezo fingerboard provides smooth note bending capabilities and eliminates “dead” or “choked out” notes, common occurrences on fingerboards with lesser radiuses.
	Frets The Les Paul Piezo sports 22 frets.
	Inlays The figured acrylic trapezoid inlays that decorate the fingerboard of this Les Paul are made of white ABS plastic, giving these classic inlays the mother-of-pearl look you lust for. The guitar gets extra aesthetic oomph with its antique binding along the fingerboard.
	Average Weight The average weight of a rosewood fingerboard is approximately .24 lbs.
	Tonal Characteristics Rosewood is a very popular fingerboard material, known worldwide for its warm tone.

Nut

	Material The nut on the Les Paul Piezo is made from Corian, which is mainly composed of acrylic polymer. It’s a very durable material, delivers enhanced sustain, and holds the tolerances of the precision cuts made by Gibson’s PLEK machine. It is installed into the top surface of the neck, butting up to the end of the fingerboard to ensure proper tone and sustain transfer.
	Width The width of the nut on the Les Paul Piezo is approximately 1.695”.

Pickups

	Model The Les Paul Piezo is equipped with two of the rock world’s best-loved active pickups, alongside a Gold L.R. Baggs piezo bridge. With EMG 85's in the neck and bridge position, both with polished stainless steel covers, this pickup package will help you to create the best leads of your life, with outstanding versatility thanks to the piezo electronics.
	Resonant Frequency The two EMG 85's pack 2.4KHz of resonant frequency.
	Output Voltage: String/Strum The two EMG 85's emits 2.1V (string) or 4.5V (strum).
	Magnet Position From Nut The Alnico V magnet in the EMG 85 (neck position) is positioned 19.06” from the nut, while the Alnico V in the bridge EMG 85 (bridge position) is positioned 23.19” from the nut.
	Tonal Characteristics The EMG 85 has more measurable output than a traditional passive humbucker, but its frequency response and string interface are different, yielding a warmer and more natural tone and delivering balanced and uniform string response. The L.R. Baggs piezo bridge provides a lively, acoustic-like tone that can be used alone to allow the Les Paul Piezo to impressively mimic an acoustic guitar, or blended with the EMG active pickups to create an endless array of original sounds.

Electronics

	Volume Control The Les Paul Piezo features two Gold Top Hat volume controls with mirrored cover caps. The pots (short for potentiometer) have an ohm reading of 300k, which allows for a smooth variation from soft to loud. (See “Output Jacks and Electronics Functions” below for further details.)
	Tone Control The Les Paul Piezo features two Gold Top Hat tone control knobs with mirrored cover caps. The pots have an ohm reading of 500k, which is the highest value for a panel pot, and provides a very smooth transition between highs and lows. (See “Output Jacks and Electronics Functions” below for further details.)
	Toggle Switch The Les Paul Piezo features one three-way toggle switch made of stainless steel and adorned with a crème cap and a crème washer imprinted with gold lettering. This switch acts as the instrument’s pickup selector for the two EMG active humbucking pickups only. In the down position, only the bridge pickup is active. In the middle position, both pickups are active. In the up position, only the neck pickup is active.
	Output Jack and Electronics Functions The Les Paul Piezo features dual output jacks, which route the output options from this versatile guitar. When plugged into the jack labeled “M” only the magnetic EMG pickups are functional, and they are routed through the single Volume and Tone knobs on the Treble side of the controls. The jack labeled “A” yields a blend of both magnetic EMG and piezo L.R. Baggs pickups, with the volume and tone of the former governed by the Treble controls and those of the latter governed by the Rhythm controls, which can be used to create the desirable mix of acoustic and electric tones. When both output jacks are used, a separate piezo signal emanates from the “A” jack and a separate magnetic pickup signal from the “M” jack; these can be routed to one acoustic amp and one traditional electric guitar amp, and amp and a PA channel, two channels of one amp — the sky’s the limit.

Hardware

	Tuning Keys The headstock of the Les Paul Piezo is equipped with vintage-style, gold-plated tuning keys. With a gear ratio of 14:1, these tuners deliver precision tuning in a durable housing that provides maximum protection for the gear and string post. All moving parts are cut for exact meshing, eliminating the possibility of slippage, with a special lubricant inside the gear box for smooth and accurate tuning stability.
	Bridge The Les Paul Piezo gets insanely cool at this point. Fitted with a Gold L.R. Baggs piezo bridge that mimics Gibson’s original Tune-O-Matic bridge, this bridge can do everything but sing and dance. Each saddle contains a miniature high-output pickup so that you can create a great acoustic tone.
	Tailpiece Every Les Paul Piezo includes a separate “stopbar” tailpiece, which is essentially a modified version of the earlier wraparound bridge that’s designed to further enhance the connection between the strings and the body. The stopbar tailpiece on this Les Paul is made from Zamak then plated with Gold, and each one weighs approximately .24lbs.
	Strap Buttons The Les Paul’s gold strap buttons are the same style and design that Gibson has used since the early 1950s.

Plastics

	Truss Rod Cover As with most Gibson guitars, the truss rod cover on the Les Paul Piezo is made from black vinyl plastic, and is shaped like an antique bell.
	Control Knobs The control knobs on the Les Paul Piezo are Gibson’s Gold Top Hat knobs, found on many vintage and modern Gibson guitars.
	Control Plates(s) The control plate on the back of the Les Paul Piezo is black and made from vinyl plastic. It has a thickness of .090”.
	Pickup Trim Rings The control plates on the back of the Les Paul Piezo are made of black plastic.
	Pickguard This gold guitar is offset by a cream-colored plastic pickguard in the same classic shape traditionally featured on Les Pauls.

Strings

Guage
The Les Paul Piezo is fitted with genuine Gibson strings, sizes .010 - .046.

Accessories

	Hardshell Case Your Les Paul Piezo comes protected in one of Gibson’s durable hardshell cases with the Gibson logo silk-screened across the front in white lettering.
	Certificate of Authenticity The Les Paul Piezo comes with a 2009 Limited Run series Certificate of Authenticity.

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