Gibson.com: Gibson Les Paul Studio Mahogany Exclusive

Les Paul Studio Mahogany Exclusive

Ever since its introduction in 1983, the Les Paul Studio model has been enormously popular with players seeking the power and versatility of the original Les Paul Standard in a ready-for-action package, with a price to match. The instruments' reduced ornamentation—lacking body or fingerboard binding, and using plainer tops—has helped to put them in the hands of many more players, while their adherence to the Les Paul's hardware, pickup and construction traditions retained all the thick, meaty tone and unsurpassed playability for which the Standard has been known for nearly 60 years. The Gibson Les Paul Studio Mahogany Exclusive combines these assets in a new instrument with a carved mahogany top for a subtle tonal shift when compared to the traditional maple top, and two exclusive finishes, each paired with a baked maple fingerboard. Combine all this with a pair of Gibson's most popular humbucking pickups ever, and a classic hardware complement, and you have a no-nonsense classic for rock, blues, fusion, or any musical style you care to apply it to.

Body

	Species The body of each Les Paul Studio Mahogany Exclusive is crafted from chambered mahogany, joined to a solid carved mahogany top with ultra-strong Franklin Titebond 50 glue. This simple but effective tone wood has yielded some of the most classic tones in the history of rock.
	Design The Les Paul Studio Mahogany Exclusive follows the classic lines of the Les Paul Standard, with a gently arched top and a single cutaway on the treble side of the neck/body joint for improved upper-fret access. The body's back is routed with a number of chambers which serve to both reduce overall weight, and to enhance the guitar's resonance.
	Average Weight The average weight of a Les Paul Studio Mahogany Exclusive body is 4.7 lbs, which is in the normal range for a Gibson guitar.
	Tonal Characteristics Mahogany is a medium-dense wood with excellent resonance and superior sustain, and it offers a rich, round, warm tone, but with plenty of high-end sheen and good midrange presence. The body's chambering also enhances its mellow acoustic resonance, and adds further air to the midrange content. All mahogany bodies have been used on high-end Les Pauls in the past, such as the original Les Paul Custom "Black Beauty", and it is the standard wood of SGs and Les Paul Specials and Juniors.

Finish

	Color The Les Paul Studio Mahogany Exclusive is finished in either Worn Satin White or Worn Satin Ebony.
	Surface Texture A grain-textured satin finish with 30-sheen lacquer gives the Les Paul Studio Mahogany Exclusive a pre-worn look that enhances its no-nonsense style, and offers a smooth, comfortable playing feel.
	Process The Les Paul Studio Mahogany Exclusive is hand-finished in nitrocellulose in a process that is carefully monitored to ensure minimum build-up, in an effort to produce a finish that breathes with the guitar and enhances natural resonance. Unlike many 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.

Neck and Headstock

	Species The neck of the Les Paul Studio Mahogany Exclusive is constructed from solid mahogany, cut using the superior "quarter sawn" orientation for improved strength and resonance, and glued to the body at a 5-degree angle (pitch). Mahogany is the most traditional wood for Gibson electric guitar necks, and offers an excellent sonic and visual partner to the solid mahogany body.
	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.
	Profile The neck on the Les Paul Studio Mahogany Exclusive is carved to Gibson's comfortable, rounded '50s profile, which offers a smooth playing feel in the hand. This neck shape has been a favorite with many players since its arrival on the Les Paul in the early '50s.
	Joint Angle 5.0° (+/- 15 seconds)
	Headstock Angle The Les Paul Studio Mahogany Exclusive headstock is carefully angled at Gibson's traditional 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.
	Logo The Gibson logo — one of the most globally recognized logos of all time — is silkscreened in gold across the top of the headstock face of the Les Paul Studio Mahogany Exclusive, with "LP Model" silkscreened along the center of the headstock.
	Tonal Characteristics The angled, classical-style peg head and mahogany neck work together to provide exceptional tonal richness and resonance from the neck, with a good string definition and sustain.
	Average Weight The average weight of the neck is .98 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 technique has been used for millennia in all the great woodworking arts — from shipbuilding to cabinetry — to create one solid wood unit from two separate sections, 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 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 Studio Mahogany Exclusive carries a baked maple fingerboard. Baked maple's tonal characteristics include good sustain with plenty of bite.
	Radius The 12-inch radius of the Les Paul Studio Mahogany Exclusive fingerboard provides smooth note bending capabilities and eliminates "dead" or "choked out" notes, common occurrences on fingerboards with lesser radiuses.
	Frets The Les Paul Studio Mahogany Exclusive sports 22 jumbo frets, all immaculately dressed and polished.
	Inlays The Les Paul Studio Mahogany Exclusive fingerboard carries acrylic trapezoid position-marker inlays, echoing the traditional look of the original Les Paul Standard.
	Tonal Characteristics Baked maple's tonal characteristics include good sustain with plenty of bite. It really shouts with bright highs and a strong upper midrange.

Nut

Material
The nut on the Les Paul Studio Mahogany Exclusive is made from Corian, which is mainly composed of acrylic polymer. This popular synthetic alternative to bone offers a very durable material, delivers enhanced sustain, and holds the tolerances of the precision cuts made in the slotting process. 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, and its nut slots are cut with Gibson's PLEK system to ensure precise fit, break angle, and string spacing.

Width
The width of the nut on the Les Paul Studio Mahogany Exclusive is approximately 1.695", the traditional nut width of Gibson electric guitars.

Pickups

	Model The Les Paul Studio Mahogany Exclusive is equipped with a pair of Gibson's Modern Classics humbucking pickups, a 490R in the rhythm (neck) position and a 498T "Hot Alnico" in the lead (bridge) position. This calibrated pairing offers an excellent output balance between pickups, with tremendous tonal versatility between the individual and combined switch settings.
	Magnet Material Gibson's 490R uses an Alnico II bar magnet for a smooth, warm tone, while the 498T uses an Alnico V bar magnet for a sharper, punchier response.
	Tonal Characteristics Gibson's Modern Classics are among the most popular humbucking pickups in modern guitar making, and offer tone and performance suitable for a wide range of musical styles. Both the bridge and neck pickup yield plenty of richness and clarity, and can dial in great clean tones when required, but will also push amps and effects a little harder when desired. The 490R in the neck position is warm, rich, and round sounding, while the 498T in the bridge position is hotter and meatier, with excellent midrange punch, a sizzling lead tone through a high-gain amp or pedal, and excellent sustain.

Electronics

	Volume Controls The Les Paul Studio Mahogany Exclusive uses an individual volume control for each pickup, which consists of a quality 300k linear potentiometer for a smooth, natural volume roll-off.
	Tone Controls The Les Paul Studio Mahogany Exclusive features individual tone controls for each pickup. The pots have ohm readings of 500k, are non-linear, and each carries a .0223mF tone capacitor which allows a smooth transition from bright to warm.
	Toggle Switch The Les Paul Studio Mahogany Exclusive features one three-way toggle switch made of stainless steel with black plastic tip, which acts as the instrument's pickup selector. 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 The guitar features a 1/4" output jack made by Switchcraft. Its super heavy duty construction holds your guitar cable securely in place.

Hardware

	Tuning Keys The headstock of the Les Paul Studio Mahogany Exclusive is equipped with vintage-style tuners with pearloid tulip buttons. These tuners provide a classic look in line with the model's lineage, and smooth, robust performance.
	Bridge In 1954, Gibson revolutionized guitar hardware when it debuted the Tune-o-matic bridge, setting a standard for simplicity and functionality that has never been bettered. Included on the Les Paul Studio Mahogany Exclusive, the tune-o-matic provides a firm seating for the strings, allowing the player to adjust and fine-tune the intonation and string height in a matter of minutes. It also yields excellent coupling between strings and body, maximizing resonance, tone, and sustain. This bridge is made from Zamak then plated with chrome, and each one weighs approximately .118 lbs.
	Tailpiece Every Tune-o-matic bridge is combined with 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 Les Paul Studio Mahogany Exclusive's stopbar tailpiece is made from Zamak then plated with chrome, and each one weighs approximately .24 lbs.
	Strap Buttons The Les Paul Studio Mahogany Exclusive's aluminum strap buttons are the same style and design that Gibson has used since the early 1950s.

Plastics

	Pickguard The Les Paul Studio Mahogany Exclusive carries a single-ply black pickguard.
	Truss Rod Cover As with most Gibson guitars, the truss rod cover on the Les Paul Studio Mahogany Exclusive is made from black and white vinyl plastic, and is shaped like an antique bell. It is engraved with a script "Studio" logo.
	Control Knobs The control knobs on the Les Paul Studio Mahogany Exclusive are Gibson's black top-hat knobs, found on many vintage and modern Gibson guitars.