Les Paul vs Les Paul Special Comparison Which One is Better?

[@Kearflex1]

Love both... But really love the P90 tones

[@LMacNeill]

The thing I like about the Special is that classic 1950s clean sound. You just can't get that from any other guitar. And then you can ramp it way up and crunch the hell out of it if you want to, and get a smooth distorted sound. It'll wail with the best of 'em. But there's no other guitar that'll give you that superb clean sound like the Special.

[@yourguitarsage]

Indeed!💪

[@wjniemi]

I have one of each. The difference between PAF and P90s is the main difference between the guitars. They're both awesome instruments at what they do, and I'm saying that as a lifelong Tele player.

[@yourguitarsage]

👍

[@Allguitarinfo]

As a Tele player...lol..

[@TheDude4077]

I feel like P90's are more versatile than humbuckers. While a humbucker is the best for a distorted rock tone hands down, I feel like it sounds a little out of place doing anything other than rock. A P90 however can sound pretty good in almost any genre. I guess if you're playing rock where you're using heavy gain most of the time the standard is the way to go, anything else though I think the special is better

[@yourguitarsage]

Yeay man! I LOVE P90s. They got that stink all over them.

[@maraviyoso8473]

Hmmmm, you've never heard jazz, do you?

[@vince_vatican777]

I bought Gibson Special last week also TV Yellow. Unbelievable sound!

[@atomcraft]

I'm a big fan of Dean Deleo from Stone Temple Pilots and his use of his Les Paul Special. I really like the sweeping sound he gets out of it. Seems like a great workmans guitar.

[@istvandejesus]

Love them both. But there is someting about P90 that just makes them more desirable (IMO). The only con about them is probably that they are very noisy when using alot of gain but very little people play at those levels of volume. You get a clarity that you just cant get out of the humbucker.

[@butterscotchtele]

The special sounded more gritty, dynamic, and simply alive.

[@SuperEdge67]

……….and is half the price.

[@maraviyoso8473]

That's what P90s do

[@bovertbluesman8903]

p90s rock

[@mrblank-zh1xy]

I had that exact yellow special and it was the best guitar I ever had, without a doubt. Regret selling it every day.

[@robbierussell9536]

Gotta love P-90s

[@CtheG420]

I think the special sounded better, but I own a 1969 deluxe with mini new york humbuckers. I'ma fan of mini pickups.

[@pharmerdavid1432]

Epiphone "NY pickups" were/are single coil, while mini-humbuckers (invented by Seth Lover who also invented PAF design) are dual-coil humbucking. Epiphone is often credited for the mini-humbuckers, but they were designed by Seth Lover after Gibson bought Epi, and Seth worked for Gibson, so really its another Gibson pickup, although it was only used on Epiphone guitars in the beginning. In the later 1960's Gibson started using mini-humbucking pickups on the Les Paul design, which was revived after having ended in 1960 (Les Paul name was used on SG for the first year 1961). In conclusion, your Les Paul Deluxe has mini-humbuckers, not "NY pickups". It's a common mistake, but they are totally different pickups. "NY pickups" weren't used after the mini-humbucking pickups were invented in late 1950's. Cheers!

[@matebary]

I liked Les Paul Standard more, there's that tone of classic rock. But...both are fantastic, if they were free I'd take the standard, but since it's real world...I'm not going to buy any of these :))

[@MEDiumInc]

As much as I wanna add a P90 to my collection. I agree. the Humbucker was the evolution of the single coil. The answer to the problem.

[@yourguitarsage]

Good thoughts!

[@ennioschiavi664]

idem

[@raycuizon8226]

I already have a Standard and Custom Shop LP. The only P90's LP I have was stolen. I need to get another one of these. Probably a 1960 Historic Reissue. The P90's more open, raw and gritty. The burstbuckers are tad refine and smooth.

[@AuntAlnico4]

Epiphone les Paul special p90 TVs yellow gloss finish with alnico pro P90's and cts wiring harness for $399 new and if you buy it this weekend you can get 15 % of at guitar center which is like $339.64 which is what I'm gonna do this weekend because these new epiphone are that good ! You soo should try one for that money you have nothing to lose as its also got graphtech nut and white button correct vintage tuners so with the cts wiring harness and alnico P90's and graphtech nut seems like a premium parts guitar and I know the ability and quality of my 2011cardinal red les Paul standard is freaking awesome that neck is perfect and so is my 2011 epiphone emperor swingster premium guitars for me but you have to at least try the les Paul special tv from the new 2020 inspired by Gibson epiphone guitars as they are no joke and even higher quality that my 2011'S with even better parts and electronics and alnico P90's!!!!

[@LarryRickenbacker]

Make mine a Special; P90s are my favorite P/U. If I want to spend thousands on a high-end Gibson, I prefer the ES-335.

[@MarkDaniels2787]

I just got an epiphone special and put bare knuckle pig90 in the bridge and its my favorite guitar of all time. Not better than standards but just riffier lol

[@yourguitarsage]

💪

[@cookiopussps5579]

specials, Jr's, p90s in general excell at vintage blues tones, I wish you'd shown a little more of that, it can do alot a standard couldn't even dream of doing in the right hands.

[@ferox965]

Gonna challenge you there. It worked for Luther Allison and Gary Moore.

[@pharmerdavid1432]

@@ferox965 But a good PAF sounds like a P-90, that's why the PAF is the best sounding humbucking design. Some people say a good PAF bridge pickups sounds like a telecaster, but it sounds more like a P-90 to me. I've also heard a good telecaster bridge pickup from the old days, early 1950's years, sounds like a good P-90...?

[@ferox965]

@@pharmerdavid1432 A p90 isn't a humbucker though.

[@G8GT364CI]

The Standard is more refined sounding, the Special is more raunchy.

[@Dawnseeker]

Good video! Hearing the ring clack on the standard killed me tho…. Lol

[@MrBHBjr]

Now i want to hear some AC/DC!!! OH, great job on the demo/comparison too :)

[@andylong7759]

I like the LP better. The special would be great for doubling the LP on a recording, and as an alternative for leads IMO.

[@maraviyoso8473]

Both are LP

[@twintriode]

Rather old video, but surprised when comparing the differences the bridges didn't come up. That certainly, with other things he mentions adds to the price difference.

[@ferox965]

The Special is the most underrated Les Paul ever...

[@yourguitarsage]

I believe you are correct sir!

[@ferox965]

@@yourguitarsage my standard is the best guitar I've ever had...but I had to sell a special that I loved in a fit of being broke...I regret it to this day

[@ferox965]

@@yourguitarsage Post script. I bought my Special back!

[@darwinsaye]

"they almost sound like a noisy humbucker". Yeah, this is one of the things that bugs me about Gibson. Back in the 50s, their pickups were lower powered and unpotted, and because of that, had a much clearer tone. Gibson will claim that they're making some model "just like it was in the 50s" but they only focus on the aesthetics, and they always get the pickups wrong because they refuse to make them unpotted and with the original lower output like they used to. Modern humbuckers are just a horrible muddy mess and modern P90s don't have the clarity and chime they used to either.

[@johnballs0540]

Should I replace the factory hum buckers in my 2019 standard?

[@darwinsaye]

@@johnballs0540 After further research, I've learned that Gibson actually has done the work to try to make some of their newer pickups more like they were in the 50s. Apparently "Burstbuckers" and "57 Classics" are supposed to be pretty good attempts. I don't know what pickups are in your 2019, so I wouldn't advise you either way, because it's really a matter of personal taste. If you find them muddy and it's enough to affect your enjoyment of playing, you could look into it.

[@darwinsaye]

Apparently, your 2019 Standard came with Burstbucker Pro pickups. Here's some info from the site: "The Burstbucker 1 is a slightly under-wound model, with medium output. It maintains the classic ‘creaminess’ and edge that typifies a PAF, but with an output that means it is equally adept as a neck or bridge pickup. The Burstbucker 2 is slightly ‘hotter’, with more turns of wire. According to Gibson, its output is closer to that of a ’57 Classic. The Burstbucker 3 has more windings still, and its over-wound design makes it the highest output Burstbucker, but again, with classic PAF tone. The Burstbucker Pro is a more modern incarnation of the model, which swaps the Alnico II magnet for an Alnico V magnet. Unlike the other Burstbuckers, which are sold individually, the Pro models are sold in calibrated pairs. Tonally, they offer ‘enhanced’ PAF tone that’s a bit brighter with more ‘bite’."

[@piemonte2006]

I swapped my stock pickups for Seth Lovers

[@pharmerdavid1432]

Exactly! You can't go by what you read and hype, you have to trust your ears. I had "57 classics" in a Gibson ES-135, and Dave Stephens (SDpickups), who was local back then, made me a set of humbucking pickups ~15 years ago that were-are much better sounding than the Gibson's were, easily discerned even by my tin ears. I took them out of my ES-135 before selling it, replacing the original '57 classics, and put Stephen's humbucking set in a 1999 LP Special, which had Gibson 490 set, and sounded much better than those too. That's where they are now, and will likely stay. There are many people making pickups much better sounding than Gibson makes for their guitars, including P-90 pickups, which come in all kinds of flavors, just like other kinds of pickups. Hi-wind and lower wind are the two most obvious options, along with the type of AlNiCo used, the winding pattern, etc. Pickup winders are a strange breed. Dave Stephens is an eccentric genius, believes he is the best pickup maker in the world, and Dave Hunter - who writes all those books about guitars and amps and guitar electronics - sings Stephens praises, especially his quest for the most authentic PAF. Dave Stephens told me his favorite pickup sound was the P-90, back when I knew him, but his quest for the best PAF has consumed his life since then. His nickname is "Possum", because he stays up late at night winding pickups, like Possums foraging at night while we sleep. If you want to buy a pickup from him, resign yourself to paying for it first (and they are expensive), then waiting months for it to arrive. If he gets an order from a celebrity rock star, that order will be filled before yours is, because those people can pay BIG money for Dave's pickups. I've seen his PAF sets sell for huge amounts on Ebay etc., so they must sound good to some people. But I digress, the point is, YES you should change your pickups, but do some research before buying something, and prepare to wait, because most of the best pickup makers have long wait times. Lollar has a big crew, so he usually fills orders pretty quickly, often with off-the-shelf pickups, while most other custom builders make your pickups after you order and pay for them, with waiting times usually weeks, sometimes months for the really hot pickup makers, like "Ellis", especially if they are a one-man shop, but those guys often make the best pickups. And have you see Oswald guitars in the Netherlands? For the money, his guitars are a steal, as good as Nacho Banos I would say, and he charges 2-3 times as much. Nick Oswald builds you the guitar exactly like you want it, and makes everything himself, unlike people like Nash, who buy bodies and necks and hardware and pickups, then put it all together with his "magic". I have Nash's 11th guitar he sold retail, copy of an early 1960's Mary Kaye, with an ash body, see-through blond finish, rosewood neck, and built just like Fender made them back in the day. Nothing wrong with the way Nash builds them, and many other people are doing it now too, but there is something special about the luthiers like Nick Oswald, or Jeff Senn, who make almost everything themselves, certainly the necks and bodies. Now I REALLY digressed....cheers!

[@MrMongo321]

Good stuff! I just finished reading "Guitar Mastery Simplified" and it was extremely thorough and helpful!

[@eeeejcicjn]

Both nice. But i wanna know what happens when Standard’s pickup channged with p90’s. Same sound with specials or different because of the body?

[@jdavis417]

The Special seemed to have better "single note" clarity, but I suspect that a fresh set of strings on the Standard would close this gap.

[@yourguitarsage]

You make a great point!

[@DANTHETUBEMAN]

Amazing how similar those two guitars sound. I hear more top end on the humbuckers.

[@ArielsSmartyPants]

Both sound great to me. I need a p-90 git soon :)

[@clintwhite3021]

Sometimes i like to play clean ;) so its the Special for me. In every way! Except id have it worn white and a wrap around bridge coz F perfect intonation haha

[@Lowtech14]

Close enough for rock ‘n roll

[@neilr11]

Love the Gibson Les Paul Special

[@yourguitarsage]

💪🙏😊

[@ghfdt368]

Thanks for this video Erich! I hope you do more video's like these comparing guitars and amps etc. It would be awesome if you compared a mexican strat and tele standard to a USA standard strat and tele,, an epiphone lp standard to a Gibson lp standard :).

[@69zenos1]

You can't compare. The standard has a richer fuller tone. The special is more dirty. They are both good. But one thing is for sure. The humbuckers won't buzz.

[@trapland7102]

Great comparison. I like both. Is your Standard a True Historic? It's lovely!

[@MarshallAmpMan]

Great demo. I prefer the P90 tone which actually surprised me. I wants one Bagginsiss!

[@jblum3716]

Gibson is building maple TOPS since the 1920s, not on guitars but on their famous mandolins. The maple Arch top on the Les Paul was based on that idea , and IT IS the big (Sound) difference between the Les Paul and Les Paul Special.

[@charlesbolton8471]

Mandolins typically have spruce tops including the famed Gibson F-5 models created by Lloyd Loar.

[@zachariahwade8482]

I’ve got a 06 Faded LP Special with Pearly Gates and a 02 LP Standard with BB Pros. They’re the best Gibsons I’ve owned. The Special is lighter, has better cleans, and is a tad more vintage sounding. The Standard is chunkier but also has an articulate high end zing due to the maple cap.

[@maraviyoso8473]

The maple cap doesn't really add to the tone.

[@zachariahwade8482]

@@maraviyoso8473 Of course it does

[@carloszamora9551]

Special For Me.

[@Jamalama555]

The Les Paul hum buckers have an amazing underrated clean tone thats fantastic for blues with just a lil break up. The p90s arent hum buckers and their not quite tele singer coils either. Their own thing really, which I only seem to enjoy on the Casino, which may be due to it being a fully hallow body guitar it pairs well with p90s.

[@N2F1]

What is your "standard" exactly? That does not look like any standard that I have seen. It is BEAUTIFUL mann! It's not an R8 or is it old? That finish and flame is outrageous. Congrats on that awesome looking instrument.

[@yourguitarsage]

Thanks my friend! It's an R8 and the guy that had it before me did a GREAT subtle relic job on it. Also added $1000, Tim White pick-ups too! 🙌

[@markdebinski7375]

Special half price ,Standard and more ,slim neck.The best is mix=Les Paul De Luxe before 1980.:)

[@yourguitarsage]

👍

[@tshouse2782]

Both are Gibson, therefore can't go wrong with either

[@TheTofer123]

Anybody who plays the darkness right off the rip you know it’s gonna be good

[@jixxxxer17]

not even close the Les Paul Special is a howling beast, the Standard is more of a Gentleman tho ! Nice video

[@yourguitarsage]

Thanks!

[@TheMichaelseymour]

Ps: will you be reprising your littlefinger character in game of thrones ?

[@cnreeder1122]

For the cash, the special sounds mighty good!

[@maraviyoso8473]

Standard (humbuckers): mid scoop; Special (P90s): mid bump.

[@vrstovsek]

Standard wins for me, hands down

[@JohnBarrow1961]

Sounds to me like you missed his point. They're different and have different uses. Simple as that.

[@zachariahwade8482]

Yeah I liked the Std better too. I reckon the maple cap adds an articulation that I prefer in this video

[@mrhilma]

You need both. And a ton of others too.

[@billy_icaza]

Special!

[@tickedoffsheikh8587]

What year is the special ? I totally agree with you: there is no best guitar but rather a guitar that best suits you. Is there a video on the double special? Thanks.

[@dutch385]

90’s

[@nos4atu666]

Love my special

[@c.robertmiller6150]

The special sounds more open and with more spank , just livelier

[@osvaldoantuna8268]

the tone the special whith this p90 i like so much... and the lock good to, i dont now my opinion

[@mikedeubler1698]

Have two of each along with lots of fenders and a Gretch ! Will never buy anything but Japanese guitars again ! Soooo much better made and way cheaper!!!

[@TheMichaelseymour]

the special-cos ones just a les paul- but the other ones a les paul, but special

[@yourguitarsage]

haha!

[@averytheamazingone]

Can you replace the P-90s with humbuckers without doing extra routing?

[@EarlyARs]

If you're looking for a Special, you may not need to change them because some came from the factory with humbuckers. I recently bought a Special (SN indicates 2001 Nashville production) with humbuckers, the raised pickguard and rosewood(?) fretboard with mini-trapezoid inlays. Haven't had any reason yet to pull the pups so I can't say much about the cavities, but know that there are a number of variants among the LP Specials.

[@stillpist]

You just described everything that is not a special.

[@stillpist]

Some have come with humbuckers in more recent years, but most with the traditional p90's. The space allows for mini humbuckers, not full sized ones.

[@ZDALI14]

Thanks for liking my video on Instagram. Hope you can do a full black shuck lesson

[@yourguitarsage]

Black Shuck is a great song!

[@sn95_mustang_garage]

Killer tone in the beginning with heavy tunes, it's a thick sound which I like. Just bought a 2016 Les Paul Traditional in Honey Burst and it's a beast.

[@MrBHBjr]

Both guitars are good looking

[@yourguitarsage]

Yes they are!

[@fishypaw]

Both sound nice and you do a nice demo of them. If you'll forgive a minor criticism, and it's probably just my bias but, I like to see comparisons of guitars that are very similar and have similar, if not the same, pick ups. Comparing guitars with very different pick ups is a bit like comparing Edam to Parmesan, both are cheeses but with very distinct and different flavours. I know I'm being a bit picky, but for me this is more a comparison of pick ups than it is guitars. I still enjoyed the 'demo' though.

[@johnstaf]

Gibson stopped using Brazilian rosewood in the mid '60s. Great guitars!

[@yourguitarsage]

Not on the R series they didn’t. You can buy them on Reverb.

[@johnstaf]

@@yourguitarsage Fair enough, they did make the odd very high-end guitar with what they could get, but they were few and far between. Most R series guitars have Indian rosewood. Brazilian became rarer and rarer from the mid '60s. What year is your Special? I'd like to get one with the standard bridge and tailpiece like yours.

[@thelowmein9143]

Hi, I’m a new / bad player lol and I have a hopefully simple question. I have the special, and I cannot get it to do what yours does in this video tone wise. What I mean is mine will not dirty up. I have it plugged into a 57 champ (only one volume knob) directly with no pedals or anything, what can I do to get that sweet grungy tone?

[@yourguitarsage]

Get a tube amp and an OCD distortion pedal. 👍

[@darwinsaye]

Turn up your Champ all the way. You should be getting a really good amount of dirt with a Champ, especially pushing it with P90s.

[@IdoN0TneedTherapy]

Lately I've been thinking les pauls are meant to be bought second hand. Pre-dinged and everything.

[@yourguitarsage]

I love a guitar that has a history!

[@falseprophetsthorn8723]

The humbucker sounded better for the crunchy tones.

[@raybassman7536]

I have always thought that the single slab Mahoganies with dot necks and p-90's like the Jr's and specials were always the real Gibson badasses, more than the Full out Pauls. In fact authenticley a level above the fully dressed out Les Pauls. Who needs trapezoid markers and trim down the neck? The real balls of Gibson has been the ones I described at the top ,but this includes Firebirds too.

[@yourguitarsage]

🤘

[@carloszamora9551]

I like the Les Paul Special Jr better.

[@syncbox]

I prefer dots in the fretboard

[@bessonovalexander9534]

Special is better!

[@DrewDrums]

Awesome.

[@gunsofsteele]

My Special from 2002 does not have a pick guard. Its finish is tv yellow and plays amazing! No binding, no AAA top, no frills. Plug in, crank to 10 & Akka-Dakka baby! I really like wearing the finish out. Blood, sweat & tears my friends will relic any axe.

[@ernestschultz5065]

The P90s just have a little more umph

[@yourguitarsage]

👍Lots of character.

[@Joshua_Evans]

I have a standard, and I still lay in bed thinking about the special

[@coat.thik1]

Special P90 win

[@eduardoschmidt6361]

Menos de meio milímetro na altura do imã do captador pode influenciar no timbre, tem gente que troca de captador sem saber deste problema.

[@trentgardner8257]

All about the special. It’s much lighter too

[@yourguitarsage]

👍

[@FrankSpeer66]

P-90'S ALL THE WAY!!

[@kema9527]

name of the second song please

[@TVsGringoStarr]

Hells Bells by AC/DC

[@gibsonxpl85]

Special definitely has more barking, snarling mids. Standard has less mids, more open and full sounding, sweeter highs. Both are great, Special is a rawk machine, the Standard a bit more sophisticated

[@yourguitarsage]

🤘

[@zachariahwade8482]

Yeah that sums up my Special with Pearly Gates vs my Standard. I reckon it’s the maple cap influence that separates them

[@melaniehunt8594]

standard.

[@s.ri.1020]

For me p90´s

[@yourguitarsage]

💪

[@monkeyxx]

the pick is louder than the amp

[@gabrielm.4554]

monkey dangus nah, the mic just sucks

[@AuntAlnico4]

P90'S all the way !

[@mortalmor8856]

am have a les paul

[@blackiejames1843]

The Special hands down is the all purpose guitar. Les Paul Standards and Customs are boring and over played for way too many years. The Special just screams rock n' roll and has a cool vibe. Nothing expresses your playing like the basic Special. As for the P90's you can't beat the sound so what's a little noise when you are rockin' the house it is part of the sound. The Special is a great look and sound and if I see another flame top LP standard I will become ill and vomit.

[@madmusicianmagician]

Oooooh les paul yummy

[@unknown.24]

Taks for the video James Hetfield

[@manfx7]

Is this epiphone made in japan?

[@yeahh8402]

It's a gib

[@tonefingerz2021]

the metronome like thumbing isnt very musical dude. its cool but doesnt sound musical. sounds like a bad dream

[@lambert1702]

Special!

[@ylqfei86hu]

name of the third song please