EPIPHONE POWER PLAYERS LES PAUL

“THIS LITTLE LES PAUL DELIVERS A DYNAMIC
SOUND THAT SOME LARGER – AND MORE
EXPENSIVE – GUITARS WOULD BE JEALOUS OF”
N
ow we turn our attention to
the SG’s vainglorious big
brother, the Les Paul. The
Power Players Les Paul
shares the same specs and
aesthetic and is even available in the
same choice of colours – our review
example just so happened to be in
the sizzling Lava Red  nish.
Keeping the scale the same at
22.73”, the Les Paul is just as
comfortable as its pointier counterpart
and just as easy to play. In fact, it
might even be more comfortable.
The single-cut option seems to be
better balanced overall, especially
when seated. Now, that’s not all that
surprising, as this is a fairly common
observation when comparing the
Les Paul to the SG – we just didn’t
expect it to be quite so noticeable
on the mini version.
Of course, the neck sports the
same D pro le as before, but where
it gets more interesting is in the
sculpted heel. While both
guitars feature this design,
it’s way more useful on the
Les Paul iteration. By the very
nature of the single-cut
design, the fret access just
isn’t as good as the SG, and
while it doesn’t solve the issue
completely, the recessed heel
join does go a long way to
making playing up at the
dusty end more comfortable.
Tonally, there isn’t much in
it, between these guitars. And,
yes, you guessed it, the Les
Paul features the same 650R and
700T pickup set, as well as the
two volume, two tone layout
you’d expect from the LP. The
overall sound of the Power
Players Les Paul is rich,
warm and much bigger
than the body would have
you believe. We actually
found ourselves favouring
the tone of the neck pickup
on a clean Twin-style setting
with plenty of reverb.
For us, this little LP really
came into its own in this
scenario, delivering
a dynamic sound that
some larger – and more
expensive – guitars would
be jealous of.
AT A GLANCE
BODY & NECK: Material: Mahogany
NECK PROFILE: SlimTaper D
SCALE LENGTH: 577.34 mm / 22.73”
FINGERBOARD: Indian Laurel
FRETS: 22, Medium Jumbo Bridge,
Lightning Bar Compensated
Wrap Around
PICKUPS: Epiphone 650R/700T
Humbuckers
CONTROLS: 2 Volume, 2 Tone
FINISH: Lava Red (reviewed), Ice Blue,
Dark Matter Ebony
£249
EPIPHONE POWER PLAYERS LES PAUL
The tiny LP that’s perfect for your sweet child
DECEMBER 2022 TOTAL GUITAR
THE TG TEST
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