Gibson Les Paul 70s Deluxe
27
SEPTEMBER 2021 GUITARIST
GIBSON LES PAUL 70s DELUXE
GIBSON LES PAUL
70s DELUXE
PRICE: £2,199 (inc case)
ORIGIN: USA
TYPE: Single-cutaway,
solidbody electric
BODY: 1-piece mahogany
(no weight relief) with carved
plain maple top
NECK: 1-piece mahogany, rounded
‘C’ profile, glued-in
SCALE LENGTH: 624mm (24.6”)
NUT/WIDTH: Graph
Tech/43.53mm
FINGERBOARD: Single-bound
Indian rosewood, acrylic trapezoid
inlays, 305mm (12”) radius
FRETS: 22, medium
HARDWARE: Tune-o-matic bridge,
aluminium stud tailpiece, vintage-
style ‘Gibson Deluxe’ keystone
tuners – chrome plated
STRING SPACING, BRIDGE: 50mm
ELECTRICS: 2x Gibson Mini
Humbucker w/chrome covers,
3-way toggle pickup selector
switch, individual volume and tone
controls (hand-wired with Orange
Drop capacitors)
WEIGHT (KG/LB): 4.44/9.77
OPTIONS: No
RANGE OPTIONS: The Les Paul
Standard ’50s, ’50s P-90 and ’60s
all cost the same (£2,199)
LEFT-HANDERS: Not currently
listed for this model, but the ’50s
and ’60s Standard are available
left-handed
FINISHES: 70s Cherry Sunburst
(as reviewed), Gold Top – gloss
nitrocellulose
Gibson
www.gibson.com
8
Broadcaster-style ‘Tele’ reference. If you
like your Les Pauls on the low-output side,
which can certainly be surprisingly bright
and clear at the bridge, that’s where this
Deluxe is aimed. It has more clarity than any
other single-cuts we had to hand, and a little
tone roll-off on the bridge pickup just tames
the beast a little.
There might be less power, but we still
have a good snarl at the bridge as we begin
to add in some gain. Again, that lack of lower
midrange thickness works in its favour at
the neck, resulting in a clarity where our
Burstbucker 1 now almost sounds too thick.
We simply didn’t have the range and
quality of outboard gear back in the 70s
that we have today. Pickup outputs can be
easily increased with simple boosts so the
Deluxe’s mini humbuckers become simply a
different ‘colour’, and the clear humbucking
voice is hugely valid, particularly for the
recording musician. We don’t all want to
wail away like Mr Moore – and, actually,
the Deluxe not only has a little more funk
to its voicing, it begins to blur the line
between those perhaps hackneyed Gibson
and Fender contrasts, not least with both
pickups engaged.
Yet experience suggests that on a big ol’
chunk of Les Paul we should have an equally
big voice – and that’s exactly what we don’t
get. It’s like putting a pair of humbuckers
on a Strat: for some players, that mismatch
can really reap rewards; for others, it’s just
wrong. If you like the feel of a Les Paul but
don’t enjoy its sometimes soupy thickness,
try one of these.
Verdict
While this is far from a reissue of a Les Paul
that ran for a 15-year period – and we’re
certainly not suggesting Gibson returns to
those ‘pancake’ bodies, maple necks and
volutes – it does give us that third pickup
style after the P-90 and full-size humbucker.
That’s the appeal. And just like those other
pickups, the mini-humbucker has its own
style. It’s leaner sounding than a PAF-style
but smoother, less raw than a P-90 and
without the hum. It’s definitely a valid
voice, not least at the neck, and although
it might be perceived as somehow less
‘rock’ (although Who and Lizzy fans might
disagree!), don’t dismiss these minis in
any way, especially if you like the Les Paul
platform but just want a cleaner voice. It’s a
different flavour, pure and simple.
PROS Tidy build and nish;
big neck; good playability;
evocative, valid sounds from
the mini-humbuckers
CONS It’s the heaviest of Gibson’s
new Les Pauls that we’ve played;
the reverse-tilt of the neck pickup
looks wrong
6. Both these new mini
humbuckers – which
have one coil with
adjustable polepieces,
the other coil with a bar
polepiece – use Alnico
II magnets and have a
relatively low output
5. Like the chrome-plated
hardware, these gold
reflector knobs evoke
the 70s, and unlike
Gibson’s Modern
Collection there are
no wiring tricks (or
PCBs) here
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5
VIDEO DEMO http://bit.ly/guitaristextra
It’s leaner sounding than
a PAF-style but smoother,
less raw than a P-90
and without the hum
GIT476.rev_gibson.indd 27GIT476.rev_gibson.indd 27 05/08/2021 07:3905/08/2021 07:39