hopkinwfg Posted February 1, 2016 Posted February 1, 2016 hi guys... recently have never been playing much guitars... other than looking at forums over here and there... and my third time craving for owning a heritage guitar strucked me again.. but have never been a les paul guy... my first guitar was an ibanez rg470.. and now i have two superstats 24 frets... i wonder if getting a H150 would have me no worries playing it like what i do on my neck thru superstrats ? i thought i will get over on H150 but i come back once awhile to have a read and i always think its time to getta classic tone guitar ie les paul.. heritage is only left to go i guess as it has gained so much trust on the tone and build being a handbuilded guitar... what do i have to look out for in getting a true classic les paul tone ? weight of the guitar ? which brand of bridge ? body, neck and fretboard wood types? pickups ? please guide me thru to select the best sounding H150?
DetroitBlues Posted February 1, 2016 Posted February 1, 2016 There are many factors in finding the right "Les Paul" type of guitar for you. Weight, neck size, color, wood packages, pickups, wiring, hardware, etc... Many here would argue, the Heritage H150 is a close to vintage Les Paul as you can get. They are made using many of the same machines and tools as the vintage guitars and by luthiers trained by those who made the originals back in the 50's and 60's. If you want a flawless museum piece, then a custom shop Gibson might be what you are looking for. You might pay $5,000 on up for it. But the original Gibson's were not perfect. Mismatched windings in pickups, different magnets. Minor paint flaws. Very minor concerns. All of which contribute to each instruments uniqueness. If you don't mind the chance of some built-in character, buy a Heritage H150. Custom order the features you want, all for a fraction of the Gibson price.
Yooper Posted February 1, 2016 Posted February 1, 2016 "True Les Paul tone". There's a book, or ten, that could be written. As DB noted, every guitar is different, even the old classics. I would suggest sorting out a few of your favorite Les Paul players and their sound to focus in on what your Les Paul tone would be. For example, early Allman Brothers records feature the '57 Seth Lover humbuckers. Robben Ford's "Soul on Ten" live album is a great way to hear a '57 gold top. Early Clapton, Mick Taylor's Rolling Stones era, and Jimmy Page's guitar were '59s, among many more. Then there's the other side of the LP tone world, with P-90s. A smaller faction, perhaps, but just as iconic. Freddy King, Sean Costello, and Les Paul himself recorded with P-90s before he modified them beyond factory recognition. To complicate things further, there are solid mahogany Customs and Specials, as well as maple capped Les Pauls. All of this will eventually come down to the type of pickups, magnets, and windings to have for your Les Paul tone. Many of us have several Les Paul tones to choose from in our racks and cases. But you know what? They're all good. That's a great, and confounding, place to start. Good luck, and have fun with the quest.
Millennium Maestro Posted February 1, 2016 Posted February 1, 2016 I am gonna come at you from a different angle... I think you should physically play several Heritages to see what appeals to you. I also come from a shredders guitar background in the late 80s through mid 90s, the neck is the most important detail to me, I love the slim 60s profile. I actually really like mid 90s Heritage for their necks. There was a classic model designation that featured Seymour Duncans pickups either a set of Seths or a set of 59's... Almost everything else was identical between all the other models with subtle feature changes. Go and play some Heritages.... The one will find you!
tsp17 Posted February 1, 2016 Posted February 1, 2016 I agree with all of the above. Go play some once you have explored a bit and built a knowledge base. Once you've gone Heritage.... Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
hopkinwfg Posted February 1, 2016 Author Posted February 1, 2016 thanks guys i did played a heritage 150 in few years back... was introduced by the shop owner .. tried few chords and scale was pretty amazed by how natural the tone was and the build was cool too... it marked an impression but i convinced that i am never a les paul guy.... until now the 15 minutes play on that H150 i could still remember that very clear cleans, sweet natural overdriven tones ... it was not the most beautiful flame top that it got but tone is phenomenal... i dont know if the H150 will sound sweeter than the H157? judging that H157 has an ebony fretboard.. i like ebony fretboard but am scared that i missing out on the tone in a les paul with the rosewood fingerboard..
HANGAR18 Posted February 2, 2016 Posted February 2, 2016 The most popular Les Paul guitars on the planet are the 1959 models, so why don't you start off with a standard workhorse of a guitar like a Heritage H150 with a Mahogany neck & body, with a Maple top and Rosewood fingerboard? There is body binding on the front only so that back will feel slightly more comfortable as it rests against you and because of the 2" wide edge of the body, you can park the guitar just above your knees and play in a formal seated classical position and the guitar won't move while you play. Also, having a shorter scale length than your Strats, you will enjoy a more comfortable squishy feel to the strings which will make it more comfortable when bending notes and the shorter frets will clue you in as to where the nickname "fretless wonder" came from. You can always go back and play your Strats from time to time but on the weekends when you just want to go for a real joy ride, you can bring out your H150 and experience the magic.
hopkinwfg Posted February 2, 2016 Author Posted February 2, 2016 I am gonna come at you from a different angle... I think you should physically play several Heritages to see what appeals to you. I also come from a shredders guitar background in the late 80s through mid 90s, the neck is the most important detail to me, I love the slim 60s profile. I actually really like mid 90s Heritage for their necks. There was a classic model designation that featured Seymour Duncans pickups either a set of Seths or a set of 59's... Almost everything else was identical between all the other models with subtle feature changes. Go and play some Heritages.... The one will find you! thanks for opening up my mind on getting a les paul... i rather find the necks on those RG ibanez too slim... i too like kinda thicker necksie jackson soloist... but other than those C shaped necks am trying to adapt to D shapes necks as well like what i tried a caparison and its cool.... i just wonder the new 2015 or 2016 H150 build will have a C or D type neck ? and do we expect to be thick neck ?
Craigs12 Posted February 12, 2016 Posted February 12, 2016 I noticed the topic was about buying a guitar from Wolfes guitars. So here is my 2 cents worth. After a lot of research, and purchasing of more than a few used H150's over the past few years looking for "my guitar" I contacted a few of the Heritage dealers to get information, Wolfes guitars. I spoke with Graham a few times. I explained what I wanted in a guitar. After a few emails, and conversations back and forth I ordered one they had in stock. It has a nice flamed top, 59ish profile neck, and "Whole Lotta Humbucker" Duncan pickups. I truly could not be happier with my experience on this purchase. And the guitar is simply fantastic. If I were to have a guitar custom built, it would have had pretty much what this guitar has. I gambled on the pickups because I figure if I didn't like them, I could change them later. Yea, that will never happen, their great sounding. Almost like Antiquities meet 59's. Anyway, great service, and a super great guitar.
tsp17 Posted February 12, 2016 Posted February 12, 2016 i dont know if the H150 will sound sweeter than the H157? judging that H157 has an ebony fretboard.. i like ebony fretboard but am scared that i missing out on the tone in a les paul with the rosewood fingerboard.. I've had 3 different h150s (probably a lot fewer than many folks on this forum). My current H150 has an ebony fretboard and i couldn't be happier with the tone. Classic rock tones all day. Sweet as can be.
hopkinwfg Posted February 14, 2016 Author Posted February 14, 2016 please forgive me to have kicking out so many questions from past till now.... i am just wondering how about the H157 model ? other than the larger bindings and the ebony fretboard... is the build supposed to be higher quality than the H150? or is the H157 being build by "senior builder"?? is Heritage offering real ebony wood ? rather than the richlite thingy which as a intermediate guitar player which finds it a "fake" over the price paid.
Spectrum13 Posted February 14, 2016 Posted February 14, 2016 please forgive me to have kicking out so many questions from past till now.... i am just wondering how about the H157 model ? other than the larger bindings and the ebony fretboard... is the build supposed to be higher quality than the H150? or is the H157 being build by "senior builder"?? is Heritage offering real ebony wood ? rather than the richlite thingy which as a intermediate guitar player which finds it a "fake" over the price paid. The 157 is a fancier 150 with multiple bindings front, back and headstock. They also have headstock inlays, large block ebony fingerboards (with real mother of pearl) and gold hardware. The same craftsman build all models. They are all senior builders.
Gitfiddler Posted February 14, 2016 Posted February 14, 2016 As someone new to Heritage guitars, you might want to check out their website. It's not the greatest, but might answer some of your questions. http://www.heritageguitar.com/models/solidbody.html Good hunting!
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