I sold my 1992 Gibson Les Paul, I have regretted ever since. A replacement Gibson is way too expensive nowadays.
My experience with Epiphone was not good. I tried a friend's Epiphone Les Paul Custom and didn't like the fretboard or the finish quality. The Tune-O-Matic bridge looked like it was installed using a DeWalt hand drill.
I looked at a Hagstrom Swede, but it just wasn't right.
Enter Paul Reed Smith.
PRS's SE series is made overseas, but the quality is excellent. I bought a red stained PRS SE 245 for well under $1000, and it is just as sexy as my old Gibson. There is no binding on the body, fretboard or headstock - it's quite plain, but then again so was my old Gibson Les Paul Studio Lite. The PRS fretboard has the legendary bird inlay, which is a wonderful feature for a guitar at this price. The sound of this guitar is very close to the Les Paul Studio Lite.The body is quite thick, more like a Les Paul Standard, than a Studio Lite, and it has a rather thick neck - although it is very comfortable to play and the fretboard is very nice. It has a 24.75" scale length, just like a Les Paul, contributing to the similarities as well.
Considering the passion Paul Reed Smith has for guitar building, and the way Gibson has seemed to be less and less of a special guitar company - more like Fender than, for example, Martin - I am quite happy to be a PRS owner. This inexpensive PRS is much closer to the one-of-a-kind creations PRS makes, than any sub-$1000 Epiphone is to a real Gibson Les Paul Custom.
Thanks Paul.
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