Gibson release “chambered” Les Paul
From the Gibson custom shop comes this interesting piece. The Gibson Custom Shop 1968 Les Paul Custom Chambered (say that 5 times fast) is the first Les Paul I can recall that features a chambered body. Not only does this make the guitar lighter (my back says thank you), but it is supposed to increase the resonance of the wood, thus providing better tone and sustain.
The finish you see here is an aged Pelham Blue, and some days I like it, some days I don't. It looks like it should belong on the Robot guitar. Apart from that it's a standard '68 custom.
* Carved maple top
* Chambered mahogany body
* Multi-ply white/black binding on top & back
* Nickel hardware
* ABR-1 bridge, stopbar tailpiece
* 1-piece mahogany neck w/long neck tenon
* 22-fret bound ebony fingerboard
* Pearl block inlays
* Rounded neck profile
* 24-3/4" scale length, 1 11/16" nut width
* Kidney bean tuners
* 57 Classic humbucking pickups
* 2 volume, 2 tone, 3-way selector switch
* Includes Custom Shop case, certificate of authenticity, and custom care kit
I just don't know about the colour, but hopefully it's a sign that Gibson really are trying to do more practical alterations to their designs rather than going down the expensive add on gadget path like they did with the Robot.
