No more Tokai?s?

I tried a LS2 in matte finish. I loved it on the neck but prefer gloss on the top...

merlin17 said:

I tried a LS2 in matte finish. I loved it on the neck but prefer gloss on the top...

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I agree 100%.
It feels like silk on the neck, beautiful to play, but the matt finish on the top makes the grain/flame look very dull, lifeless, the gloss brings it too life.
I might try polishing the top a little which will liven up the grain but also give it a bit of an aged look.

Some satin tops look great:

I like matte finish plain tops. My next guitar will probably be a matte finish plain top, like this:

Photo by Marcusnieman.



****, this is not good, the matte finish is back on my mind. :-?

felixcatus said:

I like matte finish plain tops. My next guitar will probably be a matte finish plain top, like this:

Photo by Marcusnieman.

****, this is not good, the matte finish is back on my mind. :-?

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True, a satin finish on a plaintop can be awesome because it's not trying to show off a flame...this one looks very sweet.

Gibson did real good on this model (the Tribute 50's Les Paul) - I really like this guitar - fun to play and sounds great. I too really dig a satin finish - especially on a plaintop.

I really like the look of that plaintop, simple and elegant.

brokentoes said:

I really like the look of that plaintop, simple and elegant.

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Certainly not Gibsons intention to make a simple & elegant plaintop guitar, it was all about making the cheapest guitar possible...some of them have 5 piece bodies.
Not sure what the "50's Tribute" means, the guitar has no body binding, no neck binding, what's "50's" about it?

Diamond said:

brokentoes said:

I really like the look of that plaintop, simple and elegant.

Click to expand...

Certainly not Gibsons intention to make a simple & elegant plaintop guitar, it was all about making the cheapest guitar possible...some of them have 5 piece bodies.
Not sure what the "50's Tribute" means, the guitar has no body binding, no neck binding, what's "50's" about it?

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It's a tribute... not a reissue. Fat 50's neck, solid top, nitro, 50's P90's, orange drops, 17 degree neck angle, etc

They did do these as budget guitars and they knock the socks off of their standards.... make the Epi's look like crap too. I don't own many Gibsons but I couldn't recommend these more highly if you are interested in how they feel, play and sound.... if your just interested in cork sniffing, it's not for you - you should go for the overpriced historics. To me, the most important factor of any guitar is what comes through the amp at a gig.

marcusnieman said:

[...] To me, the most important factor of any guitar is what comes through the amp at a gig.

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+ a whole lot!

Do Tokai have matte finish plain top LS models? In the catalog vol.25, only the quilt and flame come in MVF.

Diamond said:

brokentoes said:

i wonder what will happen now that Gibson was raided and all of it's wood seized by the U.S. Gov't.

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They'll introduce a new model with a mahogany fretboard...Henry will call it the "Fish & Wildlife" series...or maybe the "Swat Team" model.

Of course it will be a limited edition collectors series, only 500,000 of them to be made. :lol:

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Also, the Gibson, "Tea-Party" Les Paul. Incredibly poor finishing and set-up will be advertised as a feature because:

* it's "all US made, including all parts and woods (lodgepole pine back and neck)"

* you shouldn't rely on the big boys to "subsidise" the finish and setting up, you must rely on your own two hands like the pioneers did.

It will also have a quote on the headstock from the Declaration of Independence, attributing it to the US constitution.

Even though I only have one Gibson guitar at present, I will always love Gibson - they created the LP (and a few other nice models as well).

Sure, I don't like some of the stuff that the company does these days, but you can blame that on various things that prevail in modern life, not just Henry or the company in general.

+1

marcusnieman said:

Diamond said:

brokentoes said:

I really like the look of that plaintop, simple and elegant.

Click to expand...

Certainly not Gibsons intention to make a simple & elegant plaintop guitar, it was all about making the cheapest guitar possible...some of them have 5 piece bodies.
Not sure what the "50's Tribute" means, the guitar has no body binding, no neck binding, what's "50's" about it?

Click to expand...

It's a tribute... not a reissue. Fat 50's neck, solid top, nitro, 50's P90's, orange drops, 17 degree neck angle, etc

They did do these as budget guitars and they knock the socks off of their standards.... make the Epi's look like crap too. I don't own many Gibsons but I couldn't recommend these more highly if you are interested in how they feel, play and sound.... if your just interested in cork sniffing, it's not for you - you should go for the overpriced historics. To me, the most important factor of any guitar is what comes through the amp at a gig.

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Bit unfair that, Marcus - almost reverse snobbery. You know I owned (and was bitterly disappointed in) a tribute, and sent it back; since then I've tried every single one I could get my hands on over here - always having in mind that "Marcus found a keeper, there must be one out there!".

Needless to say I'm still looking. They've ranged from average (and therefore overpriced, especially up against stuff like the PRS SE SCs for less money) to utterly awful. The P90s are fantastic, I agree, but I'd say that to me the most important factor of any guitar is how it plays at a gig. The sound is infinitely more tweakable.

YMMV of course.

I agree, you can get a very average guitar to sound good at a gig, but an average guitar in the hands of a highly skilled guitarist will feel sub par, it will annoy him.

On the other hand...a high quality guitar in the hands of a sub par player...like me...will not annoy him. His ability might but not the guitar.

sneakyjapan said:

On the other hand...a high quality guitar in the hands of a sub par player...like me...will not annoy him. His ability might but not the guitar.

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True, I'm the king of the sub par guitarists...I can make a Tokai LS160 sound like an Epiphone.

AlanN said:

marcusnieman said:

Diamond said:

brokentoes said:

I really like the look of that plaintop, simple and elegant.

Click to expand...

Certainly not Gibsons intention to make a simple & elegant plaintop guitar, it was all about making the cheapest guitar possible...some of them have 5 piece bodies.
Not sure what the "50's Tribute" means, the guitar has no body binding, no neck binding, what's "50's" about it?

Click to expand...

It's a tribute... not a reissue. Fat 50's neck, solid top, nitro, 50's P90's, orange drops, 17 degree neck angle, etc

They did do these as budget guitars and they knock the socks off of their standards.... make the Epi's look like crap too. I don't own many Gibsons but I couldn't recommend these more highly if you are interested in how they feel, play and sound.... if your just interested in cork sniffing, it's not for you - you should go for the overpriced historics. To me, the most important factor of any guitar is what comes through the amp at a gig.

Click to expand...

Bit unfair that, Marcus - almost reverse snobbery. You know I owned (and was bitterly disappointed in) a tribute, and sent it back; since then I've tried every single one I could get my hands on over here - always having in mind that "Marcus found a keeper, there must be one out there!".

Needless to say I'm still looking. They've ranged from average (and therefore overpriced, especially up against stuff like the PRS SE SCs for less money) to utterly awful. The P90s are fantastic, I agree, but I'd say that to me the most important factor of any guitar is how it plays at a gig. The sound is infinitely more tweakable.

YMMV of course.

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Since I got it, went with a full Faber set up.....locking alum tailpiece / studs (top wrap), ABR bridge with brass saddles and lock down posts/collars, Kluson tuners from RS Guitarworks.... kind of icing on the cake because like you said, I think I got a good one to start with. I won't sell this guitar - in fact, since I got it, I've unloaded a Tokai 56 Goldtop P90 and an Epi Limited Lacquer LP Special because tone AND playing wise (weight, neck profile, frets), it's become my go to P90 Les Paul. You are absolutely correct that tone can be dialed in .... playability can't. Major oversight in my comment.

Keep looking at them Alan... you'll find one you like. I don't know if when they were built has anything to do with it. The first batch that came out of Nashville before the flood shut down production was when I first became aware of them..... friend of mine has one and it has a two piece center joined body.... plays like a dream and I had to have one. Three of us put in a backorder with a manager at Guitar Center before they were able to start production again on them.... waited a couple months.... and we got the first batch of the new production run.... two goldtops and my honeyburst (which has a 3 piece back). Out of the three guitars, mine had a larger neck profile (which I like), one of the gold tops had a two piece center join body, the other was a two piece with the seam near the pots. Here's the day we unwrapped them:

Diamond said:

sneakyjapan said:

On the other hand...a high quality guitar in the hands of a sub par player...like me...will not annoy him. His ability might but not the guitar.

Click to expand...

True, I'm the king of the sub par guitarists...I can make a Tokai LS160 sound like an Epiphone.

Click to expand...

i could make it sound like a Hondo II