Epiphone Les Paul Standard '50s Electric Guitar - Heritage Cherry Sunburst Reviews

I was really excited to get this Epi. So many beautiful choices. The finish is beautiful, no cosmetic flaws, great feel and set up right out of the case. Good balance, not top heavy as I was expecting. I was impresses with the electronics, great tonal range and sound. Quite the eye catching guitar. No regrets at all.

This guitar looks amazing! It feels very similar to my Gibson Standard 50's and was shipped to me with a really good action. Zero fret buzz, perfect intonation, and just ready to rock.
Sweetwater's customer service was amazing and exceeded my expectations.

This LP is a good as my much more expensive Gibson LP standard. From the super comfortable to play neck, to the tone is produces and the gorgeous finish. It's just a beauty. You absolutely cannot go wrong with the Epiphone brand.

I had never bought a guitar without playing it first but a fairly light and very pretty Epi Les Paul came up so I took a chance. I had a Les Paul once in the early 90s and it played great. This guitar is every bit a Les Paul. It immediately felt like home. It's comfortable, easy to play, and sounds amazing. Just because I was curious, I went to a local music store and played a couple of their 50s Gibson Les Pauls they had in stock. They both played great too. I'd say the Gibsons played felt and sounded maybe a tad better.....but $ better......NO WAY!! This Epiphone 100% what you expect when you buy a Les Paul regardless of the name on the headstock. The Epiphone 50s Les Paul is the best bargain on the market today and should very well be considered a high end guitar, it just doesn't have that high end price tag. It's so good that I just ordered another one as a backup (which is an excuse, I don't have a real need for a backup).

Beautiful piece of work by Epiphone/Gibson company! It plays and sounds great!

Very smooth and easy transaction. Great guitar! Love it and would indeed recommend it. This was my first purchase from Sweetwater and the guitar came double boxed and very well packaged. I will indeed look at Sweetwater for future purchases!

This guitar has an amazing sound and feel. I was torn between the 1960s version in the 1950s version as I was worried about the larger next size on the 50s (I have small hands). I am so glad I bought the 1950s version. It is so comfortable to play and I love the sound. I prefer the old style tuners and sound. The heritage cherry sunburst finish is so beautiful and changes colors depending on the light. And I was so impressed with this guitar, that our family now has two (one for me and one for my daughter). Both guitars came perfectly set up from Sweetwater and I couldn't be happier with the customer service.

First of all, this neck is the best neck I've ever played in my 30 years of noodling. And the Probucker 1 in the neck position is one of the best pickups for cleans and grit. It's really good.
This guitar is a modders dream, or just great out of the box.
It looks GREAT, awesome flamed top, sounds fantastic and plays as good as any Les Paul I've ever played.
I've been around a while and still own a few of my older Gibsons. These new Epiphones will hold their own against any high dollar guitar. I'm having a blast with this guitar, and you don't need to treat it like a priceless treasure. Just plug it in and crank it up.

I've owned a gibson les Paul. Traded it years back. Always regretted it. I didn't wanna spend $ so I got the epiphone version of my old guitar instead. Honestly I wish I had bought this first. I don't notice any real difference between this and my gibson. This epiphone is a steal for the price. Plays like a dream. Amazing touchdown, great tone. With a little tweaking of the amp , You play can any classic rock song from the 60s,70s and it will sound almost identical. But it's not just for the oldies. I shred Metallica, megadeth riffs just fine. Even with it having mid output pick ups. If you're really into heavy drop tuned death metal or metal core I would recommend a pickup up grade. But this guitar really plays all styles of music just fine. My favorite guitar to noodle and solo on. So easy to play, even with its signature chunky neck. Keep in mind it is a little shorter scale than most guitars so the string tension will be light but I prefer it. Plays so much better than other guitars.

Put one in your hands and play it
They sell themselves

My experiences with Sweetwater and Ben Nielsen are always a pleasure. They raise the bar in customer service. As for my new Epiphone Les Paul Standard 50's it's a great guitar. Fit and finish are top notch, set up out of the box was good, pickups are great and the fret work was better than I expected. If you're looking for a guitar with great tones, feel and playability you can't go wrong with the inspired by Gibson line.

After playing nothing but USA made Fenders and Gibbys for the past 47 years, I've seen alot of changes to BOTH! Sadly, it's so true that today you're paying a premium
for the name.
What I can say for sure, is
if you sit down in front of a good tube amp (any), and A/B this Epi against any Gibby for playability and sound, there isn't much difference.
I actually prefer the Epi
these days, as Gibson has upped the quality,fit, finish, playability, and sound to the point where you have to ask yourself: Why would I pay 5 times as much just to see Gibby on the headstock? Summery: This is a NO-BRAINER!

Having owned the Les Paul Classic from Epiphone's new line, I knew what I was getting into in broad strokes. Long story short, I ended up selling that guitar to my buddy. A few months later, I decided to buy another Les Paul, and I thought I would settle on this one; the Standard 50s in Heritage Cherry. It was between this and the Custom in Ebony, which I love the look of Black Les Pauls, but when I was going over the specs, the '59 C shape' of the Standard had my interest over the 'slim taper' of the Custom. Upon arrival, my only concern was it was safely delivered. As I took it out of the box and wrapped my hand around the neck, I was immediately taken by the chunkiness and thick slab of wood that is this neck. As soon as I felt this, I had to get a set of 11s on as soon as possible and start playing. Not sure if I got a superb example or what it is, but it doesn't come out of tune much, even after some good bends and right hand thrashing. This along with the neck sealed the deal. Before I thought, I can't wait until I can own a Gibson, but now I think, will the Gibson be any better than this? If you're on the fence, take a chance, Sweetwater is my number 1 spot for buying a guitar.

Not only did it come 2 days earlier than expected, it came packaged extremely well and plays like a dream. The finish is absolutely gorgeous in person as pictures do it no justice.

This guitar is an absolute dream for musicians on a budget. If you close your eyes and play you might think it cost you $2500. It's that nice and was delivered to my door the next day... Nothing but positive things to say about this purchase from Sweetwater.

This is a really good guitar for the money.weight and fretboard feel right.of course this is no Gibson but many things on this les Paul remains me of my 59 Gibson standard (reissue).the Gibson is my number one but the epiphone (number two)is way better then they used to be.btw fender tweed tube amps are tailor made these 2 guitars.

SERIOUSLY, this isn't a review, it's a PSA! If it's anywhere close to 3/9/23 look for ser no 22071533922 as an open box deal.
Just returned it after comparing to a Limited Edition '59 and one of the hardest guitars I've ever given up but came down to neck shape - just a little too much 'shoulder' and I need 'em true C. Otherwise, this one is THAT needle in a haystack:
* 8.6 lbs TWO-piece body - I mean how OFTEN does THAT happen at this price point?
* Utterly gorgeous - BEST flame and 'hog back grain holographic shimmer I've seen on anything including Gibson - see attached photos
* The neck is chunky for sure, but if you're looking at a 50s you knew it was a snake... The biggest difference between this and the LE 1959 is the more pronounced 'shoulders' or 'corners' of the neck as it rolls off from the fingerboard toward the back of the neck. The '59 is much closer to a round C and though still on the girthy side, mine is a .001 thinner than this Standard 50s all the way down the length of the neck.
The pickups will get you by no problem til you can swing an electronics upgrade and I'd say start there before you do anything else. Nothing more subjective than neck shape but I sincerely hope if you're even thinking about one you get this one while it's there.
Massive props to Ethan for the help and super-responsive service!