594 core vs gibson les paul modern/standard, etc, and fender custom shop

[horax]

Granted this discussion might be totally biased, but how would you compare the recent Gibson Les Pauls to the Fender Custom Shop and PRS 594?

I have a custom shop 63 strat i'm trying to sell and have a trade offer of a 2021 594 core.
I'm most likely taking the trade.

I've been playing Gibson LP's for my main guitars lately, but am curious as to whether or not I'll feel over or underwhelmed if I go this route?

 

[Greywolf]

I have a custom shop strat , vintage LP custom and a 594 I think the 594 is the most verstile of the bunch . Roll the tone back and it does the LP tone well enough , The tapped tone is quite good for single coil work , although the Special is a better choice to cover that territory IMHO .

 

[El Fenix]

The 2 I play the most are my DGT and Gibson LP Standard. Both great quality guitars.

I still want a semi-hollow 594. One day.....

 

[JasonE]

I have had my 594 for a good while now. I like it better than either of my Les Pauls. I had to swap the pickups in mine though. I didn't like the output of the LT pickups so I put 57/08 pickups in my 594 and now it is perfect for me. I would put it up against either of my Pauls. I like the double cut body better.

 

[doublescale1]

I have my 2016 594 Double cut up for sale (one-off custom color, Burgundy Firemist Metallic) - I found myself always grabbing either my '06 McCarty (Railhammer Hyper Vintage set) or my bone stock DGT; the 594 was sitting so I'm moving it on. I do have a humble, faded cherry LP Studio with a Jim Wagner "American Steel" HB set in it for all the LP blood&thunder I could ever need. The American Steel set is Jim Wagners magic formula for giving the bridge pu a bit more power for greater girth but at the same time, retaining a nice sweet top-end chime and not straying too far from what I consider a PAF voice - a good bit of alchemy in those pickups.

 

[Greywolf]

The 594 Semi would be a lovely choice, I opted to split that role between an HB II and the Walnut LTD due to the warmer 57/08 pickups .. there's one on the verb for a very good (these days) price.

 

[JasonE]

I have my 2016 594 Double cut up for sale (one-off custom color, Burgundy Firemist Metallic) - I found myself always grabbing either my '06 McCarty (Railhammer Hyper Vintage set) or my bone stock DGT; the 594 was sitting so I'm moving it on. I do have a humble, faded cherry LP Studio with a Jim Wagner "American Steel" HB set in it for all the LP blood&thunder I could ever need. The American Steel set is Jim Wagners magic formula for giving the bridge pu a bit more power for greater girth but at the same time, retaining a nice sweet top-end chime and not straying too far from what I consider a PAF voice - a good bit of alchemy in those pickups.

I think about that guitar every so often. I have thought about reaching out to you a few times to see if we can find a way to hook up a deal on that thing. It would look nice next to mine of the same year of a different custom color. If it had the scraped binding like mine, I may have already been in trouble. I don't really need it but I think it is cool. I don't know if there are any other guitars you may be looking for or if you are open to any sorts of trades. Hit me up with a PM if you are. Who knows...

 

[The Bird]

the 594 will not be exactly the same experience as a Les Paul, so don’t expect that. I play both and love both. But they are not the same.

Regardless, the 594 will be a better guitar than any Fender ever built, so take the trade.

 

[SinSir]

The 594 vs LP has been discussed and compared over and over on this board and many others. Plenty of reading and videos for you to decide if you'll be over/underwhelmed.

Personally, they are different. The 594 is a fan favorite, and I can understand why. But the pattern vintage carve isn't for me, now my SC58 is another story, love that guitar in every way. That and my Les Paul are differnet enough for me to justify both.

Comparing a strat in this mix, apples and oranges, heck fruits and vegetables.. lol

If we're talking quality, all 3 can be awesome. Its popular to bash F&G, and sometimes justified, but its part of the pains for being such a large company. I find far more good strats through their lines than bad. Custom shop and I wouldn't worry about quality at all. Gibson, takes a little more rack running, but the gems are out there. PRS core is typically very very consistent in quality.

If you're an LP guy, you'll probably enjoy having both, PRS and LP. I know I do.

 

[Longneck Tenon]

I have my 2016 594 Double cut up for sale (one-off custom color, Burgundy Firemist Metallic) - I found myself always grabbing either my '06 McCarty (Railhammer Hyper Vintage set) or my bone stock DGT; the 594 was sitting so I'm moving it on. I do have a humble, faded cherry LP Studio with a Jim Wagner "American Steel" HB set in it for all the LP blood&thunder I could ever need. The American Steel set is Jim Wagners magic formula for giving the bridge pu a bit more power for greater girth but at the same time, retaining a nice sweet top-end chime and not straying too far from what I consider a PAF voice - a good bit of alchemy in those pickups.

I have an ‘07 McCarty with the stock McCarty pickups that I bought new. I don’t play it as much now that I have a McCarty 594 SE and an Epiphone ‘59 Les Paul Reissue. I think it’s because of the pickups. How do the Railhammer’s compare to the 58/15 S or Gibson Burstbuckers?

 

[Revelation]

The 594 vs LP has been discussed and compared over and over on this board and many others. Plenty of reading and videos for you to decide if you'll be over/underwhelmed.

Personally, they are different. The 594 is a fan favorite, and I can understand why. But the pattern vintage carve isn't for me, now my SC58 is another story, love that guitar in every way. That and my Les Paul are differnet enough for me to justify both.

Comparing a strat in this mix, apples and oranges, heck fruits and vegetables.. lol

If we're talking quality, all 3 can be awesome. Its popular to bash F&G, and sometimes justified, but its part of the pains for being such a large company. I find far more good strats through their lines than bad. Custom shop and I wouldn't worry about quality at all. Gibson, takes a little more rack running, but the gems are out there. PRS core is typically very very consistent in quality.

If you're an LP guy, you'll probably enjoy having both, PRS and LP. I know I do.

Words of wisdom. All these guitars are different and very good. The main difference is the higher quality control and consistency of PRS is better than Gibson or Fender.

My McCarty 594 which I like better than my Gibson, cannot replace my Les Paul Custom. The Gibson has a thicker tone, and it has a classic look with the binding and beautiful maple top. But its bottom heavy, clubby above the 14th fret when playing leads and with the D and G string pushing left and right on the headstock, it's more problematic with those strings staining in tune. It's also heavier and not a comfortable to play. But the sound, the sound it provides is just wonderful.

The Custom Shop Strat you have has a higher chance of being done right over the regular Strat. I assume you do not care for the sound of a strat and want to get a humbucking guitar instead? I played a Vintage II 61 Strat and really enjoyed the warmer (not as bright) less ice pick sound it has. I was considering it over the Silver Sky but I wanted a maple neck, and I like the larger frets on the Silver Sky and locking tuners.

 

[Russ73]

I would do the trade as I like the shorter scale and power of the 594...strats are cool but I don't sound good through them and the gibson/594 scale you can rip on!!

 

[doublescale1]

I have an ‘07 McCarty with the stock McCarty pickups that I bought new. I don’t play it as much now that I have a McCarty 594 SE and an Epiphone ‘59 Les Paul Reissue. I think it’s because of the pickups. How do the Railhammer’s compare to the 58/15 S or Gibson Burstbuckers?

the Railhammer Hyper Vintage set is very similar to the 58/15's in that they are on the lower vintage style output of the hB scale and being lower output they are very articulate, even with OD applied. They are perfect for the classic R&B/Motown/classic Rock music I play and in my McCarty I had them wired Series Parallel so in Parallel mode I can get to a Tele-type voice very easily (they retain the "bit more mids" than a Strat when put in parallel and retain the noise cancelling). No real experience with Burstbuckers. Hope that helps