The Delta Snake Review: Musical Gear Review and Music Article Archive: Review: 1997 Gibson Double Cut Les Paul Studio

Review: Gibson Double Cut Les Paul Studio

In 1997, this was a design that had more or less been dormant for 30 years. Gibson then released the a “Studio” model, which combined the 1958 all mahogany Les Paul Special with rounded cutaways (as opposed to the the sharper ones on the SG) with a arched maple cap like a regular Les Paul. It was priced in the 1200.00 range and was a successful model. It was available in various colors, mine being the Heritage Cherry Sunburst.

The original late 50's version had a couple of years of growing pains, the biggest being that the front pickup grouting made the neck/body joint weak. This was resolved by moving the pickup back. The only other variation of note was the “TV” which was a Special colored yellow so it would show better on black and white TV.

The 1997 DC Studio is a wonderful guitar. It's lighter than a Les Paul, has many of the same sound characteristics due to the maple cap and has good 490 series pickups (although I'm tempted to put in P-90s). The chambered maple body, and the maple neck add warmth, and the classic Gibson neck scale makes it an easy guitar to play. The wraparound bridge has its fans and detractors, but I like its retro look, and do feel it adds sustain. Also, the body is contoured and is comfortable to hold. The finish is perfect on mine, and it's a pleasure to look at, as I love cherry sunbursts.

Although the neck is a good, the frets are more problematic. Everyone likes medium jumbo frets it seems, but these are a bit too high and uneven, creating some buzz problems. I was able to adjust the neck and bridge to get around this, but reworking the frets is definitely in the future sometime. I will note that after the adjustments, the action is still very low, so it's no big deal in the present.

One tip, if there's a buzz, don't just raise the bridge, you may not have to do that. All necks should have some relief (bend), so adjusting the neck to have some bow can keep you from raising the strings higher than you'd like. However, I do my own setup, so if you have any doubts, take it back to your seller and have it adjusted.

One quality issue is in the fret/neck edge. The frets are clearly beveled off with some care, but you can feel some sharp edges as you run your fingers down the neck. Even the early 90's Specials had a bound neck with smoothed down frets, so at this price range, it's a small detail the company could have taken care of. That said, the frets are easy to get used to, and string bending can bring you joy on this guitar.

As for the sound, it's a different guitar from its ancestor due to the maple cap. It's a bit brighter sounding than a pure mahogany type, and there's noticeably more sustain. The 490 series humbuckers are versatile, in particular you can get very nice chiming clean tones or a very passable jazz sound a la Kenny Burrell.

This is possible because the volume and tone pots are superb, with excellent range. The setup is simple, one volume, one tone, one switch, that's it. This is consistent throughout the whole model line up to the present, even with the premium models and it seems to work just fine.

When playing rock, particularly with a 490-type humbucker, you do have to pay attention to setup and tone control. This type of humbucker can get muddy sounding real fast. This type of pickup is very loud though, so learn the guitar, and you'll get the most out of it. Like I said earlier, it's really a new type of guitar and won't behave like either a double cut special or a pure Les Paul. So, play it before you buy it.

In 2003, the model line did undergo a cosmetic change to a gold top “classic” but it kept the same specs. Same with the current plus and pro models. In other words, if you can find one of these studios, it's a great value as it's basically the same as the more expensive line.

One exception, the faded style that seems to have become the new Gibson low end finish. The faded DC is all mahogany, so if you're looking for the one that is the closest to the original, that's the one, even then it's different with the chambered body.

So, in 1997, Gibson introduced this guitar, and called it a revival of a classic shape (note, they didn't say a classic guitar model). Given the company's failures and non-starters like the S-6, or the doomed bolt-on neck models, success wasn't guaranteed.

Now that this guitar has become a success, and remains in production to this day in the usual variety of colors and models types, it's safe to say that if you're playing a Studio, you'll be playing what will be probably regarded decades from now as the original of a classic Gibson design. Some of the details are rough which isn't surprising for a new model line. However, it's a guitar that truly belongs now, and has only gotten better.

-Al Handa

2006

Note: This review first appeared on the ePinions.com site in 2013. This and other reviews were short takes that accompanied the link to a business that sold the guitar. As a rule, the guitar had to be at least examined and played by the reviewer (and ideally owned). In my case, a severe case of GAS made it possible to have at least owned the reviewed instrument for a short while. I'm reprinting these as having another source on a guitar never hurts, even if the reviews aren't definitive. Other than minor corrections, these short takes are unchanged from the original text. I figure that it might be helpful to keep the older perspective.

The Quitturz by Al Handa