Godin Core vs Gibson Les Paul Junior
 

Just noticed I can get either guitar for $850, which is a steal for a Gibson. I didn't realize that you could get one new in Canada for under a grand (used is not an option. I'm not doing that to myself in the area where I live). Either would be tuned to Eb, and the pickups swapped out for Seymour Duncan Alnico Pro II's in all likelihood (ya, I know). Which one would probably be the better option? The Gibson has some bling value, but I'm not sure of the quality at that price. Godin's are very nice Canadian made guitars. Any thoughts beyond go play them myself, which I intend to.

No knock on Gibsons, but Godin tends to deliver a lot of bang for the buck.

I would probably go with the Godin. I've played a couple of Core's, and they sound very nice and definitely play better than cheaper gibsons (the lp juniors I've played haven't been great. not bad, but there are better guitars for the money).

Godin hands down, haven't played a core but I've tried a few of their other models and they are top notch. No offense to Gibson but most are totally overpriced and don't deliver the quality you would expect for how much you payed.

+1
I don't really like the lp jr at all. They're too light and "feel" cheap.

If you were comparing it to a studio then maybe the Gibson may be a competitor, but IMO Core > lp junior.

Nice.

Would they have a Les Paulish sound to them?

I haven't been impressed with most Gibson's I've seen. Most of the guys at the shop where I get my work done, agree, Gibson's ain't what they use to be. They aren't bad, they are still good, just not sure if they are worth the price.

Yeah, the Cores feel real nice. I can't tell the difference between my Washburn's neck, a Gibson neck, and a Godin neck. They all feel real good.

Gibson still makes fantastic guitars, but the LP Jr. probably isn't what you're looking for.
It's a bare-bones blues/rock/punk-guitar, it doesn't have the "classic" Les Paul tone with the single P90 and without the maple cap. IMO it's probably the better guitar of it's own kind if you compare it to stuff like a PRS SE One or something.

I'd say get a Godin Core HB. I played a bunch of Godin Cores and they all sounded, felt and played very well. The necks remind me more of a modern Fender profile than a Gibson type profile, which I find very comfortable (I'm currently a Strat-player myself). The necks are not too thick and not as wide as Gibson necks, which is kind of why a lot of people including myself could find the Godin's neck more comfortable. The satin-finish on the neck feels great as well and the whole Core-range looks much better in person than on the fotos, they have a very sleek and simple look to them. Upper fret access isn't amazing, but that's almost always like that on LP-style guitars.

According to this page at Godin: http://www.godinguitars.com/godininfo.htm the "Core", and their other electrics already have Seymour Duncan humbuckers in them.

Given the woods and construction methods that go into the "Core" series, I can't imagine that they could possibly avoid sounding a lot like a Les Paul!

To me the Core series sounds a bit bitier and more aggressive than their Gibson counterparts (probably because of the slightly thinner body), at least the P90 version did, could be the pickups as well though.
That shouldn't be a problem if you're looking for a Slash-type tone (which I think you do as you want Alnico II Pros in your guitar ;) ) and Alnico II PUs are generally rather softer sounding pickups anyway, so it will work just right IMO.

Gibson makes a good guitar for sure. But what they are noticing is little details are slipping (like a guitar neck not being bound) to electronics not work or in one case not even wired up. Stuff happens for sure, but when you pay 1000+ for a guitar, you expect quality.

That's what I thought based on shape and such. But, marketing is one thing, reality is another.

I did miss they already had Seymour Duncan Humbucks in them though. Have to do more research.

Slash!!!


I have Seymour Duncan Alnico II Pro Humbuckers in my 1996 Gibson Custom Shop Les Paul Standard, and I have it tuned to Eb too... What are the odds?

I'm not going to a complete copy, but I just love his tone. So why no go with what I like? I'm still aiming for a Traynor Ironhorse head and Darkhorse 2x12, so I won't have a carbon copy of his tone. Marshall combo's are just too expensive, and too heavy to move to jam.

While we are on the subject of the Alnico II Pro pickups, I'm thinking about putting a pair in my Washburn MG-44 super strat style guitar. It would be standard E tuned. Would those work well, or are the Alnico's biased towards the Eb tuning?

These pickups aren't biased towards Eb tuning.

Apparently pretty good. He was the reason I wanted a guitar in the first place. Too bad life got in the way, I lost 17 years of playing time.

Ok, I wasn't sure if it was like EMGs which seem to sound better (or maybe I like to those tunings more) with Eb tuning or lower.

I also have the Zakk Wylde EMG set I had put into a guitar with a 250k SH-124 Shadow Kill Pot...

I like to play in all sorts of keys though. Eb, E, D, C# C...
For C though, I like Ernie Ball Power Slinkys.

Quality is not measured by how much binding is on the guitar.

Godin for sure dude

The P90 version of the Core series does come with Duncan pups (P90, obviously). The HB model, on the other end, comes with Godin humbuckers (Godin Nitro Humbuckers).

I have no experience with Godin HBs, but the single coils in my Velocity sound quite nice. I never felt the need to change them yet after 5+ years of using it as my main (95%+) guitar.