Gibson Les Paul Studio, gloss black, made in USA 2007. First up, the big one: this has been modded and is now blessed with a pair of active EMG pickups. Now, as a general rule, that's not my bag, but... it didn't take me long to crack a big grin while playing this one. The LP Studio is a players' classic: take the LP Standard, strip all the bling, keep the bits you need to sound good, make it light and lively... heck yeah. This one is pretty light for a Les at 3.5kg and nicely balanced, plus the slim 60s rounded profile neck is comfy and agreeable. It's pretty quick and easy to move around on, and the 24.75" scale means big bends and stretches are a bit easier than on a full scale Superstrat or similar. Now, hear me out... if you were going to criticise the standard version of these mid 00s Studios, you'd probably say the 490 pickups are a bit dark and little vague. That is absolutely not an issue with the EMGs. They're bright, expressive, full and lively with a tonne of natural bass, sustain and compression, smoothing out all your riffs and sweep picking tricks and adding hefty thickness and snarly definition to your chugg-chuggs. I wrote a whole metalcore album on 25 minutes on it, the thing is a riffparty that can't be stopped. If it looks a bit dark in the pics, that's just your dark desires reflected back to you in guitar form. It's a Gibstoooorm.

Model: Gibson Les Paul Studio
Made: 2007, USA (serial 004470474)
Finish: ebony (gloss black nitro)
Body: maple top, chambered mahogany body
Neck: mahogany with baked maple board, slim 60s profile, 24.75" scale, 12" radius
Weight: 3.540kg 
Mods: pickups replaced, re-wired with active electronics 
Pickup: EMG 81/85 active humbuckers
Case: basic non-original hard case

Cosmetic condition notes: minor finish wear. The headstock has some minor scuffs on the end and a sticker mark around the serial number. The neck is clean and smooth in the hands, minor dimples on the back only. The back has some scuffs on the bottom horn, near the neck joint and in the elbow area and back edge. The sides have dimples on the top horn, scuffs in the elbow area and near the knob and some dimples on the bottom horn. The front has some scuffs around the switch, near the knobs and behind the bridge and some play wear on the guard and horns. Overall: very good condition (8/10).

Playing condition notes: Action is low, neck is straight, intonation is good, truss rod works. The frets have minor wear only, 9/10 for fret life left. No headstock breaks! Setup with fresh 10/52 Moonshiners strings.