Gibson Charlie Starr Les Paul Junior Deep Dive

Рет қаралды 3,408

Күн бұрын

I recently got my hands on the new 2024 limited edition Gibson Charlie Starr Les Paul Junior and wanted to see what makes it different than a regular Les Paul Jr. There are only 250 made of two finishes - totaling 500!
Charlie Starr is the much celebrated guitarist and lead singer for southern rock band Blackberry Smoke.
Check this video out if you're interested learning more!
Table of contents:
00:00 Intro
01:58 The Price
02:46 The Case
04:10 The Look / Body
05:51 The Neck
06:45 Fretboard Measurements
07:45 Fretboard Radius
7:45 Neckback angle
7:50 Headstock Angle
07:54 The Hardware
08:30 The Bridge
11:05 Tuning Ratio
11:28 The Electronics
11:42 P90-OW
12:15 Pickup Reading
12:40 Electronics Cavity
13:03 Other Materials
15:19 The Feel
15:40 The Weight
16:22 Neck Dive Test
17:18 The Sound
20:10 The Conclusion
20:43 The End
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Products used to make this video.
Sony ZV-1F Vlog Camera
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Zoom F2 Field Mic
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Rode RodeLink Lav Microphone
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Music Nomad String Cutter
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Music Nomad Fretboard F-One Conditioner
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Пікірлер: 54

@jfiery Күн бұрын

I am extremely excited you got this guitar. I can't say Im a huge fan of Starr's band/music but the guitars look and sound great. Also from the interviews I've seen of him he comes off as a thoughtful and genuinely nice guy. Excellent review as always.

@CompanyGrip Күн бұрын

Thanks for the kind words! Yeah - I agree about him as well! Thanks again for checking out the video!

@yogawithtoddsemo8085 4 күн бұрын

I am picking mine up in two days. Also in ebony finish. From the promotional video that Gibson has put out with Charlie and Dinesh Lekhraj introducing the guitar, Charlie states "in the 70's, lots of players decided they wanted Grover tuners. They were there when I got it, so there they stay." Thanks for your take.

@CompanyGrip 4 күн бұрын

Ah! Interesting! Thanks for the info. Congrats on the purchase! 🤘🏽

@sinakaedwards2009 5 күн бұрын

Almost 2k subscribers. congratulations!!!!

@CompanyGrip 4 күн бұрын

Thank you!

@brianmckenzie1318 4 күн бұрын

I really would love one of these, but was unsure about the satin finish and how it would wear (shiny). Gibson site says "High-Build Premium Satin Nitrocellulose Lacquer", but I have no clue what that actually means and how it differs from other guitars listed with "Satin Nitrocellulose Lacquer". So guess I would just settle for regular LP Jr and get the compensated bridge that Bukovac recommends as a replacement. BTW, excellent video, thanks for the run through!!!

@CompanyGrip 4 күн бұрын

Thanks for checking it out! I’m pretty sure high-build means it has more materials in it for durability, plasticizers and what not. Cheers!

@matt6l6 3 күн бұрын

I grabbed one of the Lukas Nelson Juniors in 2020. Pre ordered it as soon as it appeared (without much press) on the website. During the waiting period, a rep from the retailer who had the order (different person from my usual sales person) called and said it was gonna be awhile till the LN came in and I should consider a regular Junior (less expensive, better finish, etc). I told them I wanted the satin finish and the compensated wraparound on the LN. I surprisingly did get the guitar I wanted, and it's killer.

@CompanyGrip 3 күн бұрын

That’s awesome! It wasn’t Musicians Friend by chance, was it? 🤣 Thanks for checking out the vid!

@matt6l6 3 күн бұрын

@@CompanyGripit was!

@CompanyGrip 2 күн бұрын

Yeah / they are the ones that messed up my original order. Next time I make an order and they have any ideas, I’m just going to tell them I’m not interested. 😆

@TrashCat-1031 4 күн бұрын

Great in depth video as always. I never thought I would like an over wound P90 but it sounds pretty good. How is it in the room, does it have a lot more noise than a standard P90? And yeah, that Walnut looks amazing. Sorry you lost out on that one.

@CompanyGrip 4 күн бұрын

Thanks for checking it out! Honestly, I didn’t really notice it being much noisier at all than a standard P90 - however, I did find that that those extra wraps of wire did bring the punch up quite a bit! It got dirty quick at 10! 😆

@user-fv5yo5fi5c 5 күн бұрын

Pretty much anything Charlie Starr is something I'm going to like automatically. If I had ordered this, I'd have gone with the Ebony, no question. This one just looks like a music machine, I love everything about it. Simple but bad a$$ imo. Congrats

@CompanyGrip 4 күн бұрын

Thanks for checking out the video!

@sinakaedwards2009 5 күн бұрын

I can't remember if you have any other les Paul juniors, but if so, a comparison video would be cool. Love the sobering riff you used, hearing it now. for the sound demo video, you could reedit all the sound demos into one video.

@CompanyGrip 4 күн бұрын

Currently, just the Billy Joe Armstrong with the P90-DC pickup in it. One day I’ll get around to a sound comparison!

@george-st-george 5 күн бұрын

Thanks for this !!!!! really great !!!! ....i'll take the 50s wiring on a junior every time !!!!

@CompanyGrip 4 күн бұрын

Thanks for checking it out! Cheers!

@sinakaedwards2009 5 күн бұрын

I think I agree with you on tuning keys. On bass I prefer Y keys over Clover style.

@CompanyGrip 4 күн бұрын

Oh yeah! Def the Y keys! 👍

@sinakaedwards2009 5 күн бұрын

I was watching Roger Sadowsky talk about tone woods. He said light woods usually had better resonance, like ash. Said Naytoh was like mahogany but lighter producing more resonance. Not sure if it is true but the dude does make high quality basses.

@CompanyGrip 4 күн бұрын

I’m inclined to believe that to some degree. My Melody Maker is super light and rings out for days! 🤣

@Somenite Күн бұрын

If your set on buying a junior new, then this one is worth the extra 400 bucks. The case is awesome and the bridge and tuners are really an upgrade. You also get a cool slide. Thats all worth a few bucks but the biggest thing is that the resale on a limited edition like this is always going to be greater than a regular junior which by itself is worth the difference. That said, if you're buying a junior you plan to keep and are good with used then maybe that is a better option. However, on a new guitar, this is a no brainer if you have good luck and walk into a shop to buy your junior and one of these is hanging on the wall. On another note, the walnut finish is nicer in my opinion, but the black finish will wear if the guitar is actually played and have the potential to look more like Charlie's as the years pass. That said, I'm guessing 99% of these will be case queens sitting in collections.

@NintenDub 22 сағат бұрын

The slide alone is def worth the extra 400

@CompanyGrip 18 сағат бұрын

I also think the $400 is probably worth it. Also, as a side note, you can actually get the slide from the BlackBerry Smoke website for like $20. Just noticed it the other day! 😮

@Somenite 17 сағат бұрын

@@CompanyGrip Thanks for the heads up on the slide. I want one but going to be 42 with the shipping so a tough call. I'd actually use it so if I knew it was going to be a good fit I would buy.

@CompanyGrip 16 сағат бұрын

Understandable! Cheers!

@johnmartin5147 3 күн бұрын

The studs being able to clamp the bridge down. Some people think that it increases sustain.

@CompanyGrip 3 күн бұрын

Thanks for checking out the video! You know, I’ve heard that before. Personally, I think it’s a bunch of malarkey. 😝 Don’t know how much stock I put in it. Cheers!

@auntjenifer7774 2 күн бұрын

😂 they don't increase sustain at all, in fact they probably decrease the sustain. I have a junior Single cut that came with those . The first time I changed the strings and tightened the things down one broke 😂 there was no material holding it together so I swapped in some old les paul bridge studs and have been very happy ever since, no problems at all !

@gado6438 3 күн бұрын

Had a pretty good hum, didn't it?

@CompanyGrip 3 күн бұрын

I didn’t find it to be much more noticeable than a standard P90, to be honest. Thanks for checking out the video!

@auntjenifer7774 2 күн бұрын

Sounds like alnico 5 to me.

@f3uibeghardt522 4 күн бұрын

I couldn't agree more about the Grover kidney tuners. At least once a day I think about replacing all my Gibsons that have them with metal keystones. The kidney tuners just feel bad, and they're very crowded and bulky. It gives the sensation that you're lacking tactile feedback when winding them. They're wide and convex, while the keystones are the exact opposite. Less importantly, on an aesthetic level, I think they're ugly, and the metal keystones are the better look.

@CompanyGrip 4 күн бұрын

Thank you! This is the validation I was looking for! 😆 It’s seems more and more people want the Keystones! #bringbackkeystones! Haha

@AnnoyingCritic-is7rp 5 күн бұрын

If I buy an expensive phone I can look at the specifications and see that I'm getting maybe an OLED screen and lots of processing power, with so many megapixels in the camera and so much storage. But what do we have here? Why is it that Gibson has been making guitars for a hundred years and they still can't tell me why any of their guitars sound different than any other guitar and why they are so expensive? It used to be that you could say, well it's got good fret work but now even cheap guitars have good fret work. You could say, look, it's an 8K alnico pickup. Well, now cheap guitars have the same pickups. That is if you measure the inductance and resistance of the pickup it will be the same therefore the pickup will sound the same. Is there anything else in that guitar that could be proven to anyone that it is worth $500? Will anybody in the world in the history of guitar making step forward here today now and prove to me that this guitar is worth anything at all? You think you can play a guitar and it would pass a blind test? Don't we know that that's no longer true as well?

@sinakaedwards2009 4 күн бұрын

A little aggressive of a take but I'll try to answer as quickly as possible. First, price is set by the market, enough people are willing to pay the price thus Gibson can charge it. Second, American made is going to cost more because people wish to be paid for their labor. Anything you do to a guitar will change its sound, even two of the same model guitars will sound different. Really on your musical journey you should find what you like and stay away from what you don't. Gibson guitars are overpriced in my opinion but I understand why people like them. American Fenders are cheaper than Gibsons, but they are bolt-Ons and Gibsons are set necks. Plus, Gibson tends to stay away from Maple fretboards. Generally speaking, the more money you pay for a guitar or bass the less maintenance is required. However, most anything over $2000 or $3000 is more of an art piece. Most any guitar or bass you buy that is $1000 or more should be ultra stable, resonant, comfortable, and no upgrades required. Besides if it was all bullshit and parts didn't matter the guys who play bars every night would just use the bottom model of any guitars they could find. Pickups are a whole different situation. How they leave the factory is important. However, sometimes pickups made overseas use subpar parts that tend to corrode or rust easily. Pink wire is not good copper wire.

@AnnoyingCritic-is7rp 4 күн бұрын

@@sinakaedwards2009 Have you seen Scar My Guitar's review of the Leo James Monsoon? Or have you seen the Bald Shredders review? Or MusicNGear? The latter does a meticulous review and we see that nearly every one of these has flat frets, no sharp fret ends, and the last one from Scar shows alpha pots, shielding, and good solder work. Leo James is just one example There are many others. The Firefly has stainless steel frets. EART as well. And whatever differences in the sounds you hear in different pickups I don't think would pass any blind test - certainly not one on KZfaq by specter sound studios or Anderton's TV. We know what makes the tone of a pickup. It's the windings and the magnetic strength of the pickup. It's the DC resistance and inductance. And if you can hear the small differences in capacitance then just change the length of your guitar chord. That's it. You can prove that to yourself at guitar nuts 2. You can see the frequency response. Many of the pickups are similar if not the same.

@sinakaedwards2009 4 күн бұрын

@@AnnoyingCritic-is7rp I have seen the guitar reviews and held the instruments myself. Leo James, Glarry, Harley Benton, and IVY. There is a difference when you hold them you can tell compared to Schecter, Fender, Gibson, Epiphone, Ibanez, or Spector. I understand what Specter Studios says, however I am not meaning what sounds you can get out of them, I mean how long you can play them without repair.

@auntjenifer7774 2 күн бұрын

@sinakaedwards2009 😂 how many guitars have you played into obselte junk !? I have had the same classic vibe custom since 8 years, played 100's of shows with it and not one part on it has failed except for the input/ out put jack on the guitar.

@sinakaedwards2009 2 күн бұрын

@@auntjenifer7774 I play bass and have an ultra-aggressive attack. Only two basses have I broken beyond playability. No guitars as of yet though.

@raymonddehn1602 2 күн бұрын

I supposedly had one pre ordered through Sweetwater, got an envoice then, told a date of shipement and then 14 days later I got a call from the Sweetwater rep and was told I won't be getting one. Thanks for nothing Sweetwater.

@CompanyGrip 2 күн бұрын

Damn - that sucks. Sorry to hear it! After my experience as well, my first choice obviously would be to get one directly from Gibson as soon as announced. I had several retailers tell me they *thought* they were going to get X amount only to find out they were actually getting half that many. Maybe that happened with Sweetwater. Honestly not sure who’s in charge of that.

@NintenDub 22 сағат бұрын

Its funny that this really isnt a signature guitar at all. Sure it has his name, but this isnt like his guitar at all

@NintenDub 22 сағат бұрын

Why do you meed to 'convince ' ppl that its a good price or justified? Nobody can get it anyway, and likely those who are actually fans of his,aint gettin one

@f3uibeghardt522 4 күн бұрын

I have no idea who Charlie Starr is.

@adamkrauss303 4 күн бұрын

He was/is member of BlackBerry Smoke, a “Southern Rock” band and a killer player as well as vintage gear aficionado. Here is a recent vid of him performing a barn burner with Daryl Hall and his awesome band as part of the long running Live at Daryl’s House show. kzfaq.info/get/bejne/mq2BiKyIlciWcn0.htmlsi=nsp62PkptM1-m1tK

@CompanyGrip 4 күн бұрын

Great stuff!

@yogawithtoddsemo8085 4 күн бұрын

Well now sir, you are in for many treats!

@charlesrink4182 2 күн бұрын

Been following BBS since 2012. See them live you won't regret it. And make sure they are headline ‼️🎸🎸

@russellsabolic5336 12 сағат бұрын

Once you learn who he is. " if you want to walk in his boots, and take all that he took....ain't as easy as it looks"...