Stratocaster or Les Paul?

Question

I've had a crappy strat knockoff for 2 years and im ready to get a quality guitar. Right now im leaning toward a strat because my 3 favourite guitarists use them (David Gilmour, Jimi Hendrix, and
John Frusciante however i also like some jimmy page stuff).

I've read that les pauls are best for metal and have a thicker sound but i won't ever play metal. The sound im trying to get is (not surprisingly) John Frusciante meets Jimi Hendrix and some pink floyd psychedelic stuff

Another reason i like strats is that it has the whammy and i NEED a whammy bar to nail this sound.

Also I heard replacing the pickups in the strat can make it sound beautiful. So any pickup suggestions to get this sound that im looking for

Thank You!

And for what its worth, i have a Peavey Classic 30 and i usually play through a wah and im in the process of getting a fuzz factory.

Answer 1

yeah, les Paul's are good for metal, but they don't HAVE to play metal. i have a les paul standard, and i can get a really creamy lead sound or a thick distortion, depending on what effect pedals i use and which pickup. its better for playing metal compared to a strat, but it can play alot of different genres. also, you could find one of the few les Paul's that has a tremolo. theres a epi les paul that has coil tap AND a tremolo for about 500ish, and there are probally different models. you could also get a whammy pedal, i don't personally like them compared to a real whammy bar, but it would be good if you couldn't find anything else.



also, never say never. you may decide one day that metal actually sounds cool. it can happen, i went from only listening to country, thinking all metal was no talent screamo, to hardly listening to anything but metal. and i converted from country, you ain't to far off. just sayin

Answer 2

Whether to buy a Les Paul or a Strat is really not even a valid question. That's like saying should I use salt or pepper. The only correct answer to that question is to buy both.

Answer 3

Hello there,



Those are quite different guitars. Both are good in their own right. But they are very different in many ways. Yes, the Strat has a tremolo bridge and the Les Paul has a fixed bridge. The Les Paul comes with a pair of humbucking pickups. The Strat can be had in about any pickup configuration you want; there are lots of different models. The body shape and weight are quite different. The LP tends to be a lot heavier than a Strat. The necks are totally different. The Strat has a bolt on neck. The LP has a set neck. It is the set neck in conjunction with the heavy body that gives the LP is tone and sustain. The scale is dfferent. The LP has a 24 3/4 inch scale and the Strat has a 25 1/2 inch scale. That means the frets are closer together on the LP than on the Strat. The profile of the necks are different. The LP has a rounded profile that gives the neck a substantial feel, but a thick feel compared to the thinner feeling Strat neck. If you have not played a LP, you will need to try one before you switch to the LP. It will feel very different after playing a Strat for a while.



If you have found the Strat clone comfortable to play and just want a better guitar, stick with the body shape and neck style that you are accustomed to. Get a better Strat. The Fender Standard (MIM) is a very good guitar. They are not expensive new and you can usually get a used one for somewhere between $200 and $300 depending on condition, pickup configuration and color.



Yes, the humbucking pickups of the LP will give you a fatter tone that is very good for distortion. However, they are not as crisp clean as the Strat. The LP tends to sound a little muddy clean.



You can always swap out the pickups if you do not really like them. But I suggest trying the stock pickups for a while. Many folks, myself included, like the sound of the stock MIM Strat pickups. I like them so much I have used them in several project guitars I have built. The Alinco magnets in Fender US pickups do sound different. Jimi had stock 60s pickups on his Strats. Those were not high output pickups back then. If you really don't like the stock pickups, you can always buy a set of Fender American pickups from ebay and sell your stock MIM pickups. There will be plenty of takers for those MIM pickups.



Later,

Answer 4

it's apples and oranges really. they're both quality guitars, i have played both and enjoyed them. i prefer the strat myself for varying reasons, but it all boils down to personal preference. there is no "better" guitar. try them both out at a guitar shop and see which one feels right for you.

Answer 5

Slash use a les paul so : LES PAUL !!!!