Stupid Les Paul Question

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8trackmind

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ON A LES PAUL THERE ARE FOUR KNOBS 2 TOP & 2 BOTTOM(2 VOLUME & 2 TONE WHICH ARE WHICH AND WHAT DOES WHAT)
AND ON THE 3-WAY TOGGLE SWITCH THERE IS RHYTHMN & TREBLE AND THE MIDDLE POSITION. DOES THE RHYTHM SETTING ONLY USE THE RHYTHMN PICKUP? DOES THE MIDDLE POSITION TURN ON BOTH PICKUPS?

SEE I TOLD YOU IT WAS STUPID? BUT ANY HELP WOULD BE APPRECIATED. THANKS
 
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I DONT THINK MY POST COUNT IS REGISTERING.SEEMS LIKE 24 FOR SOOOOO LONG.
 
You have a volume and a tone control for your bridge (Lead) and neck (Rythm) pickups. The tone and volume knobs closest to the bridge are for the neck pickup, and the tone and volume closest to the bottom of the guitar are for the bridge pickup. The selector switches between one, or (in the middle) both pickups.

H2H
 
You pretty much nailed it. There are seperate volume and tone controls for each pickup. The toggle switch activates each pickup independently, and simultaneously in the middle position. This set up makes the Les Paul pretty versatile. Jimmy Page use to use the neck pickup with the volume rolled back for clean sounds, then would flick the toggle to the neck when the song got heavy. I don't have a LP, but I want one for this very reason. If you shop around, you'll find that there aren't many quality guitars with this configuration. Mostly Gibson's (ie, LP,SG,335

P
 
What you can do to see/hear which pickup is in use is to get say a screwdriver (somwething with a metal end) and touch the humbuckers; there will be a slight 'hiss' on the one(s) currently selected.

Just ask if you don't get it.
 
I usually hear it when I tap the LP humbuckers with the pick (it won't scratch anything either). I realize it's strange that a nonferrous object might produce a signal, but I guess it matters not whether the string vibrates from plucking, or the pickup vibrates slightly from tapping.

Amazing what discussions a "stupid LP question" can generate.
 
Note that the Rhythm/Treble switch is notorious for becoming loose and rotating around. I never know on a given night which way it's pointing, so I just flip it back and forth when I'm tuning. Huge bass and thick "whooom" sound=neck pickup. Super distorted bright sound = bridge. Of course, the middle is always the middle, except in Australia, where it's the elddim. Goddam that's a loud guitar!
 
I've had my LP for 21 years (played daily), and my switch hasn't moved at all - is that the exception? I've never heard of it moving on LP's before.
 
I have to agree that the switch changes its orientation. It would really have to be screwed down tightly to never budge. I'm impressed that it hasn't happend to at least someone.

Speaking of volume and tone changes, do you guys typically keep your pickup heights adjusted such that the treble pup is noticeably louder (and not just by virture of its brighter tone, but by proximity to the strings)? That rear pickup is also a little hotter, so it doesn't need to be as close to the strings as the rhythm one. So, do you keep them near-equal volume or is treble loudest?
 
Got another Les Paul in January. Switch was bad out of the box. The mail order place I got it from was about as much help as a flat tire and kept reffering me to Gibson down in Nashville. Talk about a menu infested phone line. When I finally got a real person on the phone, I was told to pack it up and send it to them for repair. Jeeze! Between a reciept, and an intro from the dealer I got it from, a company the size of Gibson can't just send me one to put in myself? Amazing.
 
hmm psmith, well I doubt many of us have the luxury of owning LPs that are 21 years old. Mine is about 4 years old. But I did play a 1978 or so LP custom at a studio once that definitely had the switch reversed, so go figure. Probably when yours was built, the quality was a lot higher, the parts fit a lot better...
 
Sounds like mine was a fluke. Guitar historians would argue that the early eighties were a low point for LP's. Gibson must have screwed up and made a good one cause I wouldn't trade mine for any other LP I've ever tried - and I've tried a few - old and new. Then again I haven't had the opportunity to play a pre-sixties - that would be interesting.........

By the way, it's amazing how much the price of LP's have risen (new and used) since I bought mine. I love LP's, but I don't think I'd die if I lost it (although it would certainly be a sad day). There are a lot of fine guitars being made these days (eg Santana SE was quite nice when I tried it recently - certainly better than the Epi's I've played (not many) although the Epi's are ok).
 
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