Gibson Les Paul Robot Guitar: Big Advance, or Crutch for the Lazy?
Written: Mar 15 '08 (Updated Mar 15 '08)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Great LP tones, really cool tuning system
Cons: Expensive, reliability issues, tuning can be off
The Bottom Line: The LP Robot guitar is a big step forward in alternate tuning technology--it actually changes string tuning--but is pricey and maybe unreliable.
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| buffoonery's Full Review: Gibson Robot Les Paul |
I think the latter is overstating the case, but I’m not completely sure about the former.
Guitars with variable tuning have become increasingly more available in recent years. Line 6 was one of (if not the) first to introduce a guitar (the Variax) that, by turning a knob, could change into different tunings. More recently, the Fender VG Stratocaster) permits you to do the same thing. (Links to both guitars are below.)
The thing about the Variax and VG Strat, though, is that you’re getting the alternate tunings via software. In other words, the guitars don’t change the actual tuning of the strings, but through magic of coding the notes you play on your standard tuned guitar are played in alternate tuning through your amp. So there are two problems here: one, it’s schizophrenic to hear you plucking sounds that are different coming through your amp, and two, you gotta use your amp.
The Gibson Les Paul Robot Guitar solves both these problems, at a price.
Let’s talk about the guitar without the tuning first. The Robot guitar is essentially a gussied-up Studio. The guitar has a chambered mahogany body that Gibson claims add sustain and resonance and is about a pound lighter than your usual Les Paul, so it’s easier for performance (about 8 ½ pounds). It has a quite striking blue silverburst nitrocellulose finish that has thinner coats for better sound and is a color that will not be used on any other LP’s. It’s really . . . different from my black Les Paul Custom. There are twenty-two medium jumbo frets on the 24 ¾” 50s mahogany neck (ebony fretboard). Electronics are the usual humbucking Alnico II 490R in the neck and Alnico V 498T in the bridge. There is a three-way selector switch, two volume and two tone controls (one doubling for activating tuner system).
Bottom-line, the guitar plays and sounds like your garden variety Les Paul Studio. Nice sustain, plenty of growl in the bridge pickup and chunk in the neck pickup with good movement up and down the neck. It’s a Les Paul, and you’d expect to pay anywhere from $1200 to $1600 list for it, maybe on the higher end of that because of the finish.
The reason you’re paying $2200 instead of $1200 (assuming you can find a copy) is the tuning system. Unlike the Variax and VG Strat, the Robot is equipped with Powerhead tuners that are actually lighter than the standard Gotoh tuners. The bridge electronically detects the tuning for each string and transmits the information to the CPU in the body. You can select DADGAD, open E, open G, dropped D, double dropped D, and E flat, as well as program your own tunings.
So what happens is, you mess with the Master Control Knob (the bridge pickup tone control), flick it up and down and the magic begins. The tuning knobs start whirring, and maybe fifteen seconds later, voila!, your strings have been retuned to the new setting, and off you go. The battery for the tuning mechanism is rechargeable and should be good for about 200 tunings. (A charge takes 90 minutes.)
It belabors the obvious to discuss the benefits of this guitar to the gigging musician who plays in alternate tunings. Hit the switch, fifteen seconds later you’re playing Stones in open G, or anybody in dropped D, or use your own tuning if you play Dashboard Confessional (on a Les Paul?). What you hear on your guitar is what you hear through your amp—no confusion and no dragging two or three guitars to a gig.
All is not perfect in Robotland, however. There is a margin of error in the tuning, and if the guitar tunes one string slightly sharp and an adjacent string slightly flat (and it happens frequently enough to be a concern), you will sound out of tune. You’ll have to disengage the tuners to re-tune yourself, and you may find you asking yourself “what’s the point?” I have read about some reliability issues, and although Gibson’s pretty good at warranty problems, who wants to go through that noise? Finally, I have heard of users stripping the tuning gears by performing manual tuning adjustments without disengaging the tuning system, and that’s a really bad thing because I doubt Gibson will cover that under the warranty.
Finally, this guitar ain’t cheap. You’re paying anywhere from $500 to $1000 for the tuning system. Think about it.
So who should buy this guitar? Performing guitarists who like Les Pauls and need alternate tunings on the fly—that’s the main niche audience for this machine. People who like gadgets have the money to spare might get a bang out of this as well. Frankly, I think this is overpriced for what you’re getting, especially considering the reliability risks, so I'm giving it a reluctant five stars. But it sure is cool.
You may find some of my other guitar reviews interesting:
Epiphone Zakk Wylde Les Paul Custom
Epiphone Les Paul Standard
Epiphone G-400 SG
Fender Classic 50s Esquire
Fender Cyclone
Fender VG Stratocaster
Fender American HSS Stratocaster
Fender Standard HSS Stratocaster
Fender John Mayer Stratocaster
Fender Eric Johnson Stratocaster
Fender Stevie Ray Vaughan Stratocaster
Fender 57 Stratocaster Reissue
Fender 50s Telecaster
G&L Legacy Strat
Gibson ES-5
Gibson ES-5 Switchmaster
Gibson ES-165 Herb Ellis
Gibson ES-175
Gibson ES-333 Memphis Style Hollow Body
Gibson ES-335
Gibson ES-335 1959 Reissue
Gibson ES-350T
Gibson ES-350T
Gibson Les Paul Classic Custom
Gibson Les Paul GT
Gibson Les Paul 1957 Goldtop
Gibson Les Paul Studio
Gibson Les Paul Robot Guitar
Gibson Les Paul Classic Ebony
Gibson SG 61 Reissue
Gibson Super 400
Gretsch Electromatic G5120 Hollow Body
Gretsch White Falcon II
Ibanez Artcore AS73 Semi-Hollow Body
Ibanez Steve Vai Jem7
Martin D-28 Acoustic
Ovation VXT Acoustic Electric
PRS McCarty
PRS Single Cut
PRS Santana SE
Schechter Diamond C 1
Variax 700 Acoustic
Other amp reviews from buffoonery:
Crate Acoustic CA30
Crate Power BlockFender Blues Deluxe Reissue
Fender Cyber Twin
Fender DSP 65
Fender 64 Vibroverb Custom Blackface
Fender Super Sonic 1x12 Combo
Fender MH 500 Metalhead
Hughes and Kettner Switchblade 50 Combo
Line 6 Spider II Head
Line 6 Flextone III Plus
Line 6 Vetta II Combo
Line 6 Spider III 75
Line 6 Spider Valve 2x12 Combo
Marshall Super 100 JH
Mesa 5:25 Express
Mesa Stiletto Ace
Mesa 5:50 Express
Mesa Dual Rectifier Roadster
Mesa Stiletto Deuce
Mesa Triple Rectifier Head
Mesa Lone Star Combo
Peavey JSX Joe Satriani Signature Head
Peavey Classic 30 Combo
Peavey Triple XXX Head
Peavey Penta Head
Roland Micro Cube
Vox Valvetronix AD60VT
Vox AD50VT-XL 50 2x12 combo
My effects and stomp box reviews:
Line 6 POD X3 Guitar Multi-Effects Board
Boss ME-20 Guitar Multiple Effects Processor
Boss GT-8 Multi-Effects Processor
Boss ME-50 Multi-Effects Processor
Digitech RP50 Guitar Effects Processor
Digitech RP80 Guitar Effects Processor
Digitech Brian May Red Special Overdrive Pedal
And you may also be interested in a few books such as:
Hugo Pinksterboer – Tipbook Amplifiers and Effects
Ritchie Fliegler – Amps: The Other Half of Rock and Roll
Michael Ross – Getting Great Guitar Sounds: A Non-Technical Approach to Shaping Your Personal Sound
Nick Freeth – Classic Guitars: Identification and Price Guide
Recommended:
Yes
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