GIBSON LES PAUL SPECIAL TV YELLOW

Truly special

After the great success of the Les Paul Junior, Gibson decided to release an upgraded version to fill the gap between the Junior and the Gold Top. This guitar was the Les Paul Special. It retained the essence of the Junior, keeping the slab mahogany body construction, but added a second P90 pickup. This increased versatility made it more appealing to a wider range of players. Warm Gibson tones, amazing playability, a selection of different sounds, all in a stripped-back, ready-to-rock package. What more could you ask for?

Lights, camera, action

A special finish for a special guitar. Many people wonder why the Les Paul Special is finished in “TV Yellow”. It dates back to the early days of black and white television. When acts performed on TV using white guitars, they would glow excessively under the studio lights. This caused big problems when the footage was played back, as the glow was incredibly distracting.

So to combat this, Gibson created the colour “TV Yellow”. Although it looks yellow to the naked eye, when displayed in black and white, it looks white, and doesn’t have the annoying glow white guitars produce. With the advent of colour TV this is no longer a issue, but Gibson decided to keep the colour to give their classic guitars a true vintage look.

Powerful P90 pickups

The sound of vintage Gibson. In the 1940s Gibson created the P90. Warm and twangy with exceptional clarity, this fat pickup is, in essence, a more powerful single coil. This means you get all the brightness and warmth you could ever want, with the added benefit of more punch and increased output. The Les Paul Special has two P90 pickups, one in the neck position and one in the bridge position.

The neck pickup is smooth and warm, perfect for elegant lead lines, while the bridge pickup is crisp and fat, ideal for powerful chords and soaring solos. A 3-way selector switch and dual volume and tone controls give you incredible flexibility over your sound, and each circuit is hand wired with highly sought after orange drop capacitors. The result is a precise, consistent sound that is quintessentially Gibson.

Historic look, vintage feel

If you want the amazing tone and excellent response you get from a chunky neck, the Les Paul Special has you covered. With a vintage ’50s profile carve, Gibson players will feel right at home when playing this guitar. This fat neck fits comfortably in your hand, and the smooth rosewood fingerboard not only gives you a warm sound, it also lets you glide effortlessly to any of the 22 frets.

Vintage deluxe tuners and a nickel wraparound bridge not only help contribute to this guitar’s classic look – they also provide excellent tuning stability that you can rely on. And a gloss nitrocellulose lacquer lets the wood resonate naturally and will age beautifully over time. All this results in a guitar that not only looks stunning, but is also incredibly reliable and and plays perfectly. Everything you could ever want from a Les Paul.

Total protection

Have peace of mind that your pride and joy is safe and secure. The Les Paul Special comes with a hard-shell case which is perfect for keeping your guitar secure during transit. Ideal for gigging musicians, this will help keep your instrument in pristine condition when you take it out on the road.

Specifications

Body

• Model Name: Gibson Les Paul Special, TV Yellow
• Material: Mahogany
• Finish: TV Yellow
• Lacquer: Gloss Nitrocellulose

Neck and Fingerboard

• Neck: Mahogany
• Profile: Vintage 50s
• Fingerboard: Rosewood
• Fingerboard Radius: 12″
• Inlays: Acrylic Dots
• Nut: Graph Tech
• Nut Width: 1.695″
• Scale Length: 24.75″
• Frets: Medium Jumbo
• Number of Frets: 22
• End of Board Width: 2.26″

Hardware and Electronics

• Bridge: Wraparound
• Tuners: Vintage Deluxe w/ White Buttons
• Finish: Nickel
• Knobs: Black Top Hats
• Pickguard: Black 5-ply
• Switch Tip: Amber
• Switchwasher: Black
• Jack Plate Cover: Black
• Neck Pickup: P-90
• Bridge Pickup: P-90
• Controls: 2 Volume, 2 Tone, 3-Way Toggle Switch (Hand-wired with Orange Drop Capacitors)

Miscellaneous

• Case: Hard Shell Case
• Strings: .010, .013, .017, .026, .036, .046
• Accessories: Gibson Accessory Kit