This guitar has Seymour Duncan's Alnico II pro pickups, and the pickguard has been removed. My suspicion is that the previous owner of this guitar wanted to go for a Slash-like tone and feel, although I really don't know for sure. The coil-tapping may have been added after-market as well, the knob that pulls out to engage/disengage coil tapping appears slightly different to the other knobs. This could just be an Epiphone thing, but it makes me wonder.

I'm a Les Paul fan, for sure. They seem to be just about perfect for how I like to play, and there are precious few things I don't like about them. Here are the main reasons why I love Les Pauls:

1. They have a great sound. This is arguably the most important thing to look for in a guitar, I think. The Les Paul just has a voice I like, and whenever I need a little motivation, all I need to do is play it a bit and listen.

2. The weight. I like the feel of it, I like how it feels so incredibly sturdy. It's just awesome. The guitar's a tank, for real.

3. No trem. I have one guitar with a trem, and I don't think I ever want to get another one. If I do, though, it had better be a really good guitar to make up for that one mistake. I think a good hardtail beats tremolo systems any day. Again, it's just personal preference thing, but as far as I'm concerned, hard tails are the thing to have.

4. The looks. I don't think I have to elaborate much on this one, just look at it. Flame maple. Carved top. Need I say more?

5. Separate tone/volume controls for each pickup. Just a convenience.