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The three of us finally get into something that's been on the calendar for a while: what actually makes a good Les Paul. Zach brings out all his Les Pauls, Rhett has his R9, and Addison shows off the 2007 Studio Faded he's had since he was 15. We talk about what to listen and feel for when you're shopping — weight, acoustic resonance, how the D and G strings behave, and why the nut is almost always the reason your Les Paul won't stay in tune. Plus PAF pickup obsession, the case for unpotted pickups, top wrapping, tone woods, and why the inconsistency of Gibsons is a feature, not a bug. Hot take this week from Nicholas: flame tops and figured maple are ugly, and matching headstocks make a guitar look cheap. We're split.

Rig dip goes to Matt, who spent his life working in music stores and trading his way up to a rig that might be the most expensive we've ever seen. 1964 SG, 1957 Strat, 1964 ES-335, 1952 Telecaster, two Two-Rocks, a Friedman, and a pedal board with too much gain?

Thanks so much to the sponsor of today's episode, Sweetwater! Make sure to check out all the gear we use here and more: https://www.sweetwater.com/shop/dipped-in-tone/

Check out our website & merch: https://www.dippedintone.com Support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/dippedintone Follow us on Instagram: https://instagram.com/dippedintone

Dipped In Tone is: Rhett Shull https://www.rhettshull.com Zach Broyles / Mythos Pedals https://mythospedals.com & https://highvoltageguitars.com Produced & Edited by Addison! https://www.instagram.com/addisonsauvan

00:00:00 Intro 00:00:49 Addison’s Update 00:01:23 Check out Nick Loux and the High Life 00:02:32 Zach’s Update 00:06:00 3D Print Talk 00:07:36 Rhett’s Update 00:09:23 Graham’s First Guitar lessons 00:12:02 Thanks to today’s sponsor, Sweetwater! 00:13:30 Thanks to all our Patrons! 00:13:53 Hot Take 00:20:07Main Topic - Les Pauls 00:23:12 The wand finds the wizard 00:24:13 Addison’s first guitar 00:28:13 What Rhett looks for in a Les Paul 00:30:20 What Zach looks for in a Les Paul 00:32:54 RE Tuning Stability (a proper nut slot and setup) 00:36:30 Pickups 00:38:50 WOOD AFFECTS TONE DOG 00:43:17 Anything with P90s 00:47:50 The differences add up 00:50:23 Top Wrapping 00:52:02 What to look for in your first Les Paul 00:57:02 Rig Dip 01:08:05 Thanks again Sweetwater 01:08:20 And a big thanks to our Patrons!

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All three of us are back. Rhett's finally home after five weeks on the road with The Midnight, Addison has moved back to Kansas City (into the exact same house), and Zach is mid-kitchen renovation with no internet. It's fine. Everything's fine.

Hot take this week: why is basically every guitar pick the same teardrop shape? We get into pick materials, shapes, Blue Chips, the Carol Kaye felt pick thing, and the Tom Bukovac acoustic strumming trick you probably haven't tried.

Then things get serious. Fender has issued cease and desist letters to boutique S-style guitar builders across the EU, demanding they stop manufacturing, recall sold instruments, and destroy infringing inventory — all by Memorial Day. We dig into what's actually happening legally, why this almost certainly won't hold up, what it says about who's really running Fender now, and why LSL has launched a GoFundMe to fight back.

We also talk through the vintage guitar market losing its mind — including a 1959 ES-335 at Carter Vintage listed at $107,000 — and dip a rig from Cody in Portland, who built his own SG during COVID and put Gibson on the headstock.

Thanks so much to the sponsor of today's episode, Sweetwater! Make sure to check out all the gear we use here and more: https://www.sweetwater.com/shop/dipped-in-tone/

Check out our website & merch: https://www.dippedintone.com Support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/dippedintone Follow us on Instagram: https://instagram.com/dippedintone

Dipped In Tone is: Rhett Shull https://www.rhettshull.com Zach Broyles / Mythos Pedals https://mythospedals.com & https://highvoltageguitars.com Produced & Edited by Addison! https://www.instagram.com/addisonsauvan

00:00:00 Intro 00:05:14 Rhett’s Update 00:07:02 Addison’s Update 00:0832 Zach’s Update 00:10:21 Thanks Patrons! 00:10:42 Big thanks to today’s sponsor - Sweetwater 00:12:04 Hot Take 00:22:15 What is Fender thinking? 00:48:39 The Vintage Market is insane 00:59:13 Rig Dip 01:06:32 Thanks again Sweetwater! 01:06:58 Join us on Patreon

Some of our favorite gear (Affiliate Links): Universal Audio Enigmatic - https://sweetwater.sjv.io/o42Mve Fender Triple Caster - https://sweetwater.sjv.io/qzRMvq Suhr Classic S Antique - https://sweetwater.sjv.io/DyEomG Benson Delay - https://sweetwater.sjv.io/jeEb4b Boss Roland DM-101 - https://sweetwater.sjv.io/K0Nj5A TC 2290 - https://sweetwater.sjv.io/e1oz26 Universal Audio Volt 876 - https://sweetwater.sjv.io/jeko9M Boss Katana 50 Gen3 - https://sweetwater.sjv.io/DyEom5 Shure 545 (new production) - https://sweetwater.sjv.io/ravMyj Echo Fix EFX3 - https://sweetwater.sjv.io/APzZMK Helix Stadium - https://sweetwater.sjv.io/LKVnJa

Rhett calls in from the road, one month into The Midnight's tour. Their drummer landed in the hospital mid-tour, a monitor engineer stepped in off the couch to save the show, and a fill-in arrived on 17 hours notice and crushed it. Also: Rhett blew up a Divided by 13 at Brooklyn Paramount and accidentally came home with a Kirk Hammett signature V. Back in Nashville, Zach is keeping Mythos running and trying not to think too hard about it. We dig into the Chase Bliss Big Time, Rhett unboxes the CXM 1978, and we settle the debate on whether beginners should factor in resale value when buying their first guitar. Plus a Dip the Rig from Chips in the French Pyrenees.

Thanks so much to the sponsor of today's episode, Sweetwater! Make sure to check out all the gear we use here and more: https://www.sweetwater.com/shop/dipped-in-tone/

Check out our website & merch: https://www.dippedintone.com Support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/dippedintone Follow us on Instagram: https://instagram.com/dippedintone

Dipped In Tone is: Rhett Shull https://www.rhettshull.com Zach Broyles / Mythos Pedals https://mythospedals.com & https://highvoltageguitars.com Produced & Edited by Addison! https://www.instagram.com/addisonsauvan

TIME STAMPS 00:00:00 Intro 00:02:10 Zach’s Update 00:03:35 Rhett’s Update 00:06:18 Thanks so much Patrons! 00:06:38 Big thanks to today’s sponsor, Sweetwater! 00:07:12 Hot Take 00:12:10 Rhett’s been on the road with The Midnight (and rollercoasters) 00:23:03 Rhett blew up one of his amps 00:25:26 Two Rock & Divided by 13 have some of the best customer service 00:27:57 Rhett’s new Kirk Hammett Guitar 00:32:52 The New Chase Bliss Delay - The Big Time 00:50:21 Rig Dip 00:57:44 Zach Shill 01:01:03 Rhett Shill 01:03:37 Thanks again Sweetwater! 01:03:52 And thanks so much to all our Patrons

Some of our favorite gear (Affiliate Links): Universal Audio Enigmatic - https://sweetwater.sjv.io/o42Mve Fender Triple Caster - https://sweetwater.sjv.io/qzRMvq Suhr Classic S Antique - https://sweetwater.sjv.io/DyEomG Benson Delay - https://sweetwater.sjv.io/jeEb4b Boss Roland DM-101 - https://sweetwater.sjv.io/K0Nj5A TC 2290 - https://sweetwater.sjv.io/e1oz26 Universal Audio Volt 876 - https://sweetwater.sjv.io/jeko9M Boss Katana 50 Gen3 - https://sweetwater.sjv.io/DyEom5 Shure 545 (new production) - https://sweetwater.sjv.io/ravMyj Echo Fix EFX3 - https://sweetwater.sjv.io/APzZMK Helix Stadium - https://sweetwater.sjv.io/LKVnJa