can you help me please!

[lennon325]

I have never played a 325 and would like to purchase one within the next couple of years after i save up. Can anyone tell what it is like going from a les paul standard to a 325 this would really help me make decision. BTW i am thinking about getting a 325c58. thank you

[JakeK]

Welcome Patrick! Our own Wes Mitchell can tell you about the big move from a Les Paul to a 325C58 easily enough as he did it himself last March, I think. Tell him Wes!

[kiramdear]

Welcome!
I'll take a cursory stab. The first difference you will notice is the scale length. At about 4" shorter than a Les Paul, you may find the frets on your 325 too close together above the 12th fret if your hands are large. The fretboard is a lot narrower, too, and the strings noticeably closer together. Les Pauls tend to have pretty flat boards, too, while your 325 may have less radius to the curve. Weight will be less than a Paul, typically, but the 325 is not real lightweight for its diminutive profile. Tone will be different, twangier, with single-coil p'ups in the 325, double in the Paul. You may find the middle pickup gets in the way of your picking, too, or not. In other words, it's like night and day!
Let us know how it goes.

[lennon325]

thank you very much it will be a long while before i get one but seeing as how i have to save up about 3,400-3,500 dollars before i can afford it because im broke but i would like to know what im getting myself into. as i already know rickenbackers are great. i get to play my dads prized 1980 4001 fireglo whenever i see him

[deaconblues]

I currently own a Les Paul '58 reissue and used to own a 325c58. Despite being reissues from the same year, they are completely different in every respect.

Weight: The Les Paul is brick-like, the 325 is so feather-light it's like holding nothing at all.

Hardware: The 325 has the distinct Rickenbacker top-mounted hardware and neck that sits a half-inch or so above the body, unlike a Les Paul which has a flush-mounted fretboard. I kept the Kauffman Vibrola, which looks really cool but is functionally useless.

Feel: My Les Paul has a chunky neck, but if yours has a slim one, the difference will be very apparent. The 325 has a very "square" neck shape, with thick "shoulders." The fretboard radius is smaller and the frets are tall and thin. This combined with the thick strings that are recommended means that you'll be doing a lot less extreme string-bending. As mentioned, the neck is slimmer at the nut. The 325 is a much more lively instrument acoustically, though.

Sound: The 325 has a much thinner, more "clanky" sound which lends itself well to the old Beatles rhythm stuff. The pickups, rated at about 5K ohms or less, just don't have the power to be very effective when soloing - especially the bridge pickup by itself. That's part of the reason I traded mine in for a 325c64 with higher-output pickups. The 325 doesn't sustain as well, owing to the semi-hollow body and non-stop tail. I would NOT say I prefer one guitar's tone over the other, they're just both suited to very different jobs.

[jingle_jangle]

We should clarify about the weight, Kira. You have a Miami, which is about two pounds heavier than a C58, so there's a lot of variance between the two.

The average Les Paul tips the scales at 8.5-9 pounds, so a C58 is a bit more than half as heavy as one. My Les Paul Personal (bigger body and more hardware) is almost 10 pounds dripping wet...

First time I picked up my C58 (which is Dan's old one), I was amazed at how light it was--like a feather. That, and its diminutive size, lends itself to antics like waving it about by the headstock, etc. It is peculiarly suited to the stage presence of the Sullivan-era John Lennon.

George, with his sewer-cover Country Gent, is seen simply bowing at the waist, Gretsch clutched to his midsection...

[kiramdear]

We should clarify about the weight, Kira. You have a Miami, which is about two pounds heavier than a C58, so there's a lot of variance between the two.

What accounts for the weight difference? Just the choice of wood? Is the thinner model more solid?

[beatlefreak]

The Alder in the C58 is much lighter. At SoCal in 2007, I got to compare the weight difference between my 325V59 and a 325C58 that was there. It was absolutely amazing! The C58 is way lighter, even though the body is thicker.

[deaconblues]

Plus, I think the routing/bracing in 320s and the V-Series is different. My 325c64 is much lighter and louder acoustically than a 325v63 I owned before. The C's are definitely much more hollow.

[GSRIC]

Thank you Kira - for your explanations of the differences between a Les Paul and a Ric 325....I was also wondering about the differences even though they are both smaller scale guitars. The frets being so close to eachother on the Ric 325 is hard to get used to unless you have small hands and its nice to know that info before plunking down a large sum of $$ to get one - as nice and glamorous as the 325's are.

[Ricara]

I've yet to get a 325, but the short scale is one of the main attractions. My guitar "hero" was Jimi, who had crazy big hands. On him the 25.5" Strat seemed small.

Just for fun I bought a Mexican made Duo-Sonic on eBay, which is Fender's 3/4 size guitar. The scale is around 22.5" and I loved it. So when I found out that the 325 was even smaller, I decided to find one.

Unfortunately I can't even see what is for sale as I don't have enough posts yet....