Show Full Spec Comparison
| Epiphone Les Paul Standard 50s | Les Paul Junior | |
|---|---|---|
| General | ||
| Brand: | Epiphone | Epiphone |
| Year: | 2020 | 2020 |
| Configuration: | HH | P90 |
| Strings: | 6 | 6 |
| Made in: | China | China |
| Series: | Epiphone Inspired by Gibson | Epiphone Inspired by Gibson |
| Colors: | Gold, Vintage Sunburst, Heritage Cherry Sunburst | Brown Burst Burst |
| Left-Handed Version: | Yes | No |
| Body | ||
| Type: | Solid Body | Solid Body |
| Body Material: | Mahogany | Mahogany |
| Bridge: | Epiphone LockTone Tune-O-Matic | Lightning Bar Wrap Around |
| Neck | ||
| Neck Joint: | Set | Set |
| Tuners: | Epiphone Vintage Deluxe 18:1 ratio machine heads | Epiphone Deluxe Vintage |
| Fretboard: | Indian Laurel | Indian Laurel |
| Neck Material: | Mahogany | Mahogany |
| Decoration: | Trapezoid | Dot |
| Scale Size: | 24.75" | 24.75" |
| Shape: | 50s Rounded Medium C | Vintage 50s |
| Frets: | 22 Medium Jumbo Nickel Silver | 22 Medium Jumbo Nickel Silver |
| Fretboard Radius: | 12" | 12" |
| Nut: | NuBone | NuBone |
| Nut Width: | 43mm (1.693'') | 43mm (1.693'') |
| Electronics | ||
| Bridge Pickups: | Epiphone ProBucker 2 (Humbucker / Passive) | Epiphone P-90 PRO Dogear (P90 / Passive) |
| Middle Pickup: | ||
| Neck Pickup: | Epiphone ProBucker 1 (Humbucker / Passive) | |
| Switch: | 3 Way | 0 Way |
| Knobs: | Bell | Speed |
| Pickup Mods: | None | None |
| Volume Controls: | 2 | 1 |
| Tone Controls: | 2 | 1 |
| Hardware | ||
| Strap Lock: | No | No |
| Hardware Color: | Chrome | Chrome |
Show Diagrams Comparison
Reasons to Get
Epiphone Les Paul Standard 50s over Les Paul Junior
Reasons to Get
Epiphone Les Paul Junior over Les Paul Standard 50s
Other Key Differences
Epiphone Les Paul Standard 50s vs Les Paul Junior
Shared Features
Epiphone Les Paul Standard 50s vs Les Paul Junior
Common Strengths
- High-Quality Nut
- Expensive Wood
Common Weaknesses
- Neck-Through Build
- Pickup Alter Switch/Knob
- Weight Relief
- Locking Tuners
- Stays in Tune (Evertune)
- High-Quality Frets
- Compound Radius Fretboard
- From a High-Quality-Standards Country
- Luminescent Sidedots
- Strap Lock
- Top Pickup Brand
- 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- Active/Passive Preamp
Price History Comparison
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Hand Size Comfortability
And after taking into account the scale length, nut width, neck profile and fretboard radius, we can conclude that the Epiphone Les Paul Junior favors large hands more than the Epiphone Les Paul Standard 50s.
Epiphone Les Paul Standard 50s:
Epiphone Les Paul Junior:
Beginner Friendliness
The Epiphone Les Paul Standard 50s meets 4 out of our 8 criteria items for beginner friendliness, while the Epiphone Les Paul Junior meets only 3. This takes into account the type of frets, scale length, nut width, bridge type, fretboard radius, and neck profile to determine the easiest combination for new players.
New Player Friendliness
Epiphone Les Paul Standard 50s- Comfortable shape
- Easy-to-use bridge
- Tall frets
- Comfortable neck
- Comfortable fretboard
- Narrow nut
- Short scale
- Locking tuners
New Player Friendliness
Epiphone Les Paul Junior- Comfortable shape
- Easy-to-use bridge
- Tall frets
- Comfortable fretboard
- Narrow nut
- Short scale
- Comfortable neck
- Locking tuners
Sound Quality Comparison
The wood used in an electric guitar or bass is not as important to determine the final tone. However, some people prefer specific wood types, so we'll take a look at those first. Then, we'll take a look at the electronics to determine the versatility and sound quality of each instrument.
Woods Used in Both
Mahogany is a fairly rare wood nowadays. It's used mostly for bodies due to its relatively lightweight. Gibson popularized it with their Les Paul guitars during their golden years, so this wood has a lot of good reputation behind it. The most expensive type comes from South America and it's still used by Gibson even today. Find out more about Mahogany.
There are many types of Laurel, but East Indian is the most common for guitar building. Its color can vary from dark to light brown with black lines. Many people find its tonality similar to Rosewood, which favors the warmer frequencies. Find out more about Laurel.
Winner: Tie.
Pickup Configuration
The Epiphone Les Paul Standard 50s has an HH configuration while the Epiphone Les Paul Junior has P90 pickups.
Double Humbucker (HH) is the choice for people who want a fuller, more round sound with tons of mids and lows. Humbuckers also get rid of the hum noise that plague single-coil pickups. They can work out for almost any genre going from Djent to even Jazz.
On the other hand, P90s are vintage pickups that are somewhere in the middle between a Humbucker and a single coil. They have decent output, and the tone is not too warm. It's a very particular type of sound that is used in many genres, but it was more popular decades ago.
Like any other single-pickup guitars, it should give you a bit more sustain since there will be less interference with the vibration of the strings. However, you're stuck to one single tone, unless you use effect pedals.Pickups Quality
The Epiphone Les Paul Junior pickups from a more specialized brand than the Epiphone Les Paul Standard 50s. Its pickups should give you a fuller, richer sound, although it all depends on what type of music you're going to play. We recommend these pickups for Country and similar genres.
Both use Passive pickups. This is what's used for most music genres. They have a regular output and will serve you for both high-gain and clean tones. The alternative (Active pickups) offer a higher output that is mostly used for heavy music.
Winner: Epiphone Les Paul Junior.
Versatility Comparison
Some instruments offer you more ways to explore your creativity than others. Below you'll find how both compare when it comes to versatility.
Switch Options
The Epiphone Les Paul Standard 50s gives you 3 switch options while the Epiphone Les Paul Junior gives you 0. This means that the Epiphone Les Paul Standard 50s gives you more options to find the right pickup combination for the type of sound you want to achieve
Neither of them come with some kind of coil split or pickup mod option. This makes both lacking in terms of versatility.
When evaluating versatility, we also take into consideration bridge and neck joint type, number of frets, switch options, amount of pickups and more.
Winner: Epiphone Les Paul Standard 50s.
Final Sound Quality Scores
Build Quality Comparison
When it comes to build quality, we like to take into account everything used to build the instrument. This includes materials, hardware and the quality control expected depending on the country where it was built. Let's see how the Epiphone Les Paul Standard 50s compares to the Epiphone Les Paul Junior.
Country of Origin
The manufacturing country can tell a lot about the build quality of an instrument. Both in this comparison where made in China.
China has a bad reputation when it comes to building quality. However, times have changed and now respectable brands use China's cheap labor to build good instruments for a lower price. Don't discount a guitar only because it was built in China, but also expect more quality from countries like Korea.
Winner: Tie
Nut Material
If you want your guitar to stay in tune and sound good, you need a well cut nut. Nut quality can be inconsistent even when comparing two copies of the same model. The best way to make sure you're nut will be well done is by getting a nut made by an expert company like TUSQ or Micarta.
In this case, both have NuBone nuts. It's made by the same company that makes TUSQ nuts. It's slightly softer but hard enough to give you a brighter sound when playing open strings. It's also self-lubricating, so it's good for tuning stability.
Fret Material
Most fret wire is made of nickel silver. This material eventually wears down after a lot of use and most instruments end up needing a complete fret replacement. However, some expensive models come with stainless steel frets. This is what you should aim for if you can afford it.
Unfortunately, none of them come with stainless steel frets.
Winner: Tie.
Bridge
The perfect bridge for you will depend on your playstyle because they all have advantages and disadvantages. However, some bridges are more expensive—like Floyd Roses and Evertunes—and thus add more value to a guitar.
Both come with a similar bridge: Fixed. It's a simple bridge that is very beginner-friendly since it doesn't require any set-up. You can swap strings easily. It might also give more sustain since it doesn't have complex moving parts that make the strings lose vibration. However, it doesn't have the same versatility as a tremolo bridge.
Since we need to be objective, the most expensive type of bridge will be the winner of this section. In the end, this doesn't matter if you're not going to use the bridge for its original purpose, so choose the bridge that fits your playing style better.
Winner: Tie.
Tuners
Both come with regular tuners. The Epiphone Les Paul Standard 50s's are Epiphone Vintage Deluxe 18:1 ratio machine heads while the Epiphone Les Paul Junior's are Epiphone Deluxe Vintage
Winner: Tie.
Neck Joint
Contrary to popular belief, the difference in sustain and tone that some neck joints give to a guitar is simply unperceivable—if they're all well built. However, some of them do have advantages over the others.
Both have a Set neck joint. This neck is tightly glued to the body. They give you the least versatility because you can't swap them for a neck that fits your hand better if you want to, unlike bolt-on necks. Some people think this gives more resonance and sustain, but there's no real difference if the bolt-on joint is well built.
Winner: Tie.
Here is the list of features that were considered when choosing the winner in the Features subcategory:
Epiphone Les Paul Standard 50s
- Expensive Wood
- NuBone Nut
- Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
- No Locking Tuners
- Made in China
- No Top Brand Pickups
- No Neck-Through Build
- No Push Knob or Extra Switch Option
- No Weight Relief
- No Luminescent Inlay
- No Tremolo
- No Compound Radius Fretboard
- No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- No Strap Lock
Epiphone Les Paul Junior
- Expensive Wood
- NuBone Nut
- Cheap Fret Wire (NS)
- No Locking Tuners
- Made in China
- No Top Brand Pickups
- No Neck-Through Build
- No Push Knob or Extra Switch Option
- No Weight Relief
- No Luminescent Inlay
- No Tremolo
- No Compound Radius Fretboard
- No 21:1 Tuner Ratio
- No Strap Lock
Final Build Quality Scores
Playability Comparison
Let's now compare their playability. Bear in mind that the instrument will feel different depending on your hand size and play style. That's why you should always test before buying. But if you can't or want a second opinion on it, we can still take a look at each of the important measurements of the instrument for you. This way, we can predict how easy a guitar might be to play, or how different it will feel compared to the other.
Remember that, even though the difference might seem small, every inch counts when it comes to feeling of the instrument in your hands. Any variation can completely change how comfortable a guitar feels in your hands.
Nut Width
The nut width will affect the separation between strings at the nut. In this comparison, both have a nut width of 43mm (1.693'').
This is within the most common range of nut widths for a 6-string guitar. It offers a good balance of string separation at the nut. It's the size that most guitarists prefer as it gives them just enough space to play open chords without muting the strings, but without spreading the strings too wide and making bar chords difficult to perform.
Scale Length
The scale length is one of the things that influences playability the most. This is the distance between the nut and the bridge and will affect everything from low action allowance, difficulty to perform bends, fret separation, and even tone.
In this case, both have a scale length of 24.75".
This is the scale length that Gibson uses for most of its Les Paul guitars. It's a smaller scale than the typical Stratocaster's 25.5''. Short scale lengths like this make it easier to bend the strings, which is pretty important if you have a fixed bridge. They also have a shorter fret separation, which makes it easier to change position fast at the fretboard.
On the other hand, a shorter scale like this one will make fret buzz more likely, which can affect you if you want to use thicker string gauges.
Lastly, remember that you can also affect the tension of the strings by changing your string gauge. You can use a thicker gauge for more tension and a lighter one for less tension.
Neck Profile
No single neck shape is better than others. However, most people tend to prefer a thinner necks because it doesn't get in their way when playing fast and most hand sizes can adapt to it pretty well. However, some people still prefer thicker necks for a better grip, especially if they have big hands.
In this case, both have different neck shapes:
The Epiphone Les Paul Standard 50s has a C type of neck. This is what you'll find in most modern guitars. Most people feel like the thickness of a C neck is simply the less intrusive one for playing fast, while at the same time allowing you to grab the neck easily for resting if you want to.
The Epiphone Les Paul Junior, on the other hand, has a V neck. This neck shape was more common during Fender's early years. Some people like it because they use their thumb over the edge of the fretboard to press the lower strings. It's rather thicker than most modern necks, so it's not usually used for playing fast solos.
Fretboard Radius
Most guitar fretboards are not flat; they usually have a curve or arc across their width. A curved fretboard will make it easier to perform chords without muting strings, while a flatter one will make it easier to play single notes, which is good for bending and soloing in general. The best fretboards have a compound radius that varies across the fingerboard, but they're not common since they take a lot more work to build.
Both the Epiphone Les Paul Standard 50s and the Epiphone Les Paul Junior have the same fretboard radius of 12". This is the radius used in most Gibson guitars. It gives you a good balance for playing chords without muting, but also good comfortability for playing single notes and bending.
Fret Size
Both have a Medium Jumbo fret size. These are slightly shorter than full Jumbo frets, so you'll still feel the fretboard when pressing down the strings. However, they interfere less with your fretting hand than medium-size frets. This is a good size if you like easy-to-press frets, but would still like to feel a bit of the fretboard when playing.
