While the 1970s Norlin phase of Gibson’s history is seen today as a time when the manufacturer strayed from its traditional quality, it was also a period when new, interesting models continued to be created. One of these new designs was the L-5S. This guitar was meant to be a high-quality solidbody version of the classic L-5 archtop, which had been a flagship model since 1922.
The L-5S shared many decorative embellishments with the L-5, such as a multi-ply top and back binding, along with a bound ebony fingerboard coming to an ornamental point at the end. The famous L-5 “flower pot” headstock motif and block inlays were also included, but now in abalone. Completing the elegant look was the traditional art deco L-5 tailpiece. At nearly 13 1/2", the body was a little wider than a Les Paul, but it was also thinner at only 1" deep. When the model was introduced in 1972, it was equipped with the same low-impedance pickups used on the Les Paul Personal, Professional, and Signature models. These pickups proved unpopular and were replaced by regular-sized humbuckers in 1974. The L-5S was discontinued in 1985, but has been resurrected from time to time as a special run Custom Shop model.
The L-5S shared decorative embellishments with the L-5, including multi-ply top and back binding, an art deco tailpiece,
and a bound ebony fretboard.
The 1974 L-5S pictured here has features typical for that year, including a carved, 3-piece figured-maple body with multiple black/white/black binding, a gold-plated “wide travel” Tune-o-matic bridge, a gold L-5 tailpiece with silver-plated insert (which changed to a stop tailpiece by 1976), two gold-plated Gibson “Super Humbucking” pickups, a 3-piece maple neck with a 24 3/4"-scale ebony fretboard, and abalone headstock and fretboard inlays. The controls were laid out in the same manner as on an SG or ES-335, with the pickup selector toggle switch near the volume and tone controls.
The model’s elegant headstock has an ornate “flower pot” inlay and multi-ply binding.
Gibson shipped 555 L-5S guitars in 1974 with a list price of $985 plus $110 for the case. The current value for one in excellent all-original condition is $5,000.
Sources for this article include The Gibson L5: Its History and Its Players by Adrian Ingram, Electric Guitars and Basses: A Photographic History by George Gruhn and Walter Carter, and Gibson Shipment Totals 1937–1979 by Larry Meiners.
Revv G3 Purple Channel Preamp/Overdrive/Distortion Pedal - Anniversary Edition
The Revv G3 revolutionized high gain pedals in 2018 with its tube-like response & tight, clear high gain tones. Suddenly the same boutique tones used by metal artists & producers worldwide were available to anyone in a compact pedal. Now the G3 returns with a new V2 circuit revision that raises the bar again.
If 3 Were 6
With six times the controls found on the 1 and 2 versions (if you discount the original’s on/off slider switch,) the LPB-3’s control complement offers pre-gain, boost, mid freq, bass, treble, and mid knobs, with a center detent on the latter three so you can find the midpoint easily. A mini-toggle labeled “max” selects between 20 dB and 33 dB of maximum gain, and another labeled “Q” flips the resonance of the mid EQ between high and low. Obviously, this represents a significant expansion of the LPB’s capabilities.
More than just a booster with a passive tone, the LPB-3 boasts a genuine active EQ stage plus parametric midrange section, comprising the two knobs with shaded legends, mid freq and mid level. The gain stages have also been reimagined to include a pre-gain stage before the EQ, which enables up to 20 dB of input gain. The boost stage that follows the EQ is essentially a level control with gain to allow for up to 33 dB of gain through the LPB-3 when the “max” mini toggle is set to 33dB
A slider switch accessible inside the pedal selects between buffered or true bypass for the hard-latch footswitch. An AC adapter is included, which supplies 200mA of DC at 9.6 volts to the center-negative power input, and EHX specifies that nothing supplying less than 120mA or more than 12 volts should be used. There’s no space for an internal battery.
Power-Boosted
The LPB-3 reveals boatloads of range that betters many linear boosts on the market. There’s lots of tone-shaping power here. Uncolored boost is available when you want it, and the preamp gain knob colors and fattens your signal as you crank it up—even before you tap into the massive flexibility in the EQ stage.
“The preamp gain knob colors and fattens your signal as you crank it up—even before you tap into the massive flexibility in the EQ stage.”
I found the two mid controls work best when used judiciously, and my guitars and amps preferred subtle changes pretty close to the midpoint on each. However, there are still tremendous variations in your mid boost (or scoop, for that matter) within just 15 or 20 percent range in either direction from the center detent. Pushing the boost and pre-gain too far, particularly with the 33 dB setting engaged, can lead to some harsh sounds, but they are easy to avoid and might even be desirable for some users that like to work at more creative extremes.
The Verdict
The new LPB-3 has much, much more range than its predecessors, providing flexible preamp, boost, and overdrive sounds that can be reshaped in significant ways via the powerful EQ. It gives precise tone-tuning flexibility to sticklers that like to match a guitar and amp to a song in a very precise way, but also opens up more radical paths for experimentalists. That it does all this at a $129 price is beyond reasonable.
Electro-Harmonix Lpb-3 Linear Power Booster & Eq Effect Pedal Silver And Blue
