Which Epiphone Les Paul comes with Gibson pickups?

I've only ever seen one Epiphone Les Paul that ships with Gibson branded pickups, and it's a Limited Edition version of the 1959 Standard. That means it may or may not be available by the time these words reach your eyes. You'll need to do some checking around.

But for now, you can get Gibson tone for an Epiphone price. 

Gibson is like Fender in that they make their own line of pickups which are quite good, and far better than stock.

Read more: Best Electric Guitars Overall

Epiphone ProBucker VS Gibson BurstBucker?

However, when you downgrade to an Epiphone, pickups are one of the main ways they cut cost.

For example, the Epiphone ProBucker set runs at about $170, while the Gibson BurstBucker set is close to $400. 

Here's a quick look at the Gibson BurstBucker pickup design:

The Epiphone ProBuckers are still decent pickups and they sound great for what you pay. But if you want Gibson, the Limited Edition 1959 is your only shot before upgrading to an actual Gibson brand Les Paul.

On the 1959 LE's product page you get some good information on the 1959 Standard and how it sort of came out of the Gibson Custom Shop.

Conclusion

The LE 1959 consistently one of the top selling Epiphone guitars, so I'd expect it to stay on the market, despite being listed as a "limited edition" model. If you want Gibson pickups without buying an actual Gibson, this is your best bet.

The alternative would be some kind of pickup mod, which can be a pain if you don't want to fool with that sort of thing.

If you have questions, leave them in the comments section below and we'll chat.

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