Alba Les Paul copy

Sunburst finish, Solid maple body, Maple neck with rosewood fretboard complete with inlays. Two humbucker pickups, non-branded chrome effect tuning pegs, Tune-O-Maticish style bridge. Came complete with lead and tools.

I have played guitar on and off for a little over twenty years and have never spent an awful lot of money. I have previously owned an Epiphone Les Paul (??299) and a Fender Stratocaster (japanese built/Fender badged ??350) but back then (about 15 years ago) I was probably too inexperienced to judge the quality of what would be regarded now as fairly well-made guitar.

I play as an aid to songwriting rather than aiming to master the instrument. I use a Zoom 505 effects unit and a combination of the Roland VS840 and Zoom MRS1608 CD digital multi track recorders. The sound quality of an instrument is paramount as the aim is to record CD quality audio. I have a Stagg G2 Strat copy which is a very playable guitar but because the electronics are so noisy it is awful to use for recording. This Les Paul copy on the other hand is very quiet and the sound is great, even when used without amp simulation/effects.

The set-up from the factory was quite poor. The action was a little too high and the neck was adjusted so that string buzz occurred at the first couple of frets. I have since adjusted the truss rod and intonation so that the buzz has been eradicated, but I will eventually take the action a bit lower if I can.

Although the hardware is so obviously cheap, the build quality is amazing for the price (I paid ??46 for it on Ebay). The only gripe I had was with the bridge adjustment screws which were loose in the threads, so much so that buzzing was evident. I have used a smearing of vaseline on the screws for the time being but when the final adjustments are made I will probably use some light screw/thread locker.

I never have and never will play live so cannot comment on the guitars suitability for live performance. I would imagine that the sound would cut it but could foresee the instrument going out of tune periodically when exposed to a harsh live thrashing.

The hardware is budget stuff throughout so replacement or modification would be important to the serious guitarist. Generally, the quality of the finish (fret wire, binding, etc) is exceptional for the price (??120 approx.)

No experience with customer support. The guitar has a 2 year guarantee.

If this guitar was lost or stolen I would get another without hesitation, especially if I could get it for around ??50 to ??7(eBay ;)
I love it because I wanted a Les Paul and was never going to be able to afford one (maybe one day!). I would recommend it to a beginner but would equally 'big it up' to serious/professional instrumentalists because its inexpensiveness belies its overall quality.

I BOUGHT 2 ALBA LES PAUL'S NEW OFF EBAY FIRST WAS BLACK AND CREAM THE OYHER WHITE AND CREAM FOR THE MONEY I PAID WHICH WAS ??45.00 FOR THE BLACK ONE AND ??60 FOR THE WHITE YOU CANT GO WRONG THE PICKUPS ON THE BLACK ARE VERY P0WERFUL AND GREAT FOR ROCK GUITAR THE WHITE ALBA PICKUP ARE GOOD TO JUST alittle weaker than the black one very playable neck good intonation quite good for a cheap guitar nice low action and good cosmetic finish

the sound is out standing no noise .sounds great through any of my amps .great for blues and rock the guitars holds the high notes for ages

setup is good may need a tweek here and there but not much ive brought the pickups as close to the strings as possible for maximum sound this makes the guitar sound even better.the only setback is the tuners their not that hot but they are ok but i may change them at some point this this is the only let down with the guitar but not a big issue considering what i paid for both guitar was only ??105.

can be used for gigging but would be best as a backup guitar than a main stage guitar the guitar has a good finish .

din't need them

ive been playing 35 years .ive 60 guitars in all mainly 60's ones yes i know its crazy but i just love guitars but some must go soon .what i love about the alba is the great pickup sound and the guitar has a good heavy weight to it like a top of the range guitar has .the sound of the alba is unique to all my other guitars so it will stay in my collection .if it was stolen i'd proberbly buy another off ebay .they sell for peanuts ive even seen them sell for just under ??40.00 sometimes .so if you want a first guitar this is a great guitar to buy without breaking the bank . forgot to add this is a setneck guitar not a bolt on and has the famous open book headstock .like G....n's

Standard Les Paul configuration. But this one is a cherry sunburst to go with my previous white one (see below). I had to buy another :-)

The sound is not surprisingly very much like the white one. It actually had the neck pickup set a little lower, which made it sound a bit mellower... I will probably leave it as it is. Good sounds!

Again, this one is well set up. The finish is better than the white one. The body binding is actual binding, not just painted. The body grain is very subtle, not like a tiger-stripe we see often nowadays... I actually prefer it this way and it's why I chose this one. You can see the wood underneath, even on the back and the neck (cherry stained), and how the headstock is manufactured etc... I'm very happy with the finish on this one.

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Looking for a Les Paul without a Gibson price tag? If these two guitars are anything to go by, Alba is a good budget choice. They look good, they feel good, and they sound great... the pickups are not the hottest, but suit my style well, and it'd be simple to install another set of pickups of your choice and still save a lot of money, if you require something hotter.
Would I buy another? No... I just DID! :-)

White finish all over, back, neck and headstock. Black stripe on top edge of body to simulate binding. Archtop. Usual Les Paul shape and configuration. Cream pickup surrounds and pickguard. Gold bell-like speed knobs for volume and tone. Trapezoid inlays on neck. Chrome finish on hardware.
Can't tell what wood it is without removing the pickups or opening the control cavity, but it's claimed to be mahogany. The weight seems consistent, it certainly feels very much like a real Les Paul.
Made in China.

I was very pleasantly surprised when I plugged this guitar in. I took it first because it looked nice (while Les Paul, hmmmm), and I wasn't expecting much, given the origin and the price. But unplugged it felt solid and resonant... still, I expected some wimpy generic pickups. Not at all!
I'd say these pickups are rather hot, but not extreme, they retain the perfct balance to cover anything from hard rock to jazz, from heavy metal to funk, just like a Les Paul should. That day I felt very "Santana", and this guitar was nicely set up and with a little gain the sustain was espectacular. Ok, yes, I am not talking about a ??2000 guitar here... so I won't claim it's as good as a PRS, but soundwise I am VERY happy with this beast!
The bridge pickup is very gnarrly, great rhythm and crunch. The neck is mellow and avoid the boominess that cheap pickups often have. With both pickups on, and altering the controls, the range of sounds is enormous, as expected on a Les Paul. Very nice!

The guitar was well set up, the frets well dressed and cut. the action was a little low for my liking, but it didn't buzz unless I hit the strings very hard, it was good. Well intonated and the pickup heights nicely matched. Somebody has paid attention to this guitar.
The finish is where this guitar loses a few points. The edge of the neck has this pseudo buinding in black, and it has a few places where the paint runs into teh side of the neck. Very minor, but it's there. Also at the bottom of the neck, where it joins the body. Again, very minor, and purely cosmetic, and nobody will really se it... but it's not perfect... This would bother me on a ??2000 guitar. Even on a ??500 guitar. But at this price... it's a steal. So, set up etc was perfect, but because of some minor finish flaws, the score comes down to 8.

No idea. It seems well built, but I'd probably check the electronics if I were going to gig seriously... still, for now I have no reason to doubt it.
The white finish is holding well and it's easy to clean.

1 year warranty, but it's a simple guitar. It's structurally sound, so unlikely to be needed.

Been playing for over 15 years, played and owned too many guitars, starting from some cheap atrocities, moving onto more expensive stuff, and ocassionally been surprised by the quality of some of the cheaper end guitars available nowadays. "Made in China" doesn't mean anymore "garbage", although cheaper guitars do seem to have not so good finishes, still, some sound just like their sisters costing easily 3 times as much!
A white Les Paul that sounds and plays and feels just like it should... for ??159? Give me two! ;-)
The only thing I dislike, really dislike, is the horrible logo on teh top of the headstock. I tried to scratch mine off, but it's well done... maybe one day i'll refinish the headstock. Still... everything else just looks beautiful, and it plays/sounds great. With guitars at this price I'd expect that often they will not be set up properly... so watch out if buying online, unless you are confident to set your guitar up yourself (well worth learning, not a complicated job).
Would I buy another if I lost it? MOst certainly. In fact, I'm thinking about buying another before they disappear, or more likely, they re-appear under a new label and with a heavier price tag...
The nicest Les Paul style guitars I've had were a SX Les Paul copy (another cheap & chearful guitar) and a hand made Gordon Smith that cost almost ??700. This Alba's finish is not as good as the Gordon Smith, and not even as good as the SX, but it feels and plays just as nice as the Gordon Smith, or very very close (sound-wise I prefer the Alba, to be honest).
Overall rating? A 9. At this price anything lower is an insult and snobbism... and the 10 is reserved for those 1 in a million situations. Excellent value