Dillion DLJ58

If you know Les Paul Juniors, you know how this guitar is laid out and set up. The guitar is Dillion's Les Paul TV Junior copy, and although the Gibson Juniors are made of mahogany, this one is constructed of alder, which sounds brighter to my ears. The Gibson also uses a compensated bridge, while this model uses a Badass type unit for better intonation. The guitar is made in Korea and so are the electronics. I have respect lately for Korean guitar makers. Seems like they're gotten their act together for the most part, and are making decent instruments.

I'm a serious Les paul Junior fan and have owned many of them. I used the guitar for the first time last night on my gig and A/B'd it against my Gibson Les Paul Junior. The Gibson definitely had more balls, although the Dillion wasn't far behind in terms of sound. I may swap out the Dillion pickup for something better. The guitar wasn't too noisy, except for the usual slight 60 cycle hum you'd expect. It sounded best played flat out with some overdrive. Overall, the guitar plays beautifully.

Everything was good in this department. Not perfect by any means, but very good.

Everything seems just fine so far. We'll see how she holds up. I always take multiple guitars on gigs. The main thing I like about the Dillion is its ability to stay in tune despite hard playing.

John "Dillion" Vinci seems like a nice guy to deal with. I like the personal service I get from him. I can't imagine Henry Juzkewicz of Gibsn personally anwering amy email.

I've been playing over 30 years and own many guitars. I would replace it if stolen. I'm thinking of getting a cherry red one now too. It's a good, workhorse guitar at a very reasonable price. Highly recommended to LP Jr. fans. I could have bought a used Japanese Burny TV Junior off Ebay, but this one was $300 less and seemed to be of comparable quality.

TV Yellow (transparent mustard), FAT neck, Gibson style frets, fairly wide fret spacing as well. Definite "old school" layout. Made in Korea at the Tokai factory, apparently. Dog ear P90 on bridge, 1 volume/1 tone setup. Mahogany throughout. Simple, as expected and desired.

A good guitar for blues or rock n' roll. This P-90 pickup is actually not noisy. Pickup works well with the guitar, showing many overtones which my Gibson SG (500T pickup) does not transmit. I imagine this is a result of the thick neck and solid, relatively thick slab body with minimal routing. The sound produced is my favortie quality of this guitar. The clarity (even under heavy reverb and full volume) makes it well suited for lead work and chords that go beyond simple bare fifths. For heavy rhythm work though, there are better choices.

Action was set well, low enough for lead work, but high enough to produce good tone, yet this was definitley a "Monday" guitar. When received, the gutiar would not make any sound when plugged in! Bad soldering work in the wiring cavity was the culprit. Also, one of the truss rod cover screws had been overtorqued at the factory, resulting in a hole too big to keep the screw securely in place. Tuning keys look nice (Kluson style), but are functionally only barely adequate. I wouldn't depend on these tuners. Paintwork was excellent - Gibson USA quality - as was fretwork. Rosewood fretboard was of high quality. But the bad wiring (wouldn't play when received) and the overtorqued screw) are things a 5 minute quality control check at the factory could have resolved.

Hardware seems good, the tailpiece has intonation adjustment, unlike the 'real thing', which is definitley an improvement. Double cut body means the neck is inherently unstable, allowing you to have something of a tremelo effect - just like the real thing. Tuners are terrible - even for a 300 dollar guitar. Again, I suppose that is just like the real thing! The dogear P90 pickup sounds great and I do not imagine changing it out.

The dealer, musicanada, (http://myworld.ebay.com/musicanada/) was quick and easy to work with regarding quality problems. I would buy from them again.

I have been playing guitar for over 20 years, have toured, recorded, and have owned many guitars. Professionally I play bass and piano, but some days there's nothing better than ripping a few bluesy leads out on an overdriven amp. And for that it works great. This Dillion has the look and the feel and the SOUL of a real Gibson. They have the important things right. If they could work a little harder on the finer details of quality control, they would be a steal. I don't think I should need to re-wire a band new guitar, or fill sawdust + glue into the screw holes. Considering you can now buy Gibson Melody Maker reissues for under 400 now, I do expect Gibson quality for a guitar not costing much less made in Korea. Good work Dillion - but not great.

I own one of these DLJ58 in a hard to find cherryburst finish
no flaws at all it sounded okay butt changed the P90 with a gibson
500T humbbucker mounted right to the body had to route out the
pickup hole just a little and can still put the stock P90 back in
if I ever want to switch back no problem.

P90 was okay butt I get better sound and sustain forever with the
500T gibson I would have to say the P90 was to limmited for my taste
so the stock pickup does not rate to high for me

as for the action I hade frett buzzing bad on the E A and D strings
no mater how much I adjusted the truss rod it could only be fixed
by takeing it to my local guitar shop and having the frets completly
leveled I had to intonate it my self and and lower the action
now it plays and sounds fantastic

This guitar is built very solid and seems that it colud stand up
to alot of road travel

I have been playing for 35 years and have owened just about ever
guitar out there and have had copys and originals of this guitar
and would have to say I would buy another one the wood is alder
and sounds great but changing the pickup and mounting to the body
is the best thing that I could have done

This is a solid bodied copy of a '58 L.P. Jr. I thas one real cool sounding P-90 pickup. I'm amamzed at the variation in tone for one P.U. and one tone knob. I play blues, rock, and old-school punk. It does what I need it to, but I don't need a lot. The finish is very good, with a few ripples visable at the heel of the neck (no biggie). It comes only in TV Yellow, but the color seems a little more like a butterscotch than other TVs I have seen by Gibson. One of the past reviewers commented that the frets are tiny and look "glued on". Sorry...don't see it. The frets are a little smaller than on my American Standard Strat, but are big enough to play easily, and are definately cut into the fretboard in the standard fashion. All of the hardware is top notch and the guitar does indeed stay in tune.

This guitar does what I need it to do. It's basic...I'm basic. It does well with blues, rock and punk. The sound is clean and bright. Putting it through my old Super Reverb and a Boss Blues Driver (sometimes), it rocks. As I stated before, the variations in tone are amazing for it's limited features.

This guitar played well right out of the box. No buzzes, rattles, or anything unusual. the painting around the headstock, where the TV meets the yellow were a little sloppy, but not too bad. Again, a little ripple at the neck heel. I did have one problem. The screws that hold the output jack in place were not long enough and pulled out. This is because the jack plate is actually flat and is forced to bend by the screws holding it down. This will work if the screws are long enough. They weren't.

This guitar is solid. I do believe that it will hold up as well as any. I have U.S. built Fenders, Mexican built Fenders, and other assorted guitars and this one's as good as any. I'd gig with it if anyone would listen. I'd never use any guitar to gig without a backup, though.

I haven't needed support yet, although i may e-mail them about the jack plate problem. I think the warranty is 2 years. I have some time, but I guess I should get on it.

I've been playing a long time, which is embarrasing for as crappy as I am. If this guitar were stolen I'd be SUPER PISSED and get another one if I could. This guitar just fits me well (if that makes any sense). I like what it does, how it sounds. I'm comfortable with it. When I go to play, it's the guitar grab. I think I'll do it now.

Okay, same as everyone is saying. TV yellow. Two knobs and a P90 copy pick-up.

People are compairing to Gibson. I don't think you can do that. Seriously, everyone wants to think that his guitar rocks and is great. No dobut, for the price it sounds...but please do not compair to a real Gibson...this is a copy!!

Yes, what you have read is true. This is really Dillion shines. I got this through the Web and it really was ready to play out of the box. I can't say that about my USA Fender Strat. Total props to Dillion in this area. However, there is some stuff that should be mentioned. My main trouble with this guitar is the fretboard. First the frest are super small. Really, I have thin finders and playing the upper frets is real hard. It's almost like this guitar was made for kids...yes, the frets are really that small. And the fret wire itself appears (and I could be wrong) to be glued to the freatboard rather than cut in. That's to say that upon looking at the neck above you do not see the wire of the fret actually going "into" the board but rather fastened "on" it.

Again, this is a solid guitar.

Had to e-mail three or four times to get a reply.

Dispite my rants it is a very good guitar for the price. But the tiny freta really make it hard to play.

Made in Korea this is a copy of a double cutaway Les Paul Jr. One Tone control, one volume control, and one P-90. A TV yellow finish on an alder body with a 22-fret maple set neck with rosewood fingerboard. This is a no frills guitar that has everything you need to make a beautiful noise.

I love the simplicity of this guitar and it crosses over into my minimalist three-cord style nicely. I?m using a Marshall 50W-tube amp with no effects. I like to get the distortion right from the amp. It has a nice range of tones. Sounds like a Jr with a little less noise than an old Gibson. If you are familiar with the sound of a 58 LP Jr and that is what you are looking for you won?t be disappointed.

Set ?up from the factory was perfect. No adjustments were needed. The pick guard is a little rough around the edges, but it?s part of the recreation. TV yellow finish is smooth and flawless.

The guitar stays in tune and I don?t foresee any problems out of the ordinary. I put strap locks on it because I dropped a guitar once, not because the buttons it came with were bad.

Dillion has a good reputation. It came with a warranty. Haven't needed support, can't really rate it.

I have been playing since the early 70,s. My main guitar is a 78 Telecaster Deluxe. I was looking to get a Les Paul Jr Type guitar without paying the astronomical 58 Gibson price. I was looking for a Burny. I visited my local guitar store and played a Mosrite copy made by Dillion. This led me to The DLJ58 and when I found a new one on ebay cheap I bought it. I would definitely buy it again, at twice what I paid. I love the way it sounds and feels. It?s a fun guitar.

This is a Les Paul Jr. Double cutaway, it has all of the features this kind of guitar is supposed to have. Which is a volume control, a tone control, a P-90 pickup and awesome tone.

My musical style is punk rock, rock, blues (pistols, stooges, GNR, SRV) and this is perfect for those. Sounds great through my Tech21 Trademark 60, and my Guitarport.
It is a little noisy, but no more than I would expect with any P-90 git.
Sounds raunchy and mean, with a little added birghtness to cut better than my Les Paul does.
Has more tonal variety than people think, just use the tone control,and roll-off the volume to clean the tone up. I will replace the vol & tone pots with audio taper pots as the stock ones don't work through the full turning range. Neither did the ones in my Gibson, so that isn't a slam against Dillion.

Setup better than I thought it would be from the factory. I put a nice set of tens on it an it cleaned up a very slight buzz on one fret on the sixth string. Neck place very nicely.
Then pickup route isn't the cleanest I've ever seen and with P-90's there is no frame around the edge so it is visible (being very picky here and it is pretty darned good).
Tuning heads are smooth. Finsh is that TV yellow I was looking for.

Seems well built, not too worried about it. Seems as well made as most of your big name brands.

Emailed Dillion to find where to buy this guitar and John Dillion personally emailed me with a link. Ended up finding it brand new for a little less on eBay (frankrocks seller).
Support seems very good.

Been playing for 30 years. Used to tour with a hardcore band playing a Marshall stack, and Gibson Les Pauls. Now I noodle in my office with my Dillion, my Tech 21, and my Guitarport.
Fun to play, I hunted this guitar down and would definitely buy it again. I will also look into other Dillion guitars when I get my next case of GAS. Well worth the money.

This is a 2004 Les Paul Jr. Double cutaway. the guitar says it was made in korea. it has 22 frets with combo tune a matic stop tail piece it has one P-90 in a very nicely done see through t.v. yellow that shows the grain of the wood underneath. I read on the Dillion website that it is a alder body. I've seen some dealers on E-Bay say mahogony. I am inclined to believe it's Alder it simply doesn't weigh enough to be Mahogany. I am giving this guitar a ten because I can't stand it when people put a post and then give the guitar a 5 because they wish it had more options. If that's the case BUY GUITAR WITH MORE OPTIONS.

This guitar fits my style (Rockabilly, Country,Rock) I use it with either a 50 watt VC tube amp or a 30 watt peavey transtube. It sounds kinda quacky with a clean sound with distortion ANY distortion I've tried it with, it totally rocks! And with a wah pedal it can't be beat. also sounds good witha tremolo. The only dislike is the tone knob doesn't kick in until about three quarters of the way turned so it's either full on tone or turn it to about 3 and then the sound darkens up. That's easily remedied with a new tone knob.

The guitar was setup well it needed to be intonated but otherwise is fine. The finish is great no runs or bad spots just that cool ugly yellow color. The Pickup was a little loose out of the box but a screw driver fixed that.

The guitar will withstand live playing and the hard ware is top notch.It has larger than average strap buttons this is a good thing they are nice and sturdy. I don't abuse the crap out of my guitars not because I'm against it, it's just not my personality. This guitar will last a longtime.

Tony at musiciansmate@aol.com was great. He always responded promtly to my emails and questions. He threw in a vintage looking strap and polish cloth and picks. Very nice service, I don't expect to have any problems. The guitar does come with a warranty, I don't think there wold be any problems because the owner of Dillion always responds personally to emails and is always willing to help. This again is a very nice customer service perk. Try e-mailing the president of gibson.

I've been playing about 17 years I'm not a professional I don't gig for a living and I don't have a tech. I do have several other guitars including a grestch 6120 this guitar plays as nice as the most expensive guitars I own. Does it sound like a Gi---n? I don't know, If I owned a 58 Gi___n Jr. I wouldn't be doing a review for this guitar. All I know is this guitar was well worth what I paid it's fun, Light weight, and looks dang cool. Now if you 'll excuse me I'm going to tease my hair and change my name to Johnny Thunders.

This is a brand new model from Dillion. It is an exact copy of the 58 LesPaul Jr double cutway. In this, it mimicks all the features associated with this classic model. The tuners though are modern in style which anyway is an improvment over the original models made by Gibson. It comes without a case but any Gibson solid or gigbag does the job. As a Jr, naturally it is a 1 PU model sporting a single p90 with the usual black cover. I'm giving a rating of 7 not as any shortcoming but the style of the instrument leads to this restriction. If one is, like myself, a single PU lover, a 10 is the logical choice. However, alot of users would find this type of guitars limited.

This guitar suits myself perfectly. If you are into late 60s and early 70s rock, this is it! Instant Leslie West and Mick Ralp type of sound. Being a p90 reproduction, it is not the most quiet PU but it recreates the original Gibson JR sound to the hilt. In terms of knowing about these models, I have used them in the past as I was an SG JR user in 71-72, then my brother acquire a real 1958 LP Jr single cut from Gruhn guitars around 1976. Feel wise.THis is it. Sound wise I can't tell the difference if my memories serve me well.

This guitar is setup perfectly and doesn't need any adjustments. The finish is beautiful as it let the woodgrain show through.

I don't see any problems here.

Outstanding! This company really cares about their customers.

I've been playing guitar since 66-67 anmd have owned quite a few over the years. My main guitar through the 70s and 80s was a LP deluxe, and like I said, my brother used a 58 LP Jr. At the moment, I'm using this guitar through, mostly, a Marshall AVT50H or a Randall Rh100 through a Marshall 1960 4X12 cab. I choose this guitar because of its amazing quality, its similarities in feel and sound with "the real thing", which is just outstanding. One comment might be to offer this model also in wine red finish which, in my opinion, is better looking than the TV yellow finish. I would get that guitar again without any doubt. I'd really like to try the copy of the PRS soapbar which is also made by Dillion. However, I've never seen one aroud. Another model I would buy instantly woul be a reproduction of the late 60s SG Jr with the large black pickgard an the Maestro vibrola. That would be really nice.