Hohner L 59

My l59 is the standard early model, which I found in a local paper for 10 pounds (about 7 dollars) it is a totally unmolested beast, that I think should stay standard, the only thing I changed was the tone pot because it was faulty, which I now regret, I replaced it with a cheap one which sounds crap, my soldering skills are not great either so it looks stupid and dose not fit properly, I wish I had tried switch cleaner first. Its in tobacco burst and the pick ups and hardware are unbranded Hohner models but that's no bad thing.

Acoustically the guitar sounds crap due to the older style standard Hohner pick ups but when you crank up the over drive it sounds unbeatable, the pick ups give of a dark warmth that I cant get out of 500-1000 pound guitars, the guitar does give off buzz and hiss but it ads to the character, this guitars sound is well suited to over driven rock and blues, I use it with a Vox ad100 and it just comes alive

The quality of the finish on the guitar is outstanding, considering its nearly 30 years old, the neck is set a little wonky but it dose not affect the play, the tune-a-matic bridge is a little out of sync which dose effect the sound slightly and gives the top E string a buzz, but when playing in over drive its not a problem, the guitar has a great action for soloing and bar chords and the neck is just the right thickness, the pick ups and electronics as I've said are standard Honer models and do have attendances to buzz and hiss, but its a 30 year old guitar, the tone controls are not brilliant but can be adjusted to a great deep gritty overdrive sound. the hard wear has no faults and work fine apart from the bridge as previously mentioned.

I have no doubt that the hard wear is up to live playing, the electrics are old now and I have repaired them as well as I can, the treble setting is a little intermittent but I rarely use it any way, I like to keep my guitars in good condition and this one is exceptional, so I wouldn't like to gig it any way, as gigging takes a toll on any guitar, I trust all strap buttons as it is a heavy strong guitar, and I like to think I could depend on it, but I would bring a back up in case the electrics fail, I would replace them all but I want to keep it as original as I can and I cant afford to any way, so I can justify taking a back up. I rate this category with an 9 because if it didn't have the electrical faults it would be perfectly usable at a gig.

Its a thirty year old guitar, if there was a warranty I never had it and it would have run out by now any way. The Hohner web site has no info about it.

I've been playing 3 years and have owned several guitars in that time, for rock this is the best in the price range as well as the next (seriously!) At a price of 10 pounds you cant go wrong, the guy I bought it off only paid 80 pounds, which is cheap for this guitar, I got it off him very very cheap! and I only paid 5 pounds for the new parts (250k pot and a nut for the jack) I would be very upset if It got nicked as its a great guitar and I wouldn't be able to afford an exact replacement. I love the sound and look of this guitar and wouldn't change it for any guitar (unless it was custom made Gibson Les Paul made to my exact specification! (about 20 grands worth) he he:) my only problems are the bridge, the dodgy treble switch and the pot I replaced they get a little annoying some times but apart from that I love it! I rated it 9 because with out its small faults it would be a brilliant guitar, lets say they ad some character, which I think they do :)

Some useful (I hope!) information:
There were two slightly different types of L59. One type has a larger 'flower' on the headstock, and the other a smaller (2.5cm tall) flower. I have owned both types, and here's how they differed:

The first version was, I think, made in the late 80s into the early 90s. The pickups are excellent, loud, even, although unbranded. On my guitar they had no covers. The neck is chunky, with low action. On mine, there was a gap between the maple cap and the mahogony underneath, in the centre area around the pickups. This, and the woods and pickups used, gave the guitar a VERY powerful, fat, lower-middly tone. Darker than the Gibson LP I've tried. EXCELLENT for heavy rock.... not so good for clean sounds, but still adequate. The build quality was generlly excellent though.

I still have my 'second version' L59, with the smaller flower. Made in the early to mid 90s. It has Kent armstrong pickups (Paf Plus I believe), which are lower output than the earlier ones, but sound very even. The guitar construction is different, and has a more solid feel - it really feels like a jap Tokai or Gibson - really.... and there is no gap between the cap and the main body wood. The sound is brighter, but still fat and 100% Les Paul. To get the best out of it for rock music, I upgraded the bridge pickup to a Kent Armstrong 'Rocker' pickup (tacky name... but it's their version of a SD Custom... and is EXCELLENT... higher output than the original Paf Plus, but still very balanced and raunchy).

Both types of L59 are better than Epiphone Les Pauls - I've tried and compared. For a thick sound, the earlier ones have it. For a more balanced sound, go for the later one... and if you play rock/metal, upgrade the bridge pickup. I still have my later one... It's fantastic. I've tried REAL Gibsons, and jap Tokais, and I can't justify buying one as the L59 is so good.

Excellent.

Never had any contact with hohner...

Black copy of Gibson Les Paul custom. I think made in Korea around early 1990's. Passive unknown gold pickups. Not sure what type of wood its made from, but its heavier than any modern guitar of its size, so I would presume mahogany. I know from Hohner in America that it is now their most sought after model after the Telecaster they produced from the same Korean factory at the same time & that you can expect to pay around ??250 - ??300 for a mint one & presumably it will increase in value if you look after it. Standard good quality features (as good as a Gibson anyway).

My music style is rock & I play through a Trace Elliot quad chorus combo. I use no effects pedals at all ever. A little overdrive distortion from the amp', with a touch of chorus & it sounds very deep (very similar to Steve Jones (Pistols)) but I can also get a very good bluesy sound. Its pretty versatile, though because I use heavy gauge strings through a bluesy amp', everything has a big bottom end. I like everything about it apart from the weight can get a bit uncomfortable & it doesn't sit comfortable on my knee either (it hangs too far back because of the contour of the body) but all les pauls are like that so I can't hold that against it.

Action, fit, & finish? The action is easily set up to whatever your taste may be. The fittings are of good quality (far better than epiphone & as good as Gibson) & the finish is very good. It is the Hohner Professional series. Again I can't tell any difference between my L59 & my friends '76 Gibson (though he disagrees because he payed a lot more for his guitar). They are certainly worth the money.

This guitar has withstood live playing for the 2 years i've owned it. I don't know what it did for the other 15 or so years. The hardware seems like it will last. I've replaced the machine heads with gold Wilkinson (direct replacements). Its very solid & dependable. I don't even own a backup guitar. I've left it in tents for days at outdoor gigs & it only needs a quick tune up & its ready to rock. Likewise i've left it in a centrally heated room all winter & it hasn't grumbled. Its very stable.

I emailed Hohner in America once, just to get a bit of history about it because I was surprised by the quality for the money. They were as helpful as they could be. There's no rhyme or reason to the serial numbers on the back plate, so they can't be specifically traced or dated.

My overall rating would be 10/10 for sheer value for money. The build quality & sound quality beats the epiphone version to death. I've tried the epiphones in music shops. The latest ones are made in China & are really terrible by comparison. The older epiphones are better but still not as good as the Hohner. I've tried the Tokai version which isn't bad, but feels cheap & lightweight next to the Hohner. I've played my friends '76 Gibson a lot & that does have the edge on sound, though the overall quality is no better. If I changed my pickups & pots the Hohner would be a match for that.
If it were lost or stolen I would be very upset because I doubt i'd get another for the mere ??160 I payed & I would buy another, unless I was flush enough to buy an old Gibson.

Classic Les Paul Shape. Bigsby Tremolo. Gold plated hardware.
Kent Armstrong Pickups.

OOh baby. This is the sweetest sounding momma ever! The kent armstrong pickups are sweet and combined with the heavy body and awesome construction this guitar sustains forever!
Loads of warmth with a deep tone that manages to avoid being muddy.
For blues licks I can think of no sweeter sound, with the three
way toggle you can adjust your tone instantly if you wish.

Bought second hand. The nutcase who had it previously had the
strongs the wrong way around on the bigsby tremolo making it
almost unplayable, easily sorted and action is incredible, I use
.10's, easy to hit all your notes and bending is orgamsic.

This model is not the ordinary l59, it is a deluxe pro model and the
construction is reflected. Top quality.

Would use without backup, absolutely solid guitar and aging nicely.

If lost or stolen would definitely buy again but have never seen
another like it. There are plenty of l59's out there but nothing
like this, gold plated hardware, bigsby trem.
Have been playing for around 20 years and this beats all comers,
I would rate this model higher than a gibson for sound, and equal
on build. I hope never to part with it.

This is a Les Paul copy with highly figured maple top in tobacco sunburst, and a highly figured ash back. It was the visually-striking figured wood that caught my eye as it hung in the used section of the guitar store. I have no idea what kind of wood is underneath, but the thing is heavy. Fingerboard is rosewood attached to what appears to be a mahogany set-in neck. Frets are medium jumbo. Overall action can be made to be low if desired. Has the standard LP 2-volume, 2-tone layout. Tuners are no-name. Bridge is the standard tune-o-matic with a stop tailpiece. The pickups are no-name, with exposed black bobbins. The features are your standard Les Paul appointments, no more, no less.

The no-name pickups have a very dark sound. And I mean very dark. I will have to experiment with the tone capacity values or to install 1-meg volume pots to try to brighten them up. On the other hand, the dark tones are not exactly unuseable. Nor are the tones unpleasant. They would fit jazz playing, for example. The upside is, you can leave the tone knobs on 10 all the time and don't have to mess with them. If have no clue about changing capcitor/volume pot values, then you have a dark-sounding guitar. One thing is for sure -- this guitar will not pierce your ears with harsh, trebly sounds in any setting. It will play jazz superbly, and will play other kinds of music with very round tones with lots of body. Woman tones? Brown sound? This guitar has it.

This guitar was bought used, so I have no idea how it was set up from the factory. The fit and finish are first-rate. Workmanship is excellent, as well-made as any guitar out there, including the big names. The wood chosen to make this guitar is lovely.

This is a solidly built guitar. The usual issues with a used guitar are there -- corroded screws, bridge/saddles, and other metal parts. The overall guitar will last forever given the proper care. The clear coat should protect the wood indefinitely. I do not anticipate any structural problems. For gigging w/o a backup, the only concern would be a broken string, not anything to do with the guitar itself.

Hohner does not make such guitars any more, and I doubt if the current Hohner company would want to be contacted regarding this guitar. Furthermore, there should be no reason to contact them about this guitar -- it needs nothing from Hohner, just loving care from the owner.

This guitar has that magical something. Call it vibes, call it soul, whatever. The years have made the binding yellow to give it that aged look. The wood is very attractive, and all the electronics work noiselessly. It's a treasure of a guitar, and if the headstock says Gibson on it, it would command thousands. It is not worth thousands on the market, but it certainly is worth much more than what I paid for it.
Many companies have made Les Paul copies over the years, and this Hohner represents one of the best.

Korean model from the early 90s.
It was my first electric guitar ever.. I played it for 4 years and then it was sold to a buddy of mine. I've just bought it back a week ago because I missed it dearly.

OK, first, the guitar is truly beautiful. The top is real flamed maple (although it's very thin) and not some gross photoflame finish like on many LP copies. The overall quailty of the finish is absolutely outstanding for such an unexpensive guitar. Great binding work.

The body is thin but quite heavy. I have the chance to be able to compare it to a 1991 Gibson LP standard, and in terms of weight it's close to the real thing. The neck is smaller than a standard Gibson one, but it's still bigger than a Fender neck.
The action is very low and feels good.
That's a guitar with quite good, honest woods. It benefits from its builders' healthy craftsmanship.



However the hardware sucks a bit. It's light and fragile looking. This guitar would be just great with better pickups (the stock ones are SKY humbuckers) and good pots. The pickup selector is cheesy and feels very weird. The tuners are OK I guess, but you can find way better.

But what really sucks on this guitar, IMO, is the plastic nut on top of the neck. It prevents the guitar from really giving its best tone possible.

I'm going to go to a luthier in order to get a proper [b]bone nut[/b]
for this axe.

So my conclusion is:

Excellent wood work and finish but crappy hardware and nut.

It's a LP copy, so expect it to be in that range of sounds. Rock n' roll, blues, and Jazz. It has a good attack especially if you set it with a good string gauge. The sustain is marvellous and has nothing to be jealous of a real Gibson sustain.

As I said earlier, the pickup are cheap and sound cheap. They lack some "growl" and dimension. The neck PU is better than the bridge one...very creamy but still precise. It's fully usable with a good amp.

I use it in a Marshall 1962 Bluesbreaker combo (JTM45) reissue. Desite the shitty electronics I can still produce some cool and definitely acceptable sounds with the guitar (I must say I've got high standards). With Seymour Duncans or Rio grande pickups this is gonna be a killer instrument.

Beautiful on every point. No flaws. The pickup were set too low though. Adjustment was necessary to get real gain.

It's been played during 15 years by 3 different people who are keen on extreme rock n'roll, it's been through several gigs and thousands of rehearsals.
Despite all the action it's seen it is still looking as good and plays as well as the first day I bought it new.

Never dealt with Hohner.

This is my first electric guitar. As I've been playing for 15 years I've owned 6 Gibsons(Challenger, LP Standard, SG doubleneck, LP special, LP junior, J45), 2 Fenders (Telecaster US standard & Telecaster 52' vintage reissue) and a Rickenbacker 330.

While definitely not as good as a real Gibson this little Hohner L59 is still a VERY DECENT guitar.
It's built to last.

Your basic burst '59 Les Paul imitation.
It appears to have a laminated top and bottom. Bottom looks like darkly finished swamp ash. The top definitely looks pressed, and becomes flattish in the area where the pickups are.
It's a three footer I'd say, from 3 feet it looks alot like a nice LP. The frets are smallish and square and I worked on them with a nail filing stone to level them some and to get the frets from scratching/catching the left hand. It's not exactly a "fretless wonder", but getting there. The inlays are pretty bad, I figure it has to be real mother of pearl because you can get much better looking plastic. The first marker seems to be a little bunched up.
It does seem to be solid wood inside, but can't tell what type due to thick black paint inside. Must be porous, light and resonant, balsa wood for all I know. My brother was impressed with the number of plys in the binding.

This is a very resonant bassy instrument. The pickups seem very good, vintage.

Pretty good, except the whole thing has a costume jewelry or toyish vibe and feel and doesn't play great. On the other hand, people don't talk about how many old Gibsons don't play all that great either (though their construction is typically heavy duty). From a distance, it does have the classic burst LP looks and has the stereotypically fat sound (has that really been in fashion anytime recently?). For what it is, it's well executed (except the fret markers).

Not a real solid guitar. Lots more solid than an acoustic, but not nearly as solid as a real Les Paul, Strat, Tele, etc. Toylike, don't abuse it.

I also have a Steinberger type from them, when you finally locate help they help.

It's occasionally fun to take it out of the case, but doesn't happen often. Not getting rid of it since it's the closest I'll ever get to owning a Paul.

Model: serial - 8620952. It was my second guitar when I bought it in 1986 and I learned playing guitar with it. It worked out fine.
Price: 500 DM approx 200 $ (new, in 1986)
Guitar Type: 50'S Les Paul Copy
Frets: 22 medium
Fretboard: Rosewood w.black/yellow binding
Neck: 2pc Mahogany
Body: 3pc mahogany
Pickups: H/H hohner Paf style humbuckers (rather cheap)
Electronic: Passive
Controls: Volume & Tone neck and bridge
Bridge: Tunomatic copy chromium
Tuning Keys: Chromium, die cast
Finish: Vintage Sunburst w.black/yellow binding

It has the typical Les Paul style [PAF-PU] sound. I was lucky enough to change the neck PU with an DiMarzio PAF-DP103 which enriched the sound a lot.
Combined with a V-Amp II Pro one can imitate almost every vintage humbucker sound perfektliy, but due to the overstressed low frequencies, the L59 can not produce as much pressure on lead guitar riffs as a guitar with active PU's for instance.
Nowadays I still prefer this guitar for Jazz Riffs in a Wes Montgomery or George Benson Style. I wouldn't use it with heavy distortion anymore.

Bought it as a new guitar and after 18 years it is still good looking a playable. I occassionaly cared for it's maintainance
Some of the electronic elements had to be fixed with these years.

The guitar lasted for 18 years by now and is still in an acceptable condition. Frequently some parts had to be justed, but I think that's okay.

Never been necessary

Been playing it for 18 years by now in various styles for gigs & recordings. Used it with various Amps (Marshal, Boogie, Behringer) on live gigs, but prefer it in combination with a V-amp on Jazz Sessions. Although wood and electronincs could have been better, it is much better produced than some of my more expensive guitars, which offer poor quality in spite of the famous lable (I won't tell names). It offers a mediocre sound with a good quality for a low price. That's fine. The more you increase your playing abilities the less this guitar will satisfy your needs, but indeed the potential of this guitar will exceed the potential of 70 out of 100 guitarists. So why waste money on a master piece guitar. Playing ability is more important.

Model: No visible serial
Location: Korea
Fretts: 22 medium
Frettboard: Rosewood w.black/yellow binding
Neck: 2pc Mahogany
Body: 3pc mahogany
Pickups: H/H hohner Paf style humbuckers
Electronic: Passive
Controls: Volume & Tone neck and bridge
Bridge: Tunomatic copy goldplated
Tuning Keys: Gold plated half moon style
Finish: Vintage Sunburst w.black/yellow binding

Typical layout, but could have been better wood, hardware, and electronics, it is cheap though!

As the guitar is, it has the same noiseless tone that comes with all humbuckers. It has the typical Les Paul style sound. The problem with the guiatr is that the electronics are too cheap, which gives way to much low end on the neck, and quite a fair bit on the bridge. There is a lil too much in the way of piercing high end, but a lil roll off on the tone can sort it out. On a gainy setting, it can be a little bit muddy. There appears to be quite a lot of sustain.
One major flaw is that it feedsback uncontrollably sometimes. There isa horrid high pitch whine, thats not linked to the strings, its due to the poor electronics, not good for high volumes.
There is plenty of scope for the guitar as a practice unit, or as a cheap 'nock about' guitar, but its certainly not good enough as a main guitar.

A small thing, with an Ibanez CS5, and DL5, through Squire SP10 amp, it sounded just like Pink Floyds shine on from 1975!!

(Played through POD2, VOX Valvetronics, Squire SP10)

Although bought second hand, the action handnt been changed. This was absoultely rock bottom, insanely low. It does play with quite a low action anyway, but it was, really, unplayable when i purchased it.
The nut has been put in slightly high on the high E side. There is obvious fillering of the gaps in the neck joints, and the occasional overspill of glue fromt he binding. The lacure is hard wearing.
The bookmatching was quite impressive, especially for something so cheap.
The pot, jack plug, and p/up selector retainers tend to work loose, so need frequent tightening.

Tthe pots had ceased when i had purchased it. Electrical cleaner and a careful hand at a pair of pliers fixed it.
The gold plated tuning keys tends to tarnish, and i had to clean them with a lil silvo, now, very shiney, but chrome.
The rest of the hardware will also tarnish with use, but its just superficial.
I wouldnt gig the guitar, but it is fairly stirdy.

Never dealt with them.

I havent managed to track down any information from Hohner on the guitar either.

The guitar is a great fun guitar. It feels pretty comfortable to play, especially compared to real Les Pauls. The electronics are substandard, as with the hardware, but thats what you get with Korean instruments, but it does work.
If you appreciate the instrument for being an inexpensive 'mess about with' guitar, then you will have loads of fun with it, and it will be a great enjoyment.
If it was stolen, I would hunt the criminal down with vicious intent, it has a personal meaning to me, and its this bloody guitar, but other than that, i wouldnt buy another, no need.

I own, Customshop player strat, Modded mex 50's strat, Squire Affinity strat, POD2, Marshal AVT50H and 1922 Cab, Morely VAI-1, Marshal BB2, JH1, Ibanez CS5, DL5, Rocktek vibrator (it was a freebee!)

Antique/faded cherry sunburst flametop veneer - classy, not bright! Gold hardware, H/H, 3-way selector Tune-O-Matic bridge, 2 'great' sounding PAF style SKY humbuckers designed by Kent Armstrong.
Basically an extremely nice Les Paul copy :)

Full, deep humbucker sound. Lots of overtones. Sustain is great. Sound swells nicely. Very smooth even through my electronic Laney GC-50A. Great lows, well defined. This instrument is the real deal.

Fantastic action and finish.

Very solid construction, heavy durable finish. Hardware is of good quality.

I am pretty convinced that this must be one of the best quality Les Paul copies ever made. I've played various original Gibson LP's and just in terms of sound alone this can easily compete, no problems.
Not to even mention the great playability and really nice finish.
If someone stole mine I would just have to track them down and steal it back!