Navigator Les Paul

Les Paul Model '56 Goldtop replica N-LP-480LTD/P. Made in Japan 2003. 22 frets, solid maple top with One piece Honduras Mahogany body. 2 volume and 2 tone controls with 3 way switch. Gold top hat type knobs. CTS pots w/ .022uf caps. 2 Seymour Duncan Hand Wound P-90 pickups (SP-90 1n and SP-90 1b). Honduras Mahogany Neck with Long Tenon neck joint. All gloss nitro finish. Tune-o-Matic bridge with aluminum stop tail, Gotoh (SD-90-SL) vintage tuners. '59 neck with stunning Honduras Rosewood Fretboard. 24 3/4" scale. 1.6875 inch bone nut. Beautiful hard case with brass fittings and fretboard protector.

I Play mostly studio sessions, recording tracks. Folk Rock and Jazz. I use a Vox AC-30 with Weber Blue Dog and Silver Bell Speakers. VOX Brit Boost and Over the Top pedals mostly clean sound. This Guitar turns my crank much more than the Les Paul Standard that I have with Burstbuckers. It seems to articulate what I want to play much better. Lots of sustain due to the long neck tenon and has a warm bright sound that can be adjusted to a wide range of tonalities.

The action, fit and finish of this guitar are as far as I am concerned second to none. I have, and have owned a whole gamut of guitars (Gibson, Guild, Martin, etc..)and this beats them all in workmanship. There is a reason that these guitars are not allowed to be sold on a retail level in the US. The '56 Goldtop replica is the closest thing to the original '56 Goldtop that I have ever seen. The guitar definitely needed to be set up when I received it, but I expect this as everyone has differing tastes when it comes to their ideal setup. Before purchasing this instrument, I opened up the access cover to compare workmanship with other guitars that I own such as Gibson. I could not believe the exactitude to which the solering was done and the finishing on the inside of the pot cavity. This guitar is lighter than my other Les Pauls but sustains longer. There is definitely a mystery when it comes to what woods are used in building these instruments. The master luthiers won't always tell you what's involved in wood selection, but it is not always the heavier wood that brings the most sustain. I am very critical in assessing craftsmanship (as I am a master wood craftsman myself). I would give this instrument a solid 10. I could not find one imperfection.

This guitar is way too nice to use live, although it would withstand it for sure. I replaced the strap buttons with Schallers, as I do with all my electric guitars. I would depend on this guitar without question, but I always have a backup no matter what.

No idea. I don't expect much local support from a company that doesn't operate in the US.

I've been playing 35 years. Owned lots of gear over the years. If this guitar were stolen or lost, I would have to spend $6000. plus shipping to replace it. Check out the following link to see what I mean:

http://www.espguitars.co.jp/navigator/nlp480ltdp.html

If you convert the Japanese Yen, it works out to a hefty sum in US plus shipping. If one of these comes your way, I urge you to take a look and consider it before lumping it in with other Japanese replicas. In my opinion it is beyond Greco, Tokai and Orville. If you are worried about lack of Mojo because it's Japanese and perhaps too close to perfection. Just play it and that will quickly change.

Made in Japan by ESP in 2003. '56 Les Paul Goldtop replica with p-90s. Seymour Duncan SP-90(1n) and SP-90(1p). Which are actually humbucking in design. Solid One piece Honduras Mahogany back. Solid Maple top with rare Honduras Mahogany Fretboard with fret edge binding and exacting master luthier workmanship. Vintage Gotoh tuners, CTS 500k pots. Rounded "C" shaped neck. Classy high-end custom case. I bought this guitar used from an American collector. Navigator is banned from being sold in the US. They would seek to manufacture replicas of the original Gibson Les Paul to a more exact spec. than Gibson.

Beautiful clean rich sound. Much more articulate than my other Gibson Les Pauls (Customs, Standards, etc..) I was a little hesitant as a result of the Japanese manufacturing aspect might kill some of the mojo of this guitar, but I was wrong. It sounds as good or better than the '56 Gibson VOS.

The guitar needed a slight bit of setup. But otherwise absolutely flawless.

I would trust this guitar as well as anything. But it's too nice to gig with. Best for studio use.

No idea. I think you are on your own here, but not any more than any other unique guitar that might require attention.

Been playing 35 years. I own a few high-end acoustics and other collectible Gibson Les Pauls. If this were stolen, I would be pissed. This guitar is very rare and I would have to come up with $6,500. to buy a new one in Japan. (Plus shipping)If you ever have a chance to buy one of these or a Gibson for the same money. Play them both and follow the music.

Just an update to my review of 2/13/2007. I've since found out that Navigator has always been an imprint of ESP, even in the early days, so my comments about this one being "pre-ESP" are redundant & ill-informed.

Thought it was about time someone else contributed a review for one of these rare beasts. Like the other reviewer's example, my Navigator was made in Japan in about '79 or '80 and pre-dates the ESP affiliation/takeover. Hard to be sure the exact year, as like Burnies, pre-ESP Navigators have no serial number. Apparently 100% handbuilt by independent luthiers and feeling is believing. Features as per a high-grade '59 Les Paul replica: 1-piece mahogany back & neck, 2-piece bookmatched solid flame-maple cap in a gorgeous kind of orangey amberburst the like of which I've never seen. Open-book "lawsuit" headstock shape, dark rosewood fingerboard. Long neck-tenon. Thin binding in cutaway revealing some of the exposed THICK maple cap. Standard LP-style electronics. 500K CTS audio pots. Seems they only skimped on the caps, which I replaced with a sprague black beauty for the bridge pots and a Vitamin Q bright cap for the neck. I reinstalled the stock ceramics as treble-bleeds to retain highs when turning down the tone controls.
The neck is about a medium thick '59 profile and feels great. This guitar would originally have had fret-edge binding, but has been (jumbo)refretted at some point in it's chequered history & so no longer does.
Bridge pickup is a Dimarzio PAF which may or may not be stock, the neck pickup was changed to a Gibson '57 Classic at some other point.
Other changes made by previous owner(s) were replacing the tuners with Grovers & the strap buttons with locking Schallers. I'm glad they saved me the trouble!
Bit of a boat anchor. I've never weighed her, but I'm guessing at least 10 lbs. Already a lot of mileage on her by the time I acquired her. Previous owners have left numerous scratches, chips, dings, buckle-rash & battle-scars but that all just adds to her vibe. Unlike the other reviewer's, this one definitely has a lacquer finish though. I guess the permutations were many and we're talking about 27 years ago & 20,000 miles away so who can say...

Using this with a couple of different Sovteks (Mig 50 & Mig 100H) through various 2x12 & 4x12 cabs. Also an old Musicman combo. Tube amps all around. Very few pedals. Sounds unbelievably sweet through all of them. Chime, crunch, sustain, balls, warmth, richness. Everything Les Pauls have ever been famous for. What all those overpriced Gibsons are supposed to sound like, but don't. I could go on. Unplugged, it's almost loud enough for campfire classics.
I would agree with the other reviewer that there's a bit more going on than just the generic "Les Paul" sound. This one has a certain twang & honk to it too. I have a pair of Antiquity humbuckers salvaged from a Gibson that I sold, which I had contemplated putting into the Navigator, but I dig the sound just fine as is, so I think I'll leave it.

Couldn't say what the factory setup was like, as she already had many tales to tell by the time she came into my possession. Action was a little too low when I got her & the trussrod is one of those annoying bullet-ended ones that you can't use an Allen wrench on, so I had to take it to my luthier who had one of those turning wrenches just so I could get her set up for 10s. Since then, however, the neck hasn't budged in the slightest. The other reviewer mentioned that the inlay work on his was "shitty". Mine's fine except for one of the smaller trapezes high up the neck being slightly oblong or crooked. Zero filler. Real MOP too as far as I can tell. One of the vintage-style knobs broke in transit so I replaced it with a generic Chinese one.
Felt like an old friend almost from day one & plays beautifully.

I've gigged her a few times. No issues whatsoever. None. Even stays in tune! I take good care of my gear & this one certainly repays it. Always have a backup though.

Navigator are just an inprint of ESP these days. They do the high-end replicas for the Japanese market. Info on these older pre-ESP models is virtually non-existent. And that kinda adds to it.

I've been playin about 17 or 18 years. Have been through many guitars & amps etc. I currently own about 5 MIJ guitars of which this is the oldest, rarest and nicest. I don't need any more. I used to own a Gibson Les Paul Standard & it was tawdry by comparison. I was originally after a vintage Tokai Reborn or early Love Rock LS120 but their flourishing reputation and brand recognition have priced them out of my league. The higher end Greco Super Reals were too expensive too, so I got the Navigator instead. If it were lost or stolen I'd be heartbroken as I believe it would be very hard to replace. New Navigators from the ESP custom shop go for well over 2 grand even in Japan, so if an opportunity to pick up a vintage one presents itself & the price is right, grab it.

This is a Japanese built Les Paul clone manufactured by ESP, probably late 70's early 80's. The guitar model is well known and quite valuable in Europe, but rarely seen stateside. Solid 1 piece mahogany back, 2 piece solid maple cap. Eight and one-half pounds. Basic Les Paul layout. Pickups are Japanese but have metal braided leads like Gibson, and good quality pots are hand-wired. The neck profile is like a 70's Les paul Standard. Tuners are Grover Knockoffs--look and work identically. One piece mahogany neck.

I am lucky enough to earn my living as a musician. For me all that matters in a stage guitar is weight and tone. This guitar is one of the best sounding guitars I have ever played. I own three 50's Gibson Pauls, and this Japanese one sounds just as good. As anyone who has played a lot of guitars will tell you, every guitar is different. Consequently, any guitar review is really limited to the individual piece. Nonetheless, as a lot of pro players know, the Japanese are the only ones who have made consistently good sounding instruments in years, so I would expect others to sound good as well. The stock pickups are great. I put Holmes in it, and then Antiquities, but went back to the stock ones as they simply sounded better. I've owned several early issue Historic Gibsons and Custom shop Fenders, and sold them all. Great fit, finish, tags, and papers, but very inconsistent tone, some truly horrendous. I play this through a 1956 Super narrow panel, or 1969 Metal front Marshall. Very few pedals. Brilliant sound. I generally use Fender guitars as they have a wider tone range and are a bit more dynamic. Most Pauls are a bit thick, over-middy, overgainy, and have the cliche ROCK sound. The Navigator, like a good old Paul, is much more nuanced and subtle, like a Tele on Steroids; clarity and power.

The original finish was Poly and not very good, but it was very thin, which was great. I stripped the back and neck and resprayed with nitro. Inlay work is crappy. Frets are good and the guitar even has the binding overlay on the fret ends which is rare for Japanese guitars,(and also pointless when it comes time to refret) Most buyers are concerned with the look of their guitar and, unfortunately, the American companies cater to this market and make guitars with more finish than wood. Try stripping a Fender reissue strat or tele, and you'll find a hard resin coating under the finish that defies all paint remover and in essence creates an exo-skeloton around the wood. Guaranteed to produce the brittle shrill tone we all hate. But it will never crack. I own 54',57',59',62' Strats, and if you breathe on them the finish cracks. The Japanese used poly mostly, but at least they put it on thin. To me, if it sounds good, it is good so I am giving it a 10 anyway.

It is as reliable as any four piedces of wood glued together can be.

I do all my own guitar work, so no need to rate this.

Been Playing for about 22 years. Have owned just about every amp and guitar at one time or another. Really just posted this review for other players who need good sounding guitars, could care less what they look like, and who know how hard it is to actually find one for under $7,000. These are pretty rare, but my guess is Japanese web stores probably see a lot of them.