Dillion DLP600GT

Has the standard features for a Les Paul Goldtop - two volume controls, two tone controls.

This guitar is very good right from the start, but being a fanatic, I decided to make a lot of changes. I replaced the tuners with Sperzel locking tuners. Using Sperzels with an angled headstock (Gibson-style headstocks are angled at a 17 degree angle) isn't as important as it is with Fender-style headstocks, but remember it also cuts the time it takes to replace the strings in half. The original nut was good, but a GraphTech nut is better.

Seymour Duncan makes a stacked P-90 pickup called the STK-P1 that faithfully reproduces the sound of the vintage P-90 with NO noise. This is a major plus for me. I swapped out the original pickups for a pair of STK-P1 pickups.

Having made the above mods, you have a really sensational guitar, but I decided to go all the way and replace the bridge and tailpiece with a locking bridge and a locking tailpiece from TonePros. Worth every penny, and they add a lot of snap to your tone. And you can remove all the strings without having the tailpiece fall off.

So, what are talking here?

Used Dillion Gold Top: $375
Sperzel Tuners: $60
Duncan Pickups: $180
GraphTech Nut: $15
TonePros Bridge and Tailpiece: $115

Plus the labor charge for a luthier to make the changes and set the guitar up: $100-$200.

The result is one amazing guitar.

Also, I recommend using the following to really bring out the soul of this guitar:

Thomastik-Infeld Power Brite strings. The best.
Hermida Zendrive. The P-90s will roar to life, amazing overdrive.

Like I said, this guitar is very good right from the start, with no mods, and I give the guitar an 8 "as is". With the above mods, it definitely rates a "10", Bo Derek style.

The action was superb, fit and finish are good.

So far, so good.

Dillion responds to e-mails.

A faithful reproduction of the 56 Les Paul Goldtop. This one won't disappoint.

Mine's a lefty. Les Paul body style. Solid mahogany with maple top. Two soapbar pickups (pups). Four speed-knobs for volume and tone. Tune-matic style bridge, vintage style tuners that work totally fine unless you find yourself needing to nitpick. Made in North Korea in John's factory. Really nice gold top finish. Makes you stare at it whenever you see it in the room. Little bit of overspray on the white binding but at this price perfection wasn't an expectation.

This is the one area where most reviewers seem to be able to come together--absolutely stunning! Beautiful tone! I don't know how John Dillion and his work crew do it but obviously they've done their homework on Gibsons. Before buying I played a Les Paul Custom ($2300 CDN) and they're great guitars but HONESTLY not NEARLY that much better than my Dillion soundwise. If you like vintage tones, the DLP600GT's dripping with them. But be sure you're looking for vintage tones. If you want modern sounds buy a guitar designed for modern sounds. You can still make this guitar rock hard but you have to push your gain levels more than with a humbucking guitar. Soapbars are a single coil pup designed for a more subtle tone. I've played a lot of guitars and this one's absolutely a keeper.

I'm going to leave this as no opinion only because of shipping. I got my lefty DLP600GT off ebay from Chris Light (who's very excellent to deal with--highly recommended). When I got the guitar it's action was way out and it had a ding in the paint on the bottom of the guitar--totally the morons shipping it's fault. I paid $40 to have the guitar set up and the ding patched and it plays like butter. It plays like a great Les Paul should--really easy to bend and supple under you fingers. The frets are perfectly matched with the fretboard.

Some people have commented on the tuners. If you're a gigging musician or someone who's really hard on their gear (why try to be Pete Townshend; he's brilliant but mental don't you know) you'll likely need to upgrade your tuners, but big whoop that's like $60 bucks? If you're going to do a toggle switch solo a la Tom Morello of Audioslave, you'll have to replace it also. Otherwise the guitar's really solid and would suit the vast majority of players out there under many a circumstance.

While I was waiting for the guitar to arrive from Chris Light, I emailed John Dillion and asked him a few questions. I had a reply within the day which considering is amazing. He's a really cool cat and obviously cares about his customers. Try finding that kind of attention with almost any other company. Fender? Gibson? Ibanez? Washburn? Yeah right!

At the price I paid for this guitar (around $500ish CDN) you really can't go wrong. I've played for over 12 years and have G.A.S. (gear aquistion syndrome). Ebay's a horrible mistress for me. Anyway I've play A LOT of gear--I can't go to new city without trying out a bunch of gear. After a while you get a real sense of what's good and what's bad almost immediately. Dillion stuff is incredible bang for the buck. Sure nobody's really heard of it yet but are you needing to wear that NIKE shirt so everyone know's your just like them? As always trying before you buy is the best way to go--everyone has their preferences. Dillion's however, are one brand I'll buy without worring if I've made a bad decision (which I've done LOTS in the past ie. Fender Squier Pro Tone's). Check one out if you really want to play.

See previous reviews for specific information. Mine has the faux Bigsby. Obviously, it also has the soap bar P-90s and it's a Gold Top.

Sound is great. Wide variety of tones as expressed by previous posters. I'm using it with my modified Sunn SR-25 (as described in another review, I took a 220V model that I got in Germany and cut off the recepticle and installed a 110V jack. Basically, I'm starving the transistors, which seems to give the amp a really nice overdriven sound - try this at your own risk!). Also I have a Deluxe 85. I definitely need a small tube amp! I have a handful of pedals like the Morley JD-10 amp emulator, UniVibe, a DOD digital delay, a pair of off-brand phaser and compressor, an American Big Muff reissue and a Boss HM2 Heavy Metal.

It's not noisy at all, except for the normal single coil noise.

All in all, my favorite sound is that "springy" sort of Neil Finn sound that it can produce.

Fit and finish is a little variable. First of all, this is a basic design feature that some will like and others won't - the upper bouts are different than the original LP. The rounded bout is slimmer and the cutaway horn is more rounded. The rounded bout doesn't curve 90 degrees into the neck like the LP. It carries the curve into the neck. I happen to like it, because it looks "sleeker". I don't mind the more rounded horn, but I'm also not all that wild about it.

As far as fit and finish, the pluses are the finely finished and dressed frets (echoing what others have written). The neck pocket is tight, the neck is appropriately straight (with a very slight bias) and the gold finish is just about perfect. The "aged" bindings are a nice touch.

Now for the minuses:

As others have said, the white nut is a distraction. Also, the tuning heads are a strange color green. On my copy, there's a bleed of the mahogony finish on the binding at the pickup switch bout (it's the only spot like that and it's not all that bad, but it IS noticable. The top on the horn is a little bit uneven on the surface (in a certain light you can see it). The fret markers are a little uneven and not always quite parallel, plus several seem just a tiny bit crooked. Finally, the worst part of the finish is on the back of the neck. While the rest of the body's finish is just about perfect (with the exception of the bleed on the binding), the finish on the neck is uneven, like the sprayer didn't bother to get an even flow. It's not horrible, but it should have been better.

As far as action, it seems set up quite well, although it came with heavy gauge strings, while I would have preferred lighter gauge strings (they seem like 10s, but don't quote me). Intonation seems correct. Very comfortable neck - perfect for my hand.

This appears to be a very solid guitar. If I played live, I wouldn't have any qualms whatsoever. The outer finish is deep, reflective and glossy, like a nice piece of hard candy. Very polished. I would say that this guitar seems very dependable and durable

Haven't had to deal with the company.

I've been playing very casually for more than 25 years, although I'm not very good and I'm very much a casual sofa player. I also have the following - black Squier Strat, black CRB1955 Carlos Robelli Gretsch clone and several inexpensive acoustics. Obviously, I can only afford the copies (it would be a waste of money for someone of my skill level to buy "originals".

I love the sound and the fact that it's well-made despite being inexpensive. I hate the mismatched tuning heads (should be creme-colored) and white plastic nut. I also would prefer the open book headstock of the Gibson, but I'm sure that this was changed to avoid a lawsuit, although it didn't really work, now did it? I like the heft and the fact that it's not QUITE as heavy as a traditional LP. I also like the slightly slimmer and more streamlined body, which shows that I'm not a purist. My favorite "feature" is the variety of sounds and the wonderful tone that comes from a LP-styled body and P-90s.

If it were stolen, I'd definitely get another, although they've now changed the design due to a lawsuit and I HATE the new redesign, so I'd probably buy a used one that looks like mine.

I would have preferred a hardtail, but there weren't any more available from my vendor when I bought it. The faux Bigsby works well though, and it seems to stay in tune pretty well.

This guitar IS a wonderful value, but I have to dock it a point because of the niggling issues that I've mentioned. It ain't "perfect", but for the moeny, can you REALLY expect it to be?

this is a 2002 Dillion DLP600GT LP copy - Dillion's version of a Gibson 56 Goldtop LP. It has a solid mahogany body and neck, ?56 LP controls, 2 P-90 single coil pickups, Kluson knockoff tuners and a 60s Gibson LP style neck. I won't waste words here... check the other reviews for more details.

Fantastic sound. This is one awesome rock and blues guitar. These P90 pickups are absolutely KILLER. I have them adjusted really close to the strings as P90s sound best to me that way. Very versatile guitar with very good electronics ? the tone knobs on this guitar do wonders for varying the tone. I can?t say enough about these great pickups on the Dillion ? wherever they came from? I can go from really clean, sweet jazz tones out of the neck pickup to absolute screaming sustaining blues tones from the bridge and also visit many places in between. Sounds great through tube amps and even sounds great through my Marshall AS50R. I?ve owned dozens and dozens of guitars from Hamers to Guilds and this guitar has gotta be one of the best I?ve ever owned. Sound is awesome and sustain is forever!!

The guitar was set up very well from Quality Guitars who shipped it to me after purchase. The finish is SPOT ON goldtop ? absolutely a beautiful guitar. Someone knew what they were doing with this one as the frets were dressed and right on the money. The binding is beautiful and there are no signs of sloppy workmanship anywhere. It was shipped to me with 9s on it and I am still using this gauge as they sound great and the action is like butter for me. I can?t believe the price of this guitar when I look at how finely made it is.

Everything on the guitar seems solid. It?s pretty heavy and looks to me like a long term relationship here. I?ve heard the tuners sucked but in two years I have not replaced mine. I sometimes wonder if all of these people who are replacing these tuners are doing it on hearsay or are actually giving the stock tuners a fair shake?

John Dillion has always answered my e-mails politely and quickly. Seems like a real good guy.

This guitar is amazing and absolutely the biggest ?bang for the buck? musical purchase I have ever made. I also own a ?65 Guild Thunderbird that I?ve had since it was new and a custom made St Blues Bluesmaster that I picked up back in ?85. This guitar is on a par with both of those and is more versatile than either. I look at this goldtop ? then look at a goldtop from the big ?G? and wonder how the heck I got so lucky to find this guitar at the price I found it. This baby and me get along real well. Good job, John Dillion!!

I've had this guitar for about two years or so. It was made in Korea.
(At least that's what it said on the back of the head.) It is the usual set up for an LP, two pickups, two volume and two tone controls,a Tune-O-Matic type bridge, a stop tailpiece, six strings.
The pickups are P90's but I don't really know if they are some hot rod custom made or what but they sound great. This guitar has some heft to it, like any LP. The neck is wide and kind of thin. I searched a while for this guitar and was real happy when I found it.

This is a wonderful sounding guitar. I use it to play Blues and rock and roll. I can get a wide range of sounds with just the guitar and a Fender Blues Deluxe Amp. I'm pretty "old school" about pedals so I rarely use the ones I have. The pickups sre pretty quiet even when the amp is cranking. If you never used P90's they are somewhere between single coils and humbuckers, at least to my ears. I really like everything about this guitar.

It dame out of the bos ready to go. About all I had to do was set the stings to a height which I liked. Everything was great right away.

I've used this guitar along with a ES 135 and a Mexican tele for gigs and jamming. Except for a little problem described below it has stood up. Just change the stings, wipe it down and keep it polished and you are good to go. I did put straplocks on it just to be safe. ($15 v a smashed guitar?) Anybody that goes to a gig without a backup is asking for a whole lot of trouble. ALWAYS HAVE ANOTHER GUITAR HANDY JUST IN CASE!)

This is the really cool part. I played a gig and the next time I took the guitar out of the case there was rust on the pickup screws and on the pickup switch. I emailed Dillion to see if there was a warranty center or if they kew of somebody to help me out. Jong Dillion wrote me back with some ideas. Anyway, with a combination of his and my ideas we fixed it as good as new. Does anyone know if Leo Fender or Orville Gibson ever wroter back to a customer with a problem ?

I have been playing for a VERY, VERY LONG TIME. (Do we really need to put a number on it?) Let's just say I was playing when pre CBS Fenders were the only Fenders around. I love everything about this guitar. I don't hink I'd add anything to it. I really like the feel, look and sound. Besides, who can afford a '56 LP gold top (even a reissue.)

standard LP goldtop copy

amazin...rich full and loud.... playing thru a fender cyber champ
like the real deal.

fit and finish flaw less, action a tad high and comes with 9s a set of
10s really brings out the sound of this thing!!
of all the review here the thing i find strange is that no one else has mentioned the
Super cheep wobbly kluson tuner imitations? the rest of the guitar is damn near perfect but the tuners suck . the good news is for 60 bucks they can be replaced with a set of real gibson tuners(minor drilling required) wich bring the guitar up to world class standards

tough little unit, should hold up well.
like i said the tuners stink.

??

Love it! great guitar for the price(especially when you look at what it would cost to put yer mits on a real one)
its a keeper.

This is a brand-new 2003 600GT. Korean made, supervised by John Dillion. Les Paul 56' gold top replica with 22 fret mahogany set neck, mahog body with P90's. Kluson style tuners with keystone buttons.

I play metal, rock, blues, jazz -- you name it. I use Fender amps and a line 6 Pod 2.0, and this axe sounds incredible thru anything I have thrown at it. Being single coils, there is some noise, but not too much. The combo of P90 and all mahogany is rich, full and balanced. I find it to be an exceptional guitar for all types of music (which is weird, as most folks don't use P90's for hard rock/metal).

Factory set up was superlative. The fretwork is top notch, well polished and cut beautifully along the edge of the neck. I really dig the playability.

I don't expect to have ANY problems with this axe. I did put on Dunlop Straplocks as I am paranoid....I would be glad to use this w/o a backup...It has a great gold top finish, and seems like it would be durable.

I emailed the company before buying to check on dealers and got immendiate response from John Dillion himself. Great company!

This axe is easily one of the best guitars I have ever bought..If it were to be stolen, I would A) replace it and B) smack the snot out of the thief if I caught him. I am incredibly picky about my guitars and this I fell in love with the first second I picked up the first one I played. Get one before the world finds out how good this brand is and drives up the price!!!

Made in Korea in 2001. 22 fret neck. 2-volume, 2-tone & 3-way pickup switch. Mahogany, Gold top. Two P-90s. Tune-o-matic style bridge. Kluson knock-off tuners. Normal Les Paul type of a neck. A gig bag was included.

I play a variety of styles. 40s & 50s country, rockabilly, jazz, punk, surf, blues, & exotica styled tunes. It suits these great. I prefer using it with a mid-60s Magnatone MP-3 or an Epiphone EA-50T Pacemaker. Sometimes I run a tube works 303 overdrive(a good pedal contrary to what some may think) with an Ibanez rack digital delay. For P-90s, they're not that noisy. They're brighter than full-sized humbuckers. I've never had a guitar with this much range in the tone controls. You can roll these tone controls down to 3 or 2 without becoming too muddy. I have no real dislikes about this guitar. It plays better than pretty much anything else I've got.

The action was great from the factory. I only had to tweak the neck a little since I use .10-.46 gauge strings. I adjusted the pole-pieces a little higher. No flaws that I can find. The hardware's great. The frets are incredible, a much cleaner job than the Epiphone Gold Top I tried first.

It'll easily withstand liveplaying. The hardware will last. The finish will definitely last. The strap buttons are solid, but will soon be replaced with strap locks. I advise anyone to make a minimal($15) investment in strap locks. What's worse? $15 on strap locks or several hundred on a snapped neck repair or replacement guitar? BUY SOME DAMN STRAP LOCKS IF YOU CARE ABOUT YOUR INSTRUMENTS! That aside, it's very dependable. I would feel very confident using it without a backup.

Never dealt with the company, never will. I perform most of my own repair work short of major physical repairs, but with this guitar, I don't think repair work is ever going to be an issue.

I've been playing now for 4 1/2 years. I've also got a Dillion Mosrite copy. I've got a Japanese Fender 50s reissue hardtail strat, Fender 6 and 12 string Coronados & Cortez ES-175 copy. If it were stolen or lost I'd go right back to Ben at Guitar Finder and get another one. I compared it to an Epiphone Gold Top and there was no question that the Dillion was the one. The Dillion especially had much cleaner fret work than the Epiphone. The only other thing I wish the Dillion had was a Bigsby. Dillion is the best bargain around right now as far as I'm concerned. Their quality just seems to be much more consistent than Epiphones & Fender Mexico. Not just the Gold Top & Mosrite copies. Their PRS, tele, tele, ES-335, strat, Les Paul copies all are. I've tried them all out & if I had adequate space & finances I'd get them all & get them from Ben at Guitar Finder(www.guitarfinder.com). They're an independent music store in Columbia, MO and Ben is great to deal with.

This is a 2001 Korean made guitar. At least I think its 2001.
22 frets
maple top, mahogeny back
2 p90 clone pickups
3 way switch
rosewood fingerboard w/trapazoid inlays
tune-o-matic bridge
set neck
kluzon tuners
Great Les Paul clone. They got the gold top coloring down to a T. For thousands of dollars cheaper than a Gibson '56 reissue, this guitar is wonderful.

I play anything from blues to metal. This guitar struggles a little bit to pull of some deep distortions. However...for blues, classic rock and pretty much anytype of rock aside from metal, the sound is amazing. The p90 clone pickups pull off a wide range of sounds from Hendrix to Clapton to Slash. Im using it with a marshall avt50 amp and I havent tried it with any affects yet. The sustain of this guitar goes for days. I can't say enough about how it sounds.

The set up was pretty good out out of the gate. A little bit of fret buzz but that was due to old strings being on. I changed them to 11-52 and adjusted the neck to compensate and it was perfect. Pickups are just about right....maybe a little high, but nothing worth changing yet. The gold top was beautiful, no visible flaws so far. The only difference between this and the real deal that I can tell is the headstock is a tad different.

haven't gigged with it, but it looks to be very sturdy.

I contacted the company with some questions and the owner got back to me within a day and answered everything I needed. If that is any indication of their support I am going to be pleased.
Came with a three year warranty

I have been playing for three years. The only thing I wish I had done before getting this guitar was asking for it to be set up with no strings to save myself from doing it...but thats just laziness. I think for the price it is a fantastic value considering how much the real thing is. I compared it to the epiphone gold top and this one blew it away in every category. The only thing that I do not like about the guitar is the pickguard. Ugly as hell, but Im going to take it off. If this guitar was stolen I would definetly buy it again.

This is a review of the Dillion left-handed DL600GT('56 gold top Les Paul clone). It is a 2002 model made in Korea. Being left-handed, the number of guitars you can choose from is limited, other than the Fender standard strat. I always wanted a LH Les Paul style guitar but never could find any. Finally ran across this one on the internet and decided to buy it figuring I didn't have a lot to lose. The pictures on Dillion's web site, as good as they are, can't do this guitar justice. It is much much nicer than I ever dreamed. A local guitar store has a Gibson right-handed '56 gold-top Les Paul reissue on sale for $5300. The left-handed Dillion cost $439. The right-handed version is less. Now that I can directly compare my Dillion to the Gibson, I'm amazed by how much nicer the finish on the Dillion is than on the Gibson. The gold top color is perfect. The cream colored plastic and trapezoidal pearl inlay are perfect. I can only find one slight imperfection on my guitar, a vey small scratch on the neck that you have to look close for to find. Admittedly, the headstock is different than the Gibson, and Dillion can't put the Les Paul name on it, but is that worth $4900? Not to me. If you are looking for a left-handed Les Paul style guitar, this is it as far as I'm concerned. It can't be beat. There ae 22 frets, thin neck, very easy to play. fingering is much easier than on many other styles.

The sound is great. There is a wide range from very smooth rhythm to various brighter lead sounds. Much more flexible than a stratocaster. You can play jazz, hard rock, just about any style. I'm partial to 60's rock but this guitar would be godd for just about any style.

I had to adjust the neck, that was all. Othewise it was perfect out of the box.

So far its great. I would have no reservations about using it on a gig without a backup.

My only dealing with the company so far has been in purchasing the guita. When I enquired about the availability of the guitar I got a personal e-mail from John Dillion himself telling me who to contact. I had my guitar within 2 weeks. If this is any example of how tis company works I would expect no problems in the future.

I have been playing guitar for almost 40 years. This is the nicest guitar I have ever had. If something happened to this guitar, I'd definitely get another. The bottom line is this. Unless you're just dying to pay $4900 dollars for the Gibson name, this guitar is almost an exact copy, the finish is superior to the Gibson, and the sound, etc. is just as good. Especially if you're left-handed this guitar just can't be beat.