Epiphone 1959 Les Paul Standard Factory Burst

I already have four of the Burstbucker Outfit Epiphones. One of them is the Lazarus. I like them all very much. What appealed to me here are the custom buckers. Do you really notice a difference?
Short answer ... Yes. The Burstbuckers are already great. The Custombuckers sound even better. That alone is a good reason to buy the much more expensive current version. I actually wanted to buy the Greeny and had reckoned with €1300; then suddenly there was talk of €1500, but in the end that was just the dollar price, because here in Germany it costs €1700! I really didn't understand that. But the €1300 here is reasonable for me.

The workmanship is flawless. The fingerboard on mine is very dark and beautifully textured. Laurel instead of rosewood, I don't mind it, but others do. Weight 3.8 kg. The electronics compartment is "tidied up" better than on the others. This may be a coincidence. The stopbar is very light. The bridge is better than on the predecessors, even closer to the original. The neck is continuous, which I already know from the Lazarus. Then the Gibson headstock. Looks good, also contributes to the higher price, doesn't sound any better of course, but has something. The MOP inlays also look great. The neck is ideal for me because it is a little thinner than its predecessors. The finish is also matt, but for whatever reason it looks more valuable.

I had first considered whether I wanted to and could wait 2-3 years in the hope of being able to "shoot" one of them second-hand for perhaps €900. But firstly, I didn't want to wait that long and secondly, that wouldn't have worked with the Lazarus either. In the meantime, you can only get them with a surcharge, if at all, and not with a discount.
Conclusion: Great guitar at a reasonable price for an Epiphone of this design and quality. But there is no comparable Gibson for the money.