Hey, y'all.
I notice that even though this is a Fender board, we've got a lot of posters here who appreciate Gibsons, too.
So I thought I'd pose this question -- and I hope this is the right forum for it: Can you recommend a good, affordable Les Paul-type guitar?
By "affordable," I mean less than a grand. And by "Les Paul-type," I mean basically any solid-body guitar with a mahogany body (preferably thick), a maple top (preferably not just a veneer), a set neck, a flat-radius fretboard, and two warm humbuckers.
Les Paul-style tone, playability and sustain are the key goals. Pretty would be nice, too, like a figured, carved top and a nifty finish.
I've mostly been looking at the ESP EC-1000, the Ibanez ARX300CRS, and Hamer's non-U.S.-made Archtop Quilt-Top.
That's the basic idea. Something that will approximate the sound and feel of the 1982 Gibson LP Custom I used to have -- without making this living-room guitar hobbyist feel too guilty about spending the money.