Paul Landers Signature Gibson Les Paul
This page documents the specs, history, prototypes, promotional photographs, and an interview from Paul himself.
Official media and interviews
Gibson EPK
Listen to a man promote a guitar on the plushest looking cream colored sofa of all time.
I know you wonder - is he just joking about the "it's named Paul, I'm Paul - it's good" bit. Honestly, I think he's telling a half truth and that does matter. But he likely also realizes people watching this won't understand nuanced views about guitars. He likely has a more academic answer to it about sound, wiring, pickups, knobs, or visual construction of the body shape. You likely won't understand the jargon.
Because if you read his Metal Hammer interview, you'll realize he's filled with rambles about sound and design actually.
Metal Hammer Interview
There is one interview from early 2012 where he discusses: prototypes, endorsing in his view, and how he went about designing this guitar in general. Read my English translation.
A full collection of promotional images and product photos can be found in the gallery.
Prototype to production model
The approximate start of the Gibson Signature model was around 2008-2009. By LIFAD touring, he was using a prototype on stage and by early 2010 promotional photos were created. Until recently, much about this was not known or public facing.
A surviving Gibson development prototype
In spring 2026, a new development happened when a German seller on Reverb revealed owning a Gibson commissioned prototype model for "tone evaluation" that was apparently 1 of 3 created. It was accredited to the work of Alexander Markusch.
Listing provenance
- Seller
- "Marco's BlueAmps Gear Depot"
- Platform
- Reverb
- Title
- "Alexander Markusch Prototype #1 of 3 – Commissioned by Gibson for Paul Landers (Rammstein)"
Who is Alexander Markusch?
He is a guitar constructionist, repairer, and customizer working for anyone between the most average guitarist, hobbyists in the local scenes, to big rockstars. He knows everything there is to know about making this instrument and wood. Alex says he spent many years working for Gibson Europe and Gibson Germany as a consultant and worked in their showroom.
A 2021 coverage piece mentioned his work with Gibson and various signature models.
"To this very day, [Alexander] Markusch advises manufacturers like ESP and Gibson on the construction of signature models. That's guitars built for specific musicians and then mass produced for their name."
His official website lists him as working with Rammstein under "national". However, upon digging closer - he has worked with Richard and his tech Lutz too. This is why he was located at a July 2023 show pertaining Richard's instruments. Several December 2024 and January 2025 German articles (Berliner-Zeitung and Morgenpost) tell me nothing about Paul's Gibson unfortunately.
Seller's description
"This instrument is one of only three prototypes produced worldwide, commissioned directly by Gibson during the pre-production phase of the Paul Landers Signature series. Gibson tapped Markusch’s expertise to test different tonewood combinations to find the ultimate sonic foundation for Paul Landers’ industrial sound."
- Mission
- Gibson-commissioned tonewood evaluation and design study.
- Inlays
- Created exactly to Paul’s visual requirements with Markusch’s legendary precision.
- Finish
- Deep, sandblasted "Driftwood" texture on the body, contrasting a smooth 2-piece top.
- Hardware
- Full Schaller "Vintage Copper" suite.
- Nut
- Custom-carved Black Buffalo Horn.
- Resonance
- Incredible acoustic vibration—built for the biggest stages.
My Provenance Research
I fact checked every aspect possible to this listing. I believe it's accurate. I found evidence of numerous aspects of this being corroborated.
claims meeting Paul in 2018 ⟶ Fractal forums dated to October 2018 ⟶ February 2019 Volksstimme article
worked with Gibson Germany during the relevant time period of 2008-2012 on signature models ⟶ photograph with Paul from July 2023 captioned "good seeing you again" ⟶ mentions working with Richard in 2024 ⟶ official site mentions Rammstein
Autograph: fully 100% consistent with Paul's handwriting. (The onus of authority to this claim is myself. I would defend it.)
One Bridge Pickup: Very obvious Paul behavior and something you cannot randomly guess.
Paul & Alexander
Stage configuration changes
2012-2013
Pick slot
Despite the final product being on the market, Paul was using a pick slot variant on-and-off in Made in Germany touring. He mentioned this being a part of the prototype considerations but dropped. Well... here it is.
2016
Pick slot & red volume knob
More variants in 2016 era! This time the pick slot returns with a red volume poti instead of the chrome.
2016
Red volume knob
Another 2016 exclusive variant, the red volume knob only.
2017
EMG Pickup Changes
Entire guitar temporarily converted to probable passive EMG-HZ. Something like H1/H2 bridge + H3 neck, which would explain why the neck still appears superficially identical to his old EMG 60 but the bridge pickup shows screws suddenly. It's extremely likely this is related to PL1 testing of prototypes. This was not permanent.
Appearances & promotion
March 2010
Frankfurt Musikmesse
This was one of the first official announcements regarding the prototype fans had been seeing on stage since December 2009. He appeared at the Gibson booth and signed photo cards alongside displaying a prototype. More photos can be found here.
February 2012
British Music Experience
Just prior to the formal release, he made another appearance in the UK at a Gibson booth signing autographs.
Official specifications
These specifications reproduce information preserved from Gibson's former product page as-is.
Body
- Top
- Maple
- Back
- Mahogany
- Binding
- Silver
- Adhesive
- Franklin Titebond
Neck
- Species
- Mahogany
- Profile
- Rounded '50s
- Truss Rod
- Traditional
- Joint Angle
- 4° (+/- 15 seconds)
- Adhesive
- Franklin Titebond
Neck Fit
- Joint
- Mortise & Tenon
- Adhesive
- Franklin Titebond
- Joint Angle Tolerance
- +/- .005"
Fingerboard
- Species
- Obeche
- Frets
- 22
- Radius
- 12"
- Scale Length
- 24.75"
- Nut/E.O.B
- 1.695/2.260
Nut
- Material
- Black Corian
- Width
- 1.695
- Slots
- Gibson PLEK System
Headstock
- Logo
- Mother-of-Pearl "Gibson" Inlay with Silver "Les Paul Model" Silkscreen
- Angle
- 17 Degrees
- Truss Rod Cover
- Black Sandblasted Antique Bell
- Other
- Metal Medallion "Paul Landers #1" on Back
Tuners
- Model
- Locking Grover with Keystone Buttons
- Plating
- Chrome
- Tuning Ratio
- 18:01
Bridge
- Type
- TonePros Tune-O-Matic
- Plating
- Chrome
Tailpiece
- Type
- TonePros Stopbar
- Plating
- Chrome
Hardware
- Knobs
- Chrome Knurl
- Pickup Mounting Rings
- Chrome
- Control Plate Cover
- Black Plastic
- Strings
- .010-.046
- Strap Buttons
- Strap Locks
Pickups
- Neck Position
- EMG 60 (Alnico)
- Bridge Position
- EMG 81 (Ceramic/Steel)
Electronics
- Potentiometers
- 1 Volume Control
- Type
- 300k Linear
- Toggle Switch
- Three-Way with Black Toggle Cap
- Output Jack
- Traditional ¼"
Finish
- Sealer
- Nitrocellulose Lacquer
- Color
- Satin Ebony
Case
- Type
- Gibson Hardshell
- Case Exterior
- Black
What Satin Ebony looks like
Seller photographs are better because the finish changes noticeably with ordinary room light to reveal matte and this off-black that is the so called 'satin' element at play.
References
Because I don't trust anything to stay sourced for 10 more years, I have taken archival steps on my own. I mean, Gibson nuked their 2012 page from existence since 2019 and took most info about this guitar offline. Just like that. Most things now survive in a Guitar World copy/paste of their product page in parts. And random sellers that copied snippets and the Rammwiki.
Archived Links
- Former Gibson product page
- Alex's IG page with Paul (screenshot)
- Urbanite.net Markusch article (archive)
- Amazona.de Markusch article (archive)
- Berliner-Zeitung article
- Morgenpost.de article
- Fractal Forums post from Marco (screenshot)
- February 2019 Volksstimme digital edition screenshot (Original article can be obtained from their archives in person. Via appointment. Anyone in Germany wanna help me?)
- Reverb listing (screenshot: one / two / three / photos)
- Guitar World coverage (archive)
- tagesspiegel.de (archive)
Signature Les Paul FAQ
Did he use the Signature LP in the Liebe ist für alle da tour?
Yes, absolutely. That is not a random LP custom. It's the prototype.
When did this collaborative model get announced?
Paul made a public appearance promoting it at a Gibson booth in March 2010 at the Frankfurt Musikmesse. The finished product was announced as going on sale in March 2012. It was formally released to stores by April.
Are there any more interviews?
No. Only one from Metal Hammer, which I have translated myself. There are no more except the official Gibson EPK video. You can try the Gibson press page for a little more product talk. But that's it.
Do you have the promotional and product images? Gibson took it all offline.
Yes, here they are. Including all of the product photos.
Did... did you seriously recreate the Gibson specs page??
Yes, I did 💕 If you look at the Gibson page's code, you will realize with horror that it's made out of table cells in a column shape. 2012 was a different time. I made this one using grid columns and definition list classes. It's the same thing in theory, but modern standards and better semantic HTML.
