it sounds like you are leaning toward the epiphones. i can tell you this much. i have had an epi les paul custom flametop for about 10 or 12 years. i have been well satisfied. i would love to have a true gibson, but they are just so expensive. i have played many gibsons and yes they are a good investment and are probably worth the money, but thats not really a factor if you dont HAVE the money. i once had an extensive conversation with a tech from gibson and he told me that the two major differences between the two is that epi bodies are made from several peices of wood laminated together and gibsons are made from one solid peice, and that the gibsons use a higher grade of electrical components. now i cant promise you that this information is totally accurate, but i can say this: the price difference seems to be greater than the actual difference in the product. my guitar sells for around 659.00 new and i spent about 120.00 on a set of pickups to upgrade from the originals (which werent that bad anyway). a gibson les paul standard right now is a little over 2 grand. it is VERY unlikely that you would be able to notice that much of a difference, especially as a fairly inexperienced player. the only problem that i have ever had with my epi is the pickup selector switch has needed replacement twice. thats not so bad in several years of use. the new switch isnt that expensive and not extremely difficult to change.
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I was talking to some of my friends and they said the Epiphones pick ups aren't very good.

The old epis had crappy pickups but the newer ones use usa designed ones, they are pretty cool. Ive had 3 epis over the years, and what I can say is they are great value for money, check harmony central for reviews.

I have an Epiphone SG G-310 and I absolutely love the thing. I just need to upgrade the tuners, and maybe the pickups, but the stock pickups are not bad. I have always had good fortune with Epiphone.

I got an Epi Sheraton and while I'm not sure i do believe it has the same pups as the Les Paul but you will be moving from a squire to an epiphone which means you will moving from single coils to humbuckers that in itself will be a big change both sound wise but neck wise also. With only 4 months of guitar behind you, having both will be a learning experience that should add quite a bit to your guitar adventure.

I own an Epiphone Les Paul Standard & would highly recommend it. I do not find the pickups to be weak at all. If you are happy with your Squier & it sounds good, why do you feel that you need to upgrade? If you're not happy with the Squier, the Epi Les Paul would be a good choice for a next guitar. Guitar Center would be a good place to buy one.

$659 + $120 for pickups = $779.....for $800 there are tons of better guitars out there....you can even pick up a real gibson for that kind of cheese. it all comes down to what you want to spend. what is your budget? schecter makes a whole line of guitars for half that price that will play and sound waaay better than an epi. i picked up a damian floyd rose with emg's for $400 earlier this year...i got a michael kelly Valor Q last year for $399.(check the picture) both guitars blow away the epi....plus no need to upgrade any pickups as both came with upper line pickups. ibanaz also has a number of humbucker loaded guitars under well under $800.

here is a whole page of gibson studio les pauls for around $600 to $800

http://instruments.search.ebay.com/studio_Les-Paul_W0QQcatrefZC6QQfgtpZQQfposZ44720QQfromZR2QQfsooZ1QQfsopZ1QQftrtZ1QQftrvZ1QQlopgZQQsabfmtsZ1QQsacatZ47071QQsadisZ200QQsaobfmtsZinsifQQsaprchiZQQsaprcloZQQsargnZQ2d1QQsaslcZ2QQsbrftogZ1QQsofocusZbs


i would certainly shop around a bit before deciding. for that kind of money,there are plenty of deals out there to consider. and simply settling for some plywood and cheap pickups guitar is certainly not the thing to do here. personally i have yet to find an epi that i thought was any real value. they just feel like lightweight toys to me. and why buy something you need to upgrade immediatlly. that just doesn't make much sense to me.

An Epiphone Standard Plus top sells on Musicians Friend for $499.00 (see attached pic of mine). The plain tops are $399.00 & you don't need to upgrade the pickups. You could get a nice guitar cheaper though. Ibanez makes some nice, reasonably priced guitars too.

epiphone in my mind is one of the best brands out right now. i cant think of another guitar you can buy for such an inexpensive price that has the look and feel and overall quality that epi's do. i would say go for it. i have been playing since i was about 6 years old and i would pick up an epi and play it on stage any day. go for it, i bet you will be happy.

oh yes, and i tottally disagree with buying ANYTHING from Guitar center. cmon guys, keep the little guy in business! guitar center is like wal mart... ick.