I used to have an Epiphone Les Paul Standard and it was crap. The neck was chunky and un-comfortable, the pickups lacked punch and brightness, and the electronics were junk. I bought my Gibson Les Paul Classic in May of this year and it is night and day difference. The neck is slimer and very comfortable, very easy to move around on it. The pickups cut through as much as the hot rails on my tele, and I have had no problems with the electronics. Both of these guitars have been on the road with me and been through endless gigs. The Epiphone I had to take it in for repairs after a month. The Gibson has had no problems, only a neck adjustment last month.
The Gibson sustains much longer do to the higher quality wood and the fact that it is heavy. I love heavy guitars so this was perfect for me. My Epiphone was lighter than my Tele. I would look around for a used Gibson for a while, because you might as well just go for something you really want instead of going half way. Yes, changing the pickups will make some difference, but pickups aren't the only thing that makes a good gutiar a good guitar.