SH-11 in a Les Paul Custom

[chachi83]

So, I recently purchased a '68 Chambered Les Paul Custom RI. I wasn't really digging the '57 classics because I felt the sound was too thin so I bought a Bare Knuckle Nailbomb and installed it in the bridge position. Still my sound is thin and week with no bottom end, I mean.....I know it's chambered and all but a BRIGHT SOUNDING LES PAUL ??? WTF ! Finally I went to the tone wizard on the SD website and I opted for the SH-11 because it is supposedly good for bright guitars with ebony fretboards. Im a little worried now though because I went and viewed it on the tone chart and the specs are Bass 3 Mids 7 Treb 7. I'm not the smartest peanut in the turd but that doesn't sound like a dark pickup description to me...
If this pup doesn't work, what do you guys recommend ?

[Rockstar216]

Re: SH-11 in a Les Paul Custom

Ive heard people praise the SH-11 in a LP. But what type of tone, sound are you after? What type of music do you want to do with the guitar?

[lazyfinger]

Re: SH-11 in a Les Paul Custom

IME, CC in LP was pretty gooey, all mids with dash of treble. Low end was not tight, but articulate enough for standard tuning.

[chachi83]

Re: SH-11 in a Les Paul Custom

I will mainly use it for modern hard rock tuned 1/2 step down to c# g# c# f# a# d#. My amp is a Bad Cat Hot Cat 30 head (which is pretty bright I must admit) and 4x12 cab with scumback bm75's.

[Empty Pockets]

Re: SH-11 in a Les Paul Custom

my good friend, luthier / mentor and Guy With The Best Tone I Know uses one in his Les Paul so

yeah they sound good

[Aceman]

Re: SH-11 in a Les Paul Custom

If thios epi Les PAul is too bright, this may seriously be what you need.

The Tone chart for the CC is an item of great contention.

The highs are SUPER fat. But there are not a ton of them. Raising the treble screws really helps with that.
The mids are ultra boosted - and the guitar can crunch like a drunk Ninja trying to tip toe through a bowl of dry corn flakes because of this.
The lows are there too. I'd say 4/5 - but they are loose. To tighten, add three hex poles from say a full shred, or very careful cut the poles there in half.

The bass/mids are percieved as absent often because the mids are ginormous. Boost bass and treble at the amp.


And you are a mag swap from a Custom if you don't dig it. I really liked it in my Epi Classic (pretty bright as LP's went..). But it is a p[articulalr pup and not for everyone or every thing or every situation.

[blueman335]

Re: SH-11 in a Les Paul Custom

Normally CC's are considered to be too dark for LP's. In your case, they may work well. You certainly don't want a C5.

[GuitarDoc]

Re: SH-11 in a Les Paul Custom

An LP Custom can be a bright guitar, but the 57 should warm it quite a bit.
If you thought the 57 Classic was too thin in your guitar, I'd say your amp is probably at fault.

If you want thicker mids and bass you might want to try the Alt8. The Custom Custom is definitely meant for bright guitars, but I find it a bit dull and lifeless. I liked it with an A8 much better. (But then, all of my amps have great mids and bass).

Seriously, though, you've got a really bright amp and you're complaining about your pups sounding thin?!

[Boogie Bill]

Re: SH-11 in a Les Paul Custom

I like the '57 Classic Plus bridge pickups in my two 2007 GOTW Classic Antique Les Pauls. Nice, thick rock tone.

But I wonder if something else is going on...57 Classics are some of the warmest pickups around.

Good luck!

Bill

[Aceman]

Re: SH-11 in a Les Paul Custom

If you want to stay more "classic" PAF without the extremities of the CC, perhaps an A2P would be in order. Bass, Mid, but fat highs. And it is way way more than a "Slash" pickup. Thicker than the 57's IMO.

But - as was mentioned, what amp?

[Soulcrusher_X]

Re: SH-11 in a Les Paul Custom

You may also want to try out different brands of tubes in the preamp of your badcat. Mix n matching may cure some of the problem. Are your speakers broken in?

My LPC is very bright for a Les Paul, but it's far from thin sounding. Only two pickups gave me too much of a spiky or thin high end and those were the Custom and Distortion, Probably the ceramic magnet and ebony board accentuating the highs.

If all else fails, you may want to look into Zhangliquin's Crushbucker. It's a massive sounding pickup, but never muddy. Good amount of power without being overboard. Not trying to steer away from Duncans, becuase I love my JB, 59, Screamin Demon and Custom, but he's a super nice guy and has a great product for a good price. He floats around the board here from time to time.

[chachi83]

Re: SH-11 in a Les Paul Custom

I don't really think it's my amp.....I have a les paul standard with wolfetone marshallheads and it sounds fine. I have an es335 with throbak's and it sounds fine. For some reason my lp custom sounds like crap........maybe something is wrong with the wiring/pots/caps......Im sure the tech will figure it out, and hopefully the SH-11 is a better fit.

[chachi83]

Re: SH-11 in a Les Paul Custom

I like the '57 Classic Plus bridge pickups in my two 2007 GOTW Classic Antique Les Pauls. Nice, thick rock tone.

But I wonder if something else is going on...57 Classics are some of the warmest pickups around.

Good luck!

Bill

thanks bill,
You might be right.......Faulty wiring, bad pot or cap......we will have to see

[Myaccount876]

Re: SH-11 in a Les Paul Custom

You could also try 300K pots before the CC and see if that does the trick.

[Soulcrusher_X]

Re: SH-11 in a Les Paul Custom

I don't really think it's my amp.....I have a les paul standard with wolfetone marshallheads and it sounds fine. I have an es335 with throbak's and it sounds fine. For some reason my lp custom sounds like crap........maybe something is wrong with the wiring/pots/caps......Im sure the tech will figure it out, and hopefully the SH-11 is a better fit.

IMO, the Customs are generally brighter than the rest of the Gibson lines. For one, the ebony boards add some "snap" and brightness to the tone, and they use 500k pots on the Customs rather than the 300k and 300k/100k mix pots on the standard line. OR, maybe it is a faulty wiring/cap/pot problem like Bill said. Regardless, good luck in your tone hunting!

BTW, how do you like the Scumback BM75s?