Pearly Gates/Custom hybrid...

[Bowtomecha]

Has anybody tried the pg/custom hybrid pickup? I like the sounds it seems to get but I wonder how it differs from the 59/custom. I’m not a big fan of the saggy feel the custom custom gets with A2 but with one pg coil and one custom coil with an A2, it sounds firmer while still offering the midrange bump? I’m thinking the 59/custom is a good medium for A5 and a pg/custom might be good for an A2 that’s not too loose in the low end.

some samples located here: https://www.seymourduncan.com/blog/t...pickup-magnets

[GuitarDoc]

Re: Pearly Gates/Custom hybrid...

I haven't tried a PG/C but I've tried the 59/C with several magnets. With A5 I find it a bit too bright for my taste. A great pup for lots of stuff, but not quite my thing. With A2 I found it sound very nice. I didn't experience that "saggy" feel that you get from the CC. My favorite was with an A8...strong punchy bass, great mids, softer highs (than with the A5), more oomph, and yet good clarity.

I bet the PG/C would sound super with an A2, but I still think my preference might be A8.

[orpheo]

Re: Pearly Gates/Custom hybrid...

Yup. Done it a few times. Compared to a 59/custom, it's a bit hotter, a bit dirtier, a bit nastier. it's actually an amazing pickup Totally not my cup 'o tea, though, but I truly enjoyed playing this pickup.

[GuitarDoc]

Re: Pearly Gates/Custom hybrid...

^Is that with an A2 or an A5? That's about what I would have expected from it even with an A2. An A5 would probably puncture my eardrum. I think an A8 would be awesome, however.

[Mincer]

Re: Pearly Gates/Custom hybrid...

I haven't tried a PG/C but I've tried the 59/C with several magnets. With A5 I find it a bit too bright for my taste. A great pup for lots of stuff, but not quite my thing. With A2 I found it sound very nice. I didn't experience that "saggy" feel that you get from the CC. My favorite was with an A8...strong punchy bass, great mids, softer highs (than with the A5), more oomph, and yet good clarity.

I bet the PG/C would sound super with an A2, but I still think my preference might be A8.

I would think that an A2 PG/C would be very nice.

[orpheo]

Re: Pearly Gates/Custom hybrid...

^Is that with an A2 or an A5? That's about what I would have expected from it even with an A2. An A5 would probably puncture my eardrum. I think an A8 would be awesome, however.

I tried both since I started with a custom5; I kinda really like the PG/C A5 version in a full thickness les paul; it just cuts, rips and roars. I liked the A2 version for sweeter, ZZTop/Lynyrd kinda tones. The A8 was way too strong for my taste. The pickup oozes a bit of vintage sag and the A8 just ramped it up wayy to much.

Think of it like this: with the A2, it was like a 1969 Mustang. With the A5 it was like a Ford GT40, but with the A8 it was like a hotrod lowrider: still that vintage vibe but amped up to ridiculous levels.

@mincer: I KNOW you like this pickup because you told me you did when you tried that hybrid I made when we both visited the factory in '15 (or was it '16? Can't remember; it was the time when the whole 'gang' was there, including Nick Johnston, who also really liked this pickup).

[Bowtomecha]

Re: Pearly Gates/Custom hybrid...

I thought nick Johnston was strictly a single coil guy. Interesting.

[orpheo]

Re: Pearly Gates/Custom hybrid...

I thought nick Johnston was strictly a single coil guy. Interesting.

He is. Unless you're friends via acquaintances and push a guitar in his hands at SD HQ to take out for a test drive

[Mincer]

Re: Pearly Gates/Custom hybrid...

I tried both since I started with a custom5; I kinda really like the PG/C A5 version in a full thickness les paul; it just cuts, rips and roars. I liked the A2 version for sweeter, ZZTop/Lynyrd kinda tones. The A8 was way too strong for my taste. The pickup oozes a bit of vintage sag and the A8 just ramped it up wayy to much.

Think of it like this: with the A2, it was like a 1969 Mustang. With the A5 it was like a Ford GT40, but with the A8 it was like a hotrod lowrider: still that vintage vibe but amped up to ridiculous levels.

@mincer: I KNOW you like this pickup because you told me you did when you tried that hybrid I made when we both visited the factory in '15 (or was it '16? Can't remember; it was the time when the whole 'gang' was there, including Nick Johnston, who also really liked this pickup).

Oh ok! I remember! That was a really fun time!

[Ronnie_Snow]

I made my first hybrid last night. Seemed easier than doing my first magnet swap to be honest. I kept the A5 magnet. It retains that firm bottom end, which I cannot live without.
The PG coil adds that slight midrange bump and clarity which I liked about the PG compared to the 59. It also removed some compression from the Custom 5 to make it feel more alive.
In terms of being different to a 59/C, I would say its very very similar but theres a bit more clarity in the mids and maybe the slightest lower output doesn't really get noticed due to the mids being more pronounced. I have been hunting for quality humbucker for my Gold top for some time and I think Ive found it

[Mincer]

I made my first hybrid last night. Seemed easier than doing my first magnet swap to be honest. I kept the A5 magnet. It retains that firm bottom end, which I cannot live without.
The PG coil adds that slight midrange bump and clarity which I liked about the PG compared to the 59. It also removed some compression from the Custom 5 to make it feel more alive.
In terms of being different to a 59/C, I would say its very very similar but theres a bit more clarity in the mids and maybe the slightest lower output doesn't really get noticed due to the mids being more pronounced. I have been hunting for quality humbucker for my Gold top for some time and I think Ive found it

What magnet do you have in it?

[Ronnie_Snow]

What magnet do you have in it?

I kept the original A5 from the Custom 5... I considered putting in a RCA5 but the stock just works. It really is the perfect balance of vintage tone but enough guts underneath to make it hit hard where it counts.

I now have a Custom Screw coil that I am keen to use for another Hybrid? Any recommendations?

[Clint 55]

Whatever strikes your fancy. You can generalize by if you want to use a vintage (42), medium (43), or hot (44) coil to go with. Every hybrid I've made has ended up cool.