P-Rails for ES-339

[joefrost01]

I love my Gibson ES339 but I wish it was a bit more versatile so I’m thinking of fitting a set of P-Rails plus triple shot surrounds to it.
I presume that I would need the arched surrounds for this.
Has anyone else tried P-Rails on a Gibson ES339 and if so how close could you get to a strat-like tone?

[jeremy]

i think its a fine idea, but it wont ever sound like a strat

[Mincer]

Welcome to the forum!

I've used the P-Rails on a 335 before, and it did a convincing Strat sound with both rails on. Each individual rail is less Strat like, but if you are looking for a versatile pickup combination, the P-Rails are really good at that. Triple Shots are almost mandatory to get the most out of them in an elegant, ergonomic way.

[joefrost01]

And it's the arched triple shots that I need right?

[hamerfan]

Probably not, because every top carve is different. But it's not wizardry to fit them. I don't recommend to bend them too much either. In some cases you need some time, fine grid sandpaper and double-sided sticky tape.

[Blille]

Welcome to the forum!

I've used the P-Rails on a 335 before, and it did a convincing Strat sound with both rails on. Each individual rail is less Strat like, but if you are looking for a versatile pickup combination, the P-Rails are really good at that. Triple Shots are almost mandatory to get the most out of them in an elegant, ergonomic way.

Is the both rails sound close to the neck+middle strat sound or is it something else?

[joefrost01]

Welcome to the forum!

I've used the P-Rails on a 335 before, and it did a convincing Strat sound with both rails on. Each individual rail is less Strat like, but if you are looking for a versatile pickup combination, the P-Rails are really good at that. Triple Shots are almost mandatory to get the most out of them in an elegant, ergonomic way.

Did you use arched triple shots on your ES-335?

[Mincer]

Did you use arched triple shots on your ES-335?

Actually, it was flat, but the bigger body means that the 'arch' of the top is spread out more. The place where the pickups are was fairly even, so I used flat ones. Are your current rings arched? If you can't tell, post a pic.

[GuitarDoc]

The flat would probably be what you want. If there is a slight curve to your guitar it's an easy fix to sand the flat TS rings to fit. It's much more difficult to fit a curved TS ring to fit a flat top.

But just look at the rings that are on your guitar...are they flat or curved?

[GuitarDoc]

By the way, the P-Rails are a great choice, especially with TS rings.

[Aceman]

I have P-rail/Triple Shot in a 335 style. Awesomely flexible setup. I used flat rings. Arch on a 339 is not that much. I have an Epic 339. Assume it is similar.

So many great sounds.