Help a set of 59's in a les paul

[lpstudio]

I installed a set of 59's in my epiphone dot and found the sound a bit too much I was looking for a mellower tone. I decided to give my gibson les paul studio an upgrade and put the les paul pickups in the dot. The dot sounds awsome now but the les paul is way too harsh in the bridge mainly the neck isn't as smooth as the stock pickup but I may like the increased bite in the neck. I have tried to raise the pickup and lower it when lowered it sounded very thin but when raised too much attack. does anybody use the 59's in the les paul or will a jb help smooth things out.

I would like more bite than stock but not too harsh.

[59paul]

Re: Help a set of 59's in a les paul

Well, I've never heard the 59 described as Harsh. I use 59B's in my newer Les Pauls, and they are warm and Balanced, very smooth. You want the pickup set just under the strings, when the guitar is fretted at the last fret. Do you have it wired correctly?? You don't have it split, do you ??? You should have the red and white wires soldered together and taped off, the green and bare soldered together and soldered to volume pot, and the black to switch. ( for a 4 conductor pickup ). For a single conductor, solder the braid to volume pot, and the end to switch. It also may be that the 59 is too bright for your tastes. The 59 replicates a 1959 PAF, which is a little bright ( but not harsh ). You may want to consider a Duncan Seth Lover, or a Duncan Antiquity( if you're wired correctly, and the 59 still is too bright for you ). A JB is going to be Brighter and probably more " harsh " to your ears, as it is a High Output pickup. Check your wiring !!! .........

[lpstudio]

Re: Help a set of 59's in a les paul

I have the 2 wire setup and it is wired right I will try a closer to string setting I also find they don't respond as much to volume and tone changes as my stock gibson pickups did. I must say the 59b is way more balanced than the gibsons were so I hope I can figure them out.

[59paul]

Re: Help a set of 59's in a les paul

The 59 should respond very well to volume and tone changes. You may want to unsolder it, and re-solder...just to make sure you have good solder joints. Clean the volume pot off before re-soldering, to ensure a good ground.

[kaknight]

Re: Help a set of 59's in a les paul

you can raise the individual pole peices as well as put the whole pickup at an angle with the main side screws. this should give you the ability to add more to the bass strings if they are lacking.

[59paul]

Re: Help a set of 59's in a les paul

Yep, good post Kaknight.
Tip> some players set the pole pieces to match the radius of the fretboard.
So...re-check that wiring, then re-set the height of the 59....

[Kent S.]

Re: Help a set of 59's in a les paul

Yep, good post Kaknight.
Tip> some players set the pole pieces to match the radius of the fretboard.
So...re-check that wiring, then re-set the height of the 59....

That definitley helps to warm up a pup, if his low end isn't muddy, and has a bit more bite than he'd like an Alinco II Pro in the bridge might work nice, although it may not have the bite he's looking for, but most certainly wouldn't be harsh. I'd try angling the treble side of the pup away from the strings, and then set to polepieces to match the fretboard radius. The opposite angle (away from the bass strings), and pole piece tweak works well on the neck also ... bear in mind we are talking 10~20 degrees (guess off top of head, never thought about it before really as far as the angle itself) maximum.
A little can go a long way.

[Eric]

Re: Help a set of 59's in a les paul

PM's Kent

[Marinblues]

Re: Help a set of 59's in a les paul

1) check the value of yuor pots. Lower value pots (250k) will give you a sweeter sound
2) lower you pickups, it should make them smoother. If it sounds thin, raise the mids on your amp.
3) try lowering the treble on the amp or the tone knob if it sounds harsh. A simple solution might be the most effective.
4) pickup change: if you want a smooth bridge, try the A2 pickups (SL, A2pro, CC).

[lpstudio]

Re: Help a set of 59's in a les paul

wow lots of ideas to try. I just found this place not too long ago when I was deciding what pickup to buy for my strat and epi. I went with the little 59 which I couldn't be happier with. The les paul has been my main axe since 99 so I may need time to adjust the stock gibsons were very smooth and the 59's have more bite. If I wanted a prs macarty like sound what would be my pickup??????

[lpstudio]

Re: Help a set of 59's in a les paul

ohh sorry I forgot to ask it seem like one post says raise the pu to get more bass and another post says lower. I always thought it was lower myself but I guy can always learn thanks again guys

[kaknight]

Re: Help a set of 59's in a les paul

If I wanted a prs macarty like sound what would be my pickup??????

Well, you could go the easy route and just buy a McCarty pup! You can buy them through PRS or PRS dealers. they cost a bit more than SD, but they are good pups in their own respect. My feeling on the McPup is that it sounds somewhere between a 59 and a Seth Lover. My recommendation would be first to try working with what you got. Try lowering the treble side of the pup a bit, and then raise the pole peices under the A and D strings. If this still doesn't help, I'd say go for a Seth Lover. I met a guy with a wonderful LP that he had a 59n and Seth bridge that sounded great! The combo gave a bit more clarity to the neck, and kept the bridge from being too bright.