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Burstbucker pro's (alnico V) review:

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  • Burstbucker pro's (alnico V) review:

    Okay, so for those who dont know i recently got my new les paul standard equipped stock with alnico V burstbucker pro pickups.

    Im used to playing with my jackson which has a JB in the bridge which is a mighty thick sounding and great pickup, and when i first compared the LP its bridge pickup sounded weaker and thinner...but it had a more open quality about it too which was better for clean stuff but at first i didnt think it would be better for distorted stuff.


    But before i get into the gainy stuff ill talk quickly about the cleans...they sound terrific! The neck has a fat warm tone which is great for full sounding jazzy stuff. The jazzy chords sound full and just ring out beautifully.

    The middle position clean has a beautiful air about it while still retaining the warmth of the neck pickup, and sounds just great for big clean chords of all sorts as well as slightly springy bluesy stuff...just has this cool vibe about it.

    And the bridge on clean is much more focussed than the others, and i found it had a little less output level than the other positions but this may have been due to it not being high enough to the strings although surely that shouldhave been set right at the factory. Its got a fair bit of bite to it this bridge pickup, and with the wrong amp settings can come across pretty harsh and ice picky, but give the amp a bit of a kick in the guts with a little more gain perhaps (or in my ENGL's case a sensitivity button which is like a boost button and gives the amp a bit more oomff) and this pickup roars through the right rig. Think the intro to paradise city on the gunners tokyo 1992 tour where slash is playing some nice clean chords with the bridge pickup of his les paul, and then he reaches for the volume knob of his guitar and cranks it all the way up and starts playing the paradise city intro chords which are clean with a touch of break up....mmmm


    Okay, on to the distorted sounds...for those of you keeping up
    My Soundclick page.

  • #2
    Re: Burstbucker pro's (alnico V) review:

    The neck, like its clean tones, is nice and thick and fat under gain, but hasnt sounded muddy to me yet. It sings on the high gain settings and really sustains well. Likewise the middle position has a little bit of that airy open feel to it (like its clean tone surprise surprise), and is great for the lower to medium gain stuff...for example i was jamming to some SRV stuff with it and it had a great vibe to it for that kind of stuff, really brings your feel through in the sound i thought.

    As for the bridge, the first thing i noticed as i said above was that it wasnt as thick as the JB in my jackson, but then i started fiddling around with my amp settings. While the burstbucker has a more open natural feel to it than the JB and a lower output, in the les paul because its such a better guitar it had a tone to it that i just liked better...but it didnt seem as thick still. Then i started playing some darkness on it and for the lead stuff put a small amount of extra distortion in the signal chain to turn on for solos from my dave ulbrick distortion pedal, and it just had a more authentic sound i guess than the JB jackson. I dont doubt that the jackson would still be a better guitar for all out metal and shred, but the burstbucker LP sounded much more like that real chunky les paul marshall vibe (surprise surprise) that i, like lots of you, have always loved! And even without the boost from the pedal it still sounded thick as with the right amount of gain and still got heaps of great singing harmonics...and with the boost...WOW...lookout Darkness! Im finding it hard to come up with the right words to describe it, but it sounded great! The easiest thing for me to compare it to right now (because i was jamming to them with it) is the darkness tones. Through my ENGL i got a really awesome darkness type rhythm and lead tone, and with the extra boost from my pedal i got an even creamier tone for all those thick darkness lead bits...but it wasnt as fuzzy as the darkness tone could sometimes be it was definitely smoother. It sounded huge, and i saw that even though the pickup wasnt as thick as a JB, with the right blend of amp and pedal gain i could get it sounding as thick as i wanted.


    In conclusion for those who have bothered reading all the way to the end of this, i wont be rushing to swap out these pickups...they rock! (and jazz )

    Thanks for reading, damn that took me ages to write!
    My Soundclick page.

    Comment


    • #3
      Re: Burstbucker pro's (alnico V) review:

      lol that's one comprehensive review Angus! I thought most people hated the stock pups in a LP standard. Glad you can enjoy them
      • EBMM JPX BFR (Crunch Lab/Liquifire)
      • Schecter C-1 Classic (Custom8/Jazz)
      • Mayones Duvell 7 Standard (Instrumental SFTY-3/Decomp)
      • G&L Tribute Comanche
      • Godin Stadium 59 (Custom Cajun/'59)
      • Horizon Precision Drive --> Fulltone FB3/FD 2 --> Crybaby From Hell (Fasel) --> Boss BF-2 --> CH-1 --> TC Flashback X4
      • Mesa/Boogie Mark IV-B (SED =C= 6L6) + EarCandy BuzzBomb 2x12 (V30/C90)

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      • #4
        Re: Burstbucker pro's (alnico V) review:

        Im pretty sure a good set of duncans would sound better, but the gibson pickups arent rubbish either, hence the above comments.
        My Soundclick page.

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        • #5
          Re: Burstbucker pro's (alnico V) review:

          Great review!!

          Everyday I learn more and more...

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          • #6
            Re: Burstbucker pro's (alnico V) review:

            i swapped the alnico Vs in my BB pros with alnico IIs and it sounded better to me but it was good with the alnico Vs just a tad bright.
            2006 Gibson Custom '58 Reissue Les Paul

            1991 Orville Les Paul Custom

            2009 Squier Classic Vibe Stratocaster 50s

            Comment


            • #7
              Re: Burstbucker pro's (alnico V) review:

              They are definitely worth the time and effort for checking them out before rushing into a new purchase. I believe sometimes we tend to overestimate the importance of pickups, discounting the other effects. It is all about a match between the pickups and the guitar. Sometimes it works, sometimes doesn't! And honestly I believe that pickups' effects are limited. But as we cannot modify the wood (would be cool tho wouldn't it ) ...

              Glad to hear you like yours.

              BTW seriously wondering, is a BBpro basically a wax potted BB #? with an a5 magnet instead of an a2?
              Last edited by dr.barlo; 07-06-2004, 07:07 PM.
              FaceBook; SoundCloud; Barlo's Blues; Barlo Digitalized; Soundclick!;

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              • #8
                Re: Burstbucker pro's (alnico V) review:

                Dont know about that last bit Dr.Barlo, but i do like the idea of that magnet swap Bryvincent...might look into that one day.
                My Soundclick page.

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                • #9
                  Re: Burstbucker pro's (alnico V) review:

                  BB1 a2 & BB Pro N a5=7.6k
                  BB2 a2, BB Pro B a5, & Classic 57 a2=8k
                  BB3 a2 8.5k, 57 Classic + a2=8.7k
                  BBs are not waxed and need to be if used with gain
                  Me and Neal's stage rig.

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                  • #10
                    Re: Burstbucker pro's (alnico V) review:

                    Originally posted by Lightning
                    BB1 a2 & BB Pro N a5=7.6k
                    BB2 a2, BB Pro B a5, & Classic 57 a2=8k
                    BB3 a2 8.5k, 57 Classic + a2=8.7k
                    BBs are not waxed and need to be if used with gain
                    so basically i now have a BB1 and a BB2
                    2006 Gibson Custom '58 Reissue Les Paul

                    1991 Orville Les Paul Custom

                    2009 Squier Classic Vibe Stratocaster 50s

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Re: Burstbucker pro's (alnico V) review:

                      You put a2s in your Pros? Give us a review (compare tone vs mags, lots are asking on the forum right now)!!!

                      BBs and PGs have imbalenced coils too
                      Last edited by Lightning; 07-06-2004, 10:01 PM.
                      Me and Neal's stage rig.

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Re: Burstbucker pro's (alnico V) review:

                        well i'm not that familiar with the pros with a5s i only played it for a day when i swap the mags i just dont like pickups with a5s they tend to sound hard.but i can say that it sounded warmer and smoother with sweeter highs after the swap but not as smooth as a 57 classic,it still has that bite without being ice-picky or glassy, a lttle bit more mids and the low end is just a little bit looser.for me it sounds very good better than with the a5s, at least for blues and rock. for metal i think the a5 BB pros are better, its very good for palm muting rhythms and randy rhoads type solos.
                        2006 Gibson Custom '58 Reissue Les Paul

                        1991 Orville Les Paul Custom

                        2009 Squier Classic Vibe Stratocaster 50s

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Re: Burstbucker pro's (alnico V) review:

                          Originally posted by Lightning
                          BB1 a2 & BB Pro N a5=7.6k
                          BB2 a2, BB Pro B a5, & Classic 57 a2=8k
                          BB3 a2 8.5k, 57 Classic + a2=8.7k
                          BBs are not waxed and need to be if used with gain
                          Hey L',

                          That chart is cool but there are considerable variations especially with BB#2's. I got two sets that came stock with my R7 and R8; and the #2's measured 8.30K and 8.35K. I like them, thus am not gonna let them go. They'd work fine in a dark guitar.

                          BTW The #1's measure 7.80K and 7.90K. Within limits I suppose.

                          B
                          FaceBook; SoundCloud; Barlo's Blues; Barlo Digitalized; Soundclick!;

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                          • #14
                            Re: Burstbucker pro's (alnico V) review:

                            Another thing: If I remember right, I read on the LPF sometime ago that the screw coil is dominating the slug coil on BB's. Was some guy who convered his stock into a 4c wire one. I guess that makes sense and explains why they are a bit brighter than other comparable HBs. That said I am not surprised why people would prefer a2 versions to a5 versions provided that BBpros and BB#'s are wound with the same pattern.

                            B
                            FaceBook; SoundCloud; Barlo's Blues; Barlo Digitalized; Soundclick!;

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                            • #15
                              Re: Burstbucker pro's (alnico V) review:

                              Doc, Luck of the draw?

                              Cheap Radio Shack meter (has freq counter and com port out for time elapsed measurements…I do need to test it against a Fluke)?

                              BB2=8.00k and BB3=8.45 as of this morning.

                              Weird thing is Since I've been on the forum I've watched all my pickups fluctuate. PAF types within 400 ohms. I've learned to always ck my 75 DMZ PAF (in 29 years it's been read on a lot of meters, I call it an 8k) so if it reads 7.8 on a given day I expect all others to read low. When I first saw this, I changed the batteries, got out the Triplet...Man what causes this...atmospheric pressure?

                              Back to BBs in theory they are supposed to be a luck of the draw Tom Holms where as you tell Tom which of Duane's guitars your trying to emulate and with BBs it's just luck.

                              To back up how random Gibson's are, they said they try to match the random coils to maintain around a thousand ohms offset. They also said in the RI Reverse Fire Bird the slug coils are dominant and they are shooting for a wider offset for a more Fenderish tone.

                              Wish everyone could post their BB values so we could see the range of 1, 2, & 3 values.

                              Also would love to hear about PG offsets.

                              "L"
                              Last edited by Lightning; 07-08-2004, 06:33 AM.
                              Me and Neal's stage rig.

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