Colossal Disappointment...

Re: Colossal Disappointment...

I can't imagine the Seth producing a tone like you described in ANY guitar at any height adjustment (unless it's so high that the strings are rubbing against it). Try adjusting the pup lower to begin with and see if it cleans up a bit (at least an 1/8th" from the strings, but even try it 1/4" away).

The Seth is a PAF type pup and I have never heard any PAF sound " muffled and muddy" on clean sttings. Even with the A2 mag. After adjusting the pup height, adj your amp settings. And check/change your battery in your TS.
 
Re: Colossal Disappointment...

okay sorry if this is a really obvious question...but if you have some other pickups that sound good in that guitar, why don't you just use them instead? or, try some different pickups. sometimes you gotta try a few different setups before you settle into the one that fits the guitar best, and even a really great pickup may just not sound good for certain guitars.
 
Re: Colossal Disappointment...

Amp maybe? Meaning now that the pickups are better you can hear more problems elsewhere in the chain. I had this problem. You should get just what you were wanting from those pickups.
 
Re: Colossal Disappointment...

Maybe the wiring is wrong? The red and white leads are soldered together and taped off, right? If you were only getting one coil, it's possible although highly unlikely that you could get that sound.
 
Re: Colossal Disappointment...

//
Dumb, I first saw this on TGP and correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't you get these from a friend?
Edit: Found the thread and re-read it... I was wrong about them being used.
I also saw that you'd achieved some measure of success with the Seth.
//

My first thought is to put them into a different guitar.
My next is to have someone else wire them up.

I have to agree with everyone else here who says it's hard to get such a bad sound from either of those pups.
I have a Seth set in an Edwards ELP-130 that absolutely kills.

Good luck.
 
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Re: Colossal Disappointment...

dumb said:
I'm posting what I just posted on The Gear Page.

I installed a couple Seymour Duncan pickups in my Epiphone LP, and now the guitar sounds like absolute ****. I put the SDs in, didn't like the sound, tried re-wiring, still didn't like it, but the stock Epiphone pickups in - much better - then put the SDs in one more time. Still sounds like ****.

I have a Seth Lover humbucker in the bridge and a Phat Cat P90 in the neck. First off, the Seth Lover doesn't balance well with the Phat Cat at all - the Phat Cat is much, much louder. Second, now when I play clean, my tone is muffled and muddy. Third, when I play dirty, it's so grainy and abrasive that I can barely stand to listen to myself play anymore.

Any advice on how to make this work? I'm about ready to give up... :(
Click to expand...

Maybe you just need to take some lessons
 
Re: Colossal Disappointment...

I'm new and right there with you. Bought a Vista Squire Jazzmaster and seymour duncan blues. New to soldering and reading diagrams. Obviously not good at it. Wired the guitar using Seymour on line diagram since the packaged one was not a fit for me. Got no sound nothing.... Went back and grounded the braided part of the wire to the switch got some sound but not both pickups. Totally angry since diagrams and my brain don't connect right... obviously. Want to do violent things. How to up load picture so someone smarter than me can help.
 
Re: Colossal Disappointment...

Capcitator said:
I'm new and right there with you. Bought a Vista Squire Jazzmaster and seymour duncan blues. New to soldering and reading diagrams. Obviously not good at it. Wired the guitar using Seymour on line diagram since the packaged one was not a fit for me. Got no sound nothing.... Went back and grounded the braided part of the wire to the switch got some sound but not both pickups. Totally angry since diagrams and my brain don't connect right... obviously. Want to do violent things.
Click to expand...
Don't get angry, get educated. :)

IMHO, you should take it to a tech or someone who knows what they are doing.

If you're new to wiring *and* soldering, that's way too many variables.
You might have cooked pot or a capacitor, for instance.

If you are insistent on DIY, there are how-to soldering videos all over YouTube.
Watch some and practice.

Read more on wiring.
Ask more questions.

Then try it again.

Oh, if you don't have a multi-meter, get one.
Harbor Freight gives them away with a coupon or sells them for super cheap.

How to up load picture so someone smarter than me can help.
Click to expand...
Your favorite online photo hosting service... Picasa, Google, Photobucket, etc.

Post links to hi-res pics.
If your camera has macro function, use that as well.
You can't take too many pics.
Focus is vitally important as is good lighting.
 
Re: Colossal Disappointment...

Funkfingers said:
Would that be solid state and with the infamous Saturation overdrive control?
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I'm wondering if what he's hearing is the sound of what that amp actually sounds like?

Dumb, try playing through a decent tube amp and get back to us.
 
Re: Colossal Disappointment...

dumb said:
I'll answer all the questions that pop out at me. If I missed a question, it's not that I'm ignoring it or don't think it's relevant - it's just that a lot of questions came at me overnight while I slept.

Which guitar is it?

Epiphone Les Paul Standard, 2006, Dae Won factory.

Amp?

Peavey Special 112, 1988

Pots?

500k

What were you expecting?

I was expecting better brightness, sharpness, and clarity out of the bridge and something punchy out of the neck. What I'm getting instead is something grainy and abrasive that - as I've said somewhere before, maybe not here - it reminds me of a Big Muff on max gain, max treble...when the only dirt I have in the mix is a Tube Screamer at minimum gain.
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If you choose to not exchange it. put some A4s in those bad boys. It'll take the edge off of the mids and add more attack.
 
Re: Colossal Disappointment...

jeremy said:
if you bought them new, go exchange them
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I like this. Direct and to the point with the right information. LOL.

GuitarDoc said:
I can't imagine the Seth producing a tone like you described in ANY guitar at any height adjustment (unless it's so high that the strings are rubbing against it). Try adjusting the pup lower to begin with and see if it cleans up a bit (at least an 1/8th" from the strings, but even try it 1/4" away).

The Seth is a PAF type pup and I have never heard any PAF sound " muffled and muddy" on clean sttings. Even with the A2 mag. After adjusting the pup height, adj your amp settings. And check/change your battery in your TS.
Click to expand...

Maybe the stock pots, wiring, etc... were crap too. That would be like trying to run a high-performance race car on kerosene. I never heard anyone describe the Seth Lover that way. Did the pickups by any chance say "made in China?"
 
Re: Colossal Disappointment...

Hellion said:
I've been trying to figure out under what circumstances either the Phat Cat or the Seth would sound bad, and I can't come up with anything. So, I think we need to know what you were wanting out of the instrument.
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Seth yes, I really like them, but with the stock A2's Phat Cats leave a lot to be desired.
 
Re: Colossal Disappointment...

blueman335 said:
I have a bunch of Epi's and keep the stock pots and wiring, that's not the issue. The guy does not like A2's and he's not the first one here.
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I'm not saying they have crappy wiring because I've never owned one. I was just throwing that out there in case they did. I have learned a lot from you about swapping magnets, but truly, I find it extremely hard to dislike A2 in the Seth Lover. Mine are tight and really, really full of tone in all dimensions. It makes my Pearly Gates sound a bit flat and my Custom Custom compressed in comparison.

That being said, I'm actually kind of intrigued with the idea of UOA5 in a Seth Lover. In fact, that brings me to wonder what kind of hybrid combination would take the Seth Lover to a more powerful level yet still maintain all the class the Seth Lover has. What do you think about that? A Seth/Custom hybrid perhaps?
 
Re: Colossal Disappointment...

MojoMonster said:
I'm wondering if what he's hearing is the sound of what that amp actually sounds like?

Dumb, try playing through a decent tube amp and get back to us.
Click to expand...

while i agree a good tube amp will change things a lot, if this is his amp he should really get something that works well with it.

again... if you bought the pups new and its been less than a month, go exchange them.
 
Re: Colossal Disappointment...

Hahaha. I thought the same thing when I first read his post, but I guess I was too polite to say that about his name.
 
Re: Colossal Disappointment...

dumb said:
I'm posting what I just posted on The Gear Page.

I installed a couple Seymour Duncan pickups in my Epiphone LP, and now the guitar sounds like absolute ****. I put the SDs in, didn't like the sound, tried re-wiring, still didn't like it, but the stock Epiphone pickups in - much better - then put the SDs in one more time. Still sounds like ****.

I have a Seth Lover humbucker in the bridge and a Phat Cat P90 in the neck. First off, the Seth Lover doesn't balance well with the Phat Cat at all - the Phat Cat is much, much louder. Second, now when I play clean, my tone is muffled and muddy. Third, when I play dirty, it's so grainy and abrasive that I can barely stand to listen to myself play anymore.

Any advice on how to make this work? I'm about ready to give up... :(
Click to expand...


Give up & move on! Or................

When replacing pickups you have to determine what it is about the guitar that you are not happy with. then attempt to find a suitable replacement to solve this particular problem. As others stated without knowing what amp and musical style you are playing it is hard to advise, but I will say the Seth Lover is a very dark sounding pickup. It works well in guitars that are bright. An EPI LP is probably not too bright hence the reason why you are hearing muddiness in this pickup. Bottom line is you are probably NOT going to find YOUR sound in this particular pickup configuration. You should do more research to determine what you are attempting to fix, then purchase a suitable pickup set to fix it. You may want to start with a pair of 59's. They usually work very well in a Les Paul.
 
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