First replacement Pickups

[speed12]

Hi all!

At the mo, i have an Epiphone Les Paul Custom which ive had for a while and now that im getting a LOT better at playing i can now hear that it doesnt sound quite as good as it could. So im looking at getting some new pups for it.

At the moment, the ones which i think would best suit me is an SH-4 JB in the Bridge and an SH-2N Jazz in the neck.

The style of music i play is mainly rock, but im talking light rock here like Ash, Feeder, Hope of the states etc. It basically needs to have an exceptional clean soudn and a very good crunch to mild distortion sound to it.

Im using a Marshall MG30DFX at the mo, but thats gonna be changed to an Ashdown Peacemaker 40 soon!

Anyone have any ideas if this combo would sound good or if not (or even if it would!) any other suggestions??

Cheers

 

[Lewguitar]

Re: First replacement Pickups

I put a Jazz neck and JB bridge in my brother's Epi Les Paul and it sounds like a $2000 guitar! Go for it. Consider ordering both as 4 conductor pickups and replacing your two tone pots with push/pull tone pots. Then you can split the two humbuckers for some nice Fenderish tones. That's the way I usually do it. Lew

 

[Chi3f]

Re: First replacement Pickups

have the same combo.... love it and also split both

 

[speed12]

Re: First replacement Pickups

excellent...well that was easy!

Could you explain more about splitting the coils etc?

I presume it means so that you only use one set of coils so it acts like a single coild pup yeah?

The tone pots on my LP are crap and scratchy anyway so i was thinking about changing them...how much would the split coil stuff be (roughly) and is it difficult to install??

 

[Lewguitar]

Re: First replacement Pickups

excellent...well that was easy!

Could you explain more about splitting the coils etc?

I presume it means so that you only use one set of coils so it acts like a single coild pup yeah?

The tone pots on my LP are crap and scratchy anyway so i was thinking about changing them...how much would the split coil stuff be (roughly) and is it difficult to install??

That setup is fairly easy to install if you have a patient and meticulous nature, a talent for using tools, and your eyesight is still good! At 54, my eyesight is getting a little dicey. Those terminals on the push/pull pots are pretty small...

The pickups are $70. each and the 500K push/pull pots are $9. each.

Lew

 

[speed12]

Re: First replacement Pickups

ok, that sounds cool to me.

Do you reccomend i do it?

I think it would be qutie cool to get a single coil sound out of my LP and even if i dont use it much its hardly breaking the bank!

I think i'd probably get my local guitar shop to install the pickups etc as id be too scared about ballsing it up!

 

[Lewguitar]

Re: First replacement Pickups

ok, that sounds cool to me.

Do you reccomend i do it?

Heck yes! Very worthwhile...

 

[flank]

Re: First replacement Pickups

i think they coil splitting option would be VERY useful for something like lite rock such as Ash..but keep in mind its not gonna really sound like a single coil, just a little bubblier and more open (and obviously less powerful) humbucker sound... and with both pickups split and combined on the middle position, the tone is pretty cool, kind of quacky like a strat on the "in between" positions....

with a JB/JAzz and that new amp, your setup with that guitar would be a tone machine, i just know it....

 

[mjsever]

Re: First replacement Pickups

DEFINITELY install coil taps; they give you a whole new palatte of sounds to work with. I had a local guitar guy install my pickups and volume pots/coil taps for me after I messed up the installation by doing it myself...

 

[speed12]

Re: First replacement Pickups

excellent, well i think then that i will indeed have a coil split installed when i change pickups. Ive found push pull tone pots for £7.50 and so for another £15 i may aswell do it even if i dont use them that much!

Cheers for all the help!

 

[martinsixstringcustoms]

Re: First replacement Pickups

Yep, excellent pickup choice. Got that in one of my Pauls. Also, well said Flank regarding the coil splitting. I did that on my Agile with the Jazz/C5 and it's NOT exactly a single coil sound, but its close and definitely versatile!