Gibson BB3 is pretty cool, but.....

Soulcrusher_X

Soulcrusher_X

New member
the Seth Lover still smokes it.

I was surprised, though. BB3 is a thick-sounding pickup. LOT of mids and really good harmonics, but more compressed than the SL and lacking the clarity of the SL. I might try some mag swaps, but so far, the Seth Lover is striking me as one of the best pickups I've tried yet.
 
Re: Gibson BB3 is pretty cool, but.....

Completely different types of PAFs. Apples. Oranges.

I like both, but many people seem to have a clear preference between the "what PAFs were supposed to be on paper" and " what the majority of PAFs were actually like off the assmembly line".

EDIT-and FWIW I much prefer the 2 in the bridge and 1 in the neck. Much more open. The 3 is def wound too hot.
 
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Re: Gibson BB3 is pretty cool, but.....

The BB3 has more in common with the CC than it does with the Seth.
 
Re: Gibson BB3 is pretty cool, but.....

The BB 2 and 3 set is pretty good, but the 1 and 2 are even better. Too many players still don't know first-hand how good Seth's are. They get a '57 or PG and think they've hit the pinnacle of PAF's.

Aren't BB3's 9K or thereabouts? Not particularly close to a CC. Original PAF's occasionally hit 9K.
 
Re: Gibson BB3 is pretty cool, but.....

This BB3 weighs in at 8.7k. DEFINITELY a middy pickup. Stills cuts really nice, and after swapping some tubes in the amp I am borrowing (I'm not a big fan of JJ preamp tubes) it's starting to sound better. It has a pretty unique voicing. I'd still like to try the BB 1/2 set and a few others.
 
Re: Gibson BB3 is pretty cool, but.....

I have difficulty believing the BB3 isn't clear enough for...anybody. In my old Trad Pro, it was damned near HARSH, and that was on the same amp settings as everything else.

Pardon me if I think your preconceptions are screwing with your ears.
 
Re: Gibson BB3 is pretty cool, but.....

I love my BB 2/3 set, but for better clarity and a cooler ride, I'd go with a 1 & 2 set. Or even a 1 & 1 -- just back the neck pickup way the hell down. I just raised my bridge BB3 because I wanted it hotter, but you can definitely dial it down with height adjustment and the volume pot to where I don't think it's lacking at all in clarity.

(LOL. My old shrink used to call the BB3 a "death metal pickup".)
 
Re: Gibson BB3 is pretty cool, but.....

formula73 said:
I have difficulty believing the BB3 isn't clear enough for...anybody. In my old Trad Pro, it was damned near HARSH, and that was on the same amp settings as everything else.

Pardon me if I think your preconceptions are screwing with your ears.
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After reading this I'm beginning to think mine wasn't close enough to the strings. I couldn't get a lot of clarity out of it, or the 57 Classic I had in the neck. For a while I thought it was because they didn't have covers.
 
Re: Gibson BB3 is pretty cool, but.....

formula73 said:
I have difficulty believing the BB3 isn't clear enough for...anybody. In my old Trad Pro, it was damned near HARSH, and that was on the same amp settings as everything else.

Pardon me if I think your preconceptions are screwing with your ears.
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If you are referring to me, I never said it wasn't clear. The SL is just clearer. I also do not think it is harsh, either. To me, it actually sounds better with some 'brighter' settings on the amp. These are also potted versions. Perhaps your Pro was made with pickups before they started potting them?
 
Re: Gibson BB3 is pretty cool, but.....

Little Pigbacon said:
I love my BB 2/3 set, but for better clarity and a cooler ride, I'd go with a 1 & 2 set. Or even a 1 & 1 -- just back the neck pickup way the hell down. I just raised my bridge BB3 because I wanted it hotter, but you can definitely dial it down with height adjustment and the volume pot to where I don't think it's lacking at all in clarity.

(LOL. My old shrink used to call the BB3 a "death metal pickup".)
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I also noticed this as well. Height adjustment plays a heavy role in the response of this pickup. What is really neat, is that you can dial in some good crunch on the amp, kick in a boost for some heavies, but it will still clean up pretty damn well with the volume knob and lighter picking. It definitely has a unique midrange voice. It's making me consider trying more of the OEM Gibson pickups again. I'm digging how they seem a little rough around the edges compared to some of the Duncans I have tried.
 
Re: Gibson BB3 is pretty cool, but.....

JeffB said:
Completely different types of PAFs. Apples. Oranges.

I like both, but many people seem to have a clear preference between the "what PAFs were supposed to be on paper" and " what the majority of PAFs were actually like off the assmembly line".

EDIT-and FWIW I much prefer the 2 in the bridge and 1 in the neck. Much more open. The 3 is def wound too hot.
Click to expand...

But I like apples AND oranges. Both are good flavors. :)
 
Re: Gibson BB3 is pretty cool, but.....

Soulcrusher_X said:
If you are referring to me, I never said it wasn't clear. The SL is just clearer. I also do not think it is harsh, either. To me, it actually sounds better with some 'brighter' settings on the amp. These are also potted versions. Perhaps your Pro was made with pickups before they started potting them?
Click to expand...

FWIW, mine are unpotted, with gold covers. They feed back easily, and I've thought about potting them, but I'm not going to take a chance on ruining that sound.
 
Re: Gibson BB3 is pretty cool, but.....

I dig apples and oranges too! :bigthumb:

Just stating (perhaps the obvious) that a comparison of merit, is probably futile, as they are designed to be very different.
 
Re: Gibson BB3 is pretty cool, but.....

JeffB said:
I dig apples and oranges too! :bigthumb:

Just stating (perhaps the obvious) that a comparison of merit, is probably futile, as they are designed to be very different.
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Nah, I'm picking up what you're putting down. Different is good sometimes. :)
 
Re: Gibson BB3 is pretty cool, but.....

Have an lp that came w the bb3. The higher the pitch gets, the brighter the attack gets. The lower the note goes, the muddier it gets. Counter intuitive for my setup.
 
Re: Gibson BB3 is pretty cool, but.....

Falloffthebonetone said:
How would a bb3 compare to a 78? I'd figure they'd be pretty similar right?
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If your talking about the custom shop 78,I dont think they are similar.

I had a BB3 in a traditional pro Les Paul. I felt the same way that tubecrunch does. I can say I did not like it.

I plug straight into the amp most of the time. So its just the guitar to the amp so pickups are important to me.

I have a 78 wound onto a P-90 base in my current guitar. It came with the guitar. Its a korina Les Paul Jr. style. The first thing I thought was to get a P-90 for the guitar. I was not going to like a humbucker pickup straight into my amp. Its a Victoria 5112. I did not like the BB3 with it.

Despite people thinking you will sound like VH and get the brown sound you would still need his set up to get close. I thought I was not going to like the 78. Boy was I wrong. I did not know that the specs were slightly higher than a regular PAF type wind. But again someone from Gibson said they wound the original PAF untill they were full. So they did vary somewhat and it was possibe the pickup VH had one will a higher amount of winds

If found it to break up nice and had definition so you could her all the notes clearly you were playing. No mud or high pitched shrill. It even cleans up well when you roll off the volume. I can roll the tone off and no mud. I think it is a versatile pick up.

If your thinking on a change i would pick the 78 over BB3 But YMMV
 
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Re: Gibson BB3 is pretty cool, but.....

I kinda like the BB3 but I don't know what pickup to match it with. I've got a 57 classic and a Pearly Gates laying around.... Which one would pair better with the BB3 in a 335 style guitar?
 
Re: Gibson BB3 is pretty cool, but.....

The BB3 I am testing out was matched with a 57c. They seem to work very well together. I think I lot of the LP Standard Pros come with this match.
 
Re: Gibson BB3 is pretty cool, but.....

Soulcrusher_X said:
The BB3 I am testing out was matched with a 57c. They seem to work very well together. I think I lot of the LP Standard Pros come with this match.
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That is standard setup for Traditional Pros. I raised a couple of the pole pieces on my 57s in order to get the right balance and definition when combined with the bridge tone I liked.
 
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