Gibson Explorer ‘76 Reissue

[Nsatke81]

Gibson Explorer ‘76 Reissue

Hi all,

I have a 76 reissue explorer that I just got a refret done on. My luthier told me, play it see how you like it—I know the neck is going to be better. But he told me that the pickups were not really a great match for one another. Currently it has a P-Rails in the neck and a black winter in the bridge. I suppose I could put a black winter in the neck, but I already have that in a guitar.

I’ve been toying with the idea of putting dimarzios in a guitar for several years now but am not sure as I haven’t used them in over a decade. Once I had the steve Morse bridge and it was great for thrash...maybe a humbucker from hell?

Any suggestions redardless of maker are welcome, thanks!


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[jeremy]

who cares what your luthier thinks, do you like the way it sounds? if yes, then leave it. if no, then what dont you like about it?

i had a steve morse bridge pup and hated it. i eventually sent it to duncan for a rewind. obviously someone must like it cause they keep makin it! do you have any pups layin around or is everything in a guitar?

 

[Hsb]

Im with Jeremy, if you like how they match up, who cares what anyone says.

The BW is kinda like a refined Distortion. If you wanna stick w the P-Rails, throw something like a Custom 5 in the bridge, those would play well.

 

[Nsatke81]

I like the black winter, but I like it more in my King V than in my explorer. In the explorer it sounds good not great.

The P-Rails I struggle with cuz it’s always sounded just ok. I realize it’s probably too hot to be what I want in a neck pickup for clean and too round for my taste Distortion wise in that guitar.

I currently have a full shred and a few tv Jones pickups lying around...not sure how the full shred would sound in a gibson.


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[Hsb]

Wire up the full shred and give it a try, cant hurt.

 

[skelt101]

It's hard to make suggestions without knowing more about what you're going for. Are you looking for something a little more similar to what Gibson would've used in '76? Perhaps a set of '59s or Jazz. Something more modded '70s? Maybe a set of Whole Lotta Humbuckers, Saturday Night Specials, or a '59/Jazz neck with a '59/Custom hybrid bridge... How "hot" are you wanting to go?

 

[Nsatke81]

I usually keep it pretty spicy/modern. I’m looking for something jagged and aggressive in the bridge, but not incredibly hot. Something bright and clean with a lot of harmonics in the neck.


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[skelt101]

I usually keep it pretty spicy/modern. I’m looking for something jagged and aggressive in the bridge, but not incredibly hot. Something bright and clean with a lot of harmonics in the neck.


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Perhaps a Pegasus/Sentient combo...

 

[Nsatke81]

Gibson Explorer ‘76 Reissue

I was watching some demos last night and now I’ve narrowed it down to a Pegasus sentient or a set of Lace dirty heshers for something totally different.

I would be open to a slug or an el Diablo but it would seem impossible to pair them with a musical neck pickup. I like to switch back and forth between pickups during leads so having a well matched pair is a big plus.

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[Mincer]

Yes, the SLUG tends to do good on its own. However, both the SLUG and the El Diablo could have a matching neck pickup made in the Custom Shop. The Pegasus/Sentient set is a good one, though very different- it has clean and clear highs and tight lows, and is suited to a lot more than just downtuned metal, though it is great at that.