HELP 335 PICKUPS?

[Daver335]

I have a Gibson 335 and I am going to swap out the pickups on her.
i play in a rock band and I also play at church so I need somthing to go from dirty to clean and everything in between.
i have been told that I should consider the model 78 in the bridge and the alanico 2 pro in the neck.
So for you 335 ers what are your thoughts

 

[GuitarStv]

Re: HELP 335 PICKUPS?

Low output. Either Seth or '59 set. Or antiquities if you're loaded.

It's easy to make a clean pickup sound good dirty with pedals. It's hard to make a higher output pickup sound good clean.

 

[Ascension]

Re: HELP 335 PICKUPS?

Low output. Either Seth or '59 set. Or antiquities if you're loaded.

It's easy to make a clean pickup sound good dirty with pedals. It's hard to make a higher output pickup sound good clean.

Disagree that all high output pickups sound bad clean. Many do way to compressed but not all. I don't use pedals for dirt I run a tube high gain amp and normally run dirty and use the guitar volume and touch to clean up. My favorite pickups will open up and clean up when you roll the volume back and are higher gain pickups. The Hybrid, Alt8, Custom 5, Perpetual Burn Dimarzio Gravity Storm and others do this well for me.
I am also a Worship player so come from that perspective. Welcome to the forum Daver as notice this is your first post. I just got a set of WLH in trade that may make a good set for your 335 if you interested in Black. Was going to drop them in my Carvin AE 185 but after Sunday and then some working around here on some particular tones with this guitar may just leave it alone with the stock Carvin M22's.

 

[Mincer]

Re: HELP 335 PICKUPS?

Welcome to the forum!

I agree here, the Seth or Antiquity set sound unreal in semi-hollows. if you needed more output, you can always boost them down the line.

 

[Ascension]

Re: HELP 335 PICKUPS?

Low output. Either Seth or '59 set. Or antiquities if you're loaded.

It's easy to make a clean pickup sound good dirty with pedals. It's hard to make a higher output pickup sound good clean.

Disagree that all high output pickups sound bad clean. Many do way to compressed but not all. I don't use pedals for dirt I run a tube high gain amp and normally run dirty and use the guitar volume and touch to clean up. My favorite pickups will open up and clean up when you roll the volume back and are higher gain pickups. The Hybrid, Alt8, Custom 5, Perpetual Burn Dimarzio Gravity Storm and others do this well for me.
I am also a Worship player so come from that perspective. Welcome to the forum Daver as notice this is your first post. I just got a set of WLH in trade that may make a good set for your 335 if you interested in Black. Was going to drop them in my Carvin AE 185 but after Sunday and then some working around here on some particular tones with this guitar may just leave it alone with the stock Carvin M22's.

 

[GuitarStv]

Re: HELP 335 PICKUPS?

I don't think that all high output pickups sound bad clean . . . but they do sound more compressed. You can always add compression to a pickup later (directly with a compressor pedal, or through gain), you can never take it away though*.






* Caveat being with coil splits or parallel wiring . . . because high output pickups do much better with these. If you're willing to use coil splits to get your clean/dynamic sounds, then it might make a lot of sense to go with higher output pickups.

 

[Aceman]

Re: HELP 335 PICKUPS?

Before I answer - a more important question or two:

Please define "Rock" ??? Bill Haley? Beatles? Led Zeppelin? Boston? Poison? Iron Maiden? Pantera ?????

Next - even more important, what amp and fx do you use?

 

[Clint 55]

Re: HELP 335 PICKUPS?

You also get a fuller clean sound from higher output and get a more open distorted sound with vintage. So I'm not so sure vintage for clean and high output for "HIGH GAIN" is that great of a rule.

 

[Ayrton]

Re: HELP 335 PICKUPS?

Before I answer - a more important question or two:

Please define "Rock" ??? Bill Haley? Beatles? Led Zeppelin? Boston? Poison? Iron Maiden? Pantera ?????

Next - even more important, what amp and fx do you use?

I will add is the guitar bright or dark now?

What pickups are in it?

What do you not like about the current sound?

 

[formula73]

Re: HELP 335 PICKUPS?

Stockers will be fine for whatever.

I run paf-ish w/A8 in just about everything. What’s your amp?

 

[Daver335]

Re: HELP 335 PICKUPS?

Before I answer - a more important question or two:

Please define "Rock" ??? Bill Haley? Beatles? Led Zeppelin? Boston? Poison? Iron Maiden? Pantera ?????

Next - even more important, what amp and fx do you use?

Boston,Van Halen,rush the rig I use right now is a
HD500 X and I am currently waiting and waiting and waiting for my fractal FM3 but my amp is a mess a bookie road king combo to 12 Which is getting way too heavy to carry around at my age

 

[Aceman]

Re: HELP 335 PICKUPS?

59 neck assuming not too boomy/dark
Go ahead rock the 78 in the bridge

If the guitar is bright - might go for the A2P. Both the 78 and A2P have A2 magnets in them. That might work for that guitar, or it might be too sweet/fat/smooth. I went 59 neck for all-roundness with a little more neck bite.

That HD500 could overdrive a magnetized nail wrapped in wire. Go for tone.

 

[chadd]

Re: HELP 335 PICKUPS?

I have A2 pros in my Schecter Corsiar, 335 style, and it's my main gig guitar. It covers everything from clean to fuzz tones without a problem. My PRS S2 single cut semi-hollow has a SNS set and is effective at covering all the same stuff but feels more mid focused and has Les low end. My 335 has Gibson BB1, BB3 set and has a more unique tone, very mid focused

 

[ibanezrocks]

Re: HELP 335 PICKUPS?

Whole Lotta Humbuckers would be another good option.

Sent from my BlackBerry using Tapatalk

 

[beaubrummels]

Re: HELP 335 PICKUPS?

Boston, Van Halen, Rush, plus contemporary worship music in a semi hollow?

FWIW my suggestions (I’ve used all these but not in a 335; I was using a ‘modern weight relieved’ LP Studio which is essentially semihollow, smaller body with no f-holes, but for the same above music):

Jazz set
Jazz bridge, Seth neck
Whole Lotta Humbucker set
59 neck in bridge, Seth neck
Custom Custom bridge, A2P neck

If guitar is dark:
Pearly Gates bridge, Jazz or Seth neck
Custom bridge, Jazz neck

If custom shop is ok:
S-Deco bridge, A2P, Seth or Pearly Gates neck
Brobucker bridge, 59/A4 neck


78 bridge, A2P neck will work fine, but the 78 by itself is thin and bright and has no bottom end, so it will be disappointing for some rock and some clean sounds where you need single notes to sound thick.

Don’t go by the product names/implied usage or by the magnets or other construction/recipe information to match up pickups; choose only by what they actually sound like in various guitars with various amps. For example, A2P, 78 model, Pearly Gates and Custom Custom are all A2 magnet pickups but do not sound alike.

 

[Aceman]

Re: HELP 335 PICKUPS?

Jazz set....nice suggestion.

 

[oilpit]

Re: HELP 335 PICKUPS?

Keep it low output as others have already wisely suggested. Semi-hollows are so much louder acoustically that you really don't need the pickup to do much work.

Coming from somebody who wouldn't dream of at least an over wound PAF in something like a Les Paul, and a JB in superstrats.

Output is not the same in semi-hollows as it is in other geetars.

 

[Demanic]

Re: HELP 335 PICKUPS?

Like all the other suggestions.
I'll throw in Lace Deathbuckers.
Don't let the name fool you. I'll bet that they would slay in a semi-hollow.

 

[Daver335]

Re: HELP 335 PICKUPS?

I'd like to thank you for all your comments and help and just to let you know I just purchased a set of Seymour Duncan retrospec,d antiquites.

 

[Mincer]

Re: HELP 335 PICKUPS?

Let us know how they sound when they are installed. I love my Antiquities in my 335-like Eastman.