IDEAS & SUGGESTIONS (Pickups for 2013 Les Paul Standard)

[SZjammin83]

I have a 2013 Gibson Les Paul Standard that I just bought. I had to replace the factory wiring/PCB, so I put a Classic 50's solderless wiring set by MojoTone in there. I like the stock BurstBucker 1&2, however... The MojoTone Wiring provides a cool feature that now allows me to swap pickups at will without the need to solder. Buy a pickup, simply disconnect the existing one, and then connect the new pickup, all via a quick-connect system that is centrally located in the center of the pots and wiring components. It's labeled so that even my 3 year old could understand it and do it.

So, while I do like the sound I get with the BB Pro's... The aspects I think could use improvement (which would have otherwise been issues I would have accepted, at least for a decent little while) have now become completely legitimate reasons to explore other opportunities/possibilities. It's almost as though, since I got this wiring kit installed and realized just how rediculously simple installing the pickups was, I IMMEDIATELY felt an urge, which developed into an obligation/responsibility to self, all but INSTANTANEOUSLY within seconds of pulling up the SD website and beginning to look at pickups!:laugh:... I'm in awe of this cool little green component in my electronics cavity, and have come to the realization that it's not right for me to own such a thing and NOT make every attempt to utilize it in a quest to reach my new guitar's FULL POTENTIAL!!!

So... I have got a 6505+ 120 watt head that I love, but I also just bought a Marshall DSL40CR (which I run into my Mesa 2x12 Rectifier Cab), and have fallen in love with the sound of just plugging straight into the amp and lettin er rip. I am going for the CLASSIC Les Paul into a Marshall tones, and I think the 1st set I'm going to try is the Slash Alnico 2 Pro Set with some Raw Nickel covers so it won't change the aesthetics of the guitar either.

Anyone have experience with the Slash Set in a Gibson Les Paul Standard, if so, what are the things you like? Are there any things you don't like?

And lastly, any suggestions of other pickup sets or combinations that anyone on the forum here with a Les Paul has tried and liked, and why you liked them? Any insight would be appreciated. Thanks Forum

 

[beaubrummels]

Slash set is a good all around rock set. Had it in my LP Studio.

If you were ok with the BB1-2, others I would recommend trying in that guitar are:
Seth set
Whole Lotta Humbucker set
Jazz set
Pearly Gates set
59 set

...then once you are done with the sets, start mixing pickups across the sets, like

Pearly bridge / Jazz neck,
Jazz bridge / Pearly neck
59 bridge / Seth neck
59 bridge / Pearly neck
Whole Lotta bridge / Pearly neck
Slash bridge / Pearly neck
Slash bridge / Whole Lotta neck

 

[BluesIsBlood12]

Those MojoTone kits are great. I've got a Les Paul one and an SG. Swapping is a breeze, and I've done it a lot.

As for pickup options, that depends on what you're going to play and the innate tone of your guitar, but we can make some general recommendations. The list above me is a really good start. I think I like WLH best from that list, followed by Seths. I've got a LP designated for heavier (for me) tones, which has a 59n and 59/Custom hybrid bridge. That's a pretty killer combo.

Good luck on your swapping adventures.

 

[Mincer]

The Slash set sounds like every Guns tune you've ever heard. It is a classic sound. The biggest thing is deciding if you want a versatile set, or something that specializes in a particular kind of music. The Jazz & JB is the biggest selling combo for a reason.

 

[ErikH]

In my experience, can't go wrong with the Pearly Gates set, '57 Classic / Classic Plus Set, DiMarzio Super Distortion / PAF set, Custom / 59n set, and my current setup, Custom Custom / '57 Classic. There are all sorts of options.

 

[Spirit of 76]

In my experience, can't go wrong with the Pearly Gates set...

I've always heard the same, that the Pearly are pretty awesome.

I have WLH in a Epiphone Les Paul Classic and I really love them, but I have also heard great things about the Slash set, the Seth set and the Saturday Night Special Set.

My guess is if you go with any of the above in that guitar and amp, it will probably sound pretty bad ass.

 

[SZjammin83]

Thanks for all the replies thus far guys. It sounds like everyone gets the tones I am looking for.

If the Slash set truly does get you closer to that actual Slash tone (which can only get even closer since I'm putting them in a les paul standard and running through the Marshall DSL, which I've been able to get to get VERY very close to the JCM 800/900's) then I'm sure I will love it. Honestly, when I think Les Paul and Marshall, and that type of Rock n Roll tone, thats the guy and the sound that always comes to mind first. It's timeless, and I feel like even though I'd be playing my own music, and not attemting to dial in to copy his sound, but rather, just doing what sounds good to me with those tools as my foundation and starting point, I think I may end up with a setup where I just can't go wrong and it could very well end up being my "go to". I think that's where I am going to start. Still going to get more than one set, but I believe that is going to be the first one I drop in there. I'm pretty excited. I've been so stoked and inspired to practice and jam lately. I had kind of gotten in a rut where I wasn't spending as much time with guitar as I know I need to. I think I've come to realize that a part of that may have had a good bit to do with the fact that I had begun to get pretty deep (deep for me at least) into researching, experimenting with, and learning the in's and out's of effects. And don't get me wrong, I've had plenty of fun and enjoyed it for the most part. However, after a while I realized that I never took my ADHD and OCD into account when I decided to take on that endeavor. For me its a REAL thing that I struggle with, and it got to the point where adding so much into the mix and knowing what goes where in the signal chain, and finding out as you learn that stacking more than one of the same kind of pedal (or different) to achieve an effect is a total thing.... it just got to be SO MUCH! All the ins and outs and little nuances that come into play, and alot of that before you even begin to actually PLAY. It's like effects could literally be an instrument or skill set all their own, completely apart from the guitar, a whole nother guy in the band... Singer, drummer, guitarist, bassist, and EFFECTS guy... Anyway, for a guy like me who took a while to even master his timing tapping an overdrive on and off in the right time, it really made me have a hell of alot of respect for all the guys out there who play with effects, and even more so, for the guys who don't just use them and understand them, but who have mastered that craft to a point where they can pull it all off LIVE and not skip a beat and sound amazing. They make it look so easy!... It's not! I know I went off to the left a bit, but I say all of that to get to this point. While all of that stuff is indeed very cool. Everything just aint for everybody. There's not enough Vyvanse in this world to bridge that gap for me LMAO. It just got to a point where the idea of doing everything necessary just to setup and get ready to play sometimes felt daunting and overwhelming. And I think I began to focus too much on the sounds than the playing. So after I got my new Gibson, I decided I wanted to have a Marshall to plug it into, and I had no idea how great a decision that was until the second I cranked up and began to play. It was amazing and still is. After all these years of playing, it was just amazing how that one certain guitar into that one certain amplifier instantly just sounded amazing and if Rock and Roll could be a feeling, well, I felt it then. it's like they were built for eachother. Both sound excellent combined with any other gear you combine them with, but when you plug these specific two together, its a thing all its own and its almost kind of magical (as dorky as that may sound, its the best description I've got using my own words.)

So buying these two pieces of gear together have allowed me to go back to the basics, and to appreciate it. I still use some reverb and delay here and there, and there is an overdrive in front, but 90% of the time its just the guitar and the amp that I am playing, and it sounds KILLER and lately when I pick it up I hate putting it down and i thoroughly enjoy the simplicity of it all. Now I can't wait to get this Slash Set and see what kind of kick ass tone I get out of them. And I'll start checking out other sets and combos after that. Thanks again fore the replies forum!

 

[Condemned soul]

Paragraphs?


WLH Set

Jazz neck - 59 / Custom
WLH neck - 59 / Custom

36 Anniversary Set
36 Anniversary - Air Norton

 

[SZjammin83]

The Burstbucker Pro's come out tomorrow. Ordered my "go to" set, a 57 Classic/ 57 Classic Plus set in Satin Nickel, and also ordered a Slash Set in Raw Nickel. 57's arrive tomorrow. Also found a few things on my local CL for great prices and gonna pick them up while I'm out and about on Sunday ( a SD zebra JB and a SD black model 59 neck ). These 6 should give me quite a bit to keep me busy over the next few weeks. Thanks again for all the replies and suggestions. I'll post some pics of the MojoTone Solderless 50's Vintage wiring kit and the Satin Nickel 57's tomorrow after the pickups arrive and I get them installed.