Les Paul Pickup Opinions Wanted...

D

dilver

New member
I'm looking to swap the pickups in my Les Paul Studio lite and I'd love some opinions. Here are some of the specs for this guitar:
- Ebony fretboard
- Typical Les Paul construction (maple cap on mahogany body, mahogany neck)
- TonePros bridge/tailpiece
- 496R & 500T pickups
- acoustically, it's a pretty bright and airy instrument as far as LP's go

I play mostly hard rock, classic rock, and blues.

The 500T is super hot - borderline ridiculous - but it's actually really fun having that kind of power in this guitar, so I just might keep it in.

I've got a Seymour Duncan Pearly Gates bridge pickup on it's way that I'm debating whether I should put it in the bridge or neck positions. Either way, it's going to get a nickel cover so it might tame it down a bit.

Would a Pearly Gates bridge in the neck position sound good?

If I did swap out the 500T and put the PG in the bridge position, what's a good combo for neck position? '59? Alnico II Pro? A PG neck?

Opinions appreciated!

Thx!
 
Re: Les Paul Pickup Opinions Wanted...

I'd go with a jazz bridge in neck ànd bridge for the styles you mention, but the pearly gates US kickass too.bit more gnarly and grunty and throaty.alnico2pro in neck is too fat IMHO. Rather, a2pro in bridge and pearly gates in neck.
 
Re: Les Paul Pickup Opinions Wanted...

dilver said:
Les Paul Studio lite....Typical Les Paul construction
Click to expand...

I'm pretty sure the "lite" models weren't typical. I think they had balsa wood centers replacing some of the mahogany. Isn't the weight lighter on these?
 
Re: Les Paul Pickup Opinions Wanted...

Well, you have a lot of options there. First off, the 500T is for all practical purposes a Duncan Distortion.

But Blues, Rock, Hard Rock...Studio Lite?

Here are a few neck/bridge combos you might consider. But by the way...what amp?

#1 59/Custom* - assuming the neck isn't too 'boomy/bassy'
#2 PG/Custom* - assuming the guitar isn't to bright in the neck. PG bridge is AOK here.
#3 Pg/59 - I'd want a PG neck then. Assuming amp has enough juice/gain
#4 A2P/PG - This is FAT neck/Bright bridge. large range of tone plus cool middle sounds.
#5 PG/A2P - This is how to narrow the range, and may be far better for the brightness of the guitar. Again, decently gaining amp.

I am generally a fan of lower gain pups. Better for high gain IMO. That said all my bridges are scorching ceramics because I like the tone curves.

again, liete/ebony and you don't like the highs...certain pups 500t/Distortion are just going to be annoying

This pup may easily be powered down to a C5 with a mag swap. You might really dig the C5, it being more than a 59, but less than the custom, without some of the screaming highs. But the Custom has a lot of power and booty and isn't as harsh compared to the 500T, but it may still have too much high end.
 
Re: Les Paul Pickup Opinions Wanted...

I'd throw the PG in the neck, and grab a JB for the bridge. IMO, for what you've described, this would be perfection.
 
Re: Les Paul Pickup Opinions Wanted...

My Les Paul Custom is very bright but I've found tonal bliss with an A2P neck and Custom Custom bridge for the type of music you mentioned.
 
Re: Les Paul Pickup Opinions Wanted...

Since you have described the stock pickups as both overly hot and great fun, I suggest retaining them. Try some slightly more adventurous switching using either push-pull pots or Triple Shot mounting surrounds to get more variety out of what you already have.
 
Re: Les Paul Pickup Opinions Wanted...

Funkfingers said:
Since you have described the stock pickups as both overly hot and great fun, I suggest retaining them. Try some slightly more adventurous switching using either push-pull pots or Triple Shot mounting surrounds to get more variety out of what you already have.
Click to expand...

That's an even better idea! :approve:
 
Re: Les Paul Pickup Opinions Wanted...

I have one of those, mine sounds like you've described. Compared to a regular LP, mine is thinner sounding, less bottom and quite sharp in the attack, I find it acts more like a SG, but with the more complex tone of a LP.

For years I ran a 59 set in it, still the best neck pup I've had in that guitar. C5 sounded much better in this LP than a normal one, more chunk than a 59. I'm currently trying a 57+ in the bridge, fuller than the 59, with more mids, but I'd have no problem going back to the 59, or C5 if I wanted a little more growl.

I haven't had a PG in the bridge in a long time, but I remember not liking it in either ebony boarded LP I tried it in, but YMMV. PGn sounds fine in it, but I like a 59n in mine better.
 
Re: Les Paul Pickup Opinions Wanted...

Some people have complained that the PG bridge is kinda thin-sounding as a bridge pickup. You could stick an Alnico 8 in it and that would fatten it up big time, increase the output, but still keep that PAF vibe and flavor.
 
Re: Les Paul Pickup Opinions Wanted...

Might take a Custom Custom well. Again - just get the Custom and a mag.
 
Re: Les Paul Pickup Opinions Wanted...

when your PGb arrives, try it in the neck slot;
i doubt the 496R will sound good in the neck with a PGb in the bridge;
the 496R is between 8K and 9K from memory, and with the big ceramic magnet will likely overpower the A2 PG.
either way, hold onto your 500T
 
Re: Les Paul Pickup Opinions Wanted...

I'd second the use of the bridge PG in the neck. It will be a great pickup which will keep up with a hotter bridge pup.

For the bridge, the custom custom is a pretty good suggestion as it really thickens the mids.
The other suggestion for a pickup that fattens your tone up really well is the PATB 3. This is about 10k, so will be a good match with the PG and will keep great clarity for cleans too. The unusual looks are the only downside.
 
Re: Les Paul Pickup Opinions Wanted...

Thanks for the responses everyone. I think I'm going to try the PGb in the neck position (has anyone actually tried this?) and keep the 500t in the bridge position. The 496R is kind of bland and lacks any real character. I should have clarified that I'm running this into a Fender '65 Deluxe Reverb RI and use an original Marshall Bluesbreaker pedal for overdrive/distortion (love that thing). I suspect I'm going to have some pretty dramatic differences in volume balance between the two pickups, but we'll see.

If its just sonic soup when combined, I'll likely put the PGb in the bridge where it was designed to go, but I've read more than a few times that people aren't crazy about the PGb in the bridge position, but love the PGn for the neck.

What are other great "meaty, grindy" bridge pickups for a slightly bright sounding Les Paul? I've got a Custom 5 in my Surfcaster, and it's cool but in that particular guitar, it lacks midrange punch (a little too scooped) and I wish it were a little throatier.

Again, seriously appreciate all the experienced responses. Thanks everyone!
 
Re: Les Paul Pickup Opinions Wanted...

Aceman said:
Well, you have a lot of options there. First off, the 500T is for all practical purposes a Duncan Distortion.

But Blues, Rock, Hard Rock...Studio Lite?

Here are a few neck/bridge combos you might consider. But by the way...what amp?

#1 59/Custom* - assuming the neck isn't too 'boomy/bassy'
#2 PG/Custom* - assuming the guitar isn't to bright in the neck. PG bridge is AOK here.
#3 Pg/59 - I'd want a PG neck then. Assuming amp has enough juice/gain
#4 A2P/PG - This is FAT neck/Bright bridge. large range of tone plus cool middle sounds.
#5 PG/A2P - This is how to narrow the range, and may be far better for the brightness of the guitar. Again, decently gaining amp.

I am generally a fan of lower gain pups. Better for high gain IMO. That said all my bridges are scorching ceramics because I like the tone curves.

again, liete/ebony and you don't like the highs...certain pups 500t/Distortion are just going to be annoying

This pup may easily be powered down to a C5 with a mag swap. You might really dig the C5, it being more than a 59, but less than the custom, without some of the screaming highs. But the Custom has a lot of power and booty and isn't as harsh compared to the 500T, but it may still have too much high end.
Click to expand...

No...Don't do this. The C5 in the studio lite is really bad. Very thin and annoying, no mids, at all. If you decide to change the magnet in the 500t, you might try a2 or a8, but it will still be a scorcher.

I put a JB in my studio lite with excellent results.It is geared a bit towards the metal area, though not nearly as much as the 500t. Whatever you decide, make sure the pickup has enough mids; PGb, A2Pro, CustomCustom or JB would all work pretty well.

The '59 sounds great in the neck.
 
Re: Les Paul Pickup Opinions Wanted...

bigheadood said:
No...Don't do this. The C5 in the studio lite is really bad. Very thin and annoying, no mids, at all. If you decide to change the magnet in the 500t, you might try a2 or a8, but it will still be a scorcher.

I put a JB in my studio lite with excellent results.It is geared a bit towards the metal area, though not nearly as much as the 500t. Whatever you decide, make sure the pickup has enough mids; PGb, A2Pro, CustomCustom or JB would all work pretty well.

The '59 sounds great in the neck.
Click to expand...

I defer to your experience. Just guessing there. I do the CC and the custom. Not the C5

The PG bridge in the neck is just fine. Many have done it, some prefer it.
 
Re: Les Paul Pickup Opinions Wanted...

I'm not really sure what's going to wrok in your guitar. But here's what I did with a couple of my Les Pauls.

I have two Les Paul 1960 Classics Plus guitars. One is a 1996 HCSB, the other is a 1997 Honeyburst. I like the tone of the 496R/500T set, but they just had too much output for my Mesa Boogie Mark III and Mark IV amps. The Honeyburst got a set of Antiquitys; the HCSB got a set of the Musician's Friend/Duncan Custom Shop 50th Anniversary A2 Seth Lovers. BIG improvement--instant vintage LP tones from both guitars.

I also have two LP Supremes; one in Root Beer the other in HCSB. The Root Beer got a Set of stock Seths in gold covers. Again a huge improvement over the 490R/498Ts. Again, a more vintage tone, more consistent from pickup to pickup; much more appropriate for the types of music I play. The HCSB is going to get a set of Pearly Gates.

Two of my other LPs are Classic Antiques--they are from Gibson's 2007 GOTW series. They have a uncovered Classic '57 and Classic '57 Plus in the bridge. Really nice set; the Classic Plus is a great Rock pickup with thicker mids. Not going to "twang" if you want country.

The Burstbucker 1 & 2 set in my three Historics might be my faves. They really have that clear vintage tone of a PAF. They will twang for country, but they sing with a really nice vocal quality. The Historics are my favorite LPs, and the BB 1 & 2 are a big reason why.

My other LP is a Custom Shop Elegant with Classic '57s. A very wonderful guitar, but the '57s have a more veiled tone than the BB set. Very useable and sweet sounding pickups, suitable more most styles of music. I also have an ES-335 with the same pickups.

One other thing. I play a wide variety of music in a G/K/B/D cover band. We do Classic Rock, 50's Oldies, Country, Blues, Jazz and Pop Standards; though no Metal. I use Mesa amps, but I don't use huge amounts of gain, nor do we play at crushingly loud volumes. I often play a lot of solos very clean. My Number One guitar is a G&L Legacy--I use the 2 HB guitars for about 12-15 songs a night.

I hope that gives you some Ideas. It's kind of a crapshoot swapping pickups. I didn't want to waste a lot of money doing pickup swaps, and I'm very happy with the swaps I made. The Ant's and Seths are perfect for me and were major improvements. The other guitars--I'm happy leaving them stock. All of the pickups are good, but it's a bit like comparing vanilla Haagen-Daz to Breyer's to Baskin-Robbins to Dreyer's. They're all good, just slightly different.

Good luck.

Bill
 
Re: Les Paul Pickup Opinions Wanted...

actually Häagen-Dazs is the best by far of those...with ben&jerrys being the best if you like lotsa stuff in your ice cream. As long as it isn't "lite" ice cream :earl:
 
Re: Les Paul Pickup Opinions Wanted...

Pearly Gates is a great neck pup. The PGb is debatable. Screamin Demon is even better than the PGn.
 
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