Les Paul Pup's - great for blues, classic rock, versatille enough to harder sometimes

[Ed Hunter]

Re: Les Paul Pup's - great for blues, classic rock, versatille enough to harder somet

59's FTW! If you are concerned about the 59's getting mean and dirty just ask this guy how mean they are

:cool2:

I feel with a marshall the 59 bridge is nastier than the sh-14:14:

 

[clearance]

Re: Les Paul Pup's - great for blues, classic rock, versatille enough to harder somet

I remember rejecting DiMarzio, but i forgot the reason Either they're hard to get around my place or don't have nickel covers. Seth Lovers aren't wax potted as far as i remember and that doesn't make me happy.
PG N and Custom 5 B are now my favorites i guess... for now

 

[blueman335]

Re: Les Paul Pup's - great for blues, classic rock, versatille enough to harder somet

Seth Lovers aren't wax potted as far as i remember and that doesn't make me happy.
PG N and Custom 5 B are now my favorites i guess... for now

Have you: 1) tried an A8 in your C5?, and 2) played a guitar with Seth's and heard the difference?

 

[Chad]

Re: Les Paul Pup's - great for blues, classic rock, versatille enough to harder somet

59's FTW! If you are concerned about the 59's getting mean and dirty just ask this guy how mean they are

:cool2:

I feel with a marshall the 59 bridge is nastier than the sh-14:14:

I haven't kept up with LOG/MM in recent years, but does he still change pickups more often than some folks bathe? He has indeed ran 59s but when and for how long?

 

[clearance]

Re: Les Paul Pup's - great for blues, classic rock, versatille enough to harder somet

Have you: 1) tried an A8 in your C5?, and 2) played a guitar with Seth's and heard the difference?

In my C5? I haven't changed my stock japanese pickups yet. No i haven't played Seth Lover's, but i'm kind of afraid that they might squeal too much on higher gain. Also after going through some topics around here and reading some of your input in this thread, I figured PG+SH-14 would be a fine match and a good balance between two worlds i'm trying to put together. But still it's for today, i'm not totally sure.

 

[PRSfan nym 1985]

Re: Les Paul Pup's - great for blues, classic rock, versatille enough to harder somet

I really dig my set of fralin pure pafs. They can cover all the vintagey humbucker territory great whether clean or dirty. I find I tend to prefer having lower "vintage" output humbuckers than moderate to high as they sound most organic and dynamic to me. You can get all the dirt/output you need with a properly set amp or dirt box and of course your fingers.

With that said I'm a really big fan of Lollars and with duncan's antiquities. The new JB/jazz antiquity set would probably be my pick of the current duncan offerings however I'm a huge Jeff Beck fan so my opinion is probably a bit biased but I see no reason based on what you are after that the classic duncan combo wouldn't provide the end results you seek.

I just really think it's worth the slight investment to go with lollars, fralins, or antiquities. The difference is definitely noticeable. And if I were you I'd hang onto the stock pickups should you ever want to part with that particular guitar you take out your nice set of pickups and throw em in something else.

Remember at the end of the day your pickups are a very small part of the tonal equation. If you don't have tone in your fingers, a good playing/sounding instrument, etc it's not going to matter what pickups you have.

 

[blueman335]

Re: Les Paul Pup's - great for blues, classic rock, versatille enough to harder somet

Remember at the end of the day your pickups are a very small part of the tonal equation. If you don't have tone in your fingers, a good playing/sounding instrument, etc it's not going to matter what pickups you have.

+1. Music is in the fingers, guitars are the medium.

 

[Aceman]

Re: Les Paul Pup's - great for blues, classic rock, versatille enough to harder somet

It seems to me that a set of PG's is what you really want.

PG neck and 59 bridge might work very well for you too.

A set of A2P's is also in your zone if you want fatter sweeter highs all around and more bass / mids. (see Slash for the tone - But A2P's do way more than that).

A pair of 59's may work great in your Paul...but many of us have boom/mud issues with 59's in the neck. My LP's wouldn't care.

Go with the PG's - they are what you want Joel. It's what you all want...

 

[blueman335]

Re: Les Paul Pup's - great for blues, classic rock, versatille enough to harder somet

A pair of 59's may work great in your Paul...but many of us have boom/mud issues with 59's in the neck. My LP's wouldn't care.

Go with the PG's - they are what you want Joel. It's what you all want...

Most of the time, raising the pole pieces on the neck '59 and lowering the bass side of the PU take care of 'boom/mud' issues.

Duncan's PAF's ('59, PG, Seth, Ant) and near PAF's (A2P) are some of the best vintage-sounding HB's you can buy. And all do well with a variety of magnets.

 

[Aceman]

Re: Les Paul Pup's - great for blues, classic rock, versatille enough to harder somet

I agree that it CAN adjust the issue, but it also changes the character of the sound. High poles, low mags is a thing you may or may not dig. I generally DON'T.

sound can get thin when you do that - but if you want a bit of thinness (it's a preference) go for it.

LP's are some of the MOST variable sounding axes you can find - I always say LISTEN to the guitar itself first.

I have a CC in an Epiphone that is flippin' awesome - for that guitar, and the sound I want. YMMV


But total agreement that Duncan generally rules the vinatge PAF realm. Between Seth's, Antiquities, 59's, Pearly Gates, and A2P's, and then considering the mag swap options....you should be able to dial in any vintage tone in any Les Paul you have. with some setup skills, of course...[cheap plug for Erlewines Guitar Player Repair Guide]

 

[clearance]

Re: Les Paul Pup's - great for blues, classic rock, versatille enough to harder somet

Well it's been a while since i started this thread. Thanks for all your input, help and suggestions. Just an update and an info for everybody, who might have a similar pickups quest. I put SD PG in the neck and SH-5 in the bridge. My god, that was almost a religious experience. My Orville became something it was meant to be but never had a chance to achieve because of the pickup limitations. It sounds so good and though the pickups were kind of expensive for me as i bought them new - the were worth it. I'm not an expert in describing the sound, but everything is so well pronounced, gibson like, nice midrange. Pearly gates is the pickups for LP now in my opinion, also it sounds so great with everything you challenge it with. Clean? crunch? higher gain? perfect. SH-5 is great match, maybe not the best cleans but still very good. At some point i thought about DiMarzio 36th Ann. or maybe a pair of PGs but i made my mind somehow and the right choice it was.