Magnet suggestions for Antiquity

[ricks57custom]

Hi everybody,
This is my first post on the forum though I've been an occasional lurker on the site. My question has to do with my Antiquities. I have a '57 RI Les Paul Custom that I put them into and overall they sound great. However, I feel as thought the bridge PU is a little on the weak side compared to the neck. I have adjusted to balance them out but the treble one just seems like it needs a little more oomph, midrange and power. I'd hear that replacing the magnet with a stronger one migh help this. I actually don't know what size magnet is in the Antiquities (I couldn't find the spec for it) but would a A4 or A5 help me with my dilemma? Also, any suggestions as to where to buy a magnet that would fit?

Thanks for you help on this,
Rick

 

[ricks57custom]

Re: Magnet suggestions for Antiquity

Wow, no comments. :sad:
I beleive that it's got a A2 in there (after doing some reading). Would an A4 or A5 be better for me? I asked SD and they don't sell magnets separately. Anyone know where to get replacement magnets that fit SDs?

Anyone?

 

[doveman]

Re: Magnet suggestions for Antiquity

Welcome to the forum. Antiquities are wound for lower output but that's sort of the beauty of them ... but they might not fit your need. It'd seem to be a shame to start having to adjust a brand new set of Antiquities. What kind of pickups did you take out of the guitar? How did they compare? What kind of music do you play? So does it need more volume and a tone change? Do you know what value volume and tone pots ... what value tone capacitors you have?

 

[ricks57custom]

Re: Magnet suggestions for Antiquity

Thanks for the relpy doveman. I'm not looking for an overly gainy pickup. I prefer a PAF-type of sound. My neck pickup sounds amazing and the bridge sounds good but just a little too thin and anemic. It is also perceivably quieter than the neck pickup.

I had Gibson 57 PAFs that came standard and I didn't really like them. I swapped them out for WCR Fillmores and they were too bassy and thick. These are really close but I wish it had a little more balls like the Voodoo 59 pickup in my LP standard. I have a .022 Sozo cap and 500k pots on the pickup. I play mostly rock/alternative through a Plexi. What's your suggestion?

 

[doveman]

Re: Magnet suggestions for Antiquity

I have a pretty detailed post called "Two AP2 neck pickups ..." that I put up yesterday because I had a similar problem. I was sent two neck pickups. I actually ended up liking the setup ... but the key I think was using a .015uf cap on the neck + .033uf on the bridge (I tried a .047uf too ... that might work for you). But it allowed me to balance out the pickups tones a bit better. I also dropped the neck pickup a bit and raised slightly the neck. I'm liking the result. It's cheap to test ... might give it a read.

 

[John Wymore]

Re: Magnet suggestions for Antiquity

It's a fairly common upgrade to add a full strength A5 magnet to the Antiquity bridge. I personally like the aged A2 but a lot of guys swear by the A5 upgrade.

 

[Falstaff]

Re: Magnet suggestions for Antiquity

I recall reading somewhere that some people like to put a full strength magnet in there to replace the aged one. Maybe you can start there and see how you make out.

Good luck!

 

[Curly]

Re: Magnet suggestions for Antiquity

but would a A4 or A5 help me with my dilemma? Also, any suggestions as to where to buy a magnet that would fit?

Rick,

welcome to the forum!

hope the weather is groovy in Scottsdale.

I think your first instinct was probably right in this case, although I've never done the mag swap ... but just common sense says that an A5 mag will tighten things up.

I agree with Wymore that the stock Antiquity probably sounds better, but this is supposed to be an easy mod.

and although Wymore didn't say so, he sells A5 mags.

If you need, we can also point out a tutorial on Project Guitar that one of the forum members did on mag swapping.

my gut instinct is that the solution is actually an aged A5 mag, but most of us don't have the means to do that

I have an R7 that I've been threatening to put a set of Seths in, so I think you're on the right track, since they're similar

jeremy, one of the admins here, had kind of the opposite problem, and did a quick mag swap

good luck, and let us know how it comes out

 

[Boogie Bill]

Re: Magnet suggestions for Antiquity

I put some Antiquity HBs in a 1997 LP Classic Premium Plus and I love the tone. I use Mesa amps, so gain is not an issue. These are so much better for high gain than the Gibson Ceramics.

If your pickup seems wimpy, just look at it as an excuse to crank your amp!!!

Bill

 

[Zhangliqun]

Re: Magnet suggestions for Antiquity

Antiquity + A5 is a pretty popular mod over at the Les Paul Forum. If you find it's a little harsh after the swap, a slightly degaussed Alnico 5 should do the trick.