PAF Pro Users

Drunken Bowling

Drunken Bowling

New member
What does he mean at 5:45?

I've heard it has a vocal-like quality, but can they really be called PAFs?

Many years ago I was in the market for one but ended up getting a Duncan 59. However, when I told the salesman I was interested in the PAF Pro they said I might actually like a Norton better.
 
Re: PAF Pro Users

It sounds to me like he's saying the PAF Pro has a midrange quality that works for what he's doing. I'm not super familiar with DiMarzios, but the PAF Pro seems to be their version of a PAF with 'more', kind of like the WLH is to the '59. It's been a while since I've played either, but I remember the PAF Pro being hotter and crunchier than the DiMarzio PAF. Personally I never thought the DiMarzio PAF sounds all that much like the real thing, but it's a sound that works for lots of people.
 
Re: PAF Pro Users

The PAF Pro has a distinctive midrange "awww" sound that cuts thru in a mix well. The tone is not very vintage, but it is very good for what it is.
 
Re: PAF Pro Users

FWIW, I've had the PAF Pro in pretty much all of my guitars at some point (in both positions, even), and the AWWWW sound everyone refers to, to me, is a bit of an exaggeration. Yes, it can be there if you look for it, but to me, the PAF Pro is not really a mid-focused pickup at all. It's definitely not as scooped as a '59, yes, but it still has a very open quality to the sound. TBH, it's one of the brightest, snappiest, most attacky humbuckers I can think of, and that's to me what's most memorable about its tone rather than the mids.

I can think of a few other DiMarzios which have a way more pronounced AWWWW sound.
 
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Re: PAF Pro Users

Drunken Bowling said:
What does he mean at 5:45?
I've heard it has a vocal-like quality, but can they really be called PAFs?
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They're not called PAFs they're called PAF Pros :18:

But seriously they sound nothing like PAFs, great pickups, but they are only nominally PAFs.

Rex_Rocker said:
I can think of a few other DiMarzios which have a way more pronounced AWWWW sound.
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I think this it has the reputation it does because it's so old. I agree there are lots more 'aww' Dimarzio's but they all came way after the PAF Pro.
 
Re: PAF Pro Users

"organic", "dynamic", "vocal", "snappy"...all describe the PAF Pro.

I would argue that it has been the basis for more subsequent pickups than any other design EVER! From the Ibanez "IBZUSA" and "F" models to Joe Satriani's signature pickups (FRED, PAF Joe, etc) to the Breed Neck, the PAF Pro's sound has been an industry reference for more than 3 decades!
 
Re: PAF Pro Users

Rex_Rocker said:
FWIW, I've had the PAF Pro in pretty much all of my guitars at some point (in both positions, even), and the AWWWW sound everyone refers to, to me, is a bit of an exaggeration. Yes, it can be there if you look for it, but to me, the PAF Pro is not really a mid-focused pickup at all. It's definitely not as scooped as a '59, yes, but it still has a very open quality to the sound. TBH, it's one of the brightest, snappiest, most attacky humbuckers I can think of, and that's to me what's most memorable about its tone rather than the mids.

I can think of a few other DiMarzios which have a way more pronounced AWWWW sound.
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+1 to what Rex Rocker is saying above. Particularly, it is not so much that it has a vocal or 'ahhh' sound, but a voicing that makes it stand out /cut through/ have a lot of presence.

I just experienced a PAF Pro for the first time this past weekend, having tried it in both the neck, then the bridge of my Les Paul style Ibanez. I described some of my experiences in this other thread: https://forum.seymourduncan.com/sho...ement-recommendations-please&referrerid=19446

I use a lot more gain in my distortion sound than the Monster Magnet guy being interviewed (as my style is more thrash than what he does), so the shortcomings i found with it as a bridge pickup that i talk about in my thread, may not occur for him in the way that he uses it.
 
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Re: PAF Pro Users

I would like to know more about the PAF Pro.
I believe I played it once, and it was somehow 59' (Duncan) sounding.
I read it's ''modern'' sounding, with a stratty single coil vibe. I just don't remember it that well at the moment.
 
Re: PAF Pro Users

Not particularly "modern" sounding, unless referring to how it's not quite a "PAF" pickup.

There are vids of Joe Satriani from '87-'89 floating out there that really highlight the tone and range of the PAF Pro in the bridge. He used the bridge a lot back then...most of the clips you'll find during that era are the PAF Pro
 
Re: PAF Pro Users

masta' c said:
Not particularly "modern" sounding, unless referring to how it's not quite a "PAF" pickup.
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This comes down to your definition of what modern means. I totally consider it modern sounding but obviously it's all relative.
 
Re: PAF Pro Users

oilpit said:
This comes down to your definition of what modern means. I totally consider it modern sounding but obviously it's all relative.
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Feel free to explain.

We already know it's not a true "PAF" type pickup, but it's not exactly a firebreathing, ultra-articulate beast of tightness meant for the "brootz", either.

What's your definition of "modern"?
 
Re: PAF Pro Users

I don't think it's all that PAF-y either, but IME, I do think it's closer to, say, a '59 than it is to an EMG 81, Black Winter, or even a JB.
 
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Re: PAF Pro Users

I had a PAF Pro once in a guitar with a super d in the bridge. Was the only time I ever used one and it seemed extremely weak to me compared to the Super D. Was a LONG time ago, so I may not have had something wired or set right. But it scared me away from trying one again.
 
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