PAF???

D

Dusty.Rhoads

New member
They keep on showing up and in many places everywhere I am really confused. this brought it all to critical mass in this mornings readings https://www.facebook.com/DiMarzioInc/posts/10158776691915621
It seems that Seymour Duncan, DiMarzio, EMG, Fishman and just about every maker on the planet has at least one if not a dozen PAF pickup designs. Could somebody give someone like me who doesn't understand pickups very well an explanation about PAF and how and why there are dozens of models available that make the claim to be PAF or PAF like or whatever.

I have read several threads on this board and comments elsewhere on the internet and am unable to fit it all into something that I can understand.

Thank you in advance for anyone willing to beat this dead horse one more time.
 
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Re: PAF???

In short, PAF just refers to the early Gibson humbucker design. They are called that because they had a sticker on the bottom that read "Patent Applied For".

There weren't strict standards by which they were made. They used whatever magnet they had available, and they didn't have computer-controlled machinery, so the winding varied from pickup to pickup. This is why there are many "clones" currently available.
 
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Re: PAF???

Plus many winders (not Duncan or DiMarzio), and players, have no idea what a PAF sounds like.

I had a customer bring me a guitar with a somewhat well known small winder's PAF style pickups. They were really dull sounding and the customer hated them! So we replaced them with Duncans. But that's the thing, this winder had an idea in his head on what they should sound like. Probably based on listening to records. Lol.

Real PAFs (and patent label pickups) are pretty bright sounding.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
Re: PAF???

Generally speaking, a PAF is a pickup modeled on the original Patent Applied For hum bucking pickup design from Gibson.

Some of the key features include:

Two coils, in series, that cancel the 60 cycle hum (Thus "hum-bucking")
The are usually around 7k to 8.5k or so, as resonant peak goes. This basically (but not exactly) means thy are low output.
They 'tend' to have an EQ curve (if their is any such thing really) of like 5/4/7 Bass, mid, treble or something like that
They are ideally, or supposed to be, an A5 magnet

Now - here is the kicker - Gibson was NOT very particular with a lot of things back in the day, such as how many winds the pickup had, and what magnet was used. So you might have a real PAF with an A3 magnet wound to 6.8k and another one wound to 8.8k with an A5, and yet another with an a4 at 7.8k. Those three pickups will sound very different!

So when Seymour or Larry make a 59, or a PAF, or whatever - it is their idea of what the "Ideal" PAF from that time would be. Listen to the Pearly Gates and the 59 and the Seth, all examples of "PAF's". Pearly Gates is the one from Billy Gibbons 59 LP - and clearly not the same as some others.
 
Re: PAF???

Hi,
As far as Duncan PAF's are concerned, I did have a real PAF, sold it for 1,500.00 bucks. It was great, MJ at the custom shop told me my best bet was a Seth Lover. It was good, but not as close or as "cutting" as my old PAF. So she suggested an A5 mag, much better. Years later after many different pickups and magnet swaps I found for myself, I like the Seth Lover roughcast A5, and an A4 get me to my own personal PAF land. I also think the WLH with a roughcast A5 is a good example of a hotter PAF.
I would love to try a '59 with a RC A5, from what I've read. Pearly gates are beautiful, but very hot for a PAF. I hope my experience is helpful in some way. I have had good results with boutique winders, but I always come back to Duncan, truth be told.
Steve Buffington
 
Re: PAF???

As someone on this Forum said in another thread, there are more PAF style pickups being made than actual PAFs...winders are making "PAFs" that never even existed. Not saying that is a bad thing, just saying that the "PAF" keeps evolving over time.

The Pearly Gates, which are not your typical "PAF" style pickup, are based off of Billy Gibbons' very specific original set from one of his Les Pauls...definitely hot and rocking pickups. I really dig the Pearly Gates but felt a UOA5 magnet made a great pickup even greater. Other than the PGs though, I personally don't really care for "PAF" style pickups.

And you are not beating a dead horse, there is a reason this topic keeps coming up–will be interesting to see how the topic evolves over the next decade.
 
Re: PAF???

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Re: PAF???

There are many players who grew up on the 'variations of a PAF' pickup that a real PAF wouldn't work for them. I think the myth is bigger than the truth at this point due to rarity and internet hype. New guitar music sounds nothing like old PAF pickups, so in 20-30 years time, no one will care, I'd guess. I still like the way old-style pickups sound, though.
 
Re: PAF???

I don't worry about accuracy at all. I'm just looking for tones that turn me on.

Of my favorites, the Pearly Gates seem to have the best rock tones. Aggressive Gary Moore, Billy Gibbons. Raw mids and a little sizzle. But not overly so.

The Seth Lovers are similar but smoother and a little less raw. Love those too and they can do the Gary Moore, Billy Gibbons, early Peter Green/Supernatural tones too.

The Antiquity is great but more restrained and less aggressive than the PG and Seth. Less driving despite having a higher DCR than the other two. Killer tones though for more laid back blues.

The 59 with Roughcast Alnico 5 gets my favorite Clapton with Cream tones. Also does Santana, BB King and jazzy Wes Montgomery tones beautifully.

Those are my four favorite Duncan PAF pickups and I use them all.

I don't think of the Jazz, APH-1 or APH-2 humbuckers as being PAF's. To my way of thinking, they're more like a variation of the T-Top style pickup, although I don't believe they use the short magnet of the T-Top.

I really like the APH-1 and APH-2 though. The Jazz is a bit too articulate for me.

One more thing: use your guitar's tone control, especially when soloing on the bridge pickup!
 
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Re: PAF???

the antiquity aged magnet has a lot to do with the restrained/less aggressive sound. i use an antiquity with a full strength a2 in the bridge of my hamer monaco elite and its like a seth with a little more mid push
 
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