Pearly Gates in bridge...sounds kinda...thin

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The Shas

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Hey everyone

I was upgrading my les paul and i put in a 59n and a Pearly Gates in the bridge. I hoped the combination would sound good. I'm looking for that 59/PAF bluesbreaker clapton/page crunch.

The 59 in the neck is beautiful. Nice and thick, sounds good rolled off too.
The problem is with the PG. No matter what I do, I can't get it to sound "right." I read many reviews, and I know it's basically a hotter 59, and I know what kind of sound to expect, but i just can't get it. Single notes on the PG sound thin and....unmotivating (know what I mean?). I tweaked the pickup height and my amp settings, but I can't get it to sound good. It sounds a little more powerful with that bridge PU crunch when playing chords and stuff, but it sounds pretty weak when doing single note stuff and solos

any suggestions to boost the sound/thickness on the PG (without running any pedals)?

maybe I got the pickup height wrong or something. (also using 500k CTS pots and 0.223 caps)

thanks a lot
 
Re: Pearly Gates in bridge...sounds kinda...thin

Welcome to the forum. To me, this is just how the PG sounds. This is why I despise the PG bridge. The PG neck is about the best neck pickup I have ever played though. The bridge is just bright, loose, and trashy sounding to me. That is me though. It seems the PGB is a love it or hate it pickup? A 59 bridge would probably be your best bet for what you are looking for "59/PAF bluesbreaker clapton/page crunch".

If you are in the US, Duncan offers a 21 day exchange policy.
 
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Re: Pearly Gates in bridge...sounds kinda...thin

I've tried the PG in the bridge as well.... hated it. It sounded way too thin and glassy for a bridge pickup.

The JB is my new love. I've been wanting to get one for a long time. I finally slapped one in my Ibanez 321, just incredible.
 
Re: Pearly Gates in bridge...sounds kinda...thin

hmmm...so maybe this is a common problem.

too bad i never do the smart thing and investigate this BEFORE the 21-day return policy finishes :mad: :smack:

how have any of you dealt with the PG?

tweaked pickup heights?
changed cap value?
changed pot value?

for those of you who replaced the pickup, what'd you replace it with? what do you think would best match a 59n for that screaming beano/jimmy page 59 PAF tones?

if worst comes to worst, is anyone here interested in buying a barely used PG, double black, in bridge? :biglaugh:
 
Re: Pearly Gates in bridge...sounds kinda...thin

I don't think I replaced mine with anything. I just lived with the sound of suck until I sold the guitar shortly thereafter. I like big beefy sounds, the PG just wasn't cuttin' it.

I'm very impressed with the JB, I highly recommend it.
 
Re: Pearly Gates in bridge...sounds kinda...thin

lol "the sound of suck..."

....currently PERFECTLY describes my bridge pickup :(

thanks for the recommendation, but i've tried the JB before, and it wasn't my taste. Too shrill and high output-y, IMO
 
Re: Pearly Gates in bridge...sounds kinda...thin

Hey welcome to the board man. I've found that if you don't like the voicing of a pickup theres only so much you can do to tailor it to your needs. You may want to try a couple other pickups. A custom is nice in an LP but it might be too much for your musical direction. It is like a very strong, thick PAF.
 
Re: Pearly Gates in bridge...sounds kinda...thin

Is there a certain sound you're going for? Who do you listen to?
 
Re: Pearly Gates in bridge...sounds kinda...thin

"I'm looking for that 59/PAF bluesbreaker clapton/page crunch."

Duh, just went back and read your original post. The Screamin' Demon is another one of my faves. It's a beefier 59.
 
Re: Pearly Gates in bridge...sounds kinda...thin

thanks rowan
just wondering, what do you mean by "too much for your musical direction"
as in, the sound would begin to stray from what i'm looking for?

tone_guru
i am a huge fan of live Page tones, as well as Clapton's work on the John Mayall's BluesBreakers album. I'm basically trying to get the 59/PAF sound (more specifically, 01min:15sec - 1min:23sec from "Double Crossing Time" off Beano :D) out of an epiphone les paul. I'm basically aiming for Clapton/Page lead tones :notworthy
 
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Re: Pearly Gates in bridge...sounds kinda...thin

I toun sounds like you should go for a set of 59's. Also, FWIW, the PG is NOT a hotter 59...in fact it's not that hot at all...but while we're hear I don;t find the PG to be thin at all...in fact I can get some nice thick rock tones out of my PG's but thats me. If it's not workin for ya swap it! Claptons LP from the beano days more than likely had a set of Alnico 5 PAF's which woudl be closest to a set of 59's...same for Page.
 
Re: Pearly Gates in bridge...sounds kinda...thin

The Shas said:
thanks rowan
just wondering, what do you mean by "too much for your musical direction"
as in, the sound would begin to stray from what i'm looking for?

tone_guru
i am a huge fan of live Page tones, as well as Clapton's work on the John Mayall's BluesBreakers album. I'm basically trying to get the 59/PAF sound (more specifically, 01min:15sec - 1min:23sec from "Have You Heard" off Beano :D) out of an epiphone les paul. I'm basically aiming for Clapton/Page lead tones :notworthy
Click to expand...

Get rid of that PG and get a 59 bridge.
 
Re: Pearly Gates in bridge...sounds kinda...thin

I don't know if you need another voice telling you to go with the '59 bridge or not, but I'm in agreement with theodie. Rip out the PGb and drop in a '59b. I, too, liked the PGn, but the PGb ended up being one of my least favorite Duncans.
 
Re: Pearly Gates in bridge...sounds kinda...thin

the guy who invented fire said:
I toun sounds like you should go for a set of 59's. Also, FWIW, the PG is NOT a hotter 59...in fact it's not that hot at all...but while we're hear I don;t find the PG to be thin at all...in fact I can get some nice thick rock tones out of my PG's but thats me. If it's not workin for ya swap it! Claptons LP from the beano days more than likely had a set of Alnico 5 PAF's which woudl be closest to a set of 59's...same for Page.
Click to expand...

That's what I was thinking. I think the problem is that you have an alnico 5 59n (which has alot of bass, IMO) as your neck pickup and a PGb, which is an alnico 2 pickup with vintage output and softer bass due to the alnico 2 magnet.

Because the 59n has plenty of bass, you can't boost the bass on your amp to fatten up the tone of the PGb in the bridge without making the 59n muddy.

I don't think a 59n and PGb make for a well balanced set because it's hard to find one tone setting on the amp that works for both pickups.

MY Big Apple Strat came with a 59n neck and a PG as the bridge pickup but it's a PG PLUS: The PG PLUS is an alnico 5 PG...not alnico 2 like yours. The PG PLUS sounds just fine with the 59n...very much like a 59b.

If you bought the PGb new, you can exchange it for another pickup if you do it within 21 days of the date of purchase. You should go for a hotter pickup or an alnico 5 or ceramic magnet pickup. A Duncan Custom might be good choice...or a 59B. I don't think you'd be experiencing this problem if you'd gotten a set of 59's or a set of PG's.

Warren Haynes used a set of PG's for many recordings as does Joe Satriani and thier tone is not thin!

But mixing the PGb with the bass heavy 59n pickup as your neck pickup may have been a mistake.
 
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Re: Pearly Gates in bridge...sounds kinda...thin

yeah just go with a '59

i also hate the JB with a passion, if that ups my credentials at all
 
Re: Pearly Gates in bridge...sounds kinda...thin

I have a Hamer Studio with a PG set. The bridge pickup sounds great in that guitar.

I used to have a PG+ (trem-spaced) in one of my Floyd equipped guitars, and it sounded too thin for me. But I understand the PG+ uses a different magnet. The sound really was nothing like the PGb in my Hamer Studio. In the Studio the PGb gets a nice chunky hot PAF tone.
 
Re: Pearly Gates in bridge...sounds kinda...thin

im a big fan of the pearly gates bridge. how close do you have it to the strings? i like to set the pole pieces flush to the top of the bobbin so when you run your finger down the bobbin top you barely feel the poles and raise the pup up so its fairly close to the strings.

i think lew is right that i think you are hearing the lack of bottom end due to the magnet. you could just swap an alnico 5 magnet in there. it might be just what you need.
 
Re: Pearly Gates in bridge...sounds kinda...thin

jeremy said:
im a big fan of the pearly gates bridge. how close do you have it to the strings? i like to set the pole pieces flush to the top of the bobbin so when you run your finger down the bobbin top you barely feel the poles and raise the pup up so its fairly close to the strings.

i think lew is right that i think you are hearing the lack of bottom end due to the magnet. you could just swap an alnico 5 magnet in there. it might be just what you need.
Click to expand...

I adjust my pickup and polepieces almost the same way. Only diff is that I do raise the middle four polepieces just a little to match the arch of the fingerboard. Lew
 
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