Pickup recommendation for an all Mahogany Les Paul...

Gerr

Gerr

New member
I have a 2007 Gibson Vintage Mahogany Studio Les Paul and am looking for new pickups for it. Unlike most Les Paul's which have a Maple cap on top of a Mahogany body, this guitar is all Mahogany, no Maple, so it does sound a little different from other Les Pauls. It's also very lite due to a fully chambered body.

I mainly play 80's Classic rock through a Vox Night Train G2 head into a 1x12 cab with a single Greenback. Thus I am mainly looking at low to medium output pickups as my amp can provide the gain/distortion I need.

What would you recommend? Thanks in advance!
 
Re: Pickup recommendation for an all Mahogany Les Paul...

Are you looking for a pup with certain characteristics such as tight or spongy bass, bright or mellow treble, scooped or pushed mids?
 
Re: Pickup recommendation for an all Mahogany Les Paul...

for your style, I'd go with the alternative 8 in the bridge and the screaming demon in the neck. the demon gives a very clear, articulate tone that will have enough clarity to 'balance' the warm mahogany. The alt8 is great cause it's tight with enough cut and a very, very forgiving upper midrange (unlike the JB). If you want super hot, super tight, super aggressive and a lot of 'scream', I'd go with the sh6 distortion bridge (and the demon in the neck).
 
Re: Pickup recommendation for an all Mahogany Les Paul...

If you are leaning towards something bright, but with bite, I would suggest the Pearly Gates. That's my two cents.
 
Re: Pickup recommendation for an all Mahogany Les Paul...

orpheo said:
for your style, I'd go with the alternative 8 in the bridge and the screaming demon in the neck. the demon gives a very clear, articulate tone that will have enough clarity to 'balance' the warm mahogany. The alt8 is great cause it's tight with enough cut and a very, very forgiving upper midrange (unlike the JB). If you want super hot, super tight, super aggressive and a lot of 'scream', I'd go with the sh6 distortion bridge (and the demon in the neck).
Click to expand...

He is looking for Low to Medium output.

So it is nice to see you balanced out the Vox's typically bright tone with a Greenback. SO you are probably on a nice neutral ground tonally. I have had much success with either a 59 or Pearly Gates set. I would love to have a 59b paired with a PGn, Which I feel would give you the best combo of these two pickup sets. So I would guess the all mahogany is probably a bit warmer than it's maple capped brethren? If so a PGb would brighten things up, if you feel the guitar is not so dark, than the 59b would be great. Really can't beat a PGn in any Les Paul. I never tried the AP2, so can only guess that the b would be well suited, if your guitar is bright. The AP2n maybe great in a bright guitar too. Not sure this helps you decide, but just determine what you want to accentuate in your LP's tone and that will lead you down the right path.
 
Re: Pickup recommendation for an all Mahogany Les Paul...

Combined with that amp and tonal wishes, plus that guitar? Not wise. But ok... new round new chances.

59/custom bridge, seth neck.
 
Re: Pickup recommendation for an all Mahogany Les Paul...

Correct me if I am wrong, but I thought an all Mahogany guitar would be warmer/darker than one with a Maple cap and thus I would need brighter pickups to help offset that. I also thought that PG's are a warm/dark pup in general which is why the SD site recommends them for brighter guitars where the 59's are for warmer guitars, meaning they are brighter in general. Or am I mistaken?

As for my amp rig, I actually have a 2x12 with a pair of Governors, but for home use, I think that's too much, and have a spare Greenback, so am planning on getting a 1x12 cab and putting the Greenback in there and selling the 2x12. Or do you think the Governor's in the 2x12 are a better fit for my sound?
 
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Re: Pickup recommendation for an all Mahogany Les Paul...

yes, mahogany gives a warm tone. Yes some pickups are brighter than others. But those are just very broad, general rules. It's like making a soup with capers, anchovy and fish stock. You might think that's too salty, but one kind of saltiness isn't the other kind and those three ingredients work amazingly well together. It's about how pickups work with some frequencies the guitar gives. For example, the '59 may be a brighter pickup but stick it in mahogany and the lower mids of mahogany plus a '59 may give you a boomy sound with too much lows because the lows and lower mids of each boost each other. I refute the idea that mahogany is always warm: it's got a warmth to it, yes, but it also has a bright, punchy clarity. In acoustic guitars it's very audible, but in electrics too. A full mahogany LP is (if you choose your woods right!) warm with a lot of power and sizzle. Not mushy at all. The difference with a maple top is that the maple will give you a bit more articulation, focus, compression and aggression.

So... rule of thumb? There is no rule of thumb. You need experience in order to find the right pickup. It took me years and years, but nowadays I rarely get a wrong pickup. The last one was literally years ago.
 
Re: Pickup recommendation for an all Mahogany Les Paul...

orpheo said:
why yes, show him the secret-best-pickup SD has to offer ;)
Click to expand...

If it wasn't for me wanting some Bill Lawrence pups I would be all over the PATBs.

Next to the Dimebucker and Alt8 the PATB series are the Duncans that intrigue me the most.

Once I get the money later down the road I want to have a HSH set made using the same tech.
 
Re: Pickup recommendation for an all Mahogany Les Paul...

The difference between a maple and mahogany top in an otherwise identical guitar is noticable, but it's just a little extra bell like snap and ring. Pickups with glassier highs will do you well which is why I recommened what I did. The 59s would also be a good set.
 
Re: Pickup recommendation for an all Mahogany Les Paul...

I have a bunch of LPs, some chambered, but none with the all-mahogany construction.

I'm guessing that you have either the 490R/490T or the 490R/490T set in your guitar. And I'm thinking that you don't play at crushing volume. So, there are many ways to go here. I think there are a lot of sets that you would be much happier with than the stock pickups.

The Pearlys would be a great choice as an all-round classic rock pickup, but there will be other advocates for Seths, Ants, WLHs, '59s and A2Ps. If you're not using over-the-top gain at loud volumes, the Seths and Ants are probably the sweetest pickups around. The others I've mentioned are potted, and more feedback resistant.

I think you could even stay in the Gibson realm with a set of Classic '57s (very warm) or add a Classic '57 Plus to the bridge for warm, round and fat rock tones. If you want more twang; more brightness, definition and edge, try a Burstbucker 1&2 set. While I like all of these sets in my guitars, my thought would be that you'd be better off with a Duncan set--and the Duncans will certainly be a less expensive route. Possibly you could go try some other new Gibsons and see if there are any sets you really like.

You'll also get a lot of recommendations to use split-sets like a Jazz neck and Custom whatever in the bridge, or the '59N/JB combination, and these can be very good at tailoring the sound from the bridge and neck to get you exactly what you want from each position. It sounds great, but I know that I prefer sets of the same pickups. I have the 490R/498T set in one of my guitars and it drives me crazy because they sound so different: every time I switch pickups I want to run back to my amp and reset the tone controls. But the '59/TB-4 I have in my G&L ASAT Deluxe works great.

One other thing that you are going to want to do is replace your pots and caps to get the best from your new pickups. Using an RS Kit from RS Guitarworks will get you a set of high-quality caps and pots of the correct values to use with humbucking pickups. The tapers of the pots are much better, and allow you more control. These pot kits are available from other vendors as well.

I do a wide variety of material, from '50s oldies, blues, country, jazz, and classic rock. I selected a set of Seth Lovers for two of my LPs, and Antiquitys for another, and I could not be happier with my selections. But I also have LPs with the stock pickups, and been very happy with those, too.

In the end though, you "...pays yer money and takes yer chances!"

Best wishes!

Bill
 
Re: Pickup recommendation for an all Mahogany Les Paul...

I know you're looking at lower output, but here's what a Black Winter set sounds through a Splawn Pro Mod (basically 3 flavors of hot rodded Marshall in one box). Back then, they were in my JS Series King V (hardtail, alder body, bolt on maple neck and a rosewood board), but now they're in my Les Paul (it's in my avatar pic).

http://youtu.be/IBCZNc63fsI

Putting them in my Les Paul took the tone you hear in that video and made it warmer and more filled out in the mids and lows. And the BWs are bright enough on top that you wouldn't have any problems with your guitar. They are surprisingly versatile.

But I would also look at a Slash Set, a Pearly Gates set or a combo of the two. They both have a nice top end. If I had to choose from these, I would probably go with a Slash in the bridge for that nasty snarl and a Pearly Gates in the neck, because a PGn is a beautiful sounding pickup.
 
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Re: Pickup recommendation for an all Mahogany Les Paul...

The guitar came with chrome covered BBP 1&2. I am putting all gold hardware on this, so need a pickup/set that comes in gold. I could just gold the BBP set, but by the time I buy gold covers & screws, I have spent half the money on a new Duncan set. Plus I could sell the BBP set and come out near even.
 
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