pickup suggestions for PRS McCarthy 594 singlecut

pickup suggestions for PRS McCarthy 594 singlecut

I hope this isn’t too far off-topic, but there’s a lot of great PRS pickup info here and I just want to follow up here rather than make guys repost all the great info above.

What is the difference between the 58/15 LT and the 58/15 S ?

What are the #6 and #10 sets? Are those just slang for something, or are they another set entirely?

Any comparisons to Duncan’s? (Not expecting direct 1:1 replacement info; more just trying to understand what PRS sound like referenced from something I know already)

This thread could almost be a sticky, kind of like Acemans “what PAF” thread.
 
Last edited:
Re: pickup suggestions for PRS McCarthy 594 singlecut

Agreed, some of the older PRS pickups like the Dragon 1's and old T&B's are killer. However, when I got in to PRS in the late 90's/early 00's, Dragon 2's and HFS's dominated.....and I really did not care for either. So, in went some Duncan's and that served me well for many years. Fast forward to 2008 and the start of the 5x/xx series: I remember the first time I tried a 57/08 guitar.....blown away. The touch responsiveness, clarity, evenness across all strings, dynamics and that 3-D effect as described. Nothing like them. I have a set of original 58/15's in a 2015 McCarty and they darn near as good, albeit a bit different. I have played and owned numerous pickups from the Duncan custom shop and BareKnuckles and have not played any that respond in a PRS like the 5x model pickups do. They really are some of the best pickups out there right now, hands down. They are so good, I am slowly (slowly because unfortunately, they are so dang expensive) re-outfitting my old PRS's with the new 5x series.
 
Re: pickup suggestions for PRS McCarthy 594 singlecut

I hope this isn’t too far off-topic, but there’s a lot of great PRS pickup info here and I just want to follow up here rather than make guys repost all the great info above.

What is the difference between the 58/08 LT and the 58/08 S ?

What are the #6 and #10 sets? Are those just slang for something, or are they another set entirely?

Any comparisons to Duncan’s? (Not expecting direct 1:1 replacement info; more just trying to understand what PRS sound like referenced from something I know already)

This thread could almost be a sticky, kind of like Acemans “what PAF” thread.

The 58/15 LT is simply a 58/15 with lower winds; Paul liked the way it responded in his vintage guitars, like the McCarty 594.

The #6's and #10's are older pickups. The #6's, to my ears, kinda reminded me of a Dragon 2. I never dug them....alot of folks didn't. The #7's in the OG singlecuts are good pickups though; kind of a hot PAF high 8k wind. Similar in ways to a Pearly Gates to my ears. The #8, #9 and #10's were all prototype style pickups that were normally only available on Private Stock guitars, although some did get out in the wild.
 
Re: pickup suggestions for PRS McCarthy 594 singlecut

What is the difference between the 58/15 LT and the 58/15 S ?

PRS has made a hard to follow naming system that has lots of numbers and suffixes. The 58/15 TM are trademarked pickups with resistance similar to the 85/15 but a much more vintage tone. The 58/15 LT are the low turn, lower output versions that have superseded the TM. The MT are the multi-tap versions used in both the 58/15 and 85/15. They have a tap that steals some winds off the inactive coil when split, so the volume drop is minimal.

The S suffix denotes that they are made overseas at a lower price point, much like the Duncan designed line. Many claim they can’t hear a difference or much of one between the US made and foreign made. Some claim the US made pickups are much more clear sounding than the S versions. I don’t know that to be the case as I haven’t tried them.

I don’t know anything about the old # pickups really and haven’t tried anything before the dragon 1&2’s or the hfs/Vb sets.
 
Re: pickup suggestions for PRS McCarthy 594 singlecut

I own a 04 McCarty. It is a great guitar, light, ergonomic, and sounds great. The finish is a bit too glossy poly and hence sticky. I wish it were nitro. I dunno about its pickups, but I am so happy to have gotten rid of them. It now has a tb brobucker in the bridge and a pgn in the neck. I could have be happier with those pickups.

B
 
Back
Top