Pickups for an Epi Dot?

Z

Zookie.

New member
Howdy folks!

I've got an Epiphone Dot that I've had for more than a few years now. I love it to death, but the stock pickups are garbage incarnate; with it being tax return season, I was thinking I'd go and get them changed out for something that'll do the guitar justice.

At the moment, I'm torn with what I want to get. I tend to lean towards playing a variety of modern and classic metal most of the time: Mastodon, The Ocean, Metallica, Alice in Chains, Blind Guardian...etc, etc; but, I also love sassy blues tones like Stevie Ray Vaughn and Billy Gibbons.

Right now, I've got on my short list:

  • JB/Jazz
  • Pegasus/Sentient
  • Pearly Gates
  • Phat Cats
  • '59 Neck/Bridge

Any recommendations or guidance would be greatly appreciated! :1:
 
Re: Pickups for an Epi Dot?

Well, the JB/Jazz combo is the best selling pair of units on the planet for a reason - they work.
But I dig Pearly Gates, and 59's too.
 
Re: Pickups for an Epi Dot?

Given the difficulty of changing pickups in a 335, I'd recommend something where you can experiment with various magnets, so if you don't love the stock tone you can tweak it. 59s are great for this. That's not to say the others wouldn't be good for this as well, but you can find a ton of threads about swapping magnets in 59s. I have A2 59s in my Dot right now, though I might have liked A4s a little better.
 
Re: Pickups for an Epi Dot?

I'd go with a 59 and a Custom, and that should cover everything you need. The Dot isn't quite a metal guitar, and can feed back under really high preamp gain and volume. But I've seen plenty of metal played on them. The good thing is that those 2 pickups will sound great for most any style you are into in the future.
 
Re: Pickups for an Epi Dot?

I really like the '59 neck in my Epi Dot. It sounds great. I'm running a Seth in the bridge, which is also a lovely pickup . . . but most of what I play is classic rock/blues. The guitar feeds back if you bump the gain and volume up too high, but it's controllable. You will have to change where you're standing a few times and maybe the angle that you're holding the guitar (as well as being very careful about muting strings/rolling the volume down when not playing) if you plan to use it for metal.
 
Re: Pickups for an Epi Dot?

I have a few suggestions, but it depends on where your coming from, tone wise, and where you want to go. I get that you're unhappy with the stock pups...that's no surprise.

Epi dots can sound a bit thin. Does yours? Do you want bright or warmer sounding pups"?

Pearly Gates are really great for what you want to play but they are a bit bright sounding. So are most of the pups on your list.

I'm a real fan of P-90s and a good set will bring your dot into Casino territory. Not a bad thing at all, but maybe not the best for the metal you like to play. I think Mincer is on the right track with the Custom (or C8, or C5) in the bridge. I think the 59 might be either a bit too bright or too boomy in your dot though. Maybe an A2P, GFS Mean 90, Demon, or the Jazz with an A2 magnet.
 
Re: Pickups for an Epi Dot?

You know - a lot of people seem to really hate the P-Rail hum bucking sounds. But for what this guy wants, they may be perfect. Just gobs of thick hot metal. When it is SRV/Billy G time go with a rail or a P-90.

I have a Dot Studio with a JB/Jazz and play Kix/Poison on it live and it works great. JB Jazz will go far - may not be best for anything, but a great combo for a lot...
 
Re: Pickups for an Epi Dot?

I AGREE WITH aCE...THE JB/JAZZ WOULD PROBABLY BE A VERY GOOD SET. BUT I THINK THE P-RAILS SET WOULD BE EXACTLY RIGHT FOR YOU. You can definitely cover lots of ground with a set of P-Rails in your dot. It may be the perfect solution. You can easily get the SRV/Gibbons thing going on. You can get bright, airy tones with the bridge Rail coil, and up to the heaviest mid-rich tones you can imagine with the neck P-Rails in bucker mode, especially if you use a Triple Shot ring and put the two coils in series.

Versatility in spades.

I've got P-Rails in 4-5 guitars and could never consider taking them out for any reason. I play covers of many styles of music so I need the versatility and the ability to approximate the original tones. P-Rails does it for me.

And I'm not a noob to this...been playing for 60 years and currently have over 50 guitars.
 
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Re: Pickups for an Epi Dot?

Whatever you choose, put in fresh good quality pots and wiring.
I would reccommend a whole lotta humbucker set.
 
Re: Pickups for an Epi Dot?

Zookie. said:
Right now, I've got on my short list:

  • JB/Jazz
  • Pegasus/Sentient
  • Pearly Gates
  • Phat Cats
  • '59 Neck/Bridge

Any recommendations or guidance would be greatly appreciated!
Click to expand...


I've used 4 out of 5 of those pairs, for classic rock & blues.


[*]JB/Jazz - Not a JB fan, tried several because of the fanfare it gets (also Duncan's most marketed pickup, so that's a good part of the popularity). Great for metal in a Strat, but for other guitars and genres, there's better choices.


[*]Pearly Gates - I'm a big PAF fan, but couldn't bond with PG's, didn't hear any 'sizzle.' The neck's too warm for my tastes, and the bridge is brighter & thinner than I expected (other players have said this too). I prefer pickup sets that are better balanced EQ-wise. Some like a larger difference. Depends on the player.


[*]Phat Cats - Tried them in LP, SG, and Dot. Very disappointed. i was expecting them to sound like P-90's, and they're nothing like that. Don't have the clarity, crisp highs and tight lows that P-90's are loved for. They have their own thing going on, which some players are into. The neck for me was dark, like it was in a closet. It totally overpowered the bridge. I solved it by swapping magnets to get some treble into the neck, and more mids and output into the bridge. Sound pretty good now. Forum pickup winder Zhang said the neck is wound pretty hot, and he took 1,000 turns off his to add high end.


[*]'59 Neck/Bridge - '59N's can be sometimes be bassy/boomy in some guitars, usually happens in LP's, but occasionally in other guitars. For me it happened in a Sheraton. Sometimes lowering the pickup works. Some members here put A4 magnets in them to dial down the low end. '59B's are on the bright side, and mid-scooped. That may or may not work for you. That means they'll take more distortion before getting muddy. For those wanting a fuller bridge tone, magnet swaps take care of that. For me, an UOA5 is great in a '59B for a rich vintage sound. Some put an A8 in, which boosts output, mids, and warmth. To me, '59's are at their best in a SG, which is naturally a mid-heavy guitar (mahogany and rosewood), and the EQ's can balance out nicely.


I recommend checking out the WLH set. Covers a lot of genres.
 
Re: Pickups for an Epi Dot?

blueman335 said:
I recommend checking out the WLH set. Covers a lot of genres.
Click to expand...

Do you use WLH's for your Mastadon and Blind Guardian tones? How do they work for that??? And which era of Metallica? Are we talking RTL/MOP, Black, or more recent?
 
Re: Pickups for an Epi Dot?

Alright, so, I've been out for a little bit and haven't been able to check in 'til now; sooo...

Mincer said:
I'd go with a 59 and a Custom, and that should cover everything you need. The Dot isn't quite a metal guitar, and can feed back under really high preamp gain and volume. But I've seen plenty of metal played on them. The good thing is that those 2 pickups will sound great for most any style you are into in the future.
Click to expand...

I am a bit concerned that the neck pickup would end up being boomy, which is why I'm a bit hesitant to get a 59 for the neck. Would a Jazz and a Custom work well?

GuitarDoc said:
I have a few suggestions, but it depends on where your coming from, tone wise, and where you want to go. I get that you're unhappy with the stock pups...that's no surprise.

Epi dots can sound a bit thin. Does yours? Do you want bright or warmer sounding pups"?
Click to expand...

"Thin" is probably a good word for it, especially the bridge; the neck pickup is basically audible mud. Overall, they're both lacking.

As for what I want to get out of what I'm putting in, a (balanced) brighter sound is probably what I'm leaning towards.

Chickenwings said:
Whatever you choose, put in fresh good quality pots and wiring.
I would reccommend a whole lotta humbucker set.
Click to expand...

I was definitely going to see about getting new pots put in. Being my first foray into guitar electronics, though, I'm not sure what to get as far as pots are concerned.

Aceman said:
Do you use WLH's for your Mastadon and Blind Guardian tones? How do they work for that??? And which era of Metallica? Are we talking RTL/MOP, Black, or more recent?
Click to expand...
Honestly, MOP and Justice are my favorite Metallica albums.
 
Re: Pickups for an Epi Dot?

Zookie. said:
I am a bit concerned that the neck pickup would end up being boomy, which is why I'm a bit hesitant to get a 59 for the neck.
Click to expand...

This can be addressed with a $2 magnet and 5 minutes of your time. A4 worked best for me, but A2 is pretty good as well. The 59 is a great platform for magnet swaps to tweak the tone to your liking.
 
Re: Pickups for an Epi Dot?

"As for what I want to get out of what I'm putting in, a (balanced) brighter sound is probably what I'm leaning towards"

The Jazz neck is what you're looking for. And the 59/Custom hybrid for the bridge.

Still, a P-Rails would be great in either or both positions.
 
Re: Pickups for an Epi Dot?

If you are concerned about a boomy neck pickup, then certainly go with the Jazz. A Jazz and a Custom work really well together.
 
Re: Pickups for an Epi Dot?

I personaly prefer the Pearly Gates in the neck over '59 and Jazz. I think the 59 is too warm and fat, while the jazz is a weaker version of 59. PG is something in between, imo. Very classic vintage sounding pickup for cleans and bluesy stuff. They are all great pickups, I have them installed in different guitars - its just a matter of personal preferance.

As for bridge, the 59 is a killer humbucker. It will do classic rock and old school metal just perfect. I have a blues set installed in my Les Paul Classic, it's one of the most versatile humbuckers I've ever played. Its low output, easy to control and tweak. Very tight and responsive. Cuts well in a mix. Fat sounding. Just perfect.

Usually I would recomend a set of GFS Mean90 or Dream90 for an Epiphone Dot. I had them installed in my Dot, they sounded fantastic and are very affordable. But based on your band list, I would go with the 59 in bridge, as they handle metal better than P90s. I also have a GFS Crunchy Pat installed in a Epiphone LP custom - they are great humbuckers on a budget for rock and metal.

I think the custom will be too much for a DOT. It's a very dark and thick humbucker, I would imagine some feedback problems when involved with gain and a hollowbody guitar.
 
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Re: Pickups for an Epi Dot?

You can always stuff the f-holes with foam if you're having feedback problems I suppose.
 
Re: Pickups for an Epi Dot?

I have an Epi Sheraton and swapped the pickups for Seth Lovers. The bridge some time ago and the neck just recently. It was a major improvement! So my advice is the Seth Lovers. Works really great in 335 guitars.
 
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