Pickups For PRS CE-24

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skelt101

Active member
Hi folks,
I have a PRS CE-24 (bolt-on maple neck) and am considering swapping out the stock 85/15 pickups. I'm looking for a versatile, clear sounding, moderate output set that can do split tones well. Right now, the top contenders seem to be a Sentient neck and 59/Custom Hybrid bridge, or a set of Parallel Axis PATB-1s. (I don't mind the aesthetics of the Parallel Axis. Besides, they look similar to the stock PRS!) Does anyone have any experience with these setups? Can anyone comment on how they might compare to the stock PRS 85/15 pickups? Thanks for your help!
 
The Hybrid splits exceptionally well. For the neck, I'd say either the Sentient or Jazz which are both clear-sounding. You might even go for a 59 (order the 4 conductor version) if you want more bass in your neck pickup.
 
Mincer said:
The Hybrid splits exceptionally well. For the neck, I'd say either the Sentient or Jazz which are both clear-sounding. You might even go for a 59 (order the 4 conductor version) if you want more bass in your neck pickup.
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Thanks Mincer! Do you have any experience with the Parallel Axis pickups? It seems some descriptions are applicable to both Duncan sets I mentioned, particularly the neck pickups being a combination of 59 and Jazz. Unfortunately, there aren't too many demos of the PATB-1s...
 
Lewguitar said:
I'd go for a set of Antiquity and forget about splitting. That's what's in my two favorite PRS guitars.
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Thanks Lew! I agree, the Antiquities are a nice set! However, I already have two other guitars (335 and Les Paul) with vintage-flavored pickups (BB1/BB2 and BB2/WLH, respectively). I'm looking for something a little more modern for the PRS.
 
Just for curiosity (as I'm eyeing a CE-24 and the 85/15 I tried in an SE sounded good and splitted well), what you don't like about the 85/15 pickups?
 
I just put in a WLH set and have been happy with it, though it's not drastically different than the 85/15s. They're somewhat hotter, but the tone is similar. A little clearer, I think, but I didn't do any A/B testing.

The split is excellent, though I must note that the PRS wiring with partial split is mostly why splits sound good. If you leave the stock wiring then a hotter pickup like the 59/Custom will be MUCH hotter than a typical single coil.
 
skelt101 said:
Thanks Mincer! Do you have any experience with the Parallel Axis pickups? It seems some descriptions are applicable to both Duncan sets I mentioned, particularly the neck pickups being a combination of 59 and Jazz. Unfortunately, there aren't too many demos of the PATB-1s...
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Actually, I don't, but there is a recent thread with many discussing it. I asked a lot of questions, too.
 
donaldr said:
Just for curiosity (as I'm eyeing a CE-24 and the 85/15 I tried in an SE sounded good and splitted well), what you don't like about the 85/15 pickups?
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Hard to put my finger on it. The bridge could perhaps be a little hotter, and a touch more mids. The clarity is nice though. For the price these go for on the used market, it’s tough not to sell for something else! (The 85/15 pickups are not currently available to purchase new without a guitar.) FYI, the pickups in the SE are similar (i.e. PRS-designed) to the CE, but not the same. Apologies if you were already aware.
 
BluesIsBlood12 said:
I just put in a WLH set and have been happy with it, though it's not drastically different than the 85/15s. They're somewhat hotter, but the tone is similar. A little clearer, I think, but I didn't do any A/B testing.

The split is excellent, though I must note that the PRS wiring with partial split is mostly why splits sound good. If you leave the stock wiring then a hotter pickup like the 59/Custom will be MUCH hotter than a typical single coil.
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Thanks for the comparison! Are you saying the WLH is clearer? Were the PRS pickups the USA or import version? Good point on splitting the Hybrid. It would probably make sense to remove the resistor from the push/pull to even things out.
 
The Pegasus is a great pickup for all ranges of gain. It isn't just for metal, although it is great for that. There is a snap to the low end that remains when clean, which makes it sound really great.
 
skelt101 said:
Hard to put my finger on it. The bridge could perhaps be a little hotter, and a touch more mids. The clarity is nice though. For the price these go for on the used market, it’s tough not to sell for something else! (The 85/15 pickups are not currently available to purchase new without a guitar.) FYI, the pickups in the SE are similar (i.e. PRS-designed) to the CE, but not the same. Apologies if you were already aware.
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Since you seem to not dislike the 85/15 set, maybe putting an eq pedal first to notch the frequencies you don't like?
But you are in a pickup forum, so who will told you not to try some? :)
 
donaldr said:
Since you seem to not dislike the 85/15 set, maybe putting an eq pedal first to notch the frequencies you don't like?
But you are in a pickup forum, so who will told you not to try some? :)
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I might keep adjusting and try magnet swapping if necessary. Unfortunately, PRS is a little guarded with all the information regarding their most recent pickups, only specifying “Alnico”. It would be nice to know what the baseline is. The originals were supposed to be Alnico 2 (neck) and Alnico 5 (bridge), with Alnico slugs. However, the 85/15 pickups are not reissues but more influenced by the old sound. I’m curious how Alnico 8 would do in the bridge, with Alnico 4 in the neck...:scratchch
 
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