Pickups for SG. Antiquity or Seth Lovers?

[niknik]

Hi this is my first post on this forum. ^^

I am looking for the pickup for my MIJ SG.

I play blue and blue/rock. Looking for a vintage Clapton's SG tone.
Played clean to medium overdrive, never push to high gain distortion.

The guitar is highend MIJ SG, it has good wood tone.

I have Antiquity and Seth Lovers in my mind right now.
What do you think of those two pickup set in SG?

Thanks,

 

[blueman335]

Re: Pickups for SG. Antiquity or Seth Lovers?

I'm a blues/classic rock player myself; I've got both of those PU's and much prefer Seth's. In fact I've got several sets of Seth's and my one Ant set isn't in a guitar at this point. I don't know if it's the degaussed A2's or the wind or a combination of the two, but I don't care for the rounded high end. Obviously they're high quality PU's, just not my cup of tea.

Another option for what you're going for is a pair of '59's with RC UOA5 magnets.

 

[beaubrummels]

Pickups for SG. Antiquity or Seth Lovers?

Clapton - Seths (of the two choices)

 

[AlexR]

Re: Pickups for SG. Antiquity or Seth Lovers?

I'd say the Seths myself out of those 2.

But the construction of the Seths is not really like the pickups in a 64 SG, which is what 'The Fool' is.......in fact there are a few details that make any SG pickup right from 61 not like what the Seth is trying to achieve tonally.
If you were wanting to get close to Clapton you would probably be better of with someone winding a slightly hot T-top clone pickup. There were several changes in the materials used in the early 60's that changed the tone of the pickups. And by 64 most of those changes that made the T-top what it is had already occurred.

 

[atreidesheir]

Re: Pickups for SG. Antiquity or Seth Lovers?

I'm a blues/classic rock player myself; I've got both of those PU's and much prefer Seth's. In fact I've got several sets of Seth's and my one Ant set isn't in a guitar at this point. I don't know if it's the degaussed A2's or the wind or a combination of the two, but I don't care for the rounded high end. Obviously they're high quality PU's, just not my cup of tea.

Another option for what you're going for is a pair of '59's with RC UOA5 magnets.

This is also a really great option, or 59's with alnico 2. That would be slightly cheaper and deliver most of what is great about the Lover's. In my experience, the best duncan humbuckers for a SG is Pearly Gates.
If you intend to stick with your two options in the OP, then I sat Seth Lovers.

 

[SJ318]

Re: Pickups for SG. Antiquity or Seth Lovers?

Seth Lovers,
For the reasons stated above. I have 4 sets. I also like different magnets, but that is me. I like A4's, RC A5, or UO RC A5.
I could not get the Antiquities to sound "correct" in my ears. Even did all the Magnet swapping. Many here like the A2 mag the Seth's come with, but A2's don't have the cut I like. Too rounded for these 64 year old ears maybe.
FYI, if you like double creams and open coils, it is hard to get from Duncan. I got lucky on the one pair and it was a double cream. But that was luck. Try double Parchment, they are, of course, between white and cream. I ordered a pair for bridge that I always use uncovered. I hear a difference, many, many don't. The Parchment looks great, except for a real true white Stratocaster I have. For both of my 2 white re-finished Strats, I had double white bobbins so they would match the s.coils and pickgaurd and body. I have a Parchment color double bobbin in my 61 re-issue SG with a nickel covered neck p'up. It looks great and sounds great. Sorry , got off topic on color. I just got a parchment pair and I am a little over excited by them.
I love Seth's. Pass on Antiquities, love 59/Custom Hybrid, and WLHumbucker also.
You can't lose with a Seth in my opinion for what you need.
Steve Buffington

 

[Woodeks]

Re: Pickups for SG. Antiquity or Seth Lovers?

Don't discount a set of Pearly Gates in a solid wood guitar. Especially for blues/classic rock. I personally like the Antiquity or Seth Lovers in a weight relieved or hollow body guitar. The pearlies would not disappoint. Ive got them in 2 Les Pauls. My "low end" SG has EMGs but that's another story.

 

[jeremy]

Re: Pickups for SG. Antiquity or Seth Lovers?

i love the seths, antiquitys, and pearly gates. great flavors of a2 paf's. the antiquity is too smooth for what you want without a mag swap. the seths are a little more aggressive but not really the clapton tone from that era. the pearlys are a little more aggressive still but again, not the clapton tone. to get close on the cheap/easy id get a pair of 59's. if you want to get closer, swap the magnets to roughcast. id probably use unoriented roughcast myself but they are a little warmer which may pull you away from the clapton tone. if you wanna get even closer, use short roughcast a5 in the 59 set and you should be able to hit the sweet spot of claptons sg tone even though the wind is a little different than what he had.

blueman, if you put a normal (not degaussed) a2 in the antiquity i bet youd like it since to my ears it sounds like a seth with a little different mid voice. the aged a2 is very rounded on the top end which i like for somethings but not everything. i have a pearly gates neck and antiquity bridge in a guitar and have been swapping magnets in the bridge with every string change so doing a handful of gigs with each magnet. enough to get a good idea of each for comparison. a5 was too sharp on the high end and hollow in the mids, uorc a5 was much better but was missing the sweet mids i love with a2, the stock degaussed a2 was really sweet sounding but the top end was a little too rounded, the full strength a2 brought the highs back and added a bit of output. the two pups match very well in this guitar now

 

[Mincer]

Re: Pickups for SG. Antiquity or Seth Lovers?

Welcome to the forum!

For that sound, THAT sound, the Clapton one in an SG, the Seth Lovers are the right one. The Antiquities are great pickups but a little clearer, and Clapton's sound wasn't that clear. The Seths have the right midrange at the right frequency to me.

 

[niknik]

Re: Pickups for SG. Antiquity or Seth Lovers?

Thanks to all. Right now I cut Antiquity out.
However, what Pearly Gates have over Seth Lovers in the SG?

I used to see Custom shop Pearly Gates.
Have anyone tried that, how it sounds compared to standard one?

 

[SJ318]

Re: Pickups for SG. Antiquity or Seth Lovers?

niknik-
Pearly Gates sound much more aggressive, hot to my ears, but in a very nice way. A forum member put up a post a some time back on youtube, but can be seen on this forum. Maybe a search would help. Sorry I can't remember his name.
My off topic on colored bobbins may have been too much for you and others, I just didn't like the look of an uncovered black bridge in my SG, or the zebra, and the white too glaring, I guess I shouldn't have even brought it up. It is a custom job, and expensive. I shall say more on color.
But I stick to Seth's, and would like to try a PG or a 59 with a magnet change.
Sorry to have intruded. To all on this post. I am just an excitable old guy.
Steve Buffington.

 

[niknik]

Re: Pickups for SG. Antiquity or Seth Lovers?

niknik-
Pearly Gates sound much more aggressive, hot to my ears, but in a very nice way. A forum member put up a post a some time back on youtube, but can be seen on this forum. Maybe a search would help. Sorry I can't remember his name.
My off topic on colored bobbins may have been too much for you and others, I just didn't like the look of an uncovered black bridge in my SG, or the zebra, and the white too glaring, I guess I shouldn't have even brought it up. It is a custom job, and expensive. I shall say more on color.
But I stick to Seth's, and would like to try a PG or a 59 with a magnet change.
Sorry to have intruded. To all on this post. I am just an excitable old guy.
Steve Buffington.

Hi Steve, Your bobbin's color topic don't bother me at all.
I actually have Seth Lovers with double cream bobbin from my Navigator Les Paul.
However, the Seth Lovers sounds perfect in 335 Tokai so I decide to leave it there.

 

[jeremy]

Re: Pickups for SG. Antiquity or Seth Lovers?

i love the pearlys and seths. the custom shop pearlys are a little thicker sounding than the production ones. again, claptons sg is not an alnico 2 tone. short rc a5 in a 59 will be close to what you want, a pair of neck models if you want to get even closer but i personally would still get neck and bridge models. if you just want the sg to sound great then the seths or pearlys will do that

 

[blueman335]

Re: Pickups for SG. Antiquity or Seth Lovers?

Seth Lovers,
For the reasons stated above. I have 4 sets. I also like different magnets, but that is me. I like A4's, RC A5, or UO RC A5.
I could not get the Antiquities to sound "correct" in my ears. Even did all the Magnet swapping. I love Seth's. Pass on Antiquities, love 59/Custom Hybrid, and WLHumbucker also.
You can't lose with a Seth in my opinion for what you need.
Steve Buffington

Same here. Swapped a mag or two in the Ants and still wasn't thrilled with the tones. Same with PG's; got a pair based on the comments on this forum, but with the stock mags the neck is fairly warm & the bridge on the bright side, the EQ's are too far apart for me. Different mags didn't give me want I wanted so I sold them. BTW, all of my Seth's (I have a few pairs) still have the stock magnets. They sound so good I've never been tempted to change them, in spite of my being a hardcore mag swapper.

 

[blueman335]

Re: Pickups for SG. Antiquity or Seth Lovers?

blueman, if you put a normal (not degaussed) a2 in the antiquity i bet youd like it since to my ears it sounds like a seth with a little different mid voice. the aged a2 is very rounded on the top end which i like for somethings but not everything. i have a pearly gates neck and antiquity bridge in a guitar and have been swapping magnets in the bridge with every string change so doing a handful of gigs with each magnet. enough to get a good idea of each for comparison. a5 was too sharp on the high end and hollow in the mids, uorc a5 was much better but was missing the sweet mids i love with a2, the stock degaussed a2 was really sweet sounding but the top end was a little too rounded, the full strength a2 brought the highs back and added a bit of output. the two pups match very well in this guitar now

I don't remember what mag(s) I tried in my Ants, but it may not have been A2's. I definitely should have done that. Could have been my old standby, RC UOA5's, maybe RC A4's. I need to dig out the Ants and put in full strength A2's. Are you using polished or RC A2's in yours?

To my ears, degaussing takes A2's in the wrong direction, reducing highs and output on a magnet that doesn't have an abundance of either at full strength.

 

[Lewguitar]

Re: Pickups for SG. Antiquity or Seth Lovers?

Hi this is my first post on this forum. ^^

I am looking for the pickup for my MIJ SG.

I play blue and blue/rock. Looking for a vintage Clapton's SG tone.
Played clean to medium overdrive, never push to high gain distortion.

The guitar is highend MIJ SG, it has good wood tone.

I have Antiquity and Seth Lovers in my mind right now.
What do you think of those two pickup set in SG?

Thanks,

I'd go for Seths, but remove the nickel covers. Much better for overdriven rock tones.

59's actually sound more like the pickups in Clapton's SG and 335 to me.

But Seths are more fun to play.

I much prefer their sound without covers. Becomes a different pickup and much better for British blues and sounds like Clapton's sound with Cream.

 

[SJ318]

Re: Pickups for SG. Antiquity or Seth Lovers?

About '59's -
I have read so much about the 59 sounding like the real deal with an RCA5 mag swapped in. I read and listened to the example on the product page and not only does it sound mid-scooped, they even say so. I never understood or liked a mid scooped p'up. Is it the RCA5 that gives it more mids? Or is it something else that the RCA5 gives the 59 to get much of the forums long time members to like it so much with a mag swap?
I really want to know. They are very inexpensive in the market place ($75.) and I could always get a thrill with a new bridge p'up. I just got a steal on a brand new Princeton Reverb re-issue for $600.00, delivered by a close friend who never ever played it. I had an original blackface one, but it was stolen almost 40 years ago. The re-issue, to me anyway, sounds exactly the same. VERY Mike Bloomfield, BB King, etc. So this is the amp I will be playing for the rest of my life in my old man condo. It was my plan to end up with one, but not so soon, so cheap.
I am thinking for tone that low volume wise, the 59 could be a great match through my old old Les Paul Custom. 66 or 68. I was using T-Tops back with my original Blackface P.R.
Thanks, this thread is really interesting to me. You are all talking my language, just with a lot less words.
Steve Buffington (long talker)

 

[LtKojak]

Re: Pickups for SG. Antiquity or Seth Lovers?

IME, the arguably "best" Seymour Duncan all-around sounding set for a SG for the kind of music the OP wants to play with it is the Whole Lotta Humbucker.

I'm quite surprised nobody mentioned it before.

HTH,

 

[blueman335]

Re: Pickups for SG. Antiquity or Seth Lovers?

About '59's -
I have read so much about the 59 sounding like the real deal with an RCA5 mag swapped in. I read and listened to the example on the product page and not only does it sound mid-scooped, they even say so. I never understood or liked a mid scooped p'up. Is it the RCA5 that gives it more mids? Or is it something else that the RCA5 gives the 59 to get much of the forums long time members to like it so much with a mag swap?
I really want to know. They are very inexpensive in the market place ($75.) and I could always get a thrill with a new bridge p'up

'59's are wound so that they emphasize the high and low ends of A5's. That can be too much in some guitars. RC's of any alnico smooth out the high end a little, but otherwise keep the other qualities more or less intact. They're good when you want a subtle change. What I like about RC UOA5's is that their EQ curve isn't as extreme as A5's, and the rich A2-like texture & complexity of their sound. They sound more like A2's than A5's, but with a little sharper high end, and a little less midrange. For the kind of music I play, I've gotten to prefer unoriented magnets (which include A3 & A4).

 

[Lewguitar]

Re: Pickups for SG. Antiquity or Seth Lovers?

I use my 59's with Roughcast A5. I can get Clapton/Cream tones with the stock polished magnet but Roughcast sounds even better to me. Smoother/rounder treble and maybe a little softer bass. The pickup appears to have more mids and more texture to the mids.

With a graphic eq, reducing the treble and bass and then increasing the volume/level to bring it back to the same volume makes an audio signal appear to have "boosted" mids.

It's a similar effect to putting Roughcast A5 or Unoriented A5 in a 59 pickup.