Please help - Gibson SG special faded pickups problem

[BetaCAM]

Hi,

I bought this guitar recently and while I love this guitar a lot,
it didn't come with the original stock pickups but rather Epiphone pickups, so the shop gave me 2 seymour duncan pickps to compensate.

I got a 59 for neck and Custom5 for bridge.

No matter how I set their heights something about them just doesn't sound right, and I'm not getting that Gibson tone that I expect.

To my surprise the Epi pickups while they're pretty bad still gave someting warm in the midrage that gave the Gibson signature sound. On the other hand they sound muddy and dark with no definition on the high end.

I'm not sure where the problem is, but the SD's just sound too bright. Sure they have tight bass, no mud at all, a lot of clarity and definiton, but they lack warmth, they sound too modern to my taste.

My option is obviously to sell those two and get another set.

Any recommendations?

Thank You!

 

[Robert S.]

Re: Please help - Gibson SG special faded pickups problem

A set of Seth Lovers should do it for you. Alnico II magnet Gibson PAF replicas.

If you really want major vibe, Antiquities are the way to go but they are a bit pricey compared to the Seths.

 

[hamerfan]

Re: Please help - Gibson SG special faded pickups problem

If you want to deal with your Epis, i would suggest you to put off the covers, which are of very quality and microphonic. Also check out the pots esp. the volumes, these should meter 500k Ohms or more - two CTS pots will cost you $15

 

[Diocletian]

Re: Please help - Gibson SG special faded pickups problem

I just put a '59 in the neck of my Epi Black Beauty and it certainly doesn't lack warmth to my ears. I'd say this is the best neck pickup I've ever tried, although I've not had a chance to use it much. Maybe there's something wrong with your wiring?

 

[BetaCAM]

Re: Please help - Gibson SG special faded pickups problem

Hi,

The 59 is with a single conductor so you can't really go wrong with it.
The Bridge pickup is wired in normal fashion with the black wire as lead wire to the volume pot, the white and red insulated and green and bare wire to ground...

There's a full humbucking sound...

There are Gibson pots in there... I haven't measured their values but I doubt if the difference is so big that I have too much high end...

 

[Empty Pockets]

Re: Please help - Gibson SG special faded pickups problem

That's really rare. Seems like everybody else with an SG eventually gets the Custom 5 / 59 neck and loves that set-up.

If you want less highs and more mids, you oughta just switch the alnico 5 magnets in your pickups for alnico 2's. that'll turn your Custom 5 into a CustomCustom (my favorite humbucker, soon to be installed in my SG-X) and your 59 into...i dunno, an alnico 2 59.

This WILL have a dramatic impact on your tone. Alnico 5's are known for bass and highs with less mids, and alnico 2's are known for lots of mids with less lows and highs. Sounds like what you want.

Other Alnico 2 pickups worth checking out:
Seth Lovers
Phat Cat humbucker-sized P90's
Alnico 2 Pro's
etc....

If my SG had a route for a neck pickup, it'd be gettin the CustomCustom in the bridge and a Phat Cat in the neck. dooooooooom

 

[blueman335]

Re: Please help - Gibson SG special faded pickups problem

I really like a C5/'59N in an SG (popular combo). But I use 250K's on the bridge to take off treble & play up the mids, with 500K's on the neck.

If the '59 is too bright, try it with an A2 or swap it for a Seth or PG.

 

[Sludgenutz]

Re: Please help - Gibson SG special faded pickups problem

Wouldn't fiddling with the knobs get closer the stock Epi pickup tone without changing anything?

 

[Empty Pockets]

Re: Please help - Gibson SG special faded pickups problem

Wow Sludgenutz just made me feel retarded for not recommending that sooner.

Yeah man. Those tone knobs can do some amazing things.