Question for Alnico Pro / 59 / PG / Jazz owners.

[BPSUL]

Hi everyone...

I had strat style guitars forever, but now I have my hands on an epi LP Classic and a 335 copy (Peavey JF-1 EXP) and I will be replacing the pups in both guitars around christmas time. So here is my quandry:


I've been an avid slash fan my entire life. The old GNR (the appetitie for destruction and Lies era GNR) is my favorite band of all time. Therefore, I have always just kinda assumed that in order to really nail slash's sound (and izzy's sound as well) that I would be grabbing a pair of Alnico Pro 2's when I was ready to upgrade....

So last week I am checking out the sound samples on the SD website. The Alnico Pros sounded great. However, I thought the Pearly Gates sounded every bit as good, and the 59's blew me away. In fact - If I didn't know the name of the pickups I was hearing and somebody said "Tell me which ones nail the slash sound the best" I would have guessed the 59's! Wierd, huh?

Anyway, now im confused. I want to be able to emulate the old gnr sound, so I want Alnico pro 2s... but I think the 59's sound closer to that sound. Am I some sort of an idiot or something? So I was hoping that people here who CURRENTLY OWN OR WHO HAVE OWNED IN THE PAST the alnico 2, pearly gates, 59's, and even the Jazz can comment on them and the subtle differences between them.


As for me - I mainly play through my Classic 50's clean channel with effects pedals, and sometimes use the drive channel. Im actually shocked at how close I already get to the vintage gnr sound with the stock Epi LP and the Classic 50 drive channel - but there is always room for improvement.


Please share your advice/observations!

 

[jeremy]

Re: Question for Alnico Pro / 59 / PG / Jazz owners.

welcome to the forum!!

the aph is the slash pup, he uses it in almost all his les pauls. if you wanna sound like slash, get that pup. having said that i think the 59 set is one of the best options for an epiphone les paul. in a gibson i tend to prefer the pearly gates but in an epiphone the 59 has always been a stand out. a friend of mine has the last epi lp that i owned which has a pair of 59's (and a sick flamey juicey orange top), every time i hear it i am impressed with how great it sounds. there is no reason that you couldnt get great slash type tone with the 59 set.

the 59 has more bottom and top and less mids than the aph. i find gibsons tend to be deeper sounding on the bottom and clearer in the mids than epi's so the 59's bottom end and pulled back mids work great with the natural tone of the guitar. obviously you can grab ten epiphone les paul stds and they will all sound a little different but having tried lots of pups in lots of epi's i think its hard to go wrong with the 59

 

[BPSUL]

Re: Question for Alnico Pro / 59 / PG / Jazz owners.

Thoughts/recommendations on the 335 copy?


If I put 59's in the LP and say a PG/Jazz combo in the hollow body I won't end up with two guitars that sound exactly the same, will I? What if both had a pair of 59s?

I've heard other posters say the 59s are great in 335's as well...

 

[jeremy]

Re: Question for Alnico Pro / 59 / PG / Jazz owners.

59s are great all around pups, like a classic alnico 5 1960 paf but wax potted.

you could put 59's in both guitars and they wouldnt sound the same. if it were me id put 59's in the les paul and seth lovers in the 335.

 

[BPSUL]

Re: Question for Alnico Pro / 59 / PG / Jazz owners.

Thanks again. this forum is awesome.

And if anyone else has anything to share the please do!
bps...


I guess I should post a pic - this may be similar to your old one, Jeremy (red is kinda like orange I guess) :scratchch

 

[Archer_of_Fish]

Re: Question for Alnico Pro / 59 / PG / Jazz owners.

A lot of it depends on your amp and playing style....actually I think MOST of your sound depends on your amp and playing style.

I like the Alnico II the most, has the most lyrical tone in my opinion. The 59 is brighter than the Alnico II but still sounds great. I dont like the Jazz much at all....can't put my finger on it.

 

[Mr 9finger]

Re: Question for Alnico Pro / 59 / PG / Jazz owners.

Off topic, but Good to see ya Archer! I need to make it over to the bluesville forum more often. Davis still building guitars?

 

[jeremy]

Re: Question for Alnico Pro / 59 / PG / Jazz owners.

Thanks again. this forum is awesome.

And if anyone else has anything to share the please do!
bps...


I guess I should post a pic - this may be similar to your old one, Jeremy (red is kinda like orange I guess) :scratchch

actually it is kinda, same series. mine was bright orange with a great chevron flame top rather than the red more quilty look of yours but the same epi les paul classic series. its more guitar than funboy deserves but i had too many guitars. set the bridge pup where you like the tone and output and adjust the neck to compliment it and you are all set

 

[bluefrog]

Re: Question for Alnico Pro / 59 / PG / Jazz owners.

My suggestion : PearlyGates Neck and SH-1 59 Bridge -dot-
a killer in every LP and in especially my Orville MIJ Les Paul.
Best overall combo ! Creamy and singing with a rich tone.

Pearly Gates Bridge if more SouthernRock
Duncan Distortion if more Heavy.

 

[The Usual]

Re: Question for Alnico Pro / 59 / PG / Jazz owners.

Slash's tone is very vocal, which is his trademark. Alnico 2 is the vocal magnet. He uses the low output and sweetness in the guitar and let's the cutting grind of the Silver Jubilee with V30s do the work. I don't have experience with Epiphone's but if you want to nail his sound, you need to have that sweetness in the axe.

That being said, his tone is very different now than on Appetite. I don't think (not sure) that he was pushing the AP2s until after that album. He may not have even used them on Appetite, but I'm sure someone who has followed his interviews can chime in.

I know the LP he played on Appetite was not a Gibson, or at least not on Sweet Child. It was a copy. At least that's what he said in an interview.

Anyway, for what it's worth. I think the AP2 in the bridge is your best bet, and either same in the neck or PG. But again, I don't know the Epis too well.

The V30s contribute a lot as well. These are mid heavy and fatiguing, and a big part of his sound.

Don't forget that the amp does the work. Go easy on the gain, and don't be too stingy with the mids. If you end up with the grind that backs off with a lighter attack, and a sound that feels spongy and like someone's thumb in the middle of your forehead after an hour, you're close.

He is among my favorite 5 guitarists of all time, but I wouldn't want to sit on his couch for an hour while he noodles. He is the epitome of singing leads, that cut in the mix of a killer band. But vocal comes at a price.

Good luck

 

[BPSUL]

Re: Question for Alnico Pro / 59 / PG / Jazz owners.

Got any idea what the Eminence equivalent of a Vintage 30 is? I believe its the private jack...

Im a fan of Eminence speakers, which is why I ask. I didn't know he used V30's. May be time to swap out the drivers in my Classic 50 :naughty:

Thanks for the info!

 

[jeremy]

Re: Question for Alnico Pro / 59 / PG / Jazz owners.

the '59 lp copy he used on appetite had the aph buckers in it and slash does lots of his soloing with the neck pup and the tone turned down. it sings cause he is using a lower output pup into a cranked amp

 

[Christopher Caruana]

Re: Question for Alnico Pro / 59 / PG / Jazz owners.

Slash's tone is very vocal, which is his trademark. Alnico 2 is the vocal magnet. He uses the low output and sweetness in the guitar and let's the cutting grind of the Silver Jubilee with V30s do the work. I don't have experience with Epiphone's but if you want to nail his sound, you need to have that sweetness in the axe.

That being said, his tone is very different now than on Appetite. I don't think (not sure) that he was pushing the AP2s until after that album. He may not have even used them on Appetite, but I'm sure someone who has followed his interviews can chime in.

I know the LP he played on Appetite was not a Gibson, or at least not on Sweet Child. It was a copy. At least that's what he said in an interview.

Anyway, for what it's worth. I think the AP2 in the bridge is your best bet, and either same in the neck or PG. But again, I don't know the Epis too well.

The V30s contribute a lot as well. These are mid heavy and fatiguing, and a big part of his sound.

Don't forget that the amp does the work. Go easy on the gain, and don't be too stingy with the mids. If you end up with the grind that backs off with a lighter attack, and a sound that feels spongy and like someone's thumb in the middle of your forehead after an hour, you're close.

He is among my favorite 5 guitarists of all time, but I wouldn't want to sit on his couch for an hour while he noodles. He is the epitome of singing leads, that cut in the mix of a killer band. But vocal comes at a price.

Good luck

the coppy he used was a '59 les paul coppy, and yes it did have alnico II pro's. you can see it in all their old live footage, its the one with the zebra pups, and thats how he first found the A2's. and he used a couple of different axe's on appetite. i know with his paul's he also used a jaskon. He had a hard time experimenting with guitars during their first recording. he went through jackson's, ibanez's, b.c. rich's and a couple of others before he got his les pauls. and when he got them, they BOTH ha A2's in them

 

[Christopher Caruana]

Re: Question for Alnico Pro / 59 / PG / Jazz owners.

but i got 2 A2 pros on my gibson les paul classic, and they are just awesome! just like slash on the front pup, if you roll of the tone knob all the way, you get beautiful sustain and that "singing" tone. its very cool

 

[hanumanlangur]

Re: Question for Alnico Pro / 59 / PG / Jazz owners.

IMO, no A5 pickup like the '59 or the Jazz, has the musical qualities of an A2P. It's partly the harmonics and partly the EQ. A5 pickups usually have a somewhat punchy, percussive quality in their tone. A2 pickups tend to be warmer and richer. It's hard to put into words, but it's like there's more "note" and harmonics, and less "clang" and "whump". That's a terrible description, but it's the best I can do at the moment....

 

[Christopher Caruana]

Re: Question for Alnico Pro / 59 / PG / Jazz owners.

imo, no a5 pickup like the '59 or the jazz, has the musical qualities of an a2p. It's partly the harmonics and partly the eq. A5 pickups usually have a somewhat punchy, percussive quality in their tone. A2 pickups tend to be warmer and richer. It's hard to put into words, but it's like there's more "note" and harmonics, and less "clang" and "whump". That's a terrible description, but it's the best i can do at the moment....

+1

 

[jonathane40]

Re: Question for Alnico Pro / 59 / PG / Jazz owners.

What pot values are you planing on using with the Alinco II Pros?
Jon

 

[wanmei1]

Re: Question for Alnico Pro / 59 / PG / Jazz owners.

IMO, no A5 pickup like the '59 or the Jazz, has the musical qualities of an A2P. It's partly the harmonics and partly the EQ. A5 pickups usually have a somewhat punchy, percussive quality in their tone. A2 pickups tend to be warmer and richer. It's hard to put into words, but it's like there's more "note" and harmonics, and less "clang" and "whump". That's a terrible description, but it's the best I can do at the moment....

I think it's a pretty good description.

Generally speaking I think most people don't / can't hear the enormous difference between A5 and A2 other than to say that the A5 has more top end and sounds better defined and focused.

To an extent this is true. ( although a Gibson Classic 57 has more top than any A5 I 've heard. )

The percussive qualities you mentioned that are associated with A5 are seldom spoken about as most people don't / can't notice it.
The down side of an A5 for those that can hear it is a cold digital, harsh top end, and a sterile non musical sound that lacks the "air" and openess of an A2 hence it is not a very musical sound.
An A5 simply fails to capture a lot of the harmonics that an A2 does.
Most don't / can't hear this so it's of no concern.
For those that do hear it however, this condition is known as:
"an allergy to A5 equipped pickups."

 

[BPSUL]

Re: Question for Alnico Pro / 59 / PG / Jazz owners.

What pot values are you planing on using with the Alinco II Pros?
Jon

I assume its normal to use 500k pots. Is there something I should know?

 

[jeremy]

Re: Question for Alnico Pro / 59 / PG / Jazz owners.

nope, 500k is the way to go