The Custom 5 is like a PAF Pro.

[Top-L]

Just got a guitar with the C5 and I didn't know what to expect. I've heard this before. It has the same "chewey" mids as the PAF Pro. Very cool sound. It might even have more of the PAF Pro character than the PAF Pro.

For anyone who has played with the PAF Pro recently, is the C5 hotter than the PAF Pro? Or do you disagree with my premise entirely?

 

[ColeJustesen]

I personally don't think the C5 and PAF Pro sound anything alike. The C5 is more scooped and the PAF Pro had lots of mids. I do believe the C5 is hotter, but the PAF Pro feels hotter than it is because of the mids. I thought the Custom Custom was the one with chewier mids...

I imagine a C5 would work well in a mahogany guitar, best it sounded horrible to me in ash; where a PAF Pro had previously shined.

Cole

 

[Top-L]

I personally don't think the C5 and PAF Pro sound anything alike. The C5 is more scooped and the PAF Pro had lots of mids. I do believe the C5 is hotter, but the PAF Pro feels hotter than it is because of the mids. I thought the Custom Custom was the one with chewier mids...

I imagine a C5 would work well in a mahogany guitar, best it sounded horrible to me in ash; where a PAF Pro had previously shined.

Cole

I wouldn't say the PAF Pro has lots of mids. (And I wouldn't say the C5 is completely devoid of mids.) If you compare it to it's dimarzio contemporaries, the Norton, the Tone Zone, the Fred, and the Evolution, the PAF Pro has less mids than all of them. If you asked me for a shreddy dimarzio pickup with less mids, I'd tell you the PAF Pro.



I think the equivalence between the PAF Pro and the C5 that I'm hearing, is that there is more treble than mids (in both) and they are both in the sweet spot of output. There is a vocal character that is similar between them. I think the C5 has more bass.

 

[Rex_Rocker]

I agree. I think it's a common misconception to think the 'Pro has lots of mids. It doesn't. I once swapped a PAF Pro for a '59B in one of my guitars, and I didn't notice a *dramatic* reduction of mids. A bit less, perhaps, yeah. But I wouldn't say the 'Pro is even in the same league as, say, a JB when it comes to mids.

I do think the defininig characteristic to the 'Pro is it's REALLY attacky. I would say it's bright, but aside from being bright, it's got a really emphatic present attack that a true PAF-type doesn't really have. At least not to that extent. I don't think the C5 has that, personally. Also, I think the C5 has A LOT of bottom-end (which I personally don't like, TBH). But yeah... I guess they're as similar as moderate output A5 hums can be. I do think the C5 is bassier and hotter, and not as attacky.

 

[Top-L]

I agree. I think it's a common misconception to think the 'Pro has lots of mids. It doesn't. I once swapped a PAF Pro for a '59B in one of my guitars, and I didn't notice a *dramatic* reduction of mids. A bit less, perhaps, yeah. But I wouldn't say the 'Pro is even in the same league as, say, a JB when it comes to mids.

I do think the defininig characteristic to the 'Pro is it's REALLY attacky. I would say it's bright, but aside from being bright, it's got a really emphatic present attack that a true PAF-type doesn't really have. At least not to that extent. I don't think the C5 has that, personally. Also, I think the C5 has A LOT of bottom-end (which I personally don't like, TBH). But yeah... I guess they're as similar as moderate output A5 hums can be. I do think the C5 is bassier and hotter, and not as attacky.

I think we are in agreement. After playing the C5 more, it seems to have more bass than the PAF pro, which is why the top end is not as "sharp". But they are very similar.

I would recommend either pickup, depending on how much bass you want.

 

[Teleplayer]

The PAF PRO doesn't have "A LOT" of mids, but it can have balanced voicing depending on the mounting height. More balanced than the Custom 5 IMO.

 

[ItsaBass]

PAF Pro is way closer to a "classic" sound. The Custom Five is a modern high output pickup that has been pulled down a bit in output by installing a weaker magnet than the wind was designed for. But that modern wind still remains, and no magnet swap will get rid of its "congested" sound. The PAF Pro is a hot-vintage pickup, cleaner and clearer, and much lower in output. The Custom Five is darker, thicker, higher in output – less articulate, more of a low-middy punch than a cutting tone.

 

[Top-L]

PAF Pro is way closer to a "classic" sound. The Custom Five is a modern high output pickup that has been pulled down a bit in output by installing a weaker magnet than the wind was designed for. But that modern wind still remains, and no magnet swap will get rid of its "congested" sound. The PAF Pro is a hot-vintage pickup, cleaner and clearer, and much lower in output. The Custom Five is darker, thicker, higher in output – less articulate, more of a low-middy punch than a cutting tone.

Iow, the custom 5 has more bass.

Interesting that both pickups are described as "hot paf" by respective companies.

I'm not sure the custom 5 is hotter than the pro. They both have very similar lead voice and playability to my ears. Custom 5 has more bass.

I don't agree the c5 is more congested than the paf pro. They are both bright and open on top without much mid thickness.

C5 does not sound modern at all to me. When did they develop that wind? Late 70s? C5 has more bass, but it's a loose bass. Not very modern.

 

[ItsaBass]

Iow, the custom 5 has more bass.

Interesting that both pickups are described as "hot paf" by respective companies.

I'm not sure the custom 5 is hotter than the pro. They both have very similar lead voice and playability to my ears. Custom 5 has more bass.

I don't agree the c5 is more congested than the paf pro. They are both bright and open on top without much mid thickness.

C5 does not sound modern at all to me. When did they develop that wind? Late 70s? C5 has more bass, but it's a loose bass. Not very modern.

Then your brain/ear is very different than mine. We probably use different amp settings and play different styles of music. The difference in output between C5 and PAF Pro is quite obvious to me. And PAF Pro is much brighter and clearer to me; I can't get cutting highs out of a Custom-Anything.

For one thing, I'd never put a Custom-Anything in the neck spot (except the Hybrid)...but a PAF Pro can be great in the neck spot. Two PAF Pros is a great combo.

Do you use lots of gain all the time and mainly play lead? That equalizes pickups quite a bit. I use low gain, high master, heavy picking, heavy strings, no signal processing (except for occasionally using an outboard e.q.), and primarily play rhythm. Think Malcolm Young or Pete Townshend – set a clean tone, but play so hard that it becomes dirty. Saturate with modern levels of distortion, don't play a lot of full chords, and things just sort of end up the same a lot of the time.

 

[Lewguitar]

PAF Pro is way closer to a "classic" sound. The Custom Five is a modern high output pickup that has been pulled down a bit in output by installing a weaker magnet than the wind was designed for. But that modern wind still remains, and no magnet swap will get rid of its "congested" sound. The PAF Pro is a hot-vintage pickup, cleaner and clearer, and much lower in output. The Custom Five is darker, thicker, higher in output – less articulate, more of a low-middy punch than a cutting tone.

The Custom series started with the Duncan Custom which has a ceramic magnet.

Then came the Custom Custom: same coils with a weaker alnico 2 magnet.

Then came the Custom 5 with an alnico 5 magnet, which holds a stronger magnetic charge than alnico 2 but not as strong of a charge as ceramic.

Just showing the timeline...

 

[Top-L]

Then your brain/ear is very different than mine. We probably use different amp settings and play different styles of music. The difference in output between C5 and PAF Pro is quite obvious to me. And PAF Pro is much brighter and clearer to me; I can't get cutting highs out of a Custom-Anything.

For one thing, I'd never put a Custom-Anything in the neck spot (except the Hybrid)...but a PAF Pro can be great in the neck spot. Two PAF Pros is a great combo.
.

On that I agree, but I attribute it to the fact the C5 has more bass. I have a PAF Pro in the neck of a basswood guitar. Havent tried it in the bridge in over ten years.

I play with good bit of gain, and lead guitar. The "voice" of the pickups, the lead notes have a very similar character between both pickups. The fact that the C5 has more bass is something I can adjust with amp EQ. The "voice" is something that you need a PEQ to change.

 

[Lewguitar]

On that I agree, but I attribute it to the fact the C5 has more bass. I have a PAF Pro in the neck of a basswood guitar. Havent tried it in the bridge in over ten years.

I play with good bit of gain, and lead guitar. The "voice" of the pickups, the lead notes have a very similar character between both pickups. The fact that the C5 has more bass is something I can adjust with amp EQ. The "voice" is something that you need a PEQ to change.

You can do A LOT to alter the "voice" with a magnet swap.

The Duncan Custom, Custom Custom and Custom 5 all have a VERY DIFFERENT VOICE from each other.

The only difference between them is a ceramic magnet in the Custom, an alnico 2 magnet in the Custom Custom, and an alnico 5 magnet in the Custom 5.

The coils are wound identically!

 

[ErikH]

I've had experience with both pickups and to me and my ears they are totally different animals. The PAF Pro has more of an "awww" sound to it, as noted in the product description, which helps it cut through. It's more open sounding with more presence yet the hex poles tighten it up some. It's a great pickup in the neck or bridge. I didn't find it as hot as a Custom 5 either. The C5 on the other hand, with 500k pots sounded too scooped and sterile. In a live situation with that I got lost in the mix and needed an EQ to bump the mids up or adjust the amp to compensate. For me it just didn't have that bloom. With 300k volume or even 250k it sounded better and more full but it still sounded sterile to me.

For playing lead with a good bit of gain, the Jason Becker humbucker is a much better bet, IMO/IME.