The Pearly Gates Poll
- Thread starter Aceman
- Start date
blueman335
Mojo's Minions
Re: The Pearly Gates Poll
And maybe that's one reason why some guys love PG's and others don't. The EQ's are closer on the bridge and neck Seth's and A2P's, which is one of the reasons I prefer them. I aim for one amp setting that gives me nice tones for both PU's. If I get the neck right, I don't want the bridge piercing; likewise if I dial in the bridge, I don't want the neck sounding like it's in a closet. Before I joined this forum, I didn't know how to dial in EQ's with magnets, pots, resistors, etc. and was continually frustrated by the significant differences between bridge and neck PU's. For some players the solution is to only use one of the PU's. If you like big differences in EQ between bridge and neck, than you'll like most HB sets 500K's all around. But like most things we talk about, it's personal preference, and no one is obligated to follow what the majority does. Hey, the majority of players don't even know what PU's are in their guitars ('the stock ones'), let alone spend hours talking at the level of detail we do.
And maybe that's one reason why some guys love PG's and others don't. The EQ's are closer on the bridge and neck Seth's and A2P's, which is one of the reasons I prefer them. I aim for one amp setting that gives me nice tones for both PU's. If I get the neck right, I don't want the bridge piercing; likewise if I dial in the bridge, I don't want the neck sounding like it's in a closet. Before I joined this forum, I didn't know how to dial in EQ's with magnets, pots, resistors, etc. and was continually frustrated by the significant differences between bridge and neck PU's. For some players the solution is to only use one of the PU's. If you like big differences in EQ between bridge and neck, than you'll like most HB sets 500K's all around. But like most things we talk about, it's personal preference, and no one is obligated to follow what the majority does. Hey, the majority of players don't even know what PU's are in their guitars ('the stock ones'), let alone spend hours talking at the level of detail we do.
toneseeker74
New member
Re: The Pearly Gates Poll
Wow, 1M pots? Doesn't that give a really bright tone? Then again I'd rather have bright & clear tone that I can smooth out with my volume and tone knobs opposed to a muddy(ish) sounding pickup that I can't get enough clarity from.
Wow, 1M pots? Doesn't that give a really bright tone? Then again I'd rather have bright & clear tone that I can smooth out with my volume and tone knobs opposed to a muddy(ish) sounding pickup that I can't get enough clarity from.
toneseeker74
New member
toneseeker74
New member
Re: The Pearly Gates Poll
Doesn't the '59 actually sound closer to an early patent # pickup than a PAF? I've never played a real PAF, but from all I read most people say that the '59 doesn't actually sound like PAF. Just wondering.
Doesn't the '59 actually sound closer to an early patent # pickup than a PAF? I've never played a real PAF, but from all I read most people say that the '59 doesn't actually sound like PAF. Just wondering.
Re: The Pearly Gates Poll
paf's were inconsistent in amount of turns and magnets. the machines winding the pups weren't perfect and the people starting and stopping them could be less than attentive at times which in turn gives slightly different patterns and more or less turns. if Gibson ran out of alnico V magnets they sure weren't going to stop production so they'd use what they could get. AII, AIII, AIV, AV were all used depending on what was available. because there was a fair amount of variation in a "paf" peoples interpretation of them vary too. the seth, antiquity, 59, wlh and pearly gates are all "paf" pups. they use the right wire, are wound on the right machine in the right range, and are voiced to be a paf. people put the aph in there too but they don't use the right wire and aren't voiced like a paf to my ears, neither is a jazz model.
ive played a few real pafs in les pauls and others in other guitars. some sound great, some sound ok. ive never really heard a bad one but there are differences. I prefer alnico II magnets so lean towards seths, ants, and pearlys. I like the wlh but im tempted to put alnico II magnets in, at least the bridge pup.
paf's were inconsistent in amount of turns and magnets. the machines winding the pups weren't perfect and the people starting and stopping them could be less than attentive at times which in turn gives slightly different patterns and more or less turns. if Gibson ran out of alnico V magnets they sure weren't going to stop production so they'd use what they could get. AII, AIII, AIV, AV were all used depending on what was available. because there was a fair amount of variation in a "paf" peoples interpretation of them vary too. the seth, antiquity, 59, wlh and pearly gates are all "paf" pups. they use the right wire, are wound on the right machine in the right range, and are voiced to be a paf. people put the aph in there too but they don't use the right wire and aren't voiced like a paf to my ears, neither is a jazz model.
ive played a few real pafs in les pauls and others in other guitars. some sound great, some sound ok. ive never really heard a bad one but there are differences. I prefer alnico II magnets so lean towards seths, ants, and pearlys. I like the wlh but im tempted to put alnico II magnets in, at least the bridge pup.
blueman335
Mojo's Minions
Re: The Pearly Gates Poll
Like Jeremy said, they were all over the map. Some coils were unintentionally wound pretty hot too. I've heard that A4's were the most common mags in original PAF's. Lindy Fralin swears by A4's and they're stock in his PAF's and P-90's (you can get other mags by request). I'd love to see Duncan introduce an A4 PAF (and with unbalanced coils!).
Like Jeremy said, they were all over the map. Some coils were unintentionally wound pretty hot too. I've heard that A4's were the most common mags in original PAF's. Lindy Fralin swears by A4's and they're stock in his PAF's and P-90's (you can get other mags by request). I'd love to see Duncan introduce an A4 PAF (and with unbalanced coils!).
ItsaBass
New member
Re: The Pearly Gates Poll
Gibson receipts show that 70 percent of the magnets purchased at that time were A4's. However, who is to say that the qualities of A4 50+ years ago actually match the qualities of A4 today? There are too many variables to make a perfect reproduction truly possible. It's better to shoot for the tone you want as opposed to the specs you want. And that's exactly what Seymour has done in developing various versions of these "PAF" pickups.
Besides, even with the variation in the original PAF pickups put aside, what you think is "PAF tone" is almost entirely just production and personal playing style/technique anyhow, not to mention the necessary reproduction losses involved in getting that music to the end listener...not the finest details of the pickups that were used. Obsessing over the details without worrying about the real deal stuff (which really boils down to the human element) will do you or your music no good.
Gibson receipts show that 70 percent of the magnets purchased at that time were A4's. However, who is to say that the qualities of A4 50+ years ago actually match the qualities of A4 today? There are too many variables to make a perfect reproduction truly possible. It's better to shoot for the tone you want as opposed to the specs you want. And that's exactly what Seymour has done in developing various versions of these "PAF" pickups.
Besides, even with the variation in the original PAF pickups put aside, what you think is "PAF tone" is almost entirely just production and personal playing style/technique anyhow, not to mention the necessary reproduction losses involved in getting that music to the end listener...not the finest details of the pickups that were used. Obsessing over the details without worrying about the real deal stuff (which really boils down to the human element) will do you or your music no good.
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DreX
New member
Re: The Pearly Gates Poll
In that PAF throwdown with all the PAF sound samples from a few months back, I thought they all blurred together until the Fralin sample played. It sounded clearer or brighter than the rest by a hair or two, very nice sound. If I have a spot for a PAF set again, I'll probably go with the Fralins.
In that PAF throwdown with all the PAF sound samples from a few months back, I thought they all blurred together until the Fralin sample played. It sounded clearer or brighter than the rest by a hair or two, very nice sound. If I have a spot for a PAF set again, I'll probably go with the Fralins.
blueman335
Mojo's Minions
GuitarLearner
New member
Re: The Pearly Gates Poll
yes, it's one of the best, i got one on bridge of my spalted maple tele.. and i guess it reacts based on guitar model and enhances the guitar character.i wanna have this for the rest of my life and watch pearly gates becomes classic and still versatile from time to time
yes, it's one of the best, i got one on bridge of my spalted maple tele.. and i guess it reacts based on guitar model and enhances the guitar character.i wanna have this for the rest of my life and watch pearly gates becomes classic and still versatile from time to time
DreX
New member
Re: The Pearly Gates Poll
If stock, it's a Pearly Gates Plus in the bridge. I have one too, but in cherry. I compared the PG+ and the PG a month or so ago. The PG+ is intended to be a little louder and little brighter, IIRC.
That veneer top looks real nice.
If stock, it's a Pearly Gates Plus in the bridge. I have one too, but in cherry. I compared the PG+ and the PG a month or so ago. The PG+ is intended to be a little louder and little brighter, IIRC.
That veneer top looks real nice.
Mr. B
New member
Re: The Pearly Gates Poll
Overall, I found the set to be too unbalanced. The neck was often too warm and fuzzy and the bridge was too bright and piercing. I gave up on the bridge years ago, and have used the neck a few times. I only like it in 25.5 inch scale strat necks with a hotter bridge like the CustomCustom or Jb with an A2 magnet. It gets too warm in shorter scale mahogany set-neck guitars and I have trouble finding a bridge to balance.
Overall, I found the set to be too unbalanced. The neck was often too warm and fuzzy and the bridge was too bright and piercing. I gave up on the bridge years ago, and have used the neck a few times. I only like it in 25.5 inch scale strat necks with a hotter bridge like the CustomCustom or Jb with an A2 magnet. It gets too warm in shorter scale mahogany set-neck guitars and I have trouble finding a bridge to balance.
dominus
King Midas to Cheap Guitars
beaubrummels
Well-known member
Re: The Pearly Gates Poll
+1. Coils in parallel or even split single coil sounds more like what I was expecting the PG neck to sound like.
+1. Coils in parallel or even split single coil sounds more like what I was expecting the PG neck to sound like.
ItsaBass
New member
Re: The Pearly Gates Poll
A little bit extra sting on the high end, but not a severe difference. Pots make a bit of a difference, but not an extreme one. They aren't really super bright pickups to begin with (no Duncan humbucker is "truly" bright by my standards), so any more that you can squeeze out of them helps IMO. Better to be too bright and have to turn down the treble on your amp a bit than to be too dark and be unable to add the treble.
A little bit extra sting on the high end, but not a severe difference. Pots make a bit of a difference, but not an extreme one. They aren't really super bright pickups to begin with (no Duncan humbucker is "truly" bright by my standards), so any more that you can squeeze out of them helps IMO. Better to be too bright and have to turn down the treble on your amp a bit than to be too dark and be unable to add the treble.
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DreX
New member
Re: The Pearly Gates Poll
I agree with the 1M pots being good for PGs. IMO their strongest aspect is in the higher harmonic character, which is delicate and easily lost. The more highs you retain, the more PG character you keep.
It's also my opinion that people find 1 meg too bright are contrasting it with their other guitars, and if your only guitar is 1 meg, it's not going to seem bright because there's no means of comparison. You will naturally turn down the treble on your amp a bit and forget about it, since you have no more reason to adjust it from that point forward. The up side is that you retain harmonic details that would otherwise be muted. There's that saying, you can take tone out, but you can't put tone back in. That's why so many guitarists just keep their knobs at 10 all the time. A 1 meg pot is just taking that a bit further, getting closer to hooking the pickup directly to the output jack. At least in the case of lower output pickups, 1 meg is nearly the same as no-load, tone wise.
I agree with the 1M pots being good for PGs. IMO their strongest aspect is in the higher harmonic character, which is delicate and easily lost. The more highs you retain, the more PG character you keep.
It's also my opinion that people find 1 meg too bright are contrasting it with their other guitars, and if your only guitar is 1 meg, it's not going to seem bright because there's no means of comparison. You will naturally turn down the treble on your amp a bit and forget about it, since you have no more reason to adjust it from that point forward. The up side is that you retain harmonic details that would otherwise be muted. There's that saying, you can take tone out, but you can't put tone back in. That's why so many guitarists just keep their knobs at 10 all the time. A 1 meg pot is just taking that a bit further, getting closer to hooking the pickup directly to the output jack. At least in the case of lower output pickups, 1 meg is nearly the same as no-load, tone wise.
dominus
King Midas to Cheap Guitars
Re: The Pearly Gates Poll
I'm one of them, so a lot of times I just wire the pickup straight to the jack.
I'm one of them, so a lot of times I just wire the pickup straight to the jack.
