What should I expect?

[Andy.tech]

Re: What should I expect?

Yes, the BB 2 & 3 are a little thicker and warmer than a 1 & 2 set. All three are very good PU's.

Awesome! I think if I abandon this 490 fetish I have I may just do the Burstbusters 2 and 3 and see how that works out!

 

[Mincer]

Re: What should I expect?

I absolutely hated the 490s, and have no idea how to use them- too bright, indistinct, and meh. You can always find vintage 70s pickups or go with a Whole Lotta Humbucker set or Seth Lovers and have a much better sounding LP.

 

[Andy.tech]

Re: What should I expect?

I absolutely hated the 490s, and have no idea how to use them- too bright, indistinct, and meh. You can always find vintage 70s pickups or go with a Whole Lotta Humbucker set or Seth Lovers and have a much better sounding LP.

I think you may be right! But first......... let me take a selfie!! :nono: No just messing, but first I'm gonna do some experimenting, if everything fails I may do a Burstbusters or maybe a SD. But believe it or not I have herd some really nice 490 sets :fing2:

 

[blueman335]

Re: What should I expect?

I absolutely hated the 490s, and have no idea how to use them- too bright, indistinct, and meh. You can always go with a Whole Lotta Humbucker set or Seth Lovers and have a much better sounding LP.

Right, 490's: nothing to get excited about. Adequate, but that's about it. Seth's & WLH = excitement.

If they have to be Gibson, then some combination of BB's.

 

[Andy.tech]

Re: What should I expect?

Right, 490's: nothing to get excited about. Adequate, but that's about it. Seth's & WLH = excitement.

If they have to be Gibson, then some combination of BB's.

I was actually thinking about changing the magnets on the 490's since it the least expensive thing to do.Maybe a A3 in the neck and an A4 in the bridge or maybe just 2 A4's (nothing to do with Audi thou :nono

 

[blueman335]

Re: What should I expect?

I was actually thinking about changing the magnets on the 490's since it the least expensive thing to do.Maybe a A3 in the neck and an A4 in the bridge or maybe just 2 A4's

If you already have a set of 490's, why not? If you don't, go for BB's.

 

[JimmyO]

Re: What should I expect?

Dude if you go for burstbuckers you may want to try a 1, 2 and a 3 and keep the best two of the three. I had an epiphone with a 3 in the bridge and a 2 in the neck and found the bridge kinda harsh/middy and the neck muddy with overdrive, they both sounded good clean though. Replaced with Seymour Pearly Gates set and the guitar was better balanced. It does depend on the guitar though, the guy I sold the burstbuckers to really liked them. YMMV though and hopefully you can try pickups with a return/exchange policy like Seymour Duncan and Dimarzio etc. (not sure if Gibson has one, someone may comment).

 

[Andy.tech]

Re: What should I expect?

If you already have a set of 40's, why not? If you don't, go for BB's.

Yea a friend of mine who actually swapped in a set of SD Slash gave me his stock set from his Studio. But I do like the BB!! I know they ar not the same but I re did my Epi Special II like took all the paint off added a Maple Top and installed CTS pots and Switchcraft switch and input painted it up with Nitrocellucos paint and installed the Epi ProBuckers 1 & 3 and I was really really impressed at the sound. A/Bing it with my friends Gibson Standard it sounded really close!! It actually my Favorite guitar. So let's see what Happens with this Gibson I really have high hopes for it, I've been wanting a Gibson for years!

 

[RayBarbeeMusic]

Re: What should I expect?

Cool beans!! Does this make it sound warmer?

Yes. I do that with PAFs in most guitars as I find them too bright unless the guitar is naturally dark. I always do the .001uf tone control on the bridge and roll it down on a PAF, regardless of whether I use a 250k or 500k pot.

The .001uf is 1/22 the size of a standard tone cap. It rolls off the "harsh", giving a perceived midrange boost, but doesn't lose cut or articulation like a larger cap will. Try it, you'll hear some classic rock tones where you probably always thought it was a 'cocked wah' or something. You don't get that overwhelming low/low-mid thing like with higher output pickups, which can sometimes be annoying.

I've been keeping the stock PAFs in the bridges of my LPs since doing this, no need to change them with that cap in place and tone rolled down til it sounds good.

250k or 300k pot on a PAF is something I do if the guitar is bright, since PAFs (note that I mean humbuckers with 42ga wire, 9k or below dcr when I say 'PAF') are bright to start with. It lowers and broadens the resonant peak, which is just what is needed in some guitars.

 

[Andy.tech]

Re: What should I expect?

Yes. I do that with PAFs in most guitars as I find them too bright unless the guitar is naturally dark. I always do the .001uf tone control on the bridge and roll it down on a PAF, regardless of whether I use a 250k or 500k pot.

The .001uf is 1/22 the size of a standard tone cap. It rolls off the "harsh", giving a perceived midrange boost, but doesn't lose cut or articulation like a larger cap will. Try it, you'll hear some classic rock tones where you probably always thought it was a 'cocked wah' or something. You don't get that overwhelming low/low-mid thing like with higher output pickups, which can sometimes be annoying.

I've been keeping the stock PAFs in the bridges of my LPs since doing this, no need to change them with that cap in place and tone rolled down til it sounds good.

250k or 300k pot on a PAF is something I do if the guitar is bright, since PAFs (note that I mean humbuckers with 42ga wire, 9k or below dcr when I say 'PAF') are bright to start with. It lowers and broadens the resonant peak, which is just what is needed in some guitars.

Wow! I'm gonna try that!! Thank you!

 

[RayBarbeeMusic]

Re: What should I expect?

The beauty of it to is that it doesn't really mess with your "both pickups on" tone.

Pickups in parallel need approximately double the cap size to get the same perceived frequency roll off, so when in the middle switch position, you're effectively hearing the same as one pickup with a 500pf cap, which is almost inaudible. At least it doesn't do anything objectionable. The smaller pot on the bridge pickup doesn't really affect the both-pickups-on sound much either, in almost all cases.

 

[Andy.tech]

Re: What should I expect?

The beauty of it to is that it doesn't really mess with your "both pickups on" tone.

Pickups in parallel need approximately double the cap size to get the same perceived frequency roll off, so when in the middle switch position, you're effectively hearing the same as one pickup with a 500pf cap, which is almost inaudible. At least it doesn't do anything objectionable. The smaller pot on the bridge pickup doesn't really affect the both-pickups-on sound much either, in almost all cases.

Yes I see where your coming from, the lower Pot kinda takes the edge off creating a kinda warmness :fing2:

 

[blueman335]

Re: What should I expect?

Yes I see where your coming from, the lower Pot kinda takes the edge off creating a kinda warmness

Right. I do that to most of my bridge PU's. That way I can get one amp EQ that sounds great with both PU's.

Another way to warm a bridge PU is putting a 470K resistor between the outer lugs of a 500K pot; makes it sound like a 250K pot. Resistors are cheaper than pots.

 

[Andy.tech]

Re: What should I expect?

Right. I do that to most of my bridge PU's. That way I can get one amp EQ that sounds great with both PU's.

Another way to warm a bridge PU is putting a 470K resistor between the outer lugs of a 500K pot; makes it sound like a 250K pot. Resistors are cheaper than pots.

Wow! Good stuff!!! I feel like after this post I'm gonna have to pay a tuition fee what's a good place to get'm? Last time I got my stuff at Stew Mac's

 

[RayBarbeeMusic]

Re: What should I expect?

makes it sound like a 250K pot

Actually it makes it electronically equivalent to a slightly less than 250k pot. 242k to be exact, but your 500k pot probably measured something like 450k, so, less.

 

[LtKojak]

Re: What should I expect?

it would be cool to keep in Gibson

What, exactly, makes it "cool"? I think you have severely misguided preconceptions.

For starters: you want to "keep it '70s", then you choose p'ups the 409R/490T set, which were presented in the '90s, marketed as having a "more MODERN sound" than earlier offerings?

For the record: Gibson make p'ups as a "necessary evil" for selling guitars. Always has, always will.

Seymour Duncan makes p'ups. Guess which one of the two offer you the best tone for the price, and in most cases the best tone, period?

The best '70s-sounding Duncan p'ups are the APH1 set. However, several other Duncan offerings would turn that guitar of yours into Tone Heaven: the Pearly Gates set and the Seth Lover set are just the ones the first come to mind, as neither can be made sound BAD, in any guitar, not even on purpose!

HTH,

 

[jmcorey]

Re: What should I expect?

Seymour Duncan makes p'ups. Guess which one of the two offer you the best tone for the price, and in most cases the best tone, period?

The best '70s-sounding Duncan p'ups are the APH1 set. However, several other Duncan offerings would turn that guitar of yours into Tone Heaven: the Pearly Gates set and the Seth Lover set are just the ones the first come to mind, as neither can be made sound BAD, in any guitar, not even on purpose!

Dude, this is the skinny.

 

[Andy.tech]

Re: What should I expect?

What, exactly, makes it "cool"? I think you have severely misguided preconceptions.

For starters: you want to "keep it '70s", then you choose p'ups the 409R/490T set, which were presented in the '90s, marketed as having a "more MODERN sound" than earlier offerings?

For the record: Gibson make p'ups as a "necessary evil" for selling guitars. Always has, always will.

Seymour Duncan makes p'ups. Guess which one of the two offer you the best tone for the price, and in most cases the best tone, period?

The best '70s-sounding Duncan p'ups are the APH1 set. However, several other Duncan offerings would turn that guitar of yours into Tone Heaven: the Pearly Gates set and the Seth Lover set are just the ones the first come to mind, as neither can be made sound BAD, in any guitar, not even on purpose!

HTH,

I totally agree that SD are a solid sounding pickups but the only reason that I picked the 490's is cause in my research I found that the 490's materialized in the 70's My uncles friend had them stock on his 70's Les Paul but replaced them with I think 498 and 500's or some ceramic pair, but yes Mr Duncan was not only a Gibson warranty person he did loads of things in the 70 that improved the Les Paul sound. That's why this post exists cause before Mr. Duncan had this very successful business he modified probably pu's that where less than desirable (not that I will ever start a pu mod business, it's too late for me). Picking each other's brain is the beginning to finding the tone we want, I've learned tons of stuff here and I think I'm one of those sad people that can't have anything new outa the box. This place is awesome for that cause people here know so much and will the 490's ever be the "Holy Grail" probably not but I think a modified set will be pretty ok. :headbang:

 

[treyhaislip]

Re: What should I expect?

I'm with LtKojak on this one--you picked a modern Gibson pickups to keep it 70's? The 490 set was not around in the 70s...

Phil Keaggy played a 70's Les Paul that originally had mini Humbuckers but he had them changed.

Here's the description of the pickups:

View attachment 69275View attachment 69276
View attachment 69276

 

[Andy.tech]

Re: What should I expect?

I'm with LtKojak on this one--you picked a modern Gibson pickups to keep it 70's? The 490 set was not around in the 70s...

Phil Keaggy played a 70's Les Paul that originally had mini Humbuckers but he had them changed.

From the research that I did, They where not originally called 490 I can't remember what but then they changed the name again a finally are now called the 490's but ultimately they are pretty much the same and have the same. So yea your kinda right and I picked the 490 cause from my understanding they are the same just with a different name. But agin I'm no expert, and who knows what my uncles friend did with his original PU's nder: