Wondering about PG's vs AII Pro's.

Artie

Artie

Peaveyologist
I hope to have my Patriot project completed next month, and am thinking about which pups to use. I've never tried A2 Duncans, and I want something sweet and warm. I thought AII Pro's might be perfect but I need tremspaced for the bridge.

I notice that AII's and PG's have almost identical specs, but from what I recall folks saying, they're completely different sounding. So, how do these compare, if at all?

It is kinda funny that there aren't more A2 medium-to-low output 'buckers.

Artie
 
Re: Wondering about PG's vs AII Pro's.

Artie, I've had both in the same guitar. PG(n) and APH(n) in my Dean Hardtail, PG(n) and APH(n) in my double fat strat and APH(b) and PG(b) in my LP Standard.

In my Hardtail, I couldn't get the clarity and sweetness out of the PG that I wanted. It always had a little bit of rawness and grit that wasn't what I was looking for at the time. It definately has that sizzle in the upper mids. I'd actually like to try a PG(n) in my Lester just for kicks. It ultimately wasn't for me. The APH(n) just had the clarity and suprisingly was louder in the neck position. I had to lower it a bit to balance the volume with the APH(b), and this helped the clarity even more. It was what I was looking for in the Hardtail.

In my Lester, the PG(b) had a nice bite to it, more bite than the APH(b). It still had that upper midrange sizzle, which in the bridge wasn't nearly as bad as I found it in the neck. However, it really lacked the bass that I was looking for. It had a thinness to it that made the overall sound seem thin. Now, it was much better on lower and mid gain levels than it was with higher gain. The APH was smoother again in this position, and was more balanced. It performed much better under high gain, but didn't have quite enough bite on lower and mid gain settings, ALA AC/DC, ect. Ultimately both of these pups went bye bye and a 59' now finds it's home in the bridge. An APH(n) is it's mate.

In my double fat strat, the PG and the APH in the neck were really, really close. I didn't notice the upper mids of the PG nearly as much here, but it still lacked a little clarity and sweetness. The PG is just slightly ruder, and doesn't work for the tones that I like.

I love the APH(n), and have it in 3 guitars currently. Dean Hardtail, LP Standard and double fat strat. I have the APH(b) in the Dean Hardtail, and the PG's are gone. I still have the PG(b) sitting in a drawer. I like a little more bite and tightness in the bass and crispness in the highs when we are talking about the bridge, and I like the neck to be warm, clear and articulate.

I don't know if any of this helps or not. I play thru a modded Marshall, and I use a fair amount of gain, playing a lot of AC/DC, Free, GNR, VH, STP and a host of other 80's rock and metal.

I'll shut up now.
 
Re: Wondering about PG's vs AII Pro's.

That helps tremendously, Jeff. It reinforces that the APH's are probably what I'm looking for. The only problem is, I already have the Hipshot bridge, and even though its a hardtail, it's trem-spaced. It was the narrowest aftermarket hardtail I could find. I really wanted the string alignment to be perfect on this guitar.

I'll just have to think about this some more. :question:

Artie

Edit: Just for grins & giggles, I think I'll fire off an email to MJ and see what they'ld charge for a custom shop tremspaced APH.
 
Re: Wondering about PG's vs AII Pro's.

Funny, I'm actually running the PGb/APHn combination in one guitar (. . .?. . . oh yeah, it's all in my sig, isn't it. . .) and I like the contrast they get between each other.

Don't know if any of this helps you, but here are my impressons. . .

The APHn is warm to my ears but still has just enough high end definition to be pretty flexible. The PGb is definitely bright, but makes a great contrast in tone (dark neck, bright bridge). I was able to tame it a bit by increasing the size of the tone cap (.047mf). As I darken things up, the pickup seems to sound thicker and even a bit bassier. Until I roll things just about all the way off, there remains just a subtle top end edge to the tone. I was thinking of changing it out, but I can't beat it's dynamics. It almost "reads" my mind as to what I want to do. This is on a Brian Moore i21 mahogany set neck (licture to the left), and body, maple cap. I do the Fender sound mostly, or a Boogie, or even a Tech21 Tdmk 60.

The PGn in a Carvin DC400T (maple cap, neck, mahogany body wings 24 fret, neck through body) has just a bit more edge to it than the APH and a little more clarity to the top end, and just a bit more "push" behind it to my ears. I like 'em both. That one is mated with a Custom Custom bridge (giving me brighter neck, heavier bridge tone).

Brett
 
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Re: Wondering about PG's vs AII Pro's.

Jeff just about sums it up perfectly.

A2Pros and PGs sound nothing alike. A2P have that liquid sound -- think Slash, Dave Murray, etc. The APH is my favorite neck humbucker.

Compared to the APH, the PG can be a little gritty and rude. If SRV played a neck humbucker, this would be the one he would choose. However, it's grttiness means that it doesn't have that sweet liquid sound of the APH.


I've got 2 APHn and 1 PGn, and I think the PGn will probably be replaced by a APHn. Some people love the PGn, but it's just not for me.
 
Re: Wondering about PG's vs AII Pro's.

Great info folks. Thanks. I imagine PG's would be great in the right application, but it looks like APH's is what I want for this project.

Can't wait to get this all together.

Artie
 
Re: Wondering about PG's vs AII Pro's.

Hey Artie...the Blues TB or the PATB might be the ticket for that guitar in trem spacing. I know I sure love mine.
 
Re: Wondering about PG's vs AII Pro's.

Yeah, on my short list of pups to consider for this project, are the Blues and the PATB. The only reason I'm shying away from them, (and this may sound silly), is simply that I haven't heard any A2 Duncans yet. (Except for the Stag Mag, but thats a different animal.)

Still, they aren't eliminated - just lower down the list. ;)
 
Re: Wondering about PG's vs AII Pro's.

I have had PGs in a tele and a2pro in my Les Paul. I can't make a direct comparison but I noticed a few differences - the PG has great midrange when you play lower notes. I did not really like the higher notes when soloing - not a bad tone but just did not appeal to me as much as others. It has a midrange bite that I am not crazy about. The bridge pickup really reminds me of Skynyrd's tune "Simple Man", for clean and dirt. The neck pickup is fat and sweet, similar to a Seth Lover neck.

The a2pro is not as middy in the lower notes, and it's very trebly in the higher notes. It's very trebly in the upper ranges, but it's not harsh like other trebly pickups I've used.

Here are some clips:
PGb PGn in tele, clean
PG pair in tele, dirty


a2pro, LP, dirty
a2pro, Les Paul, more dirt
Les Paul with a2pro, tele with Seth Lover on higher notes
 
Re: Wondering about PG's vs AII Pro's.

Nice clips Stevo. The PG's sound great in the Tele, but thats not really the tone I'm going for. The AII Pro's sounded good even dirty. Still, its funny how two pups with such close specs can sound so different.
 
Re: Wondering about PG's vs AII Pro's.

ArtieToo said:
Nice clips Stevo. The PG's sound great in the Tele, but thats not really the tone I'm going for. The AII Pro's sounded good even dirty. Still, its funny how two pups with such close specs can sound so different.
Click to expand...


I wonder what a hybrid of the two would sound like. Has anyone done this?
 
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