Gibson Les Paul Standard Faded

[ytse_jam]

I think this guitar looks gorgeous, and I think I'll buy one when I've got some money to spend, also because price is lower than other standards (goes for about 1400 euros here in Italy).
The only issue is that I've read some reviews at HC and there are some people complaining about the thin sounding pickups (BurstBucker Pro)... so, two question for people here who have got or tried it: is it just a brighter pickup or is it the guitar which brightens the tone a bit? i.e., does the finish of the guitar influence the tone too?
I was already thinking about changing the bridge pickup with a DiMarzio Breed... what do you think?

 

[SabuJSE]

Burstbucker Pro pickups are wonderful pickups - just be sure to back them off the strings so that any mud is taken care of...

 

[David.W]

ytse_jam what music are you playing. I hated those pickups, I was playing some Tool on a standard and at that mesa high gain it was mud and flub. The guitar I love, but I would definately swap a zebra looking seymour into the bridge if you getting heavy.

 

[ytse_jam]

ytse_jam what music are you playing. I hated those pickups, I was doing some Tool and at that mesa high gain in was mud and flub. The guitar I love, but I would definately swap a zebra looking seymour into the bridge if you getting heavy.

yep, that's the problem... I play almost everything but I'm more oriented toward hard&hreavy. Do you hate the burstbucker pro also in the neck position?

Burstbucker Pro pickups are wonderful pickups - just be sure to back them off the strings so that any mud is taken care of...

what music are you playing SabuJSE? Do you find the pickups more suited fore some genres?

 

[David.W]

I didnt hate it as much lets say, but i tend to roll my volume down for clean tones so im still in the bridge position. I would load a seymour in that spot as well too, i just have no use for those pickups in heavy music, they cant handle the gain. The studios and customs come with 490/498 and the are deep and articulate, they sound so good with mesa high gain.

 

[Russ]

490/498 are nice and soulful while having some bite. I like 496/500 when I want something with more also.

 

[cliff hetfield]

i hated my bb pros in my lps vintage mahogany. they sounded weird. thin and strangely throaty sounding.
i swapped them out for a set of 496/500 and now i love the guitar. the difference is huge.
these pickup are available in zebra color as well.
i like the 496/500s better than the 490/498s. i have a lp studio with the 490/498s and ive side by side played and compared it with my vintage mahogany with the 496/500s.
the 500 set is brighter, tighter, more focused and clearer to my ears.

 

[ytse_jam]

Thanks for all the comments

i like the 496/500s better than the 490/498s. i have a lp studio with the 490/498s and ive side by side played and compared it with my vintage mahogany with the 496/500s.
the 500 set is brighter, tighter, more focused and clearer to my ears.

So is the 500 (ceramic?) still fat and warm sounding as the 498 (alnico?)? And, another question, is les paul an intrinsecally dark sounding guitar or is it all a matter of pickups? No one has experience with DiMarzio's in a Les Paul?

 

[Russ]

Les Pauls are typically a warm guitar. The mahogany and maple combination are a great thing. The mahogany gives it depth while the maple keeps the guitar from losing brightness. Overall it makes for a warmer sounding guitar than ash, alder, basswood, mahogany, or maple alone. The 500 is a hotter pickup than the 498 but still lets the tone come through as a good passive will. DiMarzio pickups are nice and can complement a Les Paul well. In the past I have had PAF's and Super Distortion's in Les Pauls and they sound fine. With DiMarzio pickups you just have to know what you are looking for. Their product descriptions are pretty good and accurate.

 

[hazbin]

I put EMG's 81 & 85 in my Les Paul, Love it!!

 

[Russ]

That's a nice setup too.

 

[ytse_jam]

I put EMG's 81 & 85 in my Les Paul, Love it!!

Could it be that some old studio models came stock with EMGs?

 

[MesaENGR412]

I've always found a ceramic magnet pickup to be brighter and less "warm" than an alnico equipped pickup. My tone doesn't really call for a "warm" tone, so I dig the ceramic sound. I'd say the ceramics compliment a more modern sound, and the alnico's give more of a vintage vibe. Sure, you can make the alnico's sound pretty nasty, but IMO, the Ceramics are more capable of getting a modern heavy rock/metal sound than the alnico's. Just my thoughts...

-AJH

 

[bluespckr]

I've got a 2005 LP Standard that came with the Burstbucker Pros. I tried to warm up to them, and tried different adjustments with the PUPs, but in the end bagged them.

I've got a Gibson Classic '57 (neck) and "57 Plus (bridge) and love that combo a lot. I don't find the neck PUP muddy at all, and the Plus in the bridge, balances things out nicely. Nice full tone, not overly bright.

The BB Pros are good PUPs, and a lot of people like them. They just weren't for me. But as far as sounding "thin"? Nope. I thought they were plenty potent, and not "thin" at all.

 

[bluespckr]

I've got a 2005 LP Standard that came with the Burstbucker Pros. I tried to warm up to them, and tried different adjustments with the PUPs, but in the end bagged them.

I've got a Gibson Classic '57 (neck) and "57 Plus (bridge) and love that combo a lot. I don't find the neck PUP muddy at all, and the Plus in the bridge, balances things out nicely. Nice full tone, not overly bright.

The BB Pros are good PUPs, and a lot of people like them. They just weren't for me. But as far as sounding "thin"? Nope. I thought they were plenty potent, and not "thin" at all.

 

[cliff hetfield]

as far as 'warmth goes', the 498 may seem slightly warmer. but i play the 500t set through a f-50 boogie with hellatones and celestions. the sound is definitely warm, as i would describe it, but with more clarity and possibly upper mids.
my tone is warm but with bite. i seem to love it more every time i play it these days. the cleans are just awesome in the f 50.

 

[cliff hetfield]

by the way the les paul faded shown in the original post is beautiful. i fucking love that guitar. my compliments to your taste. but i would change the pickups to the 496r/500t. sure theyre a little hot, but you can back off on the gain.

 

[ytse_jam]

as far as 'warmth goes', the 498 may seem slightly warmer. but i play the 500t set through a f-50 boogie with hellatones and celestions. the sound is definitely warm, as i would describe it, but with more clarity and possibly upper mids.
my tone is warm but with bite. i seem to love it more every time i play it these days. the cleans are just awesome in the f 50.

That's the tone I'm looking for... warm and full but not too bassy. I will consider the 500T

 

[ytse_jam]

wow yesterday afternoon I went to a concert and saw a guitarist with that guitar model... I asked the guitarist and discovered it was exactly THAT guitar (the one of the pic)!