pup selection..

[axwielding1]

Bought an Epiphone Sheraton. Have to change the pups for sure.
I'm going for a blues/rock sound, but also need some cleanish, not squeeky clean, but mellow.....
Planning on Seymour Duncans....
Was thinking of going the PAF route, but now am leaning to the JB for the bridge. I like the inherent mid range of the pup, plus the grind you can get. With guitar volume, I can clean it up enough, plus can split the coil with a pull pot....
Now the bridge...I'm thinking Phat Cat...A little raunch in the neck would be good, or should I get another humbucker with split coil..I don't want anything wimpy, or too clean sounding, I can dis-arm it with the volume...
Want something meaty, with some bite, and of course, for both pups, great harmonics....
Suggestions?????
ax. 8)
BTW, I have a LP and a strat, so those bases are covered. Want a BLUES machine... :wink:

 

[SabuJSE]

To be honest, I'm not the biggest fan of the newer Seymour Duncan pickups these days. I find I prefer the Gibson 490R/498T to the prototypical JB/59 from Seymour Duncan.

I hear Bare Knuckles pickups are looked on pretty favorably.

 

[tiger roach]

A friend just put a phat cat in the neck position on one of his, I like that pickup a lot.

I have a Duncan Alnico II pro on one of mine and love that sound for a neck pup. It may lack the punch you are looking for though.

 

[t0aj15]

My favorite guitar for the last several years has been my Heritage 535 which is basically the same as a Gibson ES-335 but I was not happy with the Schaller p/ups that came standard (to dark), so about two months ago I had the p/ups switched to a matched set of SD 59's. I highly recommend them. This guitar is now the best rock/blues/jazz guitar I've ever heard or played, and I've been playing a long time.

 

[screamingdaisy]

Of the Duncan PAF line, the Pearly Gates has the biggest mid push, and is designed to have a more ranchy sound to it than the smoother PAF pups they put out.

 

[Red Barchetta]

I would recommend Lindy Fralin Pickups.


RB

 

[Ken j]

I have a set of SD '59s in my neck-through. I special ordered them with four conductor wires. I wired them series/split/parallel. I also used a four way Tele selector. When the selector is in series it has a large increase in gain. These pickups can get you a good blues sound. You can change the voicing with different pot values and wiring methods. The '59 neck and JB bridge has been a favorite of many builders and companys. One thing about Seymour Duncan is that if you are not happy with the sound, they will do a factory exchange within a certain time period (check their web site).

 

[axwielding1]

Well, after much debate, and a zillion questions and answers, I ordered the new pickups.. 2 Phat Cats in gold...
I think they'll have more bite and raunch, and cut well with good clarity..
With this guitar, and it's own mid rangey tone, I'll be playing blues with, and slide.... Open G tuning primarily..Though I can switch back to standard in no time with no problems..I use a fair amount of gain, so clarity counts...
I liked the Sheraton with mini-buckers, and the Zephyr with dog ear P90's, so I think this will be somewhere in the middle...
I'll report back...
Thanks guys.
ax. 8)

 

[axwielding1]

The Phat Cats came in and I installed them straight away. Gotta say they sound awesome in this guitar! Nice smooth highs that cut well without piercing, mids are very complex, no honky spike, just full sounding mids, bass is tight and warm... Nice bloom to the notes. Still playing with height on the bridge, but the neck is set and sounds great. The bridge sounds great but I may pull it down from the strings a little more. When run together on a clean channel, I get a fat warm 50's sound. Think Brian Setzer. VERY articulate, even when driven hard...Surprisingly enough, there is basically NO hum...They have made a vast improvement in this somewhat cheap guitar, and I really dig the tone.. I really can't recommend them enough for a hollowbody, but I bet they would work great in a strat as well! Hmmm, another project? Thinking of 3 for my strat....Nice thick single coil, great harmonics, fat tone, 3 way switch...
Just need a H/H/H guard...
Anyway, these are great pups, and I'm glad I went with them over the PAF route. I think these are far more articulate. They have the warmth of the PAF, but the cut of a P90. Good power too...
ax. 8)

 

[tiger roach]

8)

Glad to hear they are working out. Thanks for posting the update!

I need a p90 guitar.

 

[fdesalvo]

Gosh, this review has me yearning for a clean, low powered, 112 fender combo...

 

[SabuJSE]

All pickups can usually have their tone improved by backing them away from the strings a bit. Too close to the strings usually means too much mud and today's pickups can maintain output levels even when backed away from the strings.

 

[chennie]

hmm I'm also thiniking about taking those phat cats.

The guitar is a 70's Yamaki, les paul custom. It's one of those lawsuitmodels. Currently equipped with a SD alnico 2 pro and a '59 in the neck. Basically this is a real good rock guitar. The problem is that it is just too basic. My other guitar I have equiped with SD SH-6 distortions, and mostly I play my metal, punk,hardcore stuff on that guitar, but also the more bluesy and less gain stuff. In other words, the sound of my yamaki is quite obsolete at the moment. Thus I have been thinking about those phat cats. But I can't decide, they are quite expensive and perhaps I like that tone even less. Can anyone tell me what I can expect in comparison with the alnico 2pro pup? The SD site just gives me not the information, besides no soundclips of the phatcat!

Sorry I make a turn in your topic.

 

[axwielding1]

I'd say as comparison, they have similar power to the '59's, but are clear and articulate like the jazz..Kinda hard to describe... I wished they had the soundclips as well...
I found my Phat cats on ebay from a dealer in Ohio..$79.95 a piece with gold covers.. I didn't think that was bad at all.
Anyway, I would recommend them, especially in a neck pickup, for a Les Paul type guitar..
If you buy them at a local store, you have I think, 30 days to exchange them for something else...
Give 'em a try.
ax. 8)
BTW, In a low powered amp, the Phat Cats sound awesome!

 

[axwielding1]

Just wanted to mention, I installed the Phat Cats, and played the guitar with some adjustments but not many.
Well, the other day I gave the neck a little relief. What a difference... The whole tone changed.. Now it's thick and beefy, and plays fantastically.
I like my necks pretty straight, but a little relief really brought this thing along....
ax. 8)

 

[dmt]

I'll soon have my Bill Lawrence PU's..... hot pickups....

It cant get any better than these, wired by the man himself.

 

[chennie]

@Axewielding: can you post me some soundclips ?

 

[Pundix]

SabuJSE is right, in that guitar you can't go wrong with the Gibson 490R/498T combo. I have a Duncan JB in the bridge of an EB Silhouette Special and it sounds decent, but has never really impressed me. On the other hand I have a 490R/498T in an old Guild Bluesbird and they sound great. Another set of pickups to consider are the Tom Andersons. They are really nice pickups. The H2+ and the H3 sound fantastic. Plus, the can be wired for coil tap as well.