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I had a current production Classic 57 on my 60s Guild for a few years and found it a little bland and muddy. Maybe old ones are better'?
Then went to a Bare Knuckle Stormy Monday, which is the perfect pickup for a sweet, acoustic, Jim Hall kind of sound.
I got a used SD APH-1, a few years ago - decided to try it, last month. Great pickup, in the Classic 57 vein, but with more presence, and not muddy at all.
My next guitar, a restorarion project, will have a Di Marzio 36th. I don't really think one needs to go boutique, these are good, affordable pickups.
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11-30-2017 07:33 AM
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Good score ! I've heard many good things about these and always wanted to try them. If there's anything I like more than good pickups, it's good pickups at 1/2 price !
Originally Posted by hodshonf
Again, I think you'll see a noticeable leap in tone. Lots of good points from GNAPPI. There are so many after market pickup makers out there that it's quite mind boggling. Reading guitar forums can be helpful, but, like you said, if you search long enough you'll find that everything is open to criticism. We 21st century guitarists have an avalanche of choices available. I don't think you could go wrong with Gibsons. After all, they invented the humbucker !
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thanks!
like you said, i'm sure i will be an up-tick in tone from the stock Ibanez ceramics.
i doubt the Classic 57s are a horrible starting point.
plus, once the upgraded harness is in place, i can easily swap out the pups later.
i am pretty handy with a soldering iron, just have to remember to lick the tip between joints.
i think that applies to many things in life.
it's funny to read pickup opinions online.
if you take everything to heart, you'll never move - it can get paralyzing.
from some of the posts, choosing a pickup is akin to forging an international peace treaty.
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Since this thread has been reawakened, I'll throw in my latest PAF-type experience. My new Forshage Orion has a DiMarzio 36th Anniversary in the neck (with no bridge pickup). I believe this is the 9th or 10th guitar of mine that has had a 36th Anniversary (not including the dozens that we built for customers or for sale at Soloway Guitars). I don't think I've ever replaced one in any guitar and I certainly won't be replacing this one. Great sounding pickup that does everything I want.
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Good Morning! Originally Posted by Jim Soloway
Wow - the Orion is stunning. need to look into those.
I've seen the 36th Anniversary mentioned frequently.
That will probably be my next drop in the neck.
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As others have said, in todays world there is a plethora of ways to adjust the final sound coming out of your speakers or being injected into the mix. Don't obsess over the "perfect" first point in the many-linked chain.
Having said that there are only four guitar/pickup combinations I have owned that have blown me away :
- 1962 strat (stupidly sold many year ago, in my poor stundent days - God, I miss that guitar)
- 1961 ES175D with PAFs
- 1980 Ibanez AS200s with early Super 58s (as close to my PAF's as I've ever heard - just a bit stronger and capable of pushing into warm blues breakup if I dig in with the pick)
- a 2011 Peavey JD Omniac, built to Jerry Donahue's specifications, giving me a pretty wide range of strat and tele sounds via the custom Seymour Duncan pickups. I never touch the amp to get the sound I want and can go from super clean tele quack to "woman tone" at the flick of a switch and a roll of the tone control. it took me a while to come to terms with the 7.5" radius, 41mm neck and soft v profile (flattens out as you go up the neck), but now i love it.
For my other instruments I almost systematically use an mxr eq pedal, and tone controls on the amp to get where I want to be.
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Originally Posted by Ray175
as a design/engineer, i can't help but chuckle when i see mixed units of measure.
i use a Klon klone and a VFE Standout with most of my recording situations.
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I actually appreciate the advice to just get a Gibson 57 Classic. I have several guitars with these pickups, and they all sound great. Ironically, the don't sound the same though they are all 16" ES1x5 type guitars. But the 57 Classic somehow gives them a nice voice. Originally Posted by jorgemg1984
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Is there anyone having experience with prs 57/08 humbuckers?
I think they are supposed to be in the PAF territory.
I have them in my prs custom 22. Just curious to see if someone else has had a chance to try them and hear their impressions.
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Yeah, funny isn't it
Personally I find it easier to visualise neck width in mm and radius in inches. Having spent most of my life moving between the UK and France, that's just the way I think
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Originally Posted by Ray175
Yeah, funny isn't it
Personally I find it easier to visualise neck width in mm and radius in inches. Having spent most of my life moving between the UK and France, that's just the way I think
guitar building is a mashup for sure.
as a bass player (shhh, don't tell anyone here), bridge saddle pitch is typically in millimeters while scale length is invariably in inches.
i've done my share of guitar design for some major boutique builders (3D CAD stuff), and it can get comical with the final detailed drawings.
WAY OT,
i worked with Roger Sadowsky and Grover Jackson on Roger's Jim Hall archtop model years ago.
just the tailpiece (in the voice of Jimmy Swaggart).
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I understand, my experience was a little different, maybe it was the guitar or maybe it's my taste. But I agree that starting with a "simple" pickup - say Classic 57 or SD or 35th - is a good idea. Originally Posted by lawson-stone
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I’ve read somewhere that the ’jazz’ that Seymour Duncan had in mind when he designed the humbuckers for Jeff Beck was not the ’joe pass’ ’jazz’ but some hi gain version on fusion ’jazz’ people played in 70/80s.
Classic 57’s are great in the right guitar. But in the middle of the confusement between all the current pickup winders one must not forget a classic one, Lindy Fralin, and his Pure PAF humbucker. It has Alnico 4 mag and it is the best hb yet I have had in my ES175 VOS. Very reactive, clear bass, perfect highs.
If You change the harness AND the pickups in the same time You will never know which one made Your sound better/worse. Harness (why harness, the parts alone are cheaper than pre-made boutique products and if You can solder, You can do it) is cheaper so I would start from there.
Good luck in Your quest!
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Btw, DiMarzio has just introduced a new humbucker for 2017, PAF® 59 Neck DP274 Originally Posted by Jim Soloway
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I have a dozen guitars with different PAF type pickups.
My touch, how and and where I pick makes the most difference in how they sound.
I can make them sound equally bad...
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You've clearly never played a Mesa-Boogie Mark IV. Originally Posted by GNAPPI
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Originally Posted by Boston Joe
i LOVE my Mesa amps!
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Oh, me too, but you've gotta admit, the Mark IV is a stone bitch to dial in. They made the tone stack waaaaay too sensitive. (I'm talking about the hardware version. Originally Posted by hodshonf
)
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I know about it and I suspect it's really nice but I haven't had the chance to play one yet. One of the big attractions with the 36th Anniversary is that I've used it in so many guitars that I know exactly what I'm getting and how well it suites my playing so I don't really feel motivated to try something else. Originally Posted by Jazz_175
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There are many fine PAF style pickups available these days at different prices as well! I'll just try to share my experience with this subject.
I've owned many different PAF's including originals , Burstbuckers, MHS, Classic 57, as well as Seymour Duncan,Dimarzio and smaller winders Lindy Fralin,Wolfetone,Sheptone,Manluis, Vintage Vibe, etc.
While all were deinitly fine pickups, I found the Manluis PAF's to be my prefered choice. This has to do with tone first as well as price and service.
I've had them in a Gibson ES-339, as well as a Benedetto Bambino. Correct amount of Fullness and Sparkle w/out being too dark sounding. I found the normal wind "Landmark PAF" in the neck position just right while the "Hot Rod 59" in the bridge position worked for me. I also had 4 conductor wire and waxing them helpful as well .
I want to add I use my guitars in more than just Jazz Clean tone situations, and versatility is very important for me. If you are strictly after one tone, than almost any pickup mentioned previously is a good choice!
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I sent Manlius several messages (e-mail, FB, website) - no response.
I was definitely interested in the Landmark, but had to go with what was available.
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Meaning what as pertains to my comment: Originally Posted by Boston Joe
"4. Getting tone from a good amp is easier and less costly than replacing pups over and over again."
That you cannot find an amp with good tone, or that your Mesa sux, or that your Mesa is a dream to get tone out of?
I have a Mesa Triple rec that can do anything, AND while costly and large is easier and cheaper in the long run than swapping pups repeatedly.
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But you always have to keep in mind that 99.7% of players seeking PAF tones are seeking "Les Paul & Marshall stack" PAF. Not saying they can't do that and "jazz" but how a paf replica sounds clean vs how they sound through a dimed Bassman are very different than what most here would be looking for, really a very different vibe. Originally Posted by zigzag
I don't mind paying for quality but seeing as pickups are plastic bobbins wrapped in wire, and a magnet, WTF is up with people paying $500 - 600 for plastic bobbins wrapped with wire attached to a magnet? My bullshit meter exploded and now there's mercury all over the living room!
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Personally, I'm always on the lookout for or Maxon PAF-style HBs. I'll admit I've never tried them out in an archtop, but in my eyes they can't be beaten when trying to get a good blues/jazz tone with a solid body. Smooth, lush, detailed and works well with the tone control. I've tried some of the botique stuff, Lundgren Heaven 57 first and foremost, and while they all sound great, I find that nothing is as well balanced as a Maxon. They can still be found pretty cheap, even though prices are going up. I actually have just got a pat. no stamped Aria pickup, which was found in the Aria Pro Herb Ellismodel and probably made by maxon, that I'm itching to try out. Just gotta get an archtop to put it in
If any of you live in Sweden (or just want some swedish made pickups), I can really recommend a guy named Lars Blom. I asked him to make me a pair of humbuckers to replace the 490s in my Gibson Howard Roberts Fusion III, and man did he nailed it! Before the guitar was very boomy, honky and a bit stiff. Now it's just perfect. Seriously, I've had people compliment my good tone when I've been plugged in directly into the PA due to lack of a proper amplifier. Just tell him what you want, and he will deliver.
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