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Hey,
I am trying to find a combo of two SD humbucker pups for my epiphone standard. Right now i have only the stock buckers and i feel that they are limiting and dead in terms of pure tonage. I'm looking for a meaty sound for rhythm playing, but has nice highs, and a Clapton type lead tone with rad sustain and almost a hint of fuzz iwhen its dirty but not so piecring bright. Also really nice mid and high range cleans. Overall the music i need to fit the guitar for is a blues/reggae/punk/southern rock/jam band thing. Thanks for any input and your time.

pearly gates set, '59 set, or pearly gates bridge, '59 neck

the '59 bridge has quite an airy, open sound, but the PG is just the ticket for southern rock - a tiny bit less bright..

welcome to the forum!

tom

Thanks IMP, I'm runnig it through a pretty bright Fender Bandmaster does that make any difference?

yep! if your amp is bright as it is and you're going to be digging in with the strings, i reckon the '59 would be a bit too bright.. maybe alnico II pros or the jazz bridge model would suit you?

tom

WELCOME TO THE FORUM!

I'd start off looking at the PG, and A2P. Both give you the PAF vibe, but help tame down bright amps, and guitars. Here is part of a pup breakdown I did, this part focuses only on the PAF styled SD pups. Are you looking for the Clapton LP, or SG tone?

Antiquity---A pup that is hand made by Seymour or MJ that has been artificially aged. The magnet has been degaussed and the cover has been distressed along with the screws so as to appear vintage. Everything is done to make these pups as close to an original that you would buy from a collector that was out of a guitar that was played everyday and gigged with. They have complex mids and are smooth. They are available in A2 or A5 magnet varieties. Vintage 2 Conductor Wire

The 59---The 59 is the quintessential A5 PAF (patent applied for) pup. Imagine getting in a time machine and going back to 1959 and swiping a brand new A5 pup from the Gibson factory in Kalamazoo and bringing it forward to today. They have found most homes in many neck slots. It has symetrical coils and lots of quack. It has thumping bass, a scooped mid, and cutting highs. Vintage 2 Conductor Wire

The Seth Lover---This pup is as true to the original as can be. This pup is unpotted and comes standard with a gold, or nickel pup cover. It has an A2 magnet and has good quack and fair mids. For this pup imagine going back in time to 1955 and grabbing one of the very first PAF's before they debuted in the LP's. This pup is warm and creamy, but can also get bright with the tone knob on 10. Vintage 2 Conductor Wire

The Alnico 2 Pro---The warmest of the Duncan PAF line. It has symetrical coils and is a modern take on the A2 PAFs. It has round bass and smooth treble, it also has lots of mids to make the guitar really sing. It will warm up the coldest or shrillest of guitars. The most well known Alnico 2 Pro user is Slash of Velvet Revolver and GNR. Standard 4 Conductor Wire

Pearly Gates---The PG is the hottest of the Duncan PAF line. It has asymetrical (mismatched) coils and an A2 magnet. The mismatched coils give this particular pup its rude personality. It has a frequency push in the Presence/Cut knob frequency band. This is the quot;Sizzlequot; PG owner talk about. It has the most mids of the Ducan PAF line and is also the hottest. Its patron is Billy Gibbons of ZZ Top. Standard 4 conductor Wire

The Jazz---The jazz is the pup that bridges the gap between Vintage and Modern pups. Its output is at or around the vintage level. Don't let the name fool you this pup is very versatile and smooth. It has an A5 magnet and is very widely used in the neck slot. It is articulate regardless of the tuning as well. This pup negociates cleans or overdrive very well. Standard 4 Conductor Wire

Hope this helps!

Luke

that was a great post luke


Originally Posted by jeremythat was a great post luke

Better watch it, I'll get the big head!

Luke

yep

all i would add is that most of the pups you mention are available as 4 conductor too - great post man!

tom


Originally Posted by Impyep

all i would add is that most of the pups you mention are available as 4 conductor too - great post man!

tom

True, there is always the infamous floor shop custom!

bwahahahahahahaha

lol *crack of thunder*

as a rule, pickups with alnico II magnets are smoother and tame highs, where alnico V is a more balanced, more common magnet type.. comparing the A2P and the '59 would illustrate this

tom


Originally Posted by Luke DukeWELCOME TO THE FORUM!

I'd start off looking at the PG, and A2P. Both give you the PAF vibe, but help tame down bright amps, and guitars. Here is part of a pup breakdown I did, this part focuses only on the PAF styled SD pups. Are you looking for the Clapton LP, or SG tone?

Antiquity---A pup that is hand made by Seymour or MJ that has been artificially aged. The magnet has been degaussed and the cover has been distressed along with the screws so as to appear vintage. Everything is done to make these pups as close to an original that you would buy from a collector that was out of a guitar that was played everyday and gigged with. They have complex mids and are smooth. They are available in A2 or A5 magnet varieties. Vintage 2 Conductor Wire

The 59---The 59 is the quintessential A5 PAF (patent applied for) pup. Imagine getting in a time machine and going back to 1959 and swiping a brand new A5 pup from the Gibson factory in Kalamazoo and bringing it forward to today. They have found most homes in many neck slots. It has symetrical coils and lots of quack. It has thumping bass, a scooped mid, and cutting highs. Vintage 2 Conductor Wire

The Seth Lover---This pup is as true to the original as can be. This pup is unpotted and comes standard with a gold, or nickel pup cover. It has an A2 magnet and has good quack and fair mids. For this pup imagine going back in time to 1955 and grabbing one of the very first PAF's before they debuted in the LP's. This pup is warm and creamy, but can also get bright with the tone knob on 10. Vintage 2 Conductor Wire

The Alnico 2 Pro---The warmest of the Duncan PAF line. It has symetrical coils and is a modern take on the A2 PAFs. It has round bass and smooth treble, it also has lots of mids to make the guitar really sing. It will warm up the coldest or shrillest of guitars. The most well known Alnico 2 Pro user is Slash of Velvet Revolver and GNR. Standard 4 Conductor Wire

Pearly Gates---The PG is the hottest of the Duncan PAF line. It has asymetrical (mismatched) coils and an A2 magnet. The mismatched coils give this particular pup its rude personality. It has a frequency push in the Presence/Cut knob frequency band. This is the quot;Sizzlequot; PG owner talk about. It has the most mids of the Ducan PAF line and is also the hottest. Its patron is Billy Gibbons of ZZ Top. Standard 4 conductor Wire

The Jazz---The jazz is the pup that bridges the gap between Vintage and Modern pups. Its output is at or around the vintage level. Don't let the name fool you this pup is very versatile and smooth. It has an A5 magnet and is very widely used in the neck slot. It is articulate regardless of the tuning as well. This pup negociates cleans or overdrive very well. Standard 4 Conductor Wire

Hope this helps!

LukeGreat post Luke!

If you really want the classic Clapton Bluesbreakers or Cream tone, you want the '59.

A combo that a lot of the guys here like is an a5 pickup like the '59 in the bridge and an a2 pickup like the Seth or Alnico II pro in the neck position. It sounds to me that something like that would fit what you want to do to a tee. It would be a vintage style match that would cover a lot or ground!

I Have The Same Guitar And I First Tried The 59's,you Guessed It Too Bright.then I Tried A Set Of Seth Lovers And Like The Name I Fell In Love!!!!!

Wow!, Thanks Luke Duke for the Info helps a great deal. To answer your question im looking for the LP tone. I have some newbie questions to ask the forum, sorry. What is the difference in conductor wires? After the posts i'm thinking as of right now that in the neck i want a Seth Lover because of its warm tone with decenthighs, and in the bridge an A2P. But when i was reading over Luke Dukes post this combo seems like it would be too warm. So how would the above combo differ in tone from a Seth Lover in the neck amp; a PG or 59' in the bridge? Thanks once again for the replies and any help.


Originally Posted by prideandjoyWow!, Thanks Luke Duke for the Info helps a great deal. To answer your question im looking for the LP tone. I have some newbie questions to ask the forum, sorry.
No problem man! Also regardless what kind of question it is you will never know unless you ask.

Originally Posted by prideandjoyWhat is the difference in conductor wires?

2 conductor is vintage correct, it has the shield (ground) and hot. The 4 conductor make it possible to splite your pup for single coil operation.Originally Posted by prideandjoyAfter the posts i'm thinking as of right now that in the neck i want a Seth Lover because of its warm tone with decenthighs, and in the bridge an A2P. But when i was reading over Luke Dukes post this combo seems like it would be too warm. So how would the above combo differ in tone from a Seth Lover in the neck amp; a PG or 59' in the bridge? Thanks once again for the replies and any help.

The PG is going to give you slightly more output, and bite in the bridge position. In my Heritage I have a Jazz neck, and A2P bridge. The A2P isn't dark, just much warmer than a lot of PAF styled pups. With the Seth neck you should have a pretty balanced sound. You will want to order what ever other pup with a cover though so as to match....of course you CAN take that opportunity to have dbl creme put under the covers like mine.

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Also to MY ears the Clapton LP tone could be achieved most easily with a Seth, or A2P. A 59 would work, but you'd really have to tinker with the amp to keep it from being too bright.

Hope that helps you out some.

Luke

About splitting humbuckers what is the use? and does it really give you a single coil strat sound while having the humbucker available too? If so i am very interested and was wondering how it has worked out for anybody in the forum.

splitting is an easy thing to do if you have a 4 conductor humbucker, i've done it loads of times

it all depends on how hot the humbucker is- to get a nice strat sound, the split coil has to have a reasonable output.. anything above 5k should be useable. as a result, the JB has a very nice split sound (about 8k), and vintage wound pups like the '59 have quite a weak split sound.. i've only tried it briefly so far, and it sounds ok!

if you're pickups are 4 conductor, and you want to investigate splitting, try this - open up the wiring cavity, and find where the leads of the pickup touch the volume pot. the (red white) wires should be soldered together and kept seperate. simply attach these to the ground somehow. viola! split!

the only difference between this and full 'splitting' is that you install a switch to allow switching between the two. try this, and see what you think

tom


Originally Posted by prideandjoyAbout splitting humbuckers what is the use? and does it really give you a single coil strat sound while having the humbucker available too? If so i am very interested and was wondering how it has worked out for anybody in the forum.

My Epi has a splittable set of '59 since June, and it's really great. I can dial nice sounds to play Led Zep and Slash stuff (even if it's not the closest SD bucker for the latest one, it still sounds good through my Marshall). Splitted, I can get good Tom Morello like sounds who is often playing a Tele or a Strat.

To split, I use push-pull tone control pots, which allow me to play a nice
variety of combination. I particularly enjoy the N bucker combined with the B Splitted. So your Paul can become a quite versatile instrument. I warmly recommend it to you, whatever pup your choosing.

By the way, for vintage distortion, a set of '59 is a winner. But be ware of the brightness because of the amp you are using.

Good luck!

PS: See the beast in my avatar