thejay Posted January 1, 2015 Share Posted January 1, 2015 Striped my buddies Epiphone LP Custom and outfitted it with a Gibson PCB and 61 pickups, a much needed update to really a nice player. Took a bit of modifing the guitar to get everything to fit but no one would know Finished product - Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Farnsbarns Posted January 1, 2015 Share Posted January 1, 2015 PCB? I don't get it, why wouldn't you just wire it point to point? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pin Posted January 1, 2015 Share Posted January 1, 2015 PCB? I don't get it, why wouldn't you just wire it point to point? Same question occurred to me. Given a choice of PCB or point-to-point (guitar or amp) wiring I would go for the latter every time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimi Mac Posted January 2, 2015 Share Posted January 2, 2015 It's still an upgrade to an Epi guys... I'm no electronics whiz, and I find the idea of soldering for point-to-point wiring something that would be beyond my own abilities to do well. I think I'd even go for a PCB to change electronics on something were I to take it on myself... Glad your happy with the mods and it's a good playing and sounding axe now! Play play play, and enjoy it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. C.O. Jones Posted January 2, 2015 Share Posted January 2, 2015 Jimi is right, it is an upgrade. I still have a PCB laying arond with 490r/498t and was thinking to try some nice looking epi's and if I find one that feels good buy it and make a little upgrade. Most important is that it sounds and feels good to you. Don't know how it sound but it looks very nice. Greetz Marcos Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ErickC Posted January 2, 2015 Share Posted January 2, 2015 If the current goes through the pots, caps and switch in the same order and ends up in the same place, who cares? (Yeah, yeah, 50s wiring Jimmy Gibblapton VINTIGGGJE tooohnnnenn!!!! Whatever.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Farnsbarns Posted January 2, 2015 Share Posted January 2, 2015 It's still an upgrade to an Epi guys... I'm no electronics whiz, and I find the idea of soldering for point-to-point wiring something that would be beyond my own abilities to do well. I think I'd even go for a PCB to change electronics on something were I to take it on myself... Glad your happy with the mods and it's a good playing and sounding axe now! Play play play, and enjoy it! Agreed Jimi is right, it is an upgrade. I still have a PCB laying arond with 490r/498t and was thinking to try some nice looking epi's and if I find one that feels good buy it and make a little upgrade. Most important is that it sounds and feels good to you. Don't know how it sound but it looks very nice. Greetz Marcos Agreed If the current goes through the pots, caps and switch in the same order and ends up in the same place, who cares? (Yeah, yeah, 50s wiring Jimmy Gibblapton VINTIGGGJE tooohnnnenn!!!! Whatever.) Sort of agreed. I'm just surprised, to my mind the PCB is harder work but not necessarily inferior. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thejay Posted January 3, 2015 Author Share Posted January 3, 2015 I am a point to point guy however my buddy is not.... So I thought a nice compromise to updating all the electronics was PCB, plus a great deal seeing how so many purists strip them out of their brand new guitars. Personally I can't tell the difference between this and mine as none of mine are PCB. Amps on the other hand, quite a bit of difference.... Anyway.... this allows him to change pickups easily if he wants another flavor pickup, just need a screwdriver. Actually when I told him how much actual work it was he was a bit shocked. To make the PCB fit I had to route the cavity a bit and make the pot holes slightly larger. Not that big a deal for me, pretty handy myself. Also I must say the 61s are really nice and clear, anyone else have them in anything? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stein Posted January 3, 2015 Share Posted January 3, 2015 Bottom line is, unless you are able to listen to the PCB on its own and listen to another way, say shielded wire, we don't really know which is better, do we? PCB's often get a bad rap because they are more often made cheaper, that is, with cheaper copper and cheaper components. And, cheaper amps often use them, so we assume it is the PCB that adds to the inferiority. But PCB's, aren't inferior just because they are PCB's. So, I kinda wonder which actually SOUNDS better. Or if. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr. C.O. Jones Posted January 3, 2015 Share Posted January 3, 2015 There is a PCB in my guitar, when I turn the knobs the sound changes. I like to experiment a lot with my knobs, and for now it does what I expect. If it fails someday i rip it out and wire it 50's style, and then I will know if it makes that big difference. I mean there are lots of speculations about what cap's, pot's, covered/uncovered pu's do influence the sound. But everytime I research a bit I always find the same number of people swearing that their method/specs or whatever gives you the TONE, and the same amount of people that say that it is bull***t. It's confusing to me, but at the same time I don't care much as long my guitar sounds how I like it! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jimi Mac Posted January 3, 2015 Share Posted January 3, 2015 It's confusing to me, but at the same time I don't care much as long my guitar sounds how I like it! Ding ding ding... Hold all calls, we have a winner!!! Sometimes I honestly believe the guys that find satisfaction and solace, in whatever sound they manufacture, know the meaning of life! Sometimes I love my tone, sometimes I don't. I also sometimes know I'm chasing something as elusive as something that doesn't exist other than in my heart somewhere and I have to find it for myself... Sometimes I hear something someone else has done (Peter Green, Danny Kirwan, Clapton, Page, vids of unknowns on Youtube, etc.) and think; that's what I want or that's what I gotta have... I honestly believe the secret is finding what you like for yourself and enjoying and celebrating that, if you make the sounds/tones that inspire the passion within and it brings joy to your heart & soul, well, what's more important than that?!? Regardless of what "the holy grail" is/was for someone else, it may not be the secret of life for you... For me personally, I think I have issues achieving contentment. I'm never satisfied, I always want to find/do better, in life as much as guitars/tone. I don't equate better with more, (or more $) but I do find I'm always trying to do better, be better, make myself better, at what I do and what I am. I always want to be a better person and make my life circumstances better in some way. I think that drives me to not be satisfied or content for the long-haul and makes my own quest for my holy grail to be eternal... I almost wish I was the kinda guy that could find it and settle contentedly and stop searching for "better." I've come to learn I'm hard-wired that way and it's just not an option for me... It has its advantages; I'm always looking to improve myself and my playing and my own production and performance, but it's also got the disadvantage of never letting me rest because I know I can still do "better." But it does add drive, adventure, and intention/direction to life for me! Without it I'd probably never had persevered to endeavor toward the guitar/music revival in my life that led me to become a 1st time real Gibson Les Paul owner @ just about my 45th birthday in 2012. Owning two real Gibson Les Pauls by 2013, and a custom Les Paul style/inspired hand built guitar by 2014... (maybe an R6 or R9 for 2015??? perhaps a Custom...) Anywho, those 61 humbuckers??? I've never even heard of 'em before this thread. I thought I had heard about something new hitting the market as of late, but how long have they been around? I've heard of the 57 Super, Classic, and Classic Plus, but not 61's... I've also heard of Burst-Buckers (in fact I have Burst-Bucker 1 & 2's in one of my Les Pauls) that are supposed to replicate the PAF of the '58-'60 Bursts, but I'd not heard of those 61's... Are they supposed to be like T-Tops? I've always liked the output tones of T-Tops, but find them and real information about them a bit elusive... Are they supposed to be what came in the new Les Paul (SG) in '61? Are they any different than a regular PAF? I thought that's what came in the '61 LP... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Riffster Posted January 3, 2015 Share Posted January 3, 2015 Replacing pots is not always an improvement, people think so because often times they change the value of the pot and they think it sounds better or different. For example my Epiphone ES335 has full size pots from factory, they all read close to 500k and have a good taper. No need to change to anything as it would not make a difference. Of all my 4 Gibsons that are supposed to have 300k pots for the volume none really do, they all measure between 230k and 275k if you were to "upgrade" to 500k pots they would certainly sound different but not necessarily better because all depends on your amp, if you are already getting good treble from your amp. I bet the pots that come in those Gibson PCBs have tighter tolerances than individual pots actually. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thejay Posted January 3, 2015 Author Share Posted January 3, 2015 as far as the pots are concerned the originals were the thickness of a dime whereas the replacements are about the size of a quarter in diameter. I can't speak for the pots only but I will say the Gibson's have more range than the Epi's did...guitar was also 20 years old easily, so they did last! I dislike when some say they will replace because they won't last... plenty of vintage EVERYTHING out there with zero replacements still going! I didn't know about 61s until I looked this up... he played an LPJ and loved it, hence loading 61s in, I was with him when he played that guitar and it did sound really good. Nice and clear regardless of volume or gain. The 1961 Humbucker is part of the Burstbucker family, which features offset coils—of the two humbucker coils, one has more windings than the other. With typical Burstbuckers the slug coil has a few hundred more turns than the screw coil, so the slug coil sound tends to dominate; this gives a bit more of a single coil character. But even if the coils are matched (as with the ’57 Humbuckers), the slug coil dominates somewhat because it has more steel. With the 1961 Humbuckers, the wiring offset was reversed to give the screw coil more windings and provide a better balance between the two coils, where neither one dominates. Also, guitars with the 1961 Humbuckers (LPJ14, LPM14, SGJ14, SGM, and Les Paul Peace) have “Zebra” coils with one black and one cream-colored coil. Zebra coils first appeared in the late ‘50s—and there’s a story behind this that has nothing to do with sound or performance. One day Gibson’s supplier ran out of black pigment; Gibson didn’t care because the pickups were covered, so natural cream coils were used as well as the black ones. Some guitars had Zebra coils, and some had two cream-colored ones, but no one really noticed until people started experimented by taking the covers off. Many liked the look, so Zebra coils became a new visual feature. (The Les Paul Peace has chrome covers, but you’ll still find the Zebra coils underneath.) 1961 is also when Gibson started using Alnico V magnets, which provide a higher output toward the high frequencies and greater touch sensitivity. Some people think Alnico V magnets are a bit too strong, but they’re great-sounding magnets and adaptable—you can always dial them back by moving a pickup further away from the strings, but you can’t ratchet up a pickup with Alnico II magnets. Regardless, what really determines a pickup’s sound has much more to do with pickup design than the magnet—and there’s a reason why the 1961 Humbuckers are considered classic pickups. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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