marvar

Gibson is saying the Super '57 is a different pickup than the 57+. But, from what I've read on other forums, the Super '57 is made with cheaper materials. Basically, a cost cutting measure- as of now- Gibson isn't offering the Super 57 in the aftermarket. "Super 57 come with Gibson Les Paul Traditional Pro II. It is less expensive than a normal Gibson Les Paul Traditional. In general, Gibson compromises Standard Traditional model with those cheaper versions. This often confuses people."

I don't know about the EPI Les Paul-but, my Dot (Korean) has a maple neck, as compared to a Gibson 335's mahogany neck. IMO this makes a huge difference in the tone between the two. The EPI sounding much brighter to my ears. About the only way to compensate for this is through careful pickup selection, ie: a 'darker' sounding pickup. Just my .02.

IMO, neither of those pups have a "classic" sound, ceramic mags, lots of wire on the 500T. If you play metal, those may be the pickups for you. The 500T is a very strong pickup, almost to the point of blurring your sound. Very sensitive. Very loud. If you use alot of gain on your amp, you might not like them, as you won't have alot of definition. I had a 496r, replaced the ceramic mag with an A5, and I use it as my bridge pup now, very happy with it. If you are truly looking for the Jimmy Page tone, those aren't the pups for you.