analogpedals Posted October 2, 2023 Share Posted October 2, 2023 I wonder if anyone has done a side by side with the new Shawbuckers and a vintage Gibson Tim Shaw humbucker? I have mid 80's Tim Shaw's in two of my Gibson's and they are amazing pickups. Not very hot, but loud and toneful. I know Tim did a lot of research on vintage PAF's and made some discoveries regarding those vintage pickups. Just wonder what he's carried over to the new pickups. I'd be interested in hearing the difference before I made a purchase of a Shawbucker. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
merciful-evans Posted October 2, 2023 Share Posted October 2, 2023 Good question. I've never experienced either, but I'd like to know. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rct Posted October 2, 2023 Share Posted October 2, 2023 I have a Shaw single in my Esquire. That is a great pickup. I've had Shaw humbuckers in other Fedners, none of them all that great. My memory of the 80's was "Nothing Stock", nobody kept the stockers in anything, Dimarzio, Mighty Mite, and the beginnings of Seymour being available everywhere. So I don't recall anything spectacular about 80's Les Paul pickups. Certainly none of my 80's Les Pauls sounded great, and a couple were real bricks. rct Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
analogpedals Posted October 2, 2023 Author Share Posted October 2, 2023 @rct - I'm sure pickup tone is subjective. I've got original Tim Shaw's in my 1987 SG '62 reissue and I pulled some from a mid 80's Les Paul and later put them in my 1990 Explorer. The Shaws sound better than any pickups I've ever owned. But, they are demanding crazy prices on the used market. Thats why I was asking about the Shawbuckers. I was thinking of putting them in my 2021 '61 reissue SG. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
merciful-evans Posted October 4, 2023 Share Posted October 4, 2023 Can I ask what kind of music are you playing analogpedals ? or what kind of tones do you use the TS guitars for? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
analogpedals Posted October 4, 2023 Author Share Posted October 4, 2023 I play in an AC/DC tribute band. My 1987 '62 reissue SG has Tim Shaw's in it from when he was making them for Gibson. They sound incredible! They are loud, but not real hot. I like classic 70's, 80's blues/rock. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
merciful-evans Posted October 5, 2023 Share Posted October 5, 2023 21 hours ago, analogpedals said: I play in an AC/DC tribute band. My 1987 '62 reissue SG has Tim Shaw's in it from when he was making them for Gibson. They sound incredible! They are loud, but not real hot. I like classic 70's, 80's blues/rock. Good to know. Thanks. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sparquelito Posted October 5, 2023 Share Posted October 5, 2023 If Derek Trucks designed a guitar pickup, would they call it the TruckBucker® ?? 😛 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
analogpedals Posted October 5, 2023 Author Share Posted October 5, 2023 1 hour ago, sparquelito said: If Derek Trucks designed a guitar pickup, would they call it the TruckBucker® ?? 😛 🤣 lol Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sheepdog1969 Posted October 6, 2023 Share Posted October 6, 2023 On 10/4/2023 at 6:09 AM, analogpedals said: I like classic 70's, 80's blues/rock. What type of amp(s) are you using, if you don't mind? I am also going to be re-setting up my '87 SG Special this weekend, since I finally picked up a strobe tuner to intonate it more accurately. Any thoughts on setting it up, since you play one professionally and we appear to like similar music? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dub-T-123 Posted October 6, 2023 Share Posted October 6, 2023 I think if Gibson calls it a Shaw pickup and it’s supposed to be a copy of the old Shaw pickups, it should be close enough to do the job. Your old SG might not have the standard values for the pots and cap. For example Gibson was using 300K linear pots for a long time. This will have more of an impact on the overall sound than switching between similar pickups what I’m saying is if you buy the new pickup and then compare with the old pickup but don’t pay attention to any differences in pot and cap values you aren’t making a pickup comparison at all. With that said I don’t think there’s much point in having two guitars that sound exactly the same anyways. If it’s to protect the old one from stage wear I’d suggest that nobody in the audience will ever know the difference Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
analogpedals Posted October 6, 2023 Author Share Posted October 6, 2023 (edited) 1 hour ago, Sheepdog1969 said: What type of amp(s) are you using, if you don't mind? I am also going to be re-setting up my '87 SG Special this weekend, since I finally picked up a strobe tuner to intonate it more accurately. Any thoughts on setting it up, since you play one professionally and we appear to like similar music? I've been playing through a 20w Marshall Origin combo with a 10 inch greenback here at home and a Origin 50 head live with JCM900 4x12's. I have a 1989 JCM800 I used to use, but I kinda like the Origin's better. Go figure, lol. Edited October 6, 2023 by analogpedals Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
analogpedals Posted October 6, 2023 Author Share Posted October 6, 2023 (edited) 28 minutes ago, Dub-T-123 said: I think if Gibson calls it a Shaw pickup and it’s supposed to be a copy of the old Shaw pickups, it should be close enough to do the job. Your old SG might not have the standard values for the pots and cap. For example Gibson was using 300K linear pots for a long time. This will have more of an impact on the overall sound than switching between similar pickups what I’m saying is if you buy the new pickup and then compare with the old pickup but don’t pay attention to any differences in pot and cap values you aren’t making a pickup comparison at all. With that said I don’t think there’s much point in having two guitars that sound exactly the same anyways. If it’s to protect the old one from stage wear I’d suggest that nobody in the audience will ever know the difference Tim Shaw works for Fender now. So, the Shawbucker is a Fender pickup. Yes, I've retired the '62 reissue SG as backup to protect it. The point isn't that the audience can or can't hear the difference, it's that I can hear the difference and I'm the one playing it. Edited October 6, 2023 by analogpedals Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dub-T-123 Posted October 6, 2023 Share Posted October 6, 2023 Lord knows Fender needs all the help they can get with humbuckers Welp I don’t think anyone on this forum will be able to answer your question but my $.02 is to match the pot and cap values and wiring from the guitar you’re trying to copy and then take it from there. At that point if you want it to be closer the Shawbucker sounds like a good place to start. I say that with presumably the same lack of experience with the shawbucker as any other member who may post here Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rct Posted October 7, 2023 Share Posted October 7, 2023 The Shawbuckers they put in Fenders are just meh humbuckers. Seymour Duncan for certain, probably a slew of other makers will get you what you want. You just have to decide. I'll suggest Pearly Gates and Saturday Night Specials from Duncan. Better yet, have them wind you a pair of early 80's Gibson stock Shaws. I am sure they will do it right and it is well worth the money and the wait. rct Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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