lpguy Posted April 22, 2009 Posted April 22, 2009 Hi folks, I`m new to this forum but I`ve been a lifetime Gibson fan. I need some advice concerning the PU`s of my newly aquired LP Traditional. I play it thru a 50w JCM 800 head and I can`t get a clean sound with these pickups without turning down the volume knobs, no matter what I do. I don`t have this problem with the `97 Studio or the 2001 Standard. I also had this problem when I played it thru a Fender Blues jr combo. I`m thinking about replacing the factory PU`s with aftermarket parts. I`d like to have a silky-smooth clean sound on the neck PU and a nice screaming lead sound with the bridge PU. I don`t want the guitar to sound muddy and I don`t want to lose the low frequencies. I`ve bought this guitar because it sounded fatter than the 2001 and I really like it except for the above issue. I`d like the guitar to be versatile, eg being capable of playing blues,jazz and metal. Talking to the stooges at the Guitar center is pointless since they would`t recognize a good tone if it bit them in the butt and most of them don`t know jack about the gear they`re selling, thanks in advance for the input.
rockstar232007 Posted April 22, 2009 Posted April 22, 2009 Which volume knobs (amp volume, or guitar volume)? cause' if its the amp, try turning it to about 30% (2-4), and using the volume control on your guitar as a "master volume", or the other war around.
lpguy Posted April 22, 2009 Author Posted April 22, 2009 Which volume knobs (amp volume' date=' or guitar volume)? cause' if its the amp, try turning it to about 30% (2-4), and using the volume control on your guitar as a "master volume", or the other war around. [/quote'] I have to reduce the volume on the guitar to make it sound clean. Don`t have that problem with the other 2.
rockstar232007 Posted April 23, 2009 Posted April 23, 2009 I have to reduce the volume on the guitar to make it sound clean. Don`t have that problem with the other 2. Actually, the opposite, just turn the amp down to a confortable level, so that way when you turn the guitar all the way up, it will sound cleaner/more clear. I have the same issue with my Strat, when I run it through my Marshall DSL 401 Super Lead combo.
lpguy Posted April 23, 2009 Author Posted April 23, 2009 Actually' date=' the opposite, just turn the amp down to a confortable level, so that way when you turn the guitar all the way up, it will sound cleaner/more clear. I have the same issue with my Strat, when I run it through my Marshall DSL 401 Super Lead combo.[/quote'] I always use the low sensivity input with the preamp at 4 which is my clean sound on that amp all the other guitars sound clean and do not need firther adjustments. Thats the funny thing about it. For a crunchy overdrive sound I use a Mxon ROD 881 and for diistortion a MetalZone.
Maple Posted April 23, 2009 Posted April 23, 2009 maybe try lowering the pick-ups? that may help clean it up a but. i remember seeing a chart and the 57's a re a bit hotter than the pups in the stadard... i think. that may have something to do with it.
chongo Posted April 23, 2009 Posted April 23, 2009 With an unknown LP and a tube amp, I'll usually set the volume (on the pickups) at about 4, and then dial up the volume on the amp where I want it. You should have pretty nice cleans at that point (depending on how hot the pickups are). If you don't, then the pickups might be too hot for you or you may have something set on the amplifier wonky. Most noob guitar players, OTOH, dime everything on the guitar, plug in, and then adjust the amp from there. With any LP you should be able to clean up your sound by pulling the volume back, and go into higher gain levels by rocking it toward 10. That even works on tube amps as basic as an Epiphone Valve Jr. Depending on the output of your other guitars, you'll probably be able to do the same thing, but you may find that those pickups at 4 don't put out as much volume, so you'll end up turning up the volume on the amp to match the levels you like to play at. As mentioned before, your pickups may be set too high. A traditional (small "t," meaning LPs in general) LP will have the neck pickup set nearly flush with the bezel when set for ideal distance from the strings. Setting them too high produces more power, but at the cost of cleans and of frequency response and even of touch response to the guitar. In addition, you'll often reduce the native sustain of the guitar because the magnets will pull on the strings harder. Make sure that your pole pieces are adjusted to the same radius as the fretboard and the bridge (or at least to whatever the strings are set at); you may have some that are too high, and this will also affect the sound of the guitar and the power output relative to specific strings.
lpguy Posted April 23, 2009 Author Posted April 23, 2009 OK gents, thanks for the advice, the pickups are almost flush, so thats not the issue. The bottom line is I`m not very happy with the PU`s and would like to replace them, at least the neck pu with something that is not as hot and will make the guitar souind warm and mellow in that position.
Corrosion of conformity Posted April 24, 2009 Posted April 24, 2009 I've never played a Les Paul Traditional, but I think that there might be something wrong with your pickup. You should definatley be able to get a nice clean sound out of your neck pickup with the 57's, as they're pretty high quality pickups. I would suggest taking the guitar in to a local guitar store and have it looked at, just to make sure that there's no problem. Then, if it's true that you still aren't happy with your pickups, you should probably swap them with something else
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