alans056 Posted April 1, 2010 Share Posted April 1, 2010 Hello ! I just bought an Epiphone Les Paul Custom Black Beauty. I don't really know much about guitar hardware so I just have 3 little questions! :) 1 - 3 pickups instead of 2 generaly. What difference does it make ? 2 - Are the stock pickups on this guitar good ? How good ? (3x Alnico Classic) 3 - I was thinking of buying the 2 pickups of the real Gibson Les Paul Custom (490R and 498T) and unplugging the middle pickup, to try and have a sound as near as possible as the "real" one. Will I hear a good difference ? Will the sound be really near to the Gibson LP Custom ? Thanks! Alan PS: The music I play is the band Interpol, just for your information, if you wanted to ask to answer more accurately. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
antwhi2001 Posted April 1, 2010 Share Posted April 1, 2010 Alan, Welcome. The middle pickup doesn't add much tonally. Some 3 pickup Les Pauls are wired with 3 volume controls and one master tone control, so you can bring the middle pickup sound in or out. You could re-wire yours like that, rather than disconnect it. You can find a wiring diagram on the net. The stock Epi pickups are basically cheap copies of the Gibsons, with similar characteristics. The 490/498s are alnico magnets too. I think the Epis are ok, but not quite as good as Gibson. The tone you get depends more on the amp you use than the guitar pickups, so it may be wiser to upgrade your amp than to spend a lot of money on genuine Gibson pickups. What amp are you using, and is there a player whose sound you're looking to recreate? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alans056 Posted April 1, 2010 Author Share Posted April 1, 2010 Hello, thank you for the fast response! The amp I have is a Fender FM212R. I would like to recreate the sound of the singer and guitarist of Interpol Paul Banks, who has a genuine Gibson LP Custom. A very warm sound with lots of reverb and everything! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alans056 Posted April 1, 2010 Author Share Posted April 1, 2010 Ah jesus, I'm sorry for double-posting, but I'm freaking out here :) !! I just read that there are many fake Epiphones on the net. And where did I get mine ? EBAY !!!! I just clicked on "buy it now" but I didn't pay yet. I'm really sorry but I just need a little answer : - I have the choice to proceed and pay the guy, or buy a Epi LP Custom on a legit music website THOMANN.COM. Would it be a real one on thomann.com ? thanks ! should I make another thread for this ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StreakyPete Posted April 1, 2010 Share Posted April 1, 2010 Hi Alan, Like yourself, I'm in the process of buying myself an Epiphone. Also like you, I've considered buying from eBay, and got a great deal advice both for and against doing so from forum members on this site. I found it very useful. The topic heading is 'Looking to get another Epiphone' I posted it on the 28th March I would be astonished if an established company like Thomann would jeopordize their reputation by selling fakes. Likewise GAK, based here in the UK. Good luck in your search! Pete Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fenrirlupus Posted April 1, 2010 Share Posted April 1, 2010 I think gibson's pickups are overpriced, i'd go for seymour duncans if I were you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jcwillow777 Posted April 1, 2010 Share Posted April 1, 2010 Would it be a real one on thomann.com ? thanks ! Yep. They are legit. No telling about Ebay, there are a lot of fakes sold there, but there are real ones too. If you don't know what to look for, I'd back out if I could. Bottom line, if it too good to be true, it probably is. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alans056 Posted April 1, 2010 Author Share Posted April 1, 2010 Guys you are amazing. Thank you very much ! StreakyPete thank you for sharing your experience! So the "epiphone fake" issue aside, replacing the stock pickups by the Gibson ones, FenrirLupus doesn't like the idea ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SyreCorp Posted April 1, 2010 Share Posted April 1, 2010 490/498? Meh. I did that swap on my G-400, and had to swap back. I found the Gibson pups to have a certain je ne sais qoui, but the 498 was shrill and thin, and the 490 was lacking oumpf. With the stock pups I had a fuller, rounder sound at bridge and plenty of brawns at neck. The 490 has an AlNiCo II magnet, if I am not mistaken. I later replaced them with a set of WCR Iron Man pups, AlNiCo VIII magnets... Now those have guts! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alans056 Posted April 1, 2010 Author Share Posted April 1, 2010 oh thats odd. Its the pickups on the famous "real" gibson LP Custom. I chose those pickups because they are the ones on the guitar of the bande I want to play covers of (Interpol). But I am kind of new in guitars and everything, so I have no idea how to chose pickups PERSONALY Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fenrirlupus Posted April 1, 2010 Share Posted April 1, 2010 Guys you are amazing. Thank you very much ! StreakyPete thank you for sharing your experience! So the "epiphone fake" issue aside' date=' replacing the stock pickups by the Gibson ones, FenrirLupus doesn't like the idea ?[/quote'] No... if you want gibson-ish humbucker tone, gibson pickups will give you that... but there's other pickups that can give you the same sort of tone for less. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alans056 Posted April 1, 2010 Author Share Posted April 1, 2010 Oh I see. Do you have some names in mind ? Thank you Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SyreCorp Posted April 1, 2010 Share Posted April 1, 2010 Y'know? If you are new to guitars you need not worry about the pickups. Assuming it is an authentic Epi you get, the pups will be just fine for now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alans056 Posted April 1, 2010 Author Share Posted April 1, 2010 I'm just new to all the technical stuff. I sure want to worry about pickups because want the best Interpol sound possible. I have a cover band with a pal! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alans056 Posted April 3, 2010 Author Share Posted April 3, 2010 So am I right when I say that if I buy the 490R and 498T pickups (the ones on the real Gibson LP C) I will have a sound that is really near that guitar ? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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