gearhead Posted February 13, 2011 Share Posted February 13, 2011 Been looking for that metal sound I want, heavy, hard hitting distortion without squealing feedback or loss of tone. I've looked at a bunch of pickups and the Bill Lawrence L-500XL seem to fit the bill. Has anyone here used these before? And if so, what's your opinion? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gearhead Posted February 16, 2011 Author Share Posted February 16, 2011 So I'm guessing NO ONE here in the Epi forum has tried one of these? A lot of people have never even heard of Bill Lawrence pickups before. JAM ON! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigneil Posted February 16, 2011 Share Posted February 16, 2011 there are soooooooo many different pickups out there and a persons idea of the perfect sound is so subjective. If you do decide to go for the l-500xl then please write us a review. ;) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gearhead Posted February 16, 2011 Author Share Posted February 16, 2011 I sure will. In fact I have a "repair project" guitar on the way, a Les Paul style set neck that I'm going to order the L-500XL for and see what it does. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rgvilla55 Posted May 6, 2011 Share Posted May 6, 2011 I sure will. In fact I have a "repair project" guitar on the way, a Les Paul style set neck that I'm going to order the L-500XL for and see what it does. I don't know if you ordered it already but if you want a genuine Bill Lawrence pickup, order it from http://wildepickups.com. That pickup is from his former business partner and to me, it sounds nasal. I have an Epi Les Paul that has an L500L on the bridge and it sounds amazing. It is fat, crunchy, warm and articulate. It is also very loud but it cleans up nicely too. You cannot cheat with this pickup nor does it color your sound. If you are a sloppy player, it will slap you silly. I also do have an L500XL on both of my Fender Heavy Metal Strat and Ibanez Destroyer. The sound is nothing short of amazing. I have met Bill and he is a walking and breathing encyclopedia on pickup technology. The man knows pickups. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gearhead Posted May 8, 2011 Author Share Posted May 8, 2011 rgvilla55, Thanks for the reply! I've read a lot of good things about the L-500XL, and I've heard Dimebag's guitar in person, and yes it was a very full, rich sound. I'll check out the link you posted. I haven't ordered one yet, been buying some other necessary equipment to be able to actually practice. But I'm about ready to order one in the next week or two. What kind of amp setup are you using? Have you checked out this site with info on Bill Lawrence Pickups? billlawrencereview.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rgvilla55 Posted May 15, 2011 Share Posted May 15, 2011 rgvilla55, Thanks for the reply! I've read a lot of good things about the L-500XL, and I've heard Dimebag's guitar in person, and yes it was a very full, rich sound. I'll check out the link you posted. I haven't ordered one yet, been buying some other necessary equipment to be able to actually practice. But I'm about ready to order one in the next week or two. What kind of amp setup are you using? Have you checked out this site with info on Bill Lawrence Pickups? billlawrencereview.com Gearhead, The original "Cowboy from Hell" guitar, if you look at it very closely, it has the chrome housing which is only made by one man, Willy Stich (Bill and Becky) who is the real Bill Lawrence. Yes, I have checked out that site and it does give the proper description between the Bill Lawrence (Bill and Becky) and the Bill Lawrence USA (his former business partner). With the site's help, I manage to get a vintage 1983 L500XL from eBay. I was able to compare a 1983 model to a 2006 model; they still sound the same. It retains the chunky, fat, and clean sound that I love. If you get it from ebay, Make sure you get from Bruce aka Bullfighter Guitars, http://instruments.shop.ebay.com/bullfighter_guitars/m.html?_nkw=L-500*&_sacat=619&_odkw=&_osacat=0&_trksid=p3911.c0.m270.l1313. He is Bill and Becky Lawrence's ebay dealer. Usually there is a 2 week waiting time once your order made through wildepickups.com, but it looks like they have some in stock, http://wildepickups.com/L500C.html. I am a gearhound. My main amp is a 1990 Carvin X100B running on a Crate 4x12 loaded with 2 Carvin 100w British Series and 2 Carvin 100w Vintage Series speakers. I also have a Fender Hot Rod Deluxe, two 5w Kustom Defender tube amps and a Crate Power Block. All my amps run on JJ tubes. Good luck on your purchase. You will not regret it. Make sure you use 500k pots as recommend by Bill. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gearhead Posted October 4, 2012 Author Share Posted October 4, 2012 I'M RESURRECTING A LONG DEAD THREAD HERE, BUT IT'S BECAUSE I NEVER ORDERED ONE OF THESE PICKUPS TILL NOW. Ok, well I've finally ordered a Bill Lawrence XL500, NOT A BILL LAWRENCE USA! Picked it up on eBay for $41, the guy said he bought this back in the early 90's, and ordered it directly from Bill Lawrence (Bill & Becky). As soon as I get it and put it in one of my guitars I'll post a review on it! Should have it here in a few days. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gearhead Posted May 13, 2013 Author Share Posted May 13, 2013 Well it's been a while since this was up, and a while since I got my L500 pu. I put it in the bridge of my Turser JT-200 Pro. It's a nice unit! It doesn't have that "raspy" distortion like my Mighty Mite's do. Smoother sounding. It doesn't "squeal" very easily either when in front of my amp. Gets a good clean as well as distortion sound. Think it's comparable to maybe one of the old "T-Tops" I used to have, but quieter. Should be good for blues, rock etc. Just thought I'd let anyone know that might want to....... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BaZie Posted May 14, 2013 Share Posted May 14, 2013 I was advised I could use Entwistle X3 pickups instead of Bill Lawrence. Entwistles are cheap but many people say they are quite good. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Calrok.com Posted January 3, 2021 Share Posted January 3, 2021 (edited) Ten years later you get an answer from me. I have the Vintage L-500XL Humbuckers in a Charvel strat and they are ripping clean metal. I think the luthier really got that original sound perfect in the selection. That being said, these pickups were reported to be wound in Chechosovakia (at the time). The out of phase switching is also phenomenal. Alex K. calrok.com Edited January 3, 2021 by Calrok.com Typo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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