Epiphreak Posted March 18, 2012 Share Posted March 18, 2012 Hi folks. What pickups would you recommend to spice up an Epi LP standard? I've been advised Seymour Duncan SH-4 JB at the bridge and the SH-4 59 at the neck. Any thoughts please! Cheers Al Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trewblue Posted March 18, 2012 Share Posted March 18, 2012 I put a set a GFS Vintage '59 pu's in my LP Studio. Very satisfied with the sound. Much cheaper than SD's. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pin Posted March 18, 2012 Share Posted March 18, 2012 I'd go with the Seymour Duncan's. It is what I put in my son's Epi Les Paul (JB at the bridge) and it sounds superb. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
brad1 Posted March 18, 2012 Share Posted March 18, 2012 GFS ! [thumbup] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigneil Posted March 18, 2012 Share Posted March 18, 2012 the problem with pickup advice is that it is very very subjective....every one is going to recommend something different. firstly...what music do you play? and what sort of amplification are you using? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
charlie brown Posted March 18, 2012 Share Posted March 18, 2012 the problem with pickup advice is that it is very very subjective....every one is going to recommend something different. firstly...what music do you play? and what sort of amplification are you using? +1 Also, have you heard (or, played) some guitar, recently, that makes you think you need to change pickups, in your's?? If so, find out what was in it...that might give you a better idea? But, as mentioned, Amps (and your own playing) have a lot to do with "tone" chasing, as well. So...good luck! CB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LPDEN Posted March 18, 2012 Share Posted March 18, 2012 +1 Also, have you heard (or, played) some guitar, recently, that makes you think you need to change pickups, in your's?? If so, find out what was in it...that might give you a better idea? But, as mentioned, Amps (and your own playing) have a lot to do with "tone" chasing, as well. So...good luck! CB So much truth here that you need to pay attention to. There are so many variable to your summary tone that I would recommend the pickups being among the last things you look to chance. Start with your amp(s) and pedal-board first. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Epiphreak Posted March 18, 2012 Author Share Posted March 18, 2012 Thanks for the welcome. I just joined today! Yeah, good points mentioned so far. I find the stock pickups in the Epiphone LP a little muddy for my liking and wanted something a bit thicker and brighter sounding. I'm very happy with my set up and pedal board. That's NOT an issue. I use quite a few guitars, too. I use an old Marshall JMP 50 watt head and a cab with Celestion V 30s. Awesome set up for playing blues and rock! GFS p'ups aren't available here in the UK! Cheers Al Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LPDEN Posted March 18, 2012 Share Posted March 18, 2012 If you get to the point of actually swapping out your pups, my vote is for the Lindy Fralin Pure PAF's Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blueman335 Posted March 19, 2012 Share Posted March 19, 2012 You will get better tones by upgrading PU's; I've upgraded all my Epi PU's. Problem with JB's are they were made for bright woods (Jeff Beck's Tele actually) and are hit or miss in warm woods like mahogany. They can do very well in LP's, but they can also develop an 'ice pick spike' high-end, and a 'flabby' low-end. You don't know until you put them in. On the Duncan forum, many of us prefer PAF's in LP's, and here's Duncan's which are some of the best: - '59 - A5 magnet, bright, sharp high-end, lots of tight low-end, scooped mids, clean and clear. - PG - A2 magnet, smoother highs, lots of mids, looser low-end, lots of earthy vintage dynamics. - Seth - A2 magnet, unpotted, lots of mids and earthy vintage dynamics, looser low-end, open airy sound. The closest you can get to a PAF (co-designed by Seth Lover, the guy who invented HB's in the mid 1950's). - A2P - A2 magnet, like a PG but a little warmer. Lots of dynamics. If you want a hotter bridge, a C5 (SH-14), C8, or '59/Custom hybrid are very good in mahogany. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wwit Posted March 19, 2012 Share Posted March 19, 2012 You will get better tones by upgrading PU's; I've upgraded all my Epi PU's. Problem with JB's are they were made for bright woods (Jeff Beck's Tele actually) and are hit or miss in warm woods like mahogany. They can do very well in LP's, but they can also develop an 'ice pick spike' high-end, and a 'flabby' low-end. You don't know until you put them in. On the Duncan forum, many of us prefer PAF's in LP's, and here's Duncan's which are some of the best: - '59 - A5 magnet, bright, sharp high-end, lots of tight low-end, scooped mids, clean and clear. - PG - A2 magnet, smoother highs, lots of mids, looser low-end, lots of earthy vintage dynamics. - Seth - A2 magnet, unpotted, lots of mids and earthy vintage dynamics, looser low-end, open airy sound. The closest you can get to a PAF (co-designed by Seth Lover, the guy who invented HB's in the mid 1950's). - A2P - A2 magnet, like a PG but a little warmer. Lots of dynamics. If you want a hotter bridge, a C5 (SH-14), C8, or '59/Custom hybrid are very good in mahogany. Yup, from my own expierence Id have to agree all written here. Only thing I can offer is to realy get the full potential out of a LP guitar, stay away from the super high distortion passive pups and stay away from the hi gain metalish active pups. My reasoning for this is that those type of pickups dont make good use of the guitar qualities itself to the point were its all about the pickups. In a LP I realy like the Pearly Gates, but love the Seth Lovers. Im also a big fan of the Gibson BB2&3. The other thing is to realy learn to use the guitar volume knobs. Just because you can dime it dosent mean you have to do so. Its amazing to me how many guitar players will instantly dime the guitar and amp volumes, then complain of nasty unwanted noise and feedback???? Hello Mcfly HELLO. I very rarely play my guitar volume at 10 anymore. I set up my amps to play nice with the guitar volumes in the the 2-5ish range. Now I have little to no bad noise and dont have to kill my tone with a noisegate. I still get all the squealing pinch harmonics I want and have control of the feedback. And still have a built in boost right handy on the guitar. Only reason I add this, is because its all related to pickups which is where the whole signal chain starts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blueman335 Posted March 19, 2012 Share Posted March 19, 2012 Im also a big fan of the Gibson BB2&3. +1. BB's are my favorite Gibson HB's, especially the older unpotted ones. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigneil Posted March 19, 2012 Share Posted March 19, 2012 I have had excellent results with wilkinson whvc Humbuckers....usually about £30 each off the wilkinson website, but you can pick them up new on ebay, for about £30 for a set. I bought some chrome covered ones for my G400 and I bought some open coil zebra ones for another guitar. the zebras come with 4 core style wires for extra wiring options. amazing value for money and perfect for blues and rock. they are based on the original PAF design that was given to Trevor Wilkinson by Seth Lover. Wilkinson website link and here is some on evil bay My link I also hear that Iron gear pickups are good. Iron gear link Fancy a "hot slag" any one? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Epiphreak Posted March 20, 2012 Author Share Posted March 20, 2012 Some great advice here.I'll go with the 'Irongear' Hot Slags. How could I resist a pair of hot slags? :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stickman Posted March 24, 2012 Share Posted March 24, 2012 Well geez, I just had a blast running through the Irongear website. I really like those Hot Slags. I like the Rolling Mill too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bigneil Posted March 25, 2012 Share Posted March 25, 2012 I just bought some pickups from an ebay shop for my Epi LP Vanson 59 toasters. don't know if they are any good yet but the read up is promising ... 59 humbuckers that are NOT overwound. If you are in the UK, then their ebay shop is worth a visit. Vanson toaster link I'll be posting a few pics, and a review when they arrive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gforce013 Posted March 26, 2012 Share Posted March 26, 2012 I put gibson 57 Classic and classic plus in one of mine and I love the way it sounds now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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