rednefceleb Posted July 9, 2012 Share Posted July 9, 2012 I would love to hear from guitarists who have experience using 'GFS pickups'. The only word that I trust is from you guys (and gals) who have real "ears on' experience. I'm especially interested in the GFS mini humbucker series. P-90's also. Do the GFS P-90 series cut the mustard? You see, I hate to spend Seymour's prices for those two p'ups: especially for a $399.00 Night Hawk. I'm pretty much resigned to the Duncan Slant "J.B. Series". I actually want that p'up at the bridge. If I want her to "scream", the J.B. will do that. "Then Play On". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SNick Posted July 10, 2012 Share Posted July 10, 2012 GFS are made at the cheapist manufactuter in China. Do yourself a big favor and spend the money on a good brand. GFS is hit and miss on a lot of the pickups they sell. JMO from a bit of experiance with the company's pickups. I would not buy one to replace an Epi pickup. You'll be stepping down in tone and quality IMO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
matthewk Posted July 10, 2012 Share Posted July 10, 2012 Disagree. I don't care if it's made in China for a set price, if it's designed well and has decent quality control. That's a pair of Surf 90s in a Korean Sheraton - the original pickups were thick and muddy, even after rewiring, but the Surfs are vibrant and alive, and I feel like I can hear the guitar properly now. Not 100% sure about the look but I found the right sound for sure. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jcwillow777 Posted July 10, 2012 Share Posted July 10, 2012 I really like their Vintage '59s, I have them in my Sherry and Dot and they were an improvement to my ear. I have heard very good reviews about his Mean 90s. I have a set of classic IIs. They are okay, but the output is not as good to my ear as the 59s. I would like to try a set of their minis, but I don't have a guitar to throw them in right now. If Jay would have been selling soapbar minis a few years ago they would be in my '56 GT instead of Gibson minis. I emailed him about the minis (Firebird style) he was selling a the time and he told me they wouldn't fit and recommended Gibson. About 6 months later he was selling them. I still may buy a set and put out the Gibsons just to compare, and maybe go with black rings for a different look. I would probably go with Vintage 59s. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wiggy Posted July 10, 2012 Share Posted July 10, 2012 I had a pair of GFS Vintage 59's and I didn't honestly find them any improvement over the stock Epi pickups although lots of people on here would disagree. Their Mean 90's however are a totally different kettle of fish - absolutely stunning at any price and cannot praise them highly enough. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillyBlades Posted July 10, 2012 Share Posted July 10, 2012 I was wondering the same thing so I purchased 2 humbuckers last week. I havent tried them yet because gfs messed up my order. I ordered the veh which measured 12.55k ohms ,,, which is slightly hotter than advertised. I ordered the pro series alnico v + but they sent me the regular alnico v which isnt whar I wanted. The plus model should be 9.4k for the bridge model. The one they sent me is being replaced by them. I looked at the sticker on the back of it and it has 8.2k ohms but on my multimeter it reads 7.8k ??? The veh looks really cheap , no sticker,,, no markings on it saying ohms or model. Just a gfs stamp. The professional series alnico v looks more like an american pickup. Slightly larger screws,,,gold bottom screws-,,and a steel braided shield like old paf pickups. I have yet to try them due to the mixup. I just got them in last fri. Im looking to install them soon but I just scored 2 probuckers on ebay : ) I know they sound good! They are in my new plus top pro and they are in the middle of the alnico classic + and the 498t. Perfect imo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eor Posted July 10, 2012 Share Posted July 10, 2012 i've heard the hit and miss accusation before. i've also yet to see a good thing written about their minis, but there isn't much written about them, anyway. so who knows. minis are kind of a niche-y thing; the next step up price wise from gfs is significant. what i can say from experience was that the dream 180 was nice in a sheraton. pretty to look at, too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wiggy Posted July 10, 2012 Share Posted July 10, 2012 I would also like to add that the overall cost of GFS vs Name Brand/Custom Winder depends on where you live. In my case, living in the UK, by the time you add shipping, VAT and duty, Vintage 59's don't work out that much cheaper than 57 Classics or even Bare Knuckle PAFs so the equation is different from you guys over the pond. Having said that I still think GFS Mean 90's are staggeringly good pickups and am seriously considering selling my BB Pros to fund a Mean 90 in the Neck along with a 57 Classic in the bridge of Genevieve. I've got this combination in my Dot Studio and it seems to be pretty much a perfect mix. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swamprock Posted July 11, 2012 Share Posted July 11, 2012 I wanna add my two cents about the Dream 90 and Mean 90 pickups. I use both of these in my Epi Jrs and couldn't be any happier with them. I play in a riff-based doomy metal band and these pickups have exactly the perfect amount of snarl and grimyness that I've been looking for tone-wise. The Mean 90 is a bit hotter than the Dream, but switch up my guitar choice based on what a specific song needs. Can't recommend these bucker-sized single coils enough. I get some strange looks when other guitar players see my playing the kind of stuff we play with my cheapo Juniors, until they hear me playing. I'm sure they're expecting a guitar with a humbucker with the kind of stuff we play. They're quite surprised when they hear the snarl coming from my cheapos :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillyBlades Posted July 11, 2012 Share Posted July 11, 2012 Alot of people like the mean90. I was thinkin about getting a cheap bolt on epi just for that reason. Its a great classic rock tone! Another one on my hitlist is the brighton 8k model. I was thinking about stickin one of them in my sg neck position. Its a single coil but if it works I can always make something to fill the gap in the routed humbucker hole. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rednefceleb Posted July 11, 2012 Author Share Posted July 11, 2012 I was wondering the same thing so I purchased 2 humbuckers last week. I havent tried them yet because gfs messed up my order. I ordered the veh which measured 12.55k ohms ,,, which is slightly hotter than advertised. I ordered the pro series alnico v + but they sent me the regular alnico v which isnt whar I wanted. The plus model should be 9.4k for the bridge model. The one they sent me is being replaced by them. I looked at the sticker on the back of it and it has 8.2k ohms but on my multimeter it reads 7.8k ??? The veh looks really cheap , no sticker,,, no markings on it saying ohms or model. Just a gfs stamp. The professional series alnico v looks more like an american pickup. Slightly larger screws,,,gold bottom screws-,,and a steel braided shield like old paf pickups. I have yet to try them due to the mixup. I just got them in last fri. Im looking to install them soon but I just scored 2 probuckers on ebay : ) I know they sound good! They are in my new plus top pro and they are in the middle of the alnico classic + and the 498t. Perfect imo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rednefceleb Posted July 11, 2012 Author Share Posted July 11, 2012 Thanks especially for your comparison to the sounds next to a 498T. If it can hang with a 498t I will believe in it. My Gibson Les Paul Double Cut has a 498t at the bridge & it can really rip. Thanks again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ladyscaglyc Posted July 12, 2012 Share Posted July 12, 2012 I've got a Mean90 at the neck of my Joe Pass with the orig. HB at the bridge. The Mean90 is great on it's own or mixed with the EpiHB and that's with the 500pots. Just built a 2HB size Strat with GFS Retrotrons, Nashville at the neck and a Liverpool at the bridge. Great Gretsch chime & growl. Can't say enough about GFS PUs, and their hardware too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillyBlades Posted July 12, 2012 Share Posted July 12, 2012 I got some good news,,, even tho gfs screwed my order up,,,they sent out the pro alnico v + with a return label to ship back the the other one. They were very nice & respinded back fairly quick to my emails. The new pickup says 9.4k but I was too busy tattoing to check it out on the multimeter. Anyway ,, it looks high quality as any paf... The.mean 90 caught my eye as well as the brighton. I was thinking about a retrotron style in another guitar. I saw ZZTop in concert and BillyG had a dynamite lead tone with the Billybo Gretsch. The Les Paul he had Killed but the lower gain powertron pickups were really touch responsive. That was another option to see if gfs had something comparable. sorry if I seem like a gear nut,,, I Am Addicted ; ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aoresteen Posted July 12, 2012 Share Posted July 12, 2012 The only GFS pickups I have are their lipstick tubes and a Filtertron copy. The lipstick tubes are in my 91'ish S-300, the Filterton is in a 2002 Squier Bullet Special. They flat out ROCK!!!!!!!!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillyBlades Posted July 12, 2012 Share Posted July 12, 2012 Awesome! I want to hear the retrotron so bad lol Stick the guitar thru the screen so I can plug it in! Now that would be the App of the yr! Your Guitars look cool! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
snowbum007 Posted July 12, 2012 Share Posted July 12, 2012 I've had a set of vintage 59's in a Dot and Mean 90's and VEH's in my Les Paul. Both guitars have Duncans in them now. They were ok but I just never really bonded any of them. The Mean 90s in particular lacked the growl that I love from P90s. I ended up buying a 1961 reissue Casino to sastify my P90 need. Iknow that is a different experience than most people here but I made the right call. I still have all three GFS sets and need to list them for sale. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillyBlades Posted July 12, 2012 Share Posted July 12, 2012 Wow,,, scary. Now I am wondering if I made a mistake in buying them? Theres always ebay lol Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Notes_Norton Posted July 12, 2012 Share Posted July 12, 2012 <...>Do the GFS P-90 series cut the mustard? <...> I put GFS Mean 90s on an ESP/LTD Faux LP. I'm not new to P90s, I love them and have 3 P90 guitars. A 1970 Gibson with stock P90s, and Epiphone Casino with Duncan P90s and the LTD The Mean 90s sound VERY P90-ish. A little more treble and slightly thinner tone, but that's getting picky. Notes ♫ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ladyscaglyc Posted July 12, 2012 Share Posted July 12, 2012 BillyBlades, The Retrotrons are great. I put them in a 2PU Strat. The neck is a Nashville & the bridge is a Liverpool. Love the Gretschy plank sound! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BillyBlades Posted July 13, 2012 Share Posted July 13, 2012 BillyBlades, The Retrotrons are great. I put them in a 2PU Strat. The neck is a Nashville & the bridge is a Liverpool. Love the Gretschy plank sound! thanks for the intel. i want to get a guitar with that billy gibbons lead sound. check out zztop live from texas on youtube. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
anfontan Posted December 2, 2013 Share Posted December 2, 2013 I'm coming in late on this thread but I put a set of the GFS mini humbuckers into a Les Paul Special copy and I love the sound of the minis. I had a friend with a early 1970's L. P. Deluxe that always played and sounded great so I feel like I have a guitar thats very close to the Deluxe. The copy is one of the GFS L. P. copies with a mahogney 60's style set neck and body-the P-90s were fine in there but the minis are awesome!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bender 4 Life Posted December 2, 2013 Share Posted December 2, 2013 the minis sound extremely good in my SX SJM '57......they're like Gibson minis but w/a touch more power. the Crunchy Pat. humbuckers also sound great.....they came stock in a GFS Xaviere SG copy I got.....but ended up in 1 of my Gibbies because they plain "sounded better". ask the naysayers if they've actually tried them themselves, or just heard them on youtube thru crappy 'puter speakers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BobF_ Posted December 2, 2013 Share Posted December 2, 2013 I have a set of Mean 90s in my Epi LP Std+ PRO. These things are VERY nice sounding pups. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnny Seven Posted December 3, 2013 Share Posted December 3, 2013 I put a couple of GFS Surf 90's in my Gretsch 5120, and they really transformed this guitar.. The stock "Gretschbuckers" were really muddy - to the point where I didn't even want to play the guitar... But when I put these Surf 90's in, they were a VAST improvement! Love the tone of this Gretsch now! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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