Need new pickups !

G

Gaspard

Member
Aug 1, 2007
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Paris, FRANCE
I have a 2004 gibson les paul standard, I had EMG's in it (81-85), I liked them, but then as I became a better guitar player i found that i really prefered the way passive sounded with the way I play (not saying EMG's are for bad players, that would be terribly far from the truth).
So I went back with my gibson burstbuckers that originally came with it, I don't dislike them, but I want to change them, the bridge pickup is a little too trebly on the high strings and it really lacks that low end crunch i like.

So right now i'm leaning toward duncan JB.

Truthfully i might not change the neck because 1) i don't use the neck pickup that much 2) I like the way it sounds

So basically i want a pickup that is a little hotter a little bit more compressed with a good AC/DC crunch too it.

I don't want a crazy hot pickup like SD invader or something...
THANX !
 
Dude... JB. And If you want to change the neck pickup, check out the Jazz and the '59, and choose per your own taste. But, yeah, I don't think any pickup captures the tone of a Les Paul better than the JB. There are some other guys who would tell you the same thing. (Mike Amott, Mike Schliebaum, Dave Mustaine, Ty Tabor...)
 
duncan full shred or custom are good options in a les paul too.

i really like the full shred in my les paul classic, it's a bit thighter sounding then the JB
 
DSS3 said:
Duncan Custom. The JB is way too loose and has a retarded upper midrange.
Click to expand...

I've been using JB's for about 12 years or so, and both your statements are just wrong... sorry. The JB very accurately transmits exactly what you play. If you are a "loose" player (like Paul Stanley/ a JB user), it's going to come out loose. If you are a "tight" player (like Dave Mustaine/ also a JB user), it's going to come out tight.

As for the comment on the upper midrange, that's not very accurate either. The JB is recommended for warm-sounding, or mahogany-body guitars. My flying V came with a Gibson 500T in the bridge, which was a very bright, heavy upper-midrange pickup. When I dropped the JB in, the balance shifted more towards the lower-midrange, giving me a little more beef and body in my tone, and a lot more punch in my palm-muting. Now, if you've got a brighter-wood guitar made from something like alder or maple or even basswood, and you are changing from a scooped-ass EMG 81 to the JB, then yes, you will hear some upper-mids that you didn't hear before. Because the JB is designed to accentuate the natural wood tones of your guitar, including the midrange.
 
Duncan JB's rock my world, man. A good neck pickup is a GFS Crunchy Rails. I have a JB/Crunchy Rails in my Dean Cadillac, and it's the nicest sounding set of pickups in the world. Ever.
 
Tommy Gun said:
I've been using JB's for about 12 years or so, and both your statements are just wrong... sorry. The JB very accurately transmits exactly what you play. If you are a "loose" player (like Paul Stanley/ a JB user), it's going to come out loose. If you are a "tight" player (like Dave Mustaine/ also a JB user), it's going to come out tight.

As for the comment on the upper midrange, that's not very accurate either. The JB is recommended for warm-sounding, or mahogany-body guitars. My flying V came with a Gibson 500T in the bridge, which was a very bright, heavy upper-midrange pickup. When I dropped the JB in, the balance shifted more towards the lower-midrange, giving me a little more beef and body in my tone, and a lot more punch in my palm-muting. Now, if you've got a brighter-wood guitar made from something like alder or maple or even basswood, and you are changing from a scooped-ass EMG 81 to the JB, then yes, you will hear some upper-mids that you didn't hear before. Because the JB is designed to accentuate the natural wood tones of your guitar, including the midrange.
Click to expand...


Horses for courses. I don't like the JB for the reasons I stated, and I know a lot of people will agree with me. I also know a lot won't. Whatever.

The 81 is way tighter, as is the Custom. Both of these also have a smoother upper midrange than the JB, which I prefer.

I'm a tight player, and the JB still sounds loose and convoluted in the upper midrange to me.
 
Tommy Gun said:
I've been using JB's for about 12 years or so, and both your statements are just wrong... sorry. The JB very accurately transmits exactly what you play. If you are a "loose" player (like Paul Stanley/ a JB user), it's going to come out loose. If you are a "tight" player (like Dave Mustaine/ also a JB user), it's going to come out tight.

As for the comment on the upper midrange, that's not very accurate either. The JB is recommended for warm-sounding, or mahogany-body guitars. My flying V came with a Gibson 500T in the bridge, which was a very bright, heavy upper-midrange pickup. When I dropped the JB in, the balance shifted more towards the lower-midrange, giving me a little more beef and body in my tone, and a lot more punch in my palm-muting. Now, if you've got a brighter-wood guitar made from something like alder or maple or even basswood, and you are changing from a scooped-ass EMG 81 to the JB, then yes, you will hear some upper-mids that you didn't hear before. Because the JB is designed to accentuate the natural wood tones of your guitar, including the midrange.
Click to expand...

Hmmm, I think you might be overgeneralizing a bit. Two mahogany guitars can sound quite a bit different, and my experience with the JB has varied greatly guitar to guitar. I've found that in some guitars, the JB sounds smooth and clear with a crunchy palm mute and bottom end that is tight enough. In others, the things DSS3 described were on the money. I rarely recommend the JB because of that inconsistency. If I had to guess, I would say that it does better in brighter, or less bottom heavy guitars. I've heard guys rave about it in maple bodied super strats. For a les paul, it might do wonders, or it might be the opposite of what a good metal player needs- depends on the piece of wood. I honestly think that more consistent choices from Duncan would include the Custom, Fullshred, and Jazz bridge. It might not hurt to look into the new alternative 8 either- seems to have gotten great feedback so far, though I haven't used it myself.
 
AmirH said:
Hmmm, I think you might be overgeneralizing a bit. Two mahogany guitars can sound quite a bit different, and my experience with the JB has varied greatly guitar to guitar. I've found that in some guitars, the JB sounds smooth and clear with a crunchy palm mute and bottom end that is tight enough. In others, the things DSS3 described were on the money. I rarely recommend the JB because of that inconsistency. If I had to guess, I would say that it does better in brighter, or less bottom heavy guitars. I've heard guys rave about it in maple bodied super strats. For a les paul, it might do wonders, or it might be the opposite of what a good metal player needs- depends on the piece of wood. I honestly think that more consistent choices from Duncan would include the Custom, Fullshred, and Jazz bridge. It might not hurt to look into the new alternative 8 either- seems to have gotten great feedback so far, though I haven't used it myself.
Click to expand...

I've witnessed NO inconsistencies with JB's in Mahogany guitars. I've used 3 Flying V's, 2 SG's, 3 Les Paul's and one Explorer... ALL had JB's. All got the same tone, essentially.
 
I've got a couple of les pauls myself and they are miked with JB, Superdistorsion and a 498T respectively.

For the music I'm playing I found the JB a bit too bright (or metal-sounding) and the SD a bit too middy. The 498T is for me a great compromise between the JB and the SD and that guitar is getting the most playtime right now (besides the Yamaha ES335 copy i just bought. Just my two cents though.
 
well I really don't know, pickups are a tough hing because it's not like a pedale you can try and bring back to the shop, with a pickup you have to solder.

I think i'll keep my stock gibson and just lower it a bit on the treble side.

I want a full, warm and fat sounding pickup.
 
DSS3 said:
And this is why I suggest the Duncan Custom. Maybe even a Custom 5, but you want a PAF on steroids kinda thing.

the 59 won't be aggressive enough, unfortunately.
Click to expand...

I can agree with this. The Custom Five is a good Alnico with the same EQ specs as the '59, but with a higher output.
And the Duncan Custom is like putting the '59 on steroids. same EQ curve, but more expressive in the frequencies, and much hotter output because it is a Ceramic.

Good call man.
 
Tommy Gun said:
I can agree with this. The Custom Five is a good Alnico with the same EQ specs as the '59, but with a higher output.
And the Duncan Custom is like putting the '59 on steroids. same EQ curve, but more expressive in the frequencies, and much hotter output because it is a Ceramic.

Good call man.
Click to expand...

Yeah, as much as I love the tone of the '59b, it just doesn't cut it for me, output wise.
 
DSS3 said:
Yeah, as much as I love the tone of the '59b, it just doesn't cut it for me, output wise.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I've known a lot of guys in the past who got hooked on the '59 but had to add gain boost in front of their heads, because the pickup's output just would give them what they needed. Believe it or not, even though I've been a devout JB user for over a decade, I am considering trying the Custom. I am interested to hear what it will sound like in one of my V's.
 
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