Gibson '57 Classic/Classic+ or???

Big Daddy B

Big Daddy B

Well-Known Member
So I plugged in my new (old) R0 thru an amp for about 20 minutes. Smokes from a comfort level and is definitely a keeper but as expected, the Burstbucker 1 & 2 combo sucked. Not as bad as in the R9 but close. And I am not totally hating on the pickups, I had that combo in an ES-339 and it was good. Just in these 2 les pauls the bridge sounds thin and the neck very muffled.

So my gut inclination is to go with the '57 Classic combo. I had those before in a Les Paul Classic and liked them quite a bit. The neck was a little bassy but I was fine with it. I also recently experienced Custom Buckers in a 2013 R0 and liked those as well but those would be more expensive vs a set of '57s. Lastly I tried a set of Burstbucker Pros in a 2016 LP Trad. Again I liked those but I don't envision them as being what I want for this particular guitar. If I end up keeping the R9, they might be a good fit there.

So I am curious what else is out there that I might want to consider. I am not really interested in going boutique so major mfg like Gibson, Seymour Duncan, DiMarzio is fine. I want to stay passive for this guitar. And I am also not obsessed with making it sound like a vintage 50's or 60 LP. Modern vintage is fine. I mainly play 80s and 90s metal so would be playing this (at least for now) thru a high gain mesa with some effects here and there. I am not looking for it to sound like my EMG driven guitars. Just wanted something different. Again this brings me back to the '57s as I had those for a while and they sounded good through my current rig.

I see a lot of praise for the SD Seth Lovers. I am afraid those might be a bit too 50's ie. underpowered and bright for my current application. Should I reconsider? Anything else I should be looking into? Open for suggestions at this point.
 
I realize the Bare Knuckle is on the line of boutique and large manufacturer...or are they just expensive...BUT BKP Mules or Stormy Mondays would make you happy IMHO
 
Thanks guys. Soaking up the suggestions and will research. I didn't know Dean made aftermarket pickups but had heard a lot of praise for Bare Knuckles as well. I am just so happy with the way this guitar plays. It is like the perfect Gibson neck for me! Not fat but not too skinny either like the really skinny and flat LP Classics. Perfect shape and size. I love it. Just need to get it sounding good!
 
Big Daddy B said:
Thanks guys. Soaking up the suggestions and will research. I didn't know Dean made aftermarket pickups but had heard a lot of praise for Bare Knuckles as well. I am just so happy with the way this guitar plays. It is like the perfect Gibson neck for me! Not fat but not too skinny either like the really skinny and flat LP Classics. Perfect shape and size. I love it. Just need to get it sounding good!
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I love my R0, but the BB work really well in it for me. There are some nice choices there. I can post some samples of the Stormy Mondays in an LP copy and Mule neck and Riff Raff bridge in an Epi SG if you want
 
Several of the DEAN offerings are --as expected HOT and METAL-ish --- The others are great the MOUNTAIN ones get a GOOD Leslie West --- if you like that sort of thing.....

and Ic an vouche for the authenticity-- I have seen them BEING MADE --- plus --like the one I bought was a WHOPPING 69.00 for USA made pickup

AND dont forget the folks at Tyson
Tyson Tone Lab Guitar Pickups

Some VERY tasty tones cooking up in their tone lab!!!!!
 
Big Daddy B said:
I mainly play 80s and 90s metal
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57+

:bash:

The 57 in the neck has balls, but for the bridge why don't you try something that's intended to get you closer to the genre you mainly play:

H89064000001000-00-500x500.jpg


or

498T.

RVA said:
BKP Mules
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Bare Knuckles are much more articulate than Gibson pickups, in my experience, and the Mules are supposed to be very good. Although, they are also supposed to be particularly guitar dependent, many folks love them in their LPs.
 
I tried both the BB 1 & 2 & 57/57+ in my 2012 traditional, ended up going with a Vineham 60/70 T top type (slightly overwound to 8.8k) in the bridge. Still has the BB1 in the neck but will be changing that for the Vineham 60/70 (stock wind) T top as well. They get a Lotta love on a Lester forum which is where I heard of them & decided to try 'em, glad I did. Great clarity, punch, bottom end, highs without harshness & good crunch . Well priced also. Cheers
Edit; come as a 60/70 set with stock wound neck & 8.8k bridge, or the 60/70 "classic" pair which is stock T top wind for both neck & bridge. Cheers
 
RVA said:
I love my R0, but the BB work really well in it for me. There are some nice choices there. I can post some samples of the Stormy Mondays in an LP copy and Mule neck and Riff Raff bridge in an Epi SG if you want
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You have the BB 1&2? What year is your R0?
 
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The 57 in the neck has balls, but for the bridge why don't you try something that's intended to get you closer to the genre you mainly play:
[/QUOTE]

That's just it, I am looking for something different but will still sound good though my current setup. I just mentioned what I mainly play in regards to my rig. I would probably use this guitar for more classic rock tunes, 60s and 70s. Just will be running it thru an 80s/90s rig o_O I know confusing right?
 
57+ and 57 are a great combo. Bare Knuckle make great pickups too, and if you want to splash out, you might want to take a look at some Throbaks. I love the setof Throbak PG-102s in my Drek Trucks SG.
 
Hmmmm...I tried three sets of Gibson pickups in my 2016 Gibson SG...including 57 Classics.

I had the same observations that you described on tone, but I also found mine to be very noisy/buzzy too. They also squealed loudly at high gain settings on small stages.

Though many sing their praises, this was my experience with three sets - two sets of 490R/490T and one set of 57 Classics.

I ended up going with an inexpensive PAF clone from GFS called the 'Classic II." I didn't care about brand loyalty, just tone and wax potting and controllability at high gain and stage volumes.

I was also working as a full time studio guitarist, so I needed a quiet guitar, not easily influenced by EFI/EMI issues.

These have nickel covers and are vacuum wax potted. They are 50/52mm spaced and they measured 7.93k/7.88k.

I also used a vintage harness and K40Y PIO tone capacitors. I found a .033uf bridge and. 015uf neck gave me the best overall tone. Very quiet and very manageable at high gain and volume settings with a lot of clarity and definition.

I'm sharing this because its from actual experience...I can't comment on the Duncan's, other than the vintage models from the 80's, and I use more Carvin's than anything else, but the Carvin PAF's don't have pole pieces...

IMG_20170317_57431.jpg IMG_20170306_34459.jpg IMG_20170307_5510.jpg IMG_20170312_46433.jpg
 
Gahr said:
57+ and 57 are a great combo. Bare Knuckle make great pickups too, and if you want to splash out, you might want to take a look at some Throbaks. I love the setof Throbak PG-102s in my Drek Trucks SG.
Click to expand...

My pal Fil Oliveri (Solo Dallas) designed an Angus Young replica from an inspection of Angus' first SG.

You can get them from Thro-Bak.
 
Thank you RVA!! :cheers:

RVA sent me an article discussing how to "properly" adjust a passive pickup. I am happy to report, while it didn't work any obvious miracles, I was able to get my BB1/2 set to put out some servicable tones after about 20-30 minutes of adjusting. Not perfect but I think for now I am going to stay put and see if I can do some more fine adjustments and get these pickups actually sounding good.
 
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