Thoughts on Gibson 490t bridge pickup

[smitty_p]

I completely missed and forgot about this thread.
Thank you for all the replies.

I put a used pair in my EPI G400, a used 490R with a swapped short A5 magnet (T-top mod) in the bridge of my Firefly V, and they came in the SG Tribute I got yesterday. I like them just fine, but I dont have vast experience with aftermarket pickups to compare them to.

Anymore, I don’t worry so much how pickups compare with something else. I just listen to hear if the pickup can give me the sound I want with the rig I have.

Usually, it’s less a matter of the pickups and more matter of the overall rig. Not saying pickups don’t matter at all, but other things can have a bigger influence.

I‘ve never been truly disappointed with any Gibson pickup.

Years ago, I went through a period of magnet swapping in the ’57 Classics in my SG. In the end, after a couple years, I ended up putting the original magnets right back in.

 

[Clockworkmike]

I completely missed and forgot about this thread.
Thank you for all the replies.

I put a used pair in my EPI G400, a used 490R with a swapped short A5 magnet (T-top mod) in the bridge of my Firefly V, and they came in the SG Tribute I got yesterday. I like them just fine, but I dont have vast experience with aftermarket pickups to compare them to.

Definitely late to the thread but yeah I have no issues with 490Ts myself. Most of the 490s I've played have been 490Rs in the neck of a 498T pair, but I have played a few of the 490Ts.

As @Headache mentioned, it's a little lacking in the very hi gain/detuned department, but for anything else it's just fine. It's a pretty real rounded and balanced pickup.

In your case, I see where you have swapped the Alnico 2 magnets for Alnico 5, so a lot of what I've just said kinda goes out the window lol Alnico 2s are your classic, warm and smoother Gibson tone and lower output magnets, where as Alnico 5s are definitely brighter and higher output. So that will push your pickup to a bit hotter than usual, which could be a great thing if that's more your flavor anyways

 

[Inspector #20]

Anymore, I don’t worry so much how pickups compare with something else. I just listen to hear if the pickup can give me the sound I want with the rig I have.

Usually, it’s less a matter of the pickups and more matter of the overall rig. Not saying pickups don’t matter at all, but other things can have a bigger influence.

I‘ve never been truly disappointed with any Gibson pickup.

Years go, I went through a period of magnet swapping in the ’57 Classics in my SG. In the end, after a couple years, I ended up putting the original magnets right back in.

I totally gave up pickup swapping after the YelloStrat project. I had DiMarzio build me a passive humbucker that sounded like an EMG81TW. It worked, but was it necessary???

TBTH, the Gibson pickups seem to do everything well and its truly the amp where you get the most influence over your sound...

 

[ibmorjamn]

I completely missed and forgot about this thread.
Thank you for all the replies.

I put a used pair in my EPI G400, a used 490R with a swapped short A5 magnet (T-top mod) in the bridge of my Firefly V, and they came in the SG Tribute I got yesterday. I like them just fine, but I dont have vast experience with aftermarket pickups to compare them to.

Wait T-Top mod you say, short A5 you say? Well, that could be a game changer for me.

 

[Col Mustard]

I got 490r and 490t in my first SG. There was a lot of hate for those pickups over on ETSG
with guys claiming they sounded like mud, and other guys claiming they were wimpy.
I played mine for about eight months and learned how to dial in the tone I wanted.

IMHO the 490t is not as hot as other Gibson p'ups used at the bridge position, such as the 498t.
In the end, I swapped them out for a pair of Gibson '57 classic and classic plus pickups and I have
never looked back. SGs and '57s are made for each other IMHO.

What I did with my 490s was to swap them into my stepdaughter's Epi Les Paul Special ll.
Lordy mama did that make a difference. They sounded so much better in the Epiphone than they
ever did in the SG. That entry level Les Paul sounded fine with its stock pickups... kind of an amazing guitar
given that her dad prolly paid $150 for it in 2006.

When I got done modding it, it sounds like excellentl. And plays really well too.
Hey, it's a Les Paul, eh? But remember, it's a laminated body Les Paul (read that: plywood)
with a bolt-on neck.
Epiphone never tells anyone what kind of wood the Special ll is made of.
Whatever they can pick up cheap, I figure.

Anyway the Epi Les Paul special ll responded very well to upgrades (which I performed out of love).
The fact that it sounds great with Gibson 490s is a way of disproving all arguments about the virtues
of tone wood for electric guitars. (wood is like, not magnetic).
Good pickups in a cheap guitar that's been set up well + a good amp = rock an roll in a lot of garages.

I still think the 490t doesn't have quite enough output, so you have to turn the neck volume down
if you want the bridge p'up to step out when you flip the selector. I switched the magnet from A2
to A5 and that gave it a bit more sizzle.

 

[gball]

Wait T-Top mod you say, short A5 you say? Well, that could be a game changer for me.

Yeah, I have not done it but supposedly you can cop a real good mid-production/mid-'70s T-Top tone by doing the switch.
If you want to get the more aggressive late production/late-'70s sound you can put a ceramic magnet in them, but don't ask me which one.

 

[Mr Grumpy]

I'm thinking of putting one of these in my Epi G400 SG.
I have a set of Guitarmadness 59er in there now. They are pretty good.

But, since I am liking the BB Pros in my LP Studio, I might try this.

I'm seeing them used around $80.

It really depends on what sound you like and are after.

I've tried many of the Gibson PUs, and I like the 57 and 490 in the neck (R), but I don't like either in the bridge (T/plus). I prefer an edgier sound that is just my personal preference. I've had a 498T in the bridge of both a Gibson and an Epiphone (see below) which I really liked with a 490R in the neck. I also had an Angus Young in the bridge which was fantastic sounding, imho (with a 57 in the neck) - see below...

Epi with 490R and 498T - I really liked this setup.


Gibson with 57 (neck) and Angus Young - sounded great.

Good luck with your findings - it'd be good to hear what you chose and how it worked out for you. :dood:

 

[Mr Grumpy]

I completely missed and forgot about this thread.
Thank you for all the replies.

I put a used pair in my EPI G400, a used 490R with a swapped short A5 magnet (T-top mod) in the bridge of my Firefly V, and they came in the SG Tribute I got yesterday. I like them just fine, but I dont have vast experience with aftermarket pickups to compare them to.

Oops, I missed this while scrolling through...

Glad to hear that it worked our well for you. The SG tributes are great guitars - the second pic above is an SG Future Tribute (came with 57s and the strange 40:1 tuners - the tuners worked great, and so did the neck PU, imho).

:dood:

 

[jtcnj]

Glad to hear that it worked our well for you. The SG tributes are great guitars

Thanks, I'm digging the T-top mod, and the EPI sounds just fine. The 70's classsic rock tones are where I usually want to be.

I only got about 3hrs with the Tribute over 2 evenings last week. It has electronics issues and is being repaired under warranty service.
I knew what I wanted and it ticks those boxes, so I opted for the repair instead of returning it.

 

[67plexi]

My 2000 Gibson Explorer LE should be stock with 496R and 500T but the seller had changed pickups
with Seymour Duncan SH1 and SH5 not happy the sound of the SH5 made me want to barf
the good the guitar was mint still had the plastic on the pick guard and I had a set of early T Top Gibson pickups with gold screws stock
it has a 1950's neck chunky after installing the T Top pickups what a difference for the better it's been my main player for the last 6 months.
had a NOS TP6 tail piece to top it off.

 

[gball]

My 2000 Gibson Explorer LE should be stock with 496R and 500T but the seller had changed pickups
with Seymour Duncan SH1 and SH5 not happy the sound of the SH5 made me want to barf
the good the guitar was mint still had the plastic on the pick guard and I had a set of early T Top Gibson pickups with gold screws stock
it has a 1950's neck chunky after installing the T Top pickups what a difference for the better it's been my main player for the last 6 months.
had a NOS TP6 tail piece to top it off.

View attachment 88882View attachment 88883View attachment 88884

Now that is awesome. T-Tops are my favorites, and the TP-6 is just the coolest.

 

[SG John]

I miss the T-Top I had in the neck position of my old '69 SG Standard. It was a great sounding guitar.

 

[Mr Grumpy]

I only got about 3hrs with the Tribute over 2 evenings last week. It has electronics issues and is being repaired under warranty service.
I knew what I wanted and it ticks those boxes, so I opted for the repair instead of returning it.

That makes a lot of sense, as you like the guitar. If you've bonded with it then an easy electronics fix under warranty is quick and painless.

69 SG Standard

I do like a batwing SG...
(Is that a DiMarzio super distortion, or something similar, in the bridge position?)

 

[eclecticsynergy]

I like T-tops in neck position. For the bridge I prefer something a with a little more depth and muscle.
If playing one guitar all the time, I can dial in my rig to make a T-top sound great at the bridge, too.
But normally I'm set up for switching between a few different guitars,
In that situation a bridge T-top sounds a bit weak compared to most others.

 

[eclecticsynergy]

(Is that a DiMarzio super distortion, or something similar, in the bridge position?)

Judging by the giant hex screws, I think it's probably a Duncan Invader.
Others have used the big head hex design too, of course.
But I think Duncan was the first.