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View Full Version : Black Epi LP Custom - install gold Gibson 57 and plus pups?



Duffy
August 21st, 2011, 05:50 AM
I have a fairly new black Epi LP Custom that I want to put new high quality pickups into.

I am considering Gibson USA 57 Classic and 57 Classic Plus pickups with gold plating to match the guita's gold hardware.

Does anyone have any insight into this upgrade or has anyone actually done this upgrade? Any general ideas as to how the 57 classic and plus will sound in this guitar compared to the stock pups or any comments on their sound in general?

From my personal perspective I think these pickups will provide a sound improvement in an otherwise stock Epi LP Custom. I'm just trying to see if anyone else has any personal observations regarding this application, aside from purely subjective, "It's all highly personal and up to you...", type fairly useless comments. Obviously pickup choice is personal preference. And since I have sort of decided to put these particular ones in, I'm hoping to get some feedback form others that possibly have some first hand experience from likewise putting these pickups in this same or a very similar guitar and what their feelings are.

I would also consider suggestions of other pickups that people may have had particularly good experiences with putting into this or a very similar guitar. I'm not totally committed to the 57's at this point, yet.

I have put some great Seymour Duncans in other Epi LP Standards and other guitars, such as the nickel plated JB/59 set, which is by no means a slouch of a pickup set. I have put them in a Epi Standard and and Epi Standard Plus top, as well as a Schecter C-1 E/A. They sound great. I have another guitar with the Custom 5/59 set that also sounds great.

My Epi Tribute came stock with the 57/57 plus pickup set and it sounds really great. I'm thinking this sound would be great in the LP Custom, but I'm curious as to if anyone else has put these in the Custom, or another similar guitar, and their impressions.

I hope this doesn't turn into a "this is totally subjective and impossible to answer" type of exercise. I'd like to hear from people who have actually put these in their similar guitar and their "personal, objective as possible", assessments of the pickups. I'm not interested in knowing what others think I will think about the sound of these pickups; rather I'm interested in finding out what others observations are about he sound of these pickups in their own guitars.

Fairly simple actually, and not an invitation to the "it's totally subjective" non-conversation. I know how some of these discussions can degenerate into oblivion really fast based on the "it's totally subjective" viewpoint. Therefore objective comments are desired.

Obviously these are expensive pickups, as is most Gibson labelled stuff; but they are not outrageously more expensive than SD gold covered
'59's or Alnico II Pro's or any other Seymour Duncan pickup. I'm not as interested in the price of these pickups as I am in their perceived sound by people who have put them in their guitars.

Thanks in advance to anyone who has experience with these or others and wants to share their observations with a prospective purchaser.

I want to put some real nice pickups in this Custom and have extablished the Gibson 57 set as a focal point to get some feedback on, and possibly get some experienced feedback on some suggested alternatives, if possible.

I know we have some experienced guys here that have probably looked at this option, if not aready completed the swap already. This is a really nice black Custom I have and it's worthy of some nice pickups, considering that, from my observation, the stock pickups are adequate but not awesome.

FrankenFretter
August 21st, 2011, 07:03 AM
Hey Duffy, as you may recall, I have the same Epi Tribute that you do. I love those '57s, and that's kind of where the bar has been set to compare others to. I recently got a '57 Classic neck pickup that I'll be putting in my new Gladiator GG-157 (http://www.thefret.net/showthread.php/18927-NGD-Peter-Graves-would-be-proud.-Picture-heavy!!!?highlight=). I love the sound of that neck pickup, and I have yet to find any other pickup that sounds that good in that position. For the bridge, I selected a Sin custom (http://www.ebay.com/itm/300589271218?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1439.l2649#ht_600wt_952) hand-wound alnico II nickel covered pickup. After putting a set of these Sins in my Agile AL-2000 HSB (http://www.thefret.net/showthread.php/18303-Agile-Lemon-Drop-Project-is-finished!-New-photos-5-27-11?highlight=), I decided I really like the sound of these. My other favorite pickups would be the Bareknuckle Riff Raffs that are in my Hell Bender. They have the warmth of the '57s, but with more bite.

Hopefully you'll find the right pickups for your tonal desires. I do think that you probably can't go wrong with the '57 Classic and Classic Plus. Good luck!

Duffy
August 23rd, 2011, 03:12 AM
Yeah. I'm thinking 57's.