What kind of "pickup" person are you?

[The_Sentry]

Honest question....

Do you find yourself putting the same pickups in all of your guitars, or do you put a different set in each guitar?

[gmacdonnell]

good question. I think it also comes down to who you are as a player and what you want to do. Slash famously uses Alnico II Pros in all his non-vintage guitars, but he of course, is identified with a singular sound that people have come to expect.

There are lot's of player who've found one winder who just does it for them so much that they use that one maker for all their guitars.

And then there are guys like me, who are cursed with pickupophila and try to seek out the ultimate pickup for each guitar, and each application. It's a terrible affliction...

[The_Sentry]

Originally Posted by gmacdonnell

good question. I think it also comes down to who you are as a player and what you want to do. Slash famously uses Alnico II Pros in all his non-vintage guitars, but he of course, is identified with a singular sound that people have come to expect.

There are lot's of player who've found one winder who just does it for them so much that they use that one maker for all their guitars.

And then there are guys like me, who are cursed with pickupophila and try to seek out the ultimate pickup for each guitar, and each application. It's a terrible affliction...

I have to admit I suffer from a similar dysfunction. I don't have the same set of pups in any of my guitars...part of it is a pursuit to make them sound as good as possible, but on the other hand..I want them to all sound different from each other as well.....

[Liam]

Had to go with option 3. All 4 of my Teles have the same pickups in them, got a couple of Strats, but they vary. Les Pauls and other humbucking guitars USED to all have 57 Classics (and Classic+), but that's just a mishmash nowadays. Hoping for a new set soon...

A foot in each camp, I guess...

[stryker59]

ive got different pickups in each guitar..ive switched some around to find what works best..

[gmacdonnell]

not to mention, swapping magnets, or mixing different sets of pickups...
Heck I've even done that on friend's and bandmates guitars. Most of the m turned out real well. One or two had to be returned to their original state when things went south.

An Antiquity with an Alnico IV, and a '78 from Seymour Duncan was an awesome combo, and I wish I still had them, and the guitar they were in.

[V!N]

I used to try and pickup ladies at bars, but I have the subtlety of a 10 lbs sledgehammer ..
So yes, I voted for the third option.

[The_Sentry]

Originally Posted by V!N

I used to try and pickup ladies at bars, but I have the subtlety of a 10 lbs sledgehammer ..
So yes, I voted for the third option.

[zplapplap]

I am definately in the second category. All of my guitars have different pickups. Since I am not a collecter, all I'm looking to do is cover the broad categories as best I can.

Now I have an LP with 57 & 57 Plus, A strat with SCN pickups and the S-1 switching, and a hollow-body with P-90's. My next two guitar, despite my love for LP's and gas for an ES335 or 355, will be a tele (why do I keep on selling these) and a Gretsch. It might be a few years before I add the second guitar. The tele is a more immediate concern.

I moved to Washington during summer for the past two years and I've moved twice during that time. I thought 6 guitars was too many, but I had a '72 tele thinline reissue and a '03 American telecaster HS and I would have loved to still have either or both. So it goes.

Anyway, my goal is this point is coverage. If something calls for a tele, then I want a tele. Same for stat, LP and so on. I tried a PRS Swamp Ash Special that covered a lot of ground and was very versitile, but I never got comfortable with it.

[Jody]

LP-Emg's
Ibanez RG-Dimarzio
Jackson Rhoads "V"-Seymour duncan..
Dean ML-original
Thay all have their perpose...............

[ptate]

Gibson pup junkie all the way:

Set of original black PAF's in one LP.
Set of creme Shaw PAF's (with base stickers) that have been swapped through 4 different LP's over the years.
Two 1970 Deluxes with serial number mini-buckers.
Set of Shed P90's in one (identical aged 50's replicas).

I'm a dedicated tone idiot and once I get what I want, that's it. The pups are swapped out all the time (unless it's original to that guitar!).

[dork5002002]

I have many different because most of my guitars are second hand. My strats have tons of different pups in them. I can tell by just looking at them. Every guitar that I have changed the pups in I put in seymour duncan jb/jazz. I just love that combo, but it doesn't fit in a strat. Most of my strats sound great anyways.

Sorry for the ramble, thats just my 2¢

[CARNAGE222]

I have three guitars and they all have different pickups. I'm still searching for the right tone. I've been an EMG guy for over 15 years, but I'm looking for something different for my LP. It's a 2007 studio with the stock pickups. I'm still doing my research on what pickups to put in it. I'm leaning towards WB ********s or ********** or something from Semour Duncan. I'm looking for something that's not really heavy metal, I have the EMGs for that. I want pickups that can go from classic rock (Led Zep/Aerosmith/Boston) to hard rock (Tesla/Ratt/Dokken). Any thoughts would be appreciated.

[huw]

I only change pickups if the ones that came with the guitar don't cut it. So my LP still has the stock BBs in it, but my custom has a SD Custom Custom/Jazz combo in it.

[MrRhoads]

I´ve got the Burstbucker Pros in my Les Paul, they do wan´t i wan´t them to do.
I don´t know about really heavy metal, haven´t had a good amp that provides me with that kind of distortion.
After i get my peavey windsor studio, i´m gonna try the Dimarzio 36th anniversary PAFs.
The Will Boggs set of ********** are also a hot candidate.

[JLH]

I have changed out pickups multiple times and had multiple pups and winds in multiple guitars, tried almost every one of the custom winders and there offerings $$$$$$$$$$, however, I always wind up in the end with the same pickups back in every guitar I own.
And the winners are always: WB Habenero's

[CARNAGE222]

Hey JLH. What syle of music are the ********s good for? Can you go from classic rock to hard rock to heavy metal? I've never heard them, but I've been researching them. Also, as far as I can tell by the website, it appears that WBs only come black or zebra. Does anyone know by chance if they make double creams? Thanks in advance. Any info is appreciated.

[River]

I voted b), but am thinking about retrofitting an HB LP with P90's like my Jr.

[5F6-A]

2nd option for sure!

[cplus]

I tend to swap pickups around, looking for the elusive 'holy grail' of tone. Of my current guitars, only one has the stock pickups but that's only because I'm waiting on a package from WB. My most recent acquisition, an '08 R9, has Peter Florence Voodoo '59s and they're not going anywhere. The '59s get me closest to the sound I hear in my head.

[smk506]

At one point and time I had different ickups in all my guitars that I would mix and match looking for different combos. For the past few years I have realy gotten into Bill Lawrences, the made in usa ones that everyone hates.

I like em enough to put them in four out of six guitars, and they are staying put in at least three of them for a long time. Reading all of Gmacs posts is giving me hardcore pickup gas as of late. I really want to try the SD Prails out i my Tokai, and those Pete Biltoft pups look sweet for the cash. Ahhhh gas, anyone got any pepto?

[5F6-A]

Originally Posted by smk506

I have realy gotten into Bill Lawrences, the made in usa ones that everyone hates.

?

hate? why?

[C Squared]

hmm... Difficult question to answer. Most guitars I record or perform with end up with a DiMarzio Norton in there somewhere, and something else DiMarzio to go with it. Ex: Norton in the Bridge, Fred in the neck. Norton in the neck, Breed in the bridge, etc. It is good to have a backup that will match your main ax, but why would you have multiple guitars set up to all sounds almost the same?

[lp_junkie]

I used to put the same pickups in every guitar, now I still use Dimarzios but I will vary between Super D's and Evolutions for the bridge and Air Norton or PAF Pro for the neck.

I do have a couple of guitars with other brands but for the most part stick with one brand.

[smk506]

Originally Posted by 5F6-A

hate? why?

I dont know. There is some lack of love beetween the guy making and selling Bill Lawrence U.S.A, and the legendary pickup designer Bill Lawrence.

I'v read a bit about it and quiet frankly it seems like bad blood beetween business partners and none of my concern. Both vendors claim to be making them with over stock parts from 'the golden years' so I wonder how much better or worse either can be.

[cynic79]

Different pickups in all my guitars. Each one sounds different, which is why I bought different guitars.

[zontar]

I like variety--so I have different ones on each--although I only have one guitar with single coils. My Les Paul has the pickups wired for series/parallel--
Series is the normal humbucker sound--the signal goes through each coil in series.

Parallel is like two single coils next to each other--the signal goes through each coil at the same time. So that sound is a bit thinner, and has a single coil sound to it. I like both sounds. So just with that guitar I have some different sounds.

I'd like to get Seymour Duncan P-Rails for humbucking, P-90 or Fender style single coil (with a rail) all in one pickup.

[LEFTY LES]

I have 3 guitars with 3 different pups in each. My Strat - single coils, LP - humbuckers and a GT with P-90's in it. I just dont see the point of having a bunch of guitars with all the same stuff in them sounding the same. Unless your pro and need a rig of guitars to all sound the same for back up I think its silly. But thats just me.