2018 vs 2019 Custombuckers

[boola1]

Has anybody been able to compare the >2019 Custombuckers with 2018?

I know the difference in feel that the unpotted buckers provide and I love it but how about the tone? Are the 2019 Custombuckers also a lot brighter? I'm reading all sorts of contradictory things on the net.

 

[BDW60]

The ones in my 2019 CME R8 are pretty great. But they are the CME low winds (both 7.1). I love them. Just the right amount of everything and very clear. I also had a 2019 60th R9 and those were the standard ones ... they weren’t overly bright. In fact, they were bordering on a bit dull in that particular guitar.

That’s the thing. Who knows how much of it is the pickups and how much of it is the guitar they’re sitting in.

 

[strat1701]

I have both iterations. My observations:

2018's are (or should be) potted pickups but are a bit better than previous years custombuckers imho. They have better articulation, a touch of brightness but nowhere brash at all.

2019's are un-potted and have the updated electronics. They seem more 'open' and clearer to me, much like a guitar with an aftermarket wiring harness swap (not AS good as say an MSSC but still better than previous historics) Very articulate.

In a direct A/B shootout between a 2018 and a 2019 (R9's both) they're close, I tended to prefer the 2019's slightly more articulate attack, but they're very close IMHO. I don't think either year are overly bright, slightly but nothing brash or ear splitting horrible like a 57 classic, man I hate those pickups.

 

[Tim Plains]

You should be asking if any has tried both in the same guitar.

 

[PageSide84]

The ones in my 2019 CME R8 are pretty great. But they are the CME low winds (both 7.1). I love them. Just the right amount of everything and very clear. I also had a 2019 60th R9 and those were the standard ones ... they weren’t overly bright. In fact, they were bordering on a bit dull in that particular guitar.

That’s the thing. Who knows how much of it is the pickups and how much of it is the guitar they’re sitting in.

These CME low-wind pickups are incredible. I have them in my 2019 CME-spec R9. They aren't nearly as hot as the pickups in my 2013 R8, but they are much clearer and snappier. There's something Telecastery about them. That said, they're potted, unlike the regular 2019 Custombuckers.

 

[Clint]

I have a pair of unpotted CBs that came out of an 2019 R9 Anniversary if anybody wants them. They sounded great clean but I play with some gain and they were a bit too squealy.

 

[BDW60]

These CME low-wind pickups are incredible. I have them in my 2019 CME-spec R9. They aren't nearly as hot as the pickups in my 2013 R8, but they are much clearer and snappier. There's something Telecastery about them. That said, they're potted, unlike the regular 2019 Custombuckers.

Perfectly described. I assume it’s a real light potting because they still sound very open.

 

[blindLUCK]

I have a pair of unpotted CBs that came out of an 2019 R9 Anniversary if anybody wants them. They sounded great clean but I play with some gain and they were a bit too squealy.

@Clint still have them? I’d be interested!

 

[goldtop0]

Splitting hairs here I think.
These pups will be different whether potted or unpotted set to set, I like them either way but as I say each pair will be different A/B. Best stock pups since the '60s T-Tops imo.

 

[Sct13]

I agree with Tim....

the thing is how well are they cutting through a mix with a tube amp? If you're in a band situation, then you should be looking at where your guitar is sitting in the mix. Its all about frequency space...

I used to struggle with guitar tone, till someone said turn up the treble, turn down the bass, crank the mids and flavor with your presence and control everything with the volume knob on your guitar.

Pickup choices come after you master this ....

to answer your question ....the 2019's in that guitar were lively and very clear. the 2020's are even better, both are unpotted. I didnt keep the 18' R8 long enough to even announce it here.

Pots have a lot to do with the (what I call Bite) the attack is very important to my ears and my playing style.....I want a hard attack, but not too harsh, I pick very heavy and brutish.....and too much will get annoying to the listener....

There is a squshy thing you need to watch out for and some new Gibson pots do this with ....its not good...

Really dig into your amp settings and record yourself....be honest and go from there, many times cleaner and articulate is way better, and you can get that with the correct pots, unpotted lower winds...in the right guitar.

 

[Cory]

Technically speaking, there is no difference between the 2 other than the fact that one is potted and the other is not - there’s other factors to consider (do you use high gain, etc.) that might negate one being better than the other for you - that being said, I’d take the unpotted 2019+ custom buckers any day of the week - potted CB’s were my favorite pickups until Gibson started releasing them unpotted - they are more open, snappier, slightly brighter/clearer - but this is indicative for the most part of an unpotted pickup when compared to a potted pickup - to me, once I had reissue LP’s with both I started to think that the potted pickups always sounded muffled no matter what compared to the unpotted CB’s (even if I tried adjusting my amp’s EQ) - at this point I now only own reissues with the unpotted CB’s - I like them that much more - I do play with a good amount of gain at times (I have a Friedman Smallbox that’s been modded to add the JBE circuit), and I don’t have any squealing/noise issues - might not be the case for every rig/set-up though - hope this helps!

 

[theresstrange]

...and no one is talking about the tone caps between the years. 2019 was the year Gibson Custom Shop started to use the Luxe capacitors. Whether you can hear the difference or not, it affects the characteristics of the frequency rolloffs. Just saying. Also the Custombuckers were purposely wound with variances, so to do a comparison might be fools folly. SCt13 has points as does Tim. Remember the whole is a sum of it's parts.

 

[Sct13]

Yep that is so true…

Cap roll off is important. I’m not apt to use the tone knob as much, unless the guitar /pick ups / amp combination is too shrill …

But you should certainly learn to take full advantage of that pot option.

 

[Jvmalan]

Has anybody been able to compare the >2019 Custombuckers with 2018?

I know the difference in feel that the unpotted buckers provide and I love it but how about the tone? Are the 2019 Custombuckers also a lot brighter? I'm reading all sorts of contradictory things on the net.

The tone is somewhere between a tele played thur a 15 watt amp and lp jr through a marshal . However on the neck pup it’s a little brighter than a electric ukulele played through a Supro.. it’s a medium wind of copper with a little brass thrown in. If it has a rosewood finger board then everything is the opposite. Hope this helps!

 

[59PAF]

I have a pair of unpotted CBs that came out of an 2019 R9 Anniversary if anybody wants them. They sounded great clean but I play with some gain and they were a bit too squealy.

How much are you asking for those pickups. I have a set of Dimarzio 59's unpotted in my les paul.

 

[Clint]

That set is long gone. I still think they were not good pickups for playing with any decent gain due to all the squealing. Maybe I got a bad set.
That said, I have another set that came out of a 2021 R9. Feel free to PM me if interested. They won't be cheap.