Gibson pickups to be sold separately?

[eodchop]

I was at Guitar Center today picking up a new Ebony Standard. The assistant manager mentioned that the pickups were good, but not great. He also mentioned that it was announced in their staff meeting today that they are going to start carrying the pickups that are on a Gibson LP standard. They would be sold in pairs for around 200 dollars.


My first question is, has anyone else heard this? My second question is would this be a worthy upgrade to a 450 dollar guitar? This is my first LP coming from a Strat.

Thanks!

 

[Dr.Distortion]

I think you can do better for $200...

 

[The_Sentry]

Burstbucker Pros come on a Gibby Standard.

You can do better. Much better....

So far, the best pickups I've had in my Epi LP Standard? Seymour Duncan Phat Cats. I prefer those over the '57 Classic pickup, and the BB 1 and 2 set..

The Seymour Duncan hot rodded set is also good. It's a much better deal too....

 

[eodchop]

I checked out the Seymour Duncan Phat Cats those are sweet! I like the price too! I wish i could hear the difference between them and the Burstbucker Pros. Anyone know what my 2010 LP standard has on them. It is an ebony standard with nickel pups.

 

[onioner]

IIRC epi standards have Alnico Classics on them (though I could be mistaken (and am too lazy to google (especially as you could easily do just that))).

For $100 a pop, you could do better than burstbuckers. They're fine pickups, but probably comparable to a decent DiMarzio or Seymour Duncan, at close to half the cost.

More to the point, I find it very worthwhile to upgrade the pups and wiring on an epiphone. You don't need super fancy pickups either. You can get some damned decent pups for ~$60 or so.

 

[BoldChris]

you are in a pretty tight spot, you can get them from gibson.com but they are not cheap. and if you go on craigslist or ebay or even a well known website you always run the risk of counterfit parts.

 

[GilmourD]

I was at Guitar Center today picking up a new Ebony Standard. The assistant manager mentioned that the pickups were good, but not great. He also mentioned that it was announced in their staff meeting today that they are going to start carrying the pickups that are on a Gibson LP standard. They would be sold in pairs for around 200 dollars.


My first question is, has anyone else heard this? My second question is would this be a worthy upgrade to a 450 dollar guitar? This is my first LP coming from a Strat.

Thanks!

Really? They just announced this?

I worked at Guitar Center from 2001 to 2002 and we carried Gibson pickups then. Every time I've been in any GC in my area since then, I've seen a couple Gibson pickups in the case.

Sounds like the guy was blowing smoke up your bum to make you feel special.

Honestly, you can get custom-wound pickups for less than Gibson charges for a machine-wound, standard spec pickup.

BG Pups Hand Wound Custom Guitar Pickups by Bryan Gunsher

I've got a few of his pickups and I've installed several of his pickups in other people's guitars. I've been left drooling with tonal satisfaction every time.

 

[Diocletian]

you are in a pretty tight spot, you can get them from gibson.com but they are not cheap. and if you go on craigslist or ebay or even a well known website you always run the risk of counterfit parts.

Eh? How is he in a tight spot?

I've bought and sold dozens of Duncans and DiMarzios and never had a problem.

 

[lp_junkie]

Gibson pups suck anyways, the Duncan 59's destroy them, then there are the custom winders that absolutely put everything else to shame.

Gibson pups for $200 cost $199 too much.

 

[The_Sentry]

I checked out the Seymour Duncan Phat Cats those are sweet! I like the price too! I wish i could hear the difference between them and the Burstbucker Pros. Anyone know what my 2010 LP standard has on them. It is an ebony standard with nickel pups.

I don't have any direct comparison videos. I did have BB Pros in an Epi Custom and they...just sounded awful...especially for the price. Eventually I ended up splitting the pair up and using them as neck pickups. (They seem to be fine for that, but they're...too bright for bridge use. And not in a good way.)

The Phat Cats are a completely different animal anyway. They're a single coil pickup based off of a P-90. They're not the greatest if you're into hard/overdriven tones...but if you're into blues/classic rock and you're looking for that sweet, chime-tone...they really are tough to beat.

 

[-=[Shifty]=-]

Huh, aren't Gibson pickups sold separately for like....forever?

 

[JasonLovesRock]

the newer burstbucker pros suck. get the 57 classic set! or ducan 59's

 

[Deftone]

I've bought 6 Gibson p'ups seprately. I'm not sure what the OP means.

 

[AnthemBassMan]

-Unless Gibson is just starting to sell matched sets, they have sold single pickups for years. You can always tell the retail pickups because they have the 4 conductor leads and the factory installed p'ups have the 2 conductor except for the Burstbuckers and '57s. But you can get the '57s either way.

L8R,
Matt

 

[The Refugee]

They would be sold in pairs for around 200 dollars.

I just checked GC prices, and 1 burstbucker pro pickup is about 120 bucks (or 135 depending on the color). Maybe OP means that they're selling them in pairs for 200 dollars instead of 240+ they would normally be...? Idk just throwing ideas out there

 

[lp_junkie]

In pairs they suck twice as bad.......... there are tons of better pickups on the market than Gibsons.

 

[The Refugee]

In pairs they suck twice as bad.......... there are tons of better pickups on the market than Gibsons.

I think it's about time we have some revolutionary pickups...

 

[lp_junkie]

I think it's about time we have some revolutionary pickups...

yeah that would be neat, but they would be overpriced.........and already done decades ago .

 

[AnthemBassMan]

-I for one like some of the Gibson offerings. The 57 Classics are very sweet. As are the Burstbucker 1 and 2 combo. Remember, tone is in the ears of the beholder. Don't care much for the 490R/490T set, but I know quite a few people who will never change them out because they love them. Remember, one man's trash is another man's treasure. As far as price is concerned, Gibson overcharges quite a bit. But you can always find a budget friendly used set on eBay.

L8R,
Matt

 

[The Refugee]

yeah that would be neat, but they would be overpriced.........and already done decades ago .

Gibson? Overpriced?! Blasphemy!