I think I'll say goodbye to the Burstbucker Pros

[Tobaccoburst83]

Hi,

I don't like the BB Pros in my Signature Player Plus. The neck is okay but sometimes I think the bridge pickup sounds very harsh, trebly and not full at all (a little bit of "singlecoil style"). I use the volume and tone knobs a lot but I think it's time for another set of pickups!

As I'm a big fan of low output pickups as the 57 and Alnico 2 Pro, Slash, etc. I think those pickups are the ones I'm looking for.
Maybe the Toneriders AC2 or Rocksongs will be a great choice. Or maybe the Dimarzio 36th, although they have Alnico V magnets.

The pots I use are (I guess) 300k pots as Gibson use those pots for newer Les Pauls such as the Signature Player Plus models.

What do you think about the BB Pros?

 

[cybermgk]

First, make sure you adjust the bridge height. BB Pros, in my experience are very touchy on pup height.. NOW, they are not everybody's cup of tea, because they are very mid scooped. But many say they come alive by boosting mids on the amp, or preset or with an EQ pedal or mid heavy Tube Screamer.. YMMV,

 

[jbash]

Save yourself some money and install a set of Unoriented A5 magnets, or A2 Magnets (effectively turning them into the BB1/2 set) before you try swapping them out.

 

[Tobaccoburst83]

First, make sure you adjust the bridge height. BB Pros, in my experience are very touchy on pup height..

What wild be the best height? Shell I measure it during holding down the E/e-strings At the last frets?

 

[TXOldRedRocker]

What do you think about the BB Pros?

For me, I like them. They are a bit mid scooped (as mentioned above) and honky. But, out of my 5 Les Paul's, it's the one best suited for rhythm guitar. Has nice clean tones. The mid scooped helps with that, plus when I take out even more mids I can get a glassy tone great for blues songs. I think of them as kind of a good pedal platform pickup. Very clean and with pedals, or the right amp, you can boost into excellent lead tones. So I find them to be quite versatile. Maybe a reason they're in stock guitars.

Now, as mentioned above, I spent time adjusting the pole pieces to get equal output across all 6 strings, and adjusted the height to my liking.

 

[cybermgk]

What wild be the best height? Shell I measure it during holding down the E/e-strings At the last frets?

No specific height, more to the best sound to your ears. Then as @TXOldRedRocker
says, adjust the pole pieces.

 

[Willthebroke]

I just install them in a Bacchus Les Paul, first impression is good, I tried it through a Marshall SC20 with a 12 o´clock eq on bass/mid/treble and the pickups response was nice to my ears,
Then I tried them on my Mark V:35 and I had to increase the mids til 2 o'clock to find the sound I was looking for,
I was waiting on the second hand market for a pair or BB1/2 but they were sold, in the end I found the Pro´s and made my decision, I´m no regreting at all, and as @jbash is mentioning, is an easy change to get the BB1/2 from these ones

 

[Tobaccoburst83]

Ok, I will try to adjust/increase the mids. But those pickups seem to be very picky...

 

[rogue3]

Ok, I will try to adjust/increase the mids. But those pickups seem to be very picky...

I feel the same way about BB's 1 &2 i have owned. Had them in a 2011 R8...meh,ice pick,sterile.sold it. Have them in a 2010 R8. Pretty nice sounding.No ice pick,much fuller sounding.But still... I have a spare set of Seths from 2003 in the parts bin.And some Tim Shaw Paf's.I will try them at some point, just because i am left slightly wanting,and curious to see how the wood reacts to the pickup swap.Or i just may sell it too.idk.

 

[Classicplayer]

I feel the same way about BB's 1 &2 i have owned. Had them in a 2011 R8...meh,ice pick,sterile.sold it. Have them in a 2010 R8. Pretty nice sounding.No ice pick,much fuller sounding.But still... I have a spare set of Seths from 2003 in the parts bin.And some Tim Shaw Paf's.I will try them at some point, just because i am left slightly wanting,and curious to see how the wood reacts to the pickup swap.Or i just may sell it too.idk.

I have Burstbucker 1&2 in a 2018 Trad and Seths in a 2000 Classic. I can make each set similar sounding to each other by setting the e.q. on my amp and using the guitar knobs.
The tricky and aggravating part is to get the BB heights just right and I can hear “spikes” in individual notes when picked. The Seths are not quite that way, but their heights are also fussy to get the tones I want to hear.

This is where guitar skills in knowing where all the inversions of the chords you rely on are located on the fingerboard. That knowledge allows you freedom to voice your chords so as to relieve those unwanted “spikes”. It's the main reason why some players sound so good using the same pickups you use, but which you might have trouble with. Just watch Page's and Slash's left hand fingering for awhile and figure out for yourself why each sounds the way they do.

classicplayer

 

[MP4-22]

Try an Eq in the front.... I do this to mess with frequencies i want more or less of and it really can do wonders. Little bit can have a profound effect on your tone. Very versatile tool to have...Boss GE-7 is my favorite for size and simplicity.

 

[Tobaccoburst83]

Save yourself some money and install a set of Unoriented A5 magnets, or A2 Magnets (effectively turning them into the BB1/2 set) before you try swapping them out.

Hm, I think I should give it a try! Are there differences in those magnets regarding quality?

Increasing mids did help.

 

[InversePolarity]

BB1 with A5 in neck, BB3 with A5 in bridge, both lowered a couple-few screw turns from the "recommended" 1/16th and 3/32nd heights, and adjust the pole heights as needed to dial on the mids. Adjust the tone knobs to taste, maybe think about a treble bleed circuit to retain clarity at lower volumes. Really no need for an outboard EQ pedal or radical amp EQ settings if the axe is capable of covering the tonal spectrum you're after.

 

[Tobaccoburst83]

I still have a question...

How could it be that the bridge BB Pro is so picky and scooped-sounding but not the neck version? The neck pickup sounds so full and thick.

 

[uncle mud]

Replace them with Seymour Duncan Antiquities is what I would do.

 

[rogue3]

or mid heavy Tube Screamer.. YMMV,

My original Tube Screamer Classic's(mij>TS10) are the word for the description mid heavy. They also tame the high end.They get even better when you jockey the guitar's volume down a little, perfect...i understand why Stevie liked them so much.Funny when they came out ('86>'90),they were cheapo TS's. I was shocked to go online recently and see people asking silly money for them(500$ +).

They do have a special sonic mojo to them, when i compare to my other TS type pedals.unique,imho.The perfect mate for the op's issue, i would speculate.
Both of mine currently have priority on the floor when i just want to go through one box into the amp.
They work better for me with single coils(tele) I find them too compressed for higher powered humbuckers...but with low powered trebly paf's,might be just the ticket.
For modest boost on all the time.control from guitar volume knob.
Back to the future for me.

to the op: honestly,don't dump those pros till you try some of the EQ suggestions in the thread, including different boost pedals.

 

[Gibsonrocknroll]

I like the Classic 57/Classic 57 Plus combo.

 

[LP1865]

Toneriders AC2 or Rocksongs

The Rocksongs are super versatile.
I play Djent on them, but have played jazz with the bridge coil split and the switch in middle position too

 

[01GT Eibach]

BB1 with A5 in neck, BB3 with A5 in bridge, both lowered a couple-few screw turns from the "recommended" 1/16th and 3/32nd heights ...

Somewhat similar to the above, I also got a BB3 in the bridge, except I got a 57 Classic in the neck in my 2010 Trad Pro -- they work great together and have killer tone.

 

[EscapedTexan]

Hi,

I don't like the BB Pros in my Signature Player Plus.

As I'm a big fan of low output pickups as the 57 and Alnico 2 Pro, Slash, etc.

What do you think about the BB Pros?

Just saw a pair of 57/57+'s for sale in the classifieds section on this site. I have a pair coupled with bumblebee caps and emerson pro cts 500 pots in an SG and they sound amazing, totally full. More of a vintage sound, not that hot.