SD Seth Lovers vs. Antiquties

[bblooz]

I have a set of Seymour Duncan Seth Lovers I was thinking about installing in an R7 and was wondiering what the difference would be between the Lovers and Antiquties (other than the aged covers)?

 

[dmoss74]

the antiquities use weakened magnets. they all use a2 magnets, but the ants read at about 8.6 for the bridge, and 7.7 for the neck, while the sl bridge is 8.3, and the neck is 7.4.

i've never personally played a seth lover. the only experience i ever had with any of them was an antiquity bridge, which i immediately bailed on and sold. probably the single most anemic pickup i've ever heard. i could have tried strengthening the magnet, or another magnet altogether, but i didn't want to waste the time.

some people swear by either of them, but there's really know way to tell until you put them in your specific guitar.

 

[sws1]

They are similar. Antiquities are a bit 'softer' in how they ring out. A tad more mellow, for lack of a better term.

Seth's are more immediate and a slightly quicker attack on the note.

I have them both. Antiquities in an LP, and Seths in an ES-335. Both are great, and they are fairly close.

I put the Seths in ES335 because those guitars already have a thick midrange due to being hollow, so it fills out.

I will add that I play more bluesy rock. Amps often on the edge of breakup. I don't play high gain. So folks that play with amps like that, or metal, might find antiquities a bit squishy.

 

[riffsmachine]

They are similar. Antiquities are a bit 'softer' in how they ring out. A tad more mellow, for lack of a better term.

Seth's are more immediate and a slightly quicker attack on the note.

I have them both. Antiquities in an LP, and Seths in an ES-335. Both are great, and they are fairly close.

I put the Seths in ES335 because those guitars already have a thick midrange due to being hollow, so it fills out.

I will add that I play more bluesy rock. Amps often on the edge of breakup. I don't play high gain. So folks that play with amps like that, or metal, might find antiquities a bit squishy.

Exactly same experience.....

 

[Zoobiedood]

I can add that the Antiquities always sounded slightly more open, cleaner, and clearer. The Seths have a little more 'complex' mids in them, and are open too, but you hear those mids a little more (to my ears).

 

[Les Paulverizer]

Seth Lovers have slightly more midrange and "body" whereas the Antiquity's are ever so slightly clearer.
I mean, I was told that by someone at Seymour Duncan.

 

[sonar]

Antiquities can vary a little bit from one pickup to another due to the intentional variance in winding. A friend has owned multiple Ant. sets. Some kill in the right LP, others not as much.

Seth Lovers are pretty consistent from one set to the next.

I generally agree with everyone else about the tone differences.

FWIW, I think SL's are some of the best, non-boutique PAF style humbuckers made today. They really compliment Semi-Hollow's and Chambered LP's extremely well.

 

[lunchbox]

I tried Ants and found them to be soft and muddy. They didn't have much attack and not the greatest response to picking. They lasted approx 48 hours in my 91 Standard.

I switched them out for the Seths. They are a way better pups for blues and hard rock. More punch, mids, great attack and pick response.

And I lost $$$ selling the Ants.

 

[mdubya]

No experience, but I thought of this video. They sound very similar to me.

[ame]www.youtube.com/watch?v=IDpeAfVOBy8[/ame]

 

[darthphineas]

the antiquities use weakened magnets. they all use a2 magnets,

^^^ this ^^^


it's like finding today a Seth that was made back in the day.

you can also put an A3 in there and pretty much have a Bonamassa, without the price tag

 

[Guitar Rod]

I saw that video awhile back, and the Seths sound much livelier to me and perhaps a bit hotter. The Ants sound more muted. Very much like a mellowed Seth, which is what it's supposed to be I guess.

 

[bblooz]

Thanks for all the input gang. So I'll open the door for more conjecture - will the Seth Lovers be too bright to install in my R7?

 

[ARandall]

Impossible to tell.

 

[lunchbox]

Thanks for all the input gang. So I'll open the door for more conjecture - will the Seth Lovers be too bright to install in my R7?

Not to me. I really liked them in mine.

 

[skelt101]

Thanks for all the input gang. So I'll open the door for more conjecture - will the Seth Lovers be too bright to install in my R7?

Only you can decide what is too bright for your guitar. Personally, I would rather have a bright guitar than the other way around. If it's too much, that's what the Tone knobs are for!

 

[LtKojak]

I've had both Seth Lovers and Antiquities in my guitars, and I use magnet swapping as a simple and economical way of "tailor" the p'ups voice to the instrument.

In my maple-bodied, mahogany necked 335 copy, the best match was a fully-charged, roughcast A3/A2-modded Antiquity set. Nowadays' Larry Carlton tone for days and then some.

My all-maple 335 copy got the best tone ever with Electric City Pickups Freedom set (roughcast A4s). It also got impossible to mask any sloppiness in my playing... talking about feeling naked on stage, LOL!

My Epi 339 Pro got the same roughcast A3/A2 mag set I've used before in a Seth Lover set, which led to the clearest tonal solution for my Smooth Jazz project... and the best middle-position tone for B.B. King licks I've ever heard in any guitar but B.B. King's own, of course!

The comparison I've made between the two sets (with the same non stock mag set, mind you) is that the Ant set has a throaty, closed vowel male vibe that has a lyrical singing quality but not explosive, reminding me the singing of Andrea Bocelli.

The Seth set has a clearer, lighter, open vowel quality, reminding me the singing of James Taylor.

I hope this makes sense to some...

HTH,

 

[sws1]

LPs should be bright. Original PAFs are brighter than many think. Easy to roll down the tone knob to 8.

 

[Guitar Rod]

No humbucking pickup should EVER remind anyone of James Taylor.

 

[LtKojak]

No humbucking pickup should EVER remind anyone of James Taylor.

So, strat Pickups it is!

 

[Zoobiedood]

Thanks for all the input gang. So I'll open the door for more conjecture - will the Seth Lovers be too bright to install in my R7?

Absolutely not. You'd have an amazing sounding LP. I've never heard Seths sound too bright in an LP.