500t in LPC not doing it for me anymore

[cphr3d]

So, as noted in the subject line, the 500t in my Les Paul Classic just isnt doing it for me anymore. I used to love the sound of the 500t in my Les Paul, but over the last few months Im finding that I like it less and less. Im starting to like the Dragon IIs in my PRS much more. Not sure if I have a pot going bad in my Les Paul or what, but the 500t is less and less appealing to me. Not sure if Im starting to prefer alnico's (like the Dragon II) over ceramics, but the Dragon II's seem to have a more rounded sound to my ears.

So, this has me thinking that it might be time for a pickup swap in my Les Paul. Or should I try swapping out the stock Gibson pots first? Any thoughts or suggestions? Im really perplexed by this, as the 500t should be (and used to be) right up my alley. If I do swap out the pickups, Im leaning towards Fluff's beard combers, a Motor City pup, or Bare Knuckle pup.

 

[SFW]

Definitely swap the pots for some quality 500k ones. The stock 300k doesn't do the 500T any favors.

 

[ericsabbath]

the bare knuckle emerald has a similar voicing to the dragon II
but honestly, all BKP humbuckers and P-90's sound amazing in les paul

if you want something in the 500t ballpark, but without all that harshness and lack of clarity, any of BKP's ceramic models will do much better
you just gotta figure out in which direction you wanna go soundwise
the c-pig will be fatter, the miracle man sounds punchier, a lot clearer, more focused and less mid bloated, the aftermath has a similar voicing, but it's less bassy and extremely articulate, the painkiller has a little more aggressive upper mids, but is also very clear, and the c-bomb seems to be the most balanced option among the ceramics

I recently replaced a 500t in a friends explorer with a cold sweat
it was a HUGE improvement
it lost some midrange meat, but the tone was a lot punchier and really open
the sweat has a strong and bright top end, but it never sounds harsh or spikey, unlike the 500t
lead tone is amazing and the cleans are espectacular for a ceramic pickup
the neck cold sweat was also a huge improvement over the 496r
the articulation is amazing and it still retained a lot of sustain, although it's no near as hot as the 496r

I've been enjoying the vintage and vintage hot models better in the last couple years
my favorites are the riff raff and the mule, but I also love the vhii and black dog

my favorite les paul pickup used to be the holy diver for years
the alnico nailbomb wasn't my thing, but would also make a great 500t replacement if you want an all rounder without losing the aggression

 

[Shark Diver]

I loved BKP Cold Sweats in my Bonamassa. Really a well balanced pup.

 

[Anonymous]

any les paul loves the duncan custom sh-5

i keep thinking how much i've posted that in the past 3 months on this site! worth a try

 

[ericsabbath]

here's a quite cheap holy diver
run!

viewtopic.php?f=6&t=135783

 

[cphr3d]

Thanks for the suggestions. I really appreciate it. Im really digging the BKP Emerald "Modern Metal" sound clip on BKP's website. A couple of follow up questions..

- Are the sound clips on BKP's website fairly accurate?
- Where's a good place to purchase BKPs?
- Since they're made in the UK, is there much of a delay/wait?
- Whats the advantage of getting a matched set if any?
- Has anyone toyed around with the Motor City Pickups?

Thanks...

 

[ericsabbath]

Thanks for the suggestions. I really appreciate it. Im really digging the BKP Emerald "Modern Metal" sound clip on BKP's website. A couple of follow up questions..

- Are the sound clips on BKP's website fairly accurate?
- Where's a good place to purchase BKPs?
- Since they're made in the UK, is there much of a delay/wait?
- Whats the advantage of getting a matched set if any?
- Has anyone toyed around with the Motor City Pickups?

Thanks...

well, most of them were recorded with the same guitar (an '85 les paul custom, if I remember well)
the thing is that they were recorded with an Axe FX, so response in a real amp can vary
didn't try the emerald, but I had most of the contemporary and half of the vintage and vintage hot humbucker models
they are all amazing pickups and most of them have a quite unique character
what they all share in common is that sparkly top and the ability of keeping things clear under the highest amounts of gain
some people do not enjoy them as they don't compress things a lot like duncans, dimarzios, gibsons and even prs pickups

best and usually cheapest place to buy is usually their own website
usually the fastest way as well, as you don't have to wait a batch of other people pickups
people in the US recommend ordering from axe palace, though
in both cases, you'll have a great customer service
delivery can delay up to a month, but I believe it's usually around 10 days, maybe 2 weeks, if you order directly

there's no actual "matched" set
all humbucker models have a bridge and a neck model, and they have different coils, sometimes completely different specs (magnet, dc reading, wire type and gauge, coil offset)
when you order a matched set, you have a small discount, as they will come in the same package
when you order a "mismatched" set (different models), you get two boxes, two manuals, two picks, two stickers, two string packs

I had a motor city afwayu/2nd degree black belt set
they are great pickups as well, but I didn't bond with the afwayu as much as I did with most bkps
it was way too bassy, middy, saturated and a bit dry
like a boosted version of the bk nailbomb I replaced
didn't sound bad at all, but it was too much of everything
loved the 2nd degree black belt in the neck, though
one of the best neck pickups I ever played
the neck bk vhII reminds me of it, but I prefer the mule

 

[charveldan]

any les paul loves the duncan custom sh-5

i keep thinking how much i've posted that in the past 3 months on this site! worth a try

+1 on the SH-5.

FWIW the only Gibson pups for rock that i like are 57 Classic's.

 

[cphr3d]

Thanks for the suggestions. I really appreciate it. Im really digging the BKP Emerald "Modern Metal" sound clip on BKP's website. A couple of follow up questions..

- Are the sound clips on BKP's website fairly accurate?
- Where's a good place to purchase BKPs?
- Since they're made in the UK, is there much of a delay/wait?
- Whats the advantage of getting a matched set if any?
- Has anyone toyed around with the Motor City Pickups?

Thanks...

well, most of them were recorded with the same guitar (an '85 les paul custom, if I remember well)
the thing is that they were recorded with an Axe FX, so response in a real amp can vary
didn't try the emerald, but I had most of the contemporary and half of the vintage and vintage hot humbucker models
they are all amazing pickups and most of them have a quite unique character
what they all share in common is that sparkly top and the ability of keeping things clear under the highest amounts of gain
some people do not enjoy them as they don't compress things a lot like duncans, dimarzios, gibsons and even prs pickups

best and usually cheapest place to buy is usually their own website
usually the fastest way as well, as you don't have to wait a batch of other people pickups
people in the US recommend ordering from axe palace, though
in both cases, you'll have a great customer service
delivery can delay up to a month, but I believe it's usually around 10 days, maybe 2 weeks, if you order directly

there's no actual "matched" set
all humbucker models have a bridge and a neck model, and they have different coils, sometimes completely different specs (magnet, dc reading, wire type and gauge, coil offset)
when you order a matched set, you have a small discount, as they will come in the same package
when you order a "mismatched" set (different models), you get two boxes, two manuals, two picks, two stickers, two string packs

I had a motor city afwayu/2nd degree black belt set
they are great pickups as well, but I didn't bond with the afwayu as much as I did with most bkps
it was way too bassy, middy, saturated and a bit dry
like a boosted version of the bk nailbomb I replaced
didn't sound bad at all, but it was too much of everything
loved the 2nd degree black belt in the neck, though
one of the best neck pickups I ever played
the neck bk vhII reminds me of it, but I prefer the mule

Thanks for the input. I really appreciate. This definitely gives me a place to start.

 

[Ventura]

Thanks for the input. I really appreciate. This definitely gives me a place to start.

Nick at the Axe Palace has good pricing on BKPs, or you can order direct from Tim overseas.

Ericsabbath knows his pups when it comes to BKP. I too am a mega fan of these pickups - and as I glazed over several mentions of the Emerald, I'll state for the record I have a set of 3 calibrated Emeralds in my '57 Black Beauty, and they sound incredibly good. As for the accuracy of the "pups soundclips" off the BKP website, well, they're clips. I mean - you'll find they are either bright or poppy or punchy or grindy - but you can't really know how they sound till you plug 'em into your guitar through your setup (amp/FX/etc).

Overall though? I absolutely love BKPs. I've run the gamut with Mules, RiffRaffs, Emeralds, MiracleMans, Painkillers, BlackDogs and now have an incoming ax loaded with Holy Divers. As you may be able to surmise - I really like BKPs.

 

[garey77]

I absolutely love BKPs. As you may be able to surmise - I really like BKPs.

you don't say...

 

[Ventura]

I absolutely love BKPs. As you may be able to surmise - I really like BKPs.

you don't say...

Just wanted to make sure, you know?

 

[cphr3d]

any les paul loves the duncan custom sh-5

i keep thinking how much i've posted that in the past 3 months on this site! worth a try

+1 on the SH-5.

FWIW the only Gibson pups for rock that i like are 57 Classic's.

A buddy of mine has a JB that Im going to demo as a first step. I might try a Custom after that before I make the big leap to BKP.

Thanks for the input. I really appreciate. This definitely gives me a place to start.

Nick at the Axe Palace has good pricing on BKPs, or you can order direct from Tim overseas.

Ericsabbath knows his pups when it comes to BKP. I too am a mega fan of these pickups - and as I glazed over several mentions of the Emerald, I'll state for the record I have a set of 3 calibrated Emeralds in my '57 Black Beauty, and they sound incredibly good. As for the accuracy of the "pups soundclips" off the BKP website, well, they're clips. I mean - you'll find they are either bright or poppy or punchy or grindy - but you can't really know how they sound till you plug 'em into your guitar through your setup (amp/FX/etc).

Overall though? I absolutely love BKPs. I've run the gamut with Mules, RiffRaffs, Emeralds, MiracleMans, Painkillers, BlackDogs and now have an incoming ax loaded with Holy Divers. As you may be able to surmise - I really like BKPs.

Can you tell me a little more about your experiences with the Emeralds? I completely over looked them until Ericsabbath recommended them. I think they may be my favorite "Modern Metal" clip on BKPs site. Seems like a lot of guys focus on the hotter pups in their reviews (nailbombs, warpigs, etc). Havent seen a whole lot on the emeralds.

 

[Ventura]

Can you tell me a little more about your experiences with the Emeralds? I completely over looked them until Ericsabbath recommended them. I think they may be my favorite "Modern Metal" clip on BKPs site. Seems like a lot of guys focus on the hotter pups in their reviews (nailbombs, warpigs, etc). Havent seen a whole lot on the emeralds.

You bet.

I have a '57 reissue triple pup Lester. The famed "Black Beauty", or "fretless wonder". Anyway, it's one of the few Lesters (only?) that's a mahogany on mahogany body; mahogany neck, ebony board. So the tonewoods lend themselves to being a touch darker than, say, a maple neck/maple cap construction. The ebony 'board is the only thing with sizzle on that guitar. Anyway - came loaded with BB1 and BB2s. I was looking for something more articulate and a touch brighter. I learned a couple years back that high-output pups weren't necessarily great for string definition and articulation. That said, I run a Hagen, VH4, Mako Mak4, 20thX and TwinJet. The cabs are either P50E loaded Deliverance, Diezel FL K100, or Bogner RL V30.

The Emeralds sound really strong, defined and rich in this particular Lester. The neck tone is slightly brighter but still retains all the warmth and "flutey" sound we're used to on a Lester's neck position. The bridge and middle are total business. They clean up clear and strong, bright with warmth and a nice lower end to them. They're not weak or anemic sounding - they're totally rich. Where the Emeralds come into their own is crunchy gain and higher gain. You can hear the strings ringing out with total clarity - never sounds muddy or smeared. Just thick, juicy, raw and super overtone-loaded punch. I keep my action at a lower "medium" height - bit of a fight with all my guitars but I like the clarity it brings. The Emeralds excel at "Tool'esque" tones through the Diezel amps, and do a great chugga drop D on said ax with no flub or loss of richness. I play everything on this one particular guitar, but it really shines in the clean-with-a-bit-of-hair all the way to mega TwinJet Uberschall thunder chug.

Did they do what Tim said they would? Absolutely. They offered a slightly clearer tone, but also sound great cranked, crunched and gained. They kept the mahogany warmth of the Les Paul, but gave it a stronger, clearer voice with superb string definition, and this definition isn't lost until you crank the gain on the amp to being just a fuzzbomb.

Noteworthy pup as well - the BlackDogs. These DO NOT just pigeonhole you into Zep territory. They've got a mid-bite to them that's utterly addictive and sounds awesome in all my amps and playing contexts. I've got the MMs as well, and they're too powerful, so I get into a compressed hi-fi style sound too quickly for my liking. Simply put, they're too potent. I have the PKs as well, and that guitar (ESP NT-II) is a full step down drop E tuned guitar with 12s. The PKs are fine in this application as the output and ceramics meet the lower tuning and lowend of the strings nicely.

Hope this helps. When I get into a groove, the Emeralds remind me of Tool, ISIS, etc. in their gainier tones; and just an AWESOME sounding pup for everything else.

Peace
Mo

 

[cphr3d]

Thanks for the input Ventura. I really appreciate it.

 

[Anonymous]

JB in a les paul....

at least in my experience...too much mud, too hot, not clear enough.

good luck with it though!

 

[cphr3d]

JB in a les paul....

at least in my experience...too much mud, too hot, not clear enough.

good luck with it though!

ORLY??? I thought JBs were one of the more popular SD pups for Les Pauls? Is the Duncan Custom that much better?

 

[Anonymous]

JB in a les paul....

at least in my experience...too much mud, too hot, not clear enough.

good luck with it though!

ORLY??? I thought JBs were one of the more popular SD pups for Les Pauls? Is the Duncan Custom that much better?

obviously, its subjective. i dont like them at all. i suppose with the right amp .....

i prefer a different tone is all. they're good in other guitars. i actually thought i had one in one of my old epi les pauls, but that pickup is a tone zone....the JB is in one of my ibanez RGs

 

[glassjaw7]

I'm in the same boat with my 498T (also don't dig the 500T at all). I'm in the process of swapping the volume pot to 500K and if it's not a drastic improvement, I'll probably try a MCP Detroiter or maybe a WCR.