It's the pickups, stupid!

[candid_x]

Figured I'd share this trip with fellow knucks.

I bought "blue" new, though it was NOS. The gang at EB honored the warranty and brought it up to new standards, and then some. I've been in love with blue ever since.

Then I bought "sundown", second hand. I was never able to really bond with this guitar. Just didn't sound right. I chalked it up to the maple neck, as opposed to blue, which has rosewood. All along I was expounding the virtues of a rosewood board, based on these two guitars. For lack of a better word, sundown just sounded sterile by comparison to blue.

Last week I swapped pick-guard assemblies, both HSS, which I assumed were both stock. Since then I have not been able to get into blue. BLUE - my love! Just lost that lovin' feeling.

Then, I got to remembering that Jon pointed out that sundown had been modified to accept a screw-in trem arm; and continued thinking, I'll bet the sob who sold it to me didn't tell me that he yanked the original pickups out and replaced them with these whatevertheyare. The mojo followed the pickups, into either guitar.

Fortunately, a friend has offered to sell back to me a cheap guitar with original Silo Special pickups, which I had installed when it was mine. They're SSS, so I'll have to lose the bridge p'up for my bucker. I'm quite sure the bucker on mine is original.

Gotta be careful buying someone else's used balls.

Upside of all this right now, I haven't been able to put sundown down! Maple neck Silos DO rock if they're stock. Gott damn the tinkerman!

 

[Big Poppa]

Bruce it is funny we spend a lot of time voicing the pickups for the guitars...I understand when it doesnt hit the spot for some but somtimes I think guys change for the sake of change or have the "they're stock they cant be good

 

[TNT]

Oh the pain, the pain, of past modification endeavors!! The grass is NOT always greener on the other side of the pickup ring!

 

[Larry]

Oh the pain, the pain, of past modification endeavors!! The grass is NOT always greener on the other side of the pickup ring!

+1

I think EBMM guitars and pickups go together like spaghetti and meatball

 

[francric]

Bruce it is funny we spend a lot of time voicing the pickups for the guitars...I understand when it doesnt hit the spot for some but somtimes I think guys change for the sake of change or have the "they're stock they cant be good

Exactly why I don't mess with the pickups......................man law.

 

[Ponch]

yeah I love my original EMG PU , it sounds just like the way it is..let it flow.

sorry to hear your bad experience bro Candid X and thanks for the reminder.

 

[candid_x]

BP, yep, I can imagine that you thought this critical component out well when you and Dudley blueprinted these little gems, or else why would you have bothered to have the pickups custom made?

I'm sure there are some tinkerers, like Beej or Tommy, who know from experience what they're doing when they mod these guitars. And there are probably some who just get lucky, or thoroughly do their homework before swapping, but I'd be hard pressed to find a reason to change out the original Silo Special pickups, especially the single coils. Shoot, I even dug them when I dropped them into that cheap Chinese guitar. Kinda cool though that my friend just happened to ask me if I wanted the guitar back at this time. Everything happens for a reason, huh? Now I just hope he still has them.

 

[JeffreyB]

Keep us updated on that...I'm hoping you get the MOJO happening in both guitars!

 

[beej]

That's a very cool story Bruce ... and I happen to agree completely that the MM pickups really suit each guitar! I can't think of many cases where I'd like a non-stock pickup in place.

 

[Rossie]

+1

I think EBMM guitars and pickups go together like spaghetti and meatball

Feels more like lamb and tuna fish

 

[candid_x]

Funny how pieces of a puzzle come together once you're on the right track to solving a problem. This morning I remembered that the "ears" on the middle pickup cover were broken off when I received the guitar. The guy who sold it told me said he bought the guitar new, played it a couple of times, but since he was really a keyboard player, it went back in the case and under the bed. In fact, he claimed he didn't even have guitarist callouses. True, the frets had almost no wear at all, but, what keyboardist is going to go through the trouble of threading the trem arm socket to accommodate a threaded trem arm? A pretty shifty one, me thinks.

Ok, now for this question: Do I buy a new pick-guard and drop in the entire SSS assembly from my friend's guitar, or do I slice and dice the set to accommodate the existing bridge pickup, which I only think is stock? Can't help but be suspicious now.

Is there really a tone difference in position 2 (which I use a lot), between a split HSS and an SSS array? If so, how would you describe it?

Thanks for your input on this.

 

[Norrin Radd]

Funny how pieces of a puzzle come together once you're on the right track to solving a problem. This morning I remembered that the "ears" on the middle pickup cover were broken off when I received the guitar. The guy who sold it told me said he bought the guitar new, played it a couple of times, but since he was really a keyboard player, it went back in the case and under the bed. In fact, he claimed he didn't even have guitarist callouses. True, the frets had almost no wear at all, but, what keyboardist is going to go through the trouble of threading the trem arm socket to accommodate a threaded trem arm? A pretty shifty one, me thinks.

Ok, now for this question: Do I buy a new pick-guard and drop in the entire SSS assembly from my friend's guitar, or do I slice and dice the set to accommodate the existing bridge pickup, which I only think is stock? Can't help but be suspicious now.

Is there really a tone difference in position 2 (which I use a lot), between a split HSS and an SSS array? If so, how would you describe it?

Thanks for your input on this.

Can't you contact CS, give them the number off the bottom of the HB pickup and have them tell you if it's an original? I'd try that before deciding.

800-543-2255

 

[roburado]

I am definitely with the "keep the stock pickups" people.

 

[leftyguitarblue]

I find myself changing pups on my non-EBMM guitars (which have dwindled down to 2) because the stock ones don't have enough ummph. But my Luke has perfect pups that I wouldn't dream of touching, and don't need to touch especially on an LE model.

 

[Norrin Radd]

I am definitely with the "keep the stock pickups" people.

I dislike absolutes. I think you've got to do what's best for you and the tone you're searching for. I have changed the pickups in my 20th and it now works a lot better for me. However, I have tried different pickups in my JP and much prefer the stock ones. I also have no intention of ever changing the pickups on my Axis. As for my AL - it is amazing the way it is! However, if I ever get another AL (something I am seriously contemplating) I will tinker with other pickups. I've always wanted to try an EMG DG set in one - and a set of Kinman Woodstocks. I think either of those sets would go great with an AL- and would certainly change it's tones tremendously (the only reason I can think of to have more than one of any particular model). But that's just me. I like to tinker.

 

[candid_x]

Norrin, great idea!

Hmm... I guess I could also compare the number to my other one, so as not to tie up CS. Think I'll do that today, plus play through just the bucker some more to give it another ear test before breaking it down.

Still curious about the difference in position 2, though. I know even in the cheapy guitar the SSS sounded surprisingly good. And it would be cool to own an SSS again, which could either go into blue or sundown. Things that make ya go hmm...

Gotta love this stuff.

 

[paranoid70]

I also agree that the stock pickups in the EBMM guitars kick ass. The neck pickup on the SS with the silent circuit is just incredible. In fact, I even really really like the pickups on the SUB1.

 

[Quarter]

I'm no expert, but my take on the tone difference between a split HB and a true single coil is that while a split HB can sound great, it is different than a true single coil.
The difference is in the pickups construction. A couple major differences are ..
A traditional S type single coil uses a non metallic Forbon type base / bobbin vs a HB's metallic base
A traditional S type single coil uses actual magnets for the pole pieces vs a HB's steel slugs and screws with a bar magnet at the bottom.

Being that you already have a H/S/S, I'd say go with a S/S/S on the other.

 

[NorM]

The Red SiLO arrived and quickly I discovered that the PUPs were not stock. When I asked the seller what they were he told me. (he could have said so in the auction) I was glad I had a set of SiLO pups to put back in it.
Different pups aren't better or worse. Just different. Like BP said, they spend a lot of time voicing the pups. That's a lot of work done for us. While I love EMG's in a SiLO When I turn up the gain on a Steve Morse model it just makes me feel good all over more than any where else.

 

[candid_x]

I'm no expert, but my take on the tone difference between a split HB and a true single coil is that while a split HB can sound great, it is different than a true single coil.
The difference is in the pickups construction. A couple major differences are ..
A traditional S type single coil uses a non metallic Forbon type base / bobbin vs a HB's metallic base
A traditional S type single coil uses actual magnets for the pole pieces vs a HB's steel slugs and screws with a bar magnet at the bottom.

Being that you already have a H/S/S, I'd say go with a S/S/S on the other.

Thanks for the technical info on the differences. I may just go that route.

Well, I looked under the hood and also spoke with CS. Turns out the pickups are stock after all. My apologies to the seller for suspecting him. No idea what to make of this. I played a bit for a friend this morning who is very familiar with the sound of both guitars, and they picked up on it right away.