NGD and (pickup question)

[Habuman]

So got this Edwards Les Paul the other. Found it in an outlet section on Rakuten. Considering what the original price was and the selling price, great deal.

It plays great. The build quality is IMO better than most Gibsons.

The stock pickups are Seymour Duncan Seth Lovers. There are capacitors attached (see photo) to both volume and tone pots. The pickups sound like mud. Like a blanket is over the speakers no matter what preset I use on the AX8.

Are the capacitors the reason for this? Or do these pickups just lack?

 

[bradlake]

That’s a great ax, played a couple in the past, but yes, the pickups could use some upgrading...may I suggest if there are any left these..

Amazon product ASIN B01J6ASCUY

 

[Habuman]

Thanks for the pickup recommendation.

 

[Geezerjohn]

I think you should also consider Duncan Antiquity. They sound great. My friend, Greg Bristol (WG Bristol Custom Guitars) started using them a while ago on his builds. [Disclaimer: I am an endorser for WG Bristol Custom Guitars]. The antiquity pickups sound amazing. My Heritage H-555 has Seth Lovers in it. It has a big sound, but it is a bit darker than my other guitars. I'm thinking about swapping them out for the Duncan Antiquity. Greg built a copy of my signature guitar using humbuckers instead of the single coil Lollars that are in my sig. He used Duncan Antiquities in the copy. It was a big hit at the recent Forth Worth Guitar Show.

 

[Habuman]

I think you should also consider Duncan Antiquity. They sound great.

Thanks for the recommendation. That helps out. The Antiquity pickups are on my short list along with some Motor City pickups - Angel Dust and 2nd Degree Blacks.

Yeah, the Seth Lover pickups are dark.

 

[6L6C]

Like a blanket is over the speakers no matter what preset I use on the AX8.


Are the capacitors the reason for this? Or do these pickups just lack?

I currently have a set of Seth Lovers in my Les Paul Standard.

Although they may be considered dark sounding, you were using terms like “mud” & “blanket over speakers”. To me: I’m getting the idea there may be something else going on. The Seth Lovers are not that dark. Not even close when using terms like that.


I suggest giving that wiring a look, your first intuition was the caps, disconnect them at the tone pots see what a difference that makes. Also what is the value of the pots? Did they use 300 ohm or 500 ohm pots. Can you measure the pots? Crappy pots can affect the high end a bit. I like 500 ohm pots with humbuckers BTW.


Ironically this weekend I will be installing the pickups that @bradlake suggested the “Skinner Burst” set. Been meaning to do it for about three weeks now.


Yes I am looking for a brighter sound, but still the Seth Lovers I would never describe as mud.

John

 

[Habuman]

...Although they may be considered dark sounding, you were using terms like “mud” & “blanket over speakers”. To me: I’m getting the idea there may be something else going on. The Seth Lovers are not that dark. Not even close when using terms like that.

I suggest giving that wiring a look, your first intuition was the caps, disconnect them at the tone pots see what a difference that makes. Also what is the value of the pots? Did they use 300 ohm or 500 ohm pots. Can you measure the pots? Crappy pots can affect the high end a bit. I like 500 ohm pots with humbuckers BTW...John

Thanks for the info. Yes, I plan to disconnect the caps first. The pots are 500 ohm.

 

[electronpirate]

I have an Edwards LP as well. It has the Jimmy Page wiring (which I'm considering ripping out.) Good caps, SD pups something or another (it's been awhile). It sounds great for the most part, but it is a bit dark. It has a great barky tone to it that cuts really well once I dial in the amp.

I bought it for a song as I had read that it was the closest thing you could buy that would approximate that '59 tone 'on the cheap'. It's pretty close. It plays like a dream. It sings and borders on sloppy if not controlled.

IMO a guitar is what it is. Do what you can to dial it in and you might find a friend here. Crank up the bright, dime mids and treble, zero bass, and see what it sounds like in full flower.

 

[6L6C]

I just installed the Skinnerburst and posted "first though's" on another thread I participated on last month, concerning the Skinnerburst pickups.

If your curious
Skinner Burst pickups = real deal

 

[Habuman]

Well never did try the Skinnerbursts. However, I did go through some boxes inside boxes to find a Seymour Duncan JB, 59 and Custom.

I know the DCR rating between the Skinners and the others is wide but found that the Custom (bridge) and 59 (neck) seem to be perfect for this guitar.

 

[Sonofiam]

As has been mentioned, Seth Lovers are really decent pickups so they shouldn't be the source of your problem. Before replacing them I'd try replacing the capacitors, the one's in your guitar look like electrolytic caps. They should be at least some form of non-polarized film capacitor like Vishay, Sprague or Mallory.
Also double check the potentiometers values (measure with ohmmeter or multimeter set to ohms). They look to be CTS 500k, which are good pots, but make sure they each read at least 400k (500k pots can actually vary quite a bit) in order to rule them out as a source of the problem.

 

[ChristThePhone]

Those aren't polarized capacitors.

 

[Habuman]

All was good with the pickups, pots, and and capacitors. The original pickups just were not to my liking. Tried a JB, Custom, and 59 and found the Custom (bridge) and 59 (neck) work well with this guitar.

All is good.

Thanks for all the suggestions every though I did not get a chance to try any.

 

[Toopy14]

It looks like it's wired using the Modern Style circuit, but it's hard to tell where some of the wires go. Looking at how the caps are wired, I would say Modern. Try wiring it using the 50's Style circuit;