POLL: The most accurate PAF replica...

Who makes the most accurate PAF replica today? Must be new manufacture and under $2000 for the set.

  • Throbak (KZ-115, DT-120, SLE-101, EdA-Custom, etc.)

    Votes: 7 15.9%

  • ReWind

    Votes: 2 4.5%

  • Ron Ellis ('50s LRP)

    Votes: 1 2.3%

  • Stephens Design (HD Lab Humbuckers)

    Votes: 1 2.3%

  • Gibson (Custombuckers, Burstbucker I or II, MHS, 1959 Humbucker Collector’s Edition Series 1)

    Votes: 7 15.9%

  • Arcane (Triple Clone, 57 Experience, Tim Pierce Signature)

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Klein (Epic Series Wicked, 1958 P.A.F., 1959 P.A.F)

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Manlius (Landmark PAF, Hot Rod 59, 59LT)

    Votes: 1 2.3%

  • Sigil (Holy Grail 58, Holy Grail 59

    Votes: 0 0.0%

  • Other (Vineham, Wolfetone, Shed, BKP, Fralin, Lollar, Seymour Duncan, Monty's, OX4, Wizz, etc.)

    Votes: 30 68.2%
  • Total voters
    44
Churchhill said:
It's been probably 7-8 years since I replaced my 57/08s, but that aggressiveness seems to be what I remember not liking about them at the time. Just seemed a little too sharp to me, while the 53/10s seemed a little too polite. However, my tastes have evolved since then and I'm curious what I'd think of them now.

Also makes me want to try a DTG again... I've liked PRS since I first played one back in the '90s and have several.
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My vote is try each set in the 3 guitars you're swapping in - take DI's while you record clips and make sure you put the required info down somewhere (Logic has a notepad, phone notes app, regular doc, whatever). And don't alter the demo preset whatsoever including fw upgrades until you're done testing :p.

You asked about feel, and in all honesty I don't know how to answer that. I find feel to be a guitar setup thing, not so much a pickup thing. I don't notice one pickup seeming to have a "faster response" than another, for example. And setup can alter how the guitar sounds without changing the pickups - my R9 with 9-42's is a testament to that. It sounds much brighter even though I didn't touch the pickups whatsoever.

I find the A2 paf (turk, burstbucker) to sound a little more full and compressed compared to the A3 royal. This makes sense as the A3 is a weaker magnet. If you have a guitar that is notably darker than the others with similar pickups and you want a little more clarity, the royal is a good choice. That said, try going down a full gauge as mentioned first - cheaper and maybe more effective haha.

As far as I know, Mike Turk is still winding but I haven't seen NPD posts other than my own and the person who suggested I try them. I can reach out for you if you would like. I've done firmware updates between the burstbucker set in the R9 and the turk set, and those specific BB's were sold with another guitar and possibly different than the BB's in my goldtop. Hopefully my clips do a decent job illustrating differences.

I would try a set of vineham royals, sweet59's and maybe a slightly underwound sweet59 set and see what you think (after trying the PRS pickups ;)). And when it comes to "I'd rather spend $800 once if it's worth it than $200 four times" - don't forget you can sell those $200 sets and recoup a bit towards the $800 :).

Hopefully that helps! I'm off to tinker with the setup on my les paul custom.
 
Churchhill said:
What's your experience with Kloppman?
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I have / had pickups from every big German builder, häussels are more "modern" in a sense that they have their signature "high end" which can be bit too much depending on what you going for. Kloppmann pickups are very good but I like their single coils more than their humbuckers. Every builder has some sort of their signature in their pickups, kloppmann has very colourful mids imo.
I like Amber more, but in the end they are all equal because it all depends on the guitar and tone you search.
 
skolacki said:
Never had an opportunity to play the real deal PAF so I wouldn’t know. How many people voting have actually played a vintage PAF?
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Not me. Closest I've come is I had a (new!) late 60s L5 back in high school and after, and when that got stolen, a 335 about that same vintage, which I still have (sad shape though).

I don't think of those as "PAFs" exactly though, just old Gibson humbuckers. I did really like both those guitars, but I don't trust any memories of them, was pretty long ago.
 
It's hard to know the answer. I have access to several 50's humbuckers-multiple "Holy Grail" 59 LPs. My favorite original 59 pickup has much in common with the standard Seymour Duncan 59 pickup. I believe this is a game of consumer perception-like the aging and relicing of guitars to make them look old and played. Most of that is crap, but it's not done to look real-it's done to meet the expectations of people that haven't seen a vintage instrument and want to own something that looks worn and vintage.
 
I have 3 SD 59s in a homemade/kit guitar. Before the throwbaks in my Collings, which to be fair are in a Collings, they were were my favorite humbuckers that I actually have comparable memory of. I like them much more than the equivalent DiMarzios.
 
Budda said:
My vote is try each set in the 3 guitars you're swapping in - take DI's while you record clips and make sure you put the required info down somewhere (Logic has a notepad, phone notes app, regular doc, whatever). And don't alter the demo preset whatsoever including fw upgrades until you're done testing :p.

You asked about feel, and in all honesty I don't know how to answer that. I find feel to be a guitar setup thing, not so much a pickup thing. I don't notice one pickup seeming to have a "faster response" than another, for example. And setup can alter how the guitar sounds without changing the pickups - my R9 with 9-42's is a testament to that. It sounds much brighter even though I didn't touch the pickups whatsoever.

I find the A2 paf (turk, burstbucker) to sound a little more full and compressed compared to the A3 royal. This makes sense as the A3 is a weaker magnet. If you have a guitar that is notably darker than the others with similar pickups and you want a little more clarity, the royal is a good choice. That said, try going down a full gauge as mentioned first - cheaper and maybe more effective haha.

As far as I know, Mike Turk is still winding but I haven't seen NPD posts other than my own and the person who suggested I try them. I can reach out for you if you would like. I've done firmware updates between the burstbucker set in the R9 and the turk set, and those specific BB's were sold with another guitar and possibly different than the BB's in my goldtop. Hopefully my clips do a decent job illustrating differences.

I would try a set of vineham royals, sweet59's and maybe a slightly underwound sweet59 set and see what you think (after trying the PRS pickups ;)). And when it comes to "I'd rather spend $800 once if it's worth it than $200 four times" - don't forget you can sell those $200 sets and recoup a bit towards the $800 :).

Hopefully that helps! I'm off to tinker with the setup on my les paul custom.
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Absolutely helps! Your comparison of A2 vs A3 is along the lines of what I mean when I talk about how a pickup feels, basically compression and responsiveness. There's something about a combination of frequency response and compression, not necessarily related to output, that I can't find a better word for than "thrust." It's like the current A3 Custombuckers have it, although they're not what I would call compressed by any means, and a set of Burstbuckers I have from an '03 CS LP have a ton of it while an aftermarket set of Burstbuckers I tried didn't have it at all. It's where a note seems to have this weight to it and takes on a life of its own, just can't come up with a good word to describe it.

Yep, planning on trying those old PRS pickups I have around in the near future. Leaning more towards the Sweet 59s than the Royals, since I've got the A3 Custombuckers and really like the BKP Mules I have that are also A4.

I'll keep that in mind about Mike Turk! I thought your clips did do a good job of illustrating the differences there, too, and I'm sure I'll listen to them again before making up my mind.

Spent some time tinkering with my Black Beauty last night, too... always loved the Customs, one of my dream guitars since before I started playing!
 
GuitarAng3l said:
I have / had pickups from every big German builder, häussels are more "modern" in a sense that they have their signature "high end" which can be bit too much depending on what you going for. Kloppmann pickups are very good but I like their single coils more than their humbuckers. Every builder has some sort of their signature in their pickups, kloppmann has very colourful mids imo.
I like Amber more, but in the end they are all equal because it all depends on the guitar and tone you search.
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Interesting... Speaking of single coils, have you tried a P90 from Kloppmann? I may be in the market for some P90s, too, and Kloppmann's seem to be based on a set from '53, which is roughly what I'm looking for there.

Which sets of Ambers have you tried? The Spirit of 59 seems the most obvious for me, but their other sets look interesting, too. One of the guitars I'm looking to install these in is fairly bright, the other isn't dark, but not bright, either. Sometimes, a little more mids or a little more/less output is just the thing.

Good to know about Haussels, too. I thought they seemed a little modern, but definitely looks like quality builds.
 
Joshua_L said:
Nobody mentionned the dimarzio paf36? Not boutique enough but I guess lol.
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I've actually got a couple of DiMarzio PAFs in some other guitars, some back to the late 70s. Great pickups, especially with a Super Distortion in the bridge, just not quite what I'm looking for in this case. Definitely worth considering for others, though!
 
muttonhead said:
http://www.jmrolph.com/

I've not bought any new pickups from Jim, but he's rewound some Fender pickups for me and he does a great job.
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Definitely heard of him, always in high regard, too. I couldn't tell from his website if he was still in business, though, and seemed a little more oriented toward Fender-type pickups. I've heard great things about him for a long time and I'm sure he does great work!
 
skolacki said:
Never had an opportunity to play the real deal PAF so I wouldn’t know. How many people voting have actually played a vintage PAF?
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Not me, but was kinda hoping that some who had would chime in here... Closest I've gotten was some patent stickers, patent stamps, and T-Tops.
 
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