What are your thoughts these days about Epiphone stock pickups?

[GAS Man]

Is "muddy" still the basic consensus with some banding together to give kudos to their P-90s (and some not) or are you seeing/hearing some general improvements?

 

 

To me it has seemed like Gibson built in some level of inferiority into the Epiphone pickup design so that there'd still be reason to grab the flagship Gibson models over the import Epiphone versions rather than just rely on the panache alone of the Gibson name to keep the sales up on the domestic product. But OTOH, in recent years they've also been offering more and more Epiphone models with Gibson or Duncan pickups on some of their signature or upgraded models. So that also indicates a bit of a sea change (hate that phrase) for the promotion of the Epiphone line.

 

So for example - What are the thoughts (if anyone's tried them) on the newer Epiphone ProBuckers? They're supposed to be modeled after the Alnico II Gibson Burstbuckers, but are they delivering more vibe, chime and a complex voice, or are they still about the same?

 

 

Personally I'll say this. Some good folks here like the P-90s. I think they're still sorta "meh" but I like a bit more vibe and chime and look for more than a throaty growl, but I do admit that with gain, they sound good to my ears as well.

 

The Classics that they've used I had found to be a bit muddy and not particularly chimey or complex sounding, but I find them to sound a bit better split and I really like the tone of them in the bridge position of their Korina V. In the bridge position, they really add warmth, body and bottom end in a bluesy way to a V. And their characteristic of sounding "thick" could often be used to good advantage when cranked. Like even plain Epi neck p'ups slammed into (e.g.) a Marshall JCM 2000 with V30 speakers could indeed make a tone that could have sonic advantages over some more refined pickups.

 

I have a newer Worn Wilshire where I think the mini-hums are more chimey than I've heard before from Epiphone pickups but they probably still wouldn't compare well with the chime and openness of a really good set of mini-hums. But anyway, I thought, "Is that a sign they're working on getting a bit better?"

 

But after that I did also buy an inexpensive Wilshire with the regular humbuckers, and they pretty much remind me of the stereotypical old Epi p'up sound, but not too bad in the split mode. (those are slated for an upgrade soon)

 

 

Anyway, that's just me exposing my thoughts, I'm more interested in yours -

[Crisco]

I'm not too crazy about the Probucker III uncovered.

I do like the Alnico Pro neck pickup

ProBucker III is spikey and does deliver good raw sound...I just prefer a bit more warmth out of it

which could probably be achieved by simply putting a cover on it.

(but I'm also guilty about raising the bridge pickup to just about 1/4 inch under the strings...so that might have something to do with it)

[GAS Man]

Partly why I ask is I find myself a bit drawn (for some time) to the Epi LP Ultra (now III). But if I'd still want a p'up upgrade, then it's no bargain with a MAP around 7-fiddy.

 

But in general, I'm curious what the observations are these days.

[fretmonster]

I know it's not a popular position, but I always thought it was the wood and hardware and not the pickups that were sub-par. Spent some time over at a friend's house yesterday doing some recording and sampled a few of his guitars. He did the smart thing with his Epi LP IMO and put some EMGs in it. Active pickups are not so reliant on a resonant vessel to get their tone IMO. He put the old Epi pickups in an Oscar Schmidt hollowbody which he said had a cool dark sound. I played it and agreed, I thought the tone was cool and not muddy at all. Not to say it would slay a good Gibson Hollow but I thought it had some character.

[GAS Man]

^^ It's a popular position with me and I'm with you on the comments. I've been there where I've upgraded an Epi but the wood still held the guitar back from providing the resonance the pickups I put in it deserved. I ended up with an Epiphone that definitely sounded better than it was stock, but the tone was more toppy (i.e. off the top of the guitar sounding) than it might have been with a better mahogany slab under it. It's definitely a buggaboo for me when folks discount the effects of the quality or select of the wood.

[Pine Apple Slim]

Had a 90s Korean LP Custom for a while. Great guitar, pickups were meh.

I really like the ones in my 2010 59 Korina Explorer. Pretty crispy. Could be the guitar.

[larry50]

I think the stock Epi pickups are a lot better than they were a few years ago.

 

Having said that, I have an Epi Dot and the instant I bought it, I swapped in some 57 Classics. Transformed the guitar into a poor man's 335.

[PrawnHeed]

With the exception of obvious defects, I don't think there is anything intrinsically good or bad about pickups. You cannot say one is better than another. They are just different, like colours. People have favourites, people use one rather than another in certain circumstances and fashion dictates some are "in" this month, but that doesn't make ne better than another.

[Canadian Jeff]

I remember having a trans amber Epi LP Standard that I really loved. Stock everything. The pickups were kinda muddy for hard rock, but that was normally remedied by a TS808 or simply rolling some of the bass off the amp. That being said, a good set of DiMarzios or SDs would have made it really awesome...

 

Anyway, Epi pickups are fine for cleans and classic rock kinda stuff. The kids who buy them to play like Zakk or Randy are obviously going to be underwhelmed and will want something else. The older people who want to play like Zakk or Randy will buy a more expensive guitar in the first place, or have a better amp to play through - either route nullifying the inadequacies of the Epi humbucker sound.

 

Imo, of course.

[Elessar [Sly]]

Crap. But then again, I have know of people who have changed the magnets and really liked the pups.

[Doctor Morbius]

I find EPI pickups to be on the dark/muddy side of things. However, with a pedal in the chain and a good bit of crunch they sound alright. I definitely don't care for them clean though.

[Elessar [Sly]]

 

I find EPI pickups to be on the dark/muddy side of things. However, with a pedal in the chain and a good bit of crunch they sound alright. I definitely don't care for them clean though.

 

 

They sound alright downtuned. In fact, I tend to find cheapy/stock pups for 'budget' guitars sound better downtuned. I have my Epi LP STD in D standard because it sounds better in that tuning. I do need to replace the pickups...

[Metalrulez]

The humbuckers in my Wilshire are ok they work.They are not great but I have heard much worse. The ones in my Les Paul Pro/fx actually sound good.

[guitarman3001]

They suck. Last year I bought an epi SG and the stock pickups were crap. The neck one is usable so I left that one but I replaced the bridge pickup immediately. The hardware was crap too. The pickup selector switch crapped out after just a couple of months. I don't even know if it's covered under warranty.

[kayd_mon]

Ok, I'll be honest and say that I own three Epiphone guitars, and none of them have Epiphone pickups. However, two of them are from the 90s, and my newer one, the SG, sounded really good out of the box. The humbuckers crunched very nicely through my AC15, and they cleaned up well. No mud to speak of. So why did I change the pickups?

 

I bought a set of GFS Dream 90s, and then I bought the SG ($299 brand new at the time, plus a coupon) specifically for that guitar. At the time, it was my option for a poor man's Pete Townshend SG. They now make Epi SGs with P90s, but whatever. Also, the GFS Mean 90s are supposed to sound more like P90s than the Dreams. Also whatever. I'm happy with the guitar. I sold the stock pickups on eBay, since I wanted to cover the cost of my GFSs that I had already bought.

[Brian Krashpad]

I had a slightly older MIK G400 SG, and yes the HBs were muddy. Not terribly, unusably, so, but even with my crap ears I could hear the diff.

 

The bridge P-90 on my '97 Casino I have no prob with. (The neck has a Rio Grande installed by the previous owner.) Same goes for the stock dogears on my MIK (2005) WildKat.

 

Haven't played any of the MIC Epi's. I have noted the Gibby and at least supposedly upgraded pups on higher-end newer models as you noted, just haven't had a chance to try them.

[kayd_mon]

I played a new Wildkat at the shop the other day, and I thought it sounded pretty good.

[RedJamaX]

I bought a Custom Silverbusrt Epi a few years back and I returned it. Stock pups sounded very thin and trebly. That was not the only reason I returned it, overall fit and finish were very disappointing as well. Not worth the $650 price tag. Realistically, it was equal to a starcaster... yes, that bad, really. I expected something much better from a "Custom" model. Sorry, a lil off topic.

[kayd_mon]

I bought a Custom Silverbusrt Epi a few years back and I returned it. Stock pups sounded very thin and trebly. That was not the only reason I returned it, overall fit and finish were very disappointing as well. Not worth the $650 price tag. Realistically, it was equal to a starcaster... yes, that bad, really. I expected something much better from a "Custom" model. Sorry, a lil off topic.

 

A friend of mine has that guitar, and I thought it was nice. Maybe you got a dud?

[McCain]

Have an old epi DOT..covered pu's sounded like mud...took covers off..removed the slugs...replaced covers...can't tell by looks that anything was done...totally transformed them. Great single coil sound...clear/articulate...but way different than a strat/tele single sound.

[GAS Man]

I played a new Wildkat at the shop the other day, and I thought it sounded pretty good.

 

The first time I played a Wildkat at a GC store, i was not impressed but that was largely due to the fact that I looked at it and expected it to sound Gretschy. And I also played next to it an Gretsch Electromatic that did indeed sound quite "Gretschy" at a similar price to the WildKat.

 

But I eventually got a WildKat anyway when I couldn't resist a $349 blow-out on this one.

 

 

But what I found about it is don't go for the Gretsch tone with it, go for more of the Nuge's Cat Scratch Fever tone, and that it does quite well IMHO.

 

But if I ever did want to make it more of a Rockabilly sounding guitar, I know Jason Lollar has come up with varying degrees of viable options for WildKats. One of his options is a P-90 without covers which would create the most chime but decrease the chrome visual vibe of the guitar. Another option IIRC is a rewind of the chrome p'ups.

[americansinner]

 

I think the stock Epi pickups are a lot better than they were a few years ago. Having said that, I have an Epi Dot and the instant I bought it, I swapped in some 57 Classics. Transformed the guitar into a poor man's 335.

 

 

I got a Dot and replaced the pickups as well. It sounds better than my $4000 vintage guitar that I don't like to take out. sigh.

 

BUT, I played several Dots before I bought the one I did and there were issues, albeit subtle, with the wood on the others.

 

So I think the quality control tends to be lower on the Epis over Gibsons, but the ranges overlap if you know what I mean...correlate positively with price, but not consistently.

[GAS Man]

 

....... but the ranges overlap if you know what I mean...correlate positively with price, but not consistently.

 

 

Absolutely, wood being a product of nature, you can get winners and losers in Gibsons and Epiphones.

[kayd_mon]

The first time I played a Wildkat at a GC store, i was not impressed but that was largely due to the fact that I looked at it and expected it to sound Gretschy. And I also played next to it an Gretsch Electromatic that did indeed sound quite "Gretschy" at a similar price to the WildKat. But I eventually got a WildKat anyway when I couldn't resist a $349 blow-out on this one. But what I found about it is don't go for the Gretsch tone with it, go for more of the Nuge's Cat Scratch Fever tone, and that it does quite well IMHO. But if I ever did want to make it more of a Rockabilly sounding guitar, I know Jason Lollar has come up with varying degrees of viable options for WildKats. One of his options is a P-90 without covers which would create the most chime but decrease the chrome visual vibe of the guitar. Another option IIRC is a rewind of the chrome p'ups.

 

Yeah, I wasn't expecting anything out of it. I just plugged in, and I noticed that the bridge alone had a good crunchy kerrang type of sound. I liked it. I also liked how the neck position still sounded fairly bright, and the cleans in the middle position were great. The master volume was quite handy for using the middle position. Kinda makes me wish my Les Pauls, etc. were set up so that they are master volume, neck volume, bridge volume, and bridge tone. But I suppose that extra pot could take away some brightness of the sound...

[guitarman3001]

 

I bought a Custom Silverbusrt Epi a few years back and I returned it. Stock pups sounded very thin and trebly. That was not the only reason I returned it, overall fit and finish were very disappointing as well. Not worth the $650 price tag. Realistically, it was equal to a starcaster... yes, that bad, really. I expected something much better from a "Custom" model. Sorry, a lil off topic.

 

 

That's the one I got. I bought it last year during a M123 blowout. Complete with case for something like $300 or around that. I don't remember the exact price but it was ridiculously cheap. Anyway, like I mentioned above, absolutely horrible pickups and the hardware sucks too. It was not set up well at all either. The nut was uneven and the G string slot was way too high. I had to file it down quite a bit.