Gibson 57/57+ Classic opinions for hard rock

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ledvedder

ledvedder

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What do you guys think of these pickups for hard rock? I recently bought a 2016 Les Paul traditional, which I absolutely love, feel and playing-wise. But something about the pickups in it aren't doing it for me. I play through both a Marshall DSL and a Ceriatone Chupacabra, which is basically a hot-rodded plexi. I have a Peavey Wolfgang with an EVH Wolfgang pickup and a parts Strat with an EVH Frankenstein pickup, and these both sound and feel amazing through my amps. I'm not sure what is going on with the 57 Classics in the LP. Maybe I have them too close or too far from the strings? Maybe they just aren't the pickups for me? I see tons of great reviews about them, but mostly for lower gain classic rock and clean stuff. The tone I always like to dial in is reminiscent of VHII. I was playing with my amps for a few hours tonight, and just couldn't get that dialed in when using the Les Paul.
 
It really depends on the particular guitar. I have a '73 lp custom that I used to have '57 classic and super '57 pickups in. This guitar sounds mean and aggressive, regardless of the pickups I put in. I found hotter pickups were just too much in this guitar. The '57 classics were really nice in this guitar, but I did find the neck a bit muddy and the bridge at bit harsh in the highs. I ended up changing them to suhr thornbuckers and love them. The thornbuckers have the warmth and clarity I like.

My other LP is an '03 LP standard LE, and I replaced the burstbuckers pro pickups in that guitar with suhr aldrich pickups, which I really like. I had an aldrich bridge in the LP custom and it was too hot. So as I said, it really depends on the guitar.

For you situation, I would adjust the height of the pickups and maybe the pole pieces first, but you may just have to consider some other pickups for your LP. '57 classics are nice pickups and a great deal in PAF style pickups for a reasonable price, but I think there is room for improvement.

As far as your other question, the '57 classics are more than capable for most old school metal and hard rock.
 
I've got the 57/57+ in my 2013 Traditional. Tried a set of SD 59's, Saturday Night Specials, and Seth Lover's. Put the 57's back in. They just work for me in that guitar. Playing hard rock through a modded JMP and a JCM800. I can see why people say they can be muddy, but I like the fatness they bring to the sound. They are definitely not a 'tele on steriods' type of LP sound. If I was looking for that, I'd try out the Thornbuckers. The Saturday Night Specials were nice, just a little thin sounding to me in this guitar.

I think the difference you're hearing between the LP and the Wolfgang and Strat have a lot to due with the difference in scale length and construction. Also contributing is the A2 magnet in the 57's. They are a little softer and rounder than an A4 or A5.

Maybe look for a cheap set of used 59/JB combo and throw them in and see what you think. That would definitely get you closer to the sound of your other guitars over the 57's right now.
 
Yeah, the A2 magnets in the 57's can be a little soft and compressed. Great in a Les Paul if you're doing Allman Brothers stuff.... Not so much for heavier rock. I'd definitely start by looking for something with an A5 or ceramic magnet and then decide how hot you want them. With the Chuppa, you probably don't need that much output from the pickups to get the tones you're looking for. Measure the DC resistance of the 2 wolfgang pickups you have and go with something in that range, as you know that works.
 
Same answers you got in the two threads you have on TGP on the same subject. There's MUCH better choices! I'll give you the same answer I gave in your other two threads. For hard rock, or anything requiring a firmer bottom end, and/or clarity, these would be my last choice. They are muddy with extended gain, lack clarity, and have a loose bottom end.

Personally, I have no qualms with the neck position, it's a tad warmer than I like, but not as big an issue for me, as it tends to work well for leads in the bluesy realm. I'd just focus on the bridge pickup, and my opinion/suggestion would be a Duncan Custom. If you want more bite in the top end, maybe a tad less gainy, possibly a Pearly Gates. I don't find the Custom over-the-top in output, however.
 
Like others have said, always hit and miss with any guitar. I have a set of dimarzio 36 anni's in on of my Les Paul copies and I love the neck pickup but find the bridge can be a tad too sharp in the highs when i get into the doodling up the neck. Now an aldrich bridge pup though, love that one.
 
I used to hate the 57/57+ combos that came in all my '68RIs. I tried my first set, and started removing them as one of the first things I would do...up until my very last '68RI purchase. I tried going through the guitar, setting everything up, because whoever owned it before didn't know what they were doing.

I played one A chord through my Mesa Mark III, and it sounded completely different than any other pickups I've tried. I've played through mainly high output humbuckers, from passives to actives, and found my preference on the active side, but with more openness, so I always modded my EMG 81/85s with the 18v mod. But, the 57/57+ had a roundness and a different type of grit to it, that's hard to describe, almost like it matched up perfectly to the gain I had dialed in, to where the pickup filled in more of the resonant valleys in the gain.

If you have an amp that does all the heavy-lifting for you gain-wise, they're a great pickup, but if you are relying on the pickups to introduce more clipping or push your amp into overdrive, they may be underwhelming, and you'd be better served by a pickup with more output, someehwtee between a 12K and 16K pickup, so I'd also recommend a JB type pickup as a good alternative.
 
I think what you are missing in the 57+ you would find in the Gibson 498T. My two favorite Gibson pickups, the 57 for A2 classic rock tones, and the 498T for mid to high gain A5 tones.
 
The 57+ is around 9k alnico 2 magnet. The 498t is around 13k alnico 5 magnet. More output and tighter, less looseness/squish than the 57. But not as hot as your EVH pickups
 
Ok, I lowered the pickups some more. They're almost flush with the pickup ring. I can kind of get everything dialed in to where I'm happy with the bridge pickup tone. Then, as soon as I flip to the neck it's mud city.
 
ledvedder":38rihvyn said:
Ok, I lowered the pickups some more. They're almost flush with the pickup ring. I can kind of get everything dialed in to where I'm happy with the bridge pickup tone. Then, as soon as I flip to the neck it's mud city.
Click to expand...

Try moving the neck pickup up a bit and if that doesn't work, tweaking the pole pieces.
 
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