If I put the same pups as my Studio will this guitar sound as good ?

BEACHBUM

BEACHBUM

Margarine Advocate
I really dig the bones of this guitar. It plays great, It looks great, (never mind the headstock) and it seems to be made of good stuff. But, the sound is completely one dimensional and basically sucks. Will new pups make it a winner and if so what would you put in it?

 
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Yep. Crapshoot for sure. I've had good luck with some and not so much with other attempts. If there's a formula, I haven't figured it out.
 
The pickups I would choose:

1. Dimarzio 36th Anniversary PAFs - Vintagey, clear, not scooped like Duncans, and distort quite nicely
2. Seymour Duncan Pearly Gates set - wound for Billy Gibbons, Warren Haynes approved.
3. Dimarzio Air Norton & AT-1 or Air Zone - Higher output, but not insanely so, more modern
4. Seymour Duncan Seth Lover set - unpotted for old school tone
5. Dimarzio EJ Custom set - a mix of PAF and Filtertron

Personally, I don't go for boutique sets. YMMV.
 
i would think if you put the same pups in the Agile, it should sound pretty close, especially if you play rock with crunch and overdrive. it might sound a little bright or dark, depending on the wood, but that's what tone controls are for.
 
I had an *gile Les Paul, and the original pickups indeed sounded very crappy. I put a set of Seymour Duncans in it, JB/59's, and it sounded great :)

Ended up giving the guitar to a good friend of mine who only had some cheap Les Paul knockoffs that were in various states of repair, and he still has it, and we jam occasionally. Still sounds and plays pretty well :)
 
I’d probably put a 59 in the neck and a Whole Lotta Humbucker in the bridge.
 
Thanks to all for the advice. I think the guitar is worth a little extra investment so I'll browse for some sound clips on those pickups.
 
Basically, if it sounds close acoustically (not plugged in) to the studio then it should work out. Of course you may want to think out totally re-wiring it to be sure.
 
^^ I've got a Tele like this one with "Pearly Gates/59" and like them a lot. I'll ponder those for sure.

 
I bet you can get pretty close with a pickup swap. Probably not 'the same' as your other guitar, but 'close enough' in practical terms. Not a slam at the 4gile, as I suspect the 4gile pickups in the LP would also sound different from the original 4gile.
 
CRIKEY!!!

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Single: $595.95

Zephyr Silver Stratocaster® Pickups
Set: $1,195
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Zephyr Silver Telecaster® Pickups
Set: $995
Single Tele® Lead: $549
Single Tele® Rhythm: $449
 
Honestly? I'd probably snag the cheapest set of burstbuckers or other gibson oem buckers and swap them in. If it's an improvement then you'll know where to go from there. If it's not, then the guitar is probably never going to improve much.
 
dougk said:
Honestly? I'd probably snag the cheapest set of burstbuckers or other gibson oem buckers and swap them in. If it's an improvement then you'll know where to go from there. If it's not, then the guitar is probably never going to improve much.
Click to expand...

So I had a stock set of the Gibson 59's Burstbuckers currently in my Agile 3100. I changed out the pickups, Pots (to linear) and caps. It has made all the difference in the world and the instrument not sounds like the total class act that it should be.

This was recorded quickly and direct via GuitarRigIV and is my standard test tune... http://www.guitarheads.org/Guitarheads/Music/other/3100.mp3
 
I had an Agile 3100 that had a new bridge installed (tonepros) and Duncan Antiquity pickups installed. I definitely improved the tone a lot.
 
Help!I'maRock! said:
The pickups I would choose:

1. Dimarzio 36th Anniversary PAFs - Vintagey, clear, not scooped like Duncans, and distort quite nicely
2. Seymour Duncan Pearly Gates set - wound for Billy Gibbons, Warren Haynes approved.
3. Dimarzio Air Norton & AT-1 or Air Zone - Higher output, but not insanely so, more modern
4. Seymour Duncan Seth Lover set - unpotted for old school tone
5. Dimarzio EJ Custom set - a mix of PAF and Filtertron

Personally, I don't go for boutique sets. YMMV.
Click to expand...

Out of curiosity, do you consider Bare Knuckles boutique? They're a little more expensive than the Duncan/Dimarzio classics, but not outrageous by any means. I don't know if it's just my exact configuration, but tonally I'm happier with them than anything else I've ever tried.
 
Kerouac said:
Out of curiosity, do you consider Bare Knuckles boutique? They're a little more expensive than the Duncan/Dimarzio classics, but not outrageous by any means. I don't know if it's just my exact configuration, but tonally I'm happier with them than anything else I've ever tried.
Click to expand...

Yes, I would consider them boutique. I'm not saying there's anything wrong with that. I'm just saying what works for me.
 
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