Gibson SG pickups advice

[miserymoth]

Hey, would you advise a set of Warpigs Alnico V in a Gibson SG Special Faded for your slow heavy/doom/sludge sounds?

If so, I have a couple of questions that I've not been able to confidently find answers for:

• Do I need long leg length for either bridge or neck, or can I get away with short leg?
• Do I need 50mm or 53mm bridge spacing?

Thanks.

[darrenw5094]

Almost sure it's long leg only and the spacing should be 50mm for the bridge.

When in doubt, get the ruler out.

[DoomBuggi]

Use the long leg spacing.  Especially if you have the SG with the large pick guard with no Humbucker rings.  50mm spacing is advisable, though you can get a way with the 53mm spacing on a WP. But I would definitely go with the 50mm spacing.  For doom, the Warpig with the SG would produce a thick dark tone.

[Dr.Pain]

SG + Warpigs = http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pZCyOWLrRTE

Well that's what I thought when I read this   :)

Shoot off an email to the BKP guys.  Can't go wrong that way.

[miserymoth]

Thanks guys!

Does the neck need to be long leg, or only the bridge?

[wyattriot]

You'll definitely want to look at your original pickups when it comes to 50mm vs. 53mm. I have 2 Gibson SG Standard Limiteds (2011 and 2012 models), they both came with F-spaced (53mm) pickups (490R/498T), and it's my understanding that this is more and more common on the recent Gibsons. In my case, the long-leg 53mm Warpigs and Mules that I bought fit perfectly and look great. I had a set of 50mm pickups in one of them and it just looked wrong.

Of course, there's always the argument that long-leg 50mm will have better resale value, so keep that in mind. Plus, it's debatable that it'll make a huge difference in sound in either case, for the same reason that bent strings don't drop off in volume, unless the string is completely off the pole piece.

miserymoth, to clarify: for my guitars, I bought long-leg 53mm calibrated sets. Both pickups are long-leg, but only the bridge pickup will be 53mm (the neck is always 50mm). They fit perfectly. If your SG Special Faded has an F-spaced bridge pickup, they should fit perfectly in your guitar as well.

[miserymoth]

Thanks, a great answer!

Would it actually be a problem to install short legged pickups, or could it work?

[darrenw5094]

Thanks, a great answer!

Would it actually be a problem to install short legged pickups, or could it work?

Don't think the short leg would go close enough to the strings, so it would be a problem.

If you buy from BKP, you must state what guitar they are for, so i would say the guys at BKP will not let you make any mistake.

[ericsabbath]

you'll need long legs as the bridge pickup usually needs to be set quite high in the pickguard
53 mm if you're replacing a 490t or 498t

[miserymoth]

Thanks guys, really helpful. So even if I used short springs, short legged pickups won't work?

[darrenw5094]

Thanks guys, really helpful. So even if I used short springs, short legged pickups won't work?

Short legs won't work with SG's.

[Philly Q]

Thanks guys, really helpful. So even if I used short springs, short legged pickups won't work?

Short legs won't work with SG's.

It's possible to use short-legged pickups (if you think about it, the entire pickup cover isn't raised above the scratchplate so there's at least 1/4" of leg sitting under the scratchplate)

But long legs are more suitable, especially for the bridge pickup because it sits that bit higher.

[miserymoth]

I'd better go long legged to be sure. Although, might be annoying if I need to fit them in a different guitar one day? You can't easily extend short-legged pickups in some way can you?

[Philly Q]

I'd better go long legged to be sure. Although, might be annoying if I need to fit them in a different guitar one day? You can't easily extend short-legged pickups in some way can you?

Not unless you have welding skills, I'd imagine....


Long legs or short legs, both will fit most guitars.  I wouldn't worry about it too much.