Same pickups, different guitars

[badgermark]

Howdie, been thinking about this and thought I'd question you fine people...

Does anyone have the same type of pickups in different types of guitars? For example, a set of Mississippi queens in a les paul AND a set in an SG?

I've been thinking about it, and it seems totally our of character for myself to be doing this. I need to justify my guitar purchases- both to myself and partially to the girlfriend... For myself, I see no point in having a similar sound from different guitars.

Now I know some people go to extremes- three identical guitars but in different colours etc, but I'm just curious if anyone has the same pickups in different guitars, and what your experiences are. Do they sound radically different to each other? Do you prefer a different 'feel' that only some guitars give, or are you just a Mule nut, and have a set in every guitar you own?

[_tom_]

I had a Mule bridge in my Charvel for a while. It sounded ok but that guitar had a bad peice of wood which made everything sound average at best.

[Lew]

Crawler in a short scale mahog/maple cap body and mahog/rw neck

Crawler in a 25.5" mahog body and maple/ebony neck

Couldnt sound more different!!

YMMV especially as the sg and lp have the same scale  8)

[gwEm]

i swapped my cold sweat and miracle man bridge between my sycamore feline and my maple through-neck steinberger.

very different sounds in both cases. the MM was organic and mids-y in the steinberger but a bit sterile and modern sounding the Feline.

the Cold Sweat has a fruity low end in the Feline, but had mild sounding low and mid range in the Steinberger.

[Fourth Feline]

Hi.

When my Stormy Mondays still had Alnico II magnets in , they sounded brighter in a Gibson Les Paul Standard - and darker in a Gibson S.G. Standard.

Great sounding pickups in both, but different sounds. Twinfan reminded me it was probably the maple cap on the otherwise mahogany Les Paul, as opposed to the completely Mahogany S.G. that made a difference.

The beauty, ( yet need for specifics ) with B.K.Ps,  being that you actually hear the character of each different guitar's material composition, unlike many 'stock' pickups.

[AndyR]

Yep, same pickups in different guitars sound very different. I moved Riff Raffs from an Epi SG (mahogany) to a Gibson Explorer (even more mahogany!) and they work far better for me in their new home.

My MQs are in that SG now - still learning what to do with it, but I prefer it with them now.

I'm watching your MQ in Epi LP experience with interest though - checked out your clip and saw your pics. I have an Epi LP looks a lot like that, had Mules in, wasn't convinced, bought a Love Rock and put the Mules in there - very nice...

My Epi LP now has the Gibson pups (500T) that came with the Explorer - seem to work quite well. But I am tempted by swapping things around and trying the MQs in the LP now... So, I have a question for you: My Epi LP is basswood with a maple cap (flame veneer) - makes the finish on the back/neck seem very "red" with the paler wood under it, also makes it less dark sounding than some LPs I've tried. I'm wondering whether the MQs might have a bit more bite than I want if I stick them in this one... but listening to your clip... tasty... do you know whether your Epi is basswood or mahogany?

[Philly Q]

The beauty, ( yet need for specifics ) with B.K.Ps,  being that you actually hear the character of each different guitar's material composition, unlike many 'stock' pickups.

To be fair, I think that's true with other brands as well.  Less so with EMGs perhaps, but I've swapped around Duncans and DiMarzios many times and the type of guitar can make a BIG difference.

I'm not sure what has the most effect, the construction style or the timber - it's difficult to tell because bolt-ons and set-necks tend to be made from different timbers anyway (it might be interesting to try an ash guitar with a glued maple neck, or a mahogany guitar with a bolt-on mahogany neck).  The maple top on an LP definitely affects the tone compared with an all-mahogany SG or V, and things like tremolo bridges also have a big effect.

It's hard to generalise, but I've found that a pickup which is too bassy in an SG or LP will often sound good in a bolt-on; and a pickup which sounds thin in a bolt-on will often be just right in a set-neck.

[sgmypod]

have swapped many times...until find perfect match to guitar

[badgermark]

Cool thanks guys. I guess the point I was trying to make is does anyone have identical pickups in different guitars, permanently? I only ask because these MQs have got me hooked, I have a project in mind that is based around the SG sound, and I think the MQs would kick ass.

BUT! I already have a guitar with MQs... Just wondering if anyone has guitars that live side by side with the same pickup configurations.

[Jonny]

Cool thanks guys. I guess the point I was trying to make is does anyone have identical pickups in different guitars, permanently? I only ask because these MQs have got me hooked, I have a project in mind that is based around the SG sound, and I think the MQs would kick ass.

BUT! I already have a guitar with MQs... Just wondering if anyone has guitars that live side by side with the same pickup configurations.

It's possible so why not? :)

[PhilKing]

I have lots of guitars with original P-90's in them, 2 Les Paul Standards, Les Paul Junior, SG Junior, Les Paul Special and also several guitar with BK P-90 and MQ variants.  They all sound different, in some it is subtle, in others it is more obvious.   Just because a sound works in one guitar doesn't mean it will sound the same in another (a great case in point would be my 2 Les Paul Standards, one is an original 1954, and the other is a 1971 reissue, they sound similar but you can also easily tell them apart - if that makes sense!).