PAF Pickup Characteristics

[mkh02]

Hey guys I was just wondering your opinions on the differing sounds from these PAF pickups:

PG Blues
Mule
Black Dog
Abraxas

In what applications would you select each of them? I mean is the Mule the standard for Classic Les Paul Rock tones?

When would you use a Black Dog instead of a Mule or Abraxas for instance?

Could someone please talk me through the thought process.

I am starting to really like the Billy Gibbons tone, Paul Kossof and Lynard Skynyard tones. Classic rock straight through a valve amp. Maybe not as much of a gain head as I thought I was lol!

[Twinfan]

In my view:

PG Blues - a little sweeter for cleaner tones, but can handle heavier stuff too.  Very Bluesbreakers.
Mule - the default, quite bright and articulate.  Think stereotypical Les Paul.
Black Dog - hotter Mule, overwound, a touch more Billy Gibbons.
Abraxas - modern, smoother PAF

[Telerocker]

In my view:

PG Blues - a little sweeter for cleaner tones, but can handle heavier stuff too.  Very Bluesbreakers.
Mule - the default, quite bright and articulate.  Think stereotypical Les Paul.
Black Dog - hotter Mule, overwound, a touch more Billy Gibbons.
Abraxas - modern, smoother PAF

Nice summit. I just would add that the Black Dog is not only hotter then the Mule, but has quite some extra mids. Great when your guitar has a natural bright sound.

[Philly Q]

Might be worth adding that the Abraxas (bridge) has the same AIV magnet as the Mule, and similar character to the tone (so I'm told!), but is wound a fair bit hotter, so it's going to overdrive your amp more easily.

What guitar will the pickups be going in?

[HTH AMPS]

I've used the Mule, Emerald, Black Dog and Abraxas in the same LP and found that...

* the Mule was a little underpowered for me
* the Black Dog was too stiff and bassy
* the Emerald was very Thin Lizzy, but ultimately a little stiff/hard for me
* the Abraxas has all the good aspects of a PAF, but fatter.  I never found it to sound or feel like a 'hot' pickups despite the DC resistance.  Its my favourite BKP humbucker hands down (by a mile) and versatile enough to cover lots of tonal ground in a covers band.

[Philly Q]

* the Abraxas has all the good aspects of a PAF, but fatter.  I never found it to sound or feel like a 'hot' pickups despite the DC resistance.  Its my favourite BKP humbucker hands down (by a mile) and versatile enough to cover lots of tonal ground in a covers band.

I definitely want to get an Abraxas (bridge or set) soon - can't decide whether to put it in my relic Strat project (i.e. copy Nolly's HSS set) or in an LP-type.

[darkbluemurder]

the Abraxas has all the good aspects of a PAF, but fatter.  I never found it to sound or feel like a 'hot' pickups despite the DC resistance. 

That is the perfect description of the Abraxas bridge pup. The neck pup is a bit clearer than the typical PAF-type pup.

Cheers Stephan

[Telerocker]

I reckon you can get those tones with a Crawler too. Despite the dc-resistance this one doesn't sound very hot to my ears. The extra compression compared to the Abraxas helps soloing. Still quite dynamic and very suitable for classic rock.

[ericsabbath]

my black dog wasn't stiff at all, unless I set it VERY close to the strings
my '73 lp custom is quite punchy and has a very strong attack, even with other smooth type pickups like the holy diver
the black dog was a lot smoother and darker sounding than the diver
I'm enjoying the riff raff/mule combo better

[Philly Q]

I reckon you can get those tones with a Crawler too. Despite the dc-resistance this one doesn't sound very hot to my ears. The extra compression compared to the Abraxas helps soloing. Still quite dynamic and very suitable for classic rock.

I think you're right that the Crawler's worth considering along with the other pickups mentioned.  I personally found it a bit dark in an LP style guitar but as you say it's not overly hot.

[HTH AMPS]

I reckon you can get those tones with a Crawler too. Despite the dc-resistance this one doesn't sound very hot to my ears. The extra compression compared to the Abraxas helps soloing. Still quite dynamic and very suitable for classic rock.

I think you're right that the Crawler's worth considering along with the other pickups mentioned.  I personally found it a bit dark in an LP style guitar but as you say it's not overly hot.

I found it a little TOO mid-rangey and 'modern', but still PAF'ish.

I'd happily gig with the Crawler set, but I'd take the Abraxas over it any day.

[Telerocker]

For mahogany setneck guitars I agree it can be a bit on the dark side, however the height is important. Closer to the strings brings out more high frequencies and overtones. Nevertheless, I said in an earlier thread that the Crawler is spot on for bolt-on guitars. Mine's sitting in a swampashstrat. For Les Pauls the Abraxas seems a great allrounder. That one is on my list for a another guitar in the future, as is The Diver. At the moment I have big fun with a VHII in an ashstrat. My friend took the guitar this week and he is totally in love. Btw, he's a real good prog.metalguitarist. Sorry for the offtopic info. Bottomline: Abraxas is a great PAF-ish hb with extra midjuice.

[Philly Q]

Nevertheless, I said in an earlier thread that the Crawler is spot on for bolt-on guitars. Mine's sitting in a swampashstrat. For Les Pauls the Abraxas seems a great allrounder.

Yeah, I think I'm now leaning towards a Crawler HSS set for my Strat and an Abraxas set for an LP.

Sorry for the offtopic info.

Me too.   

[PhilKing]

I have Black Dogs in an original 53 LP 59 conversion, and they sound great in there.  It is a very light Les Paul, and I had an Abraxas set in it before, but it didn't work as well (I have Abraxas set in my Hamer Sunburst & PRS Singlecut).  I found Crawlers didn't work in the Singlecut at all, but the Abraxas's are great in it.  I have PG Blues in my Goldtop and don' think you can beat them for blues & classic rock.  I have Emeralds in my LP Custom and they cover all the classic Lizzy sounds.  They have great harmonics and I love the way they react with some overdrive.  My Tobacco burst has a Riff Raff/AIV Stormy Monday combination (it originally was Emerald/AIV Mule), this combination lets you nail all the classic rock sounds you would ever need (though the Emerald/Mule is great for Thin Lizzy & Free stuff).  My Zemaitis Pearltop has an AV Mule & Stormy Monday combination which is really great for Paul Kossoff, Peter Green, Gary Moore and Andy Latimer sounds.  This is possibly my favourite of all of the sets, though the Zemaitis isn't as heavy as a Les Paul.