Pickups for Gibson SG 61' Reissue

[Alfi27]

Greetings! Been going a little crazy these days, a friend of mine brought a Gibson SG 61' Reissue to my house yesterday because a friend of his dad was selling. Even though I have owned close to 40 guitars, I have never owned an SG and hardly played one. Still, it almost felt like coming home! When I picked it up, I thought that "this one plays as good as my Les Paul Special from 1996!". After a few hours I figured that I should check the serial number, and it turned out to be from 1996 as well! The two guitars were made less than two months apart, and I was born in 1996 as well (almost right in the middle of the two guitars)

The only problem is that it is quite neck heavy, but I will exchange the Grovers for Gotoh Klusons and most likely move the strap button. The pickups are actually very good considering that they are stock (57 Classics), and I am not 100% sure that I will replace them. I might just try a magnet swap, an Alnico 4 or 5 maybe. However, I wanted to check in if I decide to do it, and get some advice from people who own one of the infamous, very pickup-picky SGs. I talked to BKP and Ben recommended the Rebel Yell set or RY/EM set, and that the VHII set would be a great choice as well. Because I already have the RY set in a Les Paul I am leaning towards the VHII. I think the pickup looks very appealing on paper, an overwound PAF with much higher output than the DC resistance tells you. Do you have any experience with the VHII in an SG? Thanks!

[Slartibartfarst42]

I always feel that in an SG it would have to be Warpigs or Riff Raffs.

[Alfi27]

Yeah that's what I thought and wrote to Ben, that I have heard that vintage hot pickups does not work too well in SGs. He told me that there is no such "rule". I know that neither Riff Raffs nor Warpigs are what I am looking for, because I need more low end push and power than the Riff Raff can put out but certainly not as much as the Warpig. If the VHII set performs well in SGs it should be perfect for what I am looking for. Somewhere between my Nantucket and Rebel Yell equipped Les Pauls sort of. I have always wanted to try an overwound PAF sort of pickup, because I have found most PAFs (like the Riff Raff) to sound too bright for what I am looking for.

[Slartibartfarst42]

overwound PAF sort of pickup

Which seems to bring us back to an Abraxas 

[AndyR]

I was wondering Abraxas...

My 61 Re-issue has Stormy Mondays in - I'm guessing you won't even go that direction, so I didn't post earlier...

However, when amplified it is warmer and meatier than my Faded SG with Riff Raffs. Note that acoustically, though, the Faded sounds a LOT darker and less "thin" and bright than the 61RI does.

My 61 is still somewhat more "vintage" than I'm guessing you want. It does Angus fine (better than the Faded with the RRs!), but that's as far as I go. I was setting this one up for Allman Brothers type stuff and pop-rock, funky stuff and so on.

[Alfi27]

I will probably try my Abraxas set in the SG. Might save me a lot of trouble But how do the Abraxas differ from the VHII? I know the wire (and magnet) is not the same, and the VHII is a "more true" PAF per say. By pure guessing, I think the Abraxas might be a tad too dark and middy for this SG. It actually sounds surprisingly full-bodied for such a thin body (no pun intended). It is no Les Paul though. These days the Abraxas gets recommended a lot, but not the VHII so much. The Abraxas sure is a great pickup, but if the VHII does what it says on the tin, I cannot see why to be honest. Harmonically rich overwound PAF with a huge sound sounds like a dream pickup to me at least!

I actually have experience with the Stormy Monday set, and I was very surprised by it! I used to have a set a couple of years ago in a 08 Les Paul Standard. Great tones indeed, not only for blues and jazz. Very good for many different heavy rock styles as well! However, I tend to go with slightly hotter pickups these days, and I want to stray away from the Classic 57 more than the Stormy Monday does. That said, I did (and still do) consider the Mule set. Ever since I installed my Abraxas set and got every prejudice about the Alnico IV magnet proven wrong, I have been eager to try one. Considering that the high end is not as dominating as with the Riff Raff, I think it might be a better choice for me and this guitar. What do you think about that? I do love my Nantucket loaded Les Paul Special so it does not have to be a vintage hot or contemporary set for that matter. And I have great drive and boost pedals, as well as a virtually limitless gain knob on my Kemper

So, at this point I would say that it stands between a Mule or VHII set. I have never tried the Mule bridge, and I have very limited experience with the VHII bridge, but I know both neck models quite well. The VHII is probably my all time favourite neck pickup when coil splitting is required, and it can compete with many real single coils! The Mule neck is also a great pickup, which I have quite a lot of experience with but not as much as the VHII. However, I want to go with a pure, calibrated set no matter which one I choose

[ericsabbath]

the vhII set does sound great in SGs (had them in a repaired sg faded), but why not a trusty riff raff/mule set?
the abraxas is not really an overwound paf, but a vintage voiced modern pup
the vhII sounds a lot like the riff raff, but punchier, less middy and a little more percussive
it sounded surprisingly Iommish in my SG, although it's nothing like Tony's pups

[Alfi27]

I have tried the Riff Raff/Mule set in two Les Pauls, and I did not quite like the Riff Raff in any of them... Well, I did like it but I didn't love it. Something weird going on in the high end or high mids, hard to explain really. What I do know, is that I want something different for this guitar. The guitar is already very Angus by the looks, so I don't need it to be Angus by the tone as well 

From how you describe the VHII it should be a great match, but after what AndyR and Slarti wrote (even though they didn't mention it...) the Mule set have become a stronger candidate. Not sure if it might be a bit too vintage for me, but the Nantucket is not so I honestly doubt it. How are the highs of the VHII compared to the Riff Raff?

[Dave Sloven]

There was someone on  here before who put RYs in her SG and she found them to be lacking a lot of bottom end.

If the guitar is middy, I would be very careful.  Middy SGs can be very obnoxious with a middy pickup.

It sounds as if you like more powerful pickups, so I would recommend a Miracle Man in the bridge combined with a Holy Diver in the neck.  That will gives you a great '80s metal tone, similar to a Holy Diver set in a Les Paul with a little extra output in the bridge.  It will have more mids than a HD in a Les Paul though, just because the guitar has so much mids already, and it won't sound as bassy as the same pickup in a Les Paul for similar reasons.

I haven't read a single bad review of the MM bridge in an SG

I have a Cold Sweat set in my SG, but I think a MM/HD combo would be an improvement on that

If you want something more vintage I would look at the Black Dog and Abraxas rather than the Emerald or VHII.  I worry that they might sound thin  in the bottom end in your SG

[Alfi27]

Miracle Man is definitely not what I want for this guitars, hehe. The Abraxas and especially the Black Dog are middy pickups, not sure if that's what I want either. The guitar, cabinet, amp and pedals (if I want them too) all push out a LOT of mids. Even though the cab has V30s the overall tone is actually quite dark even with the SG. I am not familiar with the 57 Classics so it is hard for me to say what the pickups are supposed to sound like, but they do not sound thin nor brittle. Less full bodied than my Les Paul naturally.

Not sure if you meant to write Emerald or Mule, but the Emerald was never a candidate. When I wrote that I need more low end push than the RR I did not mean that I need a huge low end, because I still want it to sound like an SG. I have my Les Paul R0 for that huge and thick sounding low end! I just don't want it to sound thin or overly focused in the high end like the RR can be.

[Slartibartfarst42]

How about an A-Bomb for the bridge? It's certainly a hot pickup yet retains a PAF feel to it in some ways. It's not a billion miles away from a Rebel Yell but it's darker and thicker overall with a spike in the upper mids that may well work out perfectly if your rig has a lot of low end, lower mids and mid mids. It has a typically 'Gibson' feel to it so won't be out of place in an SG at all. It ticks all the bases you want.

Other than an A-Bomb, have you considered a P90 set as an alternative?

[Dave Sloven]

A-Bomb in a bright SG is ace if you plan to play Poison Idea songs 24/7

Otherwise get something less middy and hairy

Stockholm is a good alternative to a Nailbomb in an SG.  More versatile

[Alfi27]

Even though I do love the Rebel Yell set, I don't think I want a contemporary pickup for the SG (even though the RY is not the most contemporary in the range). I am sure the A-bomb is a cool and versatile pickup, but I am pretty sure I want the humbucker equivalent of the Nantucket for this SG. Asked Ben just now which one that may be, so I might go for that one unless his answer is the Riff Raff... Haha. Something vintage or vintage hot at least. I am also considering just swapping the bridge pickup to save some money. A P90 set would be nice, but I am very happy with my P90 equipped LP Special so I don't think I need another P90 guitar. The SG is not particularly bright by the way, very balanced for an SG but certainly not any lack of mids!

[ericsabbath]

If you want something more vintage I would look at the Black Dog and Abraxas rather than the Emerald or VHII.  I worry that they might sound thin  in the bottom end in your SG

The vhIi is one of the bassiest bk bridge pups I ever had
Definitely bassier than a Black dog, although not as fat in the mids

[Telerocker]

I have the VHII in an ash strat. Erics description is spot on. More bass than say a Mule. Good midrange that might seem to hide a bit because of the open present topend and the percussiveness of the pickup. It has quite some output, nearly on par with my Crawler.
I think a VHII will do fine in an SG.