Yet another pickup selection request for a Les Paul - details inside

[jshelds]

hey BKP forums, I could use a hand deciding:

I've got a 1993 Les Paul Standard that I swapped the stock pickups out of years ago in favor of emg 81/85 as I went through my Zakk Wylde phase.
I play everything from Beatles to Eagles to Bon Jovi to Oasis on this guitar and thankfully the 85 in the neck is fairly versatile and warms things up enough to play anything passably.

However, I would love to get some more character back in this girl. I'm looking for something that will be articulate in middle position but have a 'rounder' tone than the emg set. I would consider Slash to have a VERY 'round' tone, if that helps. I don't necessarily want to go that far/sound just like slash, but a little bit in that direction would be good. I need instantly accessible harmonics and some thickness when the gain is dialed up for Dead or Alive, and I need character and some warmth for things like Hotel California and melodic solos like Something. I play through a Vox AC30 and sometimes a JCM 800. (i've been using the vox more and more, even on things like dead or alive. that thing has balls.)

Here are a bunch of songs I played on the les paul during our last show:
carry on my wayward son
comfortably numb
johnny b good
house of the rising sun
hotel california
Joker and the Thief
Don't Speak  (No Doubt)
Heartbreaker (pat benatar)
Do you feel (peter frampton)
Don't Look Back in Anger (Oasis)
While My Guitar Gently Wheeps
What about love (Heart)
Wanted Dead or Alive

After reading all of this, what do you recommend?
I was leaning towards the Mules at first, but now I'm thinking the Abraxas. Am I on the right track? I'm having a hard time finding many sound clips. really only found two or three on youtube. The ones here in the forum don't seem to work.

Question 2: Should I consider upgrading electrical components with the pickups? If so, what? kind of clueless there...

[Kiichi]

Mules of course work. However, the Abraxxas also has its upsides here. For the heavier stuff it works well, but can still do old school, just with a bit more beef. IŽd still pair it with a mule neck though for these things.
For Slash-ish sounds though the Stormy Monday is the best choice. That extra roundness from the magnet just does something. Still can rock a lot though, make no mistake. That one might actually be my choice for most of the stuff you have listed here.

[AndyR]

As I was reading, I was thinking "Mules... Stormy Mondays if you want the same sort of thing but capable of a bit warmer and sweeter"

In my experience, both would work. I've had Mules in a Les Paul, they're now in a 335. I've got Stormies in a Les Paul and in an SG. My personal faves are the Stormies - but I HAVE been playing the Muled 335 a bit more recently.

Personally I'd choose Stormies to make sure the cleaner end of the material, the need for rounded tones, etc, is as sweet as poss... They all scrunch and give instant harmonics when you get raunchier. But if raunchy scrunch is where your own favourite sound is... then the Mule bridge is kinda hard to dismiss. Mules also clean up nicely, just not quite as bell-like.

Abraxas I don't have experience of, but the knowledge around here says it's a souped up Mule. I'd like to have them one day.

EDIT: Ah Kiichi has posted while I was typing - yep, pretty much agree with him.

[jshelds]

hah, I come here thinking one thing and then you guys go and throw more options at me! :) Thanks for the responses!

The Stormy has me intrigued.

Are you guys primarily suggesting a mule bridge paired with stormy neck, or stormy in both?

[AndyR]

I'd go Stormy both - I love how they combine in the middle position.

(I have no idea how a Mule bridge and SM neck would combine, though - it might be even better!)

[gwEm]

I'd go Stormy both - I love how they combine in the middle position.

(I have no idea how a Mule bridge and SM neck would combine, though - it might be even better!)

I have that combination in a '58 style V.

Separately, the pickups work well together in this set, but the middle position isn't as good as both Mules or both Stormies IMO

[gwEm]

Theres nothing too heavy in that list, I wouldn't go for Abraxas.

Probably in my case I'd go for Mules just because you can load them with gain if you needed to. In particular something like a Boss SD-1 into a JCM800 with Mules can cover all sorts of non-extreme metal - Ozzy, NWOBHM, Scorpions/Dokken, some Metallica.

But indeed, if we simply go by your track list alone, actually the Stormy Mondays have much merit.

[AndyR]

I'd go Stormy both - I love how they combine in the middle position.

(I have no idea how a Mule bridge and SM neck would combine, though - it might be even better!)

I have that combination in a '58 style V.

Separately, the pickups work well together in this set, but the middle position isn't as good as both Mules or both Stormies IMO

Ah! That stops me wondering needlessly :)

I have wondered about this combination a bit recently - but I do kinda love the middle position too much to risk "losing it" for a mix and match set.

[Telerocker]

This is a nobrainer: Mules all the way!

[m t soule]

I had a crawler neck abraxas bridge that pleased me enough with playing GnR stuffs.
Byt hearing you guys talk about the mules makes me want to spend :)

T

[JonnyScaramanga]

Yeah, I have a Les Paul with Mules and I would definitely take it with me if I were doing a gig with the setlist you mentioned.

There's nothing you can't do with Mules.

I've got another Les Paul with Riff Raffs and that would do the job too (especially if your guitar is on the dark side) but the Mule-equipped guitar is definitely the one I'd grab first.

[cousingrandpa]

I have the Abraxas/Mule combo in my R9 Les Paul & it covers everything perfectly. The Abraxas sounds like a beefed up Mule, cleans up very well but also can drive an amp a little harder with all the tone & dynamics of the Mule. This is my favorite for a Les Paul & I highly recommend it. I have had a matched Mule set in this guitar, they are now in my Orville.

[PhilKing]

I'm going to throw another spanner in the works.  I play a lot of what you are playing and I have a broad selection of pickups in my guitars for it.  However, to get the best out of all that you are looking at (including the Joe Walsh and Neil Geraldo tones), I am going to suggest a Riff Raff & Stormy Monday combination.  They do work well in the combination setting too, as they are A5 & A2 magnets, rather than the A4 & A2 of a Mule/SM combo.   Another option, which would be a little heavier (more Gary Moore tones), is the PG Blues set.  I have them in a Goldtop and they work really well.  The only thing that may put you off is the out of phase combined sound (which is what the whole set is about).   Finally, another combination that I use and like, is the Emerald with a Mule in the neck.  This is a great blues/rock pickup set, with lots of harmonics in the Emerald and a lovely set of sustaining notes from the mule.  Tim recommended this set to me back in 2004, when I explained that my favourite tones were 'Still in Love With You', 'Heartbreaker', Me Big' and Innes Sibun's version of 'Rattle Snake Shake' and John McCurry's tone on this (go to 1:58), https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dp7lGSKVGZE

Sorry to add to your confusion.

[Dave Sloven]

With regard to the PG Blues, can't you get around the phase issue by adding a push-pull phase switch?

https://bareknucklepickups.co.uk/main/downloads/schematics/profiles/humbuckers/1_hum__4_con__pushpull_pot-phase_reversal_with_another_hum.pdf