New pickups for a Gibson Les Paul Studio Premium Plus

[HTH AMPS]

i take lots of gibsons apart , i have never seen a 300k pot

Well they used them all through the 90s...  300k volume pots and sometimes 100k tone pots.

My own 1990 std had 300k pots in both positions and a '96 classic plus I used to own had the 300k/100k combo.

I even went into a local guitar shop to get some pots for a mate's LP once and the tech only had a used set he'd taken out of a Les Paul - Gibson branded, measured 300k with DMM.

 :twisted:

[Yamhammer]

Now I don't get it...

Do the newer Gibsons (2006 Studio Premium Plus) come with 2x 300K pots for volume or not?
I thought that, but I don't know for sure anymore.

[Will]

someone pointed out in another thread (can't remember who which or where - sorry!) that they were generally 500k with a 200k +/- variation

[Yamhammer]

someone pointed out in another thread (can't remember who which or where - sorry!) that they were generally 500k with a 200k +/- variation

Ok, thanks man. I'll find that out properly.

[Will]

probably HeavierthanHell that said that just if you're searching

[pagan7]

If it's too trebley even with the tone pot wound all the way back to maximum treble cut , then you should try a different value capacitor on the tone pot and maybe even a push/pull switch on the tone pot to switch between different value capacitors for a wider tone pallette.

[Yamhammer]

Yeah I know

[Philly Q]

I'd expect the Black Dog to work well with the 490R, but it's a lower-output pickup than the 498T so you may still have the problem of the 490R being louder.

I'm surprised you find the 490R louder than the 498T to be honest, maybe it'd be worth experimenting with the pickup heights?

[Yamhammer]

I'd expect the Black Dog to work well with the 490R, but it's a lower-output pickup than the 498T so you may still have the problem of the 490R being louder.

I'm surprised you find the 490R louder than the 498T to be honest, maybe it'd be worth experimenting with the pickup heights?

Yeah, the 490R is definately louder than the 498T in my Les Paul.

[badgermark]

I had a SG with those 490/498 pickups, loved the neck but the bridge was weedy in comparison. Really not well matched for me either.

[Philly Q]

I've had 3 or 4 guitars with the 490R/498T combination - I agree that the 490R sounds better than the 498T (the neck position is a lot more forgiving than the bridge), but never had a problem with a volume mismatch.  

It's a better match than the 490R/490T combo you get in SG Specials, IMO.

Anyway, I still think in theory the BD should be OK with the 490R.

[Yamhammer]

I've had 3 or 4 guitars with the 490R/498T combination - I agree that the 490R sounds better than the 498T (the neck position is a lot more forgiving than the bridge), but never had a problem with a volume mismatch. 

It's a better match than the 490R/490T combo you get in SG Specials, IMO.

Anyway, I still think in theory the BD should be OK with the 490R.

When I buyed the LP Studio, all the polepieces were adjusted from the bridge pickup. I think they've done that because of the volume problem.

[Philly Q]

You said the Black Dog bridge pickup would be OK with the 490R neck pickup, but the 490R is lower output than a Black Dog neck, so it should be more than only OK.

Black Dog neck=8,0K         bridge=9,75K

490R neck=7,5K                 bridge (BD) = 9,75K


So if you look at this little schematic, you would say the 490R/BD combination should work better volume-wise than the BD/BD combo.

I agree, when I said "OK" I didn't mean "only OK", I meant "fine".  

In my V I have a Black Dog with a Stormy Monday neck pickup, which has similar specs to the 490R (it's 7.5K, Alnico II).  The BD and SM sound just about the same volume-wise, although I have the SM a bit further away from the strings.

But bear in mind, DC resistance isn't an absolute measure of output or volume.  You've seen for yourself that your 7K 490R is louder than your 13K 498T.

[Yamhammer]

You said the Black Dog bridge pickup would be OK with the 490R neck pickup, but the 490R is lower output than a Black Dog neck, so it should be more than only OK.

Black Dog neck=8,0K         bridge=9,75K

490R neck=7,5K                 bridge (BD) = 9,75K


So if you look at this little schematic, you would say the 490R/BD combination should work better volume-wise than the BD/BD combo.

I agree, when I said "OK" I didn't mean "only OK", I meant "fine". 

In my V I have a Black Dog with a Stormy Monday neck pickup, which has similar specs to the 490R (it's 7.5K, Alnico II).  The BD and SM sound just about the same volume-wise, although I have the SM a bit further away from the strings.

But bear in mind, DC resistance isn't an absolute measure of output or volume.  You've seen for yourself that your 7K 490R is louder than your 13K 498T.

It's good to hear the Stormy Monday works properly with the Black Dog.

I

[Philly Q]

Couldn't it be something with the electronics? When I look into the cavity it seems fine, both pickups are wired the same way.

It could be the Gibson thing of using 300K/100K pots, as already mentioned - if your guitar does have low-value pots, then maybe it would "strangle" the higher-output 498T more than the lower-output 490R?  I'm just guessing.

Anyway, it sounds like the problem is definitely with the bridge pickup, not the neck pickup.  Hopefully all will be fine when you get the Black Dog!  :D