Decent pups for a LP Studio

[Jazz Rock]

I have been thinking of changing the pups on LP Studio for a while now. I already asked for advices a year ago on the Seymour Duncan forum and for obvious (lack of) budget reason, got only round to the part where I was suggested to change the magnets in the 490R and 498T. Anyway, swapping magnet was fun but Gibsons pups still don't compare nicely to my '59s

Never got to the part implying getting a PGn and a Custom bridge. Which is a shame but is actually not too bad as new stuff came to light.

I am still seeing the Studio as being my heavier style work horse, but with a twist:

First up, I am now building my sound around the FOD and the LC15R. I love the sound of these two units together. The thing is though, they are both fairly mids heavy and tend to deliver more of a fat sound. Indeed, I did bought the FOD cause I wanted to go further in fatness than the LC15R was allowing. I loved the sound of the FOD first time round and still do.
There is one draw back: PM and higher level of gains turn to mush.
I don't use these too often but I do miss not being able to when I feel like.

So based on the idea I want fairly nice clean sound on the one hand, and good grit on the other, to be able to explore all the diversity of Jerry Cantrell's playing (from Brother to Grind), I started thinking:

I need low output with good clean neck pup, rather on the trebly side of things to counterbalance the fact it is in the neck position. I was thinking of a P90 humbucker size as in Phat cat or Mississipi queen.

For the bridge, I need something quite clear and articulate, that would elude the mush produced by the combo '59s + FOD. So something relatively mid-scooped I imagine... even though I don't quite like the sound of these 2 words.

I guess another solution would be to get another pedal to play this kind of stuff. But it would not solve the lack of purpose I have for my Studio right now with the pups that are in. And I do love this guitar so no selling... no... forbidden... bad... evil!

My Studio is a bit darker than the Classic which is working perfectly with the FOD for classic rock and low to medium gain modern stuff.

Any suggestion is welcome...

[Jazz Rock]

No BKP to get my Studio out of ts case?

[sgmypod]

I love emeralds...are sweet in a LP..they cut through even on mush amps

[TomW]

The holydiver is awesome for Jerry Cantrell's tone and is also very versatile it can get very heavy and also has very good cleans. Whenever I play it it reminds me of Alice In Chains. However it is certainly not mid scooped.

[ericsabbath]

The holydiver is awesome for Jerry Cantrell's tone and is also very versatile it can get very heavy and also has very good cleans. Whenever I play it it reminds me of Alice In Chains. However it is certainly not mid scooped.

i agree
and with mesa distortion it sounds a lot like tool

[il˙ti]

I am awaiting Crawlers for my LP Studio. I'll post clips of course, even though they aren't exactly what you described. However, I hear they are similar to the HD, and that's what people are recommending. If you generally don't like the midscooped sound, that's probably not what you should go for. I'm sure there are pickups that will give you enough clarity and still have the sound you're after.

[Jazz Rock]

Thanks for the advice guys.

I was actually wondering mid heavy and clarity are two aspects that could go together???

So is the holydiver a a pickup with lots of clarity? What would be the most articulate pup BK is producing?

PS: Any comment about using Mississippi Queen to get cleaner sound from the neck position?

[Yamhammer]

Thanks for the advice guys.

I was actually wondering mid heavy and clarity are two aspects that could go together???

So is the holydiver a a pickup with lots of clarity? What would be the most articulate pup BK is producing?

PS: Any comment about using Mississippi Queen to get cleaner sound from the neck position?

The Rebel Yell bridge humbucker has LOTS of clarity in a Les Paul, especially in the upper mids.

They rock very punchy and very clear. Beautiful clean sound for a bridge humbucker.