Humbucker upgrade for epiphone SG?

[Jack Clayton]

Just picked up and old Korean SG. Really like the fit and finish, so I'm now taking an inventory of upgrades I eventually want to make. Pretty high on the list is a new set of humbuckers.

Normally I'd order some Bootstraps and call it a day, but they're sold out on humbuckers. I know I want something with a vintage PAF sound, but I'd rather not spend myself into a hole. I've got a set of Duncan antiquities in a 335 style guitar, and they are some of my favorites of all time. But they're also very bright. Perfect for a semi hollow. Possibly too bright for an SG.

Anyone got any ideas?

 

[bgmacaw]

Guitar Madness 57 Special Alnico II

I have one of these in the neck of my Epiphone SG Special (the bridge is a SD Seth Lover I had bought used a good while ago). It pairs really well with the Seth Lover. I also have a set, in black, in my headless guitar kit build.

 

[Wooly Fox]

I like my Alnico 3 Custombuckers in my Johnny A, often come up on eBay when people swap out CS Lester pickups for hottest winds.

Also can't go wrong with Lollar Imperial low winds

 

[Zepfan]

My Epiphone SG got PRails and I love them.
Also built this kit recently. It was a H/H, but I put a Dogear P90 over the bridge cavity(a little chisel work on the corners) and made a Jr style pickguard to cover the neck cavity and put a Firebird mounted in the guard for the neck. Sounds awesome.

 

[BFcaster]

For me and what I like, the answer is a Seth Lover. However, maybe consider a Stew-Mac Golden Age Parsons Street? Not too pricey. 'tube videos can help you decide on this particular pickup I think.

 

[johnb]

BYO Guitars Blizzard of 59s!
They sound closer to Seth Lovers (lord I miss that LP Classic) than the Toneriders or GFS PUPs. They are too expensive either.

 

[drmordo]

I am a huge, huge, huge fan of the EVH Wolfgang 'buckers. They are just about perfect IMO.

They are a little spendy, so I watch for used ones on ebay. Shredder dudes prefer higher output PUs and take them out of their guitars and sometimes you can find good deals.

 

[TheCheapGuitarist]

It's an Epiphone, I wouldn't start throwing a bunch of $$$ at pickups. Try a Guitar Madness 57 Alnico 2 Special. I've got them in two of my geetars and they sound great.

 

[Gevalt]

Dimarzio super distortion, or any PAF style with Alnico 4.

 

[benderb9]

I put SD Seth Lovers in my LP Classic and it finally got a sound I really liked. I have an older MIK Epi LP Custom SG and put StewMac overwounds in it replacing the Parson Street HB's I'd previously installed. The Parson Street's were nice and chimey and very clear just a little more polite than I was looking for. The overwounds were on sale last year for stupid money (<$45.00/set zebras) so I picked up a set 'just to have'. They woke up that SG, wish I'da got two sets lol. Just hot enough to not get mushy while retaining really nice clarity and articulation. They drive pedals and amps great. The SG Custom was converted to 2 pups and a batwing guard

 

[Boreas]

It's an Epiphone, I wouldn't start throwing a bunch of $$$ at pickups. Try a Guitar Madness 57 Alnico 2 Special. I've got them in two of my geetars and they sound great.

I actually like the pickups in mine. Wouldn't change a thing!

 

[TheCheapGuitarist]

I actually like the pickups in mine. Wouldn't change a thing!

I'm finding that stock pickups in lower priced guitars are actually getting much better than they ever were. At one point, if you bought and affordable guitar, chances are the pickups were going to be the first thing to go. Not the same these days.

 

[Boreas]

I'm finding that stock pickups in lower priced guitars are actually getting much better than they ever were. At one point, if you bought and affordable guitar, chances are the pickups were going to be the first thing to go. Not the same these days.

It likely costs no more to manufacture good pickups cheaply. It isn't rocket science. Just lower quality standards perhaps, and no advertising budget.

 

[marc2211]

I put SD 59's in my Epi Les Paul back in 2016 - it's still my most played and one of the bext sounding of my guitars.

 

[fuzz guy]

I recently got a Korean Epi SG too and I agree, the pickups are a weak spot. Newer Epi pickups are fantastic, but those older ones, especially the HOTCH bridge pickups, are pretty average.

I would agree also that you don't need to spend a lot to get a nice set of pickups these days. I put a Vanson '57 A2 in the bridge position and a Guitar Madness HB size P90 in the neck because I already had them. The Vanson is perfect, but while the GM one sounds decent it's just too noisy. I think I'm going to put a Firebird pickup in the neck, one of the new Epi ones if I can get one.

You could also try to get a set of secondhand Epi Probuckers or Alnico Classic Pros that someone foolishly swapped out of their new Epiphone. They're both great pickups but some people aren't satisfied unless they've spent a lot.

 

[Maguchi]

Just picked up and old Korean SG. Really like the fit and finish, so I'm now taking an inventory of upgrades I eventually want to make. Pretty high on the list is a new set of humbuckers.

Normally I'd order some Bootstraps and call it a day, but they're sold out on humbuckers. I know I want something with a vintage PAF sound, but I'd rather not spend myself into a hole. I've got a set of Duncan antiquities in a 335 style guitar, and they are some of my favorites of all time. But they're also very bright. Perfect for a semi hollow. Possibly too bright for an SG.

Anyone got any ideas?

I'd go with a Burstbucker 61R and 61T. It's what Gibson puts on their SG Standard '61 and those sound awesome.

 

[hopdybob]

after going al long way on the 'i want other pickups' road i wonder.
what are your lacking with these pups? and PAF is some kind of vague definition were a lot of players have some kind of sound in mind.
they advise you with their sound in mind, but maybe that ain't your PAF sound.

maybe your guitar would benefit from better pots, because they alone can have some negative influence because of the 10% range more or less of the value it is sold for.
i bought a couple of CTS 250Kohm and they read 235 and 240.
pickup height is another thing

and if you want something else, maybe this from @Antigua Tele could be something for you

High quality nickel silver Epi Pro humbuckers for dirt cheap

I recently bought a bunch of pickups from AliExpress branded "Epiphone", Pro-Buckers and Alnico Classic Pros. No, they're not all great. The chrome colored Alnico Classic Pros appear to be the "real deal". Unfortunately all the gold ones turned out to have cheap parts inside, and are...

www.tdpri.com

 

[beyer160]

I'm finding that stock pickups in lower priced guitars are actually getting much better than they ever were. At one point, if you bought and affordable guitar, chances are the pickups were going to be the first thing to go. Not the same these days.

You could also try to get a set of secondhand Epi Probuckers or Alnico Classic Pros that someone foolishly swapped out of their new Epiphone. They're both great pickups but some people aren't satisfied unless they've spent a lot.

I recently picked up a used Epi SG Pro intending to flip, but man- it sounds great! This one has the Alnico Classics, and I like them better than the 490/498 set in my Gibson SG Standard.

 

[kookaburra]

Duncan and Dimarzio have great pickups in the PAF category, and at reasonable prices.

 

[Jack Clayton]

I like my Alnico 3 Custombuckers in my Johnny A, often come up on eBay when people swap out CS Lester pickups for hottest winds.

Also can't go wrong with Lollar Imperial low winds

I've played imperials, and I agree. But considering they'd cost more than the guitar, I was hoping for something a little more conservatively prices.

Fortunately, I reached out to Oat Soda Sound, and they're gonna rewind my stock pickups and make a few upgrades at a very reasonable price. I've had them do the same service for my peerless Casino p90s and, to my ears, the results sound like an old Kalamazoo. I'll let y'all know how the upgrade goes. Thanks for the input.