[Sandbox]

What's up everybody. I'm glad I found this forum and thought I would add to it by asking a question that gets asked pretty often.

I picked up a 2004 EPI Les Paul Standard over the holidays. I've always owned a strat but really wanted this different style of guitar also. I've heard some mention that these guitars really improve with upgraded pickups and stuff. So what are your opinions on some good upgrades for this particular guitar? I would prefer a nice smooth bluesy sound in general, with the option to play around with some distortion at times.

I had this one set up and the Luthier told me a popular mod is a Dimarzio Super Distortion on the bridge and a PAF on the neck. I did a little research and there seems to be a few different Dimarzio PAF's out there.

I play at home mostly so being super loud isn't my priority. I also don't want to spend 100 bucks for each pickup. Are there any lesser known pickup makers out there that can hang with the bigger brands? I am going to play it for several weeks first before making any decisions. It isn't as comfortable to hold as my strat but I enjoy the more muscular sound. Thanks!

[chuckedup]

gfs Liverpool pickups, classic alnico II's, p-90's.. just go to Guitarfetish. read their descriptions of their products then go to Harmony Central Reviews and checkout some user reviews.. i'd probably go with the classic in the neck and the p-90 in the bridge. warning though.....
the damn p-90s really really addictive. get it with alnico mag's, ceramics are really strong magnet's, big clean sound, smooth jazz and distortion, not so much. at least not without some serious amp help.......laters..chuck

[Sandbox]

Hey Thanks for the info chuck. I had heard of GFS single coils but will look at some of those humbuckers as well. Their price makes it not much of a risk. Thanks again!

[Phat-o-Caster]

Just curious-how does it sound now? Where do you think it needs improvement? What kind of amp are you playin' through? Just wondering as it seems theres an awful lot of good pickups being replaced with good pickups these days.I completely understand the need to fix what isn't broken - I'm trying to slow down by asking these questions of myself too.-Brian

[S. Rock]

Originally Posted by Sandbox

--- I am going to play it for several weeks first before making any decisions. ---

that's what I'd suggest. play the guitar for a while and get used to it's "voice". every guitar has it's own voice. this one just may have what you're looking for.

oh yeah, welcome to gibson-talk. we're glad to have you here.

[Sandbox]

Thanks guys. I definitely don't want to rush a change just for the heck of it. What I am looking for is a little more clarity with the tone knobs dialed back. Seems they lose clarity once they are dialed back below say, 5. I'm playing though a Fender Super Champ XD.

With that said, my playing can certainly improve without making any upgrades. But I am intrigued reading comments that these particular guitars see a big improvement with new pickups. I bought it used for under 300 bucks so I don't have that much money in it. Also, I want to start doing this type of work on my own rather than pay someone else to do it, so it would be good little project for me.

Thanks for the welcome S. Rock! Glad to be here.

[charliechitlins]

I'm not in favor of changing pickups just for the sake of tinkering or thinking that your life will somehow be improved...OTOH...I've never seen an Epiphone pickup that I'd use for anything other than a paperweight.

[discofishing]

Tons of people needlessly swap out pickups on their USA Les Pauls. There's probably a bunch of used Gibson pickups you can get off ebay for pretty cheap. Putting any type of Gibson pickup in your Epi LP will yield improvement. Overall, I'd say most of a guitar's tone is in the fingers of the player. I had to learn this the hard way. High end pickups and amps only sound great when the guitar player knows what he/she is doing.

[Sandbox]

Thanks for the info guys. I agree that most of the tone comes from the player, for sure. At the same time, the consensus on the EPI pickups seems to be that they can be improved upon a good bit, maybe more so than other guitars. I've read a little bit about the used Gibson pickups being out there, so I'll check into that as well. Thanks again!

[chuckedup]

Originally Posted by charliechitlins

I'm not in favor of changing pickups just for the sake of tinkering or thinking that your life will somehow be improved...OTOH...I've never seen an Epiphone pickup that I'd use for anything other than a paperweight.

i was kinda of the same mind when i got my LP. thought i'd adjusted the damn things every way they could be adjusted, the neck was just muddy as hell so i pulled them. i puta 496r in the neck but my 498t hadda internal short so i put a hot schaller tele bridge pu in the bridge. was astounded with its newfound voice, still am.
but. i picked upa lil DeArmond m66 for little o nuthin. i had read rave reviews of it's pu's at harmony central. oh they're so nice, you can get a great humbucker tone, p-90 tone, blah blah blah. you couldnt geta hummy tone/sound from them no matter how you set it up. so i thought, heck at least these sound like humbuckers.
maybe its the agathis body and nato neck but setting the neck pu height down even with the pu ring and raising the pole pieces back to about where they started gave this lil guitar the most beautiful voice.
the bridge never was to bad so just dropped it a bit till the muddieness cleared and voiced it with the pole pieces.
maybe i didnt play with them enough when they were in the LP. may pop em back in when i install the gibby wiring harness i bought for her, prob not though i'm pretty happy with the sounds i have now. the LP's a beast.
...........................laters..chuck