57 Classic substitute

robdynamite · September 2018

So i have a the 57 Classic set in my Les Paul and i want a set for my second Les Paul but my god are 57's expensive. Does anyone have any thoughts on an alternative with the same sound/output from the likes of Bareknuckle/oil city etc.

Cheers!

guitars4you · September 2018

I'd be surprised if you can't find a good clean pair of Classic 57's - So many people exchange Gibson p/ups, that someone must have a pair out there

rlw · September 2018

Bare Knuckles aren’t expensive?

robdynamite · September 2018

rlw said:

Bare Knuckles aren’t expensive?

Totally, that's what i was saying, if there's a good alternative from a company like BK etc

OilCityPickups · September 2018

robdynamite said:

So i have a the 57 Classic set in my Les Paul and i want a set for my second Les Paul but my god are 57's expensive. Does anyone have any thoughts on an alternative with the same sound/output from the likes of Bareknuckle/oil city etc.

Cheers!

57 classics are £109 quid each from GAK ... that actually surprised me for a basically mass produced pickup! I sold the last set from my SG too cheap ... sigh!

jeztone2 · September 2018

I hate 57 Classics, I put Lollars in mine.

robdynamite · September 2018

TheGuitarWeasel said:

robdynamite said:

So i have a the 57 Classic set in my Les Paul and i want a set for my second Les Paul but my god are 57's expensive. Does anyone have any thoughts on an alternative with the same sound/output from the likes of Bareknuckle/oil city etc.

Cheers!

57 classics are £109 quid each from GAK ... that actually surprised me for a basically mass produced pickup! I sold the last set from my SG too cheap ... sigh!

I know, crazy isn't it! Hence me looking for a close alternative. Just wondered if anyone had any ideas of something similar sounding.

Whitecat · September 2018

SD Seth Lovers maybe?

OilCityPickups · September 2018

jeztone2 said:

I hate 57 Classics, I put Lollars in mine.

Not that fond myself ...to be fair the 57 classic neck is not too awful ... but I found the bridge gutless beyond belief.

Fifty9 · September 2018

I think 57s are totally average & just don’t get their increasing popularity

stickyfiddle · September 2018

I sold a set a couple of weeks ago for about 100. There's plenty around. I don't mind them as pickups - I have an alnico3 set in my SG and those are really very good.

But equally you'll get a better pickup from OilCity/Mojo/BKP

OilCityPickups · September 2018

stickyfiddle said:

I sold a set a couple of weeks ago for about 100. There's plenty around. I don't mind them as pickups - I have an alnico3 set in my SG and those are really very good.

But equally you'll get a better pickup from OilCity/Mojo/BKP

That's what I sold mine for ... admittedly an uncovered set, and around what I personally consider them to be worth.

AndyR · September 2018

I don't mind the 57s, but they ain't my favourite (that's BKP Stormy Mondays at the moment). I have several 57 sets out of guitars but I don't intend to part with them. That's partly because they do sometimes go into a new guitar while I'm figuring out what to do, and partly because I never sell anything!

I prefer the 57/57+ set, but even that gets replaced.

I was also amazed to find out what they cost new a while back. And I too would expect to be able to find a 2nd had set for around £100 if I wanted them.

Kebabkid · September 2018

Lollar Imperials, my preference being the Low Winds, are really good but a tad pricey.

Suhr put the Thornbuckers and Thornbucker Plus in their LP-inspired Aura. They could work and they're about £20-30 cheaper than 57s. I know they sound great in the Alt T and Strat-type guitars

OilCityPickups · September 2018

There are literally dozens of alnico 2 PAF style sets from a whole host of makers about. It's a shame that the Irongear Tesla Shark is overwound ... as it's a good pickup ... and I can't even buy the parts to make one for the price those are sold for. I've heard good reports (though not tried) the Irongear Blues Engine ... right wind ... but unfortunately alnico 4. If you were into messing about with pickups ... a set of Blues Engines and a pair of alnico 2 magnets to swap would cost you less than a pair of second hand 57 Classics ... and probably sound better.

thermionic · September 2018

TheGuitarWeasel said:

robdynamite said:

So i have a the 57 Classic set in my Les Paul and i want a set for my second Les Paul but my god are 57's expensive. Does anyone have any thoughts on an alternative with the same sound/output from the likes of Bareknuckle/oil city etc.

Cheers!

57 classics are £109 quid each from GAK ... that actually surprised me for a basically mass produced pickup! I sold the last set from my SG too cheap ... sigh!

So my Epiphone LP, which cost me £305 from ebay (spotless, including rather nice hard case) has £218-worth of pickups in it!

Blueingreen · September 2018

Pickups are so subjective. I have the 57 Classics on a couple of Gibsons and think they are ok. I do sometimes think of swapping them out for something with a little more clarity and focus in the neck. They're not what I'd put into a guitar as first choice.

OTOH I know two outstanding players who replaced pickups in high-end guitars (Anderson Cobra and PRS DGT) with '57 Classics, because they knew them well and liked them better than the stock pickups. It's all in the ear of the behearer.

OilCityPickups · September 2018

Blueingreen said:

Pickups are so subjective. I have the 57 Classics on a couple of Gibsons and think they are ok. I do sometimes think of swapping them out for something with a little more clarity and focus in the neck. They're not what I'd put into a guitar as first choice.

OTOH I know two outstanding players who replaced pickups in high-end guitars (Anderson Cobra and PRS DGT) with '57 Classics, because they knew them well and liked them better than the stock pickups. It's all in the ear of the behearer.

It is indeed ... and very good we don't all have the same tastes ...
My own personal favorite Gibson style humbucker sounds have a touch more 'sting' than perhaps the 57 Classic, but it depends on what I'm playing ... my mood ... what I'm playing through ... if there's an 'R' in the month ... that sort of thing :-)
The trouble with 'owning the sweet-shop' as in being a pro pickup winder ... is that it's pretty easy to do anything and everything you want for your own personal instruments ... for the cost of materials and a bit of tinkering. That means the temptation to swap pickups ... do another one ... with just a few more turns ... see what a non-orientated alnico 5 sandcast magnet will do to the tone ... never stop buggering about ... is simply too great :-)
GAS for a pickup winder is in a whole different league lol.

impmann · September 2018

thermionic said:

TheGuitarWeasel said:

robdynamite said:

So i have a the 57 Classic set in my Les Paul and i want a set for my second Les Paul but my god are 57's expensive. Does anyone have any thoughts on an alternative with the same sound/output from the likes of Bareknuckle/oil city etc.

Cheers!

57 classics are £109 quid each from GAK ... that actually surprised me for a basically mass produced pickup! I sold the last set from my SG too cheap ... sigh!

So my Epiphone LP, which cost me £305 from ebay (spotless, including rather nice hard case) has £218-worth of pickups in it!

Only if it has *GIBSON USA* Classic 57s in it. IIRC, there were some far Eastern Epiphone copies (probably made by G&B in Korea) and they are not quite the same. And that would be the *new* price for them - secondhand I don't think you'd get more than £100 for the pair.

Chalky · September 2018

I've got Classic 57s in five Gibsons and I doubt they are all wound the same because they sound slightly different.

OilCityPickups · September 2018

Chalky said:

I've got Classic 57s in five Gibsons and I doubt they are all wound the same because they sound slightly different.

As they are all computer machine wound ... i suspect the difference is more in the guitars.

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