looking for pickup suggestions- PRS SE EG

[imaradiostar]

I purchased a used PRS SE EG today and I've been pretty impressed by how well it plays. The tone is surprisingly strat-like but I wouldn't mind seeing a little better single coil sound. The guitar is equipped with ceramic pickups (S S S) that all measure around 5.5k. The guitar is all mahogany with a set neck so I'd imagine this is why the seemingly underwound ceramic pickups don't sound totally terrible.

I want to fatten up the mids a bit but retain a strat like sound...but a little thicker. You know the story- I want it to quack like a strat and sound open like a strat but sing like a violin into a midrangy high-gain amp.

I have a number of old strat pickups that I'm going to try before I buy or build anything but I'm curious what suggestions you might have.

jamie

[cwmont]

Replacement Pickups

I want to fatten up the mids a bit but retain a strat like sound...but a little thicker. You know the story- I want it to quack like a strat and sound open like a strat but sing like a violin into a midrangy high-gain amp.

jamie

I've been using the DiMarzio Virtual Vintage PU's in some of my strats with pretty good results. They have a good strat sound and are dead quiet. Right now I have the Heavy Blues in my strat and it sounds just like a strat should at clean volumes but opens up really nice when pushed hard through an overdriven tube amp. High gain boost on my Traynor 40 watt combo sounds really hot.

One thing I like about DiMarzio is that they will take it back and exchange it for another type if you don't like it.

[David Schwab]

I put a few Virtual Vintage Solo Pros in a customer's guitar. They are great sounding pickups. The Solo Pro is supposed to sound a bit like a P-90.

[cwmont]

DiMarzio

I put a few Virtual Vintage Solo Pros in a customer's guitar. They are great sounding pickups. The Solo Pro is supposed to sound a bit like a P-90.

I've always liked the sound of their guitar pickups. The solo pro, pro 54 and any of the "area" models are a great choice for any strat or strat type guitar. I love how quiet they are but still able to get a good single coil sound.

I've never cared for their bass pickups. I mostly play P basses and although I like way a P bass plays, I've never been able to get exactly what I'm looking for sound wise with the stock Fender pickup. Seems like I can't ever get the string to string balance I want. One of my P's has a really old EMG Select set in it. Most people hated the selects but this set in that bass sounds pretty good. Maybe I'll opt for some custom wounds and try to get what I want.

[imaradiostar]

Thanks for the suggestions. I'm guess I'm going to just try a few things and see how it sounds!

jamie

[David Schwab]

I used to use a bunch of Model P pickups.. they were an improvement over the stock pickups, if you wanted a brighter bigger tone, but on my 8 string they were harsh and unpleasant.

Then I got a Hi-A pickup (Bartolini) in 1976 and that was my favorite pickup until I started using EMG's in the mid 80's.

Then I got tired of the EMG's and made my own replacements.

I always thought the Select pickups sounded fine. I don't see any problem with them. They aren't any worse than stock Fender pickups!

I still have an original DiMarzio Super Distortion humbucker I got in 1977. I wired it up as a Dual Sound.

[eschertron]

I know, old thread but as a SE EG owner myself, I'm curious how this ended up for you, Jamie? I also wonder how many others here may have an EG model. It didn't seem as popular as all the LP clone variations there are.

I purchased the guitar knowing that I'd pull the stock pickups as soon as I could, and went with an assortment of SD pickups: JBjr, Duckbucker, and Hot rails. I'm using a superswitch to get a variety of splits and combinations otherwise hard to achieve.