prs 57/08 info

[the great waldo]

The pics I've seen of the 57/08s have brass base plates.
What's with that?
IMO They can't be too serious PAF clones with Cheap High stealing brass bass plates.
https://www.google.com/search?q=PRS+...e%3B1000%3B667

We should'nt knock brass plates too much. Many years ago I put in a dimarzio paf into an old late 50's lespaul standard where one pickup had died and the dimarzio fitted tonally perfectly. The customer was more than happy.

Cheers

Andrew

[big_teee]

They always sounded duller to me.
I like Nickel better, but use what you like.
Supposedly PRS is so big on having period correct wire, and the machine used in the Gibson factory?
Then they go with cheaper Brass for a baseplate, WTF?
T

[LtKojak]

I don't think those baseplates are brass-made, but that's yellow nickelsilver, an alloy used to make frets for classical guitars.

My late oncle, a luthier for the stars in classical and folk music in Argentina in the late '60s used'em in their top-of-the-line instruments to add "bling".

Today you can find'em has the EVO series in Jescar frets.

HTH,

[big_teee]

I don't appear to be the only one who thought that it was brass?
Guess who didn't care much for the pickups?
PRS 57/08 pickups
T

[JGundry]

They always sounded duller to me.
I like Nickel better, but use what you like.
Supposedly PRS is so big on having period correct wire, and the machine used in the Gibson factory?
Then they go with cheaper Brass for a baseplate, WTF?
T

PRS does NOT have a machine that was used in the Gibson factory. I get calls asking how my Gibson machines are different that PRS Gibson machines and the answer is PRS has NO Gibson winding machines. But the myth that PRS has them persists. Pat Travers claimed they did in Vintage Guitar recently, and so it goes on...

But the reality is PRS does NOT have a Gibson winding machine. I have called PRS and they confirmed this. Here is a video in which Paul himself explains that they don't at the 1:53 mark.

[JGundry]

This is what one of the vintage P.A.F. machines from the Gibson factory looks like.

[JGundry]

Below is a video of Paul explaining the wire they use. I don't really know anything about this wire but I do know that the PRS release of these pickups with this wire coincides with when AWC began making 42 PE wire again. I used to regularly check with AWC to see when they might make more PE wire and one day when I called they said "oh yeah, we will be running PE in batches going forward because we have a customer that committed to large enough orders to justify us buying the material to do PE." AWC wire is different from most other PE in that it is at the lower end of the ohms per foot tolerance for 42AWG. It would be interesting to see what the ohms per foot is of the PRS wire? But Paul says the wire is made by Bridgeport so it is probably just a coincidence. It is worth noting that Gibson used to use wire from many sources, Phelps Dodge, Anaconda... and Viking and Viking became AWC.

[JGundry]

Here is the pickup winding machine at PRS. Cool machine but a blazing fast winder compared to a vintage Gibson pickup winder.

[big_teee]

The only question I had, was on the brass or nickel base plate.
IMO, a winder is a winder is a winder, as long as you know what, and how it is winding.
If it is new or made in the 50s, no matter to me.
What metal components and ingredients are made of, IMO does matter.
T

[David King]

I thought PRS was getting their "antiqued" wire from Bridgeport wire not AWC, not that anyone cares.

[JGundry]

The only question I had, was on the brass or nickel base plate.
IMO, a winder is a winder is a winder, as long as you know what, and how it is winding.
If it is new or made in the 50s, no matter to me.
What metal components and ingredients are made of, IMO does matter.
T

The winder matters. The cam geometry, lobed or lobeless or complete lack of a cam, wire guides, tensioning, fixtures all matter with a pickup. If we were winding solenoids it would be a different matter. With pickups it matters.

Yep PRS wire is Bridgeport according to PRS, AWC production start must be a total coincidence of timing.

[CheopisIV]

In response to speculation of offsets... I've been inside several PRS pickups and have yet to meet a single one with an offset on the coils. Dead even on all the one's I've had including 59/09s which are supposed to be overwound 57/08s.

[copperheadroads]

In response to speculation of offsets... I've been inside several PRS pickups and have yet to meet a single one with an offset on the coils. Dead even on all the one's I've had including 59/09s which are supposed to be overwound 57/08s.

Anything special about them ? or just hype . I have never heard a prs pickup that I really liked . they usually get replaced

[CheopisIV]

Anything special about them ? or just hype . I have never heard a prs pickup that I really liked . they usually get replaced

No, I couldn't smell any unicorn dust in there. Just some wire wrapped around a bobbin and covered in gobs of wax....maybe the Wax is the secret! I have a set of the 57/08s in a Korina McCarty and they sound decent, but nothing to write home about either. I haven't opened these up and likely wont, they do suit the guitar nicely though.