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My desire to always reach the source of information about Gibson Art/Historic creations put me on the phone with Edwin several times and ultimately - in person with him many years ago at NAMM.
IMO, this man was working just a bit harder to convince his employer of the viability of all things...
I registered the “disregard” edit, above, after replacing a long post that discussed the different magnetic field shapes of single coils versus doubles - and, how pole pieces and pole screws might affect the output. I deleted/edited the post because I decided that it really doesn’t prove...
Pole piece screws on humbucking pickups are largely cosmetic (they are not the poles). Unlike Fender-style single coils, the dual-coil magnetic field is horizontally-oriented.
Screw height has an effect, but it’s minimal. Keep this real.
To emphasize something that @DrewB wrote above: The “primary tone” of the guitar is the basis for any tweaks possible through pickups and pots.
A setup that might involve a properly cut nut, bridge saddles and even the bridge assembly can absolutely bring the guitar to its best (brightest and...
All good comments above, and: You may have tried different string sets at this point but if not, don’t discount the effect this can have.
I have great sonic performance with Gibson Vintage Reissue nickel sets and actually use nothing else at this point, but it’s admittedly subjective.
ADP,
Objectively, based on your photo above, these guitars are recently made Les Pauls. Neither harkens from the 50’s, 1960, or later ‘60’s when the model was reintroduced. How important is that? ‘Depends- Are you buying, selling, playing, or whatever all of this is supposed to be?
No...
Al,
I used to sign on as “FlyingNotes” way back in the days of Lily and so many old hands who haven’t posted for years. We would all share, commiserate, argue, and ultimately - get the schooling from you. More than anything from my memory: I would often log on to see your latest offerings and...
So… Those tonal qualities:
I really favor clear, understated tones from a Les Paul. To me, this means a neck pup that gets a lot of steel in the note on wound strings (no mud) and a bridge pup that is very heavy on the mids (no shrill brightness). The pups need to be balanced at normal heights...
‘Been reading through this with some degree of interest but maybe just a bit more frustration.
“I’m simply stating the facts…”
Well you are stating your facts, right? This is fine, of course as long as you try to understand that people hear differently, play using different nuance, and if they...
The original-formula nylon is much harder than bone. With a bone nut, the slot angle, slope, and sides will need attention in order to mitigate the G-string grip.
Bone is good but only if it’s trimmed and shaped for the string set.
I’m curious: Why leave nylon for bone?