PAF MkII versus PAF Mk4

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little-odgie

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can anyone enlighten me what the big difference is between the PAF MkII and the PAF Mk4's? I appreciate that the MkII's seem to be fitted as standard to the Japanese and higher end Korean models and everything else gets the Mk2 treatment, but what's the difference, in real terms, between 'em?

Imagine the scenario .. a set of both fitted to an imaginary "control" MIJ Love Rock ...

  • Do the MkII's sound better?
    Are the Mk4's muddy? Are they tinny? Are they microphonic?
    What's the meter reading for each type for bridge and neck?

Curiousity might have done for the kitty, but these things can drive a man crazy .. :eek:
 
Sorry, can't help you :(

All I know is that I don't really like the Mk2s. The neck model is ok, but I don't like the bridge version at all. Big improvements can be made to Japanese Love Rocks by taking hte Mk2s out and replacing them with something else, unfortunately.
 
Search for an old topic written by John Spina aka Stratdeluxer.He swapped the ones on his corean Tokai and changed electronics if memory serves me well.
 
Thanks guys .. here's the reason for the enquiry. I bought a real cheap Korean guitar .. it's a Shine ... the body & neck are great but the electronics suck. Plan is to to refurb on a budget and there are a couple of pairs of humbuckers on ebay .. a pair of Tokai Mk4's (out of an ES60), and a set of Epi ones .. I actually quite liked the h/b's that I had in an '99 Epi LP standard. I took a pair of MkII's out of my LS70 and dibbed in a pair of DiMarzio's .. huge improvement :D , but I have no experience of Mk4's as my Korean Goldtop had P90's not h/b's.

Just a'wondering.

:wink:
 
I don't know how much you're looking to spend, but if I were you, I wouldn't bother with the Epi or Tokai pickups - unless you can get them very, very cheap. There's many great second hand deals to be had on eBay for great pickups, or you could go 'adventurous' and have someone like HighOrder wind you a pair of custom pickups for a little over $100 per pair, handmade to your specifications.
 
Still a bit beyond the price range, although they are lovely .. hmmm :D

Anyone got any experience of Mighty Mite p/ups???
 
A friend of mine has Mighty Mite in a Cort Strat he owns. They sound ok-ish... a bit flat and dull to my ears. Based on that, I wouldn't spend more than $30-35 on a pair of Mighty Mite humbuckers.'

I have heard some good things about GFS Pickups, though. Guitarfetishstore sells them on eBay; they're quite affordable if you go for a BIN-auction, and you can sometimes get bargains if you just bid on them :)
 
I don't have experience of the Mk2's but the Mk4's in my TKM Love Rock are as good and articulate as the Gibson 57's in my HB35S Washburn - in other words they rock !!!!
 
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