mfc_pj
Active member
I have a japanese made es-120 and I wonder if it would improve the sound when I change the pickups. maybe to a pair of classic 57 from gibson? How would the sound change?
Tokai ES-120 pickup question
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Anonymous
Guest
Hi!
Kent Armstrongs? I had a MIK LS about a year ago with one at the neck. Amazing.
Anyway: Depends what you are looking for...
Most german pups nowadays are better then what you can get from SD or others. Sorry for that.
Rup
Kent Armstrongs? I had a MIK LS about a year ago with one at the neck. Amazing.
Anyway: Depends what you are looking for...
Most german pups nowadays are better then what you can get from SD or others. Sorry for that.
Rup
JohnA
Well-known member
A japanese made es-120 would probably have the Gotoh Mk II pickups, these are really good, PAF style pickups, and in my opinion sound excellent.
Changing cheap pickups is an easy way to make a low quality guitar sound better, but an ES120 is by no means a low quality guitar, that as I'm sure you know, sounds great already.
Changing the pickups will make it sound different, but not neccesarily better, that's subjective, and unless you go for a different type of pickup (i.e. a high output ceramic) the change in tone will be subtle.
Have a look at the seymour duncan web-site, or more to the point, a listen to the examples of all their different pickups to get an idea of the differences between them.
Also, they style of music you play will have an influence on pickup choice, but I'm sure you won't be a metal player with a 335
I personally like the SD Seth Lovers, the Gibson 57's are good too, but the Gotoh MKII sound very similar to both.
There are also a lot of good 'boutique' brands out there, lollar, bare knuckles etc, but none of them will make a dramatic difference to your tone.
If you have some spare cash and are happy with everything else about your set-up, try some new pickups and see if you like them any better.
Changing cheap pickups is an easy way to make a low quality guitar sound better, but an ES120 is by no means a low quality guitar, that as I'm sure you know, sounds great already.
Changing the pickups will make it sound different, but not neccesarily better, that's subjective, and unless you go for a different type of pickup (i.e. a high output ceramic) the change in tone will be subtle.
Have a look at the seymour duncan web-site, or more to the point, a listen to the examples of all their different pickups to get an idea of the differences between them.
Also, they style of music you play will have an influence on pickup choice, but I'm sure you won't be a metal player with a 335
I personally like the SD Seth Lovers, the Gibson 57's are good too, but the Gotoh MKII sound very similar to both.
There are also a lot of good 'boutique' brands out there, lollar, bare knuckles etc, but none of them will make a dramatic difference to your tone.
If you have some spare cash and are happy with everything else about your set-up, try some new pickups and see if you like them any better.
Waddy Peytona
Active member
It's all down to what kind of semi-sound you want. If you want a more vintage (ringing, brighter, more acoustic?), you'll probably benefit from a change of caps as well as some lower output vintage-type pickups.
I have a ES-120 and a friend and I redid it with the Duncan PAF '59s, Orange Drop .22 caps, CTS pots. The over all effect was to brighten the guitar up and give it quite a bit more "cut" and definition while retaining a Gibson-type sound, which is exactly what we were going for. To me, it made it into a real all-rounder. I get more positive comments about my tone when I play this guitar than any of my others.
Doing all this on an ES is by no means a treat but it's not as hard as some folks make out. But you really do need to think it through!
Good luck.
I have a ES-120 and a friend and I redid it with the Duncan PAF '59s, Orange Drop .22 caps, CTS pots. The over all effect was to brighten the guitar up and give it quite a bit more "cut" and definition while retaining a Gibson-type sound, which is exactly what we were going for. To me, it made it into a real all-rounder. I get more positive comments about my tone when I play this guitar than any of my others.
Doing all this on an ES is by no means a treat but it's not as hard as some folks make out. But you really do need to think it through!
Good luck.
cheshirecatsmile
Well-known member
Hi,
I recently bought a Tokai Breezysound that had been routed at the neck position for a humbucker, and had a Seymour Duncan (JNJ?) installed. It was a bit too hard rock for my tastes, so I picked up a cheap used Gretsch humbucker (from one of their Korean line hollowbodies--sorry don't know the exact model #). I can't believe how great it sounds, especially in combination with the bridge pickup! The nice thing about changing pickups is they can radically change your guitar, and it's easily reversible if you don't like it
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Ford Ranger History
I recently bought a Tokai Breezysound that had been routed at the neck position for a humbucker, and had a Seymour Duncan (JNJ?) installed. It was a bit too hard rock for my tastes, so I picked up a cheap used Gretsch humbucker (from one of their Korean line hollowbodies--sorry don't know the exact model #). I can't believe how great it sounds, especially in combination with the bridge pickup! The nice thing about changing pickups is they can radically change your guitar, and it's easily reversible if you don't like it
________
Ford Ranger History
