Seymour Duncan 50th Anniversary Limited Edition Seth Lover

This pickup is a direct repro of Seth Lover's first pickup he ever made in 1955 as he was a Gibson design engineer. If you ever wondered where the PAF's originated, Seth is the guy who invented the pickup that Gibson tried to get a patent on. The SH-55 Seth Lover model pickup's materials are made of the same materials that Seth used to create them from. The bottom plate is made of nickel-silver, butyrate plastic bobbins, plain enamel wire, an alnico bar magnet, wooden spacer, black paper tape, braided single conductor cable and a nickel-silver cover. Great vintage tone and quality craftsmanship go into the making of these things.

I installed these into my Gibson SG becuase I loved their tone.

As I installed the SH-55 Seth Lover pickups, I removed the crappy stock Gibson ceramic .223uf capasitors and replaced them with .1uf polystyrene orange drop capasitors. This little mod is cheap, (around 17 cents each), and can improve your dynamic range of your tone. The neck pickup is now punchier and fatter, and the bridge pickup has more crisp highs while giving it a nice low end bark like an old Les Paul. I play wide varieties of music so I can use my SG for almost anything. I play out of a 2X10 30 watt Peavey Delta Blues tube amp with this guitar. It's a very versitile amp in my opinion and I wouldn't trade it for anything else.

I would give this pickup a 10 out of 10 rating. I work at Guitar Center in Colorado Springs, CO and I have sold ALOT of pickups as the accessories dept manager. The only way to get these things is to special order them from Seymour Duncan. Thay are not mass produced, they only make them upon ordering. I'm a musician of 23 years and I've played many many guitars with all kinds of pickups, but the ones that I fell in love with are the SH-55 Seth Lovers! Some others you might want to try are the SH-59 which is a repro of the old 1959 gibson PAFs. Great tone!!!

Pickup features: hbucker
Impedence or other specs: Not high output

Model of guitar or bass: 58 reissue les paul 1998
Position: all positions
Pickup being replaced: stock 57 classics
Other pickups on guitar:
Artists using this pickup:
You musical style(s): 70's rock
Reason for pickup change: WANTED BETTER/DIFFRENT TONE.Classic 57s were just O.K.In retrospec I could have left the bridge pu alone and changed the neck pu out.

Perceived output level: Slightly less output than your typical modern les paul
Tone: More balanced and open sounding in the neck position for sure however the bridge still sounds close to the 57 classic as it probably should.
Sonic evaluation: I favor lower wattage med gain tube amps...Definatly a noticable improvement overall compared to the stock 57's with a few caveats or trade off's....but this is why we have more than one les paul or other guitar right????.My stock classic 57 in the neck was total mudd.These pickups will squeel like a pig if you decide to go for a modern high gain tone at loud volumes and they are most useful at med gain and moderate stage volume.While they do sound the way others here have described,I was hoping that at least the neck pu would come closer to the Tom Holmes thats in my buddys LP.It seems bland in comparison as it seems to be missing that beutifull(and expensive) piano/bell harmonic chime.

For which styles and positions is this pickup (un)suitable: These are great for more syrupy 70's rock.They wont cut it for say.." GNR"..

Comments: These are really good but Im gonna keep searching because I think I prefer a SLIGHTLY more modern responce as opossed to the"soft" as others have described.

Pickup features: humbucker
Impedence or other specs:

Model of guitar or bass: Hamer
Position: all positions
Pickup being replaced: seymour duncan 59s
Other pickups on guitar: none
Artists using this pickup:
You musical style(s): hard rock/blues
Reason for pickup change: wanted a "closer to original" paf pickup

Perceived output level: normal vintage PAF output level
Tone: warm and silky. Very full as well
Sonic evaluation: Im using a hamer studio custom with a orange ad30 and a 1970 orange matamp. These pickups turn a bright guitar, especially so with the duncan 59s that came with it, into a rich, full sounding instrument. The alnico 2s give it a softer sound but it can still sound mean...but always sweet. Think early van halen.

For which styles and positions is this pickup (un)suitable: perfect for hard rock and blues. With the right amp can pull off classic metal too

Comments: I would replace these. Probably the nicest pickup duncan has ever made. Been playing 20 plus years. I did compare these to voodoo 59s and duncan 59s..easily the sweetest sounding. The voodoos had more of an aggressive bite to them...which is good if that is what you're looking for. I am satisfied but would like to own a pair of tom holmes someday.

Pickup features: 50th Anniversary Engraved Seth Lover Limited Ed. set
Impedence or other specs: Alnico II 8.52/7.48

Model of guitar or bass: 2001 Gibson Les Paul Std. Premium Plus
Position: all positions
Pickup being replaced: Duncan CC/APII
Other pickups on guitar:
Artists using this pickup:
You musical style(s): Blues, Songoriented Rock
Reason for pickup change: Wanted the Custom Shop version of Seth Lovers

Perceived output level: If you're a fan of vintage PAF's, you owe it to yourself to buy this Limited Edition Seth Lover Commemorative Set. They are straight up vintage PAF's most likely wound on the original Leesona winder, which Seymour bought from Gibson. Maricella Juarez from the SD Custom Shop handwound these as a 50th Anniversary tribute to the man who invented the origianal Gibson PAF for early Les Pauls.
Tone: These pickups are issued in Alnico 2 or 5. I'd tend to stick with the 2's, since that's the magnet most often associated with true PAF's. The tone is vintage, yet punchy and defined enough to sound great on clean, midgain, and highgain.
Sonic evaluation: For humbucking guitars, I'm basically a purist who stays with Les Pauls, and also PRS McCarty Models. My regular pickups are usually Custom 5's, Custom Customs, Seths, 59's, Fralins and Holmes. This new set is a commemorative Limited Edition, which are basically Custom Shop Seth Lovers, wound my Maricella Juarez, with nickel covers, engraved and signed by Seymour Duncan. They're available through Musician's Friend, which there's a bit of controversy over, but let's get real.....if you're here researching these, you're a fan of authentic PAF tone. That means you either own a real set of vintage PAF's, a boutique copy, SD Seth Lovers or 59's, or you're ready to pull the trigger on the set that would make the late Seth Lover proud.
I'd suggest you do it, especially on the A2 set.
The sound of these are exquisite! The best way they can be described is by saying they're a cross between regular production Seth's and 59's. That means they're tighter, punchier, clearer versions of a Seth Lover humbucker. Seths and 59's have a resistance of 8.1/7.2, but these offer more clarity and output, coming in at 8.52/7.48.
The bridge can best be described as Van Halen I&II. The neck, is a very warm and articulate, sustaining, smooth Allman type vibe.
I'll put it this way.....your $300 ain't wasted!!! Plus, the beautiful covers are nicely engraved with "50th Anniversary 1955-2005.

For which styles and positions is this pickup (un)suitable: I play everything from Blues to Modern Rock, and these pickups will do it all, depending on what amp they're run through. I use a Bogner Ecstasy halfstack or Matchless Chieftain 2-12 combo. I mainly use Fender strats with Duncan Surfers, Fat 50's, or Chubtone 63's. For humbuckers, I use the best Duncan has to offer, Fralins, Holmes, or custom rewinds. My rig can be seen at www.bluestheater.net/gearjoneser.html

Comments: I'm a fan of quality, no matter what timeless company produces it. I play live, do LA session work, and am a historian of all things guitar related. When it comes to tone, I don't settle for second best, I go straight to the good stuff with blinders on. Duncan has offered a Custom Shop engraved set, which blows other PAF wannabees outta the water. I went straight to them, and am fully satisfied with what I consider a bargain. Seth Lover passed away in 1997, after affiliating himself with his friend Seymour in 1994. If you know tone, know pickups, and realize that sets like this don't come along often, you'll jump on this commemorative set. It's that simple.