Sheptone PAF Tribute

PAF Tribute Vintage style Humbucker set
7.69K neck - 8.15K bridge - Alnico 5 magnets

'90s Les Paul Standard - neck and bridge

Been through too many Duncans and Gibsons trying to find the match I wanted. All very good pickups but I felt there were harmonics that made the old recordings 'drip with tone' that I was missing.

Vintage output, perfect. Each pickup drives the front end of the amp and effecs in the same way. When I went through my 'tubescreamer phase' I learned to appreciate pickups that don't overpower the front end of effects. They allow a pedal to be able to clean up when you want.

I have a ton of nice amps including mid 60's Fenders and current boutique amps. Right now Ceriatone D Clone is my favorite. These pickups sound great through everything. They are especially impressive through a Blues Junior which is nearly stock except for being biased to spec.

I also have an embarassing number of pedals from original TS models to Jetters and Hermidas. These sound great through everything I've tried but for blues I usually use just some reverb and delay with no overdrive pedals at all.

Their tone is articulate and balanced from one pickup position to the other with an exceptionally wide range of harmonic overtones. This is really what separates these from the good quality mass produced pickups out there and elevates them into the category that includes the best hand wounds available.

I play old school stuff, mostly blues, and these capture the tone of the guys who were using the real deal.

If you play non master Plexi loud, you may have the best luck with the uncovered versions or consider having the covered ones potted to prevent unwanted squeal.

If these were stolen I would cry like a little girl as I e-mailed Jeff to order another set.

I played patent sticker Gibson T tops in the sixties and have been into after market pickups since the first DiMarzio Super Distortion became available. Still have the first one I bought. I own an embarassing collection of guitars, amps, pickups and effects. I'm not telling you about something I read. I compared pickups by installing them in this guitar. These are the end of the search for me. The fact that they are reasonably priced is a bonus.

Jeff's customer service is outstanding. His stock set is a no brainer for most guitars and he has magnet and wind options available.

If you can hear what the best quality mass produced pickups are missing, these will get you to the next level.

a tribute set of sheptone paf style humbckers revers zebra.

i use them on a 2003 standard les paul, replacing my burstbucker pro's, which suck so bad and got no tone, i actually was about to sell my les paul, but then i found sheptone ; )

neck 7.59k and bridge 8.14k i use a 59 fender bassman amp, and use some boutique and vintage analog pedals.
o.k now to describe a sound quality is impossible, but let me tell u that i used to work in a custom guitar shop as a guitar tech, and got to play on tons of guitar's, vintage to modern, also got the pleasure to play an original 59 les paul, and these sheptone set, man what can i say, they not sound kind of like the original paf's or the same,
they created a new level of great sound, forget about paf's, anyway they all sound different from each other, and the same with shep, i am sure mine sound slightly different then someone else shep's, the point is, they are sound like how a great pickups should sound like, not too muddy not to high, just great clear tone and colors, and yes you could compare them to a good set of original paf, but you wont be able to tell the difference.

just get them, actually don't, not everyone deserve a great tone : )

PAF style Humbuckers

I purchased these for a LP VOS 1957. I wasn't happy with the pickups that came with the guitar from Gibson. So I tried several different pickups I have. The PRS pickups I installed were very good but I still wanted to experiment. I did alot of research on the various forums and learned about Sheptone. The web site was very informative and Jeff really is a very educated man when it comes to pickups. So I decided to give them a try.

Output on the pickups is good, not over the top. I generally use my Komet for testing as this is a very accurate and revealing Amp. Right from the first note I could hear the quality of the pickups, very detailed and musical. The notes ring out when the amp is clean and when driven they are not muddy, the guitar just sings. Very well balanced sound. When you have a good guitar and good amp you don't want anything in the chain to mess up the sound, Sheptones are superb sounding pickups. The customer service that Jeff showed me was excellent. I called him on a Saturday with a question, left a message and within a few minutes he returned the call. A real class act. As I mentioned before the Website is very informative, check it out.

Been playing over 40 years,Yikes! getting old. I have alot of high end equipment, guitars and amps. I always try to get the best tone out of what I own and I am very impressed with The Sheptone pickups. I am planning to pickup another set for a PRS McCarty I have. I definitely would recommend you give them a try. A great product.

Unpotted scatterd wound humbucking pickups, 7.62 neck and 8.3 bridge.

These pickups are replacing the stock Gibson classic 57 pickups on my custom shop 60's Les Paul. The reason for replacing them is that I was looking for a cleaner sounding, more like the original PAFs kind of tone.

I've read good reviews about Shep's pickups and wanted to try them. The neck pickup has a thick tone with a lot of clarity, and the bridge pickup has some kind of mojo that I haven't heard out of any other pickup. The top end is clear and bright without being harsh - just amazing. I don't use a lot of distortion normally, but I've played these pickups clean and with my Zen Drive all the way up to see what they can do, the results were great.

I would highly recommend these pickups for anybody who's looking for a vintage tone. These pickups will do great with any style of music (maybe not for death metal). Shep is a great guy to deal with, he'll listen to what you need and recommend the right output. Since these pickups are not potted I'd recommend getting them without covers, but if you like them covered, get Shep to wax coat the tops of the covers on the inside. It'll help prevent them from squealing. I'm done looking for pickups, I found "D" tone I was looking for. I know there are other "vintage" pickup makers out there, but Shep's prices are very reasonable for the work hi's doing - graet value.

Scatter wound by hand, mine are not potted though he offers that option, Alnico 2 / Alnico 5 PAF Humbuckers. I own two sets of the standard black/black pickups. They read 8k bridge and 7.5k and are a little hotter than my standard 7.46K / 7.5K T Tops and that little higher Ohm reading and the scatter winding make a big difference in output.

I have one set in my 1978 Les Paul 24.625??? scale with a mahogany body/maple top and neck with ebony fretboard, RS Works 500K Ohm pots and NOS Sprague .022uf Bumblebee caps and the other set in an upgraded 25.50??? scale 1977 Gibson RD Standard, all maple body and neck with ebony fretboard, RS Works 500K Ohm pots and Sprague NOS .047uf Bridge/.022uf Neck Black Beauties.

I will be purchasing two more sets for a couple more guitars. One set will go in my 1978 Gibson SG and the other in a Guild S-300D to replace the Dimarzio Super Distortion pickups both of which are 100% mahogany and I expect both guitars to sound even warmer than my other two do with the Sheptone PAFs.

The output level from these pickups were surprising. I've use the Gibson T Tops, 70's model T Top Dirty Fingers, Gibson 490R/498Ts, Gibson Mark IV's, & VII's, Dimarzio Super Distortions and PAFs, 70's model Gibson Mini-Humbuckers, P-90's, P-100's and Duncan Pearly Gates. All are excellent pickups with their own strengths but the Sheptone PAFs take out the muddy muffled sounds I usually get from the neck pickups on most of them and it's powerful and smooth, not brittle like some of the other pickups I've tried.

I play Hard Rock, Blues and some Metal. I was really surprised that these pickups actually cranked it out for Metal. I needed a little more for a couple of songs so I kicked on my Tube Screamer and it finished the job. I will probably have one of my next sets wound up to about 8.50K Ohm for the bridge to pull off the metal without the Tube Screamer. It's great to not have to use a lot of pedals and get the sound you want and need to perform. Every pedal and cable connection is another potential problem to have on stage so I like to keep my equipment needs light and simple.

I???m not going to wait for mine to be stolen I have two sets now and will be purchasing a few more for my other guitars and probably another set as a backup just in case. To answer the question directly, I would definitely replace these pickups if they were to come up missing.

I've been playing for over 32 years and I am very picky about my sound. If it doesn't sound right I put the guitar down and go do something else. My problem now is I really don't want to put my guitar down. It sounds so good I can play for hours and I do.

I play through a Plexi 160 Watt Clone and a 1987 Marshall 2554 with 2 to 8 150 Watt Celestion Sidewinders in Marshall cabinets and I do crank it up. I push my amps and guitars hard and since I work on my own equipment they better sound and work right.

I love the sound of these pickups, the way they put out and how authentic they look. The thing I didn't like was that they only seem to come in new or aged nickel finishes and my guitars are set up for gold so I emailed Shep and he told me he would be happy to do my next sets in gold and the cost was minimal so problem solved there.

I don't compliment too many things because I am so picky but I am totally satisfied with the sound and I can't imagine finding anything that I would prefer over these pickups and the cost is low now but I believ the more people that discover them they will go up in price so I am getting mine early.

I was and I am really happy with my vintage T Tops and I wouldn't even have tried these if I had not heard them on Sheptone's website. I took a chance and I found the only affordable pickup that has ever been able to make me swap my Vintage Gibson T Tops out of my Les Paul.

Sheptone PAF Tribute Humbucking

Gibson R9 Les Paul 59 reissue. Bridge and neck position. Replaced Seymour Duncan Alnico 2 Pro's. The Duncans didnt cut throught the mix that well.

Output is medium. Dr. Z Maz 38 and Maz 18 Jr. I play rock, blues and country. My effects are a Tim overdrive, a Fulltone Anniversary Fulldrive, Barber Tonepress compressor, Voodoo Tremolo, Maxon Chorus. The tone is articulate and complex-cleans up nicely with light attack and gets fat and woody when you dig in. Lots of nice overtones. I use Strats and Teles for country work, but these pickups are my best choice for rock or blues.

Yes I would buy these pickups again. I have been playing for 30 + years and I know good tone when I hear it.

Hand scatter wound, unpotted, Alnico 2 PAF clone humbuckers. They come in cream/cream, zebra or black/black. The sets I have are standard PAF DC resist of about 8k bridge and 7.5k for the neck but you can get them wound higher or lower if you want but only his standard set is an exact replica of the famous PAF.

I put them in a 2005 Gibson Les Paul 1960 R0 reissue

The Best PAF clone's I have ever played! Very vintage sounding the only PAF replica that can really nail the magic of the original's they have a bell like quality with fat chunky mid's nice bass response with out getting muddy like so many other pickup's out there.They have a clear articulate tone when picking the string's without having a harsh top end and these pickup's have the overtone's of the original's I cant really descibe it but it's a special magical sound that is not the note itself but like a special nuiance in the backround. The Sheptone standard PAF clone set is the perfect pickup for what I do, classic rock in the style of The Allman Bros., Gary Moore,early Clapton (Beno album) etc.

If these pickup's were stolen that would mean they would be with the guitar and "I pitty the fool" who would dare do that but I would without a doubt get another set I have been playong for 13 years and have not found a pickup that can compare and I have had them all Duncan antiquity's,Peter Florance voodoo's,and Fralin's,Burstbucker's.
I have a 1960 Gibson Les Paul Reissue a 1958 Gibson Les Paul Reissue(wich I am buying a set for) and my amp is a marshall BluesBreaker handwired.

Hand scatter wound, unpotted, Alnico 2 PAF style humbuckers. You can get them in cream/cream, zebra or black/black. The sets I have are standard PAF DC resist of about 8k bridge and 7.5k for the neck but you can get them wound higher or lower if you want.

I have a black/black set installed in my ESP EC-1000. They're replacing the EMG 81/60 set that comes stock. I really liked the sound of the EMG's but I played another EC-1000 that had real PAF's in it and it sounded awesome. Then I discovered these pickups.

I have a zebra set installed in my PRS single-cut. These are replacing the PRS HFS set that was in there. They were great sounding pickups, but the Sheptones just have a rounder sound.

I am ordering another black/black set to replace the custom Dimarzio's in my Ernie Ball Petrucci 6 string. I'm excited because I'm going to have them direct mounted. The other two guitars are Mahogany but the JPM is alder -- I can't wait to play it. No disrespect to DiMarzio or Ernie Ball, but I think the Sheptones will walk all over the stock pickups.

These are moderate output pickups. They have plenty of crunch and cleanup really nicely. I can get "pearly gates" to full-shred just by turning the knob. I have never had a set of pickups that respond so well to the tone knob. They have a pronounced mid-range boost and really help cut through the mix. I can finally hear myself on stage without blowing everyone out.

I play in a cover band that does everything from green day to steppenwolf. We do heavy to bluesy and these pickups cover all the ground in between.

I know they say nothing is perfect, but until now, I've never installed a set of pickups that makes me want to play my guitar more.

If my guitars were stolen (which they almost were recently) I would defintely put Sheptones in the replacements. I have considered buying a few more guitars to have Shep make me some different sets. If I could get my hands on an ES-335 with these pickups in them, I would never leave the house.

Even the things that some might consider negatives of the pickups, I consider a positive and part of the overall sound of the pickup. For example, because I got mine unpotted, they are slightly microphonic. I like them that way. If you don't you can get them potted. no big deal. Other than that the quailty and workmanship is top notch. You can tell that he takes pride in his work. I hope I can get a few more sets out of him before he starts raising prices.

These things are a steal at $260. I had a $5000 set of genuine Gibson PAF's in another EC-1000. The sheptones sound better. In fact, after I sold it, the PAF's were pulled out of that guitar and replaced with Sheptones. That's how I found out about them.

I have to say that I found THAT sound, perfect or not. I have been searching for years and have owned a mountain of gear -- some good, some really really bad. This is by far my best purchase in the last 2 or 3 years.

I read a review on Harmony Central once that said that the tone is in your fingers. I believe that, and these pickups make my fingers sound good!

Hand wound pickups designed to sound like the original PAFs. Rough finished Alnico 2 magnets and an average of 8K wind on the bridge and average 7.6K wind on the neck with an alnico 5 magnet

Installed 2 PUs on a custom made all mahogany guitar. For the specs please refer to http://www.power-development.net, the guitar name is SC-Curved.

The sound is exactly what I was looking for a long time! On http://www.power-development.net in the page dedicated to the SC-Curved you will find a sound sample and all the details about the amps used.

I play soft rock, in particular I like Santana and Gary Moore.

I build guitars as hobby. In the years I owned several guitars from a variety of manufacturers (in particular PRS, Gibson, Fender and Ibanez) and then I decided to build mine because I wanted to build a guitar on my specs (neck shape, scale, PU, wiring,...).

I was not sure on what PU to install on my last guitar project. I was looking for a REAL PAF sound so I decided to test 3 PU: DiMarzio PAF Pro, Seymour Duncan 59, Kent Armstrong Hot PAF (I decided to test these ones because a friend of mine, who owns a guitar repair shop, borrowed them to me for a week-end).

I tested them but they didn't sound as I expected. I was a little disappointed because If you listen to the sound samples on the manufacturers' web sites you will thing that they will sound good but you are not able to really compare them because the amp settings are completely different... So the only thing you can do is to personally test them...

What to do? Finally I found on internet the Sheptone PAF Tribute. I listened to the sound samples and a voice in my head told "this is the sound I'm looking for". So I decided to buy them and do a test. The result? Really, really, really fantastic! On the market you will not find a PU that will sound better, these PU sound REALLY PAF! I'm so satisfied that I bought another set. There is nothing else to say ;-)