Pickups for an Yamaha SG200

I am planning on swapping the P/Us in my SG. I like the ones installed currently, but the mid range is lacking a bit, and the low side seems a bit muddy. I am playing w/ 11's sized strings also.

What I was planning on installing were some SD '59N/Pearly Gate bridge. I had read where lots of folks say that their SG sounds thin, and the PGs are a bit trebley while the 59's are a great match. Infact most suggest 59's in both positions.

My SG sounds anything but thin, maybe a bit too heavy to my ear (and my shoulder ;) ) I want that good bluesy sound while being able to range into the classic/heavy rock side of things too. This is why I picked the PG. I love the sound of Dickey Betts as well as Warren Haynes' sound. I know I cannot make the SG sound like a LP, but the general tone is my quest.

Any thoughts from the greater minds of GT?
Trey

Hello?

There once was a man from Nantucket
Whose guitar sounded so bad he said ****it
He swapped out some gear
Played w/ no fear
Shoved out his tongue and said I wish someone would give me some help.

Trey

I put a Seymore Duncan Invader and a Dimebucker on my Gibson LP. They're more for Heavy Metel but I can get some pretty good blues sound out of it if I roll back the volumes a bit. It's the best I can do for you I've never really used any others besides the Gibson Series VII's and I don't think they make them anymore.

There is the tried and true JB(bridge) and 59(neck) combination.I liked the range I got with that.

[font=trebuchet ms]I expect your 200 is fairly close to my SBG1000's. My first one has a DiMarzio Dual Sound at the bridge and a SCHB at the neck. I modded the switching on the Tone pots to select series/parallel coil connections. I also canibalized the neck Volume pot to add a phase switch.

That setup does pretty much anything I want it to. The series connection is classic humbucker tone all the way. Parallel adds some great options that sound like quiet single coils (no hum). And the phase switch can do some very sick things to distorted tones.

I bought an identical black 1984 SBG1000 a couple of years ago. I left it stock for a while, but the coil-tap switches turned the 'buckers into noisy single-coil pickups, and since I don't often use a lot of distortion, they sounded a bit thin. Which is a bit ironic, because I ended up installing a DiMarzio Tone Zone at the bridge, and a PAF Pro at the neck, with the same switch mods as my first SBG.

I love the sound of that PAF Pro! It is incapable of sounding anything but amazingly toneful, regardless of control settings on the guitar or the amp. And the Tone Zone has re-introduced me to the joys of balls-out distortion and singing harmonics.

"I cannot make the SG sound like a LP..." :confused:

Give your head a shake son! How many LP's do see with the stock pickups still in 'em? The mahogany neck and body is what makes the tone. Those carved maple tops may look pretty, but they don't really affect the tone on the Yamahas or the Gibsons. I bought my first SBG1000 back in '84 when I went downtown to buy a Gibson LP Custom I had been drooling over for months. The Yamaha turned out to be a better guitar, for half the price. I bought the second one on eBay, because I knew it would be just as good as the first one. I still have both of them. Your SG200 is probably less detailed for pretty cosmetics, but you can be sure it was made by people who care.[/font]

Lordathestrings,
Mine is the same as yours except the selector switch is located down by the volume and tone controls. Other than the lack of fancy stuff it is solid mahogany w/ mahogany neck.

I have some new pickups on the way. I got the SD 59n and the Pearly Gates bridge. I should be very happy w/ the sound. If not I will live w/ if for some time and then buy some Dimarzio's. I am planning on wiring them up in parallel and using a push/pull on the bridge to split it.

I was looking at my electronics and they are soldered to a PCB. I am going to yank it and rewire the whole thing w/ new pots, ect. This will be new territory for me so wish me luck. Any suggestions, tips?
Thanks,
TRey

[font=trebuchet ms]Go to the >DiMarzio< website and drill down through some of the humbucker descriptions for the wiring diagrams.[/font]

Thanks!!
I was directed to Guitar Electronics by some others.

I was also recommended buying the pots from them as well. The reason stated was that Stew Macs are of lesser quality. I can't tell, but they, StewMac, are certainly cheaper in price.
Trey

Originally Posted by: PonyOneI don't know why people say that... I have a total of 9 Stewmac pots in my guitars, and they've never given me any problems.

That is good to know. I haven't ordered anything yet so I am still looking around @ options.
Thanks,
TRey

I know all of these folks are sick of me saying it...but Bare Knuckle pickups is the only way.

I would try a mule in the neck and a Nailbomb or Emerald in at the bridge...