Aftermarket pick-ups are a bit of a scam in some ways, alot of great music has and is still being made with the stock p/u's that came with the guitar, the guitarist is still the deciding factor, but when word gets out that guitarist X is using Brand Z pick-ups, the next sound produced is the one made by a cash register, CHA-CHING, but being a consumer of aftermarket p/u's I admit they do have their good points, they are just not the holy grail of instant great tone that the advertisers claim.............