How to get a GREAT Les Paul Neck Tone!

#gibsonlespaul #gibsonguitars #lespaul @gibson @gibsonguitar
Struggling to get a nice Les Paul neck tone that isn't too dark or muddy? Here are some tips that might help! Using an old Gibson Les Paul Classic with PAF style humbuckers and 50s style wiring into a Supro Black Magick, with a Keeley DDR and a Boss BD-2 Blues Driver!

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[LPManic]

Middle is where the magic is on a Les Paul.

[mikedwiles]

I like your idea of dialing in the amp for the neck pickup. While my example is not quite the same, I have an Eastman T386 which is their basic 335 style guitar. Been playing it for awhile, adjusting the pickups, trying various approaches. But never got happy with the neck pickup. Bought a used set of Gibson Burstbucker 1 and 2. Bought the braided wire, pots, and caps and built a new loom and replaced the pickups. Spent the entire day on Friday doing that. The change was dramatic. It is so much brighter and defined. It sounds wonderful. I can actually use the tone control now. I did 50's wiring and can now roll of the volume without it getting muffled.

[simonwhalley]

I completely agree about lowering the neck pickup. I had a great guitar tech set up my new Murphy Lab 09 Les Paul. I got the guitar back with the neck pick-up lowered past the surround. It absolutely sang when I played it. Before the setup the neck position sounded far too muddy on the lower strings. Dialling in the amp to the neck pickup also makes a whole lot of sense. The tone knobs on a Les Paul is where the magic happens. I think a lot of people whack them up to 10 and hope for the best. If you watch people like Joe Bonamassa playing live he’s constantly adjusting both tone and volume knobs, maybe dozens of times during a song.

[TheHalrobot]

I've been listening to all your videos for years, you're one of the best Youtubers! And you're the one with the best neck pickup tone! Les Paul, SG, tele, your neck pickup sound is always perfect! You're 100% right about the Les Paul neck pickup, but you forgot the most important thing in my opinion, more important than changing pickups, is simply finding the right pick! I've changed the neck pickup on my SG so many times to find a sound I like, to get rid of the muddyness, and never succeeded. Until the day I changed my pick, another material, another thickness! It's a major change. We don't talk enough about the importance of the pick.

And yes, your Les Paul Deluxe with the mini humbuckers sounds so good!

[johndaugherty]

The best guitarist on the tube. And a generous man.

[Nobody]

Perfect timing on this topic! I was just messing with this today after installing 50's wiring. My results were...meh. Trying to avoid going down the pickup swap rabbit hole. (again.)

[DannyDKNYC]

I liked the opening guitar playing well done!

[temujenbarca]

Good advice, Jack. I would only suggest a bit of a complementary advice of my own regarding lowering your neck pickup, which I am also a proponent; once the height of the neck pickup is in the right ballpark for you, you may want to start experimenting with the relative height of the pole screws... it's all a balance between p.u height, the height difference between the treble and bass sides, and the pole screws.
Of course, 50's wiring with high quality (accurate...) components, the value of your caps in either position, the taper of your pots, etc...

[markosimonic]

Just like you say, I agree 100%. Set your LP according to your neck pickup, then adjust the bridge pickups tone. Also middle position gives you a lot of different options.

[Guitarjosii]

50s Wiring and proper pots with higher values are the key. Really love the VIP-pots. Best mod you could do to a Gibson style guitar. A passive bass cut might be a good solution as well.

[jfiery]

Great advice and that's a beautiful looking and sounding Les Paul you have. My 60s Standard came with the pickups right up against the strings, the 61 Burstbuckers sounded way too sharp and I didn't think they were going to be in it very long. But dropping them as you said corrected it. My bridge is just above the ring and the neck is slightly below the ring and I love how it sounds. Also, it's amazing how many of us forget the tone knobs are there for a reason. Great advice as always.

[josephcorcoran]

Use Lust for Tone pickups! Sounding great tonight. The Black Magick was a great choice. I did end up getting the reverb model.

[shawnmartin]

You can adjust pole screw up to get even more clarity once you lower the pickup. I was about to order another set of pickups because my bridge sounded too muddy even lowered completely until I started experimenting with the pole screws. Sounds fantastic now.

[DDWyss]

One thing I like to do in addition to lowering pickups, which I also do, is raising the screws on my humbuckers. So I will have the pickups sitting very low in the rings, but then screw out the screws so they are a bit proud. I really like the bright, clear tone I get by doing that.

[Bwiser]

The neck tone is in the ear of the beholder.

[linheitzig]

Excellent topic Jack, thank you. I almost forgot, great looking wood on that Les Paul! I love it.

[coltonhardy]

I changed my Les Paul Studio from modern to 50’s wiring and that helped keep the treble from disappearing when I’d back off the volume, especially in the neck!

[Les]

Lower the pole pieces. Like right down as far as they can go. It will cause that coil to mostly stop picking up sound. It will remove your mud, but also some volume. Raise the screws back up to taste. I don't know why more people don't know this.

[El-Scorcho]

Yes PREACH about that mini humbucker neck! I think it’s the best neck pickup, even though I find the mini humbucker bridge to be terrible

[J_B]

Jack. Well done. Here’s your next challenge.

Put together a video on how to set up a non-channel switching amp for both a single coil and a dual Humbucker style guitar.

Rules: 1) all pickup selector positions need to have a functional tone - you can fiddle with volume / tone pots as much as you want, 2) no fiddling with the amp settings between guitars or pickup selections - 1 amp setting for everything, 3) you get 1 pedal to help.

I just solved this equation in order to fill in for a buddy in his blues band for a few months. I’m interested to see how you attack it.