57/08 VS 53/10

[g.wizz]

Hello everyone
Almost 2 years ago Me and my friend purchased two McCarty 245 DC very similar that we nicknamed them
the Twins:

Mine is in the foreground with covered 57/08's, they both plays great (DUH) mine sounds spectacular by the testament s of everyone who tried it and listened to me playing it, but my friend for some reason didn't love the 53/10's and he prefers the burstbukers in his LP gold top, I feel bad because I'm the one who encouraged him to buy it because my understanding was that they were more open and clearer than the 57/08's but still till this day he pick it up and he's not bonding with the sound, he has Boogies, Marshalls and Fenders and plays blues (Eric Clapton, Gary Moore etc...) and rock. He wants to bond with it so, If you can give me some suggestions about which amps will be more suitable with these pickups ( he fiddled with the heights already) and he won't sell them because he knows they are rare and wants to keep the guitar as stock as can be, any input would be appreciated, thanks.

 

[Ironwolf]

you should feel very bad,
you should probably give him your guitar and you take the 53/10s for a while and see if you bond with it.
to put yourself in his position.

see if he bonds with the 57/08s

 

[g.wizz]

Well the thought crossed my mind since the beginning, but he won't shell 500$ more since my guitar was mint and his used
and he waited for it to arrive in shipping more than 2 month after it got lost in transit, but we'll jam together soon to compare
the tones at length.

 

[Tonart]

Could it be the guitar and not the pickups? He’s afterall comparing to a Les Paul, a different guitar altogether.

 

[g.wizz]

Could it be the guitar and not the pickups? He’s afterall comparing to a Les Paul, a different guitar altogether.

Well could be, but he had tried my guitar when we first got them and he was expecting that his will sound a bit similar and he knows what tone he's after.
so If someone could tell me what to expect from 53/10's in general., that would be great, thx Tonart.

 

[vchizzle]

I love the 5708, but dislike the lauded 5310. It’s just a taste thing I think. I’d probably try raising the 5310’s up higher. My experience with them is limited to store playing, I was just left with a “meh” feeling.

 

[Glide-bpm]

Get with zhangbucker.com and get him to custom wind a set for it. He'll interview your friend and get the guitar type/brand/woods, etc. and help
get him where he wants to be. Not much more than a set of Seymour Duncans! @bodia is waiting on some to be built still I think...

I have several sets installed both on PRS and other brand guitars.

 

[g.wizz]

I’d probably try raising the 5310’s up higher

I will tell him to try that first.

Get with zhangbucker.com and get him to custom wind a set for i

I will surely let him know about this option

Thanks brothers

 

[bodia]

Get with zhangbucker.com @bodia is waiting on some to be built still I think...
.

Yep, still waiting. Almost impatiently, at this point.

 

[Glide-bpm]

Yep, still waiting. Almost impatiently, at this point.

Yeah... he is getting slow in his older age.... LoL!!! It hurts during the wait period... That's why I ordered a spare set the last time
I bought some. hehehe!

 

[sergiodeblanc]

They’re a little dark sounding and not particularly hot... that’s my experience with a sample size of one.

If you can find the right guitar for them, they can be great, especially split.

 

[WA Paul]

53/10s were warm, but bright to my ears, sample size of two guitars. Guitar woods matter as well. I like them a lot, especially the split sounds.

1) Bahama Mama SCT, Obeche body, maple neck, top and back. I no longer have this guitar (mistake!). Very bright.

2) My Koa body, Braz neck and board. They sound fabulous in this one. Could be bright due to the woods.

57/08s have more output and a little bit of a scooped mid sound to my ear by comparison. Depending on your friend’s mid and prescence settings it could be messing with the result versus other guitars.

Has your buddy tied a boost into his amps? That could resolve some of the difference in output comparisons.

For comparison I have guitars with the following PRS pickups:
57/08, 59/09, 53/10, 58/15LT. Oddly, I couldn’t bond with 58/15s...I tried the 85/15s and liked them.

 

[dcm_guitar]

Try a Wampler Db+ in front of the amp? Maybe an EQ pedal?

 

[pac90]

Another single sample here, I had a limited bernie with them and ran them through what I had then - a yamaha THR and a Vox AC4. So the SE is a weighty single cut but korean origin.
Neck was A1 - could not have been better, bridge was ice picky bright and awful, no les paul growl. Tried all sorts of combinations of pickup heights too but no solution. In the same setup the BK mule bridge worked, as did a pearly gates - both paf based but hotter

Just as an aside, through different amp the 58/15 and 85/15 sounds similar to the 53/10 neck. Words are words and subjective but its that bell like character and definition that the 53/10 and 58/15 / 85/15 have, and for what its worth I prefer PRS humbuckers, I wouldn't look at a 53/10 bridge again but the neck was sublime.

If your friend likes the neck, maybe try a hotter bridge like 58/08 or 57/09 - which are available new, or look for 58/15 on auction etc

If both pickups are wrong sounding them maybe try a 57/08 set, since he already knows he likes yours in similar guitar, and its cheaper than getting another amp.

 

[Jock68]

I play a SC58 through a Marshall and it sounds good but not clear to me. It is in the ears and everyone's are different, I would spend more time working on the amp settings before making any changes.

 

[vchizzle]

My opinion is if he’s not bonding with the guitar at all, I’d definitely be looking at the pickups. Yeah, you can add a boost or change tone that way or change up your amp settings, but who wants to go through that trouble just to like a specific guitar?
As a gigging guitarist, any guitar I bring it has to at least sound good with my rig and make me want to play it. I assume your buddy had other guitars that he likes through this amp/setup...sounds like the “twin” is included? If pickup height adjustment doesn’t help, makes sense to grab a set of 5708s to replace the 5310 since the 2 guitars are of the same basic build specs.

 

[dogrocketp]

Tell him to run through various alloys of strings before he changes out the pickups. All the brands and types can completely change the sound of his guitar. Different gauges will do the same thing as well.

 

[Tonart]

I have an inordinately high amount of 53/10’s, as fate or timing would have it. Honestly I find them not that different from 57/08’s. A bit less output perhaps, but essentially the same. Well, or perhaps it’s ear wax. They sound kickass to me, for example on my ‘yeti’ guitar. Ear wax never sounded so good:

Perhaps it’s the odd outlier. The machine that makes the wire is reputedly a little temperamental.

 

[WA Paul]

I have an inordinately high amount of 53/10’s, as fate or timing would have it. Honestly I find them not that different from 57/08’s. A bit less output perhaps, but essentially the same. Well, or perhaps it’s ear wax. They sound kickass to me, for example on my ‘yeti’ guitar. Ear wax never sounded so good:

Perhaps it’s the odd outlier. The machine that makes the wire is reputedly a little temperamental.

Is this one a swamp ash back? Never tried that wood. Beautiful guitar!

I find both 53/10s and 57/08s to be warm, but the 53s sound a little less scooped to my ears in addition to lower output.

 

[Tonart]

Is this one a swamp ash back? Never tried that wood. Beautiful guitar!

I find both 53/10s and 57/08s to be warm, but the 53s sound a little less scooped to my ears in addition to lower output.

It’s a cocobolo top and back, with swamp ash in the middle..