Do replacement pickups in a PRS effect resale?

banditcosmo

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I'm going to buy a PRS Hollowbody II (non piezo) on Thursday but the pickups have been replaced with a PRS 59/09 in the bridge and a Seymour Duncan Sethlover in the neck. The seller does not have the original pu's.
Does that effect the value? I have no idea how these pu's will sound but then again I have no idea how the originals sounded either. I will get to play it and hear but through a battery powered amp.
 
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It affects the value if you say it does. Some won't touch the guitar because they are not original. Others would say they would replace the pups anyway so what is in there now makes little difference. What it means to you is really all that matters. You can find originals if you want to make it original. Pups aren't a permanent feature. If you think it is worth it as it stands, get it. If you think it devalues the guitar more than what you have to pay for it then don't buy it.
 
It affects the value if you say it does. Some won't touch the guitar because they are not original. Others would say they would replace the pups anyway so what is in there now makes little difference. What it means to you is really all that matters. You can find originals if you want to make it original. Pups aren't a permanent feature. If you think it is worth it as it stands, get it. If you think it devalues the guitar more than what you have to pay for it then don't buy it.
+1
 
It affects the value if you say it does. Some won't touch the guitar because they are not original. Others would say they would replace the pups anyway so what is in there now makes little difference. What it means to you is really all that matters. You can find originals if you want to make it original. Pups aren't a permanent feature. If you think it is worth it as it stands, get it. If you think it devalues the guitar more than what you have to pay for it then don't buy it.

Exactly. I personally wouldn't want those pickups in an HBII, so it's a minus for me, but if they sound good to you, it's a non-issue.
 
If anything, the 59/09 may actually increase the value. Lots of players here love them.

I don’t know anything about the Seth Lover pickups, so can’t say re: that one. In any case, I wouldn’t let it bother me. As was stated above, it’s all personal preference.
 
Seth Lovers were a collaboration between the inventor of the original Humbucker for Gibson, Seth Lover and Seymour Duncan. An unpotted PAF as close to the original as possible. Very nice pickup and one of the nicest traditional low output PAF for $100.

Original PRS pickups usually cost a lot more replace and return to stock. Too many variable really because so much depends on the buyer and what they are looking for.
 
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Tough call, most folks (I’m not one of them) don’t get all excited about the Archtop pickups, so if that’s what was in there...

However, the 59/09 and SL are about the same price on the used market as a set of Archtops. Food for thought.
 
If you are the buyer, it definitely negatively affects the value in negotiations.....
If you are the seller it is definitely an upgrade and positively affects the value....LOL

Seriously it depends on whether you think you would prefer the originals or the "upgrades". I am going through a phase where I love a stock guitar and would rather not deal with "what ifs" on pickup swaps.
 
There is no concrete answer to that. The value is in how much you are willing to pay. If it is a bummer to you that the factory electronics aren't intact, offer less. If you don't care, pay the going rate. Most of the time buying s/h my concern personally is not for the electronics at all as I know I can change it all later. I look only at the core instrument, its condition, is the neck straight, does the rod work, are the joins all okay, etc
 
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