First Run 1957/2008 Pickups

EdSevered

EdSevered

Fly on the Wall
Joined
Dec 12, 2020
Messages
168
I stumbled upon a set of the first run 1957/2008 for less $ than a current set 57/08's. I snapped them up.

Of course, like many, now, after the purchase, I have some questions:

How rare are they?
Can anyone compare/contrast them to the modern version?
Can anyone point me to, or provide, any background on them?

Thanks much!
 
I have some of the old ones in a couple of my guitars and I have a new set in my 594 that I put in it. The new ones are a good bit hotter and have 4 wires. The older versions are a bit weaker and have 2 wires. There was a good bit of variation in the old original version. I remember the set I put in my SAS being a bit hotter version but they are nowhere near as hot as the two newer versions I have. They both sound really good. They are also very responsive to height adjustments. They are my favorite pickup from any manufacturer to date.

There should be some information out there if you Google it. The early ones were made with old wire that Gibson used as well as made on the same machine they used. I think they got more consistent once they ran out of that old wire.
 
“Rare” is a relative term. They are more rare than current ones for sure.

There is some magic in the early run 57/08’s & 58/09’s for sure since they used the OG wire that was still on the machines when Paul bought them.

To me, they are less bassy and have a bit more character than the current ones. I’ve had a set in a Korina Mira (fantastic!), a couple other Mira’s, my HB Spruce has unetched 57/08 neck and covered 59/09 bridge which is a heavenly pairing. Also had that setup in my CU24 before the BKPs and it was one of the best pickup options I’ve had in that guitar.
 
SinSir said:
Rare is an often overused term in the guitar world. So much of what PRS does is limited, and everything can't be rare. :)
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Unfortunately, most of the time people use the word "rare" is to infer they are worth a lot more money. That isn't always the case. It is all about supply and demand. They may be in short supply but if there is no demand, they aren't worth much. I think I see DGT pickups less often than old 57/08s and they usually sell for a decent price. I think getting a set of 57/08s for less than the cost of a new set is nice if you want to use them. I doubt they would ever sell for more than a new set.
 
WEDGE said:
I had some of the OG pups and liked them but too vintage for my tastes. Been a long time but also find the 57/08TM pups in the 2015 Custom 22 I just grabbed to be less hot than I like but can’t fairly compare them to the originals.

If anyone wants to trade a set of 57/08’s for some 59/09’s shoot me a PM :cool:
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You still have my old 59/09’s?!
 
Thank you all for your responses. Before purchasing them, I did listen to a couple of videos on Youtube. And I did like how those in the videos sounded, or I would not have bought them.
 
WEDGE said:
I had some of the OG pups and liked them but too vintage for my tastes. Been a long time but also find the 57/08TM pups in the 2015 Custom 22 I just grabbed to be less hot than I like but can’t fairly compare them to the originals.

If anyone wants to trade a set of 57/08’s for some 59/09’s shoot me a PM :cool:
Click to expand...

Those 59/09’s covered?
 
andy474x said:
Those 59/09’s covered?
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If they are the ones I’m thinking of, yup.

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JasonE said:
Unfortunately, most of the time people use the word "rare" is to infer they are worth a lot more money. That isn't always the case. It is all about supply and demand. They may be in short supply but if there is no demand, they aren't worth much. I think I see DGT pickups less often than old 57/08s and they usually sell for a decent price. I think getting a set of 57/08s for less than the cost of a new set is nice if you want to use them. I doubt they would ever sell for more than a new set.
Click to expand...

Absolutely.. this is why when I see the word rare in a listing, especially the title, they immediately get filed in the do not buy category. Artificially creating a perception of more valuable is sales lingo I'm not intersted in. I need more reasons not to buy than to buy. :)
 
SinSir said:
Absolutely.. this is why when I see the word rare in a listing, especially the title, they immediately get filed in the do not buy category. Artificially creating a perception of more valuable is sales lingo I'm not intersted in. I need more reasons not to buy than to buy. :)
Click to expand...
I laugh when I see a for sale ad on TGP that says RARE and when I look at the guitar, it is about as common as it gets. The person just doesn't know enough about that brand to know that. I have seen PRS guitars listed as rare color or custom color that are finishes that were pretty common. I just close the thread and move on. I used to try to educate people and that never once went well so I stopped.
 
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