Replace pickups in PRS SE FR with Seymour Duncan SH-6 Set

Jathon Delsy

New Member
Joined
Oct 18, 2016
Messages
4
Hello,
I've got a PRS SE Custom 24 FR, which is a great guitar, love the feel and playability of it, great value for money too, but I'm wondering if the stock pickups are a little cheap sounding? Especially the lower notes with a lot of overdrive create unpleasant clashing overtones without the creamy rich sound I desire. I'm considering replacing with a Seymour Duncan SH-6 set as I play exclusively with a metal overdriven sound. Any opinions or comments regarding all this.
Thanks, Jathon.
 
Watch this and thank me later (run it up to the 14:20 mark if you want to hear them without drums and bass):


Personally, the Pegasus sounds the most balanced out of all of them to me. They aren't harsh, they have quite a bit of output, but also retain their clarity. I have one in the bridge of a Jim Root Tele. Great pickup.
 
Last edited:
Wow, many thanks for that Reactorcritical. It's the perfect demo, especially as it focuses on the exact range that I want to get right, the mid to lower notes, as I feel that there is less difference for the higher screaming notes.
Initial thoughts are that I see what you mean about the Pegasus, it has a lovely warm creamy tone, not a thin and fuzzy as some of the others, but really they all sound beautiful, so I'm gonna spend some time choosing.
 
Wow, many thanks for that Reactorcritical. It's the perfect demo, especially as it focuses on the exact range that I want to get right, the mid to lower notes, as I feel that there is less difference for the higher screaming notes.
Initial thoughts are that I see what you mean about the Pegasus, it has a lovely warm creamy tone, not a thin and fuzzy as some of the others, but really they all sound beautiful, so I'm gonna spend some time choosing.

Charts are also available on the SD website that shows the output, bass response, and other stats to give you an even better idea of how they would sound (in person).

I had it narrowed down to the Pegasus and Nazgul when I was deciding. But I went with the Pegasus due to it having Alnico magnets instead of ceramic (I knew they'd sound better when rolling off the volume) and I felt they'd be more articulate.
 
The Pegasus sounds like a better neck candidate to me in that video. I kinda want my bridge to cut more. Still loving the Omega.

Interestingly, in listening to all of them in a row - the JB sounds much less harsh than it can get a rep for. It definitely sounds more hard rock and less modern metal.
 
I think the SE HFS bridge pickup is a pretty good pickup, especially for rock and hard rock gainy tones.
If you're looking for more aggressive 'metal' tones with a tighter sound then a Nazgul or Distortion would work well.
The Pegasus is an awesome pickup but it is not an aggressive 'metal' pickup in my opinion (it's more for contemporary prog rock/metal), the output is actually quite low, and it is geared more toward clarity and clean note expression for downtuned guitars. I feel like the Pegasus sounds the most out of place in that comparison video because of its lower output. If you put a bit more gain on the Pegasus (more than your typical pickup) then it starts to saturate more and give you a tighter and more refined sound.

I happen to really like the Pegasus (I have one in my Ibanez RGA121H) but wouldn't recommend it for the tones I assume you're going for. My vote is for the Distortion or Nazgul.
If you can list some of the bands you're looking like then that might assist the community in suggesting you a pickup. Although, listening to that comparison video and deciding yourself is probably the best way to go.
 
I think the SE HFS bridge pickup is a pretty good pickup, especially for rock and hard rock gainy tones.
If you're looking for more aggressive 'metal' tones with a tighter sound then a Nazgul or Distortion would work well.
The Pegasus is an awesome pickup but it is not an aggressive 'metal' pickup in my opinion (it's more for contemporary prog rock/metal), the output is actually quite low, and it is geared more toward clarity and clean note expression for downtuned guitars. I feel like the Pegasus sounds the most out of place in that comparison video because of its lower output. If you put a bit more gain on the Pegasus (more than your typical pickup) then it starts to saturate more and give you a tighter and more refined sound.

I happen to really like the Pegasus (I have one in my Ibanez RGA121H) but wouldn't recommend it for the tones I assume you're going for. My vote is for the Distortion or Nazgul.
If you can list some of the bands you're looking like then that might assist the community in suggesting you a pickup. Although, listening to that comparison video and deciding yourself is probably the best way to go.

Some good notes. I feel that the Pegasus holds up fairly well for metal stuff, but I do agree that it's a lower output than the rest of the pickups in the vid.

Personally, I'd like to see where the PRS 59/09s land in this group because I would like to pick up a pup that's similar to the 59/09s to put in another guitar (or just find a 59/09 that doesn't cost a fortune). Got one in my CU24 and it makes my Dual Rectifier sound like a fire breathing monster. Bone crushing.
 
Thanks for all the great advice. I'm not allowed to post links in my posts yet, as I'm still a new member, but search "Jathon Delsy" on YouTube to see what kind of sound I'm after if you're at all interested. I want a sound like no other, the ultimate creamy thick legato singing lead sound, a million miles away from the clean polite twang of Hank Marvin (whom incidentally I think is a fine guitarist), I want overdrive without fuzz, thickness without muddiness, a clear attack without violence and hardness, the sound of singing electricity without artificiality, attitude without swagger, beauty and balls, I want THE SOUND of pure emotion in a psychedelic current of artful audio of infinite sustain and regal resonance, sharp without being piercing, clear without being twee, masculine without being boorish, feminine without being pretty, psychedelic without being gaudy, like the phrasing of Hendrix meets cubist Schoenburg melodies with the rhythms of Jaco Pastorius and the string bends of Eric Clapton across non-key centred mathrock runs of ever evolving protean developments, with Wagnerian chromaticism and angular musical irreverence too. It's an idea in progress, that will inevitably yield its fabulous fruit.
At the moment I'm thinking about the SH-6 distortion pair, a conservative but safe choice, because ultimately one has no real idea how things will sound until the pickups are in your own guitar with your own setup and playing style.
On second thoughts, I reckon the SH-10 full shred sound clearer, the SH-6 is a bit muddy and unclear.
 
Last edited:
Changed my mind again - after much research I reckon the Nazgul / Sentient combination to be the best on offer to go TO THE MAX,,,
 
Back
Top