SE Standard 245 "S" Treble and 245 "S" Bass pickups

[madhermit]

The 2018 SE 245 Standard comes with 245 "S" Treble and 245 "S" Bass pickups.

Can anyone tell me about them?

Are they AlNiCo or ceramic?

What are they aiming for tone wise?

High/medium/low output?

I haven't had a lot of luck finding info on them specifically.

Thanks

 

[andy474x]

I’ve tried them in a few guitars, and liked them more than the other SE pickups I’ve tried. They’re mid output, which I like for the extra little push. I believe Alnico, but don’t know that for a fact. They sound more like hot alnico than ceramic to me. I would call them well balanced. Some people find them “sterile,” I guess it’s just two sides of the same coin. They’re thick and lush enough sounding on clean tones, and give the amp a nice kick for snarly driven tones. They don’t have the warm and silvery goodness of a USA PRS set, but they’re no slouch IMO.

 

[Boogie]

They are my fav SE pickups, along with the P-90. Though I upgraded the pickups a while back, the stock ones solidly hold their own. They take big gain well, but I like them with some midrange emphasis. Here’s an old video of me punishing the neighborhood with my Boogie rig and the SE245. It was harder playing one handed than I anticipated, so try not to laugh as I pick up the phone to shoot video. And yes, it was freakin’ loud!

 

[pac90]

That was great boogie, it was like jimmy page was still drinking

 

[Boogie]

That was great boogie, it was like jimmy page was still drinking

Bwahah! Any comparison to Jimmy Page is a good comparison.

 

[JJJ]

I don't mind them, but they really seem to do one thing

The neck pickups are okay when you get the height and pole pieces just right

It sounds to me like the neck is an alnico and the bridge is some kind of hotter ceramic, it has that vibe to it

 

[Antmax]

I like them quite a lot, I have been looking for something similar to replace them with because I like the overall sound but they lack some definition and picking dynamics compared to the aftermarket SD's I have put in my non PRS guitars. I like the basic tones but they sound slightly muffled as though they have most of the frequencies but not the full range.

The contrast between the neck and bridge make it pretty versatile in my Zach myers. I actually tried a couple of other pickups but went back to these 245's because I haven't found anything else quite like them. My ZM starts to sound more like my other guitars and less of it's own thing when I swap pickups and I don't have the $ to experiment.

 

[JJJ]

they sound slightly muffled as though they have most of the frequencies but not the full range.

This

 

[madhermit]

Anyone find out anything more about these pickups? Are they ceramic? AlNiCo?
Not looking for opinions, just the facts ma'am.

 

[Boogie]

Anyone find out anything more about these pickups? Are they ceramic? AlNiCo?
Not looking for opinions, just the facts ma'am.

They’re alnico, but I don’t know which class.

 

[madhermit]

They’re alnico, but I don’t know which class.

Nice. Where did you find this info? I couldn't find anything.

 

[Wakester]

I read in another forum they are class 5 alnico's. There is also an old thread here, where Bodia and Sergio discuss this as well. (Circa 2017)

 

[madhermit]

I read in another forum they are class 5 alnico's. There is also an old thread here, where Bodia and Sergio discuss this as well. (Circa 2017)

Thanks - I will go look for it