Is the Seymour Duncan "EVH" custom shop pickup really so great?

[Soap]

Yeah, dealers/retailers are gonna charge you more they gotta make something off it. The last I knew, straight from Seymour's custom shop, 140 or 160.

[shreddermon]

Mass confusion going on here. Let me try to clear things up...

The Seymour Duncan EVH ("Evenly Voiced Harmonics") pickup is not the same pickup that's in the Charvel EVH Art Series guitars. It's not even endorsed by Ed, and Seymour now calls it the "'78 model" to avoid EVH's lawyers. It is a Duncan custom shop pickup only. Which means that you can only get one by special ordering it thorugh an authorized Seymour Duncan dealer - so you don't have to pay full list price by buying directly from the SD custom shop. Dealers will give a reasonable discount off list price.

The pickup that's in the Charvel EVH guitar models is a custom wound pickup from Fender's in-house custom pickup shop. Yes, Fender custom winds their own pickups. And they're damn good at it, too. You can't buy this pickup any other way - it's exclusive to the EVH Art Series. And, no, it's NOT the same pickup as in the coming Frankie replica, either. That's a different custom wound pickup, also not otherwise available elsewhere.

The SD pickup is voiced quite different from the Charvel's - think early EVH tone vs. modern EVH. IMHO, the SD is a very good pickup. Not huge output goes and kind of bright, too - think modified PAF. The Fender is a GREAT pickup. Nice gain, tone, and awesome harmonics. Darker. Vintage vs. modern. ...You opinions may vary.

[savage]

the EVH duncan is the rewind that seymour did to ed's old paf back in late 78
now keep in mind that same pup eddie owns now is practically not even working
it does not get a reistance reading and sounds very low output
play one of those 25K frankie re-issues and you will hear what i mean
it sounds more like a single coil than a bucker now
but the duncan EVH custom shop pup is that pup before ed broke it
you want a great pup for under $70 get a dimarzio virtual hot paf

[savage]

I'm not sure, but I believe the one on the EVH Replica is a custom Seymour Duncan made especially for it to match the characteristics of the original PAF thats in it.

[JerryP]

I'm pretty sure you can only get custom builds direct from SD and list price is what you pay.

You can get the EVH from Duncan dealers. It's a special order pickup.
Jerry

[savage]

You can get the EVH from Duncan dealers. It's a special order pickup.
Jerry

yes and now it is called the '78

http://www.seymourduncan.com/products/custom-shop/humbuckers/78_model_great/

[MSGfan]

The pickup is only as good as the guitar you put it in!
It's that simple if you ask me.
Or in other words,..if you put a cheap pickup in a real nice guitar, say a Les Paul or PRS etc., it's still going to sound pretty good.
But if you put an expensive high dollar pickup in a bolt on neck guitar with a trem that has a plywood body, it's not going to sound like a $150. or $200. pickup!

[savage]

The pickup is only as good as the guitar you put it in!
It's that simple if you ask me.
Or in other words,..if you put a cheap pickup in a real nice guitar, say a Les Paul or PRS etc., it's still going to sound pretty good.
But if you put an expensive high dollar pickup in a bolt on neck guitar with a trem that has a plywood body, it's not going to sound like a $150. or $200. pickup!

very true

[Mario8672]

But compare the EVH pickup to a JB or DiMarzio when it's in a high end guitar.

[horns666]

I really like the custom DiMarzios in my Wolfgang..do those still count?

No...not anymore..Eddie said fuggums?

[Soap]

Ed was known for his mutt guitars he slapped together.
He didn't like the "standard" offering guitar manufactured in his early days.
Thus, the invention and his attempt to create a guitar that met his needs.
Thats all he set out to do, it was later he realized he created a new standard for manufacturing guitars.

The Charvel EVH were basswood bodies and bolt on necks.
The Fender Frankies were/are ash bodies with bolt on necks.
He could've played a titty pink mutt guitar and still would have been legendary.

The pickup was his attempt to create what sound or tone as some put it,
his ears heard (part of the so called brown sound). Again, Ed could've settle and chose a Gibson Dirty Finger and would've still been legendary.

Granted, the technical side of it, I'm sure like everyone else, it was a combination of a variety of things that played a contributing role, BUT, never forget or be confused, he was legendary because his hands could play what he heard in his head and what he heard in his head was remarkable.
I remember the first I heard eruption...I was blown away.
I thought, you can do that with a guitar?
It didn't/doesn't matter what wood, pickup, neck thru's or bolt on's.
Ed and the band Van Halen was a legend in waiting and piece of rock history in waiting.

[jgcable]

Its a good pickup but certainly not worth all that money.

[horns666]

Soap speaks words of awesomeness. Ed said his original Frankie pup didn't even register on a meter. In reality it shouldn't "work"..he fucked it up. So, this is a reproduction of a pickup that he basically fucked during a hot waxin' drunken stupor..but this is how the world..our world of Van Halen was born!!!

My VH trib bud was a delusional Toolasaurus..he thought he was Eddie Van Halen. He started smoking just so he could shove cigs in the headstock. He copied every single piece of equipment EVER revealed..starting with 100 wt super lead, grey tube echoplex/roland space echo (mounted in a construction barrel), a variac turned down below 90 volts ..where the tubes barley glowed ..just like a brown out.."the brown sound"..and all the old MXR pedals ever made, script logos, cveratin batteries..25 wt greenbacks..he NAILED it!..but VERY NOISY!!!

Ironically, he traded that clusterfuck for a JMP-1/Peavey120-120/and. That sounded MUCH better. But his tone (Ed's tone) was decades worth of playing VH all day, every fuggin' day. He could play Eruption on a fuggin' banjo and sound cool..eh..

But I've heard people really come close to nailing early Van Halen with all sorts of different gear (youtube). What good is this pup or any piece of gear if you're not able to put it to use. I betcha most people who worship Van Halen would hate Ed's tone if they had the chance to actually plug into his very setup! Nope, you can't touch any knobs!!!

Yes, I'm sure its a "good" pup..it has to be. But you're buying a peice of Ed. Just like my bud did with ALL that exact gear..no difference. But can you play like Ed..because that's the key to true VH tone...you're hands.

[horns666]

oops..post double donged!!!

[Chad]

You can get the EVH from Duncan dealers. It's a special order pickup.
Jerry

Cool. How about a year ago when I posted that comment?