Your demo of the SLE-101's made me get my KZ-115 with alnico 2's and I haven't look back - amazing pickups. To my ears the the PGs win, they seem clearer and more articulate, prehaps abit less mids. Great playing Joe
115's are excellent. In my next build I can't decide. I want MORE burst "honk". I went so far as to go with 50s tail piece slugs and ALL vintage correct metals etc. 115s are quite close to sound I'm looking for. I need 2 guitars lol
Both sets sounded great! I listened while washing dishes. Every time I heard something that knocked me out, I stopped to take a peek at which pickups you were playing through…. And every time it was the SLEs.
With the volume at 6 the differences were really minimal but i slightly prefer the Sle. BUT, as soon as you increased the volume the PG was the winner. They have somewhat Better definition
Strange, what I heard was the SLE-101 being brighter and spankier. The PGs sounded boomier and darker, stronger in the mids for sure. If you asked me the PGs sounded warmer and rounder and the SLEs sounded brighter anc clearer...
SLEs when played by itself or for a quiet song with minimal accompaniment. PGs in a full volume band rocking mix. So, clearly, either you need another Les Paul so you can have both sets, OR The SLE neck with the PG bridge for a killer combo.
Spot on comparison! The PGs have it modestly brighter, treble that shows up pretty much across all the strings, and sonically in a little crisper, attached and chime, you might also say “bite”. I guess I would say they are different flavors of classic PAF tones, with the SLE being a good example of a slightly mellower variety with a tad more warmth.
@@JoePerkinsMusic Cool stuff. By the way, I love your channel and think you make some of the best comparisons out there. Really going into the details that matter a lot. And I really appreciate your participation in the comments. Thanks a lot for your qork and effort!
Used to own both sets of SLE 101 regular and SLE 101 LTD. I was fortunate enough to compare them side by side. To my ears, the LTD set sounded brighter, cleaner and less mids ; while the regular 101s were warmer, rounder sounding, had more of a vowel-like overtone (dipthong quality) and earlier break up in the gain department. I actually preferred the regular SLE 101 over the SLE 101 LTD set.
Joe, i have a question.... It seems like you love the Standard LP more than the Custom, why is that? Since you're a vintage aficionado, maybe you'll enjoy more one of those 54 LP Custom Black Beauty with the Alnico V in the Neck and P90 Bridge.
The Standard just seems to sound good whatever I do with it; I'm still fighting with the Custom 20 years on! :P Though I've got some new pickups going in it soon, so we'll see if they do the trick!! I'd actually love to get it refinished in black - have never been fond of the Wine Red! So perhaps it might become a Black Beauty one day! :P
@@JoePerkinsMusic If i remember right, one of the Duran Duran guitarist (i really cant remember which one) had a LP Custom Wine Red. Not sure. I suggest you look at Joe Gore channel to see the changes that he made to his LP Custom, i bet you'll like them. Some really nice tips in there
Both great, and very similar. Tbh I prefer the SLE. But then I prefer more primitive sounding guitar sounds generally (low output, earlier pickups; gnarly, slightly rubbish-in-a-good-way drives and boosts; basic-b**ch early amps-that-arepretty-much-radios and not built to overdrive - that sort of thing).
Cool stuff. I'm sorry to ask, but if you ever have interest in doing a Varitone circuit, either in a guitar or in a pedal form, i think you would make the best demo of that. I'm very interested in hearing the differences, especially on the wound strings. Trogly's guitars has done a fantastic job of demoing the circuit, but maybe other people dig it as much as i do. Unfortunately, i haven't tried the circuit in person, that would satisfy my curiousity, no doubt. Thanks for your work, sir.
@@JoePerkinsMusic Same here. Another thing that would be cool possibly is a Mosrite Fuzzrite circuit. I have one from Jordan/Mahoney and it is awesome. I also have his Bosstone circuit called "buzz tone". I'm glad i went with his stuff, although Williams' stuff would be every bit as good.
I had a buddy who yanked the varitone out of his bb king lucille guitar, he did not like it. I actually like a couple of the varitone settings, that would make a very interesting pedal to say the least, that would be how I would like it not in a actual guitar. Bet someone has that in a pedal given all that are out there these days.
@@ksharpe10 I think Lindy Fralin has something similar in a box he made, but it's more for guitar capacitors that pair with his pickups, i think. The Varitone circuit would be the coolest version of that though.
Is the PG neck wound with heavy formvar? I was expecting more difference, but I should Relisten with headphones. I love HF on Strats, but I made a p90 with it and it didn’t sound as good as plain enamel. Joe, have you tried Wizz pickups? He’s a good guy.
Nope - these are a 'pre-repair' set, and the neck is wound with the same wire as the bridge....though this particular set did come with the flipped neck magnet; I 'corrected' that before shooting the video as I'm not a big fan of the out of phase thing. I've got a set of Wizz PAFs in my Bailey Curve Special...lovely pickups!
Thanks for this video. Really well done. I've been thinking about getting some ThroBak PAF p-ups. This really helped. Especially liked that you didn't use a ton of distortion. You have a great channel.
What the difference whether it's a clone or just a sound alike? It's the sound we want and as long as the sound is right who cares if the components are not 100 percent vintage correct? If the sound is the same then the components not being 100 percent accurate is irrelevant and not worth the upcharge for the unicorn magnets and pixie dust plain enamel magnet wire .
@@JoePerkinsMusicglad to hear you’re ok Joe…well at least on the mend. Was getting worried about you! Looking forward to some new vids coming out. Cheers man!
Your demo of the SLE-101's made me get my KZ-115 with alnico 2's and I haven't look back - amazing pickups. To my ears the the PGs win, they seem clearer and more articulate, prehaps abit less mids. Great playing Joe
Great to hear :-) Would love to try the KZ's! Definitely more snap & brightness to the PG's in this vid :-)
115's are excellent. In my next build I can't decide. I want MORE burst "honk". I went so far as to go with 50s tail piece slugs and ALL vintage correct metals etc. 115s are quite close to sound I'm looking for. I need 2 guitars lol
I'd be happy with either of those. Both sound good. Cheers!
Both sets sounded great! I listened while washing dishes. Every time I heard something that knocked me out, I stopped to take a peek at which pickups you were playing through…. And every time it was the SLEs.
With the volume at 6 the differences were really minimal but i slightly prefer the Sle. BUT, as soon as you increased the volume the PG was the winner. They have somewhat Better definition
Thanks. That was almost exactly what I was going to say. 🤓
Strange, what I heard was the SLE-101 being brighter and spankier. The PGs sounded boomier and darker, stronger in the mids for sure.
If you asked me the PGs sounded warmer and rounder and the SLEs sounded brighter anc clearer...
Fantastic playing as always! Think I prefer the slightly more rounded sound of the SLE-101. But it was a difficult pick as both sounded fab.
Increased highs and mids go for the PG A5s. more Lofi woody sound SLE A2 s. Both were great but I’m more of an A2 fan myself. Awesome vid
SLEs when played by itself or for a quiet song with minimal accompaniment.
PGs in a full volume band rocking mix.
So, clearly, either you need another Les Paul so you can have both sets,
OR
The SLE neck with the PG bridge for a killer combo.
Pretty spot on to me joe you’re summary was what i thought too….so really not much i can say …keep rocking!!
I feel like your channel is ASMR for guitarists with OCD Joe, and its deeply appreciated 😂
Hah! Basically, it's cheaper than therapy & others can join the group too ;-) lol
I prefer PG-102 for the bridge. I'd take either of the two for the front position.
Great demo, thanks Joe!
Spot on comparison! The PGs have it modestly brighter, treble that shows up pretty much across all the strings, and sonically in a little crisper, attached and chime, you might also say “bite”. I guess I would say they are different flavors of classic PAF tones, with the SLE being a good example of a slightly mellower variety with a tad more warmth.
You should have a look at Mojo Pickups from the UK. I've had a lot of PAF repros, Throbaks, too, and found the Mojos to be more PAFy
You're not the first to suggest Mojos :-) I've tried Marc's Gold Foils, but never his PAFs - they're on the list of things to try one day!
@@JoePerkinsMusic Cool stuff. By the way, I love your channel and think you make some of the best comparisons out there. Really going into the details that matter a lot. And I really appreciate your participation in the comments. Thanks a lot for your qork and effort!
@@burt2800 Ah cheers mate, really appreciate that :-)
PG-102 for me
LOVE LOVE LOVE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Both are great ,however the 101's alnico 2 sounded brighter and more open and transparent whilist the 102 seemed compressed and less dynamic. Cheers
Slightly prefer the PGs.
Used to own both sets of SLE 101 regular and SLE 101 LTD. I was fortunate enough to compare them side by side. To my ears, the LTD set sounded brighter, cleaner and less mids ; while the regular 101s were warmer, rounder sounding, had more of a vowel-like overtone (dipthong quality) and earlier break up in the gain department. I actually preferred the regular SLE 101 over the SLE 101 LTD set.
Interesting to know :-) Maybe a bit of that happening here, though I suspect the magnets are making the biggest difference.
Joe, i have a question.... It seems like you love the Standard LP more than the Custom, why is that?
Since you're a vintage aficionado, maybe you'll enjoy more one of those 54 LP Custom Black Beauty with the Alnico V in the Neck and P90 Bridge.
The Standard just seems to sound good whatever I do with it; I'm still fighting with the Custom 20 years on! :P Though I've got some new pickups going in it soon, so we'll see if they do the trick!! I'd actually love to get it refinished in black - have never been fond of the Wine Red! So perhaps it might become a Black Beauty one day! :P
@@JoePerkinsMusic If i remember right, one of the Duran Duran guitarist (i really cant remember which one) had a LP Custom Wine Red. Not sure.
I suggest you look at Joe Gore channel to see the changes that he made to his LP Custom, i bet you'll like them. Some really nice tips in there
Hi Joe. Do you own or even like any solid state amps? Have you ever used a tube preamp pedal with a solid state amp? Just curious. :)
I don't - have played many before, but have never really preferred them. My happy place is an all-tube amp, usually with a tube rectifier also.
Both great, and very similar. Tbh I prefer the SLE. But then I prefer more primitive sounding guitar sounds generally (low output, earlier pickups; gnarly, slightly rubbish-in-a-good-way drives and boosts; basic-b**ch early amps-that-arepretty-much-radios and not built to overdrive - that sort of thing).
Cool stuff. I'm sorry to ask, but if you ever have interest in doing a Varitone circuit, either in a guitar or in a pedal form, i think you would make the best demo of that. I'm very interested in hearing the differences, especially on the wound strings. Trogly's guitars has done a fantastic job of demoing the circuit, but maybe other people dig it as much as i do. Unfortunately, i haven't tried the circuit in person, that would satisfy my curiousity, no doubt. Thanks for your work, sir.
Would be fun :-) Though someone else would have to build that...I'm useless with things like that! :P
@@JoePerkinsMusic Same here. Another thing that would be cool possibly is a Mosrite Fuzzrite circuit. I have one from Jordan/Mahoney and it is awesome. I also have his Bosstone circuit called "buzz tone". I'm glad i went with his stuff, although Williams' stuff would be every bit as good.
I had a buddy who yanked the varitone out of his bb king lucille guitar, he did not like it. I actually like a couple of the varitone settings, that would make a very interesting pedal to say the least, that would be how I would like it not in a actual guitar. Bet someone has that in a pedal given all that are out there these days.
@@ksharpe10 I think Lindy Fralin has something similar in a box he made, but it's more for guitar capacitors that pair with his pickups, i think. The Varitone circuit would be the coolest version of that though.
Is the PG neck wound with heavy formvar? I was expecting more difference, but I should Relisten with headphones. I love HF on Strats, but I made a p90 with it and it didn’t sound as good as plain enamel. Joe, have you tried Wizz pickups? He’s a good guy.
Nope - these are a 'pre-repair' set, and the neck is wound with the same wire as the bridge....though this particular set did come with the flipped neck magnet; I 'corrected' that before shooting the video as I'm not a big fan of the out of phase thing. I've got a set of Wizz PAFs in my Bailey Curve Special...lovely pickups!
Thanks for this video. Really well done. I've been thinking about getting some ThroBak PAF p-ups. This really helped. Especially liked that you didn't use a ton of distortion. You have a great channel.
Thanks Peter :-) Both these sets are phenomenal 👍
SLE's got the sweetness
If you put either of those humbuckers into a Telecaster, does it sound anything like Les Paul? 🤔
I had a Tele with humbuckers in once - sounded like a bright, snappy Les Paul. So not _exactly_ the same, but a similar experience.
It's pretty much the mags
What the difference whether it's a clone or just a sound alike? It's the sound we want and as long as the sound is right who cares if the components are not 100 percent vintage correct? If the sound is the same then the components not being 100 percent accurate is irrelevant and not worth the upcharge for the unicorn magnets and pixie dust plain enamel magnet wire .
Where the hell have you disappeared to Joe??
I'm here - just been very overworked & not very well recently. New videos hopefully coming soon!
@@JoePerkinsMusicglad to hear you’re ok Joe…well at least on the mend. Was getting worried about you! Looking forward to some new vids coming out. Cheers man!
@@banditsharp Mending slowly! Hopefully filming next week 👍