Opinions on stock pickups (MkII PAFs)

[Hag]

A follow up to my previous post on my, what I believe to be, ALS65.

Having now played it for a bit and tried it at a couple of rehearsals, I'm not 100% sure about the pickups. These are the MkII PAFs. The bridge one sounds pretty good from the off but whenever I try to use the neck pickup it just seems to lack something and feels a bit dead and muddy. I probably need to experiment a bit with different height settings before I do anything like swap pickups but as it stands I don't think the neck one is that usable for me (classic rock, country, blues styles with cleanish or slightly overdriven tube amp).

Does anyone else have any thoughts about the MkII pickups? Any tips to get the most out of it? Or if I do swap it out, do you have any tips on a suitable alternative? (And indeed if I swap the neck out should I also upgrade the bridge?)

Lastly, and I don't know if it's just my imagination, but it almost seems as though the tone on both pickups loses top end when I turn the volume down. Has anyone else experienced this?

Thanks!

 

[Sigmania]

As I recall you have the MKII with the green and yellow lead wires?

One thing I realized recently is that MKII means second rate essentially.

The LS65 was about the least expensive Japanese LP at that time and the pickups were likely cost savers.

I had a mid 90s LS55 with a different version of MKII. possibly MKIII and hated them and sold the guitar weeks after getting it.



I would experiment with pickups. I tend to like the PAF range of resistance but they can vary a lot. Lots of options out there and some threads on here about them.

Pickups for Love Rock (favorites)