Rio Grande Pickups BBQ Bucker Humbucker

I initially received this bridge pickup from a friend of mine. Supposedly, it is Rio Grande's take on a PAF 50's style humbucker. I had put it in my Gibson Les Paul Classic, which I then removed it in favor of a Seymour Duncan Seth Lover. This pickup ended up in my Gibson SG Standard, which is where it ended up staying.

The pickup sounds rather interesting for lack of a better term. It has a strong mid range presence yet still sounds rather warm. It is focused and strong but doesn't seem to push the amp too much. I never measured its output, but I would guess it would be on the high side of low or the low side of medium output.

I found that, depending on the amp, it could sound somewhat dull and flat. Installing it in the Gibson SG helped that a little, since the guitar is lighter than that of your normal Les Paul Standard type guitar.

As far as it's intended purpose, a PAF style pickup with a little more push to it, I guess it sorta does that. The problem is, it simply does not sound like a PAF pickup. The frequency range isn't there. The low end seems slightly truncated. The mid range is too upfront and in your face. The highs are a bit too dull and lacking. What it does, it does fairly well, but it wasn't something that I was looking for.

I am not sure I could recommend this pickup. I think it sounds too unlike anything else I've tried. That can be a good thing and that can be a bad thing. I would say that if you want a generically good sounding PAF style humbucker pickup, this isn't your pickup. If you play power chordy rock music, it might be worth a shot. If you play something more nuanced or it will probably be too mid focused.