Low impedance pickup question

Craig Holden · Post by **Craig Holden** » 22 Oct 2002 6:15 am

I recently (this past weekend at the Arlington guitar show) aquired a 1969 Gibson Les Paul Professional which has the low z pickups in it. Curious to know what preamp I can use to bring the signal up and where I might find one. I know these guitars originally came with a special cord that had a transformer built in, and there was an amp (the LP-12) that was designed for this guitar, but I have neither. Can someone rcommend a preamp to take the signal from low z to high z?

Thanks,
Craig

Jeff Peterson · Post by **Jeff Peterson** » 23 Oct 2002 5:28 pm

Any preamp will bring it up...you got a balanced connector on it? Probably not. Anyway, ya' know what's really neat about those guitars is you don't need a direct box to go to a board. The tone out of those pickups is really, really great. Everyone talks about those old, old lap steels having such great tone...most of that came from the fact that they had low z pickups. Guys buy those old things, and the first thing they do is change the pickups....wrong!! A 2X4 or hunk of chrome plated brass or bakalite or that other poop is not going to have the sound without the low z pickups. The funniest thing is, they take the pickups out and have them re-wound...and then say, 'the guitar just doesn't sound the same'. Unbelieveable!

Craig Holden · Post by **Craig Holden** » 24 Oct 2002 5:06 am

Yep, it is a sweet sounding guitar.....I love it! I found an ART MP tube mic preamp that has 1/4" jacks in and out. I think that's the ticket, but I haven't tried it yet.

I got this guitar towards the end of the show...nobody showed much interest in it evedently.....I saw a guy pick it up and ask the owner what was wrong with the pickups because of the low output....he put it down and I bought it.

Rick Aiello · Post by **Rick Aiello** » 24 Oct 2002 6:43 am

<BLOCKQUOTE>quote:<HR>
Guys buy those old things, and the first thing they do is change the pickups....wrong!! A 2X4 or hunk of chrome plated brass or bakalite or that other poop is not going to have the sound without the low z pickups.
<HR></BLOCKQUOTE>

That is why I send any of my Rickys that need "help" to Jason Lollar.[This message was edited by Rick Aiello on 24 October 2002 at 07:44 AM.]