Modifications to my H-150

[Guido]

Hello HOC Members!

 

I am starting to do some modifications to my H-150.

 

I will replace the Schaller roller bridge with a vintage correct ABR '59 bridge from Faber and the

Schaller tailpiece with a Faber aluminium tailpiece.

 

When the bridge arrived I noticed that the roller bridge posts won't fit.

So I contacted Schaller and described the problem and they promised me to send me the posts for 13$.

Matching posts from Faber would have cost me 24$.

The next day I noticed the neck pickup ring was cracked. So I contacted Schaller again.

They said they will ship a free replacement ring with the package. I couldn't believe it!

Yesterday the package arrived. There were the posts, the neck pickup ring with screws AND a front pickup ring with screws AND some pleks!!!

I still can't believe it!!!

So if you need some stuff from Schaller, don't hesitate to contact them directly.

Of course it's easier for me in Germany but I'm sure they will do the best to help.

 

But the biggest modification are the new pickups. I hope they will arrive tomorrow.

I have SD '59s in my 150. They are nice pickups but don't capture that PAF sound I'm looking for.

I did it a long research and listened to all famous boutique pickups out there: Fralins, Lollars, SD Pickups, Voodoos, WCRs, WBs, etc.

I also took a look at some German pickup manufacturers: Leosound, Häussel, David Barfuss.

My limit was 400$. I know that's a lot of money. But I wanted THE PAF CLONE! And I think I found it.

I visited one of my favorite sites on the net: Gregor Hilden. http://www.gregorhilden.de/

He is a great guitar player and plays mostly blues, which is my preferred music.

He also sells guitars, amps, pickups, etc.

He advertised some pickups which are called "Testpair" set by Dommenget: http://img638.imageshack.us/img638/4766/dommipafs.jpg

Honestly I have never heard of Boris Dommenget before. http://www.guitarmaker.de/newpage.htm

Now I know he is a German luthier and has built guitars for the Scorpions, Richie Sambora (Bon Jovi) or Neal Schon (e.g. Journey, Santana).

Wow, that's an excellent reputation!

A German guitar magazine has tested 19 pickups and his PAF set won!

Actually the "Testpair" set consists of pickups of two different sets.

So he took the winning neck (PAF 84) and winning bridge (PAF 93) pickup together and matched them.

There are a few sound examples on his page: http://www.guitarmaker.de/videos.htm

I also contacted Boris Dommenget and he told me that a knew set will cost 610$!

I would have liked knew pickups because I don't like the relic look too much.

But I bought the pickups from Gregor for 470$ so I saved 140$ which is a good argument.

And actually the relic looks really nice and they not only sound but also look like PAFs!

 

So when the pickups are in the guitar I will led you know if the sound is really that good.

It all looks promising!

If I can handle it, I will also post some sound clips.

 

I know it's a lot of text but I hope you enjoyed reading.

 

Guido

[GuitArtMan]

Let us know how it turns out. $470 is some serious coin for a set of pickups!

[mars_hall]

Keep in mind that, as with any audio system, the entire signal path will determine your results. This includes your dynamics in playing. That is a large sum of money to invest, so I hope you have looked at the capabilities of your system before laying down the cash.

 

I guess what I am saying is the subtle nuances you may be hoping to grok may be buried in the coloration of the speakers, effects train, or individual amp stages, etc. and it would be a shame if you were disappointed in the end. Ask yourself, "How does my system compare to the one used in the test?"

 

Reminds me of fishing lures...

[Guido]

Keep in mind that, as with any audio system, the entire signal path will determine your results. This includes your dynamics in playing. That is a large sum of money to invest, so I hope you have looked at the capabilities of your system before laying down the cash.

 

I guess what I am saying is the subtle nuances you may be hoping to grok may be buried in the coloration of the speakers, effects train, or individual amp stages, etc. and it would be a shame if you were disappointed in the end. Ask yourself, "How does my system compare to the one used in the test?"

 

Reminds me of fishing lures...

 

Yep, you're totally right about that!

 

Of course pickups sound different in different guitars and different amps.

For the price I've got the pickups I am sure I could sell them any time again.

But I am also sure I won't sell them at all!!!

[mars_hall]

After the install remember

 

[tulk1]

Ah, the eternal quest for tone! It never stops, does it? I truly hope those pickups are the stuff. Oh, and cool deal on Schaller backing up their parts like that. Can't beat that.

[smurph1]

$470!!! WOW.. I hope they are worth it..

[FredZepp]

Interesting post... It will be cool to see what you think of the new pickups....

But I would expect them to be pretty awesome.

 

And your dealings with Schaller sound like a positive experience .. cool.

[proxmax]

hi guido,

 

i did some mods to my h150 myself.

first the pups changed to haeussels.

you are right to change stp to alu, same i did.

the new bridge has brass saddles now and all sounds

rounder as with the earlier tonepros stuff.

finally i changed the complete electrics.

braided wires, nos pio caps and cts pots.

pics at my haeussel thread.

 

cheers

klaus

[Wolfi]

Hi Guido, Klaus and all other HOC members,

 

very interesting posting. The Schaller people are always very helpful.

 

Boris Dommenget is a great luthier. I once met him when the ESP Custom shop in Duesseldorf was still on. He brough one of his LP Models and I was really impressed by the craftsmanship and the sound.

 

Very funny: one of the sound clips shows Ali Claudi. He's a jazz guitar player from my hometown Duesseldorf. Some years ago he made a set up for my old Strat

 

I didn't know the Dommenget Pickups are that expensive. I always thought I'm the top of the bill lunatic with my 500 EUR Amber PAFs

 

Anyway, I like the sound of the Dommenget PAFs from the Gregor Hilden site very much. I hope for you, Guido, you'll be happy with them. Sometimes pickups and guitars do not match, even if they both are great. Ok, I stop now. I don't wanna scare you .

 

It's great you did the hardware change on your 150. I did the same on my 150 (titanium bridge, aluminium tailpiece and bone nut). Plus the whole wiring was changed when I got the Amber PAFs. By the way, don't underestimate the importance of wiring and pots... I'm sure Klaus and the others will agree.

 

Sound clips of your new pickups were phantastic. I'm sure you'll be very glad with the Dommengets.

 

Cheers to all

 

Wolfi

[Guido]

Hi Guys!

 

Thanks for all your answers.

 

You are all wright about pickups and guitars.

And yes it is a lot of money for pickups.

But if I buy 2 or more pickup sets to find the right one I end up paying much more than now.

Of course there is no guarantee that the Dommenget PAFs sound like I hope they will sound.

On the other hand in all standard LPs they sound great. And my H-150 is better than any standard LP!!!

The Heritage has the good woods, the mahogany body, the maple top, the one piece mahogany neck, etc.

So everything the pickups need is there in excellent quality. That's why I believe the pickups will sound great in my 150.

 

For changing electrics I have my own experience.

I had some original '50s bumblee caps which I used in a Japan LP with WCR Green/Moore pickups.

The luthier where I usually go, Phantom Guitars in Cologne, was very excited to hear them.

So we changed the caps together. And you know what? We both couldn't hear any difference!

We then used a lot of different caps and again little to none difference.

The only thing that made a difference was using different cap values.

In the end we ended up using a 3 cent cap and again we couldn't hear no difference to the bumblebees.

By the way the guitar had '50s wiring, CTS 500k pots and braided wires.

Personally I believe it is more a hype than really a tonal improvement.

But that's just my opinion and experience.

 

Guido

[irondack]

Hello HOC Members!

 

I am starting to do some modifications to my H-150.

 

I will replace the Schaller roller bridge with a vintage correct ABR '59 bridge from Faber and the

Schaller tailpiece with a Faber aluminium tailpiece.

 

Hi Guido,

interesting story.

I also think about replacing the Schaller roller bridge and tailpiece. I don't want to drill into my H150, so could you please tell me

which parts will replace exactly the Schaller things. There are so many different numbers of bridges and tailpieces on the German Faber webpage.

 

Cheers

[Hfan]

Hello HOC Members!

 

I am starting to do some modifications to my H-150.

 

I will replace the Schaller roller bridge with a vintage correct ABR '59 bridge from Faber and the

Schaller tailpiece with a Faber aluminium tailpiece.

 

Hi Guido,

interesting story.

I also think about replacing the Schaller roller bridge and tailpiece. I don't want to drill into my H150, so could you please tell me

which parts will replace exactly the Schaller things. There are so many different numbers of bridges and tailpieces on the German Faber webpage.

 

Cheers

 

I believe many members here have had luck using Tone Pro hardware that fits without mods. Good luck

[proxmax]

I believe many members here have had luck using Tone Pro hardware that fits without mods. Good luck

can't go d'accord in this point.

the expensive tonepros stuff was soundwise the first that had to go.

it was way too harsh for my taste.

sure you can take 250kohm pots, but it is not the same.

[Guido]

sure you can take 250kohm pots, but it is not the same.

Sorry I don't get it. 250k pots? Did I miss something?

[Guido]

Hi Guido,

interesting story.

I also think about replacing the Schaller roller bridge and tailpiece. I don't want to drill into my H150, so could you please tell me

which parts will replace exactly the Schaller things. There are so many different numbers of bridges and tailpieces on the German Faber webpage.

 

Cheers

Hi!

 

Don't worry. They all fit, because they're all the same. The only difference is the finish (nickel, aged, gold, etc.).

You need the NSWKIT studs for the ABR bridge. These studs fit the Schaller bushings.

You also need knew locking studs for the tailpiece. I would use the Faber Locking System.

But any other studs will do also. I am not sure anymore if you need the studs in inch or metric because Schaller is a German company.

But I can find that out tomorrow!

 

The only thing I noticed was that the big chunky Schaller tailpiece was mounted too low and left some nice marks on the top which are now visible! Great!

[proxmax]

Sorry I don't get it. 250k pots? Did I miss something?

 

that was ment to take the harshness from the tonepros.

but is better to change bridge and stp.