Jump to content

Gfs Pickups..does Anybody Know Anything About Them?


Bluetic

Recommended Posts

I was recenty on a parts supply website named guitarfetish.com and they sell pickups named GFS. They have a wide varity of pickups really cheap. I was just wondering if anybody on here knows anything about them as far as quality / sound. I may just go ahead and order some to try them out since they are so cheap and the description on the website really builds them up as good pickups. Any feedback would be greatl appreciated. Thanks, Glenn :D

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The guy who runs the store and owns GFS is a good salesman. They're all just generic imported pickups that are wound to various specs. You won't find any special magnet tricks or special construction on them. Depending on what you're building, most of the big manufacturers are probably worth the extra $20 for the better pickups.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I've put them in two of my builds, and I have to say that they are good for the money. They are NOT a boutique pickup by any stretch, but they do as good a job as some of my other, higher end factory jobs.

I put a set of Dream 180s in a 3 P/U LPS thinline and wired them with three mini toggles so I can run any pup in any combination of single or double coils. They can pull off some good Strat and Tele tones when split, but still give you the guts of a Paul with both coils engaged. Plus I have a Varitone in the tone circuit, so I can pull off some nice jazzy tones as well.

I'm big into splitting and phasing in my electronics and they've done very well in those situations.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...
I just found some good info on these GFS pickups. Its a user review forum on Harmony Central. Just in case anybody else was interested. Mixed reviews on some, mostly good reviews though. :D

http://reviews.harmony-central.com/reviews...and/GFS+Pickups

I tend to treat HC reviews with an extra degree of skepticism. There are a lot of folks that will buy pickups, play them for 5 minutes, then immediately get online and rave about how great they are. I call it New Gear Review Syndrome, and it makes finding a balanced review quite difficult.

I tried a bunch of GFS pickups -- Neo7, Crunchy PAT neck, Power Rails neck, Crunchy rails bridge, Dream 90 neck, Fatbody Tele neck & bridge, Lil' Killer lead, and the "clearance" overwound Strat set. Honestly, I feel like you mostly get what you pay for. Some of the pickups I've tried sounded quite good, more were mediocre, and nearly all of them howled badly with moderate gain and volume, despite what they say about that "meticulous" vacuum wax potting (Neovin being an exception -- mine is extremely quiet). For the most part, their pickups seem to be voiced for a more wide range sound than I generally prefer. I like DiMarzio's characteristic peaky midrange, whereas GFS's humbuckers tend to have a more Seymour Duncan-like voicing.

Anyway, a pickup is such a simple device that I really don't see why a cheap one is less likely to sound good. It's just a bunch of copper wire and a couple magnets, after all. But my experience is that the name brands do tend to sound better, and they tend to be quieter. GFS does make a couple gems, and I would be happy to provide a little feedback on any of the pickups I've used, but I think it would be wise to temper your expectations a little when it comes to cheap pickups.

Edited by fookgub
Link to comment
Share on other sites

I bought a PAF humbucker from them a month or so ago and installed it in the neck position on on of my teles. I'll say that it is solid and there are no problems at all with it. It sounds a little less refined (for lack of a better word) than comparable Duncans in my Les Paul, though certainly not bad sounding at all. I guess I would call it "muddier" than the SD. For the price they can't be beat, and if you're working on a beater guitar or any project you don't want to sink a lot of money into, they're the ticket. But like someone else said, another 20 or so bucks and you can have a SD or Dimarzio if you're so inclined.

I also agree about taking Harmony Central reviews with a grain of salt. They seem to be either glowing or complete disses.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...