Pure P.A.F.

The Ultimate PAF Replacement

$175$350

  • Hum-Cancelling
  • Clean & Articulate
  • Traditional Appearance
  • Vintage Output

Click For New Soundclips

( 245 genuine reviews)

Experience what a humbucker should really sound like and get inspired by the Pure P.A.F’s beautiful tone. Lindy’s favorite humbucker, the Pure P.A.F. is a 50’s P.A.F. clone, using real Butyrate Bobbins and all USA-Made parts. Featuring a clean, clear tone with incredible versatility and dynamics and expertly crafted using 100% USA-Made materials, we guarantee the Pure P.A.F. will inspire you for years to come.

 

 

Options

Customize your Pure P.A.F.:

Selection Needed

Select Options Above To Display Add-Ons

Humbucker Cover

Further customize the look of your pickups by adding a USA-Made Nickel Silver cover.

Lead Length

You may need long leads if you have an Archtop guitar, like an ES-335. Check this box below, and we’ll give you some extra lead length.

Bone White Humbucker Bezel

We have Bone White Humbucker Bezels in stock, if you would like your humbucker bezel to match the Bone White bobbins. Bezels are standard Les Paul sizing.

Partial Split Resistor

Coil Splitting? Grab one (or two) of our Partial Split Resistors. They will give you a stronger single coil tone when split. Installation Instructions Here. You need 3-Conductor or 4-Conductor Lead for this mod to work.

Gold Screws

Check here if you want to include Gold Pole Pieces & Mounting Screws for your pickups. Not necessary if buying gold covers.

SPEED UP YOUR ORDER

Since you're buying a single pickup, we might need more information from you. To avoid unnecessary delays in your order, please choose one of the options below:


Notice

Due to the nature of Raw Nickel, Raw Nickel may contain slight cosemetic defects or abrasions.

Recommendation:

We recommend using 2-Conductor With Shield Lead when purchasing a single pickup. 2-Conductor lead allows you to reverse the phase should you have phase issues. Learn About Lead Choice

Note:
Note:

While we do our best to match double-white bobbins, there may be subtle differences in color due to different dye lots from the manufacturer.

Upgrade To A Prewired Pickguard

Fralin Warranty Stamp

More +

Our commitment to quality is unwavering. We build our products to last and stand by our products and manufacturing process—period. We're so confident in the quality of our pickups that we offer a 10-year warranty against manufacturing defects. This warranty is our promise to you that you're investing in a high-quality, durable product that will stand the test of time.
Fralin Handmade Stamp

More +

Our commitment to quality extends to the materials we use. We make all our pickups by hand, one at a time, in our small, humble shop in Richmond, VA, using 100% USA-made parts. This ensures we can build, wind, and assemble all our pickups with great care. We use only the best materials we can.
Fralin Exchange Stamp

More +

Experience our exclusive 30-Day Exchange Program, designed to give you the peace of mind you deserve. It allows you to thoroughly test your pickups in your preferred environment, whether it's on stage or on the road. If you have doubts about your choice, just contact us. We will make it easy to exchange for a better set of pickups.

The Ultimate In Vintage PAF Tone

Want to learn more about our Pure P.A.F.? Here's all the information you'll need:

Features

Are you ready to cut through in the mix? The Lindy Fralin-designed Pure P.A.F. is our best-selling humbucker. Based on the specifications of the original 50’s Gibson® P.A.F. pickups, this model features a clean, articulate tone that’s incredibly versatile.

The Pure P.A.F. is a lower output humbucker, which is more dynamic and expressive than higher output pickups. It’s more articulate and cleaner than our Modern P.A.F., but beefier than our P-92. Lindy’s passion for the sound of vintage 50’s humbuckers led us down the road to design and create the Pure P.A.F., and it’s easy to see why – this pickup sounds incredible.

Features:

  • Our Best-Selling Humbucker – low output, vintage tone
  • Original Gibson PAF® specifications: low output, with modern clarity
  • Clean and clear, smooth grind and a sharp attack
  • USA-made Alnico 2 Magnets for vintage tonal balance and output
  • Compensated Overwound Bridge for even volume across all pickups
  • Hand-wound with our “Sectioning” technique for unique, dynamic tone
  • Hand-built for unrivaled quality control
  • 10-Year Warranty on manufacturing defects

Sound

How does it sound? Clean and articulate!

The Pure P.A.F. stays clean and features a late break-up and a smooth grind. This pickup is perfect if you’re trying to restore life to your guitar. Don’t let the term “vintage” fool you – you’ll find that it’s loud and versatile enough to play with modern-voiced pickups; it just features more clarity than modern humbuckers.

Built with USA-Made AlNicCo II and 42-gauge Plain Enamel wire, the Pure P.A.F. pickup is a gateway to instant vintage tone. When playing without distortion, you’ll find that this pickup sings what you put into it: it’s dynamic and warm. Highs are accentuated with a medium attack. With distortion, you’ll find that the grind is nice and smooth.

Our manufacturing process allows us to achieve unparalleled quality control. When Lindy designed this pickup, he wanted it to be as close to the originals as possible. Pure P.A.F.’s consist of USA-Made Butyrate bobbins, baseplates, magnets, and wire. We wind each pickup by hand, one at a time, using our proprietary “Sectioning” technique. Doing this gives the pickup a sweet, clear tone, reminiscent of the early Gibson Humbuckers.

Finally, we assemble each pickup one at a time, by hand, which allows us to achieve unbeatable attention to detail. After assembly, we wax-pot the pickup to prevent microphonics and preserve the pickup for years to come.

Sound Samples for Pure P.A.F.:

Compare Outputs

We have 2 outputs of our Pure P.A.F.. Compare them below.

About these Sound Clips:

All sound samples are played from Neck Position First and Bridge Position Last.

Tonal Graph For Pure P.A.F.:

The tonal graph below for our Pure P.A.F. features Lows, Midrange, Highs, and general Output.

HIGHS
MIDS
LOWS
OUTPUT

Attack: Soft & Round

Videos for Pure P.A.F.:

Humbucker Lead Color Codes

Gibson Braided Lead

Gibson-Style instruments

Phase Reversible

Coil Splitting

Gibson Braided Lead
Only select Gibson Braided Lead if you install these pickups as a set into a Gibson-style instrument. Examples of a Gibson-style instrument are the Gibson Les Paul, 335, or Telecaster Deluxe. These guitars have two Volume Pots and two Tone Pots.

Note:

Gibson Braided lead is not intended for Telecasters with a Control Plate. If the braiding touches anything, it will short it out.

3-Conductor Lead

Phase Reversible

Coil Splitting

3 Conductor Lead Fralin Pickups
Select this lead if purchasing a Single Pickup, wiring this pickup to a Blade Switch (Fender-style Instrument) or need coil-splitting. This lead allows you to reverse the phase and coil split.

4-Conductor Lead

Phase Reversible

Series Parallel Wiring

Coil Splitting

4 Conductor Lead Fralin Pickups
Only select 4-Conductor lead if you need Series / Parallel wiring. This lead allows you to reverse the phase, wire in series / parallel, and coil split.

Tech Specs:

See below for the estimated DCR and Polarity Information for our Pure P.A.F..

SPECIFICATION VALUE
Neck Ohm Reading (Stock):7.5K 1
Bridge Ohm Reading (Stock):8K 1
Neck Polarity:Reversible with 3-Conductor or 4-Conductor Lead
Bridge Polarity:Reversible with 3-Conductor or 4-Conductor Lead
Magnet:USA-Made Alnico 2
Wire:USA-Made 42-Gauge Plain Enamel
Bobbin Material:USA-Made Butyrate
Baseplate Material:Nickel Silver
Cover Material:Nickel Silver
Slug / Pole Piece Material:Steel
Recommended Pot Value:500K*
Baseplate Leg Depth:6mm
Recommended Cap Value:0.02mfd 2

Additional Technical Info:

1 Ohm Readings can vary due to a multitude of factors, including ambient temperature, multimeter calibration, different wire batches, and other factors. Due to this, ohm readings are approximate. Learn more about Ohm Readings here.


2 We recommend a 0.02mfd Cap Value on most guitar and bass pickups. The exception is a Magic Cap, which Lindy prefers on the Bridge Pickup of Fender® guitars only. Learn More about Caps Here.


* You can experiment with pot values for a different tone. This pickup will sound dark and warm on 250K pots

Polarity Information:

Here's how we wind and magnetize our pickups:

Fralin Humbucker Polarity This is a Hum Cancelling Pickup.

If you're buying a set from us, all pickups will work together seamlessly. If you're buying a single pickup, all you need to worry about is Coil Direction.

To ensure your pickup will work, make sure you select multiple leads (2-Conductor, 3-Conductor, or 4-Conductor if available), or the 3-Wire modification so you can reverse the coil direction, if need be.

Covered Humbucker

Fralin Humbucker Dimensions

Uncovered Humbucker

Fralin Uncovered humbucker dimensions

Get It Prewired

Get our Pure P.A.F. prewired into a Prewired Pickguard!:

Customer Reviews

245 Genuine Reviews for Pure P.A.F.

  1. Peter M

    Verified Purchase

    I purchased the PAF and two Blues Specials to go in a MIJ 1986 Fuji-Gen Fender guitar and they sound fantastic. This guitar is a rare model with a 24.75″ neck, so I redid the whole wiring harness and fitted an HSS pickguard etc. The guitar really does sound good on either my Marshall or Fender. I am contemplating doing another one as this one turned out so good but this time with the steel pole 42/neck, blues special middle and PAF for bridge. I am drooling…

  2. Brian Patterson

    Verified Purchase

    I just installed my second Pure PAF 7.5K neck pickup in my PRS 594. I’ve always had trouble finding the right neck pickup that was clear and articulate, yet is still warm and airy. I’m a humbucker fan, but it seems so many of them sound muddy in the neck position and just seem to get lost in the mix. Fralin’s PURE PAF have taken care of that problem. I have matched them with different bridge pickups and don’t have any problems balancing them volume wise. Great for sweet lead work and full and sweet with both pickups on. The first one I matched with a Fralin Modern PAF stock wind and put them in a first year PRS Zach Myers that always seemed to sound a little muddy. The Fralin combination did the trick with that and it’s now one of the go-to gig guitar. The clarity and sweetness combination is a winner for me. Thanks Lindy!

  3. Brian Patterson

    Verified Purchase

    The mud is gone…so the thrill is back! I have many guitars, a lot of them are different PRS models, and I play mostly old Classic Rock and Blues. One of my least expensive, but favorites is a Zach Myers tribute singlecut. It plays great, but has always sounded a bit muddy, regardless of the different pickups I’ve tried. After having success with other guitars I finally ordered a set of Fralins for it. it was hard to spend $400 on pickups for a $500 guitar, but I like it and thought if they don’t do the trick I’ll use them on a different one. I got Lindy’s PAF humbuckers in raw nickel. A Modern Bridge at 9.1K and a Pure PAF neck at 7.56K. It was like taking a blanket off of my speaker cabinet. Very full and warm, but still very articulate. The Modern bridge is full and has just enough power to breakup beautifully, but clean up perfectly by just rolling off the volume a bit. The neck pickup has the clarity that has always been missing in this guitar, but it’s still warm and sweet. Looks like I’ll be getting more of them for my others when I can spare the funds. Well done Lindy!

Add a review

Leave a review for our Pure P.A.F.

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *