Pure P.A.F.
The Ultimate PAF Replacement
$175 – $350
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.
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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.
Attack: Soft & Round
Videos for Pure P.A.F.:
Humbucker Lead Color Codes
Gibson Braided Lead
Gibson-Style instruments
Phase Reversible
Coil Splitting
3-Conductor Lead
Phase Reversible
Coil Splitting
4-Conductor Lead
Phase Reversible
Series Parallel Wiring
Coil Splitting
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:
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
Uncovered Humbucker
Get It Prewired
Get our Pure P.A.F. prewired into a Prewired Pickguard!:
Featured Reviews
Reviews We Worked Hard For, and Are Proud Of
Customer Reviews
245 Genuine Reviews for Pure P.A.F.
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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…
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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!
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Used to modify a PRS Custom to McCarty wiring. They have all the “fullness” everyone has come to expect from a great after-market bucker and have just a bit of sheen on the top to help note definition. They also have tons of gain that I did not expect but ,was glad to get. These were slightly overwound with nickel covers and the fellow I did this work for was absolutely floored. A great product always makes you look better. Just hit the order button. You will not regret it.
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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!
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I really didn’t want to begin by repeating that which is always stated – my guitar, now, feels like a completely different instrument. I had the slightly overwound P.A.Fs installed into my 2022 Tokai Premium Love Rock LS 138F (Ocean Burst), and it has gone from a guitar that, whilst gorgeous and of sound-quality, I had experienced difficulty connecting with it, and in the years I’ve owned it, the times it’s been played can be counted on a single hand!
The way the sound opens up is spectacular, and once experienced, you will understand and it will be beyond mere descriptions, similes, and adjectives; it was akin to hearing someone with a severe cold and nasally voice suddenly communicate with crystal-clarity, definition, and a lot more room, and space, for notes and sounds to resonate without impediment. Fortunately, this doesn’t imply they’re clinical in their sound – they are warm, clear, yet articulate, and anything but muddy.
I knew I had made the right choice. I apologise for a late review, albeit I needed time to sit with the guitar so that my review is from nothing but an honest experience. Thank you, King of Tone – Lindy Fralin (and awesome team).
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