Pure P.A.F.
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:
Pure P.A.F. 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.
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 |
| Bridge Ohm Reading (Stock): | 8K |
| 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 |
* You can experiment with pot values for a different tone. This pickup will sound dark and warm on 250K pots
Sizing
Humbucker Lead Color Codes
See below for our Humbucker Lead color codes. For help with matching to other manufacturers, check out this resource here.
Gibson Braided Lead:
2-Conductor Lead:
3-Conductor Lead:
4-Conductor Lead
Pure P.A.F. Questions And Answers:
Have a question about our Pure P.A.F.? Ask it here. Your Question will be publically visible.
If you want to ask a Private Question, please contact us through our Contact Us Form.
If you have multiple questions, please call us at (804) 358-2699.
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Can I request a slight overwind to a Pure PAF (8k & 9k) or get a Modern PAF with an Alnico 2 magnet, instead of Alnico 4? Thanks!
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Q Can I request a slight overwind to a Pure PAF (8k & 9k) or get a Modern PAF with an Alnico 2 ...... Read moreA
Hey Scott, yes, due to the bobbin size constraints, I'd recommend going with a Modern P.A.F and request the Alnico 2 magnet. - Tyler
Hello team! I’m building an SSH configured “strat”. I’ll be using the Blues Specials along with a stock wound Pure PAF. Do you think there will be too great a volume shift between neck/middle (at 6.3k) and the PAF (at 8k)?
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Q Hello team! I’m building an SSH configured “strat”. I’ll be using the Blues Specials along with a...... Read moreA
Hey Kylie, there will be a volume difference between the single coil and the humbucker - that's to be expected. That said, I believe you've picked out the best combination to mitigate that effect. Overwinding your Single Coils and getting a low-wind Pure P.A.F. will certainly balance more.
Hi, I have an Epiphone archtop (Joe Pass Emperor) and looking for a classic and full warm jazz tone for the neck (Pure PAF stock?), and maybe something more Gretsch-like or twangy in the bridge. I like to keep my tones clean. I would guess the Pure PAF stock bridge is designed to be the perfect match for the PAF neck, and can do the job great, but could one your filtertron-type or twangmaster-type bridge pickups be a nice balanced complement with...
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Q Hi, I have an Epiphone archtop (Joe Pass Emperor) and looking for a classic and full warm jazz to...... Read moreA
Hey Jason, I'd recommend going with a 7.5K (stock) or 7.8K (slightly overwind) version of our Pure P.A.F for the neck Jazz tone. This will give you a clean yet warm tone perfect for jazz. Regarding the Bridge, I'd recommend going with the Pure P.A.F. to complement the neck. You'll get a bright, twangy tone as the Pure P.A.F.'s are low-wind humbuckers. Furthermore, you can fine-tune the tone by adjusting the pickup height or the string balance....
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For a single pickup guitar with a single volume knob and no tone knob what pot value do you recommend?
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Q For a single pickup guitar with a single volume knob and no tone knob what pot value do you recom...... Read moreA
Hey JJ, we still recommend 500K. - Tyler
I've noticed the stock output of pure P.A.F are 7.5k/8.2k Ohms several years ago, now they're 7.5k/8k. What prompted you to make this change? I'm searching for a pair of vintage P.A.F styled humbucker for my Epiphone Les Paul Standard 50s, would you recommend 8k or 8.2k on bridge? Thanks.
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Q I've noticed the stock output of pure P.A.F are 7.5k/8.2k Ohms several years ago, now they're 7.5...... Read moreA
Oswald, the change was prompted by Lindy as he felt the 8K was closer to the vintage outputs. Both 8K and 8.2K sound great as a bridge position and feature a clean tone. I personally like the 8.2K for the bridge as it has a touch more midrange. - Tyler
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https://youtu.be/TQLbmuaS7cE
Put the Pure PAF in the bridge of my Kiesel semi hollow. I really only bought it cause I was going to replace my neck pickup (with a big single) and I had to pay shipping to nz anyway so might as well maximise the shipping cost. After a couple of hours of playing I was incredibly impressed. It is amazing. The review above was straight after I installed them, now they may be my favourite PAF style pickup of all time.
https://youtu.be/TQLbmuaS7cE
Put the Pure PAF in the bridge of my Kiesel semi hollow. I really only bought it cause I was going to replace my neck pickup (with a big single) and I had to pay shipping to nz anyway so might as well maximise the shipping cost. After a couple of hours of playing I was incredibly impressed. It is amazing. The review above was straight after I installed them, now they may be my favourite PAF style pickup of all time.
I have a bridge Pure P.A.F. wound to 8.4k. It really nails the PAF sound. It’s always articulate and responsive; this seems to be the trend with Fralin pickups. If I ever need another pickup I’ll be coming back.
It sounds great out of phase and in a partial split as well.
Excellent pickup!
I’m a crossover (recovering) jazz guy and I loaded these into my strandberg fusion. I loved the fusion as is but the Suhr pickups were a little hot and “bitey”. The Fralin pure PAF is much more rounded, the sound is frankly quite beautiful: perfect for classic rock, blues, and of course jazz.
I recommend this upgrade highly if you find your current humbucker is harsh.
Until I received the Fralin pure PAF my favorite humbucker was the Gibson 57 Classic Plus. This is better. I put an overwound Pure PAF in the bridge of my Flying V and the punchy yet articulate growl is perfect through my Marshall Studio Classic (mini JCM800). It’s exactly what I was hoping for.
I also had a question about conductor choice on my order form and Lindy himself called me the next day to explain the answer.
Basically, 10/10 service, 10/10 product.
I bought the Fralin Pure PAF pickups because I have Fralins on a Strat and a Telecaster and really like them. The difference between the Fralins and the stock Fender pickups was very noticeable right away and a huge improvement. As for the Pure PAFs, I bought an Epiphone ES-339 as a platform project guitar. Epiphone has really upped it’s game, putting out a fine product at a very reasonable price, but I wanted to turn the instrument into a high end tone machine and after waiting 8 months for the guitar to deliver, I was finally able to install the Pure PAF pickups. I must say that I was stunned at how great they sound. The note clarity is amazing — you can hear every note in a chord and in all three positions, the sound is distinctive and definitely “PAF” al the way. EXACTLY what I wanted. My expectations were high, but they’ve been surpassed by these outstanding pickups. I highly recommend them. Thanks!
I’m a Neck Position Strat Player. Lately, I began playing a venue with insane EMI. None of my Guitars had Humbuckers in the Neck. I had Warmoth cut me up a new single Neck Humbucker Pickguard and set out looking for the best P.A.F. I could find. The Fralin P.A.F. is awesome and takes Pedals really well.
When I order my Pure P.A.F. Fralin pickups, I didn’t know what to expect. In my SG Supreme 2016, I replaced the standard Burst Bucker that were good, but something was missing. Then I ordered quite expensive boutique pickups that were better, but that something was still missing. It is sometime difficult to describe that missing thing. I checked on the Web trying to find that missing thing I cannot describe.
I finally decided to try the Pure P.A.F. Fralin. What a surprise! I got the missing thing in my sound. So I really enjoy my purchase. I don’t need to try to compensate using different pedals. Only a Keely Compressor, the Fender Amp Reverb and a GH Diablo Boost/Distortion pedal when required. No need for other pedals when you got a great sound.
Thanks Fralin! Great pickups…
I am the proud owner of two sets of LF pickups. I have a set of the High Output singles in my Strat and now the Pure PAF in my PRS Thinline 594. These are some of the finest pickups I’ve ever played. Instead of explaining the satisfaction that I get from playing them, I will just say that I spent a ridiculous amount of time researching, reading reviews, and racking my brain as to which direction to go (kid in a candy shop situation). I could not be happier with both sets that I now own. I was even able to speak with Lindy directly over the phone, and he called me back again to clarify some of my notes that I added when I placed my order. Top-notch all around.
The difference in sound of my guitars before I put Fralin’s in and after is effectively like the difference between a circle drawn on a piece of paper and holding an actual sphere.
Simply put – they are the most 3 dimensional sounding pickups ive ever heard, and the way they react to different dynamic forms of playing almost makes them an instrument unto themselves. They react as if they were alive.
The only downside to them is that they ruin your other guitars that you haven’t upgraded yet. I have some pretty spectacular sounding instruments, but once my ear got used to the Fralin’s, guitars that I used to think sounded pretty good now sound flat in comparison.
The cherry on the top is the out of this world direct customer service. I can think of few other companies that where you can have a direct conversation with the owner who can help guide you to the best solution to your goals. Lindey is a genius by anyone’s math, and every single interaction I have had with anyone in the company has been an absolute model of the right way to do business at a human level.
I don’t know that I’ll be completely satisfied till all my instruments are swapped up to Fralin’s!
Instruments so far
Gibson Les Paul – Unbuckers
Epiphone Sheraton: Pure PAFs
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