Description
DiMarzio built the PAF 36th Anniversary around a simple question: what actually made the best late-50s humbuckers sound so good? The answer, using Larry DiMarzio’s own 1959 cherry sunburst Les Paul as the benchmark, turned out to be a weaker magnetic field than most modern pickups use. That lighter pull lets strings ring out longer and gives the attack a focused, almost single-coil-like clarity, even though this is a full-fat humbucker.
The Bridge model is the hotter-output sibling to the PAF 36th Anniversary Neck, tuned to compete with the Virtual Hot PAF for sheer loudness while holding onto the low-end weight and midrange definition of the Virtual PAF Bridge. Put those two traits together and you get highs that are noticeably bigger and smoother than either reference pickup delivers on its own. It’s equally happy in a set-neck 24 3/4″ scale guitar or as a bridge pickup in a trem-loaded bolt-on.
Construction is where the vintage character comes from: 42-gauge custom-coated wire, layered with computer-controlled precision for a consistent, targeted frequency response, then wax-dipped to keep squeal and microphonics out of the equation. The nickel-silver cover uses a plating process designed to stay more magnetically transparent than old-school covers, so nothing gets in the way of the tone underneath.
This 4-conductor version opens up coil-splitting duty, and it’s a genuinely usable single-coil voice, bright without tipping into thin or sterile territory. Wire it straight as a humbucker, split it for spank, or blend it with a neck pickup for extra flexibility.
- Recommended for: Bridge position (also works in neck with higher-output bridge pickups)
- Wiring: 4-conductor (1-conductor optional)
- Magnet: Alnico 5
- Resistance: 8.60 kOhm
- Quick Connect: No
- Year of introduction: 2008
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