Citation:
In addition to a screaming P-90 pickup in the bridge position—a meaty, thick, yet extremely articulate single-coil unit still beloved of countless rockers today—the Les Paul Custom carried Gibson’s new Alnico V (aka “Staple”) pickup in the neck position. In development in the hands of Seth Lover since 1952, at the request of McCarty, the Alnico V pickup was intended as an upgrade of the P-90, using six individual rectangular Alnico V magnets as pole pieces within the coil (rather than carrying bar magnets beneath the coil), a design change that gave it a crisp, bright tone with plenty of snap and clarity. Employed on several of Gibson’s high-end archtop electrics of the mid ’50s, including the L-5CES, ES-5, and Byrdland, the Alnico V pickup made its debut on the original Les Paul Custom of 1954.
