--- product_id: 71782249 title: "The Gibson \"P.A.F\" Humbucking Pickup: From Myth to Reality | Guitar Tone Reference Book Exploring Classic Rock Sound Engineering History and Design | Study Resource for Guitarists and Enthusiasts" brand: "mario milanjames finnerty" price: "1571387₫" currency: VND in_stock: true reviews_count: 12 url: https://www.desertcart.vn/products/71782249-the-gibson-p-a-f-humbucking-pickup-from-myth-to store_origin: VN region: Vietnam --- # The Gibson "P.A.F" Humbucking Pickup: From Myth to Reality | Guitar Tone Reference Book Exploring Classic Rock Sound Engineering History and Design | Study Resource for Guitarists and Enthusiasts **Brand:** mario milanjames finnerty **Price:** 1571387₫ **Availability:** ✅ In Stock ## Quick Answers - **What is this?** The Gibson "P.A.F" Humbucking Pickup: From Myth to Reality | Guitar Tone Reference Book Exploring Classic Rock Sound Engineering History and Design | Study Resource for Guitarists and Enthusiasts by mario milanjames finnerty - **How much does it cost?** 1571387₫ with free shipping - **Is it available?** Yes, in stock and ready to ship - **Where can I buy it?** [www.desertcart.vn](https://www.desertcart.vn/products/71782249-the-gibson-p-a-f-humbucking-pickup-from-myth-to) ## Best For - mario milanjames finnerty enthusiasts ## Why This Product - Trusted mario milanjames finnerty brand quality - Free international shipping included - Worldwide delivery with tracking - 15-day hassle-free returns ## Description The Gibson "P.A.F." Humbucking Pickup: From Myth to Reality ## Images ![The Gibson "P.A.F" Humbucking Pickup: From Myth to Reality | Guitar Tone Reference Book Exploring Classic Rock Sound Engineering History and Design | Study Resource for Guitarists and Enthusiasts - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/51urMXRzGYL.jpg) ## Customer Reviews ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 5.0 out of 5 stars No Humming Here: The Gibson “P.A.F.” Humbucking Pickup – From Myth to Reality *by D***G on Reviewed in the United States on June 8, 2018* Listen, would you like the read about the story of the legendary Gibson Humbucker pickup? Well here it is and it’s agood one. You will get a thorough history, interviews and technical illustrations of that classic electric guitar pickupthat has had musicians chasing its tone for decades.The writers, Mario Milan and James Finnerty separate fact from fiction supported by interviews of the people whoinvented, or helped bring the humbucker to market. More history is added by current “winders”, current movers andshakers and some who are attempting to copy the elusive classic humbucker tone.I like the layout of the book; it starts with history, then moves to the parts of the humbucker, (Each humbucker parthas its own chapter); talks about classic tones, the original specs and replicas and clones. Interspersed are over 250photos among the historical text and technical close-ups.You will also see photos of old humbuckers with explanations of the differences between them as they evolved. Inthose chapters, for those of you who enjoy detail, this book delivers close-up photos of old humbuckers and most ofthe parts are minutely detailed.The lovers of Gibson guitars will also enjoy the book due to photos of multiple historic Gibson guitars. The photos areprinted on very nice glossy paper stock so you can enjoy the beauty of those guitars. The book also features thehistory of the solid body electric guitar and has some surprising information that adds to the history of Gibson GuitarsI was not aware of…until I read the book.The appendixes offer even more helpful information. Appendix one, PAF Q&A, has common questions someone mayhave about pickups. The answers are provided by the authors and are quite informative and helpful.Appendix two, Interviews to the Winders, has interviews with modern humbucker manufacturers; some of the namesyou may already be familiar with: David Bowes, Jon Gundry, Jason Lollar, Wolfe Mcleod, Tim Mills, Dave Stephensand Aledsander Vrhovec.All are asked the same questions and their responses are interesting and informative. I especially appreciate the onequestion of which musician has/had that classic humbucker tone. It is interesting to note the differences and thesimilarities of their answers.:: Statistics :::: Cover: Soft:: Paper: Glossy:: Length: 174 pages (including index):: Size: 8.5 in. wide x 11 in. high:: Publisher: CenterstreamThis book is for the historic, the aesthetic as well as the technician. It covers the Humbucker from soup to nuts andthen some. Also, I am not much of a technical person; i.e., electrical or mechanical and still enjoyed reading the book.I give it 5 stars for being a thorough history and equally fun read. ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic book that is essential reading *by P***N on Reviewed in the United States on June 1, 2018* Fascinating read for anyone who is interested in the history and development of Gibson guitars and in particular the pickups that we all know and love. The pictures are full of incredible detail and are by far the closest most of us will get to taking apart these old pickups to understand all the little differences over the years. The interviews and information that it contains are simply incredible, to say it is full of insight is a huge understatement. Its a great read for anyone interested in Gibson's history! ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ 5.0 out of 5 stars Best and only book on this subject. *by D***S on Reviewed in the United States on May 11, 2018* I am one of the contributing authors, as well as providing a few of the photos. This book is long overdue. These old pickups have such a mystery around them, commanding insane prices sometimes, its about time someone wrote this book, and Mario Milan really did the subject justice, KUDOS for all his hard work. I am proud to have contributed to the knowledge base and to debunk many of the modern commercialized myths that abound around the PAF mystery.I pioneered the first truly science and engineering-based research on vintage PAF's beginning about 18 years ago, back when no one actually cared about true authenticity, or were even trying to reproduce them as an antique technical product. I also personally brought back rough cast alnico magnets that are now widely available, back in 2007. True reverse-engineering, on a deep dive proccess spanning years, had never really been done before my own work.I was ridiculed by some who told me it was an impossible pursuit, but I persisted anyway, it was a work of pure love and money was never a goal, and even now I don’t mass produce my work. I was fortunate to have mentors in the steel, and magnet wire industry, who analyzed in their high tech modern labs, vintage materials from a 40 year span of vintage Gibson pickups. I was not charged for the help I received and these experts at the top of their fields educated me about the lab data sheet results they sent back to me, and on how these materials were produced all those years ago, with technologies that don’t really exist anymore. Its an education I was blessed to receive. But, numbers on a data sheet doesn't tell you how to make anything. On my own, I did years and years of experiments with various and sometimes exotic ferrous alloys and wire winding experiments to put the meat on the "numbers." I had real vintage PAF's of my own and ones I borrowed and restored, to tell me if I was on track or not, and I had to be brutally honest with myself when things did not work. Nothing about this work was ever “easy,” it was probably around 14-15 years that all of it finally came together to make sense, and my procedures closed the gap as humanly possible with modern materials. As far as “winding” goes, ALL Gibson vintage pickups were machine guided winding, with precise repetitive patterns. There was no sloppiness in this pattern, the winding machines were brand new and the same type of machines used for precision radio coils.Reproducing those sounds is all about engineering and materials, period. PAF's are not "magic." There are real scientific reasons why that kind of “voice” sounds the way it does, thru all the years they were made, though they were not consistent from year to year. It IS possible to get about 98% "there." There ARE many real secrets I learned that I use in my own work that will NEVER published. The real "secrets" about vintage PAF's, lies in the MATERIALS they were made from, but there is more than that. There were no secret materials used, everything was made from off the shelf materials of the times, that Gibson had on hand. Most all of the older books that mention PAF's are full of innaccurate information, because no solid work had ever been done.Now, I have to add the downside of the book that I didn't do before. The book is out of print now. I did contribute much of what I know, but left out details to protect my work from being hijacked and claimed as someone else's work. Mario interviewed a few HOBBYISTS guys who barely had any experience at all in the field of pickup DESIGN, who should not have been in the book. They repeated things they read on forums that have no validity at all, and one of them even quoted things I've shared, without even knowing who they were quoting, and even getting it wrong. Others shared information that just wasn't true at all, and was strictly information with COMMERICAL INTENT to sell products, that have no basis in facts. When I saw those interviews being included it was upsetting because it diluted the credability of Mario's book. I am currently writing my own book on the history and engineering details of the old pickups thats never been published anywhere. The knowledge needs to be set straight, without the contamination of old mythology and theories that just aren't factual. ## Frequently Bought Together - The Gibson "P.A.F." Humbucking Pickup: From Myth to Reality - Sunburst: How the Gibson Les Paul Standard Became a Legendary Guitar - The Beauty of the 'Burst: Gibson Sunburst Les Pauls from '58 to '60 --- ## Why Shop on Desertcart? - 🛒 **Trusted by 1.3+ Million Shoppers** — Serving international shoppers since 2016 - 🌍 **Shop Globally** — Access 737+ million products across 21 categories - 💰 **No Hidden Fees** — All customs, duties, and taxes included in the price - 🔄 **15-Day Free Returns** — Hassle-free returns (30 days for PRO members) - 🔒 **Secure Payments** — Trusted payment options with buyer protection - ⭐ **TrustPilot Rated 4.5/5** — Based on 8,000+ happy customer reviews **Shop now:** [https://www.desertcart.vn/products/71782249-the-gibson-p-a-f-humbucking-pickup-from-myth-to](https://www.desertcart.vn/products/71782249-the-gibson-p-a-f-humbucking-pickup-from-myth-to) --- *Product available on Desertcart Vietnam* *Store origin: VN* *Last updated: 2026-05-16*