Updated by Bobby
Updated on July 12th, 2022
Added live pricing for all three recommendations. These prices are all current and are pulled directly from vendors. Also note that the Epiphone DOT and ES-335 are essentially one and the same. See Epiphone's product page.
The Epiphone ES-335 Dot base model has a lot going for it.
You get a hollow body made with a Maple and Mahogany tonewood combo, along with Grover tuners and dual volume/tone knobs for both pickups.
However, the humbuckers that ship with it are a stock Alnico pairing that we're going to swap out in this Epiphone Dot pickup upgrade guide. We'll be looking for a jazz-esque humbucker pair with a moderate amount of output at both the bridge and neck positions.
Parts in This Upgrade
Gear | Title | Rated | Browse |
|---|---|---|---|
 | Epiphone DOT ES-335 | n/a | |
 | DiMarzio Bluesbucker | n/a | |
 | Seymour Duncan Pearly Gates (Neck Humbucker) | n/a |
Our Epiphone Dot pickup upgrade plan.
The Guitar Base
We'll use the Epiphone Dot, which retails around $500 - $600 as our base model.
Price Comparison from Multiple Vendors
Bridge Humbucker Swap
The DiMarzio Bluesbucker
Price Comparison from Multiple Vendors
Since we're not looking for a ton of output, let's focus on getting a more mellow humbucker pair that can play in the blues and jazz spaces. At the bridge, let's go with the DiMarzio Bluesbucker, which is actually voiced for either position, and is going to give you more of a P90 sound with a traditional humbucker size. You'll get some noise reduction here as well.
Neck Humbucker Swap
Seymour Duncan Pearly Gates
Price Comparison from Multiple Vendors
At the neck position, we'll go for warmth and smoothness with the Seymour Duncan Pearly Gates neck humbucker. With an Alnico 2 magnet you get a little more brightness then what you would with a Ceramic pull, but it's still perfect for those smoother jazz tones and will resonate nicely in the Dot's hollow body.
Conclusion
Keep in mind that this Epiphone Dot pickup upgrade is a hypothetical suggestion and not something that we've actually tried and tested ourselves. Based on tone research and knowledge of what other people have used to mod their Epiphone electrics, we've made these suggestions as a sort of jumping off point.
If you have questions about this build, our reasoning for choosing these particular humbuckers or technical questions, feel free to leave those in the comments section below.
Build Details
- Guitar: Epiphone Dot Hollow Body Electric
- Pickup Configuration: HH
- Bridge Humbucker: DiMarzio Bluesbucker
- Magnet Type: Ceramic
- Wiring: 4 Conductor
- Neck Humbucker: Seymour Duncan Pearly Gates Neck
- Magnet Type: Alnico 2
- Wiring: 4 Conductor
- DCR: 7.3
Other Resources
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Written by Bobby on Electrics and Roundups
Written by GC Editorial on Electrics and Roundups
Looks interesting. I am putting a set of Bluesbuckers into my Dot
Hey TC – sorry but I’m just now seeing this comment. Thanks for checking in and sharing your thoughts. Let us know how the Bluesbuckers turned out.