Changing the pick-ups in your guitar makes sense when you can hear for yourself what you do not like about the sound of you guitar.

The sound of your electric guitar depends on the kind of amp you use, your guitar, the kind of pick-ups and the woods of the guitar.

Listening to a lot of music does train your ear to how a guitar can sound like. Once you know how a guitar can sound like it may still take some time before your hands can make that guitar sound come to its full potential.
Once you are fully aware that your pick-ups are to blame (and not your hands!) for its weak sound you may want to take matters in your own hand by installing better quality pick-ups to invigorate your electric sound.

 

                   How do you go about changing the sound of your Pick-Ups?

 Try to ask yourself what is missing from them, you are the person who plays the guitar so hopefully you will be able to give an aswer to your own question why this guitar does not live up to its dream.
Once you know what you want the search for the right pick-up is so much easier. Yes there are hunderds and hunderds of pick-ups to choose from, but they all do the same thing: They amplify the sound of a vibrating string, each pick-up will vary in strength but that is it really. You can ignore all the talk about style and what other kind of jargon is used to market those pick-ups to you, all you need to know is what you want, and hopefully this desire is based on your listening-and playing habits.

                     The confusing approach?:

Buy a  complete set of new pick-ups, whatever type and whatever brand, play for a bit and listen and not being sure to how these new, pick-ups differ from your own, original ones: You may not be ready for this, if you can not hear it straight away. Not to worry, maybe you wanted to change too quickly, maybe you should keep on playing with the original pick-ups for some time, maybe they are not all that bad, maybe your guitar playing ability is lacking to make the guitar come to its full potential.

                    Another equally confusing approach could be:

Change pick-up, play for a bit, but still not happy, buy another pick-up and carry on with this approach until you really get fed up with it all and turn back to your own original pick-ups.

                   The Happy Approach?:

Record the sound of the pick-up you WANT to change. Install new pick-up and play. Happy? No sure? Listen back to sound original pick-up, go back to sound of new pick-up to hear how different it is. Maybe sound is not too different? Maybe sound is too much for you? At least you know what it is you like, or do not like. From here you can modify your change. Hopefully you will like what you hear after first play. If you do like the sound maybe you should stay with this pick-up instead of wanting to try diffent pick-ups. If it sounds right at first it will be right, at least for now how you are a  guitarplayer, with the gear you use and the kind of music you play. 

Happy searching and hope to catch you soon again,
Eddie