As the musical landscape changed from the world-shaking rockabilly of Scotty Moore in the 1950s to the bone-crunching rock of Jimmy Page in the 1970s, so did the development of the humbucker pickup. Introduced in the early 1970s, Gibson's 496R pickup filled the need for a more powerful humbucker and helped energize the emergence of hard rock and heavy metal.

With its powerful ceramic magnet, the 496R delivers incredible sustain and cutting power, adding more highs and increased definition without producing any muddiness at all. Leads played on this pickup will have a biting, bluesy edge with incredible sustain and a notable increase in musical harmonics. When used in conjunction with a ceramic bridge pickup such as the 500T, the 496R loses none of its incredible definition.

The 496R features neck–spaced pole pieces and shielded four-conductor wiring for series, parallel, or split-coil operation. It is also fully wax potted to eliminate any chance of microphonic feedback.