the Hy-Bro neck is in!

[BloodRose]

Re: the Hy-Bro neck is in!

I'd actually like to hear it across the gain spectrum... chords and solo from light grit to face melt...

ETA: This is not to say that what's there isn't useful (or sound good) - it is, and it does. Thanks, Pepe!

Ditto.. Doesnt have to be James Hetfield ( YEAUH!!!! OOOOOO!) or nothing Pepe.. Just dial up the gain and runs some pent scales and Im good.

I LOVE the hybrid in the bridge of my charvel and have a Jazz in the neck. The jazz is alil sterile for me. Im thinking if this neck cleans up well, (Ive loved the other clips) and doesnt mush out under gain, Im sold and can complete that axe..

[GilmourD]

Re: the Hy-Bro neck is in!

SAAAWEEEET!! Gorgeous axe and friggin amazing price!!! SCORE!!

Those are supposed to be better quality than the OLP's right? Or are they just rebranded? I thought the OLPs were pretty impressive for the price point..

The OLPs were pretty decent (have one of them, too) but never came with a non-recessed Floyd, and the finish felt cheaper. The neck on this feels nicer. All it needs is a Hybro.

[jake_xms3_punk]

Re: the Hy-Bro neck is in!

Great distorted tones I could really use, but how does it sound pure clean? Like do you think it would be good for reggae/ska? Or does it break up the amp a bit more than say a 59?

[LtKojak]

Re: the Hy-Bro neck is in!

Great distorted tones I could really use, but how does it sound pure clean? Like do you think it would be good for reggae/ska? Or does it break up the amp a bit more than say a 59?

I'd use the middle position for Ska, Funky and the like, like I did in the "Rhythm" part of "Getting Things Done". It totally cuts through, but it's got a lot of body at the same time.



TBH, my first choice to play those styles would be either a Strat in the 2nd position (bridge/middle) or a Telly in the middle position.

Check it out!

[rogersmasson]

Re: the Hy-Bro neck is in!

Cool deal! Can't wait to hear it!

[Demanic]

Re: the Hy-Bro neck is in!

I like what I hear. To me it sounds like a cross between a Jazz and a 59, but maybe a bit more low mid than the Sentient, which I've also heard described as a cross between a Jazz and a 59.
Chords under gain might be a bit thick, but leads should sound fantastic.

[Fusion1]

Re: the Hy-Bro neck is in!

So are we ready to have this be ordered or are we deciding to tweak it now so it isn't so fat or thick? Maybe interest dropped off I don't know, but it's like we're back in limbo again for an undisclosed amount of time. Loosey splain please....

[Grenade]

Re: the Hy-Bro neck is in!

Well?

[TRex]

Re: the Hy-Bro neck is in!

Hopefully befoee the Christmas rush

[fab.regnaut]

Re: the Hy-Bro neck is in!

Hopefully before pigs start to fly :-)

[LtKojak]

Re: the Hy-Bro neck is in!

Well, in november I'll have two weekends free from work, so I've scheduled to deliver the last and final part of the test together with the "verdict" sunday 18th november.

If I don't die trying, of course...

[LtKojak]

The wait is over! Testing done!

I've scheduled to deliver the last and final part of the test together with the "verdict" sunday 16th november

Hi Forum,

I'm finally wrapping this up, so I'll give you the skinny. For more details, just ask.

I'm falling short of presenting the Hi-gain samples that I was not able to provide at this point of time, due to circumstances out of my control, but I'm not making any excuses. I failed at that, that's on me, you can point your fingers at me all you want, me culpa, moving on.

So, I guess that at this point, you'll have to take part of my evaluation at face value, the rest is on my Soundcloud channel for you to hear and evaluate.

As you know, I have no affiliation whatsoever with the SD Co, so the only bias present in my review is due to personale taste and set of playing skills, but it IS based on actual, "hands-on" factual experience.

The goal behind this prototype was to create a NECK p'up, based on a hybrid design, to pair up both output- AND tone-wise with the production p'up known as the "'59/Custom Hybrid".

Even though the "'59/Custom Hybrid" has never been one of my all-time favorites, it IS an excellent and highly useful choice of p'up bridging that elusive gap where a '59b is too little and a Custom 5 is too much. Bach2rock's idea of matching a Custom slug bobbin with a '59b bobbin was simply genius, in both its simplicity and its effectivity. Top choice as THEE H in a H/S/S config with SSL-1s, as the quack produced when split in the 2nd position is ALMOST like having a SSL5 there, and being a great tonal match with the SSLs as a full HB.

Unfortunately, this p'up was marketed together in a "pack" of bridge p'ups for the Brutalz, so for a lot of people, it's in the same category as the DDs, BWs, etc.; where *I* don't think it belongs, as for my ears it's quite hot-vintage-sounding, having a lot of finesse and harmonic complexity that happens to get lost as the gain goes up, and remains "polite" in comparison with the others in the pack.

Having said that, that's what I think MJ had in mind when she created the Hy-Bro neck prototype as it was given to me for the test: a neck p'up for the Brutalz, designed mainly to have a liquid-feeling-single-note playing with massive gain applied, and 25,5" scaled-, 24-fretter guitars in mind.

If that was the goal, I can only say "mission accomplished", and with flying colors to boot. The attack of the pick produces great note separation for soloing and sustains for days.

However, it doesn't perform as great with 24,75" scaled, 22-fretter guitars. It's too bass-heavy to be used efficiently for chordwork; I had to set it pretty low and slanted to be able to produce the tones you can hear in the presented files in my linked Soundcloud account. Plus, a tonal- and output-wise "match" for the '59/Custom is NOT, at least in my very humble opinion but extensive experience with it.

As a neck p'up, I find it "loud and obnoxious". It does not have the "finesse" required to match the '59/Custom. It's like having an angry '59n on a steriods rage. It does not have the "universal appeal" the '59/Custom has.

So, being quite the busy bee I've been, I've tried other solutions, and the best-sounding of all, keeping with the "hybrid" concept, it's when I've switched the screw coil with a lighter wind, so I've tried a '59n, an APH1n and a Seth Lover neck screw coil with it, in which the latter made it to what *I* think is a much better match, in both output- AND tone-wise, with the '59/Custom.

That's the part I can not back-up with sound files, for as today, the day of the set deadline, I'm almost 1,000 miles away from home and the studio. So I hope you bear with me, but I digress.,

Anyway, so, as *I* see it, now we're facing with a dilemma/can-of-worms: what to choose to go into production?

Well, if I may, I have this idea: as it's the Custom Shop we're talking about, to make TWO runs of slightly different p'ups should not be such a big deal, I propose to have two sets:

1. The "Hy-Bro Brutalz set", with the neck p'up prototype as it was presented to me.

2. The "Hy-Bro Pro set", with the neck p'up prototype with a Seth Lover neck screw coil as I've proposed. This coil does NOT need to be the Butyrate-made, un-potted coil I've used, of course; just the actual Seth coil-geometry wind pattern in the normal polycarbonate bobbin.

Well folks, there you have it.

With this, I consider that I've fulfilled the asked task.

Hopefully by the end of this month, I'll add the sound files produced with the "modded" prototype, which includes some with high-ish gain, to deliver the "complete package", as promised.

To the ones that still care, stay tuned!

This project's been an extremely difficult ride for me, but all things considered, I had my moments of fun and I'm happy that an old dog can still learn new tricks, as I've learned a whole lot of new things by working closely with my friends at the studio and by experiencing different solutions to fulfill the task ahead.

I put my heart into this project and used personal economical resources to be able to "cross the finish line", so to speak. I only hope it's been at least useful for some of you out there.

For the next forum p'up tester, I'll strongly advice to elect somebody that doesn't have a life! LOL!

Yours very truly,

[fab.regnaut]

Re: the Hy-Bro neck is in!

Idon't know what p-u coil is used along with the 59 neck coil , but to me if you want a good refined p-u for the neck using alnico 5 ,
a good idea would be a Jazz-n coil as slug coil and a JB coil together or a distortion neck coil .
Then you wouldn't have too much lows and you would have enough mids that alnico 5 doesn't provide much .
I currently have a jazz neck with air gap and alnico 8 , it works wonderfully for every kind of music ,
so I am not directly interested in this affair , just adding my two cents to the sake of it

[BloodRose]

Re: the Hy-Bro neck is in!

Thanks for crossing the finish line Bro... Im alittle disappointed in the turn out of the pickup of course, but your summary made mucho sense. I would LOVE LOVE LOVE to outfit my Charvel with a perfect match for the hybrid bridge and what you described would not work for me.. Here's hoping for some tweaks!! Scuse me if Im being dense, but are you saying that it does hit the mark with the seth coil?

[KeeperOS]

Re: the Hy-Bro neck is in!

Personal tastes aside, seeing as how the idea for a new SET of both neck and bridge pickups (that would need far less tweaking) was shot down, I seriously doubt that your proposal of what is basically two different pickups under the same umbrella would fly, and to be honest, I wouldn't be happy with it if it did.

What I'm reading from this is that although the pickup hit its' intended mark, it was not what was expected? Is it something that a new prototype would solve or are you talking about a "going back to the drawing board" route?