Pegasus 7 magnet swap

[NoOnesFang13]

When the pegasus was announced and i saw the demo from keith merrow i instantly ordered the pegasus/sentient set. I threw it in my 7 that has mahogany body with a spalted maple top, wenge neck with an ebony fretboard. The guitar sounds great unplugged, but ive never bonded with it plugged in. Maybe its my lack of experience with playing a 7, but im the kind of player that gets discouraged with my playing when the tone is uninpiring. My amp is an Egnater Tweaker 40, and i run a buch of different drive pedals depending on the situation, EHX soul food, TS clone, Fuzzface clone, Boss BD-2 and a few others. I even tried switching strings on the guitar to Ernie Ball Cobalt. The strings definately made a difference but it wasnt really something i was looking for. It definately sounds bigger and a bit clearer but in a freq that doesnt seem right to me. I remember that when i first got my Screamin Demon on my SG copy that i felt something similar, it felt like there was something lacking (in the mids maybe?). So i swapped the magnet for an A8 and made it a double philister head, and now that pickup is my favorite for higher gain tones. Im 90% sure i have some A8 in my parts box.

TLDR: the pegasus sounds like its lacking something to me possibly high mids and note seperation, should i swap to an a8?

other suggestions would help too.

[JB_From_Hell]

Re: Pegasus 7 magnet swap

Mag swaps are cool, but I don’t think they’ve ever turned something I didn’t like into something I loved.

[Bowtomecha]

Re: Pegasus 7 magnet swap

I have very similar views on the Pegasus. I vibed with the 6 string version on guitars I’d play at GC but when I got the 7 string version for my guitar, it felt alien. Like it couldn’t do what it was said to be able to do. I’m still fiddling with the pickup and pole piece height and making sure my guitar is set up properly before doing a magnet swap. It lacks output in a funny way, like its restrained but not like lower output pickups. The bass is interesting but not tight enough for certain things and I have to attack it more. My playing doesn’t feel inspired by it at the moment. I lose confidence in my playing fast when I don’t have a usable tone to grab on to. I tried a guitar with a custom 5 which is comparable in output but with less midrange and it sounded sweet. Maybe not hard enough for prog metal but amp gain accepted it better. I got the pickups through amazon as a set with a sentient that was discounted by 30 bucks. When I got it I noticed some crushing of the copper shielding and black tape. I don’t think it was tampered with or altered and returned but I have to wonder. I spent my return policy time trying to direct mount them without stripping the screw holes. So they’re mine now. Might as well try for a magnet swap. I have hex screws for both pickups and replaced the Pegasus fillisters on the lower 3 strings. This tightened up the sound but also made it a bit steely. It’s actually not bad for chugging Djent style but it’s a bit much for what I do. I haven’t adjusted the polepieces yet though, still waiting to get the action and pickup height right. I’m looking for a Hyperion humbucker sound and feel but fior 7 string. These pickups come the closest apparently but they are weaker yet with some grit and a treble with presence but less top end. I’m hoping that by using an Alnico 8, I can stretch more output from it, firm up the low end, add some high mids and reduce the low mids a bit, and have a nice treble that rolls off. Maybe put all the hex screws in for better attack. Again the 6 string version is pretty sweet with some amp gain but the 7 which came first seems off. This must be the sonic equivalent to leaving the house without makeup or hearing a blunt answer to whether my clothes make me look fat, because sometimes my playing feels ugly. Maybe it’s an honest pickup and I need to figure out how my playing and setup can enhance it? Lol.

[Bowtomecha]

Re: Pegasus 7 magnet swap

I sometimes think that I should have gotten the omega but when I play the Holcomb prs, I dig it, I get it, but it’s a touch too much. The Pegasus is supposed to be a good platform for getting the poor man’s omega by using hexes and a ceramic mag. I have the leftover pickups from my jp70 so I’m thinking of taking a ceramic out of one for this. But the a8 plus hexes might give me something in between the Pegasus and the omega which would be a great middle ground. An Omegasus even haha. I was looking into double thick A5 mags but I don’t know of anybody in the states that does it. It’s just two a5s epoxied together and charged as one magnet. Would be interesting.

[Iron1]

Re: Pegasus 7 magnet swap

I have a Pegasus 7 with a ceramic in it loaded into my custom basswood body Jackson JS22-7 and absolutely love it. I'd played the Pegasus stock in a Schecter (don't recall the model) before my buddy pulled it, swapped the magnet, then got a Dimarzio Titan he likes better and sold the Peg to me. When I played it in the Schecter it felt more thin/polished/guitar hero-ish (not the game, but the modern virtuoso players). The ceramic makes it fatter, more in-your-face, and grindier (if that's actually a word - as in it has some thicker low end grit it didn't have before). I'm exclusively a rhythm metal player, with some blues and fusion tossed in, so lead tones aren't a concern for me, either. But, the bridge isn't a lead tone pup for the most part, either.

Since swapping mags isn't very hard and magnets are cheap, I'd suggest just going ahead and trying it. If nothing else, it'll give you something to experiment with and a learning experience.

[Shooweri]

Re: Pegasus 7 magnet swap

I've had Pegasus 7 in my trusty Ibanez RGD2127 for about three years. I swapped to it from Nazgul which had annoying mids/highs and was bit too much overall. Omega is bit more balanced when compared to Nazgul but still too much for me. Stock Pegasus is great pickup in a right guitar but in my Ibby it definitely lacked midrange and output. Alnico 8 magnet totally have saved this pickup giving it more midrange, tighter lows, a tad smoother highs and more harmonics. It also has nice aggressive 'roar' when playing power chords and nice sustain for leads. I also like clean tone better since it has more personality and less treble. It also gives a bit more output and isn't so unforgiving.

[bloughlin16]

Re: Pegasus 7 magnet swap

Your experience with the Pegasus describes pretty much exactly what I don't like about it and why I went for the Omega instead. That being said, swapping the magnet for an A8 or ceramic should fix some of the issues you're having, and with how cheap and easy it is it's worth a shot before you buy another pickup.

[NoOnesFang13]

Re: Pegasus 7 magnet swap

I am gonna try and find some time to work on it, I dont get alot of time to do guitar stuff anymore and my free time is when my kid is asleep so i cant exactly play at that point. But i am gonna try and swap the magnet for an A8. The worst case scenario is i dont like it i suppose.

[Shooweri]

Re: Pegasus 7 magnet swap

Go for it and tell us how it works out!

[Bowtomecha]

Re: Pegasus 7 magnet swap

I bought an a8 mag and it should be here tomorrow or so. I’m hoping to get the tone I want although I’ve since set up my guitar better and have gotten much more useable tones from my Pegasus 7. I’m mostly looking for an increase in power and punch so I don’t need to max out my preamp gain so much. I’m a little worried about the high end with the a8 though. I like the contrast between the darker rounder sound if my sentient in the neck and the presence of the Pegasus. I’m still working on my guitar setup and tones from my amp to squeeze what I can from the Pegasus but I’m hoping the a8 will do what it should.

I’m still trying to make a double thick A5 happen as I think that will give me exactly what I want with some hex screws. It’s a bunch of trouble for a seven string though. In due time.

[NoOnesFang13]

Re: Pegasus 7 magnet swap

I bought an a8 mag and it should be here tomorrow or so. I’m hoping to get the tone I want although I’ve since set up my guitar better and have gotten much more useable tones from my Pegasus 7. I’m mostly looking for an increase in power and punch so I don’t need to max out my preamp gain so much. I’m a little worried about the high end with the a8 though. I like the contrast between the darker rounder sound if my sentient in the neck and the presence of the Pegasus. I’m still working on my guitar setup and tones from my amp to squeeze what I can from the Pegasus but I’m hoping the a8 will do what it should.

I’m still trying to make a double thick A5 happen as I think that will give me exactly what I want with some hex screws. It’s a bunch of trouble for a seven string though. In due time.

This past sunday i went through my parts box and found some magnets A2, A4, A8, and a double thick longer Ceramic that is in the stock pickup from the guitar. I was all set up to record clips and everything, then realized i didnt have enough sets of strings to do it, so now i got to get some strings for it. I think im gonna try to do an A4 Sentient and a A8 pegasus as i like the A4/A8 combo on my sg copy with a 59/Screamin Demon

[Bowtomecha]

Re: Pegasus 7 magnet swap

I found a soundcloud clip that demonstrates the Pegasus 7 Alnico 5 versus one with a ceramic mag swap.

https://soundcloud.com/secondhandwisdom/pegasus-7-alnico-5-and-ceramic-8-demo-comparison

[Iron1]

Re: Pegasus 7 magnet swap

I found a soundcloud clip that demonstrates the Pegasus 7 Alnico 5 versus one with a ceramic mag swap.

https://soundcloud.com/secondhandwis...emo-comparison

Thanks for posting this. They both sound good, but I prefer the second one - sounds a little more lively with a bit more grit to me. Guessing that's the ceramic, but it doesn't state either way that I can see.