Hello to all! I am looking for a new set of pickups to put in my PRS Custom 22 (2003 model i think) and I wanted suggestions from you guys because my research so far did not produce any definitive results.
The guitar currently has a set of Bare Knuckle Pickups Rebel Yells. I've gone through some pickup changes and none seemed to sit well with me so far. Specifically:
1) PRS Dragon II - The original pickups for the guitar. Ok but nothing special. Neck was really nice. Bridge was underwelming
2) Bare Knuckle Pickups The Mule - Very bland
3) PRS 57/08 - Severely undepowered for this. No character, bland, weak in this guitar.
4) Bare Knuckle Pickups Rebel Yell - Current pickups installed. Ok in terms of power but very honky in this guitar. Cocked wah type of sound which I hate. Works well enough with a Mesa Mark IV with scooped EQ though.
The sound i'm looking for with this guitar is progressive rock /metal type tones mainly (recent Opeth for example, or Dream Theater) but also general all round hard rock tones. I need something to cover a lot of styles, mostly in the more modern-ish type of sound. Anything from late 80s onward. I don't care for vintage 70s tones (i've got my Les Paul for that). Defintely NOT anything djenty. Not my style. I play in E standard 95% of the time. So anything that can cover from Metallica, Dream Theater, Opeth, Porcupine Tree, Pink Floyd, Whitesnake, etc. I understand that all of these bands are vastly different in terms of sounds, I'm just giving them as reference points in terms of style not in terms of tone. Basically I'm looking for high gain sounds but not ultra modern djent-y type of sounds. Opeth again are a good example.
In terms of tone I want a clear and fat bridge pickup. Something with a lot of girth for soloing and good overdriven tones. I don't play cleans in the bridge so that is not an issue. I like tones that are defined but have body to them. The things I DON'T want are to sound nasal, and I dislike piercing highs. I also don't need a lot of bass. I like a round, even tone, with enough clarity to not lose definition.
For the neck pickup I want someting that can do two things: Bell like clear tones, maybe something jazzy as well, and smooth overdriven lead lines. Again, girth, clarity, and roundness are the things I want and I don't like anything nasal, too bassy, and shrill.
I understand that all of these can be kind of contradictory. The main problem I have with my PRS is that I feel that it is quite mid focused and nasal by design and also the sound is quite "loose" for lack of a better term. So I'm looking for somethings to balance that. In that sense I think I'm leaning towards A5 pickups as they are tighter and have strong bass and treble compared to A2 which I think will suit this guitar. Maybe a ceramic in the bridge could work as well (although I've never owned a ceramic pickup). I've read a lot of suggestions in this forum and elsewhere and I couldn't reach a conclusion. Actually there was another thread where the guy had exactly the same issue as me and very simillar requirements but it never reached a conclusion. So I opted to start a new thread hoping that maybe you guys can guide me. The thing is that a lot of the info on the SD website seems contradictory. Especially the EQ descriptions of the pickups compared to the actuall sound.
From my reasearch so far I think that the following models would be candidates:
- Full shred set: The output seems perfect, the highs I think are ok as they don't seem too brittle. From the clips I've heard they seemed a little subdued and bland. They're supposedly scooped which I like but from the clips I've heard they didn't seem scooped to me. Maybe because of the lack of bass accented the mids?
- Pegasus / Sentient set: These on paper seem perfect. A5, medium output, slightly scooped. I am however worried that they might be too djent-y and if they have prominent high-mids too nasal as well. It doesn't help that all the clips I could find are all djent type of music which is not my cup of tea.
- Custom bridge - Ceramic, scooped, lots of power. PAF on steroids description which I like. I'm worried it might be too bright / piercing and sterile sounding? Custom 5 is out for these reasons since from what I read it is TOO much bass and TOO shrill. Custom 2 wouldn't work I think due to looseness of A2 in this guitar.
- Custom / 59 Hybrid bridge - Maybe? I don't know much about this one.
- 59 Neck - Seems too bright and bassy at the same time but I'm considering it.
- Jazz Neck - I don't think it would work well for my requirements. Too trebly and not enough body for soloing work?
That's where I am so far. Any help would be greatly appreciated!!
Thank you!
The guitar currently has a set of Bare Knuckle Pickups Rebel Yells. I've gone through some pickup changes and none seemed to sit well with me so far. Specifically:
1) PRS Dragon II - The original pickups for the guitar. Ok but nothing special. Neck was really nice. Bridge was underwelming
2) Bare Knuckle Pickups The Mule - Very bland
3) PRS 57/08 - Severely undepowered for this. No character, bland, weak in this guitar.
4) Bare Knuckle Pickups Rebel Yell - Current pickups installed. Ok in terms of power but very honky in this guitar. Cocked wah type of sound which I hate. Works well enough with a Mesa Mark IV with scooped EQ though.
The sound i'm looking for with this guitar is progressive rock /metal type tones mainly (recent Opeth for example, or Dream Theater) but also general all round hard rock tones. I need something to cover a lot of styles, mostly in the more modern-ish type of sound. Anything from late 80s onward. I don't care for vintage 70s tones (i've got my Les Paul for that). Defintely NOT anything djenty. Not my style. I play in E standard 95% of the time. So anything that can cover from Metallica, Dream Theater, Opeth, Porcupine Tree, Pink Floyd, Whitesnake, etc. I understand that all of these bands are vastly different in terms of sounds, I'm just giving them as reference points in terms of style not in terms of tone. Basically I'm looking for high gain sounds but not ultra modern djent-y type of sounds. Opeth again are a good example.
In terms of tone I want a clear and fat bridge pickup. Something with a lot of girth for soloing and good overdriven tones. I don't play cleans in the bridge so that is not an issue. I like tones that are defined but have body to them. The things I DON'T want are to sound nasal, and I dislike piercing highs. I also don't need a lot of bass. I like a round, even tone, with enough clarity to not lose definition.
For the neck pickup I want someting that can do two things: Bell like clear tones, maybe something jazzy as well, and smooth overdriven lead lines. Again, girth, clarity, and roundness are the things I want and I don't like anything nasal, too bassy, and shrill.
I understand that all of these can be kind of contradictory. The main problem I have with my PRS is that I feel that it is quite mid focused and nasal by design and also the sound is quite "loose" for lack of a better term. So I'm looking for somethings to balance that. In that sense I think I'm leaning towards A5 pickups as they are tighter and have strong bass and treble compared to A2 which I think will suit this guitar. Maybe a ceramic in the bridge could work as well (although I've never owned a ceramic pickup). I've read a lot of suggestions in this forum and elsewhere and I couldn't reach a conclusion. Actually there was another thread where the guy had exactly the same issue as me and very simillar requirements but it never reached a conclusion. So I opted to start a new thread hoping that maybe you guys can guide me. The thing is that a lot of the info on the SD website seems contradictory. Especially the EQ descriptions of the pickups compared to the actuall sound.
From my reasearch so far I think that the following models would be candidates:
- Full shred set: The output seems perfect, the highs I think are ok as they don't seem too brittle. From the clips I've heard they seemed a little subdued and bland. They're supposedly scooped which I like but from the clips I've heard they didn't seem scooped to me. Maybe because of the lack of bass accented the mids?
- Pegasus / Sentient set: These on paper seem perfect. A5, medium output, slightly scooped. I am however worried that they might be too djent-y and if they have prominent high-mids too nasal as well. It doesn't help that all the clips I could find are all djent type of music which is not my cup of tea.
- Custom bridge - Ceramic, scooped, lots of power. PAF on steroids description which I like. I'm worried it might be too bright / piercing and sterile sounding? Custom 5 is out for these reasons since from what I read it is TOO much bass and TOO shrill. Custom 2 wouldn't work I think due to looseness of A2 in this guitar.
- Custom / 59 Hybrid bridge - Maybe? I don't know much about this one.
- 59 Neck - Seems too bright and bassy at the same time but I'm considering it.
- Jazz Neck - I don't think it would work well for my requirements. Too trebly and not enough body for soloing work?
That's where I am so far. Any help would be greatly appreciated!!
Thank you!
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