HB-112 love

[75lespaul]

I have had the Duncan Designed HB-112 sitting in my pickup box for many years. I had put it in a guitar, possibly and Agile Les Paul, but felt it didn't live up to the hype. May have just been the guitar, but never used it again. Got the bug to tinker again so I removed the ceramic and replaced it with an A8, then wired it into my basswood Chibson SG and wow, was I shocked at how great it sounds. Nice really full sound, full but not muddy bass, nice present but not overbearing mids and highs that are not quite soft, but not harsh at all. I'd say they sing. Dropped the E to D and it chugged so nice and heavy. As I said in another post, the tone I thought of when I cranked up the amp was Tony Iommi's The Mob Rules with standard tuning. I don't see much any more about the HB-112 on the forum and I think it's a gem of a pickup that seems to be really good with a magnet change if you don't like it in stock form.

[Masta' C]

The HB-112 is based on the HB-103. The core wind is in the ballpark of the JB and Distortion. It's a very flexible pickup from a mag-swap standpoint.

Personally, I love that it has the pole piece arrangement of the Screamin' Demon. Looks cool and you can tweak pole pieces to fine-tune the pickup easily.

[stm113]

I love this pickup as-is in my Ibanez Saber Classic. I need another for the same guitar to tune 1 1/2 steps down and drop B.

[GuitarDoc]

I haven't tried the Duncan Designed version, but the SD Distortion sounds REALLY great with an A8 mag. MUCH better than with the ceramic mag. Like you said, " Nice really full sound, full but not muddy bass, nice present but not overbearing mids and highs that are not quite soft, but not harsh at all".

I find that typically the ceramic mag makes the highs sound very harsh and "brittle" like they are on the verge of self destruction. The A8 smooths the highs but they are still very strong. The lows may not be quite as tight as with the ceramic but they are still strong and tight.

[ArtieToo]

I had one of these sitting around in a drawer for years. Like an idiot, I sold it before I tried it.

[GuitarDoc]

I had one of these sitting around in a drawer for years. Like an idiot, I sold it before I tried it.

[ICTGoober]

I've had no problem or complaints with any of the Duncan Designed line of pickups. There is no reason I can think of why they would suck.

[eclecticsynergy]

Doublethick A8 is magic in a DD, both bridge and neck.

Does the HB112 use a standard thickness mag, or double?

[Aceman]

I love the 103's. Wouldn't mess with them at all.

Is the 112 the "Invader" style? AKA the Detonator?

[ArtieToo]

Is the 112 the "Invader" style? AKA the Detonator?

That would be the HB-108. The HB-112 is modeled after the Screamin' Demon.

[Aceman]

Ah yes - 108 = Detonator, which is really a Distortion with Invader caps

Didn't know there was a Duncan designed Demon!

[DonP]

I love the 103's. Wouldn't mess with them at all.

Same here.

[75lespaul]

Yeah, I never swapped that pickup out of this guitar. It soinds perfect to me with the A8. Love it. Also, just got a Schecter Diamond wiith the HB-103 and it is outstanding.

[Rex_Rocker]

Ah yes - 108 = Detonator, which is really a Distortion with Invader caps

Didn't know there was a Duncan designed Demon!

It's not really a Demon other than aesthetically. It's just a HB-103 with allen screws in place of slugs.

[Rex_Rocker]

I used to have the full-on Seymour Duncan version of the HB-112. It was cool. Then again, a regular SH-6 is pretty cool by my book too!

https://forum.seymourduncan.com/forum/the-pickup-lounge/325362-what-are-the-seymour-duncan-ibz-s-like#post5481087