Dimarzio Air Zone is Really, Really Good

[Rex_Rocker]

Apologies for the hijack...

How does the Air Zone compare to the Super Distortion? I've always loved the Super Distortion, but it's the only non-Duncan aftermarket pickup I've ever used.

It kinda doesn't. Completely different pickups. The Super Distortion is big, bold, and loud. The Air Zone is smooth, fat, yet controlled.

[dr_m]

It kinda doesn't. Completely different pickups. The Super Distortion is big, bold, and loud. The Air Zone is smooth, fat, yet controlled.

This is pretty much it. The Air Zone is sort of like a Tone Zone in a tuxedo - like James Bond, coolness and controlled aggression. The Super Distortion is just like Rex Rocker concisely described.

It's important to note that the Super Distortion, sometimes errantly described as an 80s metal/rock pickup, it capable of a good range of tones. It's actually pretty versatile considering it's in the high output category. It's also classic in the sense that it's not limited to the tones of any particular era. It has a good tolerance in pickup height, so you can lower it away from the strings without losing sustain, and balance it with a weaker neck pickup.

As for clean tones, the Super Distortion is as subjective as any other low mid/mid-centric pickup. Some people prefer scooped mids for clean tones, others like full, warm low end and mids. Depending on your playing style, it can sound really good on a very clean amp. I heard a local jazz guitarist who uses a Super Distortion bridge play amazing cleans and light crunch tones all night. A lot of people tens to say certain pickups are only good for this or that until someone comes along and makes it shine.

The Air Zone, however, does have broader versatility. It has just enough output to push a clean amp into breakup, though the Super Distortion grows a little more hair. It has a big midrange and fairly broad high end, so it's aggressive enough for modern metal, but not for a real grinding, extreme sound. The heavy midrange means you can scoop some mids out and not sound thin or icepicky. It does have a big low end and low mids but rather open, not congested, because there's some character of Air within the frequencies. This makes it quite articulate, and this is also good for heavy riffing as well as overdirven or clean soloing. Even with heavy distortion, it retains enough clarity to hear individual notes of a chord.

As for cleans, well I think it's awesome because of it's unique nature and fairly open, airy tone, but the mids are very prominent and the highs aren't really glassy. I've hear that it's fantastic for coil-splitting but have never tried that. Like I said, clean tones are probably more subjective than distortion tones so it depends on who is playing it.

[SweetClyde99]

Has anyone tried the Tone Zone and the Air Zone in the same guitar? I have a Tone Zone in a Strat, and I like it, but I was thinking of airing it (I de-aired a Norton recently, so I have the poles and spacers) to drop the output and hopefully make it a bit more versatile and sound better for clean tones.

My concerns:

• I was afraid airing it would shave off some highs, which I really don’t want to lose, but the Dimarzio site shows the Air Zone as having a bit more highs than the Tone Zone. The Air Zone seems to lose a bit of mids though, which I’d be okay with.
• Palm muting under a lot of gain is a big part of my playing, and I don’t want the low end to get mushy after airing it. I run the Tone Zone with a capacitor in series to shave off a bit of low end and tighten it up, which I suspect I’ll need to do with the Air Zone too, but I know the air technology is intended to make the pickup sound more vintage and simulate an A2 magnet while using an A5, but I’m hoping a flabby low end isn’t a part of that simulation.

Any help would be appreciated.

[Masta' C]

Has anyone tried the Tone Zone and the Air Zone in the same guitar? I have a Tone Zone in a Strat, and I like it, but I was thinking of airing it (I de-aired a Norton recently, so I have the poles, spacers, and the keeper bar) to drop the output and hopefully make it a bit more versatile and sound better for clean tones.

My concerns:

• I was afraid airing it would shave off some highs, which I really don’t want to lose, but the Dimarzio site shows the Air Zone as having a bit more highs than the Tone Zone. The Air Zone seems to lose a bit of mids though, which I’d be okay with.
• Palm muting under a lot of gain is a big part of my playing, and I don’t want the low end to get mushy after airing it. I run the Tone Zone with a capacitor in series to shave off a bit of low end and tighten it up, which I suspect I’ll need to do with the Air Zone too, but I know the air technology is intended to make the pickup sound more vintage and simulate an A2 magnet while using an A5, but I’m hoping a flabby low end isn’t a part of that simulation.

Any help would be appreciated.

Sounds like airing it will give you most of what you are after, but it will drop the output a bit.

Don't worry about losing too much high end, you'll actually gain a little chime and sparkle up top.

You'll find the bottom end response holds up well and isn't overly boomy...certainly not as overbearing as the stock Tone Zone can seem

Airing the TZ fixes many of the things that people don't like about the stock Tone Zone without compromising the overall sound too much.

That said, you could also "half-air" it if you wanted...leave the keeper on the screw poles and just swap out the slug poles with the "air" poles/spacers and see how you like it

[Mincer]

Please, let's get back on topic.

[SweetClyde99]

Sounds like airing it will give you most of what you are after, but it will drop the output a bit.

Don't worry about losing too much high end, you'll actually gain a little chime and sparkle up top.

You'll find the bottom end response holds up well and isn't overly boomy...certainly not as overbearing as the stock Tone Zone can seem

Airing the TZ fixes many of the things that people don't like about the stock Tone Zone without compromising the overall sound too much.

That said, you could also "half-air" it if you wanted...leave the keeper on the screw poles and just swap out the slug poles with the "air" poles/spacers and see how you like it

I full-aired the Tone Zone in my Strat last night, and I’m really liking it so far. It dropped the output a bit, thinned out and opened up the mids some, in a good way, and without taking away the things I like about it. I’m glad this thread came up. I was thinking about pulling the Tone Zone out of this guitar and trying a Norton in its place, but I’m pretty happy for the time being. I have another Tone Zone in an HH Tele that I may have to try half airing now.

[skelt101]

“They” say that half-airing the Tone Zone comes pretty close to the EVH/Axis bridge pickup in Ernie Ball Music Man guitars…

[skelt101]

By half-aired I assume you mean only spacers on one side rather than both? Does it make any difference which side or end is spaced?

The slug bobbin would remain "aired" while the magnet touches the adjustable polepieces.

[Masta' C]

Look, an admin already said to cool it so your whole post is unnecessary and off-topic. I have no interest in your petty squabbles, didactic comments, or personal opinions. I opened this topic to discuss the Dimarzio Air Zone so it would be better if you kept it at that. If you have any complaints then I suggest evaluating yourself because I am not antagonistic like you have been. I simply respond in kind to whatever someone says. Your self-qualifying comments are of no interest to me, but I will say that it's you don't have any degrees I don't have and I'm also a pro-level woodworker/luthier, so it's pointless to try and compete. All that jive about seniority and years of blah, blah has nothing to do with it. If you want to discuss the topic then I welcome that as long as you do so respectfully without trying to catch people on trivial things in an attempt to discredit them. I'm open to any rational, intelligent discussion on the topic if you're capable of that

I know you think you're above the law and that common courtesy doesn't apply to you, but the moderator's request to stay on topic was aimed at you, also...Clearly that's not what you are doing here

[dr_m]

The slug bobbin would remain "aired" while the magnet touches the adjustable polepieces.

Cool to know. I haven't tried that but will give it a try this weekend on a D-Sonic I have laying around.

[jarodathomas]

I joined this forum just to ask one specific question. Anybody know where I can order some of the plastic spacers? I don't want to order another airbucker pickup just to take the spacers out of it.

[Masta' C]

I joined this forum just to ask one specific question. Anybody know where I can order some of the plastic spacers? I don't want to order another airbucker pickup just to take the spacers out of it.

There's no place to order them, but the ones I took out of a newer AT-1 pickup look like cut pieces of 1/4" (6mm) plastic tubing

[Rex_Rocker]

Yeah, AFAIK, they just use surgical tubing instead of an actual spacer.

This is from an official DiMarzio video.

[jarodathomas]

I remember taking apart an air zone a long time ago and the four little rings felt more solid to me. It felt more like plastic, not like tubing. But that is just what I remember from like 10 years ago. I want to air a least the screw coil of a Tone Zone because I'm putting it in a different guitar than I bought it for and I want to add more dynamics and take away some of the woofiness.

[Masta' C]

It's not surgical/rubber tubing, it's white plastic tubing.