'70s-'80s and JB -- any guesses

WoodyTone

WoodyTone

New member
We all know Beck used a JB (70s). And there's this quote from the press release on the 30th anniversary of the JB in 2004: "Soon, many of England's top guitarists, including more than a few legendary names, sought out Seymour's "JB Mod" for their guitars. They found that the JB gave increased output (16.4K Ohms) without sounding harsh or dark, like other high-output pickups of the mid-'70s. When Seymour returned to the USA the next year, his reputation as a pickup designer and the JB's reputation as a great pickup preceded him. And the rest was history."

In the '80s, it seems that EVH used one around the Kramer days -- but possibly before -- and his newer pickups are somewhat JB-like in terms of being vintage-esque tone w/ high output. DeMartini used one, and the new DeMartini and Lynch sig pickups are like JBs. I believe Greg Howe used a JB and just developed a pickup with DiMarzio that is vintage sound/high output and thus JB-like.

So my questions:

> Any other examples of '70s-'80s JB use you can think of?

> Is it possible the JB is the second-most recorded humbucker aside from the Gibson PAF? I don't think the DiMarzio Super D was used by as many people as the JB....
 
Re: '70s-'80s and JB -- any guesses

All right, so what is it about the JB? I've heard it bashed about as much as praised. Why?
 
Re: '70s-'80s and JB -- any guesses

EVH never used a JB. No way, no how.

Cantrell has a classic JB tone.
 
Re: '70s-'80s and JB -- any guesses

I've heard claims that EVH used an A2 Custom. And I've heard people come very close to some of his later sounds using one. But JB really doesn't seem likely.

Of course, he's known to have used multiple guitars on almost all of his early stuff. Mostly Destroyer with Super 70s on every track that doesn't involve whammy use on the early records. Frankie with PAF or possibly hybrid or maybe A2 Custom or whatever the current toy was at the moment... (Then there's the Les Pauls in studio pictures, the "little guitars", Steinbergers and others used for particular tracks)

As far as other JB users, Friedman was forced into it by Mustaine when he joined Megadeth, so that they'd have identical rhythm sounds, which he was adamant about.

Scott Ian used to use them in maple bodied guitars (and then use all kinds of bass-boosting distortion pedals to get his crushing rhythm tones).

Allan Holdsworth used an all screw polepiece A2 JB back then.
 
Re: '70s-'80s and JB -- any guesses

By later I mean Fair Warning & 5150-era, F.U.C.K. & later of course being the EBMM with custom DiMarzios.
 
Re: '70s-'80s and JB -- any guesses

What was the next model after JB model..the 78, correct?
The Pups EVH were using were PAFs Rewound...by SD..
This was 76-77, correct?
Most likely the very early EVH pups were PAF JBs..everyone wanted them.
Good ???!
 
Re: '70s-'80s and JB -- any guesses

I've never heard Eddie Van Halen playing anything that sounded like an A5 JB.
But I haven't heard most of the pre-record live recordings. So for 76-77 anything's possible.

PAF and JB are very different pickups. EVH's early sound is very open and chewy, not compressed with beaming harmonics.

I suppose it's possible he used an A2 JB like Allan Holdsworth. Or that the infamous "broken" pickup was actually a PAF/JB hybrid rather than PAF/Custom.

EVH's amp setup is certainly unique, and few people chasing his tone bother with the variac that is a big chunk of his amp's squishy tone. And engineer/producer did a lot to sculpt the final sound.

Woody was talking about mid-80s, though. I still don't hear anything like the JB until maybe 5150 era, and there's enough distortion there that he could have used almost anything to get that sort of sound. Overdrive/boost/compressor plus low or medium output pickup...
 
Re: '70s-'80s and JB -- any guesses

Despair said:
I've never heard Eddie Van Halen playing anything that sounded like an A5 JB.
But I haven't heard most of the pre-record live recordings. So for 76-77 anything's possible.

PAF and JB are very different pickups. EVH's early sound is very open and chewy, not compressed with beaming harmonics.

I suppose it's possible he used an A2 JB like Allan Holdsworth. Or that the infamous "broken" pickup was actually a PAF/JB hybrid rather than PAF/Custom.

EVH's amp setup is certainly unique, and few people chasing his tone bother with the variac that is a big chunk of his amp's squishy tone. And engineer/producer did a lot to sculpt the final sound.

Woody was talking about mid-80s, though. I still don't hear anything like the JB until maybe 5150 era, and there's enough distortion there that he could have used almost anything to get that sort of sound. Overdrive/boost/compressor plus low or medium output pickup...
Click to expand...

The original first JBs were PAFs from Lonnie Mack's V and Rewound by SD for JB..I think this is the same that SD did for EVH in the early days. 76-77. Being that he took PAFs and rewound them to JBs for EVH!
 
Re: '70s-'80s and JB -- any guesses

There's still the problem that nothing on VH I or VH II sounds remotely like a JB.
 
Re: '70s-'80s and JB -- any guesses

It's kind of absurd to try and pick out what pickup somebody is using (espescially Eddie) on a studio recording, there are just too many factors.
 
Re: '70s-'80s and JB -- any guesses

I've heard that the pickups used in EVH's 1984/5150 Kramers where a JB/59 hybrid.
 
Re: '70s-'80s and JB -- any guesses

There's certain characteristics that are very noticable about the JB, like it's tendency towards compression & beaming harmonics. The upper mid bite is very distinctive. Those features don't dissapear with wood change. Bass & lower mids are very sensitive to the wood. And of course whether the guitar is bright enough to get the "dentist drill" effect that inspires loathing in the non-fans.

Van Halen came out in 1978, thus the name of the non-clone pickup designed around that tone. Kramer days were much later, more towards mid-80s.

EVH isn't much known for tremelo use, that's more of a Vinnie Bell trademark.
 
Re: '70s-'80s and JB -- any guesses

evhguitars said:
A JB in a tele played by JB, is going to sound very different in a heavy ash body Strat with a tremelo played by EVH, correct?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5ZBeerUD-zc
Click to expand...

Note Beck's upper mid attack on the solo part around 1:56-1:58, and the harmonic content. You get that in basswood or maple bodies, too. That's just nothing like EVH ever sounds before 5150. 3:25-3:41 has a bit where you can clearly hear the harmonics & upper mid behavior, how it shifts in tone as he moves around the neck. EVH's tone just doesn't behave at all like that.
 
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