Air Norton : I just dont get it

zakk_speed

zakk_speed

New member
I`ve had it in the bridge of two guitars (basswood & alder) and the neck of pretty much every one I own, trying real hard to get the hype...and its left me cold in every one, or more accurately too meh in the bridge and too warm in the neck.

I really wanted it to work in the Roadster in conjuction with the JB as visually it really worked (screw+slug+black+no logo), but I`m playing it all the time split, which tells me its a `too warm`again.

Its not bad - its just not as good for me as the other neck pups I have, theres none of that neck tone sparkle.

I`ve a couple of mahogany body projects on the go that I might try it it for one last hurrah

Where does this one work for you...any thoughts welcome
 
Re: Air Norton : I just dont get it

I don't like any DiMarzio full sized humbucker... I hear this cardboard sound, I don't know how else to describe it.
I hear this same tonality in the SD George Lynch and ALL Eminence guitar speakers.

I do like the DiMarzio single coil sized Hums... Area series...
.
 
Re: Air Norton : I just dont get it

zakk_speed said:
I`ve had it in the bridge of two guitars (basswood & alder) and the neck of pretty much every one I own, trying real hard to get the hype...and its left me cold in every one, or more accurately too meh in the bridge and too warm in the neck.

I really wanted it to work in the Roadster in conjuction with the JB as visually it really worked (screw+slug+black+no logo), but I`m playing it all the time split, which tells me its a `too warm`again.

Its not bad - its just not as good for me as the other neck pups I have, theres none of that neck tone sparkle.

I`ve a couple of mahogany body projects on the go that I might try it it for one last hurrah

Where does this one work for you...any thoughts welcome
Click to expand...

It's one of my favorite neck humbuckers. I have them in two of my guitars. One guitar which I want more sparkle in the neck I use a PAF Joe. You should give the PAF Joe a try if the Air Norton doesn't do it for you.

It's hard to say why you're not getting a great sound from your Air Norton. I don't know what amp, amp settings, guitar wood, style of music, etc... so no idea here. All I know is that it's an awesome pickup. It will not pair well with a JB in my opinion. They're just too different and therein may lie the problem you're having.

I used to not be so impressed with it, but over time I came to appreciate it very much. It's not a flashy style pickup, and it doesn't have the power of a hot neck pickup, but once you get used to it, the tone just oozes out all over the place.

I'm thinking a PAF Joe might be a good match for you if you want kind of a more fun, 50's PAF type neck pickup with a lot of tonal character.

sonnyblu said:
I don't like any DiMarzio full sized humbucker... I hear this cardboard sound, I don't know how else to describe it.
I hear this same tonality in the SD George Lynch and ALL Eminence guitar speakers.

I do like the DiMarzio single coil sized Hums... Area series...
.
Click to expand...

Let me guess, you also hate Mesa Boogies because they sound like ass and... nevermind...
 
Re: Air Norton : I just dont get it

UberMetalDood said:
...
Let me guess, you also hate Mesa Boogies because they sound like ass and... nevermind...
Click to expand...

Don't do this. He correctly identified a common characteristic he doesn't care for. You might. As far as I can tell, he did no more than express his personal opinion. Why turn it into a personal attack?
 
Re: Air Norton : I just dont get it

Yes - I've a PAF Joe in the JS1200 i just acquired and so far I'm liking that. I've a PAF-Pro and a FRED and an EVO neck that I'm going to try out for this one.
 
Re: Air Norton : I just dont get it

UberMetalDood said:
It's one of my favorite neck humbuckers. I have them in two of my guitars. One guitar which I want more sparkle in the neck I use a PAF Joe. You should give the PAF Joe a try if the Air Norton doesn't do it for you.

It's hard to say why you're not getting a great sound from your Air Norton. I don't know what amp, amp settings, guitar wood, style of music, etc... so no idea here. All I know is that it's an awesome pickup. It will not pair well with a JB in my opinion. They're just too different and therein may lie the problem you're having.

I used to not be so impressed with it, but over time I came to appreciate it very much. It's not a flashy style pickup, and it doesn't have the power of a hot neck pickup, but once you get used to it, the tone just oozes out all over the place.

I'm thinking a PAF Joe might be a good match for you if you want kind of a more fun, 50's PAF type neck pickup with a lot of tonal character.



Let me guess, you also hate Mesa Boogies because they sound like ass and... nevermind...
Click to expand...

Not all, just the rectumfriers.
 
Re: Air Norton : I just dont get it

the air norton is meant to be played dynamically in the neck spot. it wont sound bright unless you play hard,play soft and the tone stays warm,dig in the highs come out at least in my experience:14:
 
Re: Air Norton : I just dont get it

My next two projects are a mahogany RG and a mahogany S-series...I'm gonna try it in both of those, I'm thinking it might like the S...however it'll be up for stiff competition with a 59N in that slot.

On the dynamic point, I mostly use my necks for cleans or overdriven solos, so I'll give it a final run and see if I get that too,, I guess my issue is it just sounds too hot...
 
Re: Air Norton : I just dont get it

zakk_speed said:
My next two projects are a mahogany RG and a mahogany S-series...I'm gonna try it in both of those, I'm thinking it might like the S...however it'll be up for stiff competition with a 59N in that slot.

On the dynamic point, I mostly use my necks for cleans or overdriven solos, so I'll give it a final run and see if I get that too,, I guess my issue is it just sounds too hot...
Click to expand...

Ahhh...you are doing what I have already done.

The Air Norton is very good, but it is just dark enough and hot enough that something seems like it is missing...I do like it, but if I only had one guitar, it would have PAF Joe instead of an Air Norton in the neck.

I came to the conclusion that the PAF Joe was my favorite.
The Evolution neck is also very good, especially in the Charvels.
 
Re: Air Norton : I just dont get it

Yeah - I feel a neck pickup shootout coming on... thats the happy side effect of refurbishing old Ibanez's, usually you inherit decent pickups
 
Re: Air Norton : I just dont get it

I've only tried the Air Norton neck. I would describe it as accurate but sterile.
After a year or so, I put an A2 mag in mine and that gave it some more character, but I ended up just giving the pickup away to a friend who was short on cash.
 
Re: Air Norton : I just dont get it

I grew up playing crap guitars with terrible stock pickups. My idea of what a neck pickup should sound like is somewhat based on that, although my tastes have been changing. That being said, the air norton is the first name brand neck humbucker that sounded like a neck humbucker to me. Smooth, dark, liquid sounding. The duncan necks like Jazz/59 are crazy bright, but I'm starting to lean towards those now. Bottom line, the air norton and the 59 are worlds apart in neck tones, but I still think that both are great choices, it just depends on your style. My problem is I want a 59 clean and then I want it to magically transform into a air norton with switch to a distortion channel, now that's a product idea, someone get on that!

Also, note that air norton in parallel goes a long way towards bridging that gap.
 
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Re: Air Norton : I just dont get it

OK - after swapping in a few, the EVO neck was the one I liked the best, and it matched the JB well. In this guitar I didn`t need warmth, a needed more definition, but with an output to match the JB, and my JB was un-logo`d, so I didn`t want a logo on the neck. EVO-Neck fitted the bill.

On a side note, you gotta love the liberator...it took me under 5 minutes to change out each pickup.

I`m going to save the AN for the 540S project I have coming, as I think it`ll match that a bit better.

Thanks, great advice, as always...
 
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Re: Air Norton : I just dont get it

never tried an Air Norton.. I normally dont gel with dimarzios, so Im afraid to buy them to try dif ones.. Ive heard alot of good about the air norton tho..
Wonder how the bridge model is in the neck?
I run a bunch of 59b models in the neck position. gives me alil more "smokey" tone
 
Re: Air Norton : I just dont get it

I got an Air Norton in the bridge of my semi-hollow Gibson Howard Roberts Fusion. I use 500k pots, and it´s very bright in the bridge when played clean - not so useful actually. The gain comes on more gain; with the tone pot on 5-6 this semi-hollow jazz guitar suddenly becomes a Les Paul. And it´s an open, fresh and quite clean distorted tone, not so special, coloured or nasal.
 
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