Alnico 4 swap in Duncan Distortion

[Saskapaddy]

Hey all!
I have a set of Duncan Distortions that came with a Jackson Soloist I bought on a whim. Found them a bit on the harsh side. Swapped in some Alnico 4s (first time I’ve swapped magnets). They are excellent now! Way more balanced and a lovely throaty midrange. Super happy with the swap. Prob not ideal for a pure thrash metal sound, but absolutely nails everything else I like.

 

[jeremy]

welcome to the forum!

i dont think ive heard a distortion set with a4, but i can see that being really cool. glad you took the time to experiment and find something that works for you!

 

[Chistopher]

I remember someone a while back tried an A4 DDn to match their A4 Custom in the bridge. I don't remember what they thought of it, but I'm glad you like it.

 

[Rex_Rocker]

I remember someone a while back tried an A4 DDn to match their A4 Custom in the bridge. I don't remember what they thought of it, but I'm glad you like it.

I do have an A5 in my DDn to go with a JB.

It's kinda like a brighter, more attack-y, less vocal, more Duncan-y Air Norton. It's not bad!

It's pretty much a JB-N if they ever decided to make one, LOL.

I bet A4 would sound cool too.

 

[NotDemanic]

I have an RCA4 in a DDn paired with an Alternative 8 in the bridge. I usually run it in parallel. Series is a bit thick for my taste.

 

[playas]

Hey all!
I have a set of Duncan Distortions that came with a Jackson Soloist I bought on a whim. Found them a bit on the harsh side. Swapped in some Alnico 4s (first time I’ve swapped magnets). They are excellent now! Way more balanced and a lovely throaty midrange. Super happy with the swap. Prob not ideal for a pure thrash metal sound, but absolutely nails everything else I like.

Welcome to the forum.

What styles of music are you using it for/what do you feel it works well at?

 

[hamerfan]

I have an RCA4 in a DDn paired with an Alternative 8 in the bridge. I usually run it in parallel. Series is a bit thick for my taste.

What? You run a DDN in series with an Alt8? Sounds like Mud city….

 

[eclecticsynergy]

What? You run a DDN in series with an Alt8? Sounds like Mud city….

I think he means neck coils in parallel vs series. Even in series mode it'd be parallel with the Alt8 when used together.
I've got an Air Norton wired that way at the neck in a Les Paul: normally parallel coils and pull-for-series.

 

[Rex_Rocker]

I don't find the DDN with A5 in series too thick, personally, but I'm not in love with super bright neck pickups like the Jazz either, so YMMV.

It's certainly not a Jazz or a '59, though, if you want that. And A4 would certainly make it smoother than 5.

 

[Saskapaddy]

playas. They sound great for classic rock, fusion etc. gently overdriven through to full shred. They lost the scooped over the top metal sound and now have a vocal midrange.

 

[NotDemanic]

What? You run a DDN in series with an Alt8? Sounds like Mud city….

No, I have the pickups in a set of Triple Shots. That allows me to run the neck pickup in parallel to itself. Both pickups together are in parallel with each other.

 

[hamerfan]

That explains it. Triple shots are great, but a bit PITA to solder. I use them with a JB and The Mag in the neck.

 

[jeremy]

i didnt think wiring the tripleshots were that hard to wire. five wires->five pads = done

 

[ehdwuld]

small pads + old men w/ poor eyesight = PITA

 

[hamerfan]

I remember i had a connection between the pads at first try. But my equipment and my skills improved since then. I now have a soldering station, fine soldering tips and magnifying glasses. I started to solder my own pedals with pcbs from pedalpcb.