Alpha/Omega review

[VHTJay]

Well, I have had my Holcomb PRS for about a month now, so I think I can give a pretty objective review here. I won't be reviewing the guitar (which KILLS!), but I will list the specs for reference.
They are: Mahogany body, Maple neck, ebony board, string through hardtail, 25.5" scale. While these are unique specs for a PRS, I know alot of you guys have guitars with similar specs. So, here we go......

Omega (bridge): measured mine at 13.1k. The updated review that Keith Morrow did gives a VERY accurate representation of this pickup. It reminds me of a "Nazgul lite" in som ways. There is some aggression there and snarl.....but overall, it is pretty balanced with quick, punchy and tight presentation. I would give it a traditional Duncan eq rating of 6/7/7 for b/m/t. Has turned into one of my favourite ceramic based pickups because the top end isn't shrill and it still has great FEEL when you play it. This is pretty awesome because normally I have found there to be a teadeoff: super duper tight and stiff......or easy to play but loose. Not so with the Omega. That said, it will definitely make mistakes stand out! Anyway.....super impressed!

Alpha: Mark said this is unlike any other Duncan neck humbucker and he is correct! For reference: take a Jazz, Mark it brighter (yup!), make the lows tighter, more mids and then goose up the output a bit and you will have a good idea of what the Alpha is like! Cleans shimmer through this pickup and the in between positions split great and combine awesome! Tons of note separation for a neck pickup.....fast single note runs don't blur at all and you definitely do keep alot of your pick attack.

Hopefully that helps the curious. Any questions, feel free to ask away. This is a really cool pickup set and definitely unlike anything else Duncan has.

 

[chris effect]

Re: Alpha/Omega review

Awesome review man. Thanks!

As far as clarity and tightness under a lot of gain, how would you compare the omega to the nazgul?

 

[VHTJay]

Re: Alpha/Omega review

Hey Chris,

As far as tightness, they are both equally tight and both can take gobs of gain without getting fuzzy or flabby. The big difference between the Nazgul and Omega is in the eq. While the omega has some of that upper mid snarl that makes the Nazgul sound so angry, overall its mids are more balanced, which actually gives it a little more low mid and low range heft and chunk.

 

[bloughlin16]

Re: Alpha/Omega review

Great review, I completely agree based on my set! It's so hard to describe the Alpha (it really does respond to your picking like a bridge pickup would), but you nailed it. How are you liking the guitar itself? Also, how is the 5 position switch wired? I put a coil tap on each of my volume pots when I installed it, but I'm curious to know what Mark and PRS thought was the best configuration.

 

[chris effect]

Re: Alpha/Omega review

Hey Chris,

As far as tightness, they are both equally tight and both can take gobs of gain without getting fuzzy or flabby. The big difference between the Nazgul and Omega is in the eq. While the omega has some of that upper mid snarl that makes the Nazgul sound so angry, overall its mids are more balanced, which actually gives it a little more low mid and low range heft and chunk.

nice.. thanks for the reply. Sounds like it should be a killer pickup!!

 

[Gibson 1964]

Re: Alpha/Omega review

I am curious, how does the omega clean up? I know with the Nazgul, to me it feels just a bit of an angry chainsaw grind no matter where you set the volume. Does the omega do edge of clean, breakup, and low-mid gain well?

 

[VHTJay]

Re: Alpha/Omega review

Bloughlin16: I am really loving the guitar! Attention to detail is what you would expect on a Core USA PRS and it plays fantastic. It didn't take me long to get used to the feel. Still plays like a Custom 24, which for me, being a big PRS guy is a good thing. As for the switching, it a 5 way blade and the settings are: treble, treble with bass single, treble and bass (middle), treble slug and bass screw, bass. The construction on the guitar and clarity of the pickups gives really snappy single coil sounds! Not sure if Mark uses them, but they definitely add to the versatility.

Gibson 1964: it cleans up well in the as you roll the volume down it stays clear and seems to maintain its treble well. That said, it is still a pretty hot pickup. Like, with a PAF, once you get to around 8 on the volume there is a definite difference. With the Omega it starts to really clean up around 6 or so. This would be through Channel 2A on my H&K Triamp, which is essentially like a jcm 800 type channel. I actually have my Holcomb tuned to standard/drop D, so I play mid gain and edge of breakup stuff with it all the time! The Nazgul is more of a purpose built beast....like you say, you can't really dial that snarl out of it and I agree with that. The omega eq wise is more balanced which makes it more versatile. Hope that made sense!