Another 'What pickup should I get?' Thread, I'm So Sorry

[official_vieira]

Hey guys, this is my first thread on here wooohooo :laughing: anyway, I'm in the market for a new pickup and wanted to get opinions from experienced guys such as you lot. First of all price isn't an issue but a cheaper pickup would be a help. I have a Chapman Guitars ML1 Hotrod and want to change the pickup, I like the JB in it but I feel I could do better. The guitar, if you didn't know, only has a bridge pickup and is made out of swamp ash with a bolt on maple neck and ebony board. I play a lot of Van Halen, Extreme stuff and I love the clarity of Nuno's tone but I am also a huge fan of the Brown Sound. I was thinking of getting a Bill and Becky L500XL but have heard mix reviews. I would love a bright, transparent tone that would cut through the mix without being too brittle. Any recommendations?

Edit: My amp I'm using is a Blackstar HT5 through a Harley Benton G412A with Celestion V30s btw.

 

[treyhaislip]

Re: Another 'What pickup should I get?' Thread, I'm So Sorry

Hey guys, this is my first thread on hear wooohooo :laughing: anyway, I'm in the market for a new pickup and wanted to get opinions from experienced guys such as you lot. First of all price isn't an issue but a cheaper pickup would be a help. I have a Chapman Guitars ML1 Hotrod and want to change the pickup, I like the JB in it but I feel I could do better. The guitar, if you didn't know, only has a bridge pickup and is made out of swamp ash with a bolt on maple neck and ebony board. I play a lot of Van Halen, Extreme stuff and I love the clarity of Nuno's tone but I am also a stickler for the Brown Sound. I was thinking of getting a Bill and Becky L500XL but have heard mix reviews. I would love a bright, transparent tone that would cut through the mix without being too brittle. Any recommendations?

Welcome to the forum! I love the JB in Swamp Ash personally but it is definitely not for everyone.

I have not yet tried the Bill 'N Becky 500XL (have a guitar project that is drying about to get buffed right now that will have them in them) but I currently have a Walnut San Dimas with a Dimebucker that sounds killer! Not brittle, but definitely is bright and cuts through the mix. I think the 500XL would be a great option for you; however, I am the last one to recommend something for the "Brown Sound"...so I will leave that to other forum bros.

 

[official_vieira]

Re: Another 'What pickup should I get?' Thread, I'm So Sorry

Welcome to the forum! I love the JB in Swamp Ash personally but it is definitely not for everyone.

I have not yet tried the Bill 'N Becky 500XL (have a guitar project that is drying about to get buffed right now that will have them in them) but I currently have a Walnut San Dimas with a Dimebucker that sounds killer! Not brittle, but definitely is bright and cuts through the mix. I think the 500XL would be a great option for you; however, I am the last one to recommend something for the "Brown Sound"...so I will leave that to other forum bros.

I do love the JB but I just wanna try other pickups, if I prefer the JB I can always just reinstall it. Thanks for the reply, apparently the L500XL and Dimebucker are very similarly voiced just have slightly different EQ and output and I'm not looking for high output so that's fine. I love the Brown Sound but I'm not obsessed over it, anything in the ball aprk is fine with me. I also wanna try and develop my own sound but I'm only 14 and I've been playing for a year and a half so I have a way to go playing wise.

 

[formula73]

Re: Another 'What pickup should I get?' Thread, I'm So Sorry

The XL is LOUD but sounds like exactly what you want. There are some times, some amps, where it can be super harsh but I'm not familiar with the HT5 so I can't talk about it, either way. I can say it's perfectly capable of the brown sound through the right amp...hell...EVH went through about a zillion pickup/amp/guitar changes over the years.

Give it a shot. At worst, you're out $60 for a brand new one. Keep all the parts/paper/box and sell it if you don't like it.

 

[official_vieira]

Re: Another 'What pickup should I get?' Thread, I'm So Sorry

The XL is LOUD but sounds like exactly what you want. There are some times, some amps, where it can be super harsh but I'm not familiar with the HT5 so I can't talk about it, either way. I can say it's perfectly capable of the brown sound through the right amp...hell...EVH went through about a zillion pickup/amp/guitar changes over the years.

Give it a shot. At worst, you're out $60 for a brand new one. Keep all the parts/paper/box and sell it if you don't like it.

Yeah, I'll give it a shot, a big part of tone is in the fingers so I can guess that's why EVH has kept a consistent sound, I do have a similar, aggressive style like Eddie and I'm trying to learn some funky stuff like Nuno though recently also. Will the Bill Lawrence fit in the pickup cavity? I've had experiences with EMG's not fitting and having to sand out the pickup cavities and I don't want to do that again. Also, what would you recommend out of the Bill And Becky and Bill Lawrence USA? I've heard the Bill And Becky can be better or worse and the BLUSA are consistent but the opinions are usually mixed about BL.

 

[Artie]

Re: Another 'What pickup should I get?' Thread, I'm So Sorry

On a side note: don't be "sorry" for asking us about pickup advice. It's what we live for.

Welcome to the forum.

Artie

 

[official_vieira]

Re: Another 'What pickup should I get?' Thread, I'm So Sorry

On a side note: don't be "sorry" for asking us about pickup advice. It's what we live for.

Welcome to the forum.

Artie

It's just cus it's such an oversaturated subject, people asking what pickup for this etc. but thanks :bigok:

 

[Mr. B]

Re: Another 'What pickup should I get?' Thread, I'm So Sorry

You say you are a stickler for the Brown Sound, but then say you want a bright transparent tone. To my ears, those are two contradictory tones.

 

[official_vieira]

Re: Another 'What pickup should I get?' Thread, I'm So Sorry

You say you are a stickler for the Brown Sound, but then say you want a bright transparent tone. To my ears, those are two contradictory tones.

Yeah I know, I mentioned it because I want to able to achieve that when I need to, not on point but in the right ball park.

 

[treyhaislip]

Re: Another 'What pickup should I get?' Thread, I'm So Sorry

Yeah, I'll give it a shot, a big part of tone is in the fingers so I can guess that's why EVH has kept a consistent sound, I do have a similar, aggressive style like Eddie and I'm trying to learn some funky stuff like Nuno though recently also. Will the Bill Lawrence fit in the pickup cavity? I've had experiences with EMG's not fitting and having to sand out the pickup cavities and I don't want to do that again. Also, what would you recommend out of the Bill And Becky and Bill Lawrence USA? I've heard the Bill And Becky can be better or worse and the BLUSA are consistent but the opinions are usually mixed about BL.

Bill Lawrence the man passed away recently--Wilde/Bill 'N Becky Lawrence is the last operations of the man himself (his wife, Becky, operates it and ati makes the pickups) and Bill Lawrence USA is run by Bill Lawrence's old business partner. After owning a Bill Lawrence USA set and a "Wilde" Bill 'N Becky set (ordered and delivered this year) the build quality of Bill 'N Becky is night and day from the Bill Lawrence USA. The BLUSA feels very cheap looks poorly made while the Wilde look and feel like much higher quality pickups. I've yet to try either of them out (guitar is about to finishing drying to be buffed) but first impressions are I would say get 'em from Wilde Bill and not BLUSA. If you order brand new if may take awhile--They are still hand made out in California and they don't have a large staff by any means.

The Dimebucker is awesome and I would recommend it as well. It gets great harmonics and is truly a misunderstood pickup--most people think of it as only for Dimebag's sound (which it will do) but it can do so much more! Very versatile voicing and will definitely cut thru any mix. It's built with Seymour Duncan quality and is a great pickup (loud and high output but can be tamed.)

 

[official_vieira]

Re: Another 'What pickup should I get?' Thread, I'm So Sorry

Bill Lawrence the man passed away recently--Wilde/Bill 'N Becky Lawrence is the last operations of the man himself (his wife, Becky, operates it and ati makes the pickups) and Bill Lawrence USA is run by Bill Lawrence's old business partner. After owning a Bill Lawrence USA set and a "Wilde" Bill 'N Becky set (ordered and delivered this year) the build quality of Bill 'N Becky is night and day from the Bill Lawrence USA. The BLUSA feels very cheap looks poorly made while the Wilde look and feel like much higher quality pickups. I've yet to try either of them out (guitar is about to finishing drying to be buffed) but first impressions are I would say get 'em from Wilde Bill and not BLUSA. If you order brand new if may take awhile--They are still hand made out in California and they don't have a large staff by any means.

The Dimebucker is awesome and I would recommend it as well. It gets great harmonics and is truly a misunderstood pickup--most people think of it as only for Dimebag's sound (which it will do) but it can do so much more! Very versatile voicing and will definitely cut thru any mix. It's built with Seymour Duncan quality and is a great pickup (loud and high output but can be tamed.)

Thanks for the info. I'll probably try to find a second hand B&B, if not I'll just order new but the thing I'm worried about is will the L500XL pickups fit in a standard humbucker body route?

 

[Gibson 1964]

Re: Another 'What pickup should I get?' Thread, I'm So Sorry

Thanks for the info. I'll probably try to find a second hand B&B, if not I'll just order new but the thing I'm worried about is will the L500XL pickups fit in a standard humbucker body route?

Why go secondhand? They are pretty inexpensive. The Wilde is way fuller than the BLUSA. The BLUSA is harsh and brittle, and nasty. I would highly recommend against a BLUSA after having tried both. An l500 will fit in a normal humbucker route, and also, a p90 route. (Odd little fact)

 

[Chickenwings]

Re: Another 'What pickup should I get?' Thread, I'm So Sorry

5 watt amp...

perhaps you should look at amps that before worrying too much about pickups.

 

[formula73]

Re: Another 'What pickup should I get?' Thread, I'm So Sorry

Yep. They fit snug in a P90 rout. In fact, the old L550s and L560s just basically added wings to the ends to fill the ends of the cavity. If you put one in a normal humbucker rout, it will look strange unless you use the pickup ring because they're smaller than normal hums. I posted a V in Metalmaniac's pointy thread that originally came with EMGs that were shaved a little to fit the routs really tight. There's space all around the L500/L600 combo in it.

 

[formula73]

Re: Another 'What pickup should I get?' Thread, I'm So Sorry

wait a sec.....

what amp are you using?

OP says Blackstar HT5.

 

[loversmoon]

Re: Another 'What pickup should I get?' Thread, I'm So Sorry

Have you considered anything in the custom family?

 

[official_vieira]

Re: Another 'What pickup should I get?' Thread, I'm So Sorry

Why go secondhand? They are pretty inexpensive. The Wilde is way fuller than the BLUSA. The BLUSA is harsh and brittle, and nasty. I would highly recommend against a BLUSA after having tried both. An l500 will fit in a normal humbucker route, and also, a p90 route. (Odd little fact)

I wanted to go second hand because I'd be able to receive the pickup quicker than if I ordered straight from Wilde pickups. Also good to hear they'll fit.

5 watt amp...

perhaps you should look at amps that before worrying too much about pickups.

The HT-5 is plenty loud, especially for a 412. The volume on 4 is enough to hurt the ears of anyone standing in the same room I do sort of want to look for a new amp but I have just got the HT-5 and the 412 and it's my first 'proper' amp.

Yep. They fit snug in a P90 rout. In fact, the old L550s and L560s just basically added wings to the ends to fill the ends of the cavity. If you put one in a normal humbucker rout, it will look strange unless you use the pickup ring because they're smaller than normal hums. I posted a V in Metalmaniac's pointy thread that originally came with EMGs that were shaved a little to fit the routs really tight. There's space all around the L500/L600 combo in it.

Hmmm, I'll have to see if I can find any pics to see if I'd be comfortable because I really don't want to have to install a pickup ring, I've experimented with all this **** on another guitar and (it turned out great btw) I don't really wanna experiment as much on the Chapman.

Have you considered anything in the custom family?

Yes, I was thinking about maybe a SD '78, but I feel like it would suite VH and VH alone.

 

[vinta9e]

Re: Another 'What pickup should I get?' Thread, I'm So Sorry

Welcome aboard!

I urge you to skip the pickup swapping tomfoolery for now, grasshopper. The JB is actually a great compromise between the plush brown sound and Nuno's sizzling razorblade. And yours is the 35th anniversary special edition, if I remember correctly. I've heard a JB fail to deliver its best at times but I really, honestly doubt the pickup being a weak point in your tone chain.

Don't fix what ain't broke but instead set it up and play that guitar to shreds, young lad. :fing2:

 

[official_vieira]

Re: Another 'What pickup should I get?' Thread, I'm So Sorry

Welcome aboard!

I urge you to skip the pickup swapping tomfoolery for now, grasshopper. The JB is actually a great compromise between the plush brown sound and Nuno's sizzling razorblade. And yours is the 35th anniversary special edition, if I remember correctly. I've heard a JB fail to deliver its best at times but I really, honestly doubt the pickup being a weak point in your tone chain.

Don't fix what ain't broke but instead set it up and play that guitar to shreds, young lad. :fing2:

It doesn't have the 35th anniversary, those only came in the first run of the ML1 Hotrod. I do like the sound of my setup at the moment but I just want to experiment with different things. If I prefer the JB I can always go back to it.

 

[treyhaislip]

Re: Another 'What pickup should I get?' Thread, I'm So Sorry

You don't have to do a pickup ring (all of the 500XLs I've bought came with them.) Van Halen's Frankenstrat had a tone of room around the bridge pickup

View attachment 66279

If you can find one used then that would be the quickest way to get one. I ordered from Becky and it took about 2 months or so from when I paid to when I got the pickups–International shipping would most likely make it longer.

I agree with others that the JB is most likely not your weak point in your tone change BUT I will say changing pickups is fun and educational. Pickups react and respond differently so I would say give it a shot and have fun!