APH-1b in bridge + SH-2b in neck - not satisfied

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pacho

New member
Hi everybody! This is my first post.
The guitar is 1976 set neck Ibanez LP. It had very nice stock pickups, unpotted PAF style Alnico V, around 8kOhm. Decided to replace them because the bridge pup had not enough mids for me and neck pup seemed a little muddy, plus I wanted to be able to split them and combine one coil from bridge and one coil from neck to have virtual 3rd humbucker.
So I went with APH1 in bridge. I love the mids but it sounds too polite to me. I like gain :) - GN'R, Aerosmith and Sex Pistols kind of palm muting. I know PGs are more aggresive but I'm afraid of having too much treble - my amp is very bright (Marshall Studio 15) and I play with treble on 0.
For neck I chose JAZZ. I found bridge version for ridiculous money. The pup is nice but I'm looking for something else. I'm using neck pickup for chords with low gain. I like clean sound with little dirt layered on top of it when I roll off vol pot. With JAZZ its not possible. The pup seems compressed and very creamy and it doesn't really clean up. I want something nastier and less nasal.

What would you suggest? Will some magnet swapping solve my problems? maybe put A2 from APH1 in JAZZ and A5 in APH1?? I'm affraid it would totally transform aph and I would loose mids and get too much treble. Where do aph mids come from, A2 only?

Michał
 
Re: APH-1b in bridge + SH-2b in neck - not satisfied

the aph and the jazz are the same wind so you might as well swap pups rather than swap magnets but i dont think that will help. the jazz bridge is not the same as a jazz neck. the bridge model is darker and has more output giving it that creamy tone you dont like.

putting an a3 magnet in the neck and a8 in the bridge might help
 
Re: APH-1b in bridge + SH-2b in neck - not satisfied

Thanks for suggestions. It surprises me that there is so much difference between jazz bridge and neck versions. They're both between 7 and 8 kohm. The stock Maxon Pup was also a5 and slightly over 8ohm. Wasn't creamy at all!
You say aph and jazz are the same wind. The resistance is the same but wire color is different. I saw SD factory tour on youtube and they said the color indicates wire type...
I might try a8 in bridge or maybe uoa5? For neck: Doesn't a2 sound more or less like a3?
 
Re: APH-1b in bridge + SH-2b in neck - not satisfied

not necessarily. poly wire can be any color you want.

a3 has more high end and less low mids than a2. uoa5 is a great magnet for vintage tones and will have more high end and bottom than a2, i like it a lot in the bridge
 
Re: APH-1b in bridge + SH-2b in neck - not satisfied

jeremy said:
not necessarily. poly wire can be any color you want.
Click to expand...
I know, but I understood they use different color of poly to mark different wires. Not 100% sure though. My APH wire is gold in color and jazz is kind of red (like red hair). Anyway the pickups are probably similiar and it would be smarter to try them in different positions instead of swaping their magnets.
In case it doesn't work I guess UOA5 in bridge and A3 in neck could be nice, plus there is a chance output would be balanced with both pickups having equal resistance.
 
Re: APH-1b in bridge + SH-2b in neck - not satisfied

a3 is weaker than uoa5, by setting the heights properly i dont think you should have a volume balance issue
 
Re: APH-1b in bridge + SH-2b in neck - not satisfied

Personally I prefer the jazz neck in the neck position and the jazz bridge in the bridge position.
 
Re: APH-1b in bridge + SH-2b in neck - not satisfied

jazz neck in the neck position does make sense ;)

these are both bridge pups though
 
Re: APH-1b in bridge + SH-2b in neck - not satisfied

Yeah I will try to put Jazz bridge where it belongs and see if I like it. There's so little information about SH-2b, I wonder why nobody uses it.
I might also have good luck with APH-1b in neck slot - specs look very similiar to APH-2n!
 
Re: APH-1b in bridge + SH-2b in neck - not satisfied

I use the SH-2b and so does another forum guy named Jolly. It's one of my favorite bridge humbuckers that I've ever used. I understand it's not for everybody but I really love it.
 
Re: APH-1b in bridge + SH-2b in neck - not satisfied

I swapped magnets between the pups in the end cause I was too lazy to solder cables :)
What I got is basicaly jazz bridge in bridge position and aph bridge in neck position.
I LOVE jazz bridge!!! It's kind o trebly but I like it. Has a very nice tight bass and sounds great with marshall. It's nastier than aph brigde but still smooth.
I didn't get what I wanted with neck pup. Still too muddy when playing chords. But it is beautiful for lead. Sounds kind of single coilish to me. Very pleasant. I'd like to keep this characteristic but get rid of mud. I think I'll try a3.
 
Re: APH-1b in bridge + SH-2b in neck - not satisfied

I think your pickups were probably fine for what you described.
How long has its been since you changed the tubes on your amp?
 
Re: APH-1b in bridge + SH-2b in neck - not satisfied

I never changed them. Although my amp is from 1985 it was barely used. Looks like new and my tech said it is in mint condition.
 
Re: APH-1b in bridge + SH-2b in neck - not satisfied

I start to think it might be the amp that makes my neck pup muddy and not able to clean up. Is it possible the small 1x12 combo can't cope with bottom end?
 
Re: APH-1b in bridge + SH-2b in neck - not satisfied

A 1x12 cab handles the low end notoriously bad.

That being sauf, what settings have you dialed on your amp? May make a world of difference.

The 'jazz' wind takes the alnico8 really well for a bridge pickup. Hot, thick Mids and singing highs. Think a Michael schenker style vibe. For the neck, try an Alnico 4. Not as scooped, sharp in high end and boomy in low end as a5, not as thick, creamy and slightly honky as a2.
 
Re: APH-1b in bridge + SH-2b in neck - not satisfied

Probably tried all possible settings. When playing with my band I set mid and bass around 6. Usually slightly less bass. Treble 0, this amp is really bright. Volume around 6 and gain from 6 to 8. It's marshall studio 15 (jcm800 family, 4001 model) tube amp, 15 watt, 6v6 power section.I have to keep treble down with any guitar. Swapped original v30 for heritage greenback. It reduced harshness. This amp becomes totally different animal with 2x12 cabinet - sounds like jcm800, but I didn't check neck pickup with external cabinet :/
I was thinking bout a4 for neck too..
What does honky mean when talking bout pickups?
 
Re: APH-1b in bridge + SH-2b in neck - not satisfied

Today I tried the guitar with my new toy, Marshall JCM800 BASS SERIES 1986 model and Marshall 2196 (70's cabinet, 2x12 in 4x12 housing, v30+mckenzie speakers). I used pedals - EHX English Muff'n (plexi circuit tube preamp) and tubescreamer as clean boost. There was NO MUD and it cleaned up beautifuly.
Although mudiness problem with neck pickup was probably caused by amp from the beginning, I'm glad I did mag swap. APHb with A5 and SH-2b with A2 sound great.
Thanks for all suggestions. I'll buy A3, A4, UOA5, A8 and experiment anyway.
 
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