Ash Strat humbucker?

1

11macj

New member
Hey all, this is my first post on this forum.

I have a Mexican HSS fat strat, serial says from '94 or '95. It has an ash body. I'm satisfied with everything about it... except the humbucker. What I'm looking for is something hot with great distortion. I'm not concerned with getting good cleans from the new one, as I'm satisfied with what I get from the single coils. I'd like to tighten up my distortion, because as it stands right now Panama sounds like a chorus of dying cats.

I was fortunate enough to get a YouTube comment response directly from Larry DiMarzio (supposedly), and he suggested the DiMarzio 36th anniversary bridge model, and I was also looking at the Super Distortion (also DiMarzio). What other suggestions can I get? Keep in mind:

"fat" ash body
vintage trem
MOAR DISTORTION, even if I sacrifice cleans

Thanks!
 
Re: Ash Strat humbucker?

Welcome.

You might want to comment more on what you want to play (is EVH tones what you are after?) and what your amp rig is made up of.

Custom Custom for EVH tones.
Duncan Distortion for brutal and tight
Super Distortion for more of a Maiden / Priest tone
Invader might work good to darken the tone
I'd avoid a JB since you have a scatchy tone already
 
Re: Ash Strat humbucker?

I have a Peavey Envoy 110, with transtube. I use my brother's Boss Metal Zone for distortion mostly.

I like EVH a lot, but by no means do I want to sound"just like him." I'm at the point where I'm trying to find "my own" sound, but I guess what I'm looking for is similar to EVH but maybe a little darker and/or more in-your-face, if you know what I mean. What's the tonal difference between a ceramic and an Alnico V? I've heard they're a bit hotter, and last longer, is this true?

Thanks for the input!
 
Re: Ash Strat humbucker?

Ceramic Is supposed to have a tighter low end and a powerful rock sound to melt some faces.
Alnico 5 is trelby, made to counteract darker tone woods (supposedly).

I say try a Super Distortion as a base. If you don't like it, use that as your point of reference for comparison.
 
Re: Ash Strat humbucker?

Does anyone know what the return policies are like for sites like MF? Would I be able to install, test, and then possibly uninstall and return a pickup?
 
Re: Ash Strat humbucker?

I think if that was the case I'd start with the Duncan Distortion, then go from there.
 
Re: Ash Strat humbucker?

nah dude, start with a custom custom. it'll get you "VH 'n' more". you obviously won't get too close, but it's a good starting point. if you don't like the spongy a2 character, you can always switch out the magnet for an a5 to make it a c5, or a ceramic to make it a duncan custom.

if you don't swap magnets though, duncan has their own return policy. imo, you'd be better served getting a used pickup off of the trading post here.
 
Re: Ash Strat humbucker?

Get something with an A2 mag to round out the sound. Unfortunately, the chorus of dying cats is likely a by-product of a small ss amp, a metal zone and a cheap ceramic 'bucker. Before you start going gangbusters to get a sound that may never happen solely because of your rig, try working with pickup & screw heights, as well as backing off the distortion levels on both the amp and the pedal. Try starting with B/M/T all at 12 o'clock, and adjust accordingly.

If none of those things work at all, then give a new pickup a shot. Good luck in the search!
 
Re: Ash Strat humbucker?

Dimarzio Super Distortion. Easy enough to sell if it doesn't work for you.
 
Re: Ash Strat humbucker?

Jay 77 said:
Get something with an A2 mag to round out the sound. Unfortunately, the chorus of dying cats is likely a by-product of a small ss amp, a metal zone and a cheap ceramic 'bucker. Before you start going gangbusters to get a sound that may never happen solely because of your rig, try working with pickup & screw heights, as well as backing off the distortion levels on both the amp and the pedal. Try starting with B/M/T all at 12 o'clock, and adjust accordingly.

If none of those things work at all, then give a new pickup a shot. Good luck in the search!
Click to expand...


Actually, the only thing out of those I haven't tried is adjusting the height. I'll give it a shot.

I must say I'm not too fond of my amp. I'm gonna try to sell it within the next 6 months or so, and upgrade when I can.
 
Re: Ash Strat humbucker?

So actually... right now I'm thinking it would be best to get the new amp first. In the store where I first played my strat I ran it through a Fender Frontman 212, which was great so I'm probably gonna look for that first.

Thank you everyone for your help!
 
Re: Ash Strat humbucker?

11macj said:
So actually... right now I'm thinking it would be best to get the new amp first. In the store where I first played my strat I ran it through a Fender Frontman 212, which was great so I'm probably gonna look for that first.

Thank you everyone for your help!
Click to expand...

Good luck man. I'll keep my fingers crossed that the amp won't just sound like a larger chorus of dying cats.
 
Re: Ash Strat humbucker?

11macj said:
So actually... right now I'm thinking it would be best to get the new amp first. In the store where I first played my strat I ran it through a Fender Frontman 212, which was great so I'm probably gonna look for that first.

Thank you everyone for your help!
Click to expand...

Smart move.

If you adjust your guitar for your current amp, your guitar "might" sound bad with the new/better amp you get.
 
Re: Ash Strat humbucker?

The Frontman 212 seems to be popular, but it's still a SS. May not sound any richer than your Transtube.
 
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