Bridge HB for Ibanez AZ2204: '59/Custom Hybrid vs Custom 5 vs Perpetual Burn (with 250k pots?)

[giuswestside]

Hey everyone,

I’m looking to swap out the pickups in my Ibanez AZ2204 (alder body, roasted maple neck and fretboard, standard tremolo) and could use some advice from the experts here.

For the single coils in the neck and middle, I'm going with a pair of SSL-2s. Because I want to keep those single coils sounding sweet and not too piercing, I’m planning to run the whole rig with a 250k volume pot.

For the bridge humbucker, I’ve narrowed it down to three choices:

• '59/Custom Hybrid
• Custom 5
• Perpetual Burn (Jason Becker)

I'm trying to figure out which of these will pair best with the SSL-2s in an alder/maple bolt-on guitar. My main questions are:

How do these three compare tonally in this type of wood combo? 2. How will each of them react to seeing a 250k pot? I know 500k is the standard for humbuckers, so I want to make sure my choice won't get overly dark, muddy, or lose its cut in a mix when choked down to 250k.

Any insights, tonal descriptions, or personal experiences you have with these pickups, especially when paired with 250k pots, would be hugely appreciated!

Thanks in advance!

 

[AdrianSD]

Welcome to the forum!
You might find the JB quite a good match with the 250k pot.

 

[Mincer]

I don't think any of these would sound muddy with 250k pots, but the Hybrid would be closest in volume, if balance between the pickups is important to you. All 3 would sound great in the guitar, too. I would think the PB has more mids, while the C5 is the most scooped.

 

[STLMTLHD79]

Dont like the Hyperion set those came with? I happen to really like those pickups, i just didnt like the guitar (i had the pink-ish one).

 

[giuswestside]

Dont like the Hyperion set those came with? I happen to really like those pickups, i just didnt like the guitar (i had the pink-ish one).

I like them, but I do not love them. Especially the configuration where both single coils are wired in series