Bridge HB search continues

[alex1fly]

I'm getting close, but am not quite yet satisfied with the bridge pickup in my PRS SE Custom. The neck pickup is a Jazz that I've swapped some Full Shred hex head screws into, and I'm quite pleased with it. It's articulate, juicy, responsive, and the sound really pops out and feels "natural" at all levels of gain. I play everything from jazz comps to blues leads to Hetfield chuggage, often in the same session, ride the volume/tone knobs a lot, and I feel that the Jazz really delivers what I'm trying to express in a very neat way. I'm hoping for more of these qualities in my bridge pickup as well.
Here's what's been in the bridge spot of this axe:
85/15s - stock pickup. Full PAF-ish sound, bright Tele-ish split sound. Very articulate. Might end up going back to it - it had a lot of good sounds, but I like the search.
JB - liked it for many things, but couldn't tighten it up enough for my tastes in thrash metal. Also it sounded kind of like a piezo pickup, which continually confused me.
Air Zone - nice full sound, a little loose and "slow" to react, and the sound was a little "manufactured".
Norton - been in there a couple months. Took several weeks of playing/adjusting to get a pleasant sound. Even now the sounds are a bit congested, a bit flat, a bit *extra* in the higher frequencies in an unpleasant way. Works great for many things, but I can't say that I'm happy with it the way I'm happy with the Jazz.

Here's what I'm considering:
Jazz bridge model. Why not try the matched set?
P-Rails and Triple Shot. With 3 modes, one has to work for me right?
PAF Pro. I have one in my SG bridge spot and it does all the things I listed above in that guitar, so maybe it's worth trying here too. It'd also be neat to have that direct comparison between axes.
Black Winter. Somewhat curious to try a metal-voiced pickup, and this one seems well regarded as one that can clean up and be versatile as well.
Custom. Iconic but I've never tried one.
Full Shred. Curiosity.
Magnet swaps in the Norton to bring the output and the highs down.

Y'all think my head is in the right place here?

 

[Mr. B]

I'd say go for the Jazz bridge or a Screamin Demon.

 

[Mincer]

I'd say go for the metal. A Black Winter or a Sentient will be as tight as you ever need.

 

[pskorz]

I’m in a similar boat-I like the stock neck very well. The bridge 85/15s is good and sounds great when split. There’s not a logical need to change it for me other than looking for a little more oomph.

im inclined to recommend you get a custom or a JB (which you’ve already had, so that takes care of that).

otherwise, I think the full shred would be a good candidate. It’s nice sounding and articulate, and I think would pair and sound really nice with a jazz neck.

 

[NYCTone]

I ran a 59/59 combo in a Les Paul for awhile and was always blown away with how versatile it was. I think the Jazz bridge would be in the same ball park. Easier to boost a lower output pickup to imitate a higher output one. There's an organic sound from low output pickups that you just can't get.

 

[Benjy_26]

I'd say go for the Jazz bridge or a Screamin Demon.

The Demon is highly underrated

 

[alex1fly]

Thanks. I go back and forth between wanting to be done swapping pickups and wanting to try new ones for grins. Ah well

 

[Demanic]

No one's mentioned the Distortion?
Forshame!

Sent from my SM-A115A using Tapatalk

 

[Ascension]

I really like the combo of a Jazz neck an a Perpetual Burn in the bridge I have in my Purple quilt Carvin DC 127. The PB and Jazz seem to really match well in tone and output.
Good demo of the PB.https://youtu.be/_a0HblQ6VlU

 

[dave74]

El Diablo might be a good fit with the hex-jazz but it's more$,,,,,,,,, and the BW having the full size white logo would match better cosmetically.

 

[alex1fly]

The Demon is highly underrated

I'd forgotten about the Demon! Always been curious about this one. Thinking Jazz, Demon, FS, or Black Winter would all fit my goals of open/uncompressed/articulate/clear

 

[Benjy_26]

I'd forgotten about the Demon! Always been curious about this one. Thinking Jazz, Demon, FS, or Black Winter would all fit my goals of open/uncompressed/articulate/clear

The Demon can be tricky to dial in, but it's tight, open, and has a surprising amount of low end. Palm muted chugs really jump from the speakers. A cool bonus is that it can mimic a PAF type if you play it right and it makes for a pretty cool neck pickup.

 

[eclecticsynergy]

+1 on the Demon. And the Perpetual Burn.
You might also consider using the Distortion neck as a bridge pickup.