Bridge pickup for PUNK ROCK?

[Myaccount876]

Re: Bridge pickup for PUNK ROCK?

For punk, use a guitar and an amp. Then all you have to do is turn it up until your ears are bleeding, which isn't loud enough.

Pretty much it.

 

[FuseG4]

Re: Bridge pickup for PUNK ROCK?

Dimarzio Super D works well too.

 

[Snake Aces]

Re: Bridge pickup for PUNK ROCK?

Punk is an attitude, punk is about showmanship as well. Put on a good show, practice a lot to get tight and comfortable so you can jump around and have fun with it but now with almost 40 years of history punk has it's tones as well.

For example, the Ramones made the "buzzsaw" tone famous using a single coil sound. The history of Punk is now full of many tones and sure, a lot of people after the Ramones were using Les Pauls because the warmth of the humbucker can really carry a 3-piece band well if dialed in correctly using a nice tube amplifier. That doesn't make it the only option but IMO it makes it the best option for modern punk tone. Cool to moderate output humbuckers work really good with a nice high gain tube amplifier though. Again, we're not talking the need to shred here, it's punk, your main focus should by rhythm technique and warmth.

 

[Securb]

Re: Bridge pickup for PUNK ROCK?

Well, you are on the right track with the les paul. My favorite punk player of all time used les pauls through a mesa boogie. He is Mick Jones of the Clash, definitely the greatest and most under-rated punk player of all time in my opinion.

Steve Jones was a Les Paul guy also - awesome tone.

Really for punk... just about anything. Punk is routing a Danlectro with a screwdriver and chisel to fit a jazz master pickup cause the lipstick tube broke... Thats punk.


If you want to be more gear fanboyish about it I would go with a JB. The Distortion and Custom are great but too many guys using them wind up sounding metal not punk.

So true when I was in a punk band I played a Kent beater SG with a single coil. Most punk guitarists I have know have just been happy to have a guitar they didn't give a crap about what it was. Punk is about attitude more than the slight differences between pickups.

 

[CUCA]

Re: Bridge pickup for PUNK ROCK?

thanks for the responses!

I think is a cliche when people saids: "It's punk rock. Just use whatever you can steal". Is true, Punk is mostly attitude (attitude in concordance whit music I think), but actually i'm talking about sound. 80's and 90's punk are not the same, the sound is different.

The punk bands I listen uses Mesa Boogie Dual Rect, but I don't have the money for that amp, in my country these amps are too expensive. I think goes to a JetCity 22h or a Laney. In this circunstances the pickups have more importance lol.

Thanks again

 

[alteredbeast]

Re: Bridge pickup for PUNK ROCK?

Isn't one supposed to steal any guitar, any amp, and turn it up real loud on the clean channel and blaze cats' faces off? in terms of "real" punk?

 

[Edgecrusher]

Re: Bridge pickup for PUNK ROCK?

The punk bands I listen uses Mesa Boogie Dual Rect, but I don't have the money for that amp, in my country these amps are too expensive. I think goes to a JetCity 22h or a Laney. In this circunstances the pickups have more importance lol.

Actually no it wouldnt have more importance. In any genre not just punk your sound is the sum of the parts, trying to make a Laney sound like a Mesa by only swapping pups is digging for gold in a coal mine. A better approach would be, This is my guitar this is my amp I dont like x and y about the tone I get now how can i get more/less/tighter/looser bass/highs/mids/output/etc.

 

[CUCA]

Re: Bridge pickup for PUNK ROCK?

Actually no it wouldnt have more importance. In any genre not just punk your sound is the sum of the parts, trying to make a Laney sound like a Mesa by only swapping pups is digging for gold in a coal mine. A better approach would be, This is my guitar this is my amp I dont like x and y about the tone I get now how can i get more/less/tighter/looser bass/highs/mids/output/etc.

Sorry, what is "swapping pups" ?

 

[Snake Aces]

Re: Bridge pickup for PUNK ROCK?

swapping pups means changing the guitar pickups

 

[SoundAt11]

Re: Bridge pickup for PUNK ROCK?

I love the Custom, but for me, it's always been a classic rock or hard rock pickup. When I think Punk, I think attitude and a snotty, aggressive guitar that stands out with lots of mids and highs. That's totally the JB.

 

[HTT]

Re: Bridge pickup for PUNK ROCK?

Well, you are on the right track with the les paul. My favorite punk player of all time used les pauls through a mesa boogie. He is Mick Jones of the Clash, definitely the greatest and most under-rated punk player of all time in my opinion. A great punk tone whether looking for vintage or modern starts with the amp, you need warmth like a Mesa or a Marshall with tubes. My favorite modern punk tone is MxPx. Just all gibsons all the time, with the 57 classics for pickups through... you guessed it, a mesa boogie! So, the JB just may be too hot as will be the custom custom, etc. Get the right amp and something like 59's should do the trick.

Didn't Mick Jones favor P90s due to his love of LP Jrs.? http://www2.gibson.com/News-Lifestyle/Features/en-us/mick-jones-1106.aspx

Back to addressing the OP. As has been said, punk is an attitude more than gear, per se. Most classic punk guitarists use(d) single coils like P90s. I say get a Taylor and trail blaze acoustic punk. (edit: oops, Violent Femmes already did that years ago) Or even more off the wall, get a dulcimer and do bluegrass punk.

 

[VHTJay]

Re: Bridge pickup for PUNK ROCK?

Hey bro,

The dudes telling you to play any amp/pickup/guitar for what you're after are clueless and really shouldn't be giving you advice. The technical skate punk bands (Strung out, NOFX, A Wilhelm Scream, Belvedere, etc) play through modern high gain amps and many of the players put just as much emphasis in to gear selection as the metal guys. I played in 3 skate punk bands in the late 90's through early 00's; played guitar in one of them. My rig was a mesa dual rec and a Les Paul double cut and an SG standard. The DC had a Custom5 and it sounded so good it stayed there 'til I sold it. The SG initially had a Custom in there, but I switched to a Distortion.

My opinion: if you are playing leads, the Distortion is your huckleberry. Aggressive midrange and top end that is definitely much more up front than either Custom so you'll cut through a mix. It also stays nice and tight for the fast staccato palm mute rhythm playing you'll likely be doing in your band.

Two other contenders from the Duncan line that also rip for skate punk: The Screamin 'Demon and Full shred. The 'Demon has low/moderate output and a PAF(ish) voicing with a little single coil snap thrown in.

 

[Snake Aces]

Re: Bridge pickup for PUNK ROCK?

Didn't Mick Jones favor P90s due to his love of LP Jrs.? http://www2.gibson.com/News-Lifestyle/Features/en-us/mick-jones-1106.aspx

Back to addressing the OP. As has been said, punk is an attitude more than gear, per se. Most classic punk guitarists use(d) single coils like P90s. I say get a Taylor and trail blaze acoustic punk. (edit: oops, Violent Femmes already did that years ago) Or even more off the wall, get a dulcimer and do bluegrass punk.

Yeah, he used at least one of those. Most of his work from London Calling was on a full LP with normal humbuckers. He was seen playing a few full humbucker LP's in his live performances including a heritage cherry burst and an all-white LP (both were as gorgeous as they sounded).

 

[Snake Aces]

Re: Bridge pickup for PUNK ROCK?

Mike Ness of Social Distortion uses a classic goldtop Gibson Les Paul with P-90's as well. I believe he plays it through a Marshall. It's a nice warm tone.

 

[Edgecrusher]

Re: Bridge pickup for PUNK ROCK?

Mike Ness of Social Distortion uses a classic goldtop Gibson Les Paul with P-90's as well. I believe he plays it through a Marshall. It's a nice warm tone.

No he uses modded black face bassmans.

 

[Snake Aces]

Re: Bridge pickup for PUNK ROCK?

No he uses modded black face bassmans.

I stand corrected, I haven't seen them play live since 2004

 

[Lucy Diamond]

Re: Bridge pickup for PUNK ROCK?

From experience...and I mean...I grew up around bands like Agent Orange, Black Flag (pre Rollins) Avail, The Fiendz and State of Survial...they mostly used stock pickups through cranked amps.


Now...the more FUN answer to your question is The Duncan Distortion with no logo!!!

Punk good.

Advertising bad.

NO LOGO.

;o )

Enjoy.


PS - When people start asking you about your sound, you have to be all unimpressed with yourself and be like "I don't know man, it's just some $h!t I found." and hand them your 7" single.

\m/,

 

[BloodRose]

Re: Bridge pickup for PUNK ROCK?

Lucy Diamond hit on it best... put together as nice a rig as you can, cuz you want to present a good product. But then act like its not important.

As far as suggestions.. I was thinking along page one that you should go JB or custom, but if you are running an amp like a jet city or someth like that, maybe you should go with a distortion for more gusto. you can always roll the volume off some to clean it up a tad.
Good luck

 

[Brow]

Re: Bridge pickup for PUNK ROCK?

1 of the bands I'm in is a "Punk" (a very wide term so I'll cover myself!) covers band and play stuff like Sex Pistols, Buzzcocks, Ten Pole Tudor, Ramones, Misfits, Toy Dolls, Undertones, Green Day, Blink, plus some others I can't remember off the top of my head. I'm not getting into the debate/argument of what is and isn't 'proper' punk, we do the band to have a bit of fun, people have a sing along, dance around and drink beer and we get paid for it too

At the minute my main guitar for the band is a JJ Jewel, which is akin to a double cut Les Paul Jnr with P90s. But I also use LPs (BKP high output and PAF style pups), Strats (BKP bridge humbuckers mainly, but sometimes single coils), Firebird (Dimarzio Super D/Super 2), I've also been known to use a Tele with a BKP Broadcaster type bridge pickup. All work for the band, and it just depends on the mood I'm in at the time, and which has freshest strings, as to what guitar I grab and take with me.

Amp wise for this band I use an SLO clone (mainly) on the Crunch channel with an OD pedal infront and either a 1x12 or 2x12 cab.

I'm not really interested in what the guys in the original bands played, I'm not out to copy any of them tonally, I just use what I like and a tone that's appropriate for the song. I do have some guitars that I don't use for this band, PRS CU22/Superstrats/Flying V etc, but that's more to do with the pickups I have in those particular guitars not being what I want tonally for this band rather than the guitars being right for the band. Although in some peoples eyes I guess using a PRS in a punk covers band could be seen as being a bit pompous

 

[njstoehr]

Re: Bridge pickup for PUNK ROCK?

Hi everybody

I'm looking for a hambucker to play hardcore/ punk rock. I want get the sound of bands like Lagwagon, Bad Religion, NOFX, No Use For a Name, old Millencolin, etc.

In my band I play all the solos because the vocalist play the other guitar.

I have a Epi LP standard. Is mohagony body an neck, so i think JB is not the best option because is not a brillant guitar at all. I've been thinking in a Duncan Distortion, Custom or Custom Custom, but i don't decided yet.

Thanks and sorry for my poor english!

I went through the same process of trying to find a pickup for an Epi LP for that "punk" sound. I play my dirties through a VOX AC30, and my cleans through a SF Twin Reverb. I wanted a pickup with good bright, articulate cleans but that could also ram my VOX into overdrive but good. I started with an Invader...didn't like it a bit. It was too muddy, if you can believe it, in my LP. Next, a Gibson Dirty Fingers. Actually kinda liked that one, but something was missing, not sure what it was. It almost seemed a little to hot. I ended up putting that in an Epi Dot Studio matched with a Jazz in the neck and love it. Moved on to a JB in the LP, again like the Invader it seemed a little too muddy, not very articulate. There was more brightness than the Invader but the strings weren't individuals, the kinda all blended together. Finally I put a Duncan Distortion in and I fell in love. Paired it with a Jazz in the neck and it is absolutely perfect for me. The thing I like most about the Distortion with my particular set up is that there is plenty of brightness if I want it, lots of punch, and each string stands out but mixes well. I have had the opportunity to play my guitar through a number of different amps and it works amazingly well with all of them and can overdrive anything out there, even the Twin (granted, it is loud as hell).

I would also highly recommend that you change out the electronics if you haven't already. I used 500k log alpha pots because they were a drop in, but if I had to do it all over again, I would use CTS. Don't get me wrong, the alphas are fine, I just use CTS in everything else and like them better. Maybe I am biased a little bit. Replace the caps with, at a minimum, a good film cap. And a '50 style wiring really seemed to "open" my guitar up.

Definitely take advantage of SD's return policy. I have swapped out pickups with SD at least a half a dozen time. The only cost to you is the cost of shipping the pickup back to SD and the roughly week (from the time you drop it on the mailbox) wait to get the new one. The folks at SD are great to talk too and give great advice on what to try out next.

Hope this helps.