Re: custom custom question
yeah i typically use the neck for completely separate stuff than the bridge. sometimes i blend both. i like that round bass, maybe even slightly scooped neck sound that you get in blues. plus a nice octave ring, like the Little Sister Solo, or a number of hendrix or page solos
the thing about the 59 is that it has no interesting character. i find it bright and solid but not special. im not saying its a bland pickup, but maybe a really good pickup for anything. im looking for like an enhancement. i considered the Dc for that reason
as for the screaming demon, i have that feeling like its for tight marshall sounding leads, too much treble and not enough mids
i like my mids to do the beefing and some treble to give it a good edge and then to just sit on my bass. so that in mind which of the suggestions would be the best recommendation? or any other pickup, doesnt have to be high output, maybe even a humbucker size p90?
The Screamin' Demon isn't usually thin, but it's more growl and bite, not so much midrange wail.
You might like something like the P-Rails (it gets 4 sounds, though the rail single coil gets mixed reactions, most people like the P-90 mode a lot, and tend to like either the parallel (more PAFish) humbucker or the serial (hot, huge humbucker, gets compared to Tone Zone by some) mode . Some dismiss the whole thing as a giant compromise, though.
I don't know if the usual Triple Shot mounting ring would work on your guitar.
Given Gibson used to use their Dirty Fingers hot ceramic pickups on a similar design, I'd be surprised if you couldn't get away with almost any pickup you want, as long as you don't luck into an unfortunate stacked frequency spike that makes it want to feedback all the time.
Sounds like you want something a bit darker & hotter than the '59. Or do you just want more mids? Do you want glassy/smooth highs, or something with a bit more grit? [Note that a genuine Seymour Duncan pickups tend to have more complex character than the overseas Duncan Designed pickups. Which aren't bad, for their price they're great, and they're hugely better than the junk often loaded into lowend guitars.]
Something like a Custom 8 might be great. Or even the original ceramic Custom, though that might have too much bite for your uses.
For tight, blazing chunky riffs and defined leads, a Full Shred bridge. (Downside is it has a bit of the cocked wah thing going on, in some setups, which is a bit of a love it or hate it thing). A lot of people love the Full Shred for low tuning because it doesn't flub out.
There's no shortage of possibilities, but it's tough to nail it on the first try, without a lot more information.
You might be able to get where you want just by playing with magnets, if pickup hacking is something you're interested in learning to do. Certainly the cheapest route, at something like $2.50 a magnet from AddictionFX.
UOA5 (UnOriented A5) does a great job of making a pickup sound like a loud A2, without giving up the bass of an A5. That might move your less '59s a bit less bland.
A8 adds a ton more bass, and higher output, and an upper mid edge, but rolls off treble.
Hope all this rambling is helpful, I have a migraine so took a bit of a shotgun approach...
