DD to PATB2 newbie needs help!!

[SlipperySquid]

Hi again peeps,
After recently acquiring a dunc distortion pup I slapped it into my Maverick F-1 and to be honest I aint that happy with it.I'm not an excellent guitar player and dont really know all the terminology to describe the sound I'm getting but to me it just sounds brittle with not enough bang at the bottom end.
I have a pearly gates in the neck and i love that pickup and was thinking of throwing in a patb 2 in the bridge as listening to the sound clips on the duncan website it's seems a lot more clearer and defined but still has the distortion I'm after.
Has anyone got any sound clips of there own patb2 in action I could have a listen to?
It would be a great help in making me decide what to go for?
Many thanks fellas.

 

[shogunlegend]

Re: DD to PATB2 newbie needs help!!

those are two totally different ends of the spectrum. pearly gates is a low output pickup in comparison. it's also alnico II which is very warm and full of tone. in my opinion, you can't really compare an alnico pup with a ceramic because they just sound different. the dd has a good amount of midrange and shouldn't be brittle and lack low-end. it's definitely a very good pup. there's probably a wiring problem or something. then again, your ears are comparing sweet vs killer and that won't compare. i doubt you'll be happy with the patb-2 or anything similar in output if you really like the pearly gates. the patb-2 is probably like a parallel axis dd. maybe you should look at a jb, duncan custom, or patb-1.

 

[daemon barbeque]

Re: DD to PATB2 newbie needs help!!

Well PATB-2 is a monster.I would like to hear why you don't like the DD.That can give us a chance to understand the situation and give you a better advice

 

[SlipperySquid]

Re: DD to PATB2 newbie needs help!!

Cheers fellas.....the dd seems to sound more like a single coil than an actual beefy humbucker and the clean tone isnt as clean as say the patb-2 sounds like from the audio samples on the sd site.
On the plus side i like the ease of producing harmonics the the DD has.
I am a total newcomer to the world of aftermarket guitar pickups and i'm just experimenting with different sounds etc maybe it's because i cant play for sh*t that i'm not getting the best form the DD? maybe it's just not right for my guitar?
I know theres a lot of factors to consider and i wsnt really botherd by tone etc until i started to think about and purchase my own pickups..now i'm swamped with info and the new stuff I'm learning is pushing the old stuff out of my brain
I'll try and ge a soundclip for you demon to have a listen to mate.
BTW: checked your myspace out demon loved the intro song on your site!!
thats done with the patb-2 isnt it?

 

[Animal]

Re: DD to PATB2 newbie needs help!!

IMO, the PA-TB2 is an improvement on almost everything that the DD does. The only downside may be that it's a tad looser however it's still passes the test for fast playing. It makes up for that fact in warmth, sustain, cleans, and fatness.

If you want a DD that cleaned itself up from it's alcohol addiction but still lives on the wild side, then the PA-TB2 is for you.

 

[SlipperySquid]

Re: DD to PATB2 newbie needs help!!

Cheers Hames matey,
Thats the plain English I understand I'll give it a go and see how I like it!

 

[Animal]

Re: DD to PATB2 newbie needs help!!

On second thoughts, if you are mostly unsatisfied with a DD then a SH-5 Custom might be to more of your liking. While the PA-TB2 to my ears does sound like an improvement it still has a lot of the compressed and bright character of the DD.

From what I've heard, the Custom is roughly in the same league of aggressiveness as the Distortion however will have more depth, chunk and sound smoother. A bit less in your face with the highs.

If you're concerned about brittleness then perhaps it might be an idea to stay away from the Distortion family. Someday I plan to try out a Custom in the bridge of my Jackson as it is naturally quite a bright and thin sounding guitar. The PA-TB2 is working very nicely at the moment but I'm also very curious of what else is out there.

EDIT: What kind of music are you into and what kind of guitar sound are you after? Some band examples might help.

 

[daemon barbeque]

Re: DD to PATB2 newbie needs help!!

I'll try and ge a soundclip for you demon to have a listen to mate.
BTW: checked your myspace out demon loved the intro song on your site!!
thats done with the patb-2 isnt it?

Thanx bro.The "flagolated demon cookies" song is made with the patb-2.You can search for "the ultimate patb-2 thread" and check my samples there.

The DD is easier to get harmonics than the PATB-2---> only for the first 3 minutes.The patb-2 works different ,the magnetic pull is different.

BTW ,the "sleeping Demons" is made with an EMG60A.Great active PU if you like actives.But PATB series are tzhe best passives...The best allrounder IMHO

 

[Animal]

Re: DD to PATB2 newbie needs help!!

The DD is easier to get harmonics than the PATB-2---> only for the first 3 minutes.The patb-2 works different ,the magnetic pull is different.

That's another thing about the PA-TB2 I like over the DD. It's harder to accidently play artificial harmonics and when you want to play harmonics then you'll really mean it. I had a lot of trouble with the DD making me sound like one of those 80's glam rock players with harmonics flying out of the fretboard at every moment.

But PATB series are tzhe best passives...The best allrounder IMHO

I'm stoked with the versatility of the PA-TB2. For a pickup that pulls off ultra gain with so much ease it's nice to know that it can also do cleans and mid-gain without sounding a bag of arse. It also reacts nicely with rolling off the volume knob. Tonight I was using the Mark IIC channel on my Mesa Quad Preamp and I could go from a jangly clean, to a spanky crunch, to a full on sonic assault just by riding the volume knob. I'm willing to bet that the PA-TB2 would sound cool split and with a treble bleed cap to let some of the clarity come through when rolling off the volume.

 

[SlipperySquid]

Re: DD to PATB2 newbie needs help!!

Well music styles vary mainly the pantera/metalica sort of thing mixed with a helping of greenday and a splash of foo fighters a large dollap of more modern UK indie thrown in there for good measure as well.So I'm not stuck on one genre but I have the pearly gates pup in he neck when i want to play something a little less harsh.
DB your thread was the mutts nuts and hats off to you for taking out the time to record them samples, If the SD site coverd as many samples for each of it's pickups life would be a lot easier!
No doubt I will just keep swapping out pickups till i die now that i have started
Thanks again for your replies fellas some of the techy lingo does go over my head but i'm getting there!!

 

[loudriver23]

Re: DD to PATB2 newbie needs help!!

Cheers fellas.....the dd seems to sound more like a single coil than an actual beefy humbucker

Maybe you should double check the wiring, maybe the pup is wired to split instead of getting full brute force.
If you're confident the pup is wired correctly, I'd listen to the others here as I'm not the one to make recommendations for high output pups.
Good luck...

 

[Gr8Scott]

Re: DD to PATB2 newbie needs help!!

Maybe you should double check the wiring, maybe the pup is wired to split instead of getting full brute force.
If you're confident the pup is wired correctly, I'd listen to the others here as I'm not the one to make recommendations for high output pups.
Good luck...

I too think something must be wrong with the wiring. The PATB-2 should NOT sound like a weak single coil unless the wiring is wrong or one of the coils shorted out.

 

[SlipperySquid]

Re: DD to PATB2 newbie needs help!!

It's not the PATB that is sounding a tad weak it's my duncan distortion...but i'm going to go with the patb2 and see if i like it or not!!!

 

[anewdefguitarist]

Re: DD to PATB2 newbie needs help!!

i've owned my DD for almost 4 months now...now, it may be a little less on the bottom, but by no means would i ever say it sounds like a single. EVER. im not questioning your ears at all man, just seriously, i really think theres something wrong w/ that pup man. think, metallica, seek and destroy. i can NAIL that tone with my DD. now, if that song sounds like a single to you, or thin, than maybe we've nailed it to just your taste. NOTT SAYING THERES ANYTHING WRONG WITH THAT. if you thikn thats a thin sound, whatever, seriously. apples to oranges. but maybe your taste would put the DD as thin. i would put it as full no doubt, but like i said, diffrnt strokes bud. what kinda guitar you put that DD in? what amp also?

 

[Gr8Scott]

Re: DD to PATB2 newbie needs help!!

Sorry slippery. I misread your post. The DD is not a weak pickup either. It doesn't sound like a single no matter what. It does have a lively top end and crushing midrange, but the bass isn't what I would describe as weak. When distorted, it gives the "wall of sound" distortion that is just thick and cascading like someone lit the world on fire. Could be that you have a guitar that just doesn't bring the bass. In that case the PATB-2 should be just the ticket or the invader.

 

[SlipperySquid]

Re: DD to PATB2 newbie needs help!!

Think i have found the problem.....It was my cable I'm as thick as a whale omelette I know.....I should have changed it...checked it or something....I'm stupid with the brains of a gnats fart....and I have Just bought a custom 5 trembucker as well (was bidding on the patb on ebay but it's gone out of the price i was willing to pay)....thanks to everyone for you help but you cant really help the stupid....

 

[emilio]

Re: DD to PATB2 newbie needs help!!

:lmao: it's alright it happens.

 

[loudriver23]

Re: DD to PATB2 newbie needs help!!

Think i have found the problem.....It was my cable I'm as thick as a whale omelette I know.....I should have changed it...checked it or something....I'm stupid with the brains of a gnats fart....and I have Just bought a custom 5 trembucker as well (was bidding on the patb on ebay but it's gone out of the price i was willing to pay)....thanks to everyone for you help but you cant really help the stupid....

I work in the I.T. field, and I could conservatively say that 85% of the "My PC isn't working right" problems are directly related to some cable or other either broken, or not plugged in all the way.
So you can just store this as "Lesson Learned" and check the cables first!
God knows I've learned more than one lesson the expensive way.:banghead: :banghead: :banghead: :banghead: :banghead:

 

[El Dorado]

Re: DD to PATB2 newbie needs help!!

Think i have found the problem.....It was my cable I'm as thick as a whale omelette I know.....I should have changed it...checked it or something....I'm stupid with the brains of a gnats fart....and I have Just bought a custom 5 trembucker as well (was bidding on the patb on ebay but it's gone out of the price i was willing to pay)....thanks to everyone for you help but you cant really help the stupid....

I would make fun of you, but I had the exact same thing happen when I couldn't get enough low end out of a duncan custom, which is pretty much impossible. Cables can be really bitchy little beasts sometimes. I switched to a planet waves cable about a 1 1/2 years ago and I am really glad I did.

 

[stevemp]

Re: DD to PATB2 newbie needs help!!

I recently switched to the PA-TB2 from a Duncan Custom. The Custom sounded good in other guitars I have owned but wasn't cutting it in my Lado Classic II. The PA-TB2 is unbelievable. It's got very high output. It's got crunch and bite but it's clear. It's got bottom end, shifted down low, but isn't muddy. I am playing through a Marshall EL34 100/100 into a 1960B cab.

I just love the PA-TB2. I just ordered the PA-STK1 to replace the piece of crap DiMarzio HS-3 I have in the neck position (an experiment that did NOT work out!!)