Dimarzio Evolution/Tone Zone

[slash857]

so i went to sam ash today, and i was gonna get a set of pearly gates. i wasnt really sure what sound i was after, but i thought a billy gibbons sound would be nice. i talked to the salesman at sam ash and he was a good guy and he was explaining to me how the evolution sounded and i thought it might be something id want. so he tried out an ibanez for me which had the ibz pickups in it, just to give me some sort of idea what to expect. i loved the sound he was getting through the jsx head. so i decided to buy the evolution bridge and the tone zone bridge, that going in the neck posiition for my lp. i really like the sound im getting from them. im thinking ill raise the evo's height a bit because the tone zone is louder right now, but other than that minor problem it is awesome. the evo has great definition and clarity under high gain. when playing more than 1 string at time, you can hear each note individually. it was a world of difference compared to the 500t. the tone zone is decent. its not an awesome pickup, but i like it. it gives nice sustain and a nice sound that i can use. my lp can sound very similar to the steve vai song "jibboom" now. this is prolly a bad example, but im not familiar with any other pieces by him.

 

[wixedmords]

Re: Dimarzio Evolution/Tone Zone

I am not sure a TZ is the pickup for an LP, but if you like it a little bit that is cool.

The EVO will work better. Keep playing it, the feedback on your choices is a good thing for all of us. In fact, raise the EVO fairly high to see if it gets spikey at all.

 

[ranalli]

Re: Dimarzio Evolution/Tone Zone

You bought a Tone Zone bridge pickup to put in the neck of your Les Paul??

If so, that's going to be awfully muddy and bassy with too much output.

 

[taphappy]

Re: Dimarzio Evolution/Tone Zone

You bought a Tone Zone bridge pickup to put in the neck of your Les Paul??

If so, that's going to be awfully muddy and bassy with too much output.

Doesnt Michael Romeo use a TZ in the neck? He gets a good sound. On second thought he doesnt use a Les Paul.

 

[Johtosotku]

Re: Dimarzio Evolution/Tone Zone

A TZ in the neck of an LP does sound, how would I put it, rather extreme. But if you like, who's to say not to use it. Does Sam Ash have a return policy of any kind? Since if you don't really like it, I'd propably try an Evolution neck model, if you like the bridge one.

 

[ranalli]

Re: Dimarzio Evolution/Tone Zone

Doesnt Michael Romeo use a TZ in the neck? He gets a good sound. On second thought he doesnt use a Les Paul.

I don't know but let me put it this way.....the Tone Zone has sounded too mushy/bassy in every guitar I've ever heard it in(although it admittedly works with some VERY bright guitars) so to put it in the neck would be.....well "extreme".

Maybe that's what he wants though....that's fine too....just don't expect nice clear leads or cleans

 

[Skarekrough]

Re: Dimarzio Evolution/Tone Zone

I preferred the TZ over the EVO in all of the 7 strings I had them in. Most of the bodies were basswood, so they weren't nearly as dark as the mahogany on a Les Paul.

The Evo's were just too mid-ranger for my tastes. With that said, I found they really needed much less gain to sound good. Matter of fact, the less you used the better they sounded to my ears.

The TZ were just an all-out assault....everything tonally was perfect to my ears.

 

[Johtosotku]

Re: Dimarzio Evolution/Tone Zone

I don't know but let me put it this way.....the Tone Zone has sounded too mushy/bassy in every guitar I've ever heard it in(although it admittedly works with some VERY bright guitars) so to put it in the neck would be.....well "extreme".

Maybe that's what he wants though....that's fine too....just don't expect nice clear leads or cleans

I use a TZ in the bridge of a Gibson SG. It sounds nearly perfect to me. It's still a dark bridge pickup, but the SG bridge positioning seems to let go of the worse effects attributed to it. I'm quite tempted to try it in "normal" guitars as well, but I'm afraid of it as because of all the negative press with it.

 

[slash857]

Re: Dimarzio Evolution/Tone Zone

im not a huge fan of the tz in the neck, but it can sound nice for some things. its not a versatile p'up. i think eventually i might get the evo neck and drop that in. the tz i like clean in the neck, od it always has the sound as if the tone knob is rolled down, which i dont necessarily mind. i was also thinking of putting an air norton in the neck if i can get my hands on it.