Dimarzio recommendations

[walt]

Re: Dimarzio recommendations

Is the VHPAF low enough output to balance with singles, and still be clean when strummed hard? This is the main issue keeping me from deciding between the VPAF and VPAF Hot; both a Harmony Central and a Guitarplayer review of the VPAF Hot compare its output to the Super Distortion mg:

http://www.guitarplayer.com/article/dimarzio-virtual-hot/Aug-05/12034

An A2 would help with lowering the output, and a VHPAF w/ an A2 is what I'm leaning towards after reading a lot about VPAFs - Saturday is my deadline for deciding.

Does swapping magnets or other tinkering (assuming you don't break the pickup) void the replacement policy?

I haven't played a super distortion in about 20 plus years. I don't think the VHPaf is a high output bucker at all. In fact it is wound at 9.13 (a super distortion is wound at 13.68, with a ceramic magnet) which if you switch the magnet to an A2, you'll have a very close version of the custom shop 78 with the air and 3D effects.

 

[Rick1114]

Re: Dimarzio recommendations

Is the VHPAF low enough output to balance with singles, and still be clean when strummed hard? This is the main issue keeping me from deciding between the VPAF and VPAF Hot; both a Harmony Central and a Guitarplayer review of the VPAF Hot compare its output to the Super Distortion mg:

http://www.guitarplayer.com/article/dimarzio-virtual-hot/Aug-05/12034

An A2 would help with lowering the output, and a VHPAF w/ an A2 is what I'm leaning towards after reading a lot about VPAFs - Saturday is my deadline for deciding.

Does swapping magnets or other tinkering (assuming you don't break the pickup) void the replacement policy?

Alex,

The best I can do to help is share my experience. It WILL depend on what single coil pups you are using but the VHPAF can be tweaked with the magnet and the polepieces to an extent. I had Duncan Classic Stacks+ and then Dimarzio Area 58's in my strat. The VHPAF actually matched up better with the A5 magnet because noiseless SC's have higher output than traditional vintage SC's I think.

If you have low output Vintage SC's, I think the A2 Magnet would be perfect. I actually liked the VHPAF with the A2, it sounded more vintage that way, but the bass is tighter with the A5, if you want some modern metal sounds too. One last piece of advice, is I adjusted the polepieces on my VHPAF a few nights ago (staggered them like singe coils and brought them close to the strings) and it made a massive improvement, gave the pup more personality.

BTW - Swapping the magnets probably will void the warranty.

 

[_Guitarzan_]

Re: Dimarzio recommendations

Personally, I like their Breed bridge very close to a C5 and the regular Norton in the neck. For a Strat I like their Chopper in the bridge, Cruiser bridge in the middle and the Pro Track in the neck. DiMarzio does make cool stuff you just have to dig for it.

 

[alex1fly]

Re: Dimarzio recommendations

Okay - I'm going with the VHPAF. There are so many good reviews of it, and the comparisons with the Custom Shop 78 make it very attractive, plus I did the 3-D/air thing. I am using vintage singles, but I am not after metal with this guitar. The reviews comparing it with the Super Distortion threw me off, but I too have seen the numbers and there's no way that the SD and VHPAF can be that close output-wise. Hopefully I'm happy with the VHPAF, because I will be voiding its warranty! But after 8 bridge pickups in this guitar I'm ready to settle down :11:

I'll write up a review after I've spent some time with it. As always, thanks everyone for your suggestions!

 

[Butch Snyder]

Re: Dimarzio recommendations

Okay - I'm going with the VHPAF. There are so many good reviews of it, and the comparisons with the Custom Shop 78 make it very attractive, plus I did the 3-D/air thing. I am using vintage singles, but I am not after metal with this guitar. The reviews comparing it with the Super Distortion threw me off, but I too have seen the numbers and there's no way that the SD and VHPAF can be that close output-wise. Hopefully I'm happy with the VHPAF, because I will be voiding its warranty! But after 8 bridge pickups in this guitar I'm ready to settle down :11:

I'll write up a review after I've spent some time with it. As always, thanks everyone for your suggestions!

I don't think you'll be dissapointed...

 

[Rick1114]

Re: Dimarzio recommendations

Okay - I'm going with the VHPAF. There are so many good reviews of it, and the comparisons with the Custom Shop 78 make it very attractive, plus I did the 3-D/air thing. I am using vintage singles, but I am not after metal with this guitar. The reviews comparing it with the Super Distortion threw me off, but I too have seen the numbers and there's no way that the SD and VHPAF can be that close output-wise. Hopefully I'm happy with the VHPAF, because I will be voiding its warranty! But after 8 bridge pickups in this guitar I'm ready to settle down :11:

I'll write up a review after I've spent some time with it. As always, thanks everyone for your suggestions!

You'll be fine. I went on a quest for a perfect bucker for the strat, and IMO, the VHPAF was the best for me. A repected luthier (who builds amazing parts-o-casters) in NY loves the Duncan Distortion for this, but he pairs them up with higher output single coils. He installed one in my guitar and I just thought the output/brightness was off the charts. To me the guitar doesn't "feel" right when the ouputs don't match well for all the positions.
So if you looking at Dimarzios, VHPAF, Air Norton & PAF Pro are the only low output choices really, with the latter two having too much treble for strat bridge (look at their EQ charts). If your looking at Duncan I guess the 59' and the Jazz would be where to start, but Duncan EQ charts ALL show lots of treble. That's my main problem with them for the Bridge of an Alder Strat with vintage trem. Me, and lots of others it seems are trying to tame the bridge somewhat (This is songwriting guitar mainly). If I played live with a band I could see wanting lots of "cut", but there are plenty of Duncan HB's that would do that, much better than Dimarzio for that purpose!

Just my two cents...

 

[alex1fly]

Re: Dimarzio recommendations

Thanks for the reassurance. My strat is more of a jamming guitar, mostly for noodling and playing on my own; when I want big tones for live use, that's when I pull out the Les Paul and the Mesa the Mesa has more than enough high end and cut (sometimes too much!). I haven't played live since I installed the Anderson H3 in my LP, but the Pearly Gates with A5 and A8 both had great cut and the extended high end was nice for being heard in the band. I do want my strat to have pretty equal output in all positions, and I like how the VPAFs have some similarities to single coils in their attack. Plus the air/built in reverb/presence/3D effects are really nice, to my ears they make the tone sound more alive and refined without going overboard.

 

[jimijames]

Re: Dimarzio recommendations

I have two surfers in the neck and middle positions of my strat (6.22 and 6.19k respectively), and the VHPAF w/A2 balanced perfectly with it, I had a simple 5-way switch, and it sounded fantastic in position 2. I was suprised that it balanced so well with an underwound single coil, but I suppose the lower output of A2 had something to do with it. It did have more push in position 1 however, it was the difference between perfectly clean and half clean/half dirty, with the ability to overdrive the amp with your picking dynamics. One of the reasons I liked it so much was because it had the output of an overwound bridge single coil.

 

[alex1fly]

Re: Dimarzio recommendations

Great. Sounds like it will be perfect for what I'm looking for. Should be picking it up on Monday.

 

[walt]

Re: Dimarzio recommendations

some more folks that should be able to answer your inquiry are here:

http://www.dimarzioforum.com/forum/