DiMarzio's Area pickups - suck!

[Anficht]

Sorry, just my opinion.
I just installed a pair of DiMarzio Area pickups.
Area '58 in the neck and Area '61 in the bridge.

I gotta say - I absolutely hate them.

Something just isn't right with the mids on those pickups. They sound kinda breaky and mushy in the mids. And a little soft.
Clean sound is ok, but distorted playing - they are very loose, not defined at all - and just have that strange sound in the mids - very hard to describe.
It's like a very soft breaking up of mids that is kinda mushy... Not at all what I'm searching for. They have a certain Hendrix vibe to them - but it's like a bad version of Hendrix... (always IMO)
I think the high E and B string sound good, but as you go towards the bass strings it gets bad (G-string sounds bad, D even worse, A string sounds a little better and E string is ok).
I've tried various height adjustments - cannot get them to sound right.


This Strat had true Alnico2 singlecoils in it before - which absolutely killed, but I couldn't live with the hum anymore.
Anyway, I went for the Areas, since they are Alnico2 - I figured that would get me close to the tone my Strat had before.

So, would the Duncan Classic Stack Plus neck and bridge model also have this weird middle frequency thing?
I think Lew said they sound like his '63 Strat pickups. But that really doesn't tell me anything, as I've never heard a '63 Strat before...

Any Classic Stack Plus users here that can help me?
Or do I have to get those pricey Kinmans if I want good sounding singlecoils that don't hum?

 

[JohnnyGuitar]

Re: DiMarzio's Area pickups - suck!

I'm also always wondering about noiseless strat pups. No samples for the SD Stacks but if I remember correctly Lew said they sound like the Antiquities in his '63 Strat. Not a lot of people know Strat sound like Lew does.
As for Kinman - I can base my experience only on sound samples (I'm a total noob as far as stacked single coils go) - the lower output models really reminded me the tone of the Area pickup sound samples.
The 69's sound a lot more dynamic and open, however, they have some sort of a honky quality that reminds me a lot of the Shadows tone (I guess there's a reason why Kinman has a signature Hank Marvin set). By all means - this is not my favorite tone for a Strat, on the other hand - The Shadows are as vintage as it gets.

However, I don't think that the price is that high for those pickups - it's all in the same range AFAIK.

If you're going only for neck and bridge and don't care about the middle, you might consider different alternatives - I like the Lace Hot Golds (and if I didn't I still couldn't argue with Buddy Guy, Clapton and Blackmore)... I actually think that the Fender noiseless sound OK, and I liked the railed pickups I've played in Strats (not in Teles!!!!!) - they sound good but it's not classic Strat tone though.

BTW, getting the G and D string to sound good in a Strat is for some reason always a little problematic.

 

[Anficht]

Re: DiMarzio's Area pickups - suck!

BTW, getting the G and D string to sound good in a Strat is for some reason always a little problematic.

I dunno, both sounded pretty good before the Areas went in that guitar.

 

[Rick1114]

Re: DiMarzio's Area pickups - suck!

Try moving the Area '61 to the Neck and the '58 to the middle, just for kicks. I found the Area '58 wasn't meaty enough for a neck pup unless you like it brittle & bright (which some people do). Seems to make a great middle pup though for my California Strat.

I have tried the CS+ (I really wanted to like them and wired them up every which way but sideways) and while they have better mids than the Areas, the Areas are just more lively (I'm just giving my honest opinion here).

So, my advice would be to stick with Real SC's or see what else is out there. I still haven't found a noiseless Neck pup I love (using VV Blues right now, pretty close but missing a little of that SC "chime"), but I may try the Area '61.
Good Luck - Let us know if you find anything noiseless that works for you!

 

[Anficht]

Re: DiMarzio's Area pickups - suck!

Thanks for the tip.
I already tried the Area '61 in the neck though. I honestly didn't like it at all. It was even muddier than the '58 and seemed to lack brightness.

The Blues model has an A5 magnet in it right? I wonder if that one sounds good to me...
Right now I'm thinking of trying the Duncan Stack Plus set and if that doesn't work for me - I'll either go for rail pickups (which have a totally different sound but I like them anyway) or stick the true singles back in that guitar...

Just waiting for a couple of people to chime in and tell their opinion on the Classic Stack Plus pickups

 

[prophetofthor]

Re: DiMarzio's Area pickups - suck!

i keep hoping for a youtube classic stack plus video. i dont have sales numbers, but i would say that noiseless strat pickups are a big chunk of the market.

i would say there is alot of differences between the noiseless pickups on the market and some ppl have the strat tone they want in their head and it takes some trial and error to get close to that tone in your head.

this cat
http://www.harryj.net/

gets some killer tones and sounds with the area stuff and some other dimarzio stuff. he swears by the pro track.

you really didnt mention what strat tones you are trying to get, but if you say the mid was weird, i would say smooth it out with some cool rails. i've heard killer tones with the cool rails. not gonna trick anyone into thinking its single coil, but good usable tone.

i had a set of the original classic stacks. havent had an opportunity to try the classic stack +'s yet.

i also think you can but dimarzio and they will swap out pickups. the fast track 1 and cruiser (neck) are pretty good pickups with vintage vibe.

andy timmons, cruiser for neck and mid, and some hum for bridge
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KaVVZYOvMFY

 

[jmh151]

Re: DiMarzio's Area pickups - suck!

If you're going only for neck and bridge and don't care about the middle, you might consider different alternatives - I like the Lace Hot Golds (and if I didn't I still couldn't argue with Buddy Guy, Clapton and Blackmore)... I actually think that the Fender noiseless sound OK, and I liked the railed pickups I've played in Strats (not in Teles!!!!!) - they sound good but it's not classic Strat tone though.

BTW, getting the G and D string to sound good in a Strat is for some reason always a little problematic.

I'm very happy with the Lace Golds in my Clapton strat- so much that I put the Lace Hot Gold set with the hotter bridge pickup in my malmsteen set. the Hot golds just have a little more oomph, and are a great set.

 

[Anficht]

Re: DiMarzio's Area pickups - suck!

this cat
http://www.harryj.net/

gets some killer tones and sounds with the area stuff and some other dimarzio stuff. he swears by the pro track.

Yeah I've seen his page before. He's probably the reason why I went and bought the Areas.
It sounds pretty good in his recordings - but in my Strat is sounds awful.
He is a DiMarzio endorser though - so that's why he probably swears by those.

I'm not looking for a certain sound to be honest.
If possible, I'd just get that sound my true singles gave me minus the hum. I'd be perfectly happy with that.
The Area's are actually pretty good on the high E and B string - but have just this weird mid flavor on the other 4 strings. I cannot live with that...

 

[Rick1114]

Re: DiMarzio's Area pickups - suck!

Thanks for the tip.
I already tried the Area '61 in the neck though. I honestly didn't like it at all. It was even muddier than the '58 and seemed to lack brightness.

The Blues model has an A5 magnet in it right? I wonder if that one sounds good to me...
Right now I'm thinking of trying the Duncan Stack Plus set and if that doesn't work for me - I'll either go for rail pickups (which have a totally different sound but I like them anyway) or stick the true singles back in that guitar...

Just waiting for a couple of people to chime in and tell their opinion on the Classic Stack Plus pickups

The VV Blues model is A5 but is an older technology that is noticably less bright than the Area's. So I wouldn't go there if you didn't like the Area '61. My Luthier telss me the hotter you wind a pup, the less bright it will be. So the VV Blues and the Area '61 will sound fatter, but less bright as you have described. The Area 58 is nice and bright but missing some fattness IMO. None are just right IMO. The Classic Stack+ are not as chimey as the Area technology, so if the '61 didn't do for you, the CS+ probably won't either.

Since you are looking at distorted tones, maybe you want a modern SC like some have recommended?

 

[uOpt]

Re: DiMarzio's Area pickups - suck!

I'm not familiar with DiMarzios products lines. Do I figure correctly that these are supposed to be hum-suppressing single-coil replacements with single coil sound?

I just tried a Classic Stack (not plus) compared to ssl1 and aps2. Pretty disappointing. Yeah, sounds like vintage single Strat pickup, kinda, just like one played through bad equipment. You also need 500 Kohm potis, badly. I would never put this into my primary Strat if I needed one. It will be OK to put into the guitar you leave in the car and fetch when the hum in whatever place you go is too bad.

I'm not sure what to do here. I also don't like the hifi sound of the rails. I hated my cool rails passionately and the sound samples for the vintage rails are not promising. They sound good in their own way, but that way is that blade hi-fi sound that I don't like.

I want Seymour Duncan to make a blind coil design like the stacks, but with the blind coil in a separate housing that you put somewhere in the electronics cavity. That won't be perfect either, but a lot better than the cramped stack design where the blind coil is 3/4rds blind.

 

[Anficht]

Re: DiMarzio's Area pickups - suck!

I'm not familiar with DiMarzios products lines. Do I figure correctly that these are supposed to be hum-suppressing single-coil replacements with single coil sound?

Exactly.
They are as advertised - hum-surpressing with singlecoil sound.

They just didn't work for my style

 

[Anficht]

Re: DiMarzio's Area pickups - suck!

The VV Blues model is A5 but is an older technology that is noticably less bright than the Area's. So I wouldn't go there if you didn't like the Area '61. My Luthier telss me the hotter you wind a pup, the less bright it will be. So the VV Blues and the Area '61 will sound fatter, but less bright as you have described. The Area 58 is nice and bright but missing some fattness IMO. None are just right IMO. The Classic Stack+ are not as chimey as the Area technology, so if the '61 didn't do for you, the CS+ probably won't either.

Since you are looking at distorted tones, maybe you want a modern SC like some have recommended?

Thanks for that. Yeah, I know that the hotter wind will probably be less bright. I just thought the A5 magnet would compensate for the hotter wind.

I have another Strat with YJM's and HS-3 DiMarzios. That one actually sounds ok. Not great - but nothing weird in those mid frequencies.
I have to push those pickups harder (since they are very low output) and they are kinda limited to a certain style of playing but I have found a sound that makes me happy with those.

The Area's just seem kinda off.
The '58 is bright, yet a little too fat in the mids and a little too soft.
The '61 is even fatter, has the same smoothness (not a good kind) or softness and lacks brightness...
I dunno, something just doesn't sound right with those to me... It's very hard to describe what it is exactly - they just sound annoying to me

 

[prophetofthor]

Re: DiMarzio's Area pickups - suck!

I'm not looking for a certain sound to be honest.
If possible, I'd just get that sound my true singles gave me minus the hum. I'd be perfectly happy with that.

if accuracy is your goal, i would say classic stack +'s. Lew swears they are the most accurate reproduction of single coil pickups.

"You know what? On record I doubt you'd hear any appreciable diff between the Ant Surfers and the Classic Stack Plus. A little thicker and less open in the mids with the CSP's. And no hum. To my ears there's maybe a 5% diff. If you know what a vintage Strat with alnico 5 pickups sounds like, you know about what the CSP's sound like."
-Lewguitar
from

https://forum.seymourduncan.com/showthread.php?t=131715&highlight=classic

i know you mentioned ant 2 pickups, but if Lew says they are 95% close to surfers,,, well, thats dam good single coil vibe.

 

[Rick1114]

Re: DiMarzio's Area pickups - suck!

The Area's just seem kinda off.
The '58 is bright, yet a little too fat in the mids and a little too soft.
The '61 is even fatter, has the same smoothness (not a good kind) or softness and lacks brightness...
I dunno, something just doesn't sound right with those to me... It's very hard to describe what it is exactly - they just sound annoying to me

I kind of felt that way too about the Area 58 in the neck - a brittleness at the heart of the pickup, I felt. I had it in there for about 6 months and the CS+ for about 6 months as well, in a guitar I played everyday. The CS+ don't sound bad in any way, just boring or slightly choked. Anyway, my luthier uses the VV Blues or the Heavy Blues for the neck and he bulids some kick ass strats, usually out of parts. Actually, I'm pretty happy with the VV Blues, I just had to give it a little time. It goes well with the 58 in the middle too. If you want higher output try the VV Heavy Blues, but a warning that it used the Area Technology as well. It will be slightly chimier than the VV Blues.

 

[Anficht]

Re: DiMarzio's Area pickups - suck!

Yeah, I actually had a Heavy Blues 2 on order since the store didn't had it in stock.
I cancelled the order today as I suspect it will have just more of that sound I don't like.

The Blues with the A5 magnet could interest me though (I think it doesn't have that Area technology as it's an earlier model).
Might give the Duncans a try first - just to be sure

 

[ErikH]

Re: DiMarzio's Area pickups - suck!

When it comes to noiseless singles, they're either almost there or nowhere close. Some do better than others. In the end, it all boils down to matter of taste.

For myself, I like the Fender Vintage Noiseless. I played a Deluxe Players Strat a few months back and was pretty darn impressed with those pickups. Very stratty, responsive, yet the have their own sound too. They don't sound like a pure vintage single-coil and they don't sound too modern. They meet in the middle somewhere pretty well I think.

If I was to go the noiseless route, I'd be looking at them or the Hot Noiseless. Good enough for Clapton (Vintage) and Jeff Beck (Hot), good enough for me.

 

[Orange]

Re: DiMarzio's Area pickups - suck!

Our Vigier Ultra Blues has stock Dimarzio's and i also bought the Area 58 for my jackson.
First of all, i don't see much difference between teh VV's and the Area.
What's more, they suck big time. They just sound bland, plastic, wet,
lack of punch, transparent. It's like playing trough a line 6 hoping to get a marshall sound: it's an emulation of single coil.

So i ordered the guita, but replacing the VV54 by lace holy grails 54 and the
virtual paf by a Duncan Custom Shop Super V, in an attempt not to change the guitar's
original concept, but too get convincing, natural, organic TONES.

And for teh Indus with Evo's, guess what i'm getting ?
A................8

 

[jamison162]

Re: DiMarzio's Area pickups - suck!

Quit screwing around and get some Suhr FL's, Fralin Vintage Hots or Real 54's, or talk to Don Mare.

 

[Anficht]

Re: DiMarzio's Area pickups - suck!

Yeah, I'm sure these are great but I really need something that doesn't hum since I play with heavy distortion.

I just ordered the Duncan Stack plus set (neck & bridge) - can't hurt to try em out myself.
The DiMarzios are going back to the store...

 

[JohnnyGuitar]

Re: DiMarzio's Area pickups - suck!

Make audio clips when you get them.