Distortion & Demon

[Duke of Metal]

hey guys,
what are some of the tonal differences between these 2 pickups??

I know that Distortion is a hotter/higher output pickup, but mainly the EQ... and can the Demon do highgain (I am talking highgain) without sounding muddy, flabby, etc.

Any info would help.


Thanks,
Duke

 

[TwilightOdyssey]

Re: Distortion & Demon

Yes, the Demon will do fine under high gain. In fact, the Demon is a very tight sounding pup!!

 

[revolution]

Re: Distortion & Demon

The demon was designed for high gain but doesn't push a lot of gain itself. George lynch wanted a pickup to accentuate his high gain amps & still uses them with Line 6 stuff to this day. I used one in a strat through a POD 2.0 powered through a Marshall 4-12 Vintage 30 cabinet & it sounded great....as Duncan says " a lot of cabinet 'thump'". I would say if your setup is high gain already I would check this one out first....then maybe a Duncan Custom , Distortion , or even Dimebucker....those are actually pretty cool through high gain amps. Tight & focused , not muddy on chunky rhythms at all.

 

[big_black]

Re: Distortion & Demon

I can't really talk about the SD Dist. The Demon excels in high gain situations. I would describe it as tight, focused, with a good chuck and midrange snarl. One word of warning, in its stock form, it can be shrill. If you take out the hex screws and replace them with regular flathead screws (thanx 3Cent) (from another pickup) this tones down the shrillness and brings up the midrange snarl which I would say is its most defining characteristic. I have a Demon and I did this to mine. I love this pickup now. This pickup sound great clean or distorted. The Demon is a PAF type, so clean it has that PAF twang.

 

[Duke of Metal]

Re: Distortion & Demon

Thanks guys..

currently I have the Duncan Custom. its definitly a tight and not muddy pickup under highgain, but it doesnt seem to be able to deliver the Chug/Chunk I need.

My first choice at the moment is the Duncan Distortion, which I was told will definitly provide tigthness, chung/chunk to the sound. Will try to get my hands on one of those little suckers (anybody got one for sale?) and decide from there. If the Distortion does the job for me, then its a keeper, if not, then I'll give the Demon a try.

Anybody else would like to add anything in the mean time?


Thanks,
Duke

 

[revolution]

Re: Distortion & Demon

what kind of amp do you have? If it's high high gain , then you'll get similar results with the Duncan Custom because the Distortion is basically a giant Duncan Custom Magnet & more winds. They're very similar...different mainly in output. The Scr/Dmn Will give you alnico V tone & harmonics while allowing you to shape the high gain of you're amp. The DD will only send more gain to the preamp. werd.

 

[primo]

Re: Distortion & Demon

I have both a Custom and a Distortion in each of my Gibson LP's, and while both are great sounding pups, I'm drawn to the Distortion more. It DEFINATELY has more chug-a-chunk than the Custom. The Custom is a lot more tighter sounding but having a tendency to sound a little bright, hence it being a very articulate pup & its ability to really cut through(more than the Custom). To me the Distortion also sounds THICKER, perhaps becuse of its strong mids. I have a couple of pups on the way to change to either a Distortion or a JB in my LP thats tuned down 1/2 a step & with 11-50's. Oh yeah, I'm using the LPs through a Marshall TSL60 and a 4x12 bottom(w/gt75s). Go with the Distortion!

Cheers Primo.

 

[Duke of Metal]

Re: Distortion & Demon

Thanks revolution and primo.

On my highgain sound, I set the gain just enough to give me a heavy palm mute when down palm muting or playing faster picking stuff, etc..

primo.. I sorta though the same way as you are. The Distortion most likely will give a thicker, tighter and more chug/chunk due to the mids it has as the Custom has the scoops a bit scooped.


Thanks guys,
Duke

 

[Duke of Metal]

Re: Distortion & Demon

hey guys,
here a pic of the Duncan Demon. When you guys said to replace the alen head screws, did you mean the ones highlighted in the pic?

and can anybody post a picture of the "mod" that you guys figured out for it?


Thanks

 

[WITH FULL DISTORTION]

Re: Distortion & Demon

Hails man
can you do a clip with your Duncan Custom for me with the same gear and settings as these new ones with the duncan distortion?

 

[Duke of Metal]

Re: Distortion & Demon

Hails man
can you do a clip with your Duncan Custom for me with the same gear and settings as these new ones with the duncan distortion?

Hey man,
Sorry, I dont have the Duncan Custom anymore. I traded it for the Duncan Distortion.

Though I can tell you that the Distortion to my ears has the "chug" and brightness that I thought the Custom lacked a bit. But hey, different strokes for different folkes.