Favorite Strat Humbucker?

[Diminished Triad]

I'm building a Warmoth strat and will have stacked classics for the neck and middle pickups.
I want a humbucker for the bridge pickup that will best compliment the two single coil style pups. Of course they are stacked so they are not true single coil but I am trying to create a classic sound with little hum and a lot more thickness.

Thanks for any humbucker recommendations you think would work well for a strat designed for the classic strat sound!

 

[treyhaislip]

Re: Favorite Strat Humbucker?

I really like a Screamin Demon in the bridge of a Strat. The Pearly Gates is another great one for the bridge of a Strat.

 

[daenius]

Re: Favorite Strat Humbucker?

So are you looking for lower output more open sounding humbuckers that have a slight single coil flavor? Or are you looking for something that'll melt your face right off?

But my personal favorite Duncans would be:
JB
Custom

 

[CanadianShredder]

Re: Favorite Strat Humbucker?

I'm thinking the Screamin' Demon as well for lower output or JB is nice and versatile

 

[Diminished Triad]

Re: Favorite Strat Humbucker?

So are you looking for lower output more open sounding humbuckers that have a slight single coil flavor? Or are you looking for something that'll melt your face right off?

But my personal favorite Duncans would be:
JB
Custom

Not necessarily looking for single coil sounding or light, looking for a humbucker that will compliment two stacked classics in the neck and middle positions. Seems like might come down to JB and a Cusom?

 

[OsvyRock]

Re: Favorite Strat Humbucker?

JB! That's humbucker is PERFECT for a Strat!
Highly Recommended!

 

[Silence Kid]

Re: Favorite Strat Humbucker?

What the... All the Screamin Demon love all of a sudden. Let me bandwagon that. I have a Screamin Demon in a mahogany Strat, paired with a Classic Stack Plus and a single 500k volume. Here's my spiel on JB vs. Screamin Demon:

I'm amazed that the JB is Duncan's flagship pickup; but not really. To a guitarist forty years ago picking one up for the first time it would have sounded different; not like a PAF. It does something other pickups won't do, as far as solos. But really, that means it's a weird pickup and I wonder if most people who want a "humbucker better than this stock thing I'm yanking out" are really getting what they want if they pick the JB. I love the JB, but it's a one trick pony to me; whatever you're playing, it's always in the background somewhere trying to scream a solo at you. Rhythm with the JB is too much (maybe ok for punk?) No one plays a JB for the cleans. No one who wants a "modern" high output pickup will really find the JB ideal either.

The Screamin Demon though? It stands out by doing enough to get heard in the mix without being obnoxious. The lows are never too mushy or rough (and are in greater quantity than pickups like the 59,) everything you play comes through solid, smooth, and clear. It never feels like you need more gain or are too harsh, it never feels messy or lost. Because it has excellent dynamic response, there’s a great amount of control over your playing, and it cleans up well (in a near single coil-ish way even.) In general, it feels like the pickup is listening to what you do, rather than trying to do its own thing like a lot of higher output pickups (but especially the JB.)

It's not very forgiving; fast attack and lack of compression mean your playing needs to be precise, and you can’t rely on the pickup smoothing things out for you. But the pickup amazes me every time I play it, and with the Stack Plus I really I have the only guitar I ever need.

 

[Clint 55]

Re: Favorite Strat Humbucker?

^ Great review Silence Kid. I like how over the top the JB is. When I first played it I thought, this is perfect for me - all raw, but also thought it's not a middle of the road pickup at all.

If I were to make an HSS Strat where I really wanted it to sound stratty in all positions, I would either put 2 single coils together in bridge position, or I would order an overwound Pearly Gates.

 

[daenius]

Re: Favorite Strat Humbucker?

For me the JB REALLY turns heads: it'll rip your face clean off and explode everyone's heads with great tone! XD

For me I'm able to get a huge variety of sounds out of a JB with amp settings and turning the volume knob to whatever level. I use a Mark 5 Mini and for some reason when I want to go for a particular sound with an EQ setting in mind, I tweak the knobs on the amp, play with the volume knob on the guitar a bit, and there it is. Easy to dial in, so I'm super happy with it. For rhythm sounds if I sweep the gain on the amp I'm usually able to find a nice level where it's saturated and crunchy but not so overwhelming that it sounds like a solo. I seem to be able to do that easier with a JB than most other pickups so I'm a happy camper with it I guess, haha

Of course it all boils down to amp, the guitar itself, and the playing style/technique. I have a friend who also swears by a JB and his play style makes EVERYTHING sound like a solo and the JB adds to that even more, and... heck, HE LOVES IT! LOL

 

[Silence Kid]

Re: Favorite Strat Humbucker?

I love the JB too; when you want that tone, it totally needs to be the JB.

 

[Mincer]

Re: Favorite Strat Humbucker?

Combining with singles, I love the 59/Custom Hybrid. And it sounds wonderful split. On my Warmoth HSS, the middle position is a split Hybrid with the neck Classic Strat Stack. Great sounds!

 

[Lewguitar]

Re: Favorite Strat Humbucker?

I don't love the JB with 500K pots but I do like it a lot with 250K pots and since that's what's in most Strats, the JB is a good choice for a Strat.

I used one with two Classic Stacks for a while.

I didn't bother splitting it. Never liked those tones.

The JB does sound good to me in parallel though. Reminds me of a good Tele bridge pickup.

 

[Little Pigbacon]

Re: Favorite Strat Humbucker?

I've never found anything I liked better than the Pearly Gates Plus in the Lone Star Strat I used to have. That guitar could do just about everything.

 

[jeremy]

Re: Favorite Strat Humbucker?

ive always liked the pearly gates in the bridge with singles. it sounds good with the 250k pots and matches well tonally

 

[Lewguitar]

Re: Favorite Strat Humbucker?

ive always liked the pearly gates in the bridge with singles. it sounds good with the 250k pots and matches well tonally

This guy gets a great sound with a PG in a Strat. Although I spoke with him a year or so ago and he uses something else now.

That PG sure sounds good though. Nickel covered. That's the way I prefer them too.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ggTyXwkwQx8

 

[jeremy]

Re: Favorite Strat Humbucker?

with 500k pots i like the covers, in a strat with 250k i prefer uncovered

 

[Zheddar]

Re: Favorite Strat Humbucker?

Ive got 3 strats and I currently have a Pearly Gates, JB, and 59/Custom loaded in them. I used to have a Screamin' Demon in one but that changed to a 59/Custom. Honestly they are all really good, but the Demon lacks chest hitting bass unless you can dial it in on an amp, and has less output then the 59/Custom. I honestly don't know which would be best, but I paired single coils with them all and I like the 59/custom the most with the slug coil split with the middle pickup, although the JB has some sweet twang when used like that. The JB is definitely metal and I have one paired with a Sentient in a strat and that's pretty fun (has a 5 way super switch for splitting options). The Pearly gates has lots of bite in it and isn't very sweet in a bright amp unless you dial the amps eq to sweeten it up. It's really all about output with these pickups, the 59/Custom does have a really convincing AC/DC tone when you set the gain to where it barely breaks up with medium output single coils and then switch to it, it's pretty growly, not very compressed and has the most amazing harmonic sustain I have heard out of those 4 pickups. Any of them are great though, you really can't go wrong, it just depends on how much output, compression, ease of pinch harmonics, and thunder you want out of them. I really do love the Pearly Gates for heavy gain and rhythmic palm muting with lots of lead fills (I'm odd). Really though again, they are all fantastic!

 

[SJ318]

Re: Favorite Strat Humbucker?

HI,
What Mincer, Little Pigbacon, and Zheddar said. The JB will never clean up. The 59/Cust. is huge but cleans up well.
WLH great gain when pushed, polite when cleaned up. I have never had one but love the sound of the PG in the video!
SJB

 

[hamerfan]

Re: Favorite Strat Humbucker?

Ive got 3 strats and I currently have a Pearly Gates, JB, and 59/Custom loaded in them. I used to have a Screamin' Demon in one but that changed to a 59/Custom. Honestly they are all really good, but the Demon lacks chest hitting bass unless you can dial it in on an amp, and has less output then the 59/Custom.

Thats why i modded my Screaming Demon: i swapped in an Alnico 8 and put all 6 hex screws to the 3 wound strings. Much more "chest" and clear piano like bass strings. Highly recommended in a strat.
BTW if you have a H-H Strat try a stock Screaming Demon in the neck.

I had a JB (yes, a JBJ of course) in my superstrat for literally decades. I split the hum with push-pull and loved the parallel sound of it - a lot like the in-between sound of a S-S-S strat.

 

[ver]

Re: Favorite Strat Humbucker?

Here's what I've tried for a strat bridge humbucker, in this order: Hotrails, Dimarzio X2n, Alnico 8 JB, EMG 81, SD Custom, & Pearly Gates. Of all of those, the Hotrails wins it for me as the best blend of hard rock rhythm with also having the ability to sound good on leads. High power but tight, and not harsh to my ears when playing chords...

I also thought the Pearly Gates was very sweet. My thoughts when I installed it were that I finally heard my Strat singing from the bridge position-more meat/less brittle than the single coil bridge was, but not so much that the high notes are harsh-very smooth & musical to my ears.

I was surprised I didn't like the Custom; based on the description I thought it would have been my ideal strat humbucker, but it was too closed sounding for me, or at least that's how I would describe it. Same with the EMG 81.

The JB 8 has a great sound and very lively but for me was so bright I had to EQ the amp differently with it, so if I used any other guitar I'd have to adjust the amp- that may be a normal thing to do but not something I'm interested in doing much of. I tried 250k & 500k pots with it and felt that way regardless. I sold the X2n so long ago I can't remember specifics about it.

One of the things I like about the Hotrails is that it was designed specifically to go in a strat and work with its body wood & pot values, and I suspect those aspects were taken into consideration when the pickup was being developed. If I understand it correctly, the JB was originally made to go in to a Fender as well, but with a Hotrails you don't have to swap pickguard (you may be planning on an HSS pickguard though). If you had a semi-classic strat sound in the neck & mid and wanted something that would play along, of the one's I've tried I'd recommend the Pearly Gates. If you want a tighter & hotter sound and don't mind the volume imbalance caused by a hot bridge pickup, I like the Hotrails.