Full Shred vs Distortion in short scale all Mahogany!

lewisstorer89

New member
Basically I have a Mahogany V (mahog body, mahog set neck, rosewood fretboard, 22 frets, 24.75 scale)

It has a pick guard and I am going to be removing 2 of the 3 knobs that are on it currently. Basically just running 1 knob, which is of course a master volume, that will also be coil tapped.

Now Im aware that removing the Tone knob and having everything go directly to just 1 master knob increases Treble (or reduces bass?..Im unsure) so therefore:

What would be the best pup out of the Full Shred and the Distortion to use in the bridge seeing as with the added treble from removing the tone knob I will then want the pickup with the LEAST amount of treble of the 2. (also the EQ chart for each pickup from Seymour Duncan seems so far off the mark of what they actually sound like)

I have seen people say the Full Shred has quite of bit of treble but in every comparison video Ive seen it does NOT sound thin from too much treble so I dont understand?

To add I had a Distortion before but in a short scale Alder flying V and I hated it....far toooo bright and shrill but Im aware that we are talking Mahogany here and tonally that is of course warmer/darker

P.s my V currently sounds warm and dark with terrible stock pups.

Would appreciate some help guys from people who have used and experience both in short scale Mahog and the pros and cons etc

Cheers :)
 
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Re: Full Shred vs Distortion in short scale all Mahogany!

You can save yourself some worry by removing the fact that your guitar is mahogany from your decision-making process as it will make no discernible difference in the output of the instrument.
 
Re: Full Shred vs Distortion in short scale all Mahogany!

You can save yourself some worry by removing the fact that your guitar is mahogany from your decision-making process as it will make no discernible difference in the output of the instrument.

I dont get it dude?. The wood makes a huge difference tonally!. And as both pups are EQ'd different its a relevant question. i.e what will have the least treble out of the 2
 
Re: Full Shred vs Distortion in short scale all Mahogany!

I dont get it dude?. The wood makes a huge difference tonally!. And as both pups are EQ'd different its a relevant question. i.e what will have the least treble out of the 2

Just ignore him. He is a fanatic out to convince the world that he knows all things better than anyone else.

Your question IS relevant!

My experience is that the Distortion can have a very bright high end, but it also has lots of mids and a good solid bass. IMO it has a fuller sound than the Full Shred. I've played the Dist in a variety of guitars...all basswood with mahogany neck and rosewood board; all mahogany with mahog neck and rosewood board; mahog with maple cap with mahog neck and rosewood board. It sounded great in all of these but admittedly has a bright and brittle sounding highend. However, my bias is that I really don't like the ceramic sound. Others love it. By changing the magnet to an A4 or even an A2 (my favorite), you can reduce the highs, add more mids and generally warm it up. One of my favorite pups.

If you don't want to be involved in magnet swapping, I'd suggest an Alt 8. Very beefy, not overly bright, should sound good to you in your guitar. Many people might fear that it would be too dark sounding in your guitar, but your ears are what matters.

PS...removing the tone pot does not noticably affect the bass, but it may add to the treble slightly.
 
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Full Shred vs Distortion in short scale all Mahogany!

It's not so much that the FS has more treble than the lows are cut.

I've used a FS in a LP-scale mahogany body and its great. Another pickup to consider that was voiced with those specs mind is the DMT Blaze.




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Re: Full Shred vs Distortion in short scale all Mahogany!

Hellbilly Deluxe = Short scale all mahogany + fullshred
 
Re: Full Shred vs Distortion in short scale all Mahogany!

Thanks for the info so far guys :) I forgot to add I will be tuning to Drop C/Drop B on this V too so I will get obvious lows from that tuning If the Full Shred loses some?
 
Re: Full Shred vs Distortion in short scale all Mahogany!

I dont get it dude?. The wood makes a huge difference tonally!. And as both pups are EQ'd different its a relevant question. i.e what will have the least treble out of the 2

It's a relevant question only because both pickups are voiced differently. If you consider your mind still open to paradigm shifts, read this article about the tonewood hoax.
 
Re: Full Shred vs Distortion in short scale all Mahogany!

Think of it this way...Full shred is more like a scalpel, whereas the Distortion is a sledgehammer. That analogy pans out perfectly in terms of output, responsiveness and EQ.

Just depends on what you want. Both pickups sound great in mahogany.
 
Re: Full Shred vs Distortion in short scale all Mahogany!

I thought the Full Shred was a bit too clinical in my mahogany Les Paul, I like the Distortion better in general although I haven't had it in a mahogany guitar.
 
Re: Full Shred or Distortion in short scale all Mahogany V!

Re: Full Shred or Distortion in short scale all Mahogany V!

Basically I have a Mahogany V (mahog body, mahog set neck, rosewood fretboard, 22 frets, 24.75 scale)

It has a pick guard and I am going to be removing 2 of the 3 knobs that are on it currently. Basically just running 1 knob, which is of course a master volume, that will also be coil tapped.

Now Im aware that removing the Tone knob and having everything go directly to just 1 master knob increases Treble (or reduces bass?..Im unsure) so therefore:

What would be the best pup out of the Full Shred and the Distortion to use in the bridge seeing as with the added treble from removing the tone knob I will then want the pickup with the LEAST amount of treble of the 2. (also the EQ chart for each pickup from Seymour Duncan seems so far off the mark of what they actually sound like)

I have seen people say the Full Shred has quite of bit of treble but in every comparison video Ive seen it does NOT sound thin from too much treble so I dont understand?

To add I had a Distortion before but in a short scale Alder flying V and I hated it....far toooo bright and shrill but Im aware that we are talking Mahogany here and tonally that is of course warmer/darker

P.s my V currently sounds warm and dark with terrible stock pups.

Would appreciate some help guys from people who have used and experience both in short scale Mahog and the pros and cons etc

Cheers :)

Here's my suggestion, although I don't know what music you play, and what amp with what tubes....

The below vid is my comparison vid between my sh6 DD vs my custom shop Tyrannotitan which a DD based pickup, and by the way the music in the intro is the same all mahogany V (in the vid) straight through a Marshall TSL100, but using a SD PATB2, so actually you have the sound of three pickups int this video!. The main comparison is done through clone sound of a 'JCM800 + tubescreamer' sound modeled on Scott Ian's tone.

Hope this helps:
 
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Re: Full Shred vs Distortion in short scale all Mahogany!

On the volume no tone thing; depending on if you are someone that does a bit of volume control adjustment while playing you may want to consider a treble bleed mod.

I have been trying some different things lately; I thought taking the tone control out would give more fidelity but I like to use the volume control and found a volume by itself without a tone control wired to it (a specific way) or a treble bleed can sound really lifeless when you back off the volume.
 
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