Good metal pickups for a middy guitar

weepingminotaur

weepingminotaur

Well-known member
So I have this LTD EC-1000, mahogany body and neck, tuned to D standard, used 100% for metal. Love the guitar, but I haven't been able to find a pickup combo that really fits the guitar. It came with a Custom-5 and Jazz. I didn't like the Custom 5, so I tried the Custom in the bridge but didn't love that either. Next, I swapped in a Black Winter set. The BW aren't bad but are probably too middy for this particular guitar. So now I'm looking for more scooped, bitey options that aren't the Custom 5 (which I have no interest in trying again).

Recommendations? Right now I'm thinking maybe the Alpha-Omega set is worth a shot.
 
I love the Gibson 500T, personally. It's kinda like the best parts of the Distortion and the Black Winter merged into one. The bite and attack of the Black Winter with the sizzle and grind of the Distortion. It has more low-end than the Black Winter, but it's more focused than the Distortion. It's also less fat in the low-mids than either, so I think it would be a good pickup for a Les Paul-type guitar. It's far from a scooped pickup, but it's not as stuffy as the BW or Distortion can be either.

The Custom 5 isn't really much of a Metal pickup, IMO. I know Ola uses it, but I never got it to work for myself, personally. The guitars I use are very different than what Ola is using, though. The Ceramic Custom is better, but much like you, I didn't love it either.
 
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Not gonna lie, if the Jazz and C5 are too middy it's probably not the pickups that are causing the problem. Les Paul type guitars tend to be fairly middy. What's the rest of your rig?
 
Chistopher said:
Not gonna lie, if the Jazz and C5 are too middy it's probably not the pickups that are causing the problem. Les Paul type guitars tend to be fairly middy. What's the rest of your rig?
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Never said I found the Jazz or the C5 too middy. The C5 I just found unsuitable for the metal I wanted to play. I actually liked the Jazz a lot, but I decided to put the whole Black Winter set in to see how it would sound. I'd certainly consider a Jazz again in the neck for this guitar.
 
My favorite bridge pickups for metal in warmer guitars are BKP Cold Sweat (ceramic) and Rebel Yell (A5). Lots of bite and definition. Neither of them are crushingly high output, but there's more than enough juice to get great heavy tones out of any of the high gain tube amps I've used.
 
The Black Winters have a pretty healthy amount of mids, though. If the Custom series was uninspiring, I'd say look at the Sentient/Pegasus combo, or consider actives.
 
All great suggestions. Thanks, folks. I was thinking JB or Alpha/Omega, but hadn't considered BKP pickups, which I've never tried TBH. The Pegasus is a possibility.
 
Mincer said:
The Black Winters have a pretty healthy amount of mids, though. If the Custom series was uninspiring, I'd say look at the Sentient/Pegasus combo, or consider actives.
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Do you think the Pegasus could handle fast thrash riffing? I always had it pegged as more of a prog oriented pickup but that impression could be off-base. Also, what apart from the Sentient would pair well with it? I've got a Sentient in another guitar, and while I like it, I also like variety.
 
I thought the Pegasus sounded really nice for cleans and leads and mid-gain stuff, but it didn't have enough percussive aggression for me in heavier parts. Ceramic magnet helped with that, but there are better pickups for high gain riffing.
 
Looking at the Dave Mustaine Thrash Factor. On paper it actually sounds like it might fit my needs (more scooped mids than a JB, tighter low end). Have 0 experience with it, though.
 
weepingminotaur said:
Do you think the Pegasus could handle fast thrash riffing? I always had it pegged as more of a prog oriented pickup but that impression could be off-base. Also, what apart from the Sentient would pair well with it? I've got a Sentient in another guitar, and while I like it, I also like variety.
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It can pair with the Nazgul as well. But the Pegasus isn't just for prog metal. It has a pretty solid low end.
 
Yeah, the Distortion might work as well. So +1 on those.

The Distortion has more sizzle and grind than a JB as well as a solid, bolder, less stuffy low end/low mid ratio.

Compared to the 'Winter, the Distortion is definitely less focused around the mids.
 
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