I've Gone To The Dark Side...And I Love It!

[DeadSkinSlayer3]

I got a DiMarzio Evolution neck for my alder Jackson yesterday, and put it through it's paces today. I can't believe I never tried DiMarzio's before this...

Cleans are actually quite nice, expecially when split! It matches perfectly volume-wise with my DD in the bridge, which is a plus as well. They're thick and warm yet still have some bite in the upper strings. Probably not THE best pickup for cleans, but it does what I need just fine.

Under low gain it performs very nicely, and it actually does chords really well! This is the first pickup I've ever been able to use for chording under gain. Not much gain, mind you, but still gain. Again, very articulate with edge and more thickness than I'm used to with the Jazz, but in a great way.

Under high gain is really where it sings...and it literally sings. Notes have a TON of sustain, and ring out very very smoothly and clearly. It has more bass than I'm used to, and is a tad thicker, but it still has edge. Another first, also...I can get pinch harmonics in the neck...I've never experienced that.

It reacts to changes in volume knob and picking dynamics better than my Duncans, too. Maybe it's just the Evo, but it really is quite nice.

So far...I'm extremely happy with this pickup, and GASsing for an RG with a Tone Zone/Air Norton or PAF Pro set...

 

[JB_From_Hell]

Re: I've Gone To The Dark Side...And I Love It!

I hope you still like it in 2 weeks

I loved every DiMarzio I ever tried, and got totally bored with them in a week or two.

 

[DeadSkinSlayer3]

Re: I've Gone To The Dark Side...And I Love It!

Really? Why so? I don't really see myself getting bored with this very quickly...

 

[theboatcandream]

Re: I've Gone To The Dark Side...And I Love It!

Cool! I really like their "PAF7" in the bridge of my epiphone. The cleans are something else though... they don't really have any ~magic~ to them.

I have clips here: http://www.soundclick.com/bands/6/theboatcandreammusic.htm


"Les Paul clip", "Seafoam Green", and "Coil Taps Demo" are my PAF7s in action, but "Les Paul clip" would be the one to listen to.

 

[rguser]

Re: I've Gone To The Dark Side...And I Love It!

I loved every DiMarzio I ever tried, and got totally bored with them in a week or two.

I have an RG3120 w/ Tone Zone and Paf Pro. I love it over all but there is some truth in the above quote. Those pickups combined with the character of the guitar make it perfect for metal but not much else. It is a do-one-thing-and-do-it-best guitar. Paf pro @ neck does have some nice clean sound but not nearly as good as SD jazz.
What is interesting with most Dimarzio pickups is they have a very specific sound. If you happen to want that sound you are gonna love it. SD pickups are more volatile depending on a lot of other factors. They are 3D sounding.

 

[JB_From_Hell]

Re: I've Gone To The Dark Side...And I Love It!

Really? Why so?

I don't really know. It happened with the Steve's Special, Evo (bridge), Super Distortion, Super 2 (neck & bridge), and Air Norton.

They all started off great, and just kinda got "blah" from there. They've got this kind of "airiness" to their tone, which I think is better suited for an effects laden rig. With next to nothing between the guitar and amp, Duncans, EMGs or Lace Sensors do it for me a lot better.

 

[DeadSkinSlayer3]

Re: I've Gone To The Dark Side...And I Love It!

I've heard that alot, and it makes sense now. The Jackson is my 'shred' guitar, though, and I don't need good cleans or a really versatile sound. It's super responsive and dynamic, and has a great attack and feel for fast, aggressive music. For versatility and softer stuff, I have the Schecter with the JB/Jazz combo. It sounds smoother and is a bit less responsive (not bad, just different), and the pickups can do just about anything, especially with coil taps set in place.

I find DiMarzio's have a very distinct 'modern' voicing, whereas SD's are more vintage.

 

[theboatcandream]

Re: I've Gone To The Dark Side...And I Love It!

I don't really know. It happened with the Steve's Special, Evo (bridge), Super Distortion, Super 2 (neck & bridge), and Air Norton.

They all started off great, and just kinda got "blah" from there. They've got this kind of "airiness" to their tone, which I think is better suited for an effects laden rig. With next to nothing between the guitar and amp, Duncans, EMGs or Lace Sensors do it for me a lot better.

What you call airiness, I call hiss and noise. If you go to that link I posted and listen to "superdistortion clip", you can really hear it.

 

[JB_From_Hell]

Re: I've Gone To The Dark Side...And I Love It!

What you call airiness, I call hiss and noise.

:laugh2:

 

[Majestic]

Re: I've Gone To The Dark Side...And I Love It!

When I moved my Evo pickup to my hardtail basswood strat, it worked WONDERS.

I'm talking night & day different from the tone it had when installed in my Ibanez w/ a floating whammy.

I see the guitar you have it in is a hardtail as well. That's the key to getting a truly bad-a** tone from that pickup, while not being "brash" or "brittle".

Ironic that it was designed for a lifeless floating whammy setup. (Vai)

 

[Skarekrough]

Re: I've Gone To The Dark Side...And I Love It!

I find DiMarzio's have a very distinct 'modern' voicing, whereas SD's are more vintage.

+1

I found the PAF Pro / Tone Zone combo to be a killer set up in my 7 strings.

The Evo's a great pickup as well; I actually thought it sounded better at moderate gain than all-out high gain. It just seemed to shine at a level lower than you would think it would.

 

[Johtosotku]

Re: I've Gone To The Dark Side...And I Love It!

My PAF Pro / TZ combo really rocks. I've never thought of pickups as all around pickups. You buy some pickups for things they're good at. A jack of all trades is a master of none.

I also find that DMZ seems to have more difference in their pickups than SD. Maybe it's the vintage vs. modern thing.

 

[Breogan]

Re: I've Gone To The Dark Side...And I Love It!

I have some DM models and I like them a lot...

 

[mrid]

Re: I've Gone To The Dark Side...And I Love It!

So far...I'm extremely happy with this pickup, and GASsing for an RG with a Tone Zone/Air Norton or PAF Pro set...

I had a guitar with the TZ/Air Norton set, and it just didn't do anything for me. The TZ was kind of cool, but it had no personality. I really didn't like the Air Norton for some reason, although it did sound kind of cool split. This was in a mahogany body, btw, which I've heard isn't ideal for that set.

 

[Jimbojsr]

Re: I've Gone To The Dark Side...And I Love It!

Anyone know how a Dimarzio PAF classic (ie. one with a cover) would compare to a covered '59 in the bridge of my epiphone 335?

 

[ranalli]

Re: I've Gone To The Dark Side...And I Love It!

What you call airiness, I call hiss and noise. If you go to that link I posted and listen to "superdistortion clip", you can really hear it.

I've owned MANY Dimarzios AND Duncans and Dimarzios dont' have any hiss or noise.


The bottom line is Dimarzio fills a definitely void in the Duncan line...they have medium to high output pickups that are really beefy and laden in mids and lows....really great for a thick sound.


And when people say they are better for "processed sounds" or "shredding" that's really just internet folklore....

 

[mrfjones]

Re: I've Gone To The Dark Side...And I Love It!

oh well you are young, you will come back

 

[Benjy_26]

Re: I've Gone To The Dark Side...And I Love It!

Anyone know how a Dimarzio PAF classic (ie. one with a cover) would compare to a covered '59 in the bridge of my epiphone 335?

If you want authentic PAF flavor, go with the Duncans, 59's, Pearly Gates, or Seths will all do the PAF thing a lot better than the Dimarzio PAF class pickups.

 

[ranalli]

Re: I've Gone To The Dark Side...And I Love It!

If you want authentic PAF flavor, go with the Duncans, 59's, Pearly Gates, or Seths will all do the PAF thing a lot better than the Dimarzio PAF class pickups.

Not a chance....they're all different interpretations of what a PAF would sound like.

The original PAFs weren't consistent and here's a tip...NOBODY has it right....every company took what they thought was a good sounding PAF and made their pickups from it. There's too many variations to what a "correct PAF" is too say any one is more valid than the other with the exception of the antiquity stuff or stuff that's aged.

 

[Johtosotku]

Re: I've Gone To The Dark Side...And I Love It!

I had a guitar with the TZ/Air Norton set, and it just didn't do anything for me. The TZ was kind of cool, but it had no personality. I really didn't like the Air Norton for some reason, although it did sound kind of cool split. This was in a mahogany body, btw, which I've heard isn't ideal for that set.

What? TZ has all the personality in the World. I think it really is a special pickup, with a specific sound. Welll, different strokes for different folks.