Jaguar Bridge Pickup

[woolweather]

Thanks in advance for the help.

I know there have been threads about this, but I feel like my setup and what I'm looking for is a bit different.

Guitar is a Squier VM Jag. After being a tele player for years, this was a nice change. Easy to play. Just didn't like the original DD pickups much.
Swapped in some SD Cools Rails (separate neck and bridge models). After playing with wiring and pot values, having the neck in parallel is sweet. Has a zingy, almost jag/strat snap with better bottom end. The bridge doesn't fit though. Low volume and nasally no matter wiring and pot value.

Playing style is mostly alt-rock and shoegaze. Fairly clean, and when I want dirty and compressed I'm ok with pedal tones. I have one guitar set aside for heavier metal stuff into a Boogie or simulator. This guitar doesn't need to reach that territory. More Radiohead, Muse, My bloody Valentine. The neck covers lots of rhythm sounds. I need something for that extra push.

I like more vintage than modern, I would say. My clean channel is a Mesa Subway Rocket. Other guitars have Wilde L280TN, Lil 59 Bridge (in parallel), Jazz Neck, EJ Custom Bridge, XL500 in a bridge position. Have heard lots of JBs, Distortions, Full size 59s, full Gibson range, Fender Noiseless, most Lace pickups in other guitars as I worked in a music store for about 8 years. If it came stock in a major line, I have some experience with it. The wildes are the best pickups I've ever heard and dead silent. The lil 59 surprised me, but it took some fussing with wiring and pots. Would like something slightly different than the 59, but maybe the difference between the tele scale and bridge and the Jag is enough. Single sized hot 'Tron sound is what I have in my head (been thinking about a Cabronita or Gretsch for years, but maybe that just comes later).

Don't care about the claw if the pickup is humbucking or noiseless. Black cover and a rails look to match the Cool Rials would be nice.

I'm open to anything that can be bought online, but would be partial to SD, Dimarzio, Wilde or Fender. Just easier to get and known to me.

TLDR: Looking for vintage hot style single sized pickup for alt style Jag.

Thanks

 

[jeremy]

Re: Jaguar Bridge Pickup

welcome to the forum!

have you ever tried a joe barden pup?

 

[Silence Kid]

Re: Jaguar Bridge Pickup

Trying to understand; your bridge Cool Rail is overpowered by the neck? Have you checked wiring is correct & measured DC resistance at the jack? Pickups reversed? That doesn't seem right. How about your heights?

 

[jeremy]

Re: Jaguar Bridge Pickup

the bridge cool rails shouldnt be low output unless its in parallel also but then it shouldnt be nasal at all

 

[woolweather]

Re: Jaguar Bridge Pickup

Measured the pickups. Neck in parallel is 2.4. Bridge is 10.4. Those are about right. Pots are 250k. In this configuration the pickups are balanced, or the bridge is a touch hot. It's fine. However, it's nasally and feels stuck in the speaker compared to other pickups and guitars. High mid peak and not enough treble. Not what I need.
Haven't used Bardens. Bill Lawrence or Wildes are the closest I've gotten, which I really like. Get full frequency from the pickup and use pedals and amps to shape it. That's kind of what I'm looking for.

Might order some Wilde pickups for both spots. Also now considering either vintage rails in the bridge or something hotter in parallel. Last resort might be cutting body and pickguard for a filtertron or gold foil. Still open to suggestions.

 

[Jacew]

Re: Jaguar Bridge Pickup

Measured the pickups. Neck in parallel is 2.4. Bridge is 10.4. Those are about right. Pots are 250k. In this configuration the pickups are balanced, or the bridge is a touch hot. It's fine. However, it's nasally and feels stuck in the speaker compared to other pickups and guitars. High mid peak and not enough treble. Not what I need.
Haven't used Bardens. Bill Lawrence or Wildes are the closest I've gotten, which I really like. Get full frequency from the pickup and use pedals and amps to shape it. That's kind of what I'm looking for.

I'm confused... I understand nasal to mean to much treble, but you seem to say it doesn't have enough? Bridge being touch hot doesn't really seem to correlate anything else... If anything vintage rails would be even more nasal.

Nasal and stuck in speaker sounds like the bridge is out-of-phase with itself. Have you checked that?

Btw: 500k pots would help for wider frequency range if you need that.

 

[Silence Kid]

Re: Jaguar Bridge Pickup

A symptom of out of phase is increased hum. I gather OP probably downgraded to 250 from 1 meg pots as a means of blocking treble?

Jaguars have a stock "bright" switch, I gather it's not in circuit as he obtained DC measurements at the jack but I wonder if there's not something else going on? Lot to keep track of wiring-wise on those guitars.

 

[woolweather]

Re: Jaguar Bridge Pickup

"I'm confused... I understand nasal to mean to much treble, but you seem to say it doesn't have enough? Bridge being touch hot doesn't really seem to correlate anything else... If anything vintage rails would be even more nasal.

Nasal and stuck in speaker sounds like the bridge is out-of-phase with itself. Have you checked that?

Btw: 500k pots would help for wider frequency range if you need that. "

"A symptom of out of phase is increased hum. I gather OP probably downgraded to 250 from 1 meg pots as a means of blocking treble?

Jaguars have a stock "bright" switch, I gather it's not in circuit as he obtained DC measurements at the jack but I wonder if there's not something else going on? Lot to keep track of wiring-wise on those guitars."

Sorry, the guitar is modified. Rhythm and switching circuit is gone. It's simply a 3-way LP type toggle with master volume and master tone. I included a pic for clarification. 250k pots and 0.047uF cap for tone. I figured 1M was going to be too much for any pickups other than true jag or jm. I think I tried it with the rails and they were super bright and way too much push. 500k was even too much.

Neck is red+black to hot, white, green + bare to ground. Bridge is Black hot, red+white soldered and taped off, green and bare to ground.
Dead quiet. No hum. Probably not out of phase. When I say nasally, I think upper mid peak and treble drop off. Like plugging your nose and talking or a fixed wah. This bridge isn't that bad, but it's what I'm hearing that won't balance. Maybe a bit like what people describe from a JB sometimes. I need something that is more open, and just enough level or 'push' to naturally rise above the rhythm tone from the neck. If I want more gain, it will come from a clean boost or 808 on my board.