JB in a mahogany single-cut?

I'm being swayed to a Custom, not just because of splitting, but also because I think I prefer ceramic magnets for my bridge pickups, all other things being equal.
 
Well for what it's worth I've used both a JB and a Duncan Custom in my EC and thought both worked great.
I wound up preferring the Custom overall, seemed to strike the right balance for me in that guitar.
I definitely prefer either of those pickups over the Custom 5 in the EC.
 
I think the description of the Custom as a bigger PAF and the JB as a hot rodded humbucker are pretty apt. Custom is tighter than the JB, but the JB has a real singing midrange that the Custom doesn't push as much.
 
My EC-1000 came with covered JB and it worked in that guitar, however thats the only time I've ever liked an A5 JB. It certainly wasn't perfect either.
I'd go with mag swapping the C5 to Ceramic first.

I like the C5 the best though. I tested most magnets with the Custom in a Les Paul type a few years ago (2, 4, 5, 8 and Ceramic) and A5 won BUT I like Tele bridge pickups and use the tone control all the time. I totally get why some don't like them.

In fact just yesterday I converted my Hardtail Horizon back to its stock C5 after a period of trying other mags. A Custom 8 is technically 'better' and more versatile but I just prefer the character of the C5. The reason for experimenting was the Jazz neck sounded perfect but was louder than the C5. I just jacked the C5 way up close to the strings this time to brute force more output (duh).
 
I have a JB with a roughcast UOA5 in the bridge of my mahogany Shecter Blackjack.

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OK, I spent a good few months with the Custom in this LTD. It wasn't bad per se, but I just wasn't vibing with it. So now I've changed it up. Tuned the LTD down to D standard and had my luthier install the Black Winters I've had lying around since I swapped them out of my Les Paul for a Super D / Paf Pro combo.

First day playing with the Winters in the LTD and it's like coming home. Everything is just right. The bridge hits like a ton of bricks with distortion, so much so that I can keep my volume knob around 8 and max it for solos. But it covers a lot of clean territory too. The neck does well with gain or clean and in pretty much any style I care to play. I've missed having a guitar with Winters.
 
Glad you liked the 'Winter! It's my favorite Duncan. I also like the JB, though.

About people saying the Custom is tight, I don't agree, and I honestly don't get it. The Custom has a pretty HUGE low-end, IMO.
 
Glad you liked the 'Winter! It's my favorite Duncan. I also like the JB, though.

About people saying the Custom is tight, I don't agree, and I honestly don't get it. The Custom has a pretty HUGE low-end, IMO.

I think I am going to get a JB for an E-standard guitar eventually. It's just associated with too many iconic sounds from bands I listen to for me to not have one. I've already got the Jazz from my LTD lying around and a JB-Jazz combo is a pretty safe and solid pairing.

Like you, I don't hear the tightness in the Custom. And that low end was too much for me. I now have a Custom and a Custom 5 that I'll be looking to sell, lol.
 
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