JB or Distortion NECK in bridge of an SG Standard

Wolfshead

Wolfshead

New member
I bought another Gibson SG Standard (2005) from Ebay because it was cheap. Headstock break (looks well mended) and I told him to take out his pickups to knock a bit more off the price since I have a few spares of my own to go in there. It also has a black Gibson hard case and I really want that! Graphtech saddles too, if that matters (doesn't really to me).
Anyhoo - the SG standards I already own have these pickups
Ebony 2016 - Gibson Angus Young/490R
Cherry 1999 - 498/490

I have to say I like both those guitars. The cherry sounds much hotter for some reason, great for metal and hard rock. The ebony just NAILS any AC/DC tone you want.

So for this new one without any pickups in it I have a few spares including cream DiMarzios and a chrome 498T but I'm planning on using uncovered Duncans to make a pair.

Duncan Distortion neck model
JBJ
Jazz neck

My plan was to put the DDn in the bridge and the Jazz in the neck. But...I dunno, I'm a metal guy and I'm thinking the JB would work great in there. I had the DDn in the bridge of an Epi Les Paul and it sounded fantastic but I also had the JB in the bridge of that same guitar and it also sounded fantastic.
I have no intention of selling the JB since it's a JBJ (I have two of these) and they are the Holy Grail to metal fans so I might as well USE the thing, right?

What do you think?
JB in the bridge with DDn or Jazz in the neck?

Or forget the JB because it doesn't like mahogany apparently and use the DDn in the bridge with the Jazz neck?

I know Blueman is going to tell me the JB won't work in an SG so before you do I'd like to ask you if you have ever had a Gibson SG? And I do NOT mean that in a d**khead kind of way - you once sent me some magnets for free and I really appreciated that AND your tone tips on here over the years. BUT I owned an Epi G400 and to be perfectly honest it was nothing like the Gibson SGs. It really shocked me when I got a Gibby and felt how different they were because Epi and Gibson Les Pauls both feel pretty much the same.
The G400 and SG Standard feel completely different though which makes me wonder if you're telling people certain things don't work in an SG when they might well work in the Gibson version.

s-l1600.jpg
 
Re: JB or Distortion NECK in bridge of an SG Standard

That's not my house BTW. That chair is an abomination.
 
Re: JB or Distortion NECK in bridge of an SG Standard

JBJ + Jazz.

Sent from my MotoE2(4G-LTE) using Tapatalk
 
Re: JB or Distortion NECK in bridge of an SG Standard

I was much happier with an A5 DDn (slugs towared the bridge and short hex screws toward the neck) over a JB, but I'd try both.

Perhaps a better solution for metal:
Swap the magnets giving you a Duncan Distortion for the bridge and an A5 Duncan Distortion Neck for the neck.
 
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Re: JB or Distortion NECK in bridge of an SG Standard

I am not a fan of JB. I don't dislike it but I prefer different sound. I will go with a superdistortion in the bridge. I have it in my SG and that pickup belongs to that guitar. For the neck slot a DP103 ( a real DP103). Classic, yes. Abused, yes. Outdated, maybe. But simply ROCK.
 
Re: JB or Distortion NECK in bridge of an SG Standard

First of all, Blueman does not haunt these parts with his foolishness anymore. So he isn't going to say anything. As if anyone should have listened to him about anything except magnets in the first place. As for the JB / Mahogany thing...that is a) a myth, and b) applies to bigger/heavier Les Pauls for the most part. SG is a totally different beast.

So...let me turn you on to THIS idea....

If that doesn't work, then go to an A* in the bridge JB and an A2 in the neck: JB2 and JB8 set - that will really be a different take on the SG

#1 Put the JB in the bridge. Because, well, JB's go there. It will be similar to the sound you dig, but more than different enough.

#2 Take the DDn, remove the magnet, then put an A5 in it. What you will have then made is, in essence, a JB neck model. It won't exactly be a JB neck - but it will be the closest thing you will find to it. Think of it as a JB Mayhem set.

Full disclosure: Not an SG guy.
Full disclosure: Blueman couldn't play Shook Me All Night Long if his life depended on it. I doubt he owned an AC/DC disc.
 
Re: JB or Distortion NECK in bridge of an SG Standard

I'm guessing I missed some sort of drama on here.

My SG is rocking a Duncan Custom and a Distortion Neck model. It's happy with that arrangement. The DDn is not as hot as its bridge counterpart, so I can't see it working as a bridge pickup but happy to be corrected.
 
Re: JB or Distortion NECK in bridge of an SG Standard

I don't think you'd want a DDn in the bridge if the other pickup was a Custom.

Regardless, it's still a very hot pickup even without the ceramic magnet. It has lots of bottom and mids. I'd say it has a more modern sound than the JB and under high gain I would take the tighter low end over that from the JB in the guitar where it got replaced for hard rock/metal every day of the week. Leads are smooth and authoritative. Harmonics everywhere. It can be pretty responsive to your pick attack when playing with mild distortion.

In parallel mode with an A5 it can provide a nice classic-type PAF sound (think Jimmy Page's Les Paul; no, I am not kidding). I put a 1nF bypass cap in series with 47k to ground in order to tame what I thought was a brittle top end under medium or higher gain. Besides increasing clarity under gain by cutting the unnecessary extended high end, the RC actually gave it more bite (like a 59). In parallel it also balances well with single coils in both level and tone. I didn't care for the sound when split, at least not in the bridge position of the basswood body it was in. I wouldn't hesitate to try it split in some other guitar, however. Similar to the JB some may like it better with a 250k volume pot when running it in the bridge with an A5, though it should do fine with a 500k in series mode. I didn't find it necessary either way, but the tone control pot value can still be high, or even absent for those who prefer.

I have no experience with it in mahogany, though I think there's a demo of it in the bridge of an SG with an A5 on youtube.

I've heard it does exceptionally well in the bridge with an A8.

It may not be everyone's cup of tea, but I feel it's well worth trying, including running it in parallel if you're at all curious about tapping into this vintage secondary sound.
 
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Re: JB or Distortion NECK in bridge of an SG Standard

Aceman said:
First of all, Blueman does not haunt these parts with his foolishness anymore. So he isn't going to say anything. As if anyone should have listened to him about anything except magnets in the first place. As for the JB / Mahogany thing...that is a) a myth, and b) applies to bigger/heavier Les Pauls for the most part. SG is a totally different beast.

So...let me turn you on to THIS idea....

If that doesn't work, then go to an A* in the bridge JB and an A2 in the neck: JB2 and JB8 set - that will really be a different take on the SG

#1 Put the JB in the bridge. Because, well, JB's go there. It will be similar to the sound you dig, but more than different enough.

#2 Take the DDn, remove the magnet, then put an A5 in it. What you will have then made is, in essence, a JB neck model. It won't exactly be a JB neck - but it will be the closest thing you will find to it. Think of it as a JB Mayhem set.

Full disclosure: Not an SG guy.
Full disclosure: Blueman couldn't play Shook Me All Night Long if his life depended on it. I doubt he owned an AC/DC disc.
Click to expand...

Ace,
I appreciate you and your knowledge. But I think it was a bit unfair what you said about Blueman. Over the years he has made significant (good) contributions to this forum. I know you two have had your clashes in the past, but don't you think you should now let dead dog lie?
 
Re: JB or Distortion NECK in bridge of an SG Standard

First of all, I dig that chair.

I dig Jazz/DDn. The DDn is powerful enough for the bridge, and it will do tight metal really well. You already have a guitar for AC/DC. This will be the metal machine. Prophesy has foretold.
 
Re: JB or Distortion NECK in bridge of an SG Standard

Someone the recently called the DDn a JB Light. To be fair it was with an A5, but I think it's much better characterized as Custom Light, even with an A5.

I don't believe it's said often enough: the DDn uses 43 gauge wire. The number of winds is between that of the Screamin' Demon and the Custom. I don't know that I'd characterize it as under-wound, certainly not like the SD. I think some are inclined to think it's under-wound with 44 gauge wire. This is definitely not the case and should be readily apparent when listening to this pickup in the bridge position.
 
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Re: JB or Distortion NECK in bridge of an SG Standard

Mincer said:
First of all, I dig that chair.

I dig Jazz/DDn. The DDn is powerful enough for the bridge, and it will do tight metal really well. You already have a guitar for AC/DC. This will be the metal machine. Prophesy has foretold.
Click to expand...

Oh I already have guitars for metal too, including a Jackson Kelly with EMGs, Adrian Smith SDX and a PC-1 among others. :newangel: But I do agree the DDn is good for tight metal.

Thanks to all for their input!
 
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