JB VS 59/Custom hybrid and was very surprised.

[darthphineas]

Re: JB VS 59/Custom hybrid and was very surprised.

It seems like the 59s custom hybrid is cool for high gain application...

kinda sorta maybe.

using the same amp setting, I find that for my purposes it lacks drive and push for screaming sustianed lead work... unless more gain is thrown at it, when compared to the JB. but it was great for rhythm playing.

Neil Geraldo was using one when they were still pretty new (don't know if he's still using them), and I think they worked well for his overall sort of flavor.

 

[Hopkinwfg]

Re: JB VS 59/Custom hybrid and was very surprised.

kinda sorta maybe.

using the same amp setting, I find that for my purposes it lacks drive and push for screaming sustianed lead work... unless more gain is thrown at it, when compared to the JB. but it was great for rhythm playing.

Neil Geraldo was using one when they were still pretty new (don't know if he's still using them), and I think they worked well for his overall sort of flavor.

Mmmmm.... so which is the other duncan pickup that i can get close to what the baseline of the JB and with the qualities that the JB didnt have ?

Ie the "mid honk" the thickness of the JB with am amount of "openess" but with more sustain harmonics and tighter bass response and with the same natural tone of the JB ?

 

[darthphineas]

Re: JB VS 59/Custom hybrid and was very surprised.

The JB.

And tweak the amp.

 

[Mincer]

Re: JB VS 59/Custom hybrid and was very surprised.

It seems like the 59s custom hybrid is cool for high gain application... just wonder will the 59s custom hybrid will sound natural and raw ?

I don't use any more gain than, say, a Tube Screamer level. Most of my playing is clean. The Hybrid is wonderful for this. I have no doubt it would be great for higher gain stuff, too.

 

[SJ318]

Re: JB VS 59/Custom hybrid and was very surprised.

Mincer,
I am ready to buy a 59/Custom, a few things just mentioned I must ask. One is simple, is there any need to or gain from asking for different coil strengths other than what is now in production?
And, is the quality questionable as some of these posts suggests? I am going to ask MJ to make mine double white. If she winds the p'ups the quality would be the same, yes? And are all magnets fully charged (not the Ants. I know) but the rest of the line unless specified?
I ask you as you have been there.
Thank you,
Steve Buffington

 

[mantis]

Re: JB VS 59/Custom hybrid and was very surprised.

I'm wondering if it's the amps you guys use, the effects chain or even the length of cables.
I have 3 guitars with JB's in the bridge position and they all sound different.

2006 Jackson SL3 - this guitar has a dark tone overall and the JB in the bridge sounds dark. It's very responsive to metal style playing yet when you go clean it sounds warm and inviting. For metal heavy Distortion tones , it's brutal enough to play up to Death metal yet clear enough to play any Lighter rock or 80's metal stuff you want to do.
When I play clean , the tone is remarkable. It can sound as Ballad like all you want. Clean clear and all note ring out very clear.

2013 Charvel Pro Mod MIM San Dimas HT - this is a zebra JB but from what I know it's the same exact JB as all others. This pickup in this guitar is more on the brighter side. The entire guitar response is on the brighter side. It's not thin just bright compared to the Jackson. When I play Metal on this guitar it has a crunch that cuts and is very sharp. It's mean and nasty which is perfect for all kinds of Metal tones. Yet when using light Distortion or OD stuff it sounds amazing like Brian Adams "Run to you" Strat like tones just a bit thicker. AC DC stuff is extremely easy and correct sounding with this JB in this guitar.
Cleans are really nice. I find it very pleasing and warm , not Les Paul warm but comfortable like a nice soft couch when you need to sit down. That feeling you get when you come home and take a load off.

2016 Charvel Pro Mod San Dimas HT - this guitar has a all White JB in the bridge position. And like the other 2 , has a sound all of it's own. Overall I find this guitars tone with the JB to be the best for me. It's not as warm as the jackson but warmer then the 2013 Charvel. It seems to be the most balanced sound out of the 3 JB guitars I own.
I want to say it like this as it's a feeling I get when I play each one of them side by side by side. The JB for Metal is mature and elderly like. What I mean is it seems to be warm but not overly warm. It's bright but not overly bright. It's about as neutral as it gets. It's incredible how it responds to everything you do.
Cleans can make you want to cry. It's so beautiful it's amazing. It has a lot of character like a Les Paul yet slightly more aggressive but not by a a lot. It's a strange and shocking experience when you play it. I get lost in it every time I play. It's the only guitar I own that feels like home.
Think about a rainy cold day. Your out driving , shopping going in and out of stores and over the course of the day your getting wet tired and hungry. When the day is done and your driving home, all you want to do is remove the wet dirty clothes , take a nice hot shower and sit and relax with a hot cup of your favorite Hot beverage. The feeling you get when you reach this point is the feeling I get when I play this JB loaded guitar. It calls to me.
I would never change the JB out of it as this guitar shows how and what it is supposed to sound like , why this pickup was ever made and how us a musicians can use it as a tool to create the music inside us.

Now there is one thing I do that maybe some of you do and some may not. I set up my JB pickups for maximum clarity and even output. I first adjust the height of the pickup and measure both side from E to E string making it even. Then I listen to it and see if it has balance. If not I raise the side that needs attention. Once I achieve the best sound quality I can from Height , then I move onto the adjustable poles. I also measure the string distance from each string and make them even first. Then I adjust to take from there if I find one string or another to ring louder or softer then the others. I mostly have the thicker strings a bit louder then the Light strings. The Light strings cut better so I tend to favor the heavier wound string for more output. I'm a Rhythm Guitar player and I play way more Chords and things then any solo stuff. Single notes I do however use a lot in my Rhythms and want clarity when doing so.
These adjustment make all the difference in the world. If you not doing them to your guitars , you should learn how to do so. A luthier can do it but it will be to his taste and not yours. Still a good way to go as a good Luthier will make them sound much better then how they come from the factory. At least in my opinion anyway. Thats why I feel you should do it yourself and tweak it to your playing style. I get a ton of you would fall in love with the JB after it's set up to your perfection.

I finally found 2 sets of strings I'm totally in love with after decades of trying just about everything on the market. I like the D'addario Nickel Wounds and the NYXL's a lot. Both of these strings are completely amazing. The NYXL's are very balanced and sound right out of the pack broken in. They have that new sharpe tone but it's slightly less then what you would expect from a brand new pair of strings like someone broke them in for you. It's pretty amazing how they respond and feel. I'm totally loving them.
On the other hand is the Nickel wounds which sound as you would expect from a new pair very sharpe crisp and clear. They retain this NEW sound longer then any other sting I have owned and I was heavily favoriting the DL TITE Fit strings which to me is a great set. The Cobalts from Ernie Ball is another set I find to be excellent. Both he TITE fit and Cobalts are great but I find the D'addario's to have the best qualities I like from both sets in one set or 2 if you will. I don't now which ones I like more as they work on all my guitars. It's amazing as for years I never found a string that works on all my guitars until I dug deeper into the D'addario line.

My other guitars one has a Screamin Demon and the other has a Distortion in the bridge Position. Both are Floyd Rose guitars and have a complete different sound of their own. I like them for what they do but I don't feel either one of them are a flexible as the JB in all 3 of my other guitars.

 

[darthphineas]

Re: JB VS 59/Custom hybrid and was very surprised.

Mincer,
I am ready to buy a 59/Custom, a few things just mentioned I must ask. One is simple, is there any need to or gain from asking for different coil strengths other than what is now in production?
And, is the quality questionable as some of these posts suggests? I am going to ask MJ to make mine double white. If she winds the p'ups the quality would be the same, yes? And are all magnets fully charged (not the Ants. I know) but the rest of the line unless specified?
I ask you as you have been there.
Thank you,
Steve Buffington

You can ask for a regular production model in white. Are you considering something from MJ for a totally custom wind?

 

[Ascension]

Re: JB VS 59/Custom hybrid and was very surprised.

On the question of amps and guitars here is where I am.
Amps 2 Boogies (.50 + head and a Subway Rocket) both from the early 1990's, a similar vintage Peavey Ultra + and a 2008 Zinky Blue Velvet combo. I most of the time play with a good bit of gain but use touch and my guitar volume control to clean up so need a pickup that is touch sensitive for my style.
I own several guitars with JB's and have been a JB user for many years but have just dropped my first 59/Custom hybrid into my 2014 Fender Modern Player Tele.
The 59/custom has been a huge surprise and was not al all what I expected. I expected a PAF like pickup with moderate output that would be great as a versatile pickup in particular for lower gains but expected it to be lacking at higher gains in comparison to my JB equipped guitars.
What I got was a monster that has that sweetness and clarity I was looking for but just explodes with harmonics at gain and sings like crazy for high gain solos! More harmonic content pick harmonics pull easier clarity is better and there is less compression than with my JB equipped guitars. Got the open PAF style sweetness I expected and that's a fact but also got amazing high gain clarity, singing solo quality and punch I did not expect.
The 59 Custom is a VERY good pickup for soloing much better in fact to me than any of the Custom variants are and that was the biggest overall surprise.

 

[SJ318]

Re: JB VS 59/Custom hybrid and was very surprised.

Darthphineas -
I know that "K" is not a reflection of the loudness, but it seems to be something to go on when compared to lower reading for MAXIMUM CLEANESS. The few p'ups I have tried above 10K didn't seem to be much louder, but impossible to clean up through Fender type amps, Princeton reverb, Blues Jr.
All of my p'ups under 10K can clean up to get a Bloomfield type of sound and be pushed by the amp or in my case by a clean overdrive (a little dirt thrown in) to get the famous Clapton with Mayall sound.
So my question is would a lower wind in each coil, still uneven, be a good bet to get that edginess and still be clean and powerful?
Also I don't want wax potting. Anywhere.
And believe me, in all deference to the man who can clean up his JB, I tried all that and more but it could never get as clean as I need. I am sure he likes what he found, but it is not possible for my particular ears. So please, no need to talk about the JB, in my case. I am happy mantis found his sound.
Steve B.

 

[SJ318]

Re: JB VS 59/Custom hybrid and was very surprised.

Mincer and Darthphineous-
Along with above info on original question, could a tried and true (for me) Seth bridge W/A4 benignity, get a little edgier with one coil of the Seth higher than the regular coil. So a mismatched Seth bridge. For the same reason as the Custom/59?
Steve B.

 

[Lindgren]

Re: JB VS 59/Custom hybrid and was very surprised.

In my opinion the 59/Custom hybrid is one of the best Duncans ever made, I have three of them and they are fantastic pickups.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[eclecticsynergy]

Re: JB VS 59/Custom hybrid and was very surprised.

59/C cleans up much better than the JB in my experience. It doesn't have as much push for leads but it feels more open & less compressed. Far closer to vintage output pickups in the way it behaves than the JB is.

 

[Mincer]

Re: JB VS 59/Custom hybrid and was very surprised.

Mincer,
I am ready to buy a 59/Custom, a few things just mentioned I must ask. One is simple, is there any need to or gain from asking for different coil strengths other than what is now in production?
And, is the quality questionable as some of these posts suggests? I am going to ask MJ to make mine double white. If she winds the p'ups the quality would be the same, yes? And are all magnets fully charged (not the Ants. I know) but the rest of the line unless specified?
I ask you as you have been there.
Thank you,
Steve Buffington

The quality is wonderful, no matter who makes it. I like the stock magnet strength, which is fully charged. You might not have to go full Custom Shop to get them in double white, so it would be cheaper...but will sound amazing.

 

[Mincer]

Re: JB VS 59/Custom hybrid and was very surprised.

Mincer and Darthphineous-
Along with above info on original question, could a tried and true (for me) Seth bridge W/A4 benignity, get a little edgier with one coil of the Seth higher than the regular coil. So a mismatched Seth bridge. For the same reason as the Custom/59?
Steve B.

This is possible, but I have no direct experience. I love the Seth as it is.

 

[darthphineas]

Re: JB VS 59/Custom hybrid and was very surprised.

Darthphineas -
I know that "K" is not a reflection of the loudness, but it seems to be something to go on when compared to lower reading for MAXIMUM CLEANESS.
P.

If looking for maximum clean....Maybe "something", but not the only and possibly not the best.

Good luck on your tone quest.

-
Along with above info on original question, could a tried and true (for me) Seth bridge W/A4 benignity, get a little edgier with one coil of the Seth higher than the regular coil. So a mismatched Seth bridge. For the same reason as the Custom/59?
Steve B.

Swapping mags just became an exercise in futility for me when I realized that there are so many options out there to choose from. For example... It is my opinion that if a couple of experts like Seymour and Seth put several decades of expertise together and put together something that doesn't work for someone, that someone might need to try another model and/or another brand.

As such, I've become a bit less of an advocate of swapping magnets. If I want to discuss magnets in a pickup, I'm discussing them with a winder that's about to make a pickup for me.

 

[SJ318]

Re: JB VS 59/Custom hybrid and was very surprised.

Ok,
Thanks all. darthphineous, about mag swaps, I really do like the A4 and A5 short, for what I am after, they really do sound grand, to my ears and rig, much better than an A2. If I wasn't playing on stage, I would not need the extra cut those mags give and the A4 with a bump in mids and a little more output, though small, it adds up.
I do appreciate your input, Mincer, thanks also, and all who took part in this thread. It's not my thread, but I learned a lot
from it.
Thanks,
Steve B.

 

[darthphineas]

Re: JB VS 59/Custom hybrid and was very surprised.

, about mag swaps, I really do like the A4 and A5 short, for what I am after, they really do sound grand, to my ears and rig, much better than an A2. If I wasn't playing on stage, I would not need the extra cut those mags give and the A4 with a bump in mids and a little more output, though small, it adds up.

If you're finding the tone that works for you, that's what counts.