Nazgul not so hot?

[ShredNChunk]

Hey all


Excuse me for my silly question, but when looking at the differnet pickups in the SD catalogue, it seems nazgul has a lower DC resistance than a lot of other pickups. I was under the impression that the nazgul is almost out of control hot. Could someone explain? I really like how it sounds in the Keith Merrow pickup video, but im not too fond of too high output pickups.

 

[Ben1962]

Re: Nazgul not so hot?

Its not too hot. It just has its own thing going on with its EQ. that makes it sound brutal. Output doesnt equal resistance I have been told. I have the Nazgul, its pretty good

 

[Chistopher]

Re: Nazgul not so hot?

Resistance doesn't even represent high-end in many cases. It actually means very little now that so many different wire gauges are used in manufacturing, and that's not even taking magnets and wind pattern into account.

 

[ShredNChunk]

Re: Nazgul not so hot?

Resistance doesn't even represent high-end in many cases. It actually means very little now that so many different wire gauges are used in manufacturing, and that's not even taking magnets and wind pattern into account.

So, there isnt any way of comparing the "hotness" of 2 different pickups? I thought that should be possible, since its an electric signal.

 

[Demanic]

Re: Nazgul not so hot?

Well, you can always put them in the same guitar and run them through the same setup with the same settings. Or listen to someone's recording who has done this.

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[Chistopher]

Re: Nazgul not so hot?

Even the pickup height can affect the "heat" of a pickup. A good pickup can go from moderately vintage to moderately hot through height adjustment, but there tends to exist a sweet spot most pickups were made for.

 

[Mincer]

Re: Nazgul not so hot?

So, there isnt any way of comparing the "hotness" of 2 different pickups? I thought that should be possible, since its an electric signal.

If they have the same construction, then DCR is helpful. The problem is that there are so many models that don't have the same construction.

 

[ShredNChunk]

Re: Nazgul not so hot?

Ok so how would you rate the hotness of these then from hottest to least
-Nazgul
-custom
-Distortion
-Invader
-JB
-Pegasus

 

[Ben1962]

Re: Nazgul not so hot?

My best guess
Invader
Distortion/JB
Custom/Nazgul
Pegasus
I am sure I missed at least 1, but the Peg is IMHO the lowest

 

[Mincer]

Re: Nazgul not so hot?

^I'd agree with this.

 

[Chistopher]

Re: Nazgul not so hot?

In order I'd say:

Invader-Definitely the hottest

Distortion

JB-The JB and Distortion are pretty close and which one is hotter may change based on the guitar setup, also some people believe they are the same pick up but with a different magnet, but I won't get into that

Nazgul

Custom- This comes with several magnet options, depending on which one you get it may fall somewhere different on this chart.

Pegasus-This isn't even hot, it's actually pretty moderate in output. I actually quite like it clean.

 

[dave74]

Re: Nazgul not so hot?

So, there isnt any way of comparing the "hotness" of 2 different pickups? I thought that should be possible, since its an electric signal.

There's an "output" bar that's dedicated to output for each model on the Duncan website. It's right there with the EQ and wind-specs.
IMO the "output-bar" is fairly accurate in regards to signal strength.

 

[Mincer]

Re: Nazgul not so hot?

There's an "output" bar that's dedicated to output for each model on the Duncan website. It's right there with the EQ and wind-specs.
IMO the "output-bar" is fairly accurate in regards to signal strength.

This is true, but I understand the confusion with those output bars...they are inconsistent where the colors are. Personally, I'd prefer, say a made-up scale from 1-100, and just have some kind of number in there.

 

[Rex_Rocker]

Re: Nazgul not so hot?

IME, the Distortion is noticeably hotter than the JB. I've had both in the same guitar. Again, JME.

 

[Toejam]

Re: Nazgul not so hot?

The Duncan literature makes the Nazgul seem hotter than it is. I've got the 8-string version and love it. It's hot, but definitely not as hot as they make it out to be.

 

[dave74]

Re: Nazgul not so hot?

On the 6-string Nazguls the output bar shows them a good bit lower than the other "hot" models (distortion,jb,invader,custom,dime,bw,alt8,ect).
It shows them about halfway between a Pegasus and a JB on the bar.

I agree though that the verbal descriptions make them sound more like a refined invader or beefier distortion.

 

[Ben1962]

Re: Nazgul not so hot?

I been a math guy my entire life. I cant help but feel SD holds back some info to make a educated decision. Like using DCR as its main stat, why? If DCR means next to nothing, why is it used as a stat to provide info how "hot" a pickup is? Gotta say, it kinda pisses me off at times. Imagine without this forum how many people would make bad guesses based on too little info. 21 day return policy? Well, if you have a family and a job, how many people can actually meet that deadline?

 

[Silence Kid]

Re: Nazgul not so hot?

I don't get why people care more about how hot a pickup is on paper, rather than how it performs and sounds. Even particular pickups of the same output/heat can respond & sound very different. Why make a decision to use a pickup based on output at all? Some high output pickups still work well clean, some low output pickups respond well to gain. There are too many variables to focus on just one, and people seem to obsess over "heat."

 

[Mincer]

Re: Nazgul not so hot?

I been a math guy my entire life. I cant help but feel SD holds back some info to make a educated decision. Like using DCR as its main stat, why? If DCR means next to nothing, why is it used as a stat to provide info how "hot" a pickup is? Gotta say, it kinda pisses me off at times. Imagine without this forum how many people would make bad guesses based on too little info. 21 day return policy? Well, if you have a family and a job, how many people can actually meet that deadline?

When comparing pickups of the same type of construction, DCR does help. Ultimately, it is a guessing game on how it will sound with your guitar, through your rig, with you playing. I think there is enough info out there to make educated choices these days. And 21 days is pretty generous...there are some companies that don't give you any.

 

[Demanic]

Re: Nazgul not so hot?

The armchair quarterbacks have to obsess over stats. They don't have enough real experience with the game, and it helps them to live vicariously.

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