Nazgul vs Distortion

[RockinRollur]

Looking at the EQ charts the Nazgul seems like a lower output, more balanced version of the Duncan Distortion. The videos sound that way also. The Nazgul seems to excel at cleans and other styles so why market for brootz? Opinions on the Nazgul?

 

[Demanic]

Re: Nazgul vs Distortion

Not sure. From my experience, the best distorted sound starts with the best clean sound.

Sent from my MotoE2(4G-LTE) using Tapatalk

 

[Mincer]

Re: Nazgul vs Distortion

The Nazgul does sound great for heavy music, but if you are doing more versatile styles, I like the Pegasus better. The Nazgul has a ton of mids and highs, and that isn't great for many styles. The mids are huge, so cleans don't sound as balanced as they would on other pickups.

 

[RockinRollur]

Re: Nazgul vs Distortion

The Nazgul does sound great for heavy music, but if you are doing more versatile styles, I like the Pegasus better. The Nazgul has a ton of mids and highs, and that isn't great for many styles. The mids are huge, so cleans don't sound as balanced as they would on other pickups.

But the difference of ceramic and alnico magnets seem like night and day to me. Looking at the Pegasus it seems similar to the Custom but based on alnico so strictly sticking to the same magnet type would it be correct to infer that the Custom would be more versatile and better at clean tone?

 

[Rex_Rocker]

Re: Nazgul vs Distortion

I wouldn't call the Nazgul more balanced than the Distortion, personally. Both are pretty over-the-top in their own way. Both are VERY bright. I'd say the Nazgul has more high-end sizzle and the Distortion has more high-mid bite. JMO.

 

[Mincer]

Re: Nazgul vs Distortion

But the difference of ceramic and alnico magnets seem like night and day to me. Looking at the Pegasus it seems similar to the Custom but based on alnico so strictly sticking to the same magnet type would it be correct to infer that the Custom would be more versatile and better at clean tone?

I don't know. I like the Pegasus better clean than the Custom. The Custom is great for big power chords and excels with gain. I didn't think about magnet types when I gave a suggestion- I think about overall sound, not how to get there.
The Distortion, on the other hand, is great with gain, but I am not a fan *at all* of the clean sound.

 

[RStabler]

Re: Nazgul vs Distortion

Personally I kind of enjoy the cold, dark sound the Distortions have when they are clean. Not for "classic" sounds of course, but great for other stuff. I think it also has a nice split sound, especially when paired with a 59 in the neck.

 

[Gibson 1964]

Re: Nazgul vs Distortion

Looking at the EQ charts the Nazgul seems like a lower output, more balanced version of the Duncan Distortion. The videos sound that way also. The Nazgul seems to excel at cleans and other styles so why market for brootz? Opinions on the Nazgul?

Um no. The Nazgul sounds like a chainsaw to me. I say this as someone who owns it and the distortion. It is more aggressive than the distortion. I would not call it more balanced either. To me it is a one trick pony. One heck of a trick, but versatile, nah.

If you want a clearer distortion with great cleans and cleans up nicely, that is the black winter. Nazgul stays aggressive across the board.

 

[orpheo]

Re: Nazgul vs Distortion

Um no. The Nazgul sounds like a chainsaw to me. I say this as someone who owns it and the distortion. It is more aggressive than the distortion. I would not call it more balanced either. To me it is a one trick pony. One heck of a trick, but versatile, nah.

If you want a clearer distortion with great cleans and cleans up nicely, that is the black winter. Nazgul stays aggressive across the board.

That. The nazgul is imho perfectly named, too. It's so gnarly! I like it, but only for one thing. I don't like the SH6 (too gritty for my taste) let alone the Nazgul. The BW is one of my favorites though.

 

[Mincer]

Re: Nazgul vs Distortion

The Black Winter is an amazingly versatile pickup, despite the stated description. If you are the type of player that has guitars for different types of music, the Nazgul is great for the brutal heavies, but I like to cover a lot of ground with each instrument. You have to decide how you like to work.

 

[RockinRollur]

Re: Nazgul vs Distortion

I don't know. I like the Pegasus better clean than the Custom. The Custom is great for big power chords and excels with gain. I didn't think about magnet types when I gave a suggestion- I think about overall sound, not how to get there.
The Distortion, on the other hand, is great with gain, but I am not a fan *at all* of the clean sound.

I can see what you mean since people seem to generally like a scooped clean sound but I don't really play that clean anyway so the mids to me are very welcome. I like all magnet types but I can't help to make that consideration now after having experiences swapping them. For metal I think I want to stay with ceramic because it's just easier to get a metal sound that with the alnico because they grind and not colored like the alnico.

That. The nazgul is imho perfectly named, too. It's so gnarly! I like it, but only for one thing. I don't like the SH6 (too gritty for my taste) let alone the Nazgul. The BW is one of my favorites though.

So the Nazgul is a little smoother you think? That would be good since the only flaw of the Duncan Distortion as far as I can see is the high E string sounds kind of tinny and gritty on edge which is fine for most metal but in solos you cannot completely eliminate it wihtout altering the EQ too much.

 

[Mincer]

Re: Nazgul vs Distortion

The Nazgul certainly has more mids than the Distortion. The high treble response of both pickups would keep me from describing them as 'smooth' at all. Neither are smooth, at least as I define it.

 

[orpheo]

Re: Nazgul vs Distortion

I can see what you mean since people seem to generally like a scooped clean sound but I don't really play that clean anyway so the mids to me are very welcome. I like all magnet types but I can't help to make that consideration now after having experiences swapping them. For metal I think I want to stay with ceramic because it's just easier to get a metal sound that with the alnico because they grind and not colored like the alnico.



So the Nazgul is a little smoother you think? That would be good since the only flaw of the Duncan Distortion as far as I can see is the high E string sounds kind of tinny and gritty on edge which is fine for most metal but in solos you cannot completely eliminate it wihtout altering the EQ too much.

Nah. The nazgul is like a chainsaw. The black winter is like a tablesaw and the distortion is imho like nails on a blackboard.

 

[Gibson 1964]

Re: Nazgul vs Distortion

So the Nazgul is a little smoother you think? That would be good since the only flaw of the Duncan Distortion as far as I can see is the high E string sounds kind of tinny and gritty on edge which is fine for most metal but in solos you cannot completely eliminate it wihtout altering the EQ too much.

You are clearly fishing for someone to tell you the nazgul is smooth, or smoother than the DD. It isn't. While smooth is not the word I would use for either the DD is probably smoother. A smoother distortion would be the PATB-2. The black winter is tamable, and far more versatile but still not smooth. The Nazgul at very low gain still sounds VERY aggressive. I think your best bet would be the PATB-2.