need pickup recomendation for oldschool metal

Re: need pickup recomendation for oldschool metal

Custom is a good place to start. Super D and Dirty Fingers are also good but much warmer.
 
Re: need pickup recomendation for oldschool metal

oldschool thrasher said:
videos comparing jb pickup vs. distortion. same guitar same amp settings same crappy webcam mic. i think the distortion could sound better but i recorded it with the settings i use for the jb to get d.r.i. four of a kind tone. i usualy use more mids but these setting got me closest to the sound i was looking for with the jb. anyeays...
jb;
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lk2x16mbuTI
distortion;
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vnfCeSt1yso
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JB sounds great, distortion sounds like poo.

I gotta ask, dont you get a sore wrist fretting like that?
 
Re: need pickup recomendation for oldschool metal

Aceman said:
Honestly, the amp means more than the pup IMO - and lower output will do more for you than mega output, IMO. But the right feel and tone curve is important.
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As I was reading through this thread I was thinking the same thing. If what you're essentially after is the proper tonal curve why wouldn't you look beyond the typical "metal" offerings and just turn up the amp's gain?

An interesting spin-off thread would be what is the best pup for metal that's not a "typical" metal pup?
 
Re: need pickup recomendation for oldschool metal

Your wrist is at a fairly acute angle.
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never have any problems. i usualy sling my guitar a lot higher than mpst metal guys. maybe because i was sitting down?
As I was reading through this thread I was thinking the same thing. If what you're essentially after is the proper tonal curve why wouldn't you look beyond the typical "metal" offerings and just turn up the amp's gain?
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i played for a little while today with the distortion and actualy think it sounded better with the gain dialed back. looking for crunch and less growl. i dont like the sound of either pickup palm muted. the distortion has less growl but the jb has a nicer tone. the distortion has more treble but its a harsh teble. i just cant dial out the growl. the bass is on 2 in both video's. maybe ill try the eq between the guitar and amp.
back in the day(1987?) i had a dimarzio paf pro in a aria pro II start copy and it sounded great though my crate g80xl. i know...crate? this was a long time ago before i knew about tube amps.
other than the jb and super distortion, what did people use in the early/ mid 80's?
 
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Re: need pickup recomendation for oldschool metal

ok...substituted the ts-9 for the eq up front and started rolling off bass. ended up -12db at 250hz and lower. this got rid of the growl. i kept the gain on the amp at 8 like i usualy do with the jb. its kind of anoying how the bright cap is interacting with the gain on this amp. i could never stand the gain over 8 on the amp or it gets boomy. sounding much better but i still need to do some tweaking. i could actualy turn the bass on the amp up some. im gonna tweak this till it sounds best and maybe throw the jb back in.
 
Re: need pickup recomendation for oldschool metal

oldschool thrasher said:
never have any problems. i usualy sling my guitar a lot higher than mpst metal guys. maybe because i was sitting down?
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It wasnt a criticism in any way (have you SEEN Marty Friedmans hand, hahaha!), just looked uncomfortable.
 
Re: need pickup recomendation for oldschool metal

It wasnt a criticism in any way (have you SEEN Marty Friedmans hand, hahaha!), just looked uncomfortable.
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we cool. i didnt take it as criticism. i alway thoght guys like james hetfeild looked so cool with there guitars slung so low, but i cant pull it off. i look more like b.b. king.-lol
 
Re: need pickup recomendation for oldschool metal

dilver said:
A lot of people describe this pickup as being too harsh, cold and overly hot. It's came stock in the Les Paul Classic with the 496R, Les Paul Studio Lite, as well as the Jimmy Page LP, Joe Perry LP and a few others. Most people think its heresy to put these pickups in a Les Paul at all, since they use ceramic magnets, and it's just not a "Vintage" tone (it isn't). As such, they tend to get ripped out and replaced with lower output, A2 or A5 mag pickups to get that "classic" Les Paul sound.

I hated the 496R - it lacked character. The 500T is a different story. If you don't think of it as a Les Paul pickup and think of it as a hard rock/metal pickup AND you actually take the time to adjust the tone controls on your rig/guitar to suit this pickup, it shreds. People also say it's a one trick pony. Well, that's probably true, but it's a hell of a trick and the pony has got balls and will kick your teeth in.

IMHO, of course.
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I don't mind the 496, not great, but I could live with it. The 500T does not work for me at all, but...I think for what the OP is looking for, it is a good place to look.

In the end, I'm one of those guys mentioned in an earlier post that will be dumping the LP Classic factory pups for low output alnico pups...
 
Re: need pickup recomendation for oldschool metal

rich ward not only uses a PATB1 in an LP, but also tracks everything 10 times; he told this to a friend of mine who was doing a radio interview with him

i think james was using a slightly overwound JB with 2 screw coils during kill em all, but he wasn't using an LP.

try a demon trembucker. i know it's not really like either of the above pickups, but if you want attack and definition it has plenty of it; also sounds great with the LP/marshall combo

swapping the A5 in the JB for a ceramic mag, and/or a wah sitting at the right angle in front of the amp may also give your current set-up the crunch you're looking for.
 
Re: need pickup recomendation for oldschool metal

oldschool thrasher said:
aready up to speed there. new F&T power supply caps and Sprague Atom bias supply caps. amp is biased to 25w*.7/B+
i threw the jj's in cause i had them and they sounded much better that the sovteks. it also has sovtek 6550we wich i might switch out for some winged =C='s. when i bought the amp it was biased at 98ma!!! its now running around 37ma w/464v on the plates.
i check out the tubes. thanks
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TSE said:
Sovteks and jjs are not all bad. They have their purpose. The 12ax7LPS is the best phase inverter tube IMO. JJs work well in some gain stages to add beef and mids, and they do well in cathode followers, but not as a V1 or main tone stages. Unless that's your thing of course. Ya gotta mix n' match 'em til' ya git the right ballance!;)
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misterwhizzy said:
Then Tung-Sols may just be the ticket. Of the new production tubes I've tried, I like Tung-Sols the best and JJs the worst. I think the Russian factory tubes are just better than the ones coming out of the JJ factory. (For reference, at least the Tung-Sols, ElectroHarmonix, Mullard Reissue, and Sovtek brands come out of there.)

I just cannot get along with the JJs. They don't have any clarity, to my ears. The Tung-Sols are gainy and full, but still bright. The Mullard RI are pretty smooth, but still with a grainy character. A lot of people like the ElectroHarmonix, but to me they sounded a bit thinner than the Tung-Sols.

Anyways, good luck, and seriously consider getting the amp into top working shape before you do too much to the guitar. Once you can hear the guitar properly, then you'll know what to do with it.
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In every tube amp Ive owned, they have all had a TungSol in the V1 spot. I have used the LPS for the PI tube in a lot of them, but started using the JJ ECC803s for a lot of them. That tube was the BALLS in my Mesa MKIII. The LPS couldn't match the bite and clarity that the JJ803 had. It wasn't just a noticable difference, it was night and day. Same with the JSX, the 803 is just that much better as a PI. In all the other spots, I usually mix a JJ in if the tone is way too sharp, or use the Penta Chinese tubes if I want some warmth but still have bite. JJs in ALL spots usually are too muddy, but may work out if your setup is really bright. For power tubes, I can't stand Sovteks. They tend to sound brittle and one-dimentional to me. I like just about all of the JJ power tubes. The Ruby EL34s and 6L6s are nice. The =C= SEDs are decent. I like their EL34s better than the 6L6s. I have a set of TungSol 6550s that were AWESOME in my Splawn OR/PM, but I took them out when I sold the amp, maybe to use in a project. Right now they are just hanging out. I'd probably sell them if you were interested.
 
Re: need pickup recomendation for oldschool metal

Dimebucker or bill lawrence l500xl. That tone is easy too get with any pickup imho though. All bout the right hand and attitude. Speakers i'd look at too if you ask me.

I need too record some stuff too you toob haha.
 
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