Need some experienced pickup advice!

Re: Need some experienced pickup advice!

Oh, ok I see what you're saying, I thought you thought the 5150s we're different from the 6505s. But, yeah the 5150/6505 and the 5150II/6505+ are supposed to sound different from eachother, not sure exactly how, but I read some reviews and the regular 5150 is supposed to have more bass than the 5150II, I picked the 6505+ because both channels have seperate controls.
 
Re: Need some experienced pickup advice!

Welcome TSE! In my old age, I've finally camer aqround to the belief that low/mid output pups are wayyyyy better for high gain amps than high gain pups overall. If dodging the highs is your thing an A2P would probably be great. I personally like the feel of a high output pup for some things. But, really, just a plain old Duncan 59 (or DiMarzio PAF) should sound awesome - and clearer/more articulate/fat-not-muddy than a lot of the higher output jobs.
 
Re: Need some experienced pickup advice!

Yeah, I don't really understand why they reccomend high-output pickups to guitar players using high-gain amps, they are not very versatile, not very controlable, they are no good with clean tones, and feed back alot! Kinda one dimmensional.
I'm kind of interested in the Air Zone, Steve's Special or Custom 5. If you have any experience with any of those tell me about them, thanx.
 
Re: Need some experienced pickup advice!

TSE said:
Yeah, I don't really understand why they reccomend high-output pickups to guitar players using high-gain amps, they are not very versatile, not very controlable, they are no good with clean tones, and feed back alot! Kinda one dimmensional.
I'm kind of interested in the Air Zone, Steve's Special or Custom 5. If you have any experience with any of those tell me about them, thanx.
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Hey TSE,

I've had a Custom 5 in my alder body Ibanez for like 4 years now and it's one of my favorite pickups ever. I like it because it's got tremendous clarity b/c the mids are ever so slightly scooped. However, it's not like crazy death metal scooped, just the right amount to give you great clarity. I bought one b/c I wanted something that would give me more clarity b/c my amp (Carvin Legacy) is very midrange heavy already. It worked perfectly.

The great thing about it though is that the highs aren't nasty and icepicky, or buzzy as you describe them. They are very soft and smooth, a must for me.

All in all, it's a terrific pickup. The mids are slightly scooped for great clarity, it's got tight bass response, a nice soft treble (not buzzy at all), and it's got a tone that is somewhere in between vintage and modern. It's considered to be decently hot, but it's got something very vintage-like and organic about it at the same time. I highly recommend it. It's definitely worth a shot.

Mike
 
Re: Need some experienced pickup advice!

stangme01 said:
its probably the amp more than anything, i think the 6505+ and 5150 II are pretty buzzy and thin. I owned a 6505+ sold it for the reasons you are talking about, then bought a 5150 II (sounded exactly the same as the 6505+) and a regular 5150. The regular 5150 doesn't have the buzz IMO of the II and +. Just my opinion. I definitely think the JB and distortion do not sound good through the 6505+ i had them in my guitars at that time too. Although the JB sounds pretty good through the 5150.

What cab and speakers are you using?
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Was your defective? Mine isn't buzzy or thin. Infact I crank the highs even with a screamin demon, or my telecaster...

I'm going to give an A2 JB a shot (since I have a 20 some year old JB here), and if that doesn't cut it I'll go for a pearly gates.

Don't be afraid of brightness, be afraid of high mid spikes and output!
 
Re: Need some experienced pickup advice!

TSE said:
How is the bass response on the C5?
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Excellent.

I didn't recomended it from the beginning to you because I thought you don't want high-mids, but it's a great pickup overall.

The Steve's Special is tight, quite open sounding and a little sharp (in a good way). Very clear, with huge palm mutes.

I used the AZ a long time ago and from what I remember it has a fat tone and great crunch. It is quite clear but I replaced it because I just wanted even more clarity.
 
Re: Need some experienced pickup advice!

Mephis said:
Was your defective? Mine isn't buzzy or thin. Infact I crank the highs even with a screamin demon, or my telecaster...

I'm going to give an A2 JB a shot (since I have a 20 some year old JB here), and if that doesn't cut it I'll go for a pearly gates.

Don't be afraid of brightness, be afraid of high mid spikes and output!
Click to expand...

I doubt it since my 6505+ and 5150 II sounded exactly the same and both IMO had the "bees in a can" type sound and thinned out alot of guitars sound. I do like the amp i shouldn't have said i don't like it but i think the regular 5150/6505 sounds much better.
 
Re: Need some experienced pickup advice!

Metalblaze said:
Excellent.

I didn't recomended it from the beginning to you because I thought you don't want high-mids, but it's a great pickup overall.

The Steve's Special is tight, quite open sounding and a little sharp (in a good way). Very clear, with huge palm mutes.
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No, I don't want much high-mid, looking for low mid here! What do you mean when you say the Special is "sharp" sounding? Sharp in a harsh way? Does the special have more bass than C5? Also, I heard the coils are not symmetrical on the special, one side is bassier and the other is trebblier, is this true? Thanx.
 
Re: Need some experienced pickup advice!

TSE said:
No, I don't want much high-mid, looking for low mid here! What do you mean when you say the Special is "sharp" sounding? Sharp in a harsh way? Does the special have more bass than C5? Also, I heard the coils are not symmetrical on the special, one side is bassier and the other is trebblier, is this true? Thanx.
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The Steve's Special has more low-end than the C5. It's not harsh it just has that knife-cutting ceramic highs (some like them some don't), but I think that's pretty adjustable. Yes, it has asymmetrical coils for a more open tone as they say.
If you have "Change of Seasons" by Dream Thater you can listen to it. Petrucci uses it there.
 
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