new Duncan Distortion installed.. and a question

[Duke of Metal]

hey guys,
well, i got my Golden covered Duncan Distortion for my Lespaul custom and i installed it tonight and i gotta say. I am very happy wit the tone it produces (again.. since this is my 2nd one). It has that cut, thickness and tightness. I was told it lacks low end but i didnt think it was a big thing. I had all the low end i needed and same applies to the highs and mids.

Now i noticed one thing though.. this one doesnt seem to have as much output as my none-covered Duncan Distortion. I am guessing the cover is causing this? or maybe the way the pickup was soldered to the cover? I had to use my MXR microamp to get more Overdrive to match my none-convered distortion in my other lespaul. Is there a way to fix this?

Clips ofcourse will be coming soon.


Thanks

 

[idsnowdog]

Re: new Duncan Distortion installed.. and a question

The cover has a tendancy to diffuse the magnetic field of individual poles and provides a layer of tone shapeing that an uncovered pickup lacks. Also they sometimes introduce microphonics because they act as a diaphragm that transmits vibrations that are then picked up and amplified. I have never liked covered pickups.

Snowdog

 

[Jeff_H]

Re: new Duncan Distortion installed.. and a question

I don't find a huge difference between my covered and non-covered pups that are the same type. However, remember that each pickup will have a slight variance...one DD might read 16.4 for example, and annother 16.8. Also, with covered pickups you cannot get the coils as close to the strings as a non-covered pup....so take that into account as well.

There can also be great variances in the ohm load of pots...you may have a 500k pot in one guitar that actually measures 530, and annother 500k pot in the other guitar that measures 460k. Different cap values, one solder joint that is better than annother.....there are a bunch of little things that can make a difference,

SD uses nickel covers...even the gold version is just plated nickel. Duncan selected this material because it has the least possible effect on tone.

If it were me, I start by measuring each one of my pots in each guitar....if the difference is really as noticable as you indicate. Don't forget, most LP's come from the factory with 300K pots....some pots on one guitar may have been upgraded.

 

[big_black]

Re: new Duncan Distortion installed.. and a question

I noticed a difference between the covered JB and the uncovered. I quite like the JB with a cover, it smooths the whole thing out...cuts the highs a bit.

 

[Duke of Metal]

Re: new Duncan Distortion installed.. and a question

hey guys,
Thanks for the replies. Dont get me wrong, I love the tone i get out of this Duncan Distortion. Like JeffH said, i believe that i cant get the coils closer to the strings, thats why the output isnt as much as the non-covered DD. But see, the reason I got it covers with a golden cover is because I wanted to keep all the hardware matching since its an all gold hardware lespaul custom. The MXR Microamp is doing a good job by bringing the gain back and I can just turn it off if i need to use my other lespaul.

other wise, the tone is cutting (without being harsh), tight and aggressive.

By the way Jeff.. I believe the pots in my lespaul are rated at 500k.

 

[big_black]

Re: new Duncan Distortion installed.. and a question

I'm putting a covered DD in my SG this weekend. I hope I have the same experience.

 

[JeffB]

Re: new Duncan Distortion installed.. and a question

I've never had any covered Duncans, but there is def a tonal diff in the BurstBucker Pros covered and non covered. Non covered version is more open sounding, and clearer in all frequencies. Not sure what Gibson uses cover wise.

 

[Robert S.]

Re: new Duncan Distortion installed.. and a question

What pots are in the LP Custom. Gibson uses 350k volume pots in their LPs os if your other DD is in a 500k pot loaded guitar, there will be a difference in output.

 

[Duke of Metal]

Re: new Duncan Distortion installed.. and a question

What pots are in the LP Custom. Gibson uses 350k volume pots in their LPs os if your other DD is in a 500k pot loaded guitar, there will be a difference in output.

Hey Robert,
I checked the pots in my LP Custom and they're all 500k. If i were to use higher value pots, would that increase the output? if so, what else will it increase?


Thanks

 

[Duke of Metal]

Re: new Duncan Distortion installed.. and a question

Hey Robert,
I checked the pots in my LP Custom and they're all 500k. If i were to use higher value pots, would that increase the output? if so, what else will it increase?


Thanks

bump!

 

[big_black]

Re: new Duncan Distortion installed.. and a question

A higher value pot will allow more "high end" to come through. I don't think you would want to go higher than 500k with a DD.

 

[Duke of Metal]

Re: new Duncan Distortion installed.. and a question

A higher value pot will allow more "high end" to come through. I don't think you would want to go higher than 500k with a DD.

Thanks man.. yeah, thats what i sorta though. I am not really worried about the output of it at all. I am using the MXR microamp to make up for the "non-available" output due to the covers and not being able to bring the coils any closer to the strings. Also, this helps push the neck pickup when doing leads by giving it a smoother cutting tone..

anyways.. thanks guys!

Rock on