Opinions, info wanted

GoDrex

GoDrex

Riffologist Extraordinaire
Hi - I built a warmoth LP last year and since I've had it I've not been really happy with the tone from the bridge pickup. It's an all mahogany guitar, with a chambered body and rosewood fretboard. I started out with a nickel covered SH-5 Duncan Custom, and I didn't like it from the second I started using it after I wired it up. The cleans are not good and with distortion it was muddy - mostly on the low E. It was like the Low E was muffled. Also the highs weren't all that great either. But I worked with it for like 9 or so months and then decided to try a nickel Jazz bridge model.

I figured that I needed something bright. I read up on the Jazz and it seemed like a good choice. I immediately noticed an improvement in clarity and the cleans were outstanding, but I really didn't like the sound with distortion. Sounded a bit harsh and synthetic I guess. Hard to describe, but I didn't like it. It was great for playing fast but power chords didn't sound good to me. So I then decided to go to my old standby - the JB - and that sounded way better than both with distortion. I'm pretty happy with the sound, though the cleans aren't great and it's a tad raspy - I can kill that with the tone knob.

Anyway I feel like I'm moving in the right direction. I don't want to swap magnets because I'm using pickups with nickel covers and I don't want to have to re-pot them (though I am willing to try pickups that don't have covers). I'm just wondering if anyone has any pickup suggestions for a somewhat dark mahogany guitar that's different from a JB but isn't muddy. I like Duncans but I'm open to other brands. Thanks
 
Re: Opinions, info wanted

How about the Custom series of pickups?
I also like quite a bit the Tom Anderson H3 I put in my mahogany neck-thru, although I don't really think the cleans are anything extraordinary (but then again I usually use the neck or middle for cleans)
 
Re: Opinions, info wanted

My go to pup for a guitar I'm not happy with is a Super Distortion.

That said, the cleans are only so so to me, but it is warm and fat with a lot of punch.

It sounds like you like a hot pup and you liked the clarity of the Jazz. You might want to try a full shred. They are sweet in short scale mahogany. Very articulate with a tight but mild low end. No flub or farting and can take all the gain you throw at it. It is a secret weapon if you like to detune.

You could always try 250k pots on the JB or an A2 magnet swap. A lot of stuff here about A2 and A8 JBs killing the originals. Neer tried it myself, I don't care for the JB.
 
Re: Opinions, info wanted

der scheiss said:
My go to pup for a guitar I'm not happy with is a Super Distortion.

That said, the cleans are only so so to me, but it is warm and fat with a lot of punch.

It sounds like you like a hot pup and you liked the clarity of the Jazz. You might want to try a full shred. They are sweet in short scale mahogany. Very articulate with a tight but mild low end. No flub or farting and can take all the gain you throw at it. It is a secret weapon if you like to detune.

You could always try 250k pots on the JB or an A2 magnet swap. A lot of stuff here about A2 and A8 JBs killing the originals. Neer tried it myself, I don't care for the JB.
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i'm going to second the a2 mag swap, nicer cleans, gets rid of that funky mid-honk, and smoother distortion.
 
Re: Opinions, info wanted

GoDrex said:
I don't want to swap magnets because I'm using pickups with nickel covers and I don't want to have to re-pot them (though I am willing to try pickups that don't have covers).
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Who said you have to repot PU's after a magnet swap????

I've swapped many magnets on HB's, and never repotted, never melted the wax, and rarely resoldered the covers on (the tape & wax usually holds them snug). It's a 10 minute process that the average 12-year old can do.

This is a familiar story: a player keeps buying PU after PU, none of which quite sound the way he wants, and spends hundreds of dollars in the frustrating process. And the clincher: they make up excuses to avoid trying a $5 magnet swap. Come on man, keep your money in your wallet & try some replacement magnets. We'll help you.

I don't like Customs either, but with an A5 magnet, they become a C5, and I like them a lot (I have several). C8's (Custom with an A8) are getting popular on this forum. Same with JB's with A2's. Stop shooting in the dark & take control of your tone.
 
Re: Opinions, info wanted

Who said you have to repot PU's after a magnet swap????
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I read that first link super rad ska posted,

http://www.projectguitar.com/tut/barmagswap.htm

and I guess I didn't pay enough attention... doh!

And I don't feel like I'm completely shooting in the dark. I know I need something fairly bright for an all mahogany guitar. I'm fairly happy with the JB. I enjoy playing this guitar a lot more now. I just feel like the JB is so generic sounding so I'm just looking for other ideas.

OK - so I'm thinking if I buy an A2 I can swap that out and take the A5 and put it in the Custom for a different guitar. Worth a try.

Still open to other pickup ideas.
 
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Re: Opinions, info wanted

Well I ordered an A2 and A8 to try in the JB - and now I can also go nuts with the Custom one of these days. For the money it's definitely worth a try.

I had a Super Distortion in a Gibson V like 20 years ago. Didn't really care for it.
 
Re: Opinions, info wanted

Have you given the screaming demon a try? It will have better cleans than the JB but still sound pretty rocking under distortion and it is bright enough for your darker guitar.
 
Re: Opinions, info wanted

Rowan said:
Have you given the screaming demon a try? It will have better cleans than the JB but still sound pretty rocking under distortion and it is bright enough for your darker guitar.
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That is one that I've considered. I liked that it's less hot than then Custom and JB. I may try it one of these days - after I've played with magnets a bit.
 
Re: Opinions, info wanted

I put the A2 in the JB last night and played it a little. Then played it and recorded it a little today. It's an improvement in some ways, but still kind of buzzy, which I guess is just the nature of a JB in this guitar. It's less harsh now and more spongy - or chewy hehehe. ;) I could see it being a really cool pickup in a brighter guitar. I have to really cut the bass on my amp to get it to sound OK to me when recording, which isn't a problem. It's a little different when I'm just playing without recording it.

I'm going to try the JB8 later on - maybe tomorrow or the next day. Going to play around with this one for a bit to really try and get a feel for it.
 
Re: Opinions, info wanted

GoDrex said:
That is one that I've considered. I liked that it's less hot than then Custom and JB. I may try it one of these days - after I've played with magnets a bit.
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if u find that you do not like it i may trade u mine for ur custom
 
Re: Opinions, info wanted

NoOnesFang13 said:
if u find that you do not like it i may trade u mine for ur custom
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You have screamin' demon? Yeah I may need to try one of those one of these days. I'm starting to think that hot pickups aren't getting me what I really want in this particular guitar.

Anyway...

I couldn't wait and I had time, so I went ahead and put the A8 in and it turned the LP into a beast. The JB8 is a killer metal pickup. Just from like a half hour of messing with it I can tell the low end is much tighter than the original and it's really loud and clear. Some of the harshness is back - I can't be sure if it's like the original though. Really hard to tell, because I can't instantly swap them. I had to back it away from the strings a lot and it's still loud as hell. I can tell because my amp shows the amount of input. I'd say compared to the original, it's louder, tighter on the lows and more even - you hear each note of a chord very evenly. It's very hot, seems like it's perfect for really high gain and surprisingly the cleans are not bad. I just got done playing some heavy riffs in drop D and I can't believe how tight it is. I was even doing open A power chords with the low E ringing and it sounded great. I could never do that with the A5 JB. I'm thinking of dropping the JB8 into another guitar that I was using for heavier stuff. I have an Invader in that, but I think this kicks the Invaders ass.

So I think I'll be trying the Custom5 and C8 now since this isn't really what I want in this guitar. The C8 might be it if it's tight and clear like the JB8. If not I guess then it's time to try something else. I'm thinking a '59. Despite what I end up with, I'm having fun with the magnet swaps. I'm glad you guys talked me into it. :)
 
Re: Opinions, info wanted

blueman335 said:
Who said you have to repot PU's after a magnet swap????

This is a familiar story: a player keeps buying PU after PU, none of which quite sound the way he wants, and spends hundreds of dollars in the frustrating process. And the clincher: they make up excuses to avoid trying a $5 magnet swap. Come on man, keep your money in your wallet & try some replacement magnets. We'll help you.
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Yeah but you got to realize that many people including me have never changed magnets in a pickup nor understand how it's done. Safely. I certainly would not want to experiment on a genuinely good pickup and ruin the pickup. I would only do this on a junker first until I got the technique down.
 
Re: Opinions, info wanted

357mag said:
Yeah but you got to realize that many people including me have never changed magnets in a pickup nor understand how it's done. Safely. I certainly would not want to experiment on a genuinely good pickup and ruin the pickup. I would only do this on a junker first until I got the technique down.
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how to swap mags:
http://www.projectguitar.com/tut/barmagswap.htm

what each magnet sounds like:
http://wwwseymourduncan.com/forum/sh...ight=magnet+eq

where to get magnets:
http://shop.wymoreguitars.com/category.sc?categoryId=29
 
Re: Opinions, info wanted

I would be doing it with single coils. Is there an article that deals with single coils?
 
Re: Opinions, info wanted

357mag said:
I would be doing it with single coils. Is there an article that deals with single coils?
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most good single coils have alnico magnets as poles...
most cheap single coils have steel poles and a ceramic magnet glued to the bottom of the bobbin... they are real hard to remove and you would have to glue the alnico on to do it.
 
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