Output Level - How Do You Get Your Crunch?
- Thread starter Evan Skopp
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Rockstar216
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Re: Output Level - How Do You Get Your Crunch?
I get my crunch from the amp. My pups of choice at the moment are a Bill Lawrence L-500L and for it's high output it's a very clear and dynamic pup and a L90 which leans more to the vintage spectrum but with modern clarity.
I get my crunch from the amp. My pups of choice at the moment are a Bill Lawrence L-500L and for it's high output it's a very clear and dynamic pup and a L90 which leans more to the vintage spectrum but with modern clarity.
Johtosotku
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Re: Output Level - How Do You Get Your Crunch?
I like hot humbuckers and low output single coils. I rarely use pedals for my distortion.
I like hot humbuckers and low output single coils. I rarely use pedals for my distortion.
DreX
New member
Re: Output Level - How Do You Get Your Crunch?
I think the fact that guitars come with treble cuts and not bass cut tone controls makes for a somewhat unnecessary duality between high and low output pickups. IMO, it's not the lack of highs that make a higher output pickup lack clarity, it's the over abundance of low end and emphasis on the fundamental. With a bass cut tone control, a higher output pickup can become a lot more clean than it would be otherwise. A bass cut won't raise the peak resonance and make an ugly pickup sound beautiful, but it will clean up big time.
In general, medium output pickups seem to have the broadest vocabulary, no matter how you go about getting the crunch.
I think the fact that guitars come with treble cuts and not bass cut tone controls makes for a somewhat unnecessary duality between high and low output pickups. IMO, it's not the lack of highs that make a higher output pickup lack clarity, it's the over abundance of low end and emphasis on the fundamental. With a bass cut tone control, a higher output pickup can become a lot more clean than it would be otherwise. A bass cut won't raise the peak resonance and make an ugly pickup sound beautiful, but it will clean up big time.
In general, medium output pickups seem to have the broadest vocabulary, no matter how you go about getting the crunch.
El Supremo
New member
Re: Output Level - How Do You Get Your Crunch?
Exactly, but that's were a Tube Screamer (or Treble Booster) often comes in for the metal guys.
Exactly, but that's were a Tube Screamer (or Treble Booster) often comes in for the metal guys.
Re: Output Level - How Do You Get Your Crunch?
DreX-
Must agree greatly with you on that one. I used to love my JB till I tried to play clean one day when I got a new Fender Deluxe for home use. I just could not get a clean sound out of it. It was, as you say, too heavy on the bass to clean up no matter what I tried. That was when I went on my 14 year long but finally fruitful hunt for the best HBucker for me.
SJ
DreX-
Must agree greatly with you on that one. I used to love my JB till I tried to play clean one day when I got a new Fender Deluxe for home use. I just could not get a clean sound out of it. It was, as you say, too heavy on the bass to clean up no matter what I tried. That was when I went on my 14 year long but finally fruitful hunt for the best HBucker for me.
SJ
TimmyPage
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Re: Output Level - How Do You Get Your Crunch?
I'm a fan of low output pickups. The hottest ones I've ever enjoyed owning are the WLH set, and even they are only mildly warmer than a PAF-a-like. I rarely, if ever, play with any kind of overdrive, the only kind of grit I get is by using a clean boost with the gain rolled up a little bit to give me a bit more bite in my sound.
The rare, rare times that I do use any crunch or distortion it's usually some kind of wild fuzz pedal, something that completely cuts up and spits out your signal, so I don't want the pickups pushing that even harder.
I'm a fan of low output pickups. The hottest ones I've ever enjoyed owning are the WLH set, and even they are only mildly warmer than a PAF-a-like. I rarely, if ever, play with any kind of overdrive, the only kind of grit I get is by using a clean boost with the gain rolled up a little bit to give me a bit more bite in my sound.
The rare, rare times that I do use any crunch or distortion it's usually some kind of wild fuzz pedal, something that completely cuts up and spits out your signal, so I don't want the pickups pushing that even harder.
Re: Output Level - How Do You Get Your Crunch?
That's pretty much exactly how I feel about it. I like...everything and can get a tone I can use out of just about any geet with humbuckers for whatever I feel like playing at the time. Joe Walsh on an X2N? Check. Fastway on an old T Top? Check.
People forget you can get a hell of a long way just using the volume and tone on the guitar.
That's pretty much exactly how I feel about it. I like...everything and can get a tone I can use out of just about any geet with humbuckers for whatever I feel like playing at the time. Joe Walsh on an X2N? Check. Fastway on an old T Top? Check.
People forget you can get a hell of a long way just using the volume and tone on the guitar.
MacBradley
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PipeRain
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Re: Output Level - How Do You Get Your Crunch?
Given that I usually play through a Fender Power Chorus, I don't use my amp for crunch. I don't generally prefer thin, shrill and harsh. It sounds stupid good clean though, so I keep it. I use a Vox Satchurator or a Boss Xtortion, depending on what sort of crunch I am looking for, or one of the amp models in my GT-10.
But then I have no idea what I am doing, so there's that....
Given that I usually play through a Fender Power Chorus, I don't use my amp for crunch. I don't generally prefer thin, shrill and harsh. It sounds stupid good clean though, so I keep it. I use a Vox Satchurator or a Boss Xtortion, depending on what sort of crunch I am looking for, or one of the amp models in my GT-10.
But then I have no idea what I am doing, so there's that....
Phantasmagoria
watch where you point that sabre
Re: Output Level - How Do You Get Your Crunch?
Hot as **** pickups ...but just because I like the option of having that extra output there
People don't often realize what a massive difference pickup-height adjustment makes..(or angle-adjustment either for that matter). Hot pickups painstakingly/perfectly positioned right at their sweet spot (as opposed to them practically rubbing against your strings) & then "fine-tuned" by ear with ultra-minute adjustments....will give you as much attack/clarity/dynamics/harmonic richness/sponginess/dirt/smoothness/grind/chirp or whatever characteristic you want .. according to how you fine tune them. Also will make the same pickup sound radically & completely different depending on their positioning.
Hot as **** pickups ...but just because I like the option of having that extra output there
People don't often realize what a massive difference pickup-height adjustment makes..(or angle-adjustment either for that matter). Hot pickups painstakingly/perfectly positioned right at their sweet spot (as opposed to them practically rubbing against your strings) & then "fine-tuned" by ear with ultra-minute adjustments....will give you as much attack/clarity/dynamics/harmonic richness/sponginess/dirt/smoothness/grind/chirp or whatever characteristic you want .. according to how you fine tune them. Also will make the same pickup sound radically & completely different depending on their positioning.
Re: Output Level - How Do You Get Your Crunch?
I've always been an EMG user running into metal amps. Peavey 6505+, Marshall TSL100, Mesa dual recs, Engl Powerball.
I always have had a problem with clarity and cutting through. As my playing has improved, I found I just wasn't getting the dynamics out of the playing with these setups. I could with my strat (EMG SAs) but nothing else. Eventually figured out that the hot signal from the EMGs going into a monster high gain amp was the culprit.
I currently have a JB and Jazz fitted to my main Jackson. It's a vast improvement, especially on the TSL100. I've needed to re-add the tubescreamer to my board for solos and I'm not totally convinced on the JB pickup. I am waiting for a few pickups to arrive, namely an Alt 8.
My recent additions are a Jackson WR1 and Les Paul Custom. The Jackson came with an Invader which sounds great for rhythm on both the 6505+ and TSL100 but sucks out loud for lead tones. I'm not sure if it's a deal breaker or not, but I've ordered a used Jazz neck pickup to replace out the Full Shred in the neck with. But so far, the JB is much better and a vast improvement.
The Gibson has the stock pickups with proper 500k pots. So far this is solving most of the problems in terms of dynamics, clarity, etc.
I'm still playing with pickups but so far I am convinced that the lower output pickups sound vastly better especially with high gain amps. Let the amps do the work.
I used to run JCM800 and JCM900 amps when I first started gigging. To me, the EMGs really made those amps come alive with a minimum of effort. But as the 6505+ has tonnes more gain, I didn't really notice when I switched up.
I've always been an EMG user running into metal amps. Peavey 6505+, Marshall TSL100, Mesa dual recs, Engl Powerball.
I always have had a problem with clarity and cutting through. As my playing has improved, I found I just wasn't getting the dynamics out of the playing with these setups. I could with my strat (EMG SAs) but nothing else. Eventually figured out that the hot signal from the EMGs going into a monster high gain amp was the culprit.
I currently have a JB and Jazz fitted to my main Jackson. It's a vast improvement, especially on the TSL100. I've needed to re-add the tubescreamer to my board for solos and I'm not totally convinced on the JB pickup. I am waiting for a few pickups to arrive, namely an Alt 8.
My recent additions are a Jackson WR1 and Les Paul Custom. The Jackson came with an Invader which sounds great for rhythm on both the 6505+ and TSL100 but sucks out loud for lead tones. I'm not sure if it's a deal breaker or not, but I've ordered a used Jazz neck pickup to replace out the Full Shred in the neck with. But so far, the JB is much better and a vast improvement.
The Gibson has the stock pickups with proper 500k pots. So far this is solving most of the problems in terms of dynamics, clarity, etc.
I'm still playing with pickups but so far I am convinced that the lower output pickups sound vastly better especially with high gain amps. Let the amps do the work.
I used to run JCM800 and JCM900 amps when I first started gigging. To me, the EMGs really made those amps come alive with a minimum of effort. But as the 6505+ has tonnes more gain, I didn't really notice when I switched up.
Re: Output Level - How Do You Get Your Crunch?
By clarity I mean definition during leads with the higher gain channels, as in reacting to my technique, people being able to hear the difference between legato hammer pull of licks, and jack hammer alternate picked speed runs. That being said, I DO have a couple of JBs which are approximately DOUBLE the ouput of the PG+ I normally use, but also have this pickup because it is a tad bright.
Really more than anything it's a matter of taste, and works works best for the individual. For me however, I am using an old programmable tube preampo anyhow, so I can radically change my sound, and also make up for the pickup volume in many ways.
Here's the thing: If high output picups work for you and your rig, don't fix what isn't borken, and vice versay for the low to moderate ouput guys.
I prefer certain pickups like one other guy mentioned, for tone and less for output, but have found that what I like tends to be low to moderate, excepting the Full Shred, JB, and Custom Custom, which I dig for the tone more than for the output.
By clarity I mean definition during leads with the higher gain channels, as in reacting to my technique, people being able to hear the difference between legato hammer pull of licks, and jack hammer alternate picked speed runs. That being said, I DO have a couple of JBs which are approximately DOUBLE the ouput of the PG+ I normally use, but also have this pickup because it is a tad bright.
Really more than anything it's a matter of taste, and works works best for the individual. For me however, I am using an old programmable tube preampo anyhow, so I can radically change my sound, and also make up for the pickup volume in many ways.
Here's the thing: If high output picups work for you and your rig, don't fix what isn't borken, and vice versay for the low to moderate ouput guys.
I prefer certain pickups like one other guy mentioned, for tone and less for output, but have found that what I like tends to be low to moderate, excepting the Full Shred, JB, and Custom Custom, which I dig for the tone more than for the output.
Progbusters
New member
Re: Output Level - How Do You Get Your Crunch?
high with the low; or low with the high; midhumpy with the scooped; scooped with the middy and so on and so forth
high with the low; or low with the high; midhumpy with the scooped; scooped with the middy and so on and so forth
